Evening, in a hotel in Shrek City.
"Young Master, I've prepared everything you requested. Please check them over," said a man with an ordinary appearance but an unusually large right arm, standing respectfully before Huo Yuhao.
His name was Yu Tao. His martial spirit was his right arm, making him a Battle Soul Douluo of the Body Sect with eight rings. He was assigned by Du Bushi to protect Huo Yuhao.
For the few months after Huo Yuhao returned to Shrek City, he was under the protection of Golden Body Douluo Jin Peng. However, after observing that the Shrek Academy's attitude posed no issues, the busy Jin Peng left Shrek City and assigned Yu Tao to take over the protection duties.
Huo Yuhao nodded, accepting the storage soul tool ring from Yu Tao and checked its contents.
"Freshwater, dried food, tents, maps... yes, everything is well prepared," Huo Yuhao said with a nod. "We'll set out for the Extreme North Icefield early tomorrow."
Yu Tao hesitated for a moment before asking Huo Yuhao, "Young Master, can you trust the information you've found in Shrek Academy's archives? What if they deceive us?"
Huo Yuhao smiled, taking out a thick book from his own storage soul tool. Pointing to the cover, he said, "Take a look. Can you see anything?"
"'Extreme North Icefield, a Forbidden Zone for Soul Masters,' authored by Shrek Academy, Bu Yao Lian."
Yu Tao's eyes suddenly focused as he seemed to notice a small line of text from where Huo Yuhao was pointing.
Author: Fifth Worshipper of the Spirit Hall, Yue Guan.
What??
Seeing Yu Tao's astonished expression, Huo Yuhao chuckled. "Shrek Academy might deceive you, but the Spirit Hall won't. I've read through all the ancient books in the outer courtyard library in the past eight months. Most of these ancient texts were originally the Spirit Hall's collections, with the authors' names erased and claimed by others."
"Damn, Shrek Academy is really shameless!" Yu Tao was stunned. As a bystander, he could only describe this academic fraud with such blunt words.
"This book records that someone once saw a mysterious white flame in the Extreme North Icefield. The flame's power was formidable, causing even ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts to avoid it. My Flame God's Eye martial spirit can absorb flames to strengthen itself, so we're heading to the Extreme North Icefield to hunt for my second soul ring and, hopefully, find that white flame."
Of course, Huo Yuhao was making all of this up. The book by Yue Guan didn't mention any such white flame.
However, Yu Tao disliked reading, and the dense, small print of the book gave him a headache. Therefore, whatever Huo Yuhao said, he had no choice but to believe without any rebuttal.
"Young Master, shouldn't we inform Elder Jin or the Sect Master about this?" Yu Tao hesitated. "Even though with my Soul Douluo-level cultivation, there shouldn't be any danger in taking you to the Extreme North Icefield, if anything happens, the Sect Master will skin me alive."
Huo Yuhao feigned an exasperated look and said earnestly, "Brother Yu Tao, think about it. The Sect Master is currently in Tian Dou City of the Tian Hun Empire, while we are in Shrek City. It would take at least five days for the message to reach him, and another five days for a reply. By then, ten days would have passed. Will we still have time to go to the Extreme North Icefield?"
"But... but," Yu Tao still felt something was off but couldn't pinpoint it.
"No more buts. A soldier in the field must follow their general's orders. Besides, I've already agreed, so what's there to hesitate about?" Huo Yuhao shook his head as if disappointed. "I planned to rely on your help when I inherit the position of Sect Master in the future. But with your temperament, how can I trust you?"
"What? You value me that much?" Yu Tao's eyes showed a naive joy, like a university student being praised.
"You know, our Body Sect's martial spirit of eyes always sees people accurately. Brother Yu Tao, I see the potential of a Super Douluo in you!" Huo Yuhao patted Yu Tao's shoulder.
"Me? A Super Douluo?" Yu Tao felt as if he were floating, standing there almost dizzy with happiness.
"Indeed, the future of the Body Sect rests on your shoulders. Now, hurry and rest. We'll set off early tomorrow."
"Oh? Alright, early tomorrow..." Walking with a gait as if drunk, Yu Tao left the room, dizzy from the huge metaphorical pie Huo Yuhao had drawn for him.
At this moment, the black ancient ring on Huo Yuhao's finger flashed, and Yao Lao's figure appeared in the room.
"Yuhao, your persuasive skills are getting better and better," Yao Lao said with a half-smile. "Your flattery skills are quite impressive. Who taught you?"
"Ah, if it weren't for having such a good teacher like you, I wouldn't have achieved what I have today. As the saying goes, 'A hero's son is a good man.' Being your student is an honor, and my strength brings you glory, doesn't it?" Huo Yuhao replied cheerfully.
Yao Lao laughed heartily, completely unaware that he too had been flattered into a good mood.
"Your mastery of the hidden force in the Eight Extremes Collapse technique is quite proficient now, and your physique has surpassed your current cultivation level due to the First Origin Pill," Yao Lao nodded approvingly. "Next, you can try learning another Dou Technique."
"Another Dou Technique?" Huo Yuhao asked in surprise. "What level is it?"
"Earth Class Dou Technique!" Yao Lao smiled, his eyes narrowing.
With a gentle wave of his hand, a massive black object flew out from the ancient black ring, landing heavily on the ground, stirring up dust.
Up close, it seemed like an enormous black greatsword. However, calling it a greatsword was a misnomer; it was more like a thick iron ruler without an edge.
The black greatsword lacked a sharp tip, appearing as if it had been sliced off, revealing a mirror-like smooth cross-section.
Its surface was adorned with faint, mysterious patterns that covered almost the entire blade, giving it an ancient and enigmatic appearance.
"This is..." Huo Yuhao's eyes lit up, recognizing the item's origin.
"This object is called the Xuan Heavy Ruler, forged from Flame Meteorite Iron. This might be the only one in existence. It's not only incredibly hard but also extremely heavy," Yao Lao explained.
"Most importantly, it has the miraculous effect of suppressing cultivation. If you can adapt to its suppression, then in future battles, when you remove this item, your strength will astonish everyone."
Yao Lao smiled and added, "Moreover, the Earth Class Dou Technique I will teach you is related to this item."
As Huo Yuhao looked on in surprise, Yao Lao lightly tapped his forehead. Instantly, a flood of information poured into his mind.
"Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler, Earth Class Low-Level Dou Technique. When mastered, splitting mountains and cutting waves is just a matter of lifting a finger!"