It was a strange story. These two little bears ate enough meat and began to sleep, and they only woke up the next morning. They went to look for Huo Yuhao when they woke up, and climbed all over him as each one hugged one of his legs and just wouldn’t let go. Their eyes that were like yellow beans rolling around in their sockets, and they were as stubborn as could be.
Everybody thought that these two little bears treated Huo Yuhao like their father. Huo Yuhao had no choice but to take responsibility for taking care of them, and he became the temporary “bear nanny”. He carried a bear in each arm, but it was a little inconvenient even though it wasn’t tiring. How could carrying two little bears compare to holding Wang Dong’er’s hand?
The little bears had black fur at the start, but their fur was already tinged with dark golden colors. They were extremely strong, but they didn’t do anything at all when they were in Huo Yuhao’s embrace. They were meaty and pudgy, and it didn’t feel that bad to carry them around.
Their luck finally turned for the better as they ventured deeper into the Great Star Dou Forest. They met the occasional soul beast on their journey in, some relatively powerful. However, most of them weren’t aggressive, and Huo Yuhao directed everyone to deliberately evade those soul beasts with Spiritual Detection. They didn’t encounter much trouble along the way.
—
They travelled for six hours, and it was almost midday before everyone stopped to rest.
Wang Qiu’er was still at the front, and her face had become a little pale. She was still quite a ways away from her peak condition.
Wang Dong’er took the initiative to pass her the rations that Huo Yuhao and she had brought. Wang Qiu’er didn’t reject it, and she had a few bites before she began to rest on the ground with her legs crossed.
Huo Yuhao remained on the spot and scanned the vegetation around him as a contemplative look appeared in his eyes.
“What can you see?” Cai Mei’er came beside him with a smile on her face.
Huo Yuhao answered, “The vegetation here is denser than before. Furthermore, I can tell that it is quite old, far more primitive than the vegetation outside. This place is truly uninhabited and untainted by humans! If I’m not wrong, we should be extremely close to the Great Star Dou Forest’s Core Region. Am I right?”
Cai Mei’er nodded approvingly and said, “Yes, we are nearing the Core Region’s outer areas. We will be heading inside the Core Region if we move forward, the Great Star Dou Forest’s most dangerous region. The fearsome beasts residing within the Slaughtering Grounds will occasionally roam the Core Region, and that’s why everyone has to be as careful as you guys can be. Qiu’er is doing a good job leading the way, and we are moving faster than I thought. We will reach the Core Region within two hours. Look at this Snakedragon Orchid, it’s at least a few thousand years old, and it definitely won’t appear in the relatively deeper areas. The reason for that is because low-tier soul beasts are very drawn to the Snakedragon Orchid, and they will all definitely be eaten. The fact that they’re still around in these parts proves that nobody here needs them, while the soul beasts that need them don’t dare to come into this region.”
Everyone except for Wang Qiu’er took turns resting and standing guard after they finished their meals. They rested for an especially long time, as their subsequent journey would be even harder than before. Everyone took about an hour to return to their peak condition before Cai Mei’er gave the order to continue.
—
The vegetation became denser and more obvious the deeper they went. Because of the towering ancient trees, some of the canopies were so compact that it felt like nighttime, while the life energy in the air became conspicuously thicker. Huo Yuhao could clearly feel that the energy of Heaven and Earth was vaster here; any soul master would boost their cultivation to the best possible state if they could cultivate in this place for a sufficient period of time. It was a pity that nobody chose this area to cultivate, as it was simply too dangerous.
Wang Qiu’er began to slow down even more than before. She scanned the plants and vegetation around her from time to time, as if she were looking for something.
Huo Yuhao hugged the two little bears as he raised Spiritual Detection to the largest possible area without using his Eye of Destiny.
“Woo, woo!” One of the small bears rubbed itself against his chest and moaned as if it were trying to be sassy. It was sleeping extremely soundly.
Huo Yuhao was a little exasperated with these two fellows. He was almost convinced that they shouldn’t be Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bears, but pigs.
During their midday rest, the two bears finished the same amount of food as everyone else combined. Fortunately, the company had brought along the Wolf-Ape’s meat that had been processed properly for the bears. The two bears climbed unglamorously all over Huo Yuhao once they finished their meal, and started drooling as they fell sound asleep again. It felt as if they were trying to rely on Huo Yuhao as much as they could. It was fortunate that their saliva didn’t smell strange, or not even Wang Dong’er would want to come near him.
Huo Yuhao had been observing their transformations this whole time. He had to admit that it wasn’t just luck that Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bears reached the apex of the soul beast hierarchy.
These two bears were born not too long ago, but their rate of growth outstripped that of humans. They began to take longer and more drawn-out breaths after just one day, and managed to open their eyes, while their strength increased continuously. Furthermore, the immense life energy in their bodies nourished their bodies like a spouting geyser.
According to Shrek Academy’s records, Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bears grew up the fastest during their first year. They would grow to about two meters tall after their first year, and would possess fearsome fighting strength. They would enter a plateau in growth afterwards, and their growth speed would be normal. However, they were complete carnivores, and their abilities would be boosted in tandem with the strength of the soul beasts they consumed.
A Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear with three thousand years of cultivation was often not even a thousand years old, because it relied on consuming other soul beasts to boost its own strength. Naturally, the prerequisite was that they didn’t meet any soul beasts more powerful than they were, as there were hardly any mighty soul beasts that would just let them grow up.
Huo Yuhao hadn’t thought about how he was going to settle these two fellows. He was probably going to let them live in Shrek Academy, and perhaps they could even become Shrek Academy’s secret weapons. Of course, that meant they had to be obedient enough.
The two bears slept even better and more deeply than before once they officially entered the Core Region. If their parents had been alive, this would have been the place where they should have resided. They were definitely more comfortable in this place, and these fellow’s life energies were greatly boosted as they were baptized by the Great Star Dou Forest’s Core Region and the ample life energy contained within.
There were far fewer soul beasts in the Core Region, compared to the Hybrid Region. The soul beasts that could inhabit the Core Region were almost all top-tier ones, and most of these soul beasts either lived alone or with a small family. These soul beasts were typically formidable and arrogant at the same time, and hardly any would choose to live in a group.
Several relatively powerful soul beasts would mark their own territories within the Core Region, and both humans and soul beasts that dared to enter their territory would be deemed enemies and assaulted instantly.
This was the reason why most soul beasts rarely entered the Core Region unless they believed they were powerful enough, as they could easily find themselves in fatal trouble.
Wang Qiu’er continued in for roughly an hour before she switched directions. She didn’t move deeper into the Core Region anymore, and started moving horizontally.
The area of the Core Region was far smaller than the Hybrid Region. With this company’s abilities, they wouldn’t even need half a day to reach the Slaughtering Grounds if they ran with all they had.
This was naturally just a hypothetical situation, and would only happen in theory. The humans that dared to try this all became part of the forest’s nutrients.
A deep and angry roar rang out in the distance. Wang Qiu’er immediately halted in her tracks and listened intently.
Huo Yuhao’s Spiritual Detection had yet to reach where this roar came from, so nobody could see anything through it.
A bright chirp followed immediately afterward. This chirp was a lot sharper and shriller than the previous roar.
Huo Yuhao did a quick calculation and said, “Fifteen degrees to the left in front of us. They’re about four to five kilometers away.”
The two soul beasts’ roaring and chirping became more frequent and frustrated as he spoke.
A look of delight came over Wang Qiu’er’s face. “We’re lucky! I think we’ve found what we’re looking for. The soul beast making those shrill chirping sounds is our target. I am confident that my ears haven’t failed me, and I also believe that it’s in conflict with another extremely formidable soul beast. This opportunity is just too advantageous for us.”
Zhang Lexuan turned around and looked at Cai Mei’er. The team’s leadership naturally shifted to her with a Title Duoluo around in the company.
Cai Mei’er said, “Let’s not be hasty, we will keep our distance for now. Their battle has yet to begin. We will wait for a while longer so that we don’t get caught in the fray.”
She walked in front of the company as she spoke while her eyes closed into a squint in the direction of those sounds, and she began to listen intently.
Boom… The battle had finally begun, and the vigorous explosion could still be clearly heard even though it came from over four kilometers away. What was strange was that this sound didn’t trigger any hysteria or panic in the area around them. The soul beasts that could live within the Core Region were not the kind to scurry away in fright.
Boom, boom, boom… A series of deep rumbles could be heard.
Huo Yuhao glanced at Wang Qiu’er, who wasn’t far from his position. Huo Yuhao knew that he could reach that distance with his Spiritual Detection if he fused his martial soul with Wang Qiu’er’s martial soul, and if he also used his Eye of Destiny.
