Douluo Dalu: Starting With Tom Cat

"Oh? A fox girl, huh."

As Hu Liena released her Martial Soul, her long hair turned fiery red, and a fluffy tail sprouted from her back. A wave of enchantment spread outward from her.

A black halo surged into Hu Liena's body, flooding every cell within her.

At this moment, everyone's eyes turned toward her.

Even Yue Guan and Gui Mei looked worried. This was a soul ring far beyond her level—only because she had insisted did they reluctantly agree.

"Please let nothing go wrong..." Yue Guan murmured.

Hu Liena wasn't just someone he had watched grow up—she was also the personal disciple of the Pope, Bibi Dong. Whether from public or private interests, he didn't want any harm to come to her.

Shen An was surprised. If even a Titled Douluo was this concerned, then this girl's background was far from ordinary.

As time went on, Hu Liena's aura steadily rose until it reached a threshold. Her face contorted in pain.

The more energy she absorbed, the more severe her pain became.

The surrounding people grew anxious but didn't dare speak. Instead, they cast warning glances at Shen An, afraid he might do something unpredictable.

Meanwhile, Tom and Jerry were lying nearby—after having eaten both a poisonous fruit and a toxic mushroom, they looked miserable.

A strange energy spread outward from Hu Liena.

"Ahhh!" she let out a scream. It was a soul shock from the beast—she had overestimated herself.

She might've been able to absorb a soul ring a thousand or two thousand years older than her level allowed, but a soul beast beyond four thousand years was far beyond her control.

"It's over… if something happens to Nana, the Pope will never forgive us." Yue Guan's face was ashen.

Though Gui Mei's face was hidden, his shifting black shadow betrayed his inner turmoil.

As for Yan and Xie Yue, there was no need to mention it—one was hopelessly infatuated with Hu Liena, the other her older brother. Both trembled with anxiety.

Tom pointed at Hu Liena and looked at Shen An, as if asking, "She looks like she's in a lot of pain?"

"When a Soul Master absorbs a ten-thousand-year soul ring, they suffer soul shock from the dying beast. If they can't endure it, they become brain-dead," Shen An explained.

Tom and Jerry gasped and covered their mouths. That was terrifying—brain-dead!?

Though mischievous and troublesome, the two were kind at heart.

Soul shock… did that mean they could try astral projection to help her?

The two exchanged a glance, confirming they had the same idea—rescue her.

They walked up to Hu Liena, but were immediately enveloped by the auras of Gui Mei and Yue Guan.

Now of all times, these two dared to stir trouble?

Just then, Shen An softly said, "Please wait, seniors. They won't disturb her. Perhaps… there's still hope."

"You think just because you say so, it won't cause trouble? If anything happens to Nana, I'll hold you personally responsible," Yan growled, his voice low and angry.

Hu Liena's condition had turned him into a powder keg.

Shen An responded coldly, "Then let's see how exactly you plan to hold me responsible."

He might value his kung fu headband and Ultra Suit, but if he kept letting people walk over him, what good were those trump cards?

Xie Yue tried to grab Tom and Jerry, not wanting Hu Liena disturbed in any way.

"Wait~" Gui Mei's ethereal voice stopped him.

He had sensed no malice from the cat and mouse. In fact, their earlier behavior had left a deep impression.

Maybe… just maybe, there was hope. However slim, he couldn't help but cling to it.

Everyone turned their gaze toward Tom and Jerry.

The two circled around Hu Liena, then stared at each other. They had experience with out-of-body travel—but how exactly did one force it to happen?

Gui Mei felt a stab of disappointment. So it was just curiosity after all. Desperate times call for desperate measures, he thought. I can't believe I pinned hopes on this strange cat and mouse.

But in the next second, Tom and Jerry did something that stunned everyone.

They started choking each other by the neck, their faces turning visibly purple. Then, with their necks twisted, they both collapsed—dead.

What the…!?

Everyone but Shen An was shocked. What the hell? Weren't they a team? Why were they killing each other!?

And then, the unbelievable happened.

Even Yue Guan and Gui Mei rubbed their eyes in disbelief.

Two ghostly apparitions floated up from Tom and Jerry's bodies and jumped onto Hu Liena—then vanished.

Gui Mei fell silent.

He himself had once died as a child. By a twist of fate, his soul had reattached to a body and awakened his Martial Soul.

In a way, his soul was his Martial Soul, and he himself was a living dead man.

Could these two soul beasts be the same? Their souls remain in the world even after death? Gui Mei thought.

As Tom and Jerry's spirits entered Hu Liena, the strange energy that had been raging began to calm. Even Hu Liena's aura grew steady.

Everyone inhaled sharply—even Yan, who had just threatened Shen An, fell into silence.

Was this… self-sacrifice?

These two little guys had just given up their lives for a girl they barely met?

Inside her mind, Hu Liena felt her consciousness being bombarded. Her soul was on the verge of collapse.

Regret filled her heart—she never should have been so arrogant, trying to absorb a soul ring this far above her level.

But then, the mental shock began to subside. And to her amazement, three figures appeared in the darkness of her mind.

She recognized them all.

The cat and mouse she had just seen… and the Crimson Charm Fox she had killed. All three were miniature and translucent.

Am I hallucinating? Or has the shock already shattered my sanity? she wondered.

Then, the cat and mouse charged at the fox.

Next thing she knew, the fox was thrashing them—the fox punched the cat, stomped the mouse, utterly dominant.

But Tom and Jerry weren't the kind to just take a beating.

Tom pulled out a golf club, and Jerry produced a brick.

With weapons in hand, they turned the tide. The Crimson Charm Fox grew more and more transparent.

Back in reality, a black soul ring began to take shape above Hu Liena, joining her two yellow and two purple rings.

As dusk fell, Hu Liena slowly opened her eyes—she had become a Soul King. Her fifth ring: 16,000 years.

"Young man… you're Li Feiyu, right? The Spirit Hall will always remember your friendship. As for the deaths of these two soul beasts, we'll make sure you're well compensated," Yue Guan said solemnly.

Tom and Jerry's "corpses" twitched—their ears flicked.

What the heck? Did someone just curse us dead!?