Douluo Continent: The World Shines with Stars

Chapter 36 Solo Journey

The Grand Elder looked at his grandson with concern, while the other four people who had been separated by the mist, along with the Soul Saint from the Xiao family, were knocked unconscious and left outside the door.

It's best if they don't know about the soul tools and soul bones inside. The Grand Elder doesn't want to kill them, otherwise Mingxi won't be able to explain it to the other families when they leave.

Xu Mingxi, who was deep in the illusion, was still in a mental storm. According to his thinking, the current situation was most likely caused by some kind of special soul tool.

But even though he guessed the reason, he didn't know how to solve it. As the Smoke Tiger crashed into him again, Xu Mingxi's face turned pale, and the Star Guardian appeared and disappeared. His soul power was almost exhausted.

As the Smoke Tiger lunged forward once more, the Star Guardian shattered. Xu Mingxi watched the monster getting closer and closer, and despair filled his heart. At that moment, he desperately wished someone could protect him.

Suddenly, the three members of the Chen family stood in front of Xu Mingxi, each blocking a smoke monster, but in the end, they were exhausted of their soul power, had their arms bitten off, and fell to the ground.

"No."

Xu Mingxi's teeth were clenched in fury. This was the first time he had ever seen someone die because of him. Why would they go to such lengths?

Yes, why would they protect themselves to the death instead of trying to escape? It doesn't make any sense.

These were just strangers he had just met. Although he had saved their sister, in the dog-eat-dog world of Douluo Continent, were there really people who were so grateful? There were three of them.

Xu Mingxi asked himself honestly, and he knew he could never be so open and honest with someone he had just met.

and many more.

Xu Mingxi suddenly looked up, as if she hadn't seen any starlight since entering the ruins.

Even though he could feel his soul power recovering and his first soul ring operating, he didn't see a single ray of starlight.

"This place...it can't be fake, can it?"

As the words fell, the illusion shattered. Xu Mingxi, who was lying on the ground, opened his eyes, looked at the three people lying around him, looked at himself who was completely unharmed, and felt the nearly depleted soul power in his body. He gave a helpless bitter smile.

I never expected it was all a lie. I hadn't even realized it until the end. If the three members of the Chen family hadn't acted strangely, I would have really died from exhaustion of my soul power.

"Mingxi, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Grandpa. That was just an illusion. Apart from the excessive consumption of my soul power, I didn't suffer any damage."

Xu Mingxi was helped up by her grandfather and sat up. Looking at the soul tool floating in the air, she had mixed feelings.

It felt as if I had been trapped in an illusion from the moment I stepped into the mist, and the monsters in the smoke seemed to be just a manifestation of my fear.

This dangerous illusion reminded him of the Soul Saint who would later give Tang San a soul bone gift package, a soul saint who could make people die in an invisible dream.

The three members of the Chen family remained unconscious for a long time. Just as their soul power was about to be exhausted, the First Elder took action and collected the soul tool and the soul bone inside.

As Chen Qingfeng watched the smoke wolf pounce on him, just as it was about to bite off his neck, he felt a sharp pain rush to his head and immediately lost consciousness.

When he woke up again, he found himself lying on the ground unharmed, with all the members of the adventure sitting next to him.

Aside from Xu Mingxi and the Grand Elder, no one knew that a soul tool and a soul bone had appeared here. Xu Mingxi also pretended to have a splitting headache. The mist in the depths of Jueyun Gorge dissipated, and the group searched the area, but apart from some gold soul coins and ordinary resources, they found nothing.

Seeing that the gibbon tribe had begun to expand its territory to the ruins, everyone could only adjust their state and rush out of Jueyun Gorge in one go. Only Yuan Qing, who was protected in the center of the group, looked at Xu Mingxi next to him thoughtfully, but he didn't say anything.

Back in Dongji City, news spread that everyone had narrowly escaped death, and the young master of the Xiao family also sent out a message.

They nearly died in the mist, but were saved by a mysterious man in black robes. It is highly likely that he also took the treasures deep within Jueyun Gorge.

The identity of the Grand Elder was only known to Yuan Qing; no one else knew it, and Yuan Qing wisely kept it a secret.

Xu Mingxi did not intend to stay in Dongji City for long; he had more important things to do now.

During his trip to the illusionary realm, he discovered that he had nothing but his talent, and that his privileged circumstances had fostered bad habits of laziness and dependence on others.

"Grandpa, have you heard of the Soul Hunter Mercenary Group? Send me to the Star Dou Great Forest, and you can go back to the Star Crown Sect."

The Grand Elder certainly knew about the Soul Hunter Mercenary Group. To put it bluntly, it was a group of strangers who lived on the edge of death, hunting soul beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest.

The most dangerous thing about this kind of team is not the soul beasts, but the mercenaries themselves. A single precious herb or a piece of soul bone can cause the entire mercenary group to fall apart.

The elder looked at Xu Mingxi, whose eyes were resolute, and the words of advice were on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't say them. He could only hold back his tears.

"Okay, I'll meet you outside the Star Dou Great Forest in three years."

Xu Mingxi left Dongji City alone and headed towards the Star Dou Great Forest. This time, he had no one to protect him and could only rely on himself.

The news that the Grand Elder had returned to the Star Crown Sect and that Xu Mingxi had left alone caused a huge uproar among the elders.

There were supporters and opponents, and some even suggested bringing Xu Mingxi back now, especially those who were promoted to the third rank with Xu Mingxi's help—they were practically pointing their fingers at him and cursing him.

"That's enough. This is Mingxi's own decision. In any case, now that she's made the choice, she has to keep going."

The sect leader directly stopped everyone's meaningless argument. How could he not be afraid that Xu Mingxi would perish in the Star Dou Great Forest? She was a titled Douluo, after all.

However, he also knew that the elders of the Star Crown Sect, including himself, were spoiling Xu Mingxi far too much.

That child, I don't know where he learned this bad habit, needs to rest for two days every five days, and is extremely prone to getting distracted when practicing.

Mingguang is already level 52. With his talent and the Star Summoning Soul Skill, it's really not right that he's only level 56 now.

The sect leader waved for the elders to leave, then sat alone in the main hall, deep in thought. In the darkness, only a sliver of light shone from the sect leader's desk.

The next day, the elders of the Star Crown Sect received an order: the Star Crown Sect would be closed for three years, and if Xu Mingxi could return alive, he would become the next sect leader.

(End of this chapter)