Misunderstanding

"You and I were in the same situation, yet we ended up taking two completely different paths."

There was a trace of sympathy in Di Hong's gaze as he looked at Tang Yuehua, but it vanished in an instant, and she did not notice it.

"Oh?" Tang Yuehua tilted her head slightly, looking at him with mild confusion.

Di Hong smiled and explained.

"I'm the Fourth Prince of the Silves Kingdom. My family's inherited Martial Soul is the Vermilion Bird, but things were different when it came to me."

"You have a mutated Martial Soul too?"

Tang Yuehua had not known that. There was no reason for her to specifically look into Di Hong. Before this, she had only heard of him and knew that he was a genius who had reached the Spirit King level in merely six years after Martial Soul Awakening.

As for his Martial Soul, she had simply assumed it was the Vermilion Bird.

Only today did she learn that his Martial Soul was mutated as well.

"That's right." Di Hong stepped back a few paces, putting some distance between them before releasing his Martial Soul.

Accompanied by a cry, a massive Vermilion Bird engulfed in flames appeared behind him. Li Fire swirled around his body, and even his eyes were veiled in flame. His body had become much more robust than before, making him seem like a god bathed in fire. The same surging Sacred Aura radiated from him.

Once the Martial Soul was released, Tang Yuehua retreated continuously. Waves of scorching heat rolled toward her. If Di Hong had not been able to control those flames, the fire alone would have been enough to reduce her to ashes.

"This is my Martial Soul—the Vermilion Bird."

"A Top-grade Martial Soul?" Tang Yuehua stared blankly at the solid, tangible Vermilion Bird. It was her first time seeing such a sacred Martial Soul. Its aura made one instinctively want to bow down in worship.

Even the Clear Sky Hammer's quality was likely inferior to Di Hong's Vermilion Bird Martial Soul.

The highest-quality Martial Soul she knew of was only the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul. Yet the Vermilion Bird Martial Soul before her was even more sacred than the Angel Martial Soul.

She had seen the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul before. Her grandfather, Tang Chen, had fought the Pope of Spirit Hall, Qian Daoliu, more than once. On one occasion, she and her two older brothers had watched the two fight from afar.

The Sacred Aura emitted by the Six-Winged Angel was something no other Martial Soul possessed.

But today, she had seen a Martial Soul whose Sacred Aura was even stronger than that of the Six-Winged Angel.

Perhaps Di Hong's Martial Soul was not a Top-grade Martial Soul at all, but one of even greater quality.

Di Hong withdrew his Martial Soul and returned to normal.

"Although my Martial Soul mutated as well, its mutation is completely opposite to yours."

Tang Yuehua said nothing, merely nodding.

The two continued on their way.

This time, however, unlike before, they talked about many things. Regarding Tang Yuehua's inability to become a Spirit Master, he encouraged her to pursue other paths.

Because he knew there were many things that Spirit Masters could not accomplish. Just as Tang Yuehua had thought, after learning that she could not become a Spirit Master, she had turned to studying other things. Management and etiquette, for example, were among her main focuses.

Although the Clear Sky Sect was the number one sect in the world, its members rarely interacted with others. It was not that they were arrogant, nor were they fools—it was simply that they did not know how to talk to people. Everyone in the sect was straightforward by nature. Sometimes, after only a few words, they would start fighting. Yet after the fight, those who drank would drink, those who cultivated would cultivate, and their relationships would remain just as good as before.

In the eyes of the sect's disciples, one fight could resolve any conflict.

This caused many factions to dislike the Clear Sky Sect, believing it bullied others through its power.

It was not that they wanted to bully others. The Clear Sky Sect's atmosphere revolved around the strong being revered, so words were useless there. Only fists were the best means of communication. While this allowed the sect to produce many powerful members, it also made it easy for the sect to make too many enemies.

That was precisely why she needed to learn how to communicate with others, to study noble etiquette and music, and to expand her connections.

When Spirit Hall suppressed the Clear Sky Sect, virtually no faction wanted to get involved. They could not afford to offend either the sect or the hall. Besides, they were happy to see two top-tier powers fighting each other to the death, especially the Heaven Dou Empire.

Although the Clear Sky Sect was located within the Heaven Dou Empire, it did not actually support the Heaven Dou Empire. Instead, it vaguely supported the Star Luo Empire, because like the Clear Sky Sect, the Star Luo Empire also revered the strong. Only the strongest person could ascend to the imperial throne.

That suited the Clear Sky Sect's tastes perfectly.

The Clear Sky Sect simply was not as bloody. There was no need to kill one's own brothers.

By evening, they had left Sunset Forest and arrived at a small town.

Groups of Spirit Masters were gathered throughout the town. As soon as the two entered, they quickly drew attention. A handsome man and a beautiful woman were difficult not to notice, but after glancing at them twice, everyone went back to what they had been doing.

They were all Spirit Masters, so they could naturally tell how strong Di Hong was.

They arrived at an inn in town. It was simple, only two stories tall and built entirely of wood.

After entering the inn, they found seats by a window. As soon as they sat down, an attendant came over.

"What would you like to eat, guests?"

He then handed Di Hong a menu. Di Hong accepted it and passed it to Tang Yuehua.

"You order."

Tang Yuehua did not stand on ceremony. She took the menu and began ordering, though she did not choose any expensive dishes. She had no money—she had lost it long ago—so she simply ordered a few cheap dishes.

Di Hong added several meat dishes before returning the menu to the attendant.

"Please wait a moment, guests."

After the attendant left, another server brought over a pot of tea.

The two drank tea and chatted. After quite some time, the server brought out the dishes.

Once all the dishes had been served, Di Hong asked, "Do you still have rooms available?"

"Oh, what a shame. We only have one room left." The server revealed a smile.

"Ah?" Di Hong looked at the waiter with a strange expression. What kind of trick was this? He swept his gaze around. There weren't many people in the hotel at all.

"You're sure there's only one room left?"

"Yes."

Still unconvinced, Di Hong looked around again. After confirming that there were fewer than twenty people in the entire hotel, he turned back to the waiter.

"You're really sure?"

"I'm absolutely sure. I work at this hotel—wouldn't I know how many rooms are left?"

The waiter answered with great certainty, though his gaze toward Di Hong carried a hint of oddness. He thought to himself that he had already made things this easy for him, so why was this guy still being so dense?

He truly couldn't understand how someone this straightforward had managed to get such a beautiful girlfriend.

Obviously, he had misunderstood the relationship between Di Hong and Tang Yuehua. But it was indeed hard not to misunderstand—when such a handsome man and beautiful woman appeared together, anyone would assume they were a couple.

Besides, Tang Yuehua was still wearing Di Hong's clothes.

Just as Di Hong was about to say something else, Tang Yuehua spoke.

"Are there any other hotels in town?"

It was already late. They could only stay in this small town for the night.

"No. Ours is the only hotel in the whole town," the waiter said seriously. He absolutely could not let this business slip through his fingers, and there really was only one hotel in town.