Ji Lin and Chi Yuan arrived at the outer edge of the Star Dou Forest, descending from the sky.
"Chi Yuan-sensei, wait here for me. Whatever you do, don't follow. There's nothing in the outer region that could threaten my life. But if you come with me, I'm afraid you'll scare off the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm. It's a million-year-old soul beast with spiritual attributes—you might not be able to hide from it."
Ji Lin was genuinely worried that Chi Yuan's presence would scare the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm away.
After separating from Chi Yuan, Ji Lin entered the outer region of the Star Dou Forest alone and began wandering around, waiting for the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm to appear.
By a small creek, Ji Lin spotted three people—two men and a woman—grilling fish by a campfire. If he was correct, these three should be Huo Yuhao, Tang Ya, and Bei Bei.
The boy, who looked about eleven or twelve years old, had a well-proportioned build. He wore simple, clean gray clothes. His short black hair was neat, and his handsome young face held a look of determination well beyond his years—this had to be Huo Yuhao. It was Ji Lin's first time seeing him.
Until now, Huo Yuhao had always lived within the Duke's Mansion and had never stepped outside, so Ji Lin had never had the chance to see the protagonist of the original story—the king of plot armor.
The girl, who looked around fifteen or sixteen, had long black hair tied into a ponytail that hung down her back. Dressed in a light blue outfit that accentuated her youthful figure, her phoenix-shaped eyes were big and lively, her high nose and nearly perfect oval face made her look stunning. Her pretty face was filled with delight as she stared intently at the grilled fish—this had to be Tang Ya.
Ji Lin was curious about the girl who managed to snatch Bei Bei away from Sister Le Xuan.
The young man beside Tang Ya gave off a scholarly aura. His handsome face bore a lazy, gentle smile—this was undoubtedly Bei Bei.
This was the same Bei Bei that Sister Le Xuan once liked. As such, he was sort of Ji Lin's half-rival in love, even if Bei Bei only saw Zhang Le Xuan as a sister or family.
Bei Bei noticed Ji Lin and looked over at him.
Tang Ya followed Bei Bei's gaze and saw Ji Lin too.
"Wow! What a handsome little guy!" she exclaimed, eyes sparkling.
"Ahem!"Bei Bei coughed twice, unable to hide his jealousy as he watched Tang Ya openly ogle the pretty boy.
Even Huo Yuhao glanced over curiously.
Ji Lin merely offered a warm smile and nodded lightly at the three as a greeting before turning and walking away. He had no intention of chatting or mooching food. Right now, the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm was more important—though he was admittedly curious to taste Huo Yuhao's grilled fish, which was apparently so delicious that everyone raved about it.
"Wow! His smile is so charming," Tang Ya exclaimed again.
Bei Bei grumbled, "He's already gone. Do you really have to keep staring? Is he that good-looking?"
"Bei Bei, are you jealous?" Tang Ya laughed playfully, looking at him directly.
"Isn't it tiring to always put on that dignified act?" she added, clearly teasing him on purpose with her exaggerated fangirling.
"That's called self-discipline, Xiao Ya," Bei Bei said, dark-faced.
Tang Ya's beautiful eyes widened. "What did you just call me?"
Bei Bei quickly raised both hands in mock surrender. "Alright, alright—Teacher Xiao Ya. Happy now?"
Tang Ya rolled her eyes at him and said, "That's more like it. Mind your status." Though she wasn't that old, her glance was so charming it made Bei Bei momentarily dazed.
Huo Yuhao, sitting nearby, didn't dare say a word and focused on grilling fish.
Meanwhile, Ji Lin continued wandering after distancing himself from the trio.
Just then, a powerful spiritual wave pulsed through the area, and a voice suddenly echoed in Ji Lin's mind.
"Finally! I've found a human with such strong spiritual power. If I could cry, I'd be in tears right now!"
Ji Lin was startled at first, then realized—it was the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm.
"You're finally here. I've been waiting forever," Ji Lin thought, now fully alert.
Knowing that the Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm would merge with him and copy his memories, Ji Lin stealthily used the feather of Feathered Dust to fabricate a set of false memories in his spiritual sea.
He didn't want the Ice Silk Worm to discover he was a transmigrator, so he did the same thing he did when exchanging memories with the Auspicious Beast.
This was the second feather from the seventh treasure chest—and his last one.
Suddenly, the ground beneath him trembled unexpectedly. About two meters ahead, cracks began to form in the earth. The cracks widened, forming deep crevices. Faint gold-white light glimmered from within them.
Ji Lin watched the crevice cautiously, ready to perform.
Chilling cold began to emanate from the cracks, and the temperature in the area dropped significantly. The cracked area expanded until it reached over five meters in diameter. At last, the gold-white glow revealed its source.
A round, chubby head emerged—it looked soft and plush, with a diameter of over a meter. The creature slowly wriggled its way out, over seven meters long.
Its entire body was jade-white, crystalline and flawless, completely clean despite emerging from the earth. Its skin shimmered with an internal glow, and a pair of golden eyes sparkled on its head. Most unique were the ten golden rings spaced evenly from the head to the tail.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," the voice said again in Ji Lin's mind. The enormous worm nodded gently and lowered its massive head, stopping about a meter in front of him. A faint fragrance wafted from its body.
Ji Lin pretended to be startled. "You're... talking to me?"
The giant worm nodded. "Of course! Have you been stunned by my beautiful, elegant body?"
Ji Lin's mouth twitched. This Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm is way too narcissistic.
"What do you want?" Ji Lin asked.
The worm said, "Let me introduce myself. I am the embodiment of heroism and justice, the pinnacle of wisdom and beauty, the king of all soul beasts, an unmatched legend who has cultivated for a million years and broken all longevity records on the Douluo Continent—I am Tianmeng the Ice Silk Worm. You may call me Brother Tianmeng!"
"A mi-million-year soul beast?"Ji Lin put on his best shocked face.
Tianmeng said proudly, "Aren't you amazed? Excited? You're the first human to see my glorious self in the flesh."
Ji Lin dazedly asked, "So what do you want to do?"
Tianmeng's voice turned solemn. "I want to become your soul ring—the first ever intelligent soul ring in Douluo history."
It turned its massive head warily toward the deeper forest before looking back at Ji Lin.
"I'm starting now, okay? Don't worry, I'll be gentle. I won't hurt you too much."