Chapter 3: Beneath the Celestial Crown

The Starry Forest spanned a vast area, its terrain intricate and teeming with spirit beasts. Only soul masters in need of soul rings dared to venture into its depths.

Xue Yuan had never been here before. The surrounding vegetation and trees all looked identical. She stumbled forward, a long trail of black blood marking her path.

In a daze, several ten-year spirit beasts suddenly leapt from the grass. Unable to evade in time, Xue Yuan fell onto a rocky shore. Her legs struggled but she couldn’t stand.

Supporting herself with her upper body, she grabbed a stone from the shore and hurled it fiercely at the snarling ten-year beasts.

“Get lost!”

Struck by the stone, the beasts scattered but did not leave. Instead, they circled nearby, coldly watching Xue Yuan. As long as she drew breath, they could feast on her once she died.

Gasping weakly on the rocky shore, her fingers still clutching the stone tightly, Xue Yuan glanced back at the trail of blood she left behind.

No matter how far she ran, as long as the blood remained, the man would catch up.

Biting her lip, Xue Yuan forced herself to stand. Her gaze scanned the surroundings until it settled on the rushing stream not far from the shore. She clenched her teeth.

She stripped off the formal dress and cloak she had worn before, leaving only a simple garment. Taking a deep breath, she crawled slowly to the water’s edge but hesitated, staring at the cold, rushing current.

“Jump in.”

A hollow voice suddenly whispered in her ear. Startled, Xue Yuan turned toward the source.

A translucent figure appeared beside her, speaking nervously and urging,

“Jump in. I will take you to someone who can protect your life!”

Xue Yuan recognized the face instantly—hatred filled her eyes. She grabbed a stone from the riverbank and hurled it fiercely at the apparition, shouting,

“Xue Qinghe! You still want to harm me!”

“Yuan’er, I truly am Xue Qinghe!”

The soul bore Xue Qinghe’s face but looked no older than nine. He floated anxiously before Xue Yuan, every word firm and resolute:

“Believe me or not, A Ming and Xuebeng risked their lives to protect you. Even if this is a death trap, you must hold on until the last second. Xue Yuan, jump in! Come with me!”

As the spirit Xue Qinghe’s voice faded, Xue Yuan’s grip on the stone loosened then tightened again. In a moment of resolve, she took a deep breath, slipped into the stream, and was soon swept away from sight.

Shortly after Xue Yuan disappeared into the water, the recently arrived Soul Douluo followed the blood trail. Seeing the blood vanish at the stream’s edge, he exploded with rage, unleashing his soul power to crush the nearby ten-year beasts into pulp.

---

“Damn it! If it weren’t for that brat risking his life to stop me…”

But at the next moment, sensing the water’s temperature, the Soul Douluo sneered mockingly.

“Hmph, a bit clever after all, but…”

“Pampered little princess, how long can your precious body survive in this water?”

---

Several days later.

In the southwest of the Tiandou Empire, Fassno Province, within a mountain tavern in Notting City.

A group of men in coarse cloth gathered, drinking and discussing eagerly.

“Did you hear? Something major happened on the day of the national ceremony!”

“Apparently, the young princess’s martial soul malfunctioned? Several people died on the spot, even the Snow Night Emperor was seriously wounded.”

At another table, others scoffed and retorted,

“What young princess? She’s just a spy!”

“Exactly. The Crown Prince already said it. Xue Yuan was initially found not to have inherited the Tiandou’s Swan Martial Soul and tried to pass off as a mutant martial soul. On national ceremony day, her true identity was revealed, and she released poison gas to kill witnesses!”

Someone else sneered,

“How can someone so young be so vicious?”

“Luckily, the Crown Prince is blessed with great fortune. Not only was he unscathed, but he showed no favoritism at all. Look, even in this small backwater, there’s a wanted notice for Xue Yuan. She’s trapped now.”

“Did you hear her bounty is one million gold soul coins?”

“What do we care? Every expert above Soul Sect level in Tiandou City has the mission to capture Xue Yuan. Just today I saw several Soul Saints patrolling nearby.”

The group buzzed with excitement, already dreaming of the wealth they’d gain from capturing Xue Yuan.

On the other side of the tavern, a scruffy middle-aged man slowly rose, carrying two jugs of murky wine. He walked out and headed toward his shabby hut in Saint Soul Village.

The village road was nearly empty. As the man ambled along, a child suddenly dashed from around a corner, colliding straight into him.

The man quickly lifted the wine jugs to protect them, then lowered his gaze to the child clutching his leg tightly.

Silver hair, childlike, blue eyes—an exact match to the wanted poster.

Suppressing the impulse to shout “One million gold soul coins,” he called the child by name:

“Princess Xue Yuan.”

The child swayed unsteadily, struggling to raise her eyes. Clutching his pants, she whispered hoarsely in her last moments before fainting,

“Your Majesty Haotian… please… save me…”

---

“This is why you brought that unknown sister home?”

Tang San squatted beside the only bed in their shabby hut, looking at the girl lying there. He turned and looked at his father, who was hammering iron with one hand and holding a wine jug in the other, helplessly asking,

“We’re out of rice, and there’s no medicine. She’s badly hurt and might die. Digging a grave is hard work.”

“Don’t worry, she’s not so easy to die.”

Tang Hao wielded his hammer casually, striking the iron block before him.

For some unknown reason, the young girl’s body was terrifyingly resilient. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to run across half of Tiandou, poisoned and all, to reach here.

Tang Hao had secretly investigated and suspected her martial soul had been protecting her body all along. That was the only reason she had survived until now.

This was beyond what a single Soul Bird beast martial soul could do.

There must be another martial soul hidden beneath the dominant Soul Bird. Now that the Soul Bird martial soul was broken, this other soul dared to emerge and possess Xue Yuan’s body.

Moreover, Tang Hao admitted he was curious. He had been hiding in this remote mountain village, yet this little girl had found him with precision—and even called his name.

Tang Hao stopped his work, looked at the girl whose breathing was gradually stabilizing, pondered for a moment, then stood.

“Go cook some porridge. Our family might have a new member soon.”