At the edge of the vast Star Dou Forest, a blue-haired youth stood quietly, gazing at the dense forest known as one of the three great soul beast gathering grounds on Douluo Continent.
The forest looked stunning from afar, with vibrant foliage shimmering under the sunlight, but in Huo Yuhao's eyes, it was a beast waiting to devour the unwary.
This was no exaggeration. Star Dou Forest was home to countless powerful soul beasts—monsters that could easily kill anyone who entered unprepared and become their next meal.
Taking a deep breath, Huo Yuhao steadied his mind and silently swore, "Mother, I will become a great Soul Master and avenge you. I will make the White Tiger Duke's household regret what they've done, and win the recognition you deserve."
With determination burning in his heart, he stepped forward into the forest—into the place of countless dangers and opportunities.
Huo Yuhao was the third son of the White Tiger Duke of the Xingluo Empire. By right, he should have enjoyed the privileges of a noble child and a carefree life.
But his mother was only a servant in the duke's manor. Because of this, he never received the treatment he was entitled to.
Worse still, being an illegitimate son, he was despised and marginalized, especially by the duke's wife and her followers.
At the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony, Huo Yuhao failed to awaken the White Tiger Martial Soul, the hereditary spirit of the duke's family. Instead, he awoke a mutated spirit-type Martial Soul: the Spirit Eye.
If his innate spirit power had been high enough, the duke's wife wouldn't have dared openly persecute them. But the tests revealed his spirit power was only rank one—the lowest level a Spirit Master could have.
This was because, growing up, Huo Yuhao never ate well or drank well, his body barely able to withstand the mutation of his Martial Soul.
During this process, he suffered countless internal injuries, which kept his spirit power low.
This gave the duke's wife an excuse to slander Huo Yuhao and his mother as diseased, banishing them to a dilapidated shack on the manor's edge.
The White Tiger Duke himself was always at the empire's border fighting wars and never once returned home, unaware of his son's existence.
The thing that broke Huo Yuhao's heart most was his mother's death.
When he was eight, he accidentally bumped into his half-brother Dai Huabin. The boy's men beat Huo Yuhao badly.
His mother stepped in and took the beating herself, leaving her with lasting injuries.
Two years later, when Huo Yuhao was ten, his mother, Huo Yun'er, died from her frail condition.
On that day, Huo Yuhao swore to the heavens he would avenge her.
As if hearing his vow, a strange black pearl flew toward him and was swallowed by him.
In that instant, he saw a shadow of a black tiger flicker in his mind.
From then on, his body grew stronger, and his cultivation speed accelerated remarkably.
Every time he cultivated, a black whirlpool appeared inside his body, helping him absorb the surrounding spirit energy faster—though the spirit power had impurities.
But Huo Yuhao paid no mind to this, focused only on growing stronger to fulfill his vow.
Soon, he reached the rank of Tenth Level Spirit Master. One more spirit ring, and he would officially become a Soul Master.
Yet, he didn't leave the manor immediately. Instead, he spent time mastering his strengthened body before preparing to depart.
Once inside Star Dou Forest, Huo Yuhao began his search for a soul beast partner.
He met many soul beasts, but none were a perfect fit.
His Spirit Eye Martial Soul was rare and powerful, but suitable soul beasts were scarce.
Many spirit-type Soul Masters went their whole lives without bonding with an ideal beast, settling for what they could find.
After some time, Huo Yuhao came to a small creek and decided to catch some fish for food.
Using his Spirit Eye's extraordinary sight, he caught several large fish and prepared to roast them.
His technique was precise and focused—almost like a seasoned chef—even though he only had basic seasoning: salt.
The aroma was rich and inviting.
Just as he finished cooking, a clear, sweet voice called out, "It smells so good!"
Startled, Huo Yuhao looked toward the sound.
Along the creek, two youths approached.
Leading was a black-haired girl about fifteen, ponytail bouncing as she walked. She wore light blue spirit clothes and looked full of life.
Her eyes fixed eagerly on the roasted fish.
Behind her was a tall, slender boy with deep blue hair. Though young, his demeanor was calm and refined.
Both had noticed Huo Yuhao, but the boy's attention lingered more on the youth himself than the fish.
***
Huo Yuhao watched the girl's mouth water at the sight of the roasted fish. Smiling, he said, "You two want some? Help yourselves."
Without hesitation, the girl grabbed a fish and began eating eagerly. The boy behind her looked apologetic, as if embarrassed by his companion's boldness.
Huo Yuhao didn't mind. Before coming to Star Dou Forest, he had met many types of people. Though he couldn't claim to always see ill intentions at a glance, he had a good sense of who posed no threat.
These two clearly meant no harm, so sharing some food was no problem. If needed, he could always catch more fish.
Through conversation, he learned the girl was named Tang Ya, and the boy was Bei Bei. Like Huo Yuhao, they had come to Star Dou Forest to hunt soul beasts.
Noticing Huo Yuhao was also a Spirit Master, they invited him to team up with them on hunts.
But Huo Yuhao politely declined.
Sharing food was fine, but teaming up in the ruthless Douluo Continent was risky. Betrayal by strangers was common; unless one knew someone well, trusting them with your back was foolish.
After bidding farewell, Huo Yuhao continued his search for a suitable soul beast partner.
Yet after some time, no perfect match appeared.
Just as he considered venturing deeper—from the forest's edge toward the mixed zones—a sudden rustle caught his attention.
Four or five Wind Baboons appeared before him. Seeing them, Huo Yuhao knew he had trespassed into their territory.
He had no choice but to draw the White Tiger Dagger—an heirloom from his late mother—and fight.
If this were the original Huo Yuhao, even facing one Wind Baboon would be deadly. But after absorbing the strange black pearl, his physical strength had greatly improved. Even without spirit rings, his body could withstand their punches.
Of course, repeated hits would still injure him. But Huo Yuhao was not a brute-force fighter—his Spirit Eye Martial Soul granted him exceptional observation and prediction skills, letting him dodge many attacks.
The White Tiger Dagger was no ordinary weapon either: a level five close-combat spirit tool with a certain devouring property. Against Wind Baboons with only ten years of cultivation, it was more than enough.
Using his agility and skill, Huo Yuhao swiftly dispatched the baboons one by one.
But as he prepared to kill the last one, it let out a howl that pierced the air, causing Huo Yuhao unbearable pain.
Despite the agony, he didn't stop. The final Wind Baboon fell.
Looking at the fallen beasts, Huo Yuhao sighed. Soul beasts were truly formidable. Had he not absorbed that strange black pearl, he likely would have died here.
Suddenly, Huo Yuhao sensed something approaching.
He tried to retreat, but his energy was drained from fighting, and he couldn't escape far.
A black ape appeared—a towering figure over a meter tall.
What caught Huo Yuhao's eye was the golden flame-like fur tuft on its forehead. Its body was sleek and agile, covered in black fur that shimmered faintly with purple light. Its eyes gleamed with golden spiritual power.
Huo Yuhao had never seen this soul beast before, but recognizing it as part of the ape family—like the baboons he'd slain—he guessed the creature had come to avenge its subordinates.
He was right.
This was the Three-Eyed Demon Ape, a dual-element dark and spirit attribute soul beast.
Its spirit power allowed it to attack opponents' mental seas directly, and it was known for intelligence surpassing soul beasts of equal cultivation.
This particular ape had around four hundred years of cultivation—far beyond what the exhausted Huo Yuhao could handle alone.
There was only one option: run.
But would the ape let its subordinates' killer escape? Of course not.
A black light flashed from its third eye, and Huo Yuhao's head exploded with pain.
The ape struck, sending him flying tens of meters, crashing through a tree.
Huo Yuhao came to, ribs broken, body immobilized.
The ape's fist loomed, ready to finish him.
As death approached, memories of his mother flooded his mind—her helpless, sorrowful expression.
Anger and hatred flared within him.
He hadn't avenged her yet. He hadn't punished the hateful duke's wife, or the irresponsible man he called father.
He could not die here.
Responding to his rage, the black pearl inside him stirred.
Black veins appeared across his body, converging on his forehead into the character "王" — King.
He let out a roar—not human, but a fierce tiger's howl.
The Three-Eyed Demon Ape paused, sensing the rise of a top predator's bloodline—something that could mean death for him if he pressed on.
Though stronger and with overwhelming spirit power, the ape struggled to suppress the pressure.
Just as its fist smashed toward Huo Yuhao, the youth caught it with his bare hand.
The ape stumbled back, dizziness overtaking it as it realized its spirit power was being devoured.
Furious, it raised its other fist to strike, hoping to break free and flee.
But Huo Yuhao dodged and drove his dagger into the ape's third eye during its moment of hesitation.
The eye shattered, and a golden soul ring—the hundred-year ring—appeared before Huo Yuhao.
Calming down from his frenzy, Huo Yuhao stared at the dead soul beast in shock, hands stained red.
He had slain the Three-Eyed Demon Ape.
Though puzzled how he did it, he set the question aside and absorbed the soul ring.
This beast's spirit attribute made it a perfect fit for him.
Just as he began to imagine the bright future ahead, a voice whispered in his ear:
"Finally, a human with spirit attribute. Too bad I don't cry, or I'd be weeping buckets!"
At that moment, fate's wheel turned once more.