"And I will never walk such a path."
Caelus murmured in his heart.
He and Huo Yuhao, though not on the same path, were destined to cross paths in this era of impending storms.
'This is a race.'
A faint but confident curve tugged at the corner of Caelus's mouth.
'A race against the child of destiny.'
Currently, he was far in the lead.
An eleven-year-old Rank 38 Soul Elder with a super Martial Soul, the Star Luo Imperial Family behind him, and the massive power of the Holy Spirit Cult in the shadows.
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao was just starting out, still working hard to enter Shrek Academy.
'And I will keep leading.'
Caelus's conviction was incredibly firm.
Even if Huo Yuhao was the favored one of this World's Luck, protected by a God King, he still had the confidence to win this race.
What of the child of destiny? What of the God King's schemes?
'My fate can only be written by myself.'
Caelus withdrew his gaze from the window, slowly closed his eyes, and began to meditate.
On a patch of grass near a stream at the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, a campfire crackled, and the aroma of fish filled the air.
Eleven-year-old Huo Yuhao, his face still holding a hint of daze and excitement after a miraculous encounter, nimbly flipped the fish he was roasting and carefully handed them to the blue-clad youth Bei Bei and the pretty purple-clad girl Tang Ya.
Not long ago, he had escaped a desperate situation, not only surviving miraculously but also fusing with a self-proclaimed Million Year Soul Beast, the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm, gaining an unprecedented million-year spirit ring and an unimaginably vast source of mental force.
Subsequently, he accepted Tang Ya's invitation to join the Tang Sect, which was once glorious but now declined, becoming Bei Bei's Junior Brother, and received a promise of admission to the Shrek Academy Outer Court without an exam through a Tang Sect quota.
At this moment, the youth's face beamed with longing for the future as he chatted and laughed warmly with Bei Bei and Tang Ya.
However, this warm scene, along with the previous earth-shattering energy fluctuations and the descent of Divine Sense, all fell perfectly into the eyes of several "onlookers" atop a towering ancient tree in the distance.
Leading them was a girl who appeared to be about eleven or twelve years old.
She wore a simple long silver dress, her figure beginning to show its grace. Her long silver hair flowed like moonlight over her shoulders, accentuating her exquisite and translucent face.
Most striking were her purple eyes, clear and translucent as if they held the birth and death of stars, yet carrying an indifference and coldness that looked down upon all living beings.
She stood there quietly, as if integrated with the entire forest, yet also as if transcending it.
Everything that had just happened—from the Fusion of the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm and Huo Yuhao to the quiet inhabitation of the Divine Sense fragment from another World that radiated a thick, contradictory Aura of death and holiness—was fully witnessed by her.
Beside her stood two figures with completely different but equally heart-palpitating Auras.
On the left was a middle-aged man with black hair and golden eyes, tall and burly with a resolute face. He radiated an Aura as heavy as a mountain and as majestic as an emperor; just by standing there, the surrounding air seemed to stagnate.
He was the ruler of the Star Dou Great Forest, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King—Di Tian.
On the right was an enchanting woman with black hair, a graceful figure, and a beautiful face, though her skin had an unnatural paleness. A faint Aura of death permeated her, making her out of place in this vibrant great forest.
She kept her head low and eyes downcast, even intentionally softening her breathing. She was exactly Spirit Kite Douluo, an Elder of Spirit Hall ten thousand years ago, who was resurrected by myriad karma true blood after death and transformed into a Nirvana Corpse.
At this moment, whether it was the majestic and overbearing Di Tian or Spirit Kite Douluo, both maintained absolute respect before this silver-haired girl, even carrying a hint of imperceptible awe.
Di Tian's golden eyes swept over the harmonious trio of Huo Yuhao in the distance, finally landing on the silver-haired girl. He spoke in a low voice with a metallic quality:
"Lord, that is the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm. I didn't expect that after his life Origin was sucked dry, he would still have the ability to escape and choose such a weak human... Should I..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear—whether to capture the Heavenly Dream Ice Worm back or eliminate the human youth.
The silver-haired girl addressed as "Lord"—the Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena—still gazed calmly at Huo Yuhao, as if examining an interesting object.
She shook her head slightly, her cool voice flowing like an icy spring:
"No need. That youth is favored by the plane's Luck. Striking him now would surely trigger a backlash from the plane's Luck and might even attract the attention of those existences in the God Realm. Now is not the time for us to reveal ourselves."
"Yes, Lord."
Di Tian responded in a deep voice and said no more.
He had no doubt about his Lord's judgment.
Meanwhile, Spirit Kite Douluo was trembling with fear, not even daring to breathe loudly, her heart already filled with bitterness.
She felt she was truly down on her Luck.
Back then, to escape from Yan Shaozhe and Man Yi, she had blindly rushed into the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest, only to run headfirst into this terrifying existence with black hair and golden eyes.
Having roamed the continent for many years and even having seen many experts ten thousand years ago, she had never felt such despairing pressure.
The opponent needed only one move—no, he hadn't even formally attacked; he had completely suppressed and captured her alive solely through his Aura.
Subsequently, she was brought to the side of that legendary Lake of Life, where the vitality was so overwhelming it was suffocating.
There, she saw a scene beyond imagination—including Di Tian who captured her, a total of seven terrifying Vicious Beasts radiating Auras that made her Soul tremble.
Compared to these existences, the two One Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Beast overlords who caused her fall ten thousand years ago were like docile house cats.
And what made her feel the most fear and disbelief was this silver-haired girl before her, who had transformed into human form and had a cultivation level of only a Soul Elder.
The Co-ruler of Soul Beasts, the true Dominator of the Star Dou Great Forest, the faith of all Soul Beasts.
Having died once, Spirit Kite Douluo cherished this hard-won second life more than anyone.
Before true supreme power, her bit of pride as a Titled Douluo had long been crushed to pieces, leaving only the purest awe and will to survive.
She carefully restrained all her Aura and thoughts, for fear of causing the slightest displeasure to this Lord.
"You all go back."
Gu Yuena withdrew her gaze from Huo Yuhao, an imperceptible flicker passing through the depths of her amethyst-like eyes.
"Lord, you... have you really decided to go to the human World yourself?"
Di Tian's voice was low, laced with worry.
"Your injuries are far from healed. Transforming into human form now, your strength is not even one percent of what it was. The human World is treacherous and cunning; even if those ants themselves cannot threaten you, if... if your existence is detected by the God Realm, that would be a true catastrophe."