Unlock Kamen Riders in Douluo's Way

In the soul beast forest, a terrain of twisted trees and hidden dangers, a young man and woman fled in terror. The sun dipped below the horizon, casting long, distorted shadows that danced like mocking specters around them. With each passing moment, the light faded, blurring the already treacherous path. The girl, her breath ragged, stumbled, her foot catching on a gnarled root hidden beneath a layer of decaying leaves. She pitched forward, sprawling onto the forest floor.

The boy, his face etched with worry, skidded to a halt, extending a hand. "Are… are you alright?" he gasped, his voice strained.

She shook her head, her eyes wide with a fear that transcended the immediate pain. "Why did we have to encounter such a thing?" Her voice was a mere whisper, laced with despair.

A rustling sound from behind spurred them into action. Like startled birds, they scrambled to their feet and resumed their desperate flight. Exhaustion gnawed at their limbs, their lungs burned with each breath, but stopping was not an option. To stop meant to be caught, and to be caught meant a fate far worse than death—to become like their fallen companions, hollow shells devoid of life and spirit.

Unbeknownst to them, the black shadows pursuing them could have overtaken them at any moment. Their relentless pursuit was not born of necessity but of cruelty. They prolonged the chase, savoring the terror of their prey, relishing the slow depletion of their strength. It was a perverse game, designed to maximize their twisted pleasure.

They were not hunted by beasts of the forest, but by something far more sinister: a band of evil soul masters.

These depraved individuals practiced a dark and forbidden art, a technique that allowed them to steal the power of other soul masters, leaving their victims empty and lifeless. The most efficient way to fuel their dark practice was to target weaker soul masters, easy prey with limited abilities. They were careful to avoid powerful opponents, knowing that a misstep could lead to their own demise.

"Just a little further, run a little further, and your strength will be mine," Jess, the leader of the group, muttered, his blood-red eyes gleaming with avarice as he watched the two figures stumble through the undergrowth.

"Hey, boss, can you leave some for us this time?" one of his followers whined.

"Yeah, you hogged four last time," another chimed in, their voices laced with resentment.

Jess rolled his eyes, feigning exasperation. "Alright, alright, I get it. I'll let you have the boy. He has a stronger foundation. The girl is mine."

A cheer erupted from the group, their voices echoing through the trees like the laughter of demons. The sound sent a fresh wave of terror through the fleeing pair.

"I… I can't go on," the girl gasped, her legs finally giving out beneath her. "Brother, you… you go. At least one of us should escape."

The boy looked back at the rapidly approaching figures, his face a mask of exhaustion and resignation. He sank to his knees beside her, shaking his head. "It's no use. They'll hunt me down, no matter where I run. I'd rather stay with you, Junior Sister. At least we won't be alone."

Tears welled in the girl's eyes as she understood his words. She nodded, her voice trembling. "I understand, Brother. If we're going to die anyway, let's not give these monsters the satisfaction. Let's end it ourselves."

The boy's eyes burned with determination. "Alright, let's go together, Junior Sister. Please forgive me."

Simultaneously, they channeled the last vestiges of their soul power, their bodies glowing faintly as their martial souls manifested: twin swords, shimmering in the dim light.

Jess, witnessing their intent, snarled, his face contorted with fury. "They're trying to kill themselves! Don't let them! Prey doesn't get to decide its own fate! Stop them!"

"Yes, Boss!" his followers roared, unleashing their soul rings. A barrage of attacks hurtled toward the doomed pair, each strike designed to interrupt their suicide attempt. While the attacks wouldn't kill them outright, they would inflict grievous wounds, leaving them helpless and at the mercy of the evil soul masters. But for these depraved individuals, the suffering of their prey was merely a prelude to their own twisted gratification.

The boy and girl were simply outmatched. Before they could plunge their swords into each other's hearts, they were overwhelmed by the onslaught. A wave of force slammed into them, throwing them backward and engulfing them in a cloud of dust.

Jess and his followers surged forward, but the dust cloud obscured their vision. He lashed out, striking the head of a nearby follower. "Damn it! You idiots! Too much power! What if you killed them? That would be a waste!"

"Boss, look!" another follower exclaimed, his voice laced with confusion. "What is that?"

A strange sound filled the air, a metallic clicking and scraping. As the dust began to settle, they saw that the young couple had vanished. In their place was a swirling mass of silver coins, the source of the unsettling noise.

"What… what is this?"

"Coins?"

"Could it be… the Soul Masters Guild?"

The mention of the Soul Masters Guild sent a chill through the group. Jess's face darkened. He realized that someone had intervened, and that the couple was likely hidden within the swirling coins. These were the prey he had spent half the day chasing. He couldn't let them slip away now.

He unleashed his martial soul, a chain-like weapon that snaked from his palm. Four spirit rings—white, yellow, yellow, and purple—illuminated the forest floor. His fourth ring pulsed with power as he activated his soul skill. The chain split into numerous tendrils, each tipped with a razor-sharp point, and lunged toward the pile of coins.

"Trying to be clever?" he sneered. "Fourth Soul Skill: Chain Hell!"

But as the chains pierced the cloud of coins, they were deflected by a hand, seemingly formed from the coins themselves. The hand emerged from the swirling mass, revealing a blade-like extension on its wrist. A cold, feminine voice echoed through the forest.

"Found them. Humans with evil auras… and such strong desires."

A green light flickered within the mass of coins, and with a sudden surge, the coins coalesced, rushing toward the light. Arms, legs, and a torso took shape, until a humanoid figure stood before them. The green light intensified, revealing a bizarre creature, its body a disturbing fusion of human and insect.

The figure was undeniably female, with insectile wings fluttering on her back. Her body was a patchwork of textures: bone-like white surfaces interspersed with sections of green carapace. Flexible antennae sprouted from her head, and her face was dominated by the multifaceted eyes of an insect. A bone-like blade, nearly half a meter long, extended from each wrist, glinting ominously in the fading light. She resembled nothing so much as a praying mantis given human form.

"Boss… what kind of soul beast is that?" one of the followers stammered, his voice trembling.

They had seen humanoid soul beasts before, but never anything so unsettling. What truly terrified them was the creature's voice. Soul beasts that could speak were rare, and always powerful.

Jess felt a knot of dread tighten in his stomach. He noticed the unconscious couple lying peacefully behind the mantis-like figure. It was clear that this strange being had rescued them.

"Don't panic," he barked, trying to mask his fear. "Just because it can talk doesn't mean it's a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. If it was, we'd already be dead. It's probably a human, using some kind of… spirit armor or something. Everyone, prepare to fight!"

But even as he spoke, the mantis-like figure vanished, dissolving once more into a swirling mass of coins. In the blink of an eye, she reappeared, her blade-like hands gripping the neck of one of his followers.

"Ugh! Boss, help me!" the man choked out, his eyes wide with terror.

The mantis slowly brought her face closer to his. "Let me see what your desire looks like," she whispered.

A strange light emanated from her eyes, and a bizarre scene unfolded. A hollow cavity appeared on the man's forehead, and with a swift motion, the Mantis thrust a silver coin into the opening. Then, she released him.

"What's wrong? What did she do to you?" Jess demanded, his voice laced with alarm. The scene had shaken him. Cutting a hole in someone's forehead and stuffing a coin inside… it defied all logic.

The man, his face pale with confusion, frantically patted his body, finding no immediate sign of injury. He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when…

"Boss, I don't seem to… Ugh! Uh…"

His body began to convulse violently. A black hole erupted in his chest, and a hand wrapped in decaying cloth emerged, followed by an entire figure—a mummy-like creature, swathed in tattered bandages.

"What is that thing?!" the man screamed, collapsing to the ground, his eyes fixed on the horrifying figure that had crawled out of his own chest.

The Mantis watched impassively. "Don't panic. That's just your desire. Look at it closely. Everything it does is what you want."

As if drawn by an irresistible force, the mummy lurched forward, its gaze fixed on the other members of the group.

"Ugh… woo… woo…"

It pounced on one of the terrified men, tackling him to the ground.

"Ah! Get off me! Let me go! Ughhhhh!"

Like someone sinking into quicksand, the man was quickly absorbed into the mummy's body. The cloth-wrapped figure twitched and shuddered, then regurgitated the man's body onto the ground.

He was lifeless, his skin ashen, his eyes vacant—another mummy, identical to the creature that had emerged from his chest.

"Ah, so your desire is to devour power? How simple, how predictable," the Mantis said, her voice devoid of emotion.

The remaining members of the group, their faces contorted with horror, desperately attacked the cloth-wrapped monster, but their blows seemed to have no effect. It was as if the creature felt no pain. It lunged again, and another man was consumed, another mummy added to their ranks.

But this time, something changed. Heat radiated from the mummy's body, and the tattered cloth began to crumble and fall away, revealing another mantis-like creature beneath. This one, however, was different. It possessed a human face, its features twisted into a grotesque parody of humanity.

"They've hatched," the Mantis said, her voice barely a whisper. "Now… let's kill them."

"Yes," the human-faced mantis replied, its voice a chilling echo of its predecessor.

Unlike the lumbering, mindless mummy, the human-faced mantis moved with purpose and precision, its attacks swift and deadly.

"Run! Get out of here!" Jess screamed, his bravado gone, replaced by sheer terror. He turned and fled, his followers scrambling to keep pace. The hunters had become the hunted, the pursuers now the pursued.

The Mantis watched as they scattered, then glanced back at the unconscious couple, her expression softening slightly. "My lord, they are safe. As for the others…"

The screams of his companions echoed through the forest, driving Jess onward. He didn't dare look back, his mind consumed by a single thought: survival. He ran until his lungs burned and his legs threatened to give out, until the screams faded into silence. Only then did he dare to stop, his body trembling with fear.

But even as he caught his breath, a new sound reached his ears: footsteps, approaching from the front. He whirled around, ready to flee again, but saw only a lone figure, a human dressed in ordinary clothes.

The sight of another human brought a fleeting sense of relief. He had never thought he would be so grateful to see a stranger in the depths of the Soul Beast Forest.

"Hey! There… there are monsters chasing us! Powerful ones! Join me, let's escape together!"

"Monsters?" The figure's voice dripped with anger and sarcasm. "The monster is already here, isn't it?"

"What?" Jess looked around wildly, but saw nothing but trees and shadows. He was on the verge of snapping. "Are you kidding me?"

"Kidding you? No, no, no," the figure said, drawing closer.

Jess finally noticed that the figure was a young man, no older than twenty. He wore a white felt hat that obscured his face, and a strange red belt with a slot on his waist.

The young man raised a finger, pointing it at Jess. "Aren't you the monster? The one who has devoured so many young lives? Am I right… evil soul master?"

The youth's words sent a chill down Jess' spine. "Who are you? From the Soul Masters Guild?"

The youth slowly raised his head, revealing eyes burning with rage. In the same movement, he produced a black-and-purple cuboid object, emblazoned with a white skull.

"Who am I? I am the one who buries evil."

He gently pressed a button on the device.

[SKULL!]

Then, he slowly removed the white felt hat from his head.

"Now… count up your sins! Henshin!"

***

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Advance chapters are in my P@|r3on - Najicablitz