Star Dou Forest.
"Next stop, the Heaven Dou Empire. Time to visit Xue Jie and scheme for some immortal herbs. I wonder if those herbs could benefit me now?"
With this thought, Yun Chuan transformed into a streak of white light, soaring toward the forest's edge.
Thanks to his pseudo-light-speed, he could travel hundreds of meters in a second—not true light, but still far beyond any normal means—soon reaching the forest's outskirts.
Though he raced past quickly, something caught his eye in the woods below.
"Huh? Was that two people being chased by a soul beast?" He halted, landing lightly on a tree. Listening closely, he could still make out chaos several hundred meters away.
"Ah, might as well check. One human should help another if able, and it won't take more than a moment." With that, he turned into a beam of light and shot toward the commotion.
——
A massive firebird soared overhead, casting fireballs with every flap. Each ball exploded below with blazing heat.
In the woods below, a man in his sixties, surrounded by six soul rings (yellow, yellow, purple, black, black, black), desperately flew through the forest with a pair of wings and a young girl—around eleven or twelve—in his arms.
His name was Ye Congling, a member of the Agile Clan's Bai family, possessing a Pointed-tail Swift Hawk martial soul. While his surname was Ye (his mother married out of the family), his innate martial soul led the clan to recognize him despite his name.
The girl wasn't his granddaughter but the clan's little princess. He was tasked with leading her to obtain her second soul ring after reaching the twentieth level—a routine, easy task for a Soul Emperor in the forest's outer zones.
Unfortunately, disaster struck:
Against the odds, they'd run into a ten-thousand-year Fiery Bird in the outskirts. The huge flaming bird seemed crazed, attacking like they'd stolen its most precious treasure.
Ye Congling realized this was no coincidence—their Hawk martial souls were natural enemies of the Fiery Bird, and a turf war likely drove the beast out here. Seeing the two of them, it went berserk.
The Agile Clan was famed for speed, not battle.
Their Hawk martial soul made them escape artists, not fighters; against a ten-thousand-year flying soul beast, they had only flight as an option—except the Fiery Bird was fast too.
No matter how hard he tried, Ye's main advantage was neutralized.
With fire whirling behind and the Fiery Bird closing in, Ye Congling despaired.
But at least he could try to save the little princess.
"Xiang Xiang, run!"
With his last strength, he tossed the girl forward and spun to face the rampaging flamebeast.
"Uncle Ye!"
The girl stabilized herself midair with her own wings and looked back fearfully, reluctant to abandon him.
"Go!"
Ye Congling didn't look back, unleashing his soul rings and charging the beast.
But Swift Hawk martial souls lacked attack power, and the Fiery Bird burned him with its flames, barely hindered.
"GO!!"
Ye Congling's last roar was followed by a blinding fireball. He screamed in agony, and then the Fiery Bird scooped him whole into its beak and swallowed him with a single gulp.
At that moment, a streak of white flashed over the sky.
"Uncle Ye!"
It all unfolded too fast. The girl could only watch as her family's elder vanished into the bird's maw.
The Fiery Bird, having eaten Ye Congling, immediately set its fierce gaze on the grief-stricken girl, swooping down with open beak to swallow her too.
As it closed in—
A flash of white light swept past.
The little princess's silhouette vanished from her spot, spirited away at the last second.
(End of Chapter 102)