Chapter 57: Huo Yuhao's Pain
If Huo Yuhao had started taking care of his body after obtaining the soul ring from the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, healing the hidden injuries and deficiencies from his childhood, he might have had a chance to recover. After all, with his body spirit, if he took care of himself properly and got lucky enough to awaken a second time, he could at least become a Soul Sage, even with just one level of innate soul power.
But this guy just wasted his time! His body was already weak and he used many things in the original story to improve it. Forget about those useless things like the two Xuan Shui Pills. He had the essence of the million-year Tianmeng Ice Worm, the four-hundred-thousand-year soul ring and bone of the Ice Empress, 10-thousand-year whale glue, and most importantly, the Gold of Life! Life! Life!
It wasn't until he obtained the Life Gold, with its vast life force, that his body was fully restored. But now, all those things were gone!
Without those resources and still following Zhou Yi's rigorous training methods, Huo Yuhao even increased the intensity on his own. This was a disaster waiting to happen!
It's safe to say that his current potential could only support him in breaking through to level twenty at most, with a ceiling around level twenty-nine.
When Tang San, through Wang Dong, saw Huo Yuhao's condition, he was furious!
"Dammit!" Tang San cursed as he took out some celestial herbs he had brought back from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. After much thought, he chose the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, a herb that was originally suitable for food-type soul masters to strengthen their foundation and nourish their essence. He extracted its essence and secretly had the Haotian Sect deliver it to Shrek Academy, instructing Wang Dong to discreetly give it to Huo Yuhao.
This was because Huo Yuhao's body couldn't handle any other celestial herbs at this point!
Tang San couldn't risk waiting to see if Huo Yuhao could find a fortuitous encounter to turn his fate around. Huo Yuhao's body was practically walking on a tightrope, a single misstep could ruin everything!
To salvage his earlier investments, Tang San dipped into his own stash to give Huo Yuhao a boost.
"Unbelievable!" Tang San was fuming.
Thankfully, with the essence of the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid provided by Tang San, Huo Yuhao not only recovered but his body was continually nourished by the herb's essence.
Huo Yuhao consumed the essence of the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid during the time when Du Qianjue was merging with his soul core. Now, Huo Yuhao had reached level twenty and was preparing to apply for permission from the Shrek Academy teachers to hunt for a soul ring.
As a member of the second-place team in the freshman assessment, Huo Yuhao was entitled to receive a soul ring best suited for him, just like the other top three teams.
Grateful for Wang Dong's help, Huo Yuhao's bond with him grew stronger.
...
Meanwhile, Du Qianjue, on his way to the Star Dou Forest, was completely unaware of Huo Yuhao's recent experiences. He was enjoying a sweet time with Ice Empress, heading to the Star Dou Forest.
With several months remaining until the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament, Du Qianjue had not only broken through to Soul Sage but also formed a prototype of his self-created soul skill and condensed his soul core.
All that was left was to obtain his seventh soul ring. He wasn't in a rush.
Several months were more than enough to find the right soul ring. After all, he didn't care about the age of the soul beast as long as the attribute was strong. The Tianmeng Iceworm could always forcefully enhance the age of the soul ring.
Even a hundred-year-old soul beast would be fine for him.
For example, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, a perverse soul beast, would be perfect even if it were just a hundred years old!
Evil, wind, lightning, darkness, time, space!
Six supreme attributes, each immensely powerful!
Wouldn't such a soul ring be worth enhancing with the essence of a Tianmeng Iceworm or two?
Absolutely worth it!
But finding one was the issue...
That rare soul beast only appeared once in the entire Douluo series and was taken down by Tang San. Whether there was a second one was uncertain. Even if Du Qianjue searched the entire Douluo Star, he might not find one.
So, he decided to go with the flow.
With this mindset, he wasn't in a hurry.
Rushing wouldn't help; it was better to enjoy a sweet romance with Snow Empress first!
Thus, the two of them strolled leisurely from the Far North, taking half a month to reach the Star Dou Forest.
Half a month!
What kind of speed is that?
A journey that would take a Limit Douluo half a day, took them half a month!
"Qianjue, what type of soul beast are you looking for this time?" snow Empress asked casually, holding Du Qianjue arm as they reached the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest.
"Not sure, let's see. Light or dark attributes are fine, but if there's something better, I'll go for that," Du Qianjue replied casually.
They strolled as if on a casual walk, unbothered by the fact that they were in the largest soul beast habitat on the Douluo Continent.
With Ice Empress' strength, even Di Tian might not be able to defeat her. And she was a soul beast herself; her mere presence could terrify many others. Why would she worry about being in a soul beast habitat?
Du Qianjue, relying on his wife's strength, wasn't worried either.
None of his soul rings were obtained by killing soul beasts. Even if all his rings were hundred-thousand-year rings, what could Di Tian say? They were all given voluntarily, no grudges with the soul beasts.
Di Tian wouldn't fight Ice Empress.
If there was a soul beast in Star Dou with limited time left, Di Tian might even help find one.
Du Qianjue pondered, realizing that asking Di Tian for help might be more effective than searching himself!
Just as he was about to suggest this to Snow Empress and head to the core area to find Di Tian, a group of people entered his perception.
"Wow, what a coincidence!" Du Qianjue smirked, looking a bit annoyed.
Why?
Because he spotted a glowing-eyed twelve or thirteen-year-old boy!
And beside him were people wearing badges with a bizarre poop-green monster design on their chests!
Shrek Academy!
"Hmm? Do you know those people?" Snow Empress asked curiously.
She had noticed them long ago, but they were too weak to be of concern.
"I know him, but he doesn't know me!" Du Qianjue replied with an amused smile.
Snow Empress blinked but remained silent.
Having known him for several years, she was well aware of Du Qianjue antics and had often been infuriated by him.
Recognizing his familiar expression...
Ice Empress' fists clenched.
Though she knew his smile wasn't directed at her, it still...
Seemed so punchable!
Du Qianjue and Snow Empress didn't move, enjoying the sunshine and the scenery.
To be fair, the Star Dou Forest's untouched wilderness was quite beautiful. Human soul masters typically hunted soul beasts, leaving the regular animals alone.
This led to a rich biodiversity in the forest. Du Qianjue even spotted a few white deer, almost tempted to roast one.
As the Shrek Academy group approached, they quickly noticed the striking pair of Du Qianjue and Ice Empress.
A perfect match!
This was the first impression the Shrek Academy teacher had upon seeing the two.
(End of Chapter)
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