'Did you all know about this?'
'Yeah.' Skydream Iceworm lazily replied.
Ancestor indifferently responded, '...It wasn't that hard to figure out.'
'It was pretty obvious,' Electrolux added.
'Wait, how did you not notice about this?' Ice Empress said, although this was the first time that she saw Wang Dong'er, only saw her through Huo Yuhao's memories, but she could tell that she was a girl from his memories instantly. How? She could just tell.
'...' Huo Yuhao's face darkened, feeling like he should bury himself in a hole for being so oblivious. 'How? How did you all know?! And Ancestor, don't tell me you knew due to seeing through her clothes.'
'Hmph. I don't need to do that to know. As a remnant spirit of a reincarnation soul, I have a vast amount of experience and knowledge about people; their personalities, behaviors, and subtle cues speak volumes to me,' Ancestor replied cryptically, his voice carrying an air of superiority.
Skydream Iceworm chuckled softly. 'I guided you both in your martial soul fusion, remember? I found her out due to that.'
Electrolux nodded in agreement. 'It's all in the details, my boy. You just need to learn to pay attention.'
Ice Empress smirked. 'And sometimes, intuition plays a big part too. Trust your instincts.'
Huo Yuhao sighed, feeling a mixture of embarrassment and admiration for his companions' perceptiveness. 'I'll try to be more observant about people.'
'You better do, because it's truly shameful for someone with a sharingan to be so clueless,' Ancestor added with a hint of jest in his tone.
Huo Yuhao grumbled, 'Shouldn't you be in hibernation right now?'
'And miss out on this situation? I think not.'
'...I think brother Skydream has corrupted you, Ancestor.'
'Huh? What do you mean by that?! Little Yuhao!?' Skydream Iceworm exclaimed, while Ancestor turned silent.
Huo Yuhao smirked and said 'Ice Empress, you understand what I'm talking about, right?'
'Without a doubt, this worm is a bad influence,' Ice Empress said, joining in on the banter. 'At this rate, we should just call him a parasite!'
'That's so mean!' They soon descended into a long tirade of playful argument... maybe.
Huo Yuhao snorted, softly chuckling at his companions.
"What's so funny?" Wang Dong'er asked, noticing the change of his expression.
"Oh, nothing. Just remembered something funny."
Wang Dong'er just hummed in understanding. "So, what happened to your shadow clone by the way? Did you really have to dispel it without telling us?"
"...I didn't dispel it, Dong'er," Huo Yuhao explained, his expression growing serious. "It... was killed by someone."
"What?! That's..." Wang Dong'er's voice trailed off, a mixture of shock and concern evident in her expression. "Who would do such a thing? Who can do such a thing? I mean, you certainly pissed off a few people in school but none of them would be much of a threat, even if it was just your shadow clone. It had the Shinobi arts and Sharingan, not even a Soul Ancestor could kill your clone."
"But a Soul King can," Huo Yuhao simply stated, stunning Wang Dong'er. "I haven't truly taught you and Xiao Xiao about this jutsu. This Shadow Clone Jutsu is a bit different to the ones I taught you, as the shadow clone can use some or most of the user's abilities, is indistinguishable to most people and soul beasts, and any knowledge and experience my shadow clone has accumulated would transmit back to me the moment it is dispelled."
Wang Dong'er's eyes widened in shock, "No way..."
"Yes way." Huo Yuhao smirked at her and lightly pinched her cheek.
Wang Dong'er slapped his hand away and said, "T-That's an incredible broken technique! I just need to use a few shadow clones, and I can easily learn and master every Tang Sect techniques and the outer courtyard textbooks!"
Huo Yuhao wrly smiled at her. "I have to agree, it is indeed a powerful technique, However, the Shadow Clone jutsu is simple to learn, but hard to use; being that it requires a lot of soul power to maintain it. I have more soul power so I can use its standard version, though sparingly. You can probably use it now with only clone, and Xiao Xiao can't use it until she reaches Soul Ancestor or acquire some kind of immortal herb that increases her soul power."
As the two continued to speak, they arrived at the teacher's office area. The teachers from the outer courtyard were living within the office block. The lower floors were the office blocks, while the higher floors were the teacher's homes.
However, Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong had never been to Zhou Yi's house. Thus, they could only try their luck at the office.
Their luck wasn't bad at all; the light in Zhou Yi's office was still on.
Before they'd even reached the door to Zhou Yi's office, Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong heard the sounds of Zhou Yi's voice through the door.
"Fan Yu, what the heck did you just say that brat Huo Yuhao wanted to do? We've done all we could to cultivate him, but he still hasn't return! I know elder Yan Shaozhe said not to worry because that little lass Zhang Lexuan saw him together with his fellow sect members, a new sect he created by dissolving Tang Sect for some reason, but it's been nine months since he disappeared and the assessment exam is coming soon! Even if his clone didn't disappear and his exceptional talent, he wouldn't be able to keep attending this school without a second soul ring."
She let out an audible sigh through the door, her frustration evident. "The kid has great ambitions, but still. He's still just a kid. He should be in school, not only just to learn about soul engineering, combat strategies and cultivation, but also live a good childhood. While this school isn't like most schools in the continent, it is still a school for children to create bonds, form friendships, and grow together. It's worrying to see him diving into the complexities of the world at such a young age."
Huo Yuhao touched his nose, feeling a warm feeling bubbling inside of him.
Although Zhou Yi acts like an extremely strict and demanding teacher, her concern for Huo Yuhao's well-being was evident in her words, she's a good person.
Other than his late mother, there hasn't been any other adult that Huo Yuhao felt truly cared about him like Zhou Yi and Fan Yu did, the man was his teacher and had treated him well.
Although he felt slightly guilty for worrying her, he could only silently apologize to her. His goal was too important for a good childhood. He could only live peacefully after he takes revenge.
Wang Dong'er nudged his side and said, "You better make it up to us for being gone for so long."
Huo Yuhao nodded and was about to say something..
"...This really pisses me off. Don't let me see him again. If I do, I'm going to flay all of his skin off!"
He paused. He stared at the door for a moment.
"...You know what? It's pretty late, how about we talk to her tomorrow?"
Wang Dong'er blankly stared at him. "You do know that would just make her angrier, and would probably force you to do a hundred push-ups or something in front of the whole class."
"Shit, you're right."
Taking a short deep breath, he grabbed the doorknob of Zhou Yi's office door and opened it. Both he and Wang Dong'er froze as they an extremely gentle scene.
Zhou Yi didn't have her mask on, and her beautiful face was filled with rage. However, she was sitting on Fan Yu's thigh, while her hands were cradling Fan Yu's neck. Fan Yu's arms were wrapped around her waist.
"Eh, ehem. Teacher, Teacher Zhou, I'm back."
Fan Yu and Zhou Yi were both stunned by Huo Yuhao's appearance. Zhou Yi subconsciously jumped up from Fan Yu's thigh.
Wang Dong'er was completely flabbergasted by this scene. Though he'd heard about Zhou Yi's mask from Huo Yuhao, this was still the first time he'd seen Teacher Zhou's true appearance. Furthermore, this had happened in a very... personal situation between her and Fan Yu.
"W-Who are you? This place is off limits to everyone!" Zhou Yi shot towards him angrily, her face completely red in embarrassment and anger.
Before Huo Yuhao could say anything, the flabbergasted Wang Dong subconsciously blurted out, "Teacher Zhou, you're really pretty."
The overbearing Zhou Yi was stunned for a brief moment. In an instant, the flames of anger within her heart diminished. Pausing her footsteps, she glared fiercely at Huo Yuhao, "Follow me in and close the door."
Huo Yuhao completely understood why Zhou Yi normally had to keep her old grandma mask on her face. Not only was she beautiful, her facial features were extremely gentle and soft. Though she was currently filled with anger, it was simply too hard for her to keep a deterrent effect up for the other students. On the contrary, the others would think that she was a beauty who was throwing a tantrum.
Fan Yu sat there unmoving, his gaze fixed on Huo Yuhao, not recognizing him but he felt that he looked familiar.
Just as Wang Dong'er shut the door after entering, Zhou Yi turned towards Huo Yuhao with an imposing aura, her eyes narrowed in anger. "Explain yourself, who are you and what are you doing barging into my office?"
Huo Yuhao nervously chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. "A-Ahaha, it's been a while, teacher Zhou and teacher."
Fan Yu furrowed his brows, hearing him say "teacher" to him. "Teacher? Sorry, but I'm not part of the teaching staff. The only students that I have are two; He Caitou and..." he trailed, his widened in realization.
Zhou Yi mirrored her husband's expression, her eyes widening in realization as she finally recognized Huo Yuhao. "Yuhao? Is that really you?" she asked, her voice trembling with disbelief.
Huo Yuhao nodded, a sheepish smile crossing his face. "Yes, teacher Zhou. It's me. I'm sorry for barging in like this."
Zhou Yi's anger seemed to dissipate as she looked at him, her eyes filled with a mixture of surprise, relief, and concern. "Huo Yuhao, my goodness! Look at you, you... look all grown up now," she exclaimed, her voice softening considerably. "I thought... I thought something terrible had happened to you. Where have you been all this time?"
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and bowed his head to them, "I'm sorry for taking so long, teacher Zhou, teacher."
It had to be said that any teacher would be slightly more lenient towards the students they were fond of. Zhou Yi and Fan Yu weren't an exception to that case. Zhou Yi was extremely strict towards her students, but she didn't utter a word with Fan Yu there. Instead, she stood behind Fan Yu, giving the initiative to her husband.
Fan Yu, on the other hand, observed Huo Yuhao with indifference. "Huo Yuhao, it's been quite some time since you disappeared and with your clone gone. If it weren't for elder Yan Shaozhe telling me," he said, his tone stern but not unkind.
Huo Yuhao straightened up, meeting Fan Yu's gaze with determination. "I apologize for causing you worry, Teacher. But I had to go out and get stronger quick."
"And being in the academy doesn't?" Fan Yu indifferently said.
"Honestly, no." Huo Yuhao straightforwardly said, without hesitation, stunning everyone else in the room. "I have learned every knowledge available for outer courtyard students, which includes soul engineering and my combat skills makes me unrivalled in almost the entire outer courtyard students. That only leaves my cultivation, which is also why I left the academy."
"To get a second soul ring." Fan Yu tilted his head. "But I, or even the vice-dean department, could have helped you with such a simple matter."
Huo Yuhao shook his head. "True, but getting a second soul ring and exploring the world wasn't the only reason why I decided to go out. I didn't tell anyone about this but... my martial soul was acting a bit odd."
Zhou Yi was greatly astonished, "What? Your martial soul…"
Huo Yuhao nodded, "When the competition had just ended, I noticed a problem with my martial soul. I occasionally felt absent-minded when I was using my Sharingan, and there were even signs of my martial soul fracturing. At that time, I read something on a book about martial souls. It said that if a martial soul had overused itself, there was a very small chance that a martial soul could shatter. Moreover, the shattering of a martial soul was a catastrophe to a soul master. If they were lucky, they would lose all of their soul power, and their martial soul would shatter and disappear; if they were unlucky, it could even endanger their lives."
At this moment, even Fan Yu's expression had changed. If Huo Yuhao's martial soul was truly shattering, then there was truly nothing that could save him. Even a Titled Douluo wouldn't be able to do anything.
A martial soul was the internal core of every soul master. If any problems arose within that internal core, then not even heavenly treasures could do anything about it. That was equivalent to a death sentence!
"Yuhao, then, you…" Right now, Fan Yu didn't even care about how angry he felt anymore; his voice was filled with concern.
Zhou Yi said unhappily, "Since he's able to properly stand here, there's clearly nothing wrong anymore. Yuhao, continue."
Huo Yuhao nodded and proceeded to tell them a bold-face lie he and his companion's concocted to throw anyone off that was curious about his sudden transformation and training in the outside world.
On the side, Wang Dong'er looked at him in doubt and suspicion.
....
AN: YEEEEAAAHHH!! We have reached the 100th chapter! Can we have 100 power stones as celebration and 10 new patrons? Hehehe...
Btw, you guys seen a game that's called Wuthering Waves? Man, I can't wait to play it~ Also, I got Xiao, even though I only pulled to build up pity for Neuvillete and Kazuha, as well as their weapons.
❄️Shout out to the great Cultivators of my patreon, may you reach the peak of the heavens and conquer the earth! Pursue immortality and receive enlightenment!
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