The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's speed far surpassed that of ordinary soul beasts.
It didn't take long before she carried Bai Chen into the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest.
That wasn't just because she ran fast. As the Emperor's Auspicious Beast, she could ignore territorial boundaries of powerful soul beasts and take the most direct route straight into the deepest area.
Once inside the core region, however, her pace noticeably slowed—perhaps from exhaustion.
At that moment, a crimson figure shot forward.
"Ruishou! Where did you run off to? And who is this human?!"
The newcomer had three enormous heads. Its body resembled a lion, entirely crimson. With its arrival came a wave of scorching heat.
It was none other than Chi King (Red King)—ranked eighth among the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts.
In Douluo II, all Ten Great Beasts possessed over 300,000 years of cultivation. Even the Ice Empress, ranked just above Red King, was close to 400,000 years.
By deduction, ten thousand years earlier, Red King's cultivation was certainly well above 300,000 years.
A true apex existence.
So… you let your Emperor's Auspicious Beast slip out again?
Bai Chen couldn't help but mentally compare Red King to Elder Xuan.
Actually, considering Red King got flattened instantly when facing Elder Xuan in later years—
Maybe he wasn't even as competent.
While Bai Chen inwardly roasted Red King's negligence, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion set him down and briefly explained the situation.
"Red King, go call Di Tian. I need to speak with him."
Red King gave Bai Chen a long, assessing look. All three heads nodded in unison before he departed.
Moments later—
The one Bai Chen sought arrived.
"Ruishou, Red King says you've encountered a human equal to you?"
A steady voice echoed.
From the darkness emerged a black-haired, golden-eyed young man. He did nothing extraordinary—yet an unmistakable aura of authority radiated from him.
He was the foremost of the Ten Great Beasts.
The future Beast God.
Di Tian.
In this era, humans had yet to fully explore Star Dou. They didn't even know of his existence.
"Yes," the Three-Eyed Golden Lion said, noticeably more relaxed upon seeing him.
"Di Tian, this human named Bai Chen—his martial soul is the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. With him beside me, my cultivation speed will increase like yours."
"Oh?"
Di Tian glanced at Bai Chen with interest.
"That's good news. It seems we'll need to nurture this fortunate human. Let him live as long as possible."
Bai Chen immediately understood.
This situation resembled the end of Douluo II, when Di Tian sought to prolong Huo Yuhao's life to preserve the fortune attached to him.
Now, Bai Chen benefited Star Dou in a similar way.
Extending his lifespan would not be difficult for Di Tian.
But Bai Chen had no intention of becoming a captive, human-shaped buff machine.
If he had been lucky enough to transmigrate—
He would see the world.
And frankly, he had already seen Star Dou's scenery plenty through the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's memories.
Fortunately—
He had leverage.
"Di Tian, how is the Iceworm you've imprisoned doing?"
—
The moment he spoke, Di Tian's gaze snapped sharply onto him.
Shock flashed across his golden eyes.
In this era, the core of Star Dou was a forbidden zone for humans.
The Iceworm hidden in its deepest region—
Should have been completely unknown to mankind.
Yet this child named it outright.
Facing that intense scrutiny, Bai Chen remained calm.
"I exist simultaneously across three different eras. The one speaking to you now is merely the earliest version of me. There are also versions of me ten thousand years and twenty thousand years in the future. All three share the same consciousness."
"So I know things no one of this era should."
"If you doubt me, ask Ruishou. She has just shared memories with me."
At the last sentence, Di Tian turned to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.
She nodded gravely.
Everything Bai Chen said was true.
This was precisely why Bai Chen wasn't nervous about memory sharing.
For others, memory exchange was risky.
For him?
It was useful.
He could attribute any "transmigrator knowledge" to his future selves instead.
For example, the Iceworm.
He knew about it from reading the novel in his past life—
But now, he could simply claim the information came from twenty thousand years later.
And conveniently, in the Douluo III era, the legend of the million-year Iceworm had become common knowledge.
"There is such a thing…" Di Tian murmured, disbelief evident.
Even for someone as experienced as him, Bai Chen was unprecedented.
Little did he know—
This was only the beginning.
"There's something more important," Bai Chen continued.
"In twenty thousand years, soul beasts will be on the verge of extinction by human hands."
Silence.
Again, Di Tian looked to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.
Again, she nodded heavily.
It was true.
Di Tian exhaled slowly.
Then he turned away.
"Come, Bai Chen. I will take you to meet a most honored existence."
Without waiting for a reply, he began walking deeper into Star Dou.
Bai Chen and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion exchanged a glance before following.
Though Di Tian hadn't specified whom they were going to meet—
Bai Chen already had a guess.
The matter he brought concerned the survival of the entire soul beast race.
If so—
There was only one true ruler of soul beasts.
The one currently recuperating.
The Silver Dragon King.