The Star Dou Great Forest was alive with chaos.
A handsome young boy darted between the towering trees, his breath heavy, his steps desperate.
Behind him, a horde of wind baboons shrieked savagely as they gave chase.
"Tsk… this never ends! I can't keep running like this," Tang Wulin muttered under his breath, frustration flashing in his eyes.
Cornered, he had no choice. With a sharp breath, rings of white spirit energy circled around him, glowing brightly.
From his palms, countless blue vines streaked with golden light shot forth like living serpents, wrapping around the wind baboons in an instant.
The hunters suddenly became the hunted.
The baboons screeched in surprise, their wild eyes filled with fear as the vines tightened, binding them mercilessly.
A powerful force surged through the plants, lifting the beasts high into the air.
Golden scales rippled across Tang Wulin's hands as he clenched his fists and slammed the creatures to the ground.
"Bang!"
The impact echoed like thunder. The baboons writhed helplessly, their cries silenced as the force dragged them down. Several weaker ones didn't even survive the first strike.
Breathing hard, Tang Wulin leaned against a nearby tree. A faint light glimmered from his white spirit rings as he exhaled a long sigh.
"Binding so many beasts at once… it's still too much for me."
He was only nine years old—yet not an ordinary boy. Tang Wulin had come from ten thousand years in the future, after breaking the first seal of the Golden Dragon King.
But before he could even prepare for the upcoming first-grade promotion tournament, space itself had warped and swallowed him whole, pulling him into this era.
It was Old Tang who saved him. At the cost of his own slumber, Old Tang had used the turbulence of time and space to protect Tang Wulin, anchoring him in this world.
Now, he found himself in the Great Star Dou Forest of ten thousand years ago.
And yet, instead of answers, danger had greeted him first.
"If Old Tang hadn't loosened the second seal for me… I'd be dead by now." Wulin's voice trembled slightly as he looked at the corpses of the wind baboons.
It was only thanks to that borrowed power that he could crush them so decisively. But the cost was heavy—the timeline for absorbing the second seal had shortened drastically, from six years to six months. A terrifying pressure loomed over him.
Still, there was hope. Before sleeping, Old Tang had told him the rare herbs required to overcome each seal. Without that knowledge, Wulin would have been utterly lost.
After catching his breath, he stood up. His expression hardened as he finished off the remaining baboons one by one.
"To show mercy to them… is to be cruel to myself."
With the threat cleared, Wulin turned back the way he came.
Old Tang had told him the cause of the distortion: Huo Yuhao, the Spirit Ice Douluo, founder of the Spirit Pagoda. Tang Wulin had always admired his legendary figure, and now, he was told to find him, to build a bond with him, and together, revive the Tang Sect.
Excitement burned in Wulin's chest at the thought. To meet the legend himself—it felt unreal.
But when he finally located his target, his steps faltered.
Beneath a tree, instead of the heroic figure he imagined, lay a petite young girl.
"…Did Old Tang… make a mistake?" Tang Wulin blinked in confusion.
The girl's delicate features, long eyelashes, and soft, peaceful expression made her look more like a doll than a warrior. Could this fragile figure truly have anything to do with Huo Yuhao?
He cautiously stepped closer, bending down to take a better look.
Adorable. That was the only word in his mind.
But just as his thoughts wavered, the girl's eyelashes fluttered. Slowly, her eyes opened, revealing a pure innocence that seemed to light up the world around her.
Tang Wulin froze.
Before she opened her eyes, she was simply pretty. But now—now her gaze struck his heart like lightning. For the first time, he felt his composure slip.
In his mind, only Na'er could rival such beauty.
"…Uh… who are you?" the girl asked softly, her clear eyes blinking at him.
Tang Wulin was left speechless. His heart thudded in his chest.
The girl tilted her head, confused by his silence. Then she waved her hand playfully in front of his face.
"Little brother, are you okay?"
"I-I'm fine!" Wulin snapped back to his senses, stumbling a step back as his cheeks grew hot.
"My name is Tang Wulin… I'm nine years old."
The girl smiled warmly. "I'm Huo Yutong, eleven years old. Wulin, are you alone? It's very dangerous in this forest."
"…Aren't you alone too?" Wulin asked.
Huo Yutong gave an awkward smile, quickly brushing the question aside.
"My situation is… a little special. Anyway, this forest is no place for children. Do you need me to take you out?"
Tang Wulin hesitated. He didn't want to trouble her.
"Wouldn't that be too much trouble for you?"
Huo Yutong shook her head gently, her smile serene.
"Not at all. I came here for my spirit rings, and now that I've obtained them, I was preparing to leave anyway. If you come with me, we can look out for each other."
Relief washed over him, though confusion lingered in his heart.
Yutong… Huo Yutong. She isn't Huo Yuhao, but her name can't be a coincidence. Just what is her connection to him?
Before he could think further, his stomach growled loudly.
"Grrr~"
His face flushed red under Yutong's amused gaze.
Before I uncover the truth… I guess I need to fill my stomach first…
Read 2 weeks ahead at
[email protected]/Horizons685
support me guy's....
(-End of this chapter)