Doulou Dalu 24

After eliminating the vicious man, the soul beasts controlled by the Black Sky Fox quickly dispersed. Lin Fan hurried back and found Liu Erlong, Ye Keke, and Shui Yue'er resting against a tree. Their faces were pale, and they looked extremely weak.

Tang Yiran quickly retrieved some food and drinks from her soul guide and handed them to the group. Her soul guide was similar to Tang San's Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlit Night, appearing small but capable of storing a vast amount of items.

Lin Fan observed the soul guide with a hint of envy. Such technology didn't exist on Earth. How was it made?

"Lin Fan, you've been exhausted these past two days. Eat something," Tang Yiran said, passing him a bottled drink and a snack wrapped in plastic.

Lin Fan took a sip of the drink—it tasted somewhat like Fanta. The dried meat snack also reminded him of food from Earth. The Douluo Continent was a strange mix of modern elements and ancient traditions, much like in the anime.

Liu Erlong, after drinking some water, suddenly recalled something and asked, "Teacher, are you feeling better? You were poisoned earlier."

Tang Yiran glanced at Lin Fan and reassured her, "I'm fine now, thanks to Xiaofan. The cat he saved from the Human-Faced Demon Spider happened to know a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast with detoxification abilities. I went with Xiaofan, and now my body is completely healed."

Liu Erlong sighed in relief. "That's great, teacher! I didn't expect a kitten to know a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast that can detoxify. And it's intelligent, too..."

Indeed, many soul beasts over ten thousand years old possessed intelligence comparable to humans.

Tang Yiran turned to the three girls. "Erlong, how did you manage these past two days? And how did you run into that strange man?"

Liu Erlong hesitated before replying, glancing at Lin Fan. "I was worried about you, Teacher. We waited for a whole day, but you didn't return, so we decided to follow the path Xiaofan left. That's when we encountered that man. Although his soul power wasn't high, he could control soul beasts. We didn't realize it at first and tried to fight him, only to be trapped for hours by the soul beasts he summoned."

Lin Fan's curiosity was piqued. "Sister Yiran, what kind of martial spirit allows someone to control soul beasts? That ability is incredibly powerful, especially in the Star Dou Forest."

Tang Yiran thought for a moment. "It's the Black Sky Fox spirit. As far as I know, only the Black Sky Fox family possesses the ability to confuse and control soul beasts. However, their spirit power rarely exceeds level 70. After the empire began capturing and taming soul beasts in the forests, the Black Sky Fox family disappeared. Now, it seems they may have joined the Demon Sect."

"The Demon Sect?" Lin Fan frowned. "Teacher, how powerful is this sect? Why don't the Spirit Hall or your Haotian Sect take action against them?"

This force wasn't mentioned in the original novel, so Lin Fan had no prior knowledge of it. He was curious about how it would eventually be destroyed more than a decade later.

Tang Yiran explained calmly, "The Demon Sect isn't as powerful as the Spirit Hall, but the Spirit Hall allows them to exist. Their members remain anonymous, and they have no fixed headquarters. Most of their disciples come from various soul master families and academies. They operate in secrecy, taking on assassination tasks in places outside the empire's jurisdiction, like the Star Dou Forest. Any crimes they commit are attributed to the Demon Sect."

She continued, "The empire has arrested many Demon Sect disciples, only to find that some of them were students from prestigious soul master academies. Most of them only knew they had received a token from a contact and were granted the freedom to kill or accept missions in exchange for rewards."

Lin Fan pondered for a moment. "I see. That means unless Devouring Douluo and his core subordinates are eliminated, the Demon Sect will never truly disappear."

"Exactly." Tang Yiran nodded. "Even if Devouring Douluo was exposed, few on the continent could challenge him. What makes him even more dangerous is his ability to absorb the soul power of others to strengthen himself. The Spirit Hall turns a blind eye to his existence because a chaotic empire benefits them. Meanwhile, the elders of the Haotian Sect have long distanced themselves from worldly affairs, only intervening to protect the sect. My second brother, Tang Hao, wants to eradicate the Demon Sect, but he has never been able to locate Devouring Douluo."

After listening to Tang Yiran, Lin Fan understood. If the Spirit Hall refused to act, then the Demon Sect's downfall could only be caused by Tang Hao or powerful figures like Bone Douluo and Sword Douluo.

Once they had rested, Lin Fan and Liu Erlong left the dangerous Star Dou Great Forest.

---

Back at Haotian Sect

Lin Fan had gained significant experience during his time in the Star Dou Great Forest. After returning to the Haotian Sect dormitory, he immediately focused on cultivation. Soon, his soul power level broke through to level 32.

Thanks to his previous lucky draw rewards from Ling Er, he now had two more lucky draw opportunities. In addition to special triggers, he would receive a draw every time he advanced past a major level.

"I should exchange for the King's Crystal first," Lin Fan muttered to himself.

Sitting on his bed, he opened the King's Mall in his mind, scanning through the skills before selecting Han Xin's ultimate ability—Invincible National Master.

Lin Fan urgently needed to enhance his combat effectiveness, and this skill was the most useful at the moment. The other available skills belonged to figures like Nezha, Taiyi, and Guiguzi, which were less suited for direct combat.

"Congratulations, Master. You have successfully exchanged the King's Crystal and obtained the skill Unparalleled in the Country."

Lin Fan quickly checked the skill's description.

Unparalleled in the Country (Enhanced Edition):

Originating from King of Glory, this skill delivers eight powerful physical strikes to all enemies within range over three seconds.

Knocks back all targets twice.

During activation, the user enters an absolute dominance state, becoming immune to all control and debuffs while reducing incoming damage by 20%.

(Damage reduction applies to all types of damage, including true damage. However, it does not stack with similar effects from other skills.)

Lin Fan was satisfied. Though the damage reduction was slightly lower than in the game, it could still mitigate god-level attacks. The immunity to control and debuffs was also crucial, protecting him from poisons, paralysis, and other hindrances.

"This skill isn't as strong as Li Bai's Blue Lotus Sword Song for single-target damage, but it's great for group battles. I wonder when I'll get Li Bai's skill… It'll be amazing once it's upgraded," Lin Fan mused.

---

An Unexpected Invitation

A week passed since Lin Fan returned from the Star Dou Forest. His plans to focus on training were interrupted when a maid from Tang Yiran's household informed him that his teacher wanted to see him.

That afternoon, as he walked to Tang Yiran's courtyard, he couldn't help but feel nervous. Remembering the affectionate moment they shared in the Star Dou Forest, he wondered what she wanted.

Upon arrival, he saw Tang Yiran watering her flowers. The courtyard was filled with vibrant blooms.

"You're here, Xiaofan. Come inside," she called out.

"What... what do you need me for?" Lin Fan hesitated.

Tang Yiran rolled her eyes, grabbed his hand, and pulled him onto the couch. "What are you so scared of? Sit down."

Once he was seated, she got straight to the point. "Xiaofan, do you want to participate in the upcoming Soul Master Elite Competition?"