Volume 30, Chapter 369.2: Yuhao Exits Seclusion

In the dark underground room, one could not feel the passage of time. There was vat after vat of wine, which Huo Yuhao consumed to help his cultivation.

To devote more of his time to pure cultivation, he only ate a little bit of food every day, along with some nourishment pills the Academy provided him. He used all his remaining time for cultivation.

This method was extremely lonely. However, every time Huo Yuhao started to get frustrated, he only needed to recite two words to calm himself and get his focus back. They served as his source of motivation. The words were “Wang Dong’er”!

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Days passed, and Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect stayed peaceful.

In the blink of an eye, two months passed.

Shrek was not the only calm one. The entire continent was strangely calm.

After the Sun Moon Empire experienced so many changes, the entire continent appeared to have lost its will to fight. Every country was extremely peaceful. The original three countries of the Douluo Continent did not try to find those responsible from the Sun Moon Empire, and the Sun Moon Empire did nothing, either . Even the occasional border skirmishes disappeared in this period of time. Everything was eerily quiet.

The only significant thing that happened, which was expected by everyone, was the ascension of the Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire, Xu Tianran, to the throne. He became the new Emperor of the Sun Moon Empire. After he ascended the throne, he did not do anything significant, either. All he did was issue a few orders for the rebuilding of Radiant City. Other than that, he did nothing else.

In the eyes of the people, peace was a good thing. However, to those who were more discerning, this was just the calm before the storm. Those who knew Xu Tianran knew of his ambition. How could he be content with keeping a low profile?

The original three countries of the Douluo Continent continued to make their preparations. War would come at any moment. To them, any additional days they got would greatly help in their preparations.

Due to the difference in soul tool technology, they had completely lost the initiative. If they wanted to catch up to the Sun Moon Empire in terms of technology, they needed time!

It was under this political context that the Tang Sect was able to further expand its influence.

The Tang Sect was originally located at the outskirts of Shrek City, but it now managed to expand once more, occupying a significant plot of land in the western part of Shrek City. This expansion was because of the Soul Tool Hall.

Due to the development of the Tang Sect, Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect came to a further agreement. The Soul Tool Hall of the Tang Sect would be where the top graduates of Shrek Academy’s Soul Tool Department would go. They would be treated well and, coupled with personal instruction from the former Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy’s chief researcher, it was bound to attract many people. Shrek Academy’s Soul Tool Department made a name for itself through its cooperation with the Tang Sect.

Huge amounts of various types of ordinary and rare metals entered Shrek City, having been bought elsewhere at high prices. These were turned into soul tools, which were quietly shipped back out.

In just a span of two months, the Tang Sect gave the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Star Luo Empire three batches of soul tools, most of which were Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannons.

After careful testing, the Tang Sect decided to take even more orders. As Shrek Academy was the Tang Sect’s backer, the profits from the Soul Tool Hall benefitted both the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy. The Tang Sect in particular used the rare metals and gold soul coins obtained from selling soul tools to great effect, allowing the Soul Tool Hall to develop as rapidly as a rocket.

There was no doubting Xuan Ziwen’s abilities. He was not only the Hallmaster of the Tang Sect’s Soul Tool Hall, but also the Honorary Dean of Shrek Academy’s Soul Tool Department. Every week, he had to spend two days lecturing at Shrek Academy. As he brought with him the newest theories of soul engineering, as well as much technical expertise, Shrek Academy’s Soul Tool Department was able to develop at an astonishing pace. The original situation, where Shrek Academy was weak in terms of soul engineering and strong in terms of soul masters, was changing rapidly.

The original three countries of the Douluo Continent continued to send their elite students to study at Shrek Academy.

No matter their age or background, they would always be crucial talents. The development of Shrek Academy seemed strong and unstoppable.

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Shrek Academy, inner courtyard, Sea God’s Pavilion...

“How is everything?” Elder Xuan asked the elder standing next to him.

“It’s ready.”

These two words made Elder Xuan’s eyes lit up. He nodded slightly and said, “Alright, if that’s the case, let’s make our preparations. Inform the elders that we shall have a meeting at the Sea God’s Pavilion!”

“Yes.”

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Tang Sect...

Boom!

An explosion rang out. Nan Qiuqiu and Ye Guyi flew in opposite directions. The figure of the sword fanatic, Ji Juechen, could gradually be seen.

He had an ugly expression on his face, and his clothes were torn in many places. Only his gaze was sharp. One could see light flashing on his Judgment Sword.

Nan Qiuqiu stood there wheezing. Her eyes brimmed with excitement as she said, “Success, the experiment was a success!”

Ye Guyi gave her a thumbs-up. She was excited, too!

In the past two months, Ji Juechen was in both pain and joy. As a sword fanatic, he feared not having a regular opponent. However, over the past two months, he had found two people who were more burdensome than him, and that was these two beauties.

Nan Qiuqiu, in her attempt to save her mother, searched for him as a sparring partner every day. Ye Guyi was also a fanatic when it came to cultivation. The two of them went to Ji Juechen to spar almost every single day.

The difference in cultivation made him slightly hesitant about fighting them at first. However, the two of them used extreme methods to achieve their aims. They did not care whether he was willing or not. Whenever they saw him, they would attack him straightaway, as they knew that he would not actually hurt them.

In the end, in these two months, Nan Qiuqiu and Ye Guyi learned to coordinate extremely well with one another. In particular, they came up with a special joint attack, fusing the Holy Angel’s holy element with the Rouge Dragon’s Annihilation. While it was not a true martial soul fusion skill, it was close enough that it could be called one. Now, it was much harder for Ji Juechen to beat them. Once he lost his focus, they would take advantage of him.

Of course, both Nan Qiuqiu and Ye Guyi knew that this was because Ji Juechen had no intentions of killing them. If not, they would still be the losers. Even so, their improvement in the past two months was shocking. Nan Qiuqiu was very close to Rank 60, and she had accumulated a lot of fighting experience.

Ji Juechen shook his head helplessly. He looked at himself and walked away with his Judgment Sword.

Nan Qiuqiu made a fist and said, “We must beat him next time!”

Ye Guyi smiled and said, “Then you should hurry up and increase your soul power. Once you get your sixth soul ring and sixth soul skill, I think we’ll stand a chance.”

“What chance? I think the two of you are closer to death,” Xu Sanshi said lazily.

Nan Qiuqiu looked at him angrily and said, “Third elder brother, all you know how to do is douse cold water on us. Why are we closer to death?”

Xu Sanshi said, “Do you think the sword fanatic really can’t beat you? We’re the Tang Sect, and in terms of individual fighting prowess, even Bei Bei and I have to be wary of him. While the two of you have special martial souls, your foundations are weak. Ji Juechen’s strongest trait is that his sword intent is unstoppable. He does not dare to go all-out against you, as he cares about you. If your power improves even more, he’ll be forced to use all his strength. By that time, he may not be able to rein in his powers. Hence, aren’t you closer to death?”

Ye Guyi and Nan Qiuqiu looked at one another. Their expressions changed. Xu Sanshi was right. From the first moment they had attacked Ji Juechen, they had already had this notion in mind, but as they fought more and more, they gradually forgot about it.

An idea flashed in Ye Guyi’s mind as she smiled at Xu Sanshi.

She was already very beautiful. With that smile, she became even more attractive.

Xu Sanshi’s face froze. He took a few steps back as he folded his arms in front of his chest. “What do you want? Let me warn you, I have a woman waiting for me! Furthermore, I have a strong will. Don’t tempt me; if not, I’ll be a goner for sure!”

Nan Qiuqiu chuckled and said, “Who’s tempting you? Don’t dream. If not for the fact that Sister Nannan fell for you, with your appearance… Tsk!” As she said that, she waved her hand in front of her nose disrespectfully.

Ye Guyi chimed in, “That’s right. We don’t like you. Third elder brother, you see, you said that the increase in our strength would make Ji Juechen an unsuitable sparring partner for us. Hence, do you think we should change that?”

An uneasy feeling rose in Xu Sanshi’s heart as he said with a straight face, “I have something to do.” As he said that, he turned to leave.

“Don’t go! Watch me!” Ye Guyi and Nan Qiuqiu, the two little devils, dominated the Sparring Arena. Ye Guyi’s feet lightly touched the surface of the ground as she flew into the sky. Her angel wings extended outward, and a golden blade of light sliced toward Xu Sanshi.

Nan Qiuqiu was not idle, either. She pointed out with her right hand, a pink ray of the Light of Annihilation appeared behind Xu Sanshi. Mysteriously, when it was less than two meters away from him, it blew up and turned into countless strands of light that sought to cover him.

“Not fair!” Xu Sanshi shouted. He stumbled as he took a few steps forward.

Weirdly, with his odd footwork, he was able to the dodge the sharpest part of Ye Guyi’s Holy Sword as he dodged to the side.