Sniff* Sniff*
"....I'm sorry." Zhu Mei Lan said, wiping off her tears.
"For what? On the contrary, I feel like I'm the one who should be apologizing." Huo Yuhao calmly stated, sitting by her side but remained a bit distant to give her space.
He kept his gaze forward, allowing her to gather herself without feeling his eyes on her
It was quite ironic. The mastermind behind the explosion that manipulated her brother into blowing himself up before her and the rest of her family was sitting beside her calmly, while also comforting her.
Huo Yuhao wonders what kind of expression she would've made if she knew.
Zhu Mei Lan sniffed, her fingers still trembling slightly as she wiped away her tears. "Apologize? You? Why would you need to apologize? Honestly, I should be the one apologizing for showing such a mess of myself."
She shook her head, still processing the surreal situation of confiding in Huo Yuhao—a relative stranger and, unbeknownst to her, the very one responsible for the catastrophe she was mourning.
Huo Yuhao watched her out of the corner of his eye, feeling a pang of guilt that he carefully masked with his usual calm.
But he made his choice, and he would stick by it—knowing full well of the consequences he brought.
"No need to apologize," he replied softly, his voice steady. "Sometimes the strongest thing you can do is allow yourself to feel. Holding everything in can… tear you apart." He spoke from his own experience, from the countless times he'd held in pain and resentment, locking them away to push forward.
For the sake of vengeance...
Zhu Mei Lan glanced at him, studying his calm expression. "You talk like you've been through this before," she murmured. "Well, you certainly went through a lot since we last met..." she quietly asked, staring at his white long hair and missing left arm.
Huo Yuhao wryly smiled. "It's a long story."
Zhu Mei Lan sighed, "Well unfortunately, I don't have the time to listen to it all. But.... I'm glad I got to talk to you right now."
She giggled. "Hehe. I just don't know why, but I feel a sort of connection towards you, ever since I first met you."
"Ah, but don't get me wrong. I didn't fall in love with you or anything, although you do look quite handsome, but I feel a sort of...kinship towards you."
She let out a deep sigh, her gaze thoughtful as she studied his face. "I feel like I've known you for all my life."
Huo Yuhao's smile softened, though a trace of sadness lingered in his eyes. "Kinship....yeah, I understand. Sometimes we find that bond with people who've been through things we can't fully put into words. People who carry similar scars."
For a fleeting moment, he wonders if he had met her in his childhood, what if he had bonded with his half-sister....would things have gone differently?
Zhu Mei Lan's eyes lingered on him, a soft smile playing at her lips. "Thank you, Yuhao. I never thought I'd feel this....comforted after everything that happened."
She gave a light laugh, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "Guess I needed this more than I thought."
Huo Yuhao nodded, keeping his expression warm and composed. "Anytime, Mei Lan. Sometimes just being able to talk things out can make things a little easier to carry."
They sat in silence for a moment, both staring out at the lively streets and festive crowds around them.
Despite the turmoil that lingered in their lives, there was a strange peace in this shared moment.
"Goodbye....Yuhao. I hope we see each other again."
"I hope we do, Mei Lan. Till then..."
Huo Yuhao waved his hand as Zhu Mei Lan walked away, blending into the bustling crowd, her figure growing smaller until she finally disappeared into the sea of people.
As he watched her go, Huo Yuhao muttered, "Please don't hate me too much for what I will do in the future."
With a final glance at the spot where she had disappeared, Huo Yuhao turned away, a quiet resolve settling over him.
Star Luo City slowly gained its peace after a few days since the tournament ended.
The prize ceremony wasn't made public, but it was quite grand: the prizes were top-quality — 100million gold soul coins and 4 soul bones!
It was supposed to be only 3 soul bones—but because of Huo Yuhao's contribution for stopping that Evil Soul Master, and also feeling guilt-tripped for the loss of his left arm since the Ice Jade Scorpion Left Arm Bone was the royal family's gift to him, they offered him another soul bone in compensation.
Not wanting to pass such an opportunity, Huo Yuhao looked through the imperial treasury and got himself a ten-thousand year old Hellfire Devil Gorilla Left Arm Soul Bone.
Why would he get a left arm soul bone when he didn't have a left arm anymore? Simple, he was going to craft a prosthetic soul tool from the soul bone.
When the Star Luo Emperor, Xu Jiawei, heard about it, his face quickly turned pale white and let out a choke for a moment before composing himself.
That was a rare ten-thousand year old soul bone! And it was from a Hellfire Devil Gorilla, one of the most rare soul beasts with the strength and literal firepower to go toe-to-toe against a Titan Giant Ape of similar cultivation.
Such a soul bone couldn't be measured using money anymore for it brings an exponential increase of physical strength to the user and an increase of the user's fire affinity and comprehension of the fire element—some even said that could help one with the fire element reach the level of Ultimate Fire!
Of course, it was just exaggerated rumors, or else the royal family would've hid the soul bone much more closely....
Nonetheless, that just shows how valuable the soul bone Huo Yuhao had picked. And to craft it into a soul tool, losing some of its power and effectiveness?
Even a Titled Douluo wouldn't be able to keep their cool and would forcibly take the soul bone away from Huo Yuhao.
Elder Xuan only took a day to make the round trip between Star Luo City and Shrek Academy, he took a bit longer than last time because he was more relaxed about it.
When he arrived, he was flabbergasted at first, learning that the tournament had ended in such a way. But he quickly accepted it and instructed everyone to pack up and return to Shrek Academy.
After Huo Yuhao and the others changed their attires, without alerting any Star Luo officials, they followed Elder Xuan out of the city, and it was there that he took out flying-type soul tools for everyone.
He then led everyone personally just like the previous time, using his soul power to protect them, and they used their flying-type soul tools to fly away.
They were finally returning to Shrek Academy!
.....
"You lost such an important item?!"
Crack*!
Medical goods were thrown onto the floor as a 40-something year old man looked absolutely furious.
He was rather short with a robust build, with a flowing lock of long reddish-brown hair that draped behind his head, and this made his short and thick neck even more obscure. He wasn't even one-and-a-half meters tall, but his girth was definitely over a meter-and-a-half. He placed his hands behind his back, and there was a flowing black robe embroidered with golden patterns covering his bulbous tummy.
This was Jing Hongchen, the youngest Class 9 Soul Engineer of the Sun Moon Empire, the Hall Master of the Illustrious Virtue Hall, the Grand Advisor of the Sun Moon Empire and also the Dean of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. He was also the grandfather of Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.
"I-I'm sorry, Hall Master...." An injured Elder Ma, who had no top and revealed his bulging muscles and incredibly scarred body—which looked like burn marks as purple patches marred parts of his skin.
He bowed his head deeply from his hospital bed, his face twisted with a mixture of shame and frustration. He would've even kneeled down, just so he could get Jing Hongchen's forgiveness if he could!
After that disastrous escort mission, which led to the deaths of almost all their operatives' lives, Elder Ma was the only lucky soul to be found alive by reinforcements after several hours of silence.
Elder Ma would've been thankful for his survival, if he didn't end up under the scrutiny of his boss.
The deaths of important soul engineers, combatants, and the lost of the God Sealing Altar that contained the fetus of the reincarnated soul beast!
Jing Hongchen gritted his teeth and almost snapped at him, but he quickly calmed down. "No. The blame doesn't fall solely onto you. Clearly you did your best on protecting the item from getting into the hands of our enemies."
"Y-Yes, Hall Master..." Elder Ma inwardly sighed in relief.
Jing Hongchen walked up to the window with his arms crossed behind him, his eyes narrowing as he gazed out across the vast grounds of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
"The Ghost of the Uchiha Clan....Just who the fuck does that mystery man think he is?! The strongest clan....I haven't even heard about them! Elder Ma, do you want to make up for your incompetence?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Then after you're good to go, make sure you find everything you could about the Uchiha Clan and this so-called 'Ghost of the Uchiha Clan.' Every detail, every trace of history, even rumors—I want it all," Jing Hongchen commanded, his tone laced with a cold, calculating fury.
"Yes, Hall Master!" Elder Ma replied immediately, his voice steady despite the pain from his injuries.
Jing Hongchen's gaze remained fixed out the window, and said, "I don't care how you do it, but I want that Embryo back into our hands—no matter if you have to go through women, children, and the elderly. As long as you get that Embryo back...."
He glanced back at him.
"You don't die."
Elder Ma shivered and he quickly bowed once more.
"Yes! Hall Master, I will do as you told!"
Unbeknownst to everyone in the room, Elder Ma's eyes briefly flashed gold with a familiar pattern.
Jing Hongchen furrowed his brows and muttered, "Should I accept that proposal from Shrek? A student exchange program....It would be beneficial for us, we can learn how to become stronger soul masters."
"I wonder how the tournament is going. Ever since the failure of the escort mission, the news about the tournament had been—"
"Grandfather!" Familiar voices sounded from outside.
Jing Hongchen's expression softened considerably. "Ah! My grandchildren! You're back! How was the tournament? Did you get the championship? Hm? Judging by your reactions, I guess the team got second place again. Well, worry not! There's still five years later! Also, I have prepared a banquet to celebrate your success..."
Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen glanced at each other, dark lines appearing on their faces.
They were fearful of their grandfather's reaction.... Ah, just what the heck was that tournament?!
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AN: Merry Christmas to everyone! Hope you had a wonderful year of 2024. As a Christmas Present, enjoy 5 chapters at the end of year~
Cause I'm not posting anything next week because I'll be out with the fam. See y'all later~
Use this code over at my patreon: 97397 for 50% off on membership~ C'mon now, feel the spirit of Christmas~ Hohohoho~
1/5 chapters