Having transmigrated into the son of the Douluo Plane, not only had this new Hua Yuhao inherited the original Huo Yuhao's body, but also his fate and destiny.
For one chosen by the heavens, "smooth sailing" simply did not exist. In their lives, the absence of accidents was the greatest accident of all.
According to the plan, Yuhao had successfully led the spirit-hunting party to the region that should have been occupied by the Bighead Spirit Ape tribe.
His target this time was the tribe's leader, a Bighead Spirit Ape that had just broken through the thousand-year mark — perfect for his second spirit ring.
Though it would be a little taxing for his current body, with Skydream Iceworm's assistance and his now-improved physique, absorbing a thousand-year ring was well within reach.
However, the forest before them didn't quite match the information Skydream had previously gathered through its vast mental perception.
The jungle was eerily silent. No signs of movement. No trace of beasts. Only through his Eye of Truth could Yuhao discern faint, concealed tracks amid the undergrowth.
Something's off… Yuhao thought, narrowing his eyes. Bighead Spirit Apes are intelligent, but this kind of deliberate concealment isn't typical behavior for them. Has something changed here?
He gestured subtly to the others — stay alert.
Lie Yong's expression darkened. "This isn't right," he said grimly. "We've stepped into another spirit beast's territory. Be on guard — this one could be troublesome."
A wave of scorching Spirit Saint pressure burst forth from him. Even though Yuhao and the others weren't the target, the oppressive aura still made it hard to breathe.
As his fiery power rippled outward, the forest responded. Distant weak beasts fled in panic, while stronger ones released their auras in defiance.
Still, due to territorial instincts, the thousand-year and ten-thousand-year beasts deeper within did not cross boundaries.
Yuhao and the students all entered Martial Soul Possession, scanning their surroundings warily. Under the immense pressure, the hiding beasts began to stir.
High-pitched screeches echoed through the canopy — "Ji! Ji! Ji!" — as dozens of glowing eyes appeared among the branches.
Shapes moved between leaves — Bighead Spirit Apes, around thirty in number. Among them, several had visibly larger heads and stronger auras, hovering near the thousand-year level.
Lie Yong's expression turned grim. Flames rippled through his hair as he entered full Martial Soul Possession, transforming into a humanoid lion clad in molten armor — the Molten Flame Lion in its complete form.
From above, the canopy trembled under the movements of the apes. Thirty wasn't a large number, but for a group that included four first-year students, the situation was precarious.
Moreover, spiritual-type beasts were notoriously unpredictable — their attacks invisible, insidious, and deadly.
While Bighead Spirit Apes were considered auxiliary-type martial souls for humans, in the wild they were dangerous for an entirely different reason: unity.
Through their natural telepathic bond, they could share and amplify each other's mental power, allowing even a low-level group to overwhelm far stronger enemies.
Herbivorous by nature, they rarely provoked others, which made them a peaceful yet formidable species — difficult to prey upon and difficult to defeat.
But that same unity had a cost. Their brains, rich in mental energy, made them prized prey for solitary spiritual beasts seeking to replenish their own essence.
As a result, though Bighead Spirit Apes existed in numbers, few tribes ever grew large or strong.
Yet this tribe was different.
In the shadows, Yuhao's Eye of Truth picked up a fluctuation — a hidden creature among them whose spiritual structure was distinctly different, and far stronger.
Its soul power level hovered around a thousand years, but its spiritual strength exceeded normal limits — comparable even to ten-thousand-year beasts weak in mental power.
Wait... that's a Three-Eyed Demon Ape, Skydream's voice echoed sharply in Yuhao's mind. Strange… I never detected one of those in this area before.
And Bighead Spirit Apes and Three-Eyed Demon Apes aren't even from the same species. Why would it be here?
Yuhao's expression darkened. Could it have been drawn by your earlier psychic fluctuations?
Possibly… no, something's off, Skydream mused. This isn't a normal specimen — it's a mutant. It must've been driven out from the mixed region.
The Three-Eyed Demon Ape specializes in fear and mind control. I can feel it — its psychic frequency is unique. It's evolved toward domination-type control.
And it reeks of darkness… likely a corrupted or evil soul beast.
That would explain why this tribe of sixty now has barely half its number left. It's enslaving them.
Heh, looks like you're in for a nasty fight, boy. A mutant Demon Ape commanding a psychic army — not something you want to meet unprepared.
Yuhao's pupils contracted. The Demon Ape had perfectly masked its presence. Even Lie Yong hadn't sensed it.
The Soul Saint frowned, scanning the trees. Group-type spiritual beasts were already difficult, but something about this horde felt even more dangerous.
He turned to Yuhao. "Bighead Spirit Apes, huh? Think they're suitable for your second ring?"
Yuhao nodded cautiously. "Yes — it's one of my target species. But… I can tell the ones we see aren't the real leaders."
He pointed toward a patch of dense grass. "There's a faint spiritual fluctuation there — almost invisible under the others' mental field."
Lie Yong raised a brow. He wasn't adept in spiritual techniques, but as a Spirit Saint, his sheer soul power gave him a measure of resistance to psychic attacks.
Still, he couldn't sense what Yuhao described.
"Roar!" he bellowed, merging fully into his true form. His sixth soul ring blazed as a gigantic fiery lion materialized — his sixth ability, unleashed at once.
At the same time, his fifth soul ring shone, releasing a crimson soundwave that struck several of the strongest apes perched in the treetops.
Boom! The blast sent them crashing down, unconscious or gravely wounded.
The rest of the apes shrieked in rage and terror, hurling themselves recklessly toward the fiery lion projection.
But against a Soul Saint's sixth-ring attack, their efforts were meaningless. Their spiritual shields burst like soap bubbles the instant the flame wave hit.
Lie Yong's strategy was clear — cut off the head to collapse the body.
The apes' discipline revealed their weakness: somewhere, a commander was directing them.
If he could force that hidden leader to act, he could regain full control of the battle.
Dozens of apes fell within moments — burned, broken, or dead. But the remaining few suddenly unleashed a counterpulse of dark violet energy from the shadows, shattering the fiery lion construct mid-charge.
Yuhao felt a violent tremor in his spiritual sea.
Then Skydream's cold voice echoed:
"Hmph, that little monkey dares to target you? Fine — it's yours. Its age is only around eleven hundred years, but it'll suit you perfectly. With me here, absorb it boldly. I'll handle the rest. Later, I'll help you elevate every ring you have — ten thousand years each, guaranteed."
Yuhao frowned slightly. Not the time, old bug.
In the same instant, his hand flicked. Dozens of silver needles shot out, striking the other three students at key acupoints.
They dropped instantly — conscious but paralyzed, unable to move or control their limbs, their voices slurring incoherently.
"Teacher Lie," Yuhao said calmly, "the hidden one's trying to manipulate us with spiritual interference. I can't resist for long. Please — end this quickly."
Activating his Third-Level Spirit Circuit: Refraction, Yuhao's figure shimmered, his outline bending and flickering under the air's distortion.
The Bighead Spirit Apes howled in panic as their leader's mental control faltered, their attacks scattering in disarray.
The silent forest trembled once again — the calm before an even greater storm.
(End of Chapter)