An Unnoticed Sense of Urgency

People flowed back and forth along the streets as Ling Mo looked around, occasionally buying little trinkets he liked and some snacks. He figured Huo Yuhao would soon come out to sell grilled fish just like in the original story, so he had come out for a walk tonight. Maybe he would run into him.

Sure enough, Ling Mo really did find Huo Yuhao's stall. Walking over, he greeted him. "Yuhao, what a coincidence. Are you selling grilled fish? Give me one."

"It's Ling Mo. Sorry, but you have to line up if you want to buy some. You'll probably have to wait until next time." Huo Yuhao warmly greeted Ling Mo as well when he saw him.

"Is that so? Then next time. I didn't expect your business to be this good." Ling Mo watched Huo Yuhao chat with him while his hands continued working without the slightest hint of panic. Actually, Ling Mo really couldn't understand why the original novel described everything Huo Yuhao made as delicious—absurdly delicious, to the point of being extravagantly praised. Was it because he would eventually inherit the Icefire Demigod Chef's divine position, so the plot required it? Think about it: a boy who had only just left the Duke's Mansion, with no one to teach him, could make delicacies that seemed unmatched by anyone else. It left Ling Mo staring with a face full of question marks.

Although Ling Mo could cook too, and his food tasted quite good—at least, Xuan Zi never stopped praising it—it was definitely nowhere near as exaggerated as the delicacies Huo Yuhao made in the original novel. And that was after Ling Mo had spent several years learning in his previous world, then several more years studying with Mei and Rita in the Honkai World. Did I forget some setting about Huo Yuhao, or did the plot really just give him cheats?

Looking at the long queue in front of the stall, Ling Mo could not help but sigh. There was a reason so many vendors gathered here. Quite a few Shrek students came here for a stroll after class. At a good school, there was never enough time, and taking a walk amid the grueling daily routine was an excellent way to relax.

Just as Ling Mo watched the expressions of those eating fish, wondering whether it was really that delicious, several female students dressed in Shrek's purple uniforms appeared at the academy gates. The female student walking at the front drew countless gazes from across the plaza the moment she appeared. Naturally, Ling Mo noticed it too.

"Jiang Nannan? She does live up to the original description, but what is wrong with these people? Haven't they seen a woman in years? Staring won't make her look at you..."

While Ling Mo muttered quietly to himself, Jiang Nannan soon arrived at Huo Yuhao's stall. "Junior, your grilled fish smells pretty good. How much is it?"

Ling Mo watched Huo Yuhao honestly quote the price of five Copper Coins, only for Jiang Nannan to bargain it down to three, and his face filled with surprise. Did I not read carefully enough in my previous world? Jiang Nannan actually bargains? I thought characters like the Shrek Seven Devils would never be short on money. Looks like I took it for granted. Whether I remembered the settings wrong or reality differs from the original story, I can't simply assume things will be a certain way.

Naturally, Huo Yuhao, who was short on money, could not lower the price just because the customer was Jiang Nannan. Besides, Ling Mo vaguely remembered that the remaining two fish seemed to have been reserved for someone.

In the end, Jiang Nannan was refused by Huo Yuhao. However, Huo Yuhao refusing to sell did not mean he could avoid selling.

"Kid, you dare refuse to sell?!"

A Gold Soul Coin flew toward Huo Yuhao's stall along with a man's furious roar. The Gold Soul Coin embedded itself in the grill, and the man reached directly for the two fish on it. However, Huo Yuhao was quick-eyed and swift-handed, snatching the fish away first.

Ling Mo naturally guessed the man's identity as well. That Martial Soul Xuanwu... was it Xuanwu Turtle or Xuanwu Shield again? Ling Mo realized he seemed unable to remember Xu Sanshi's Martial Soul very clearly. But that was not important. As long as he knew the man was Xu Sanshi, that was enough.

Xu Sanshi grabbed at empty air and somehow ended up grabbing a handful of burning charcoal instead. Brother Sanshi, aren't your hands hot? Ling Mo could not help but mock him inwardly at the sight.

"Kid, you're courting death!" Xu Sanshi crushed the charcoal in his hand and took a step forward, reaching for Huo Yuhao. Ling Mo, standing several meters away, naturally could not keep watching the show. Huo Yuhao was going to be his Soul Tool logistics and research staff in the future. How could he let someone casually beat him up? He immediately flicked a pebble toward Xu Sanshi's outstretched hand while striking out with a gust of palm force. "Hua Jin - Weeping Willow!"

Noticing Ling Mo's attack, Xu Sanshi directly ignored the pebble. The hand reaching for Huo Yuhao instead swung sideways to block the palm force following behind the pebble, taking the attack directly with his body.

Just as Xu Sanshi was about to lower his arm, Ling Mo's voice rang out again. "Cun Jin - Flying Willow!" Before his words had even faded, Ling Mo suddenly appeared in front of Xu Sanshi.

"Transforming Strength: Green Pine." Using Flying Willow to arrive before Xu Sanshi, Ling Mo kicked out again. Of course, after the previous strike, Ling Mo understood that Green Pine could not send Xu Sanshi flying. Thus, the instant his kick struck Xu Sanshi's arm, he used the recoil to grab Huo Yuhao from beside him and rapidly retreat.

Naturally, Xu Sanshi would not let the two of them go just like that. He quickly closed in after them, but Ling Mo knew it was already over.

As if confirming Ling Mo's thoughts, two voices rang out at the same time.

"Stop!"

"What are you doing?"

The speakers were Jiang Nannan and... Beibei!

Seeing that Huo Yuhao seemed to be getting bullied by Xu Sanshi, Beibei charged over like lightning and struck directly with a palm aimed at Xu Sanshi!

Seeing Beibei make his move, Ling Mo retreated some distance before setting Huo Yuhao down.

"Yuhao, are you alright?" Tang Ya, who had arrived shortly afterward, anxiously asked Huo Yuhao.

"I'm fine. Thanks to Ling Mo stepping in to help me. Teacher Xiaoya, you don't need to worry about me," Huo Yuhao replied.

After receiving Huo Yuhao's answer that he was unharmed, Tang Ya stopped worrying. Turning to Xu Sanshi, she roared, "Xu Sanshi, you dare bully one of my people? I'll fight you to the death!" As she spoke, she raised her right hand, and a streak of golden light shot toward Xu Sanshi. Logically, Xu Sanshi, as a defense-type Soul Master, should have been able to block the golden light. Yet the result was beyond Ling Mo's expectations. The golden light actually passed straight through Xu Sanshi's Soul Power and burrowed into his body.

Damn, I can't break his defense, but you're over here dealing true damage? Ling Mo looked up at the sky speechlessly.

After taking Tang Ya's attack, Xu Sanshi immediately released his Martial Soul. Two yellow and one purple Soul Rings appeared behind him, while a black greatshield emerged in his left hand.

Ling Mo took one look and confirmed it. His Martial Soul really was the Xuanwu Shield.

What followed proceeded along the original course. Xu Sanshi and Beibei arranged to meet at the Soul Dueling Arena. Because Ling Mo had helped Huo Yuhao, Tang Ya invited him along as well. Unlike Huo Yuhao, though, Ling Mo had to pay for his own ticket...

"There are so many people." Looking at the audience stands of the Soul Dueling Arena, Huo Yuhao voiced his own amazement. Tang Ya, standing beside him, began introducing Shrek's Soul Dueling Arena to Huo Yuhao. Naturally, Ling Mo could hear what Tang Ya was saying, and that was how he learned Xu Sanshi's Martial Soul was actually called the Xuanming Turtle. But it had nothing to do with Ling Mo. It was only a name. Tang Ya continued chatting with Huo Yuhao, while Ling Mo considered how to join the Tang Sect. Should he tell Tang Ya directly that he wanted to join, or wait for her to invite him herself? After thinking it over for a while, Ling Mo ultimately decided to let nature take its course.

While the three of them busied themselves waiting for the match to begin, someone walked toward Huo Yuhao.

"Huo Yuhao!"

The voice was gritted through clenched teeth, as if its owner wanted to devour Huo Yuhao alive. Huo Yuhao was startled when he heard it. Ling Mo turned to look at the newcomer. So it's Wang Dong. Why is she here? And why does she look like she has some deep blood feud with Huo Yuhao?

"Why are you here?" Huo Yuhao asked.

Yeah, yeah, I want to know too, Ling Mo thought. Wang Dong's next sentence immediately made him understand everything.

"Tell me, what exactly did you see?"

Wang Dong's face alternated between red and pale as she said this. If that one sentence had not suddenly reminded Ling Mo of that part of the plot, he might have thought Huo Yuhao had really done something to Wang Dong.

"Won't little Yuhao introduce her to me?" Seeing the way the two of them spoke, as if Wang Dong wanted to drag Huo Yuhao straight onto the Soul Dueling Arena, Tang Ya directly inserted herself into the conversation.

It had to be said that the tactic was indeed effective. Seeing Tang Ya, Wang Dong merely snorted and stopped paying attention to Huo Yuhao. Huo Yuhao took the opportunity to introduce Tang Ya and Wang Dong to each other.

After hearing that Wang Dong was Huo Yuhao's roommate, Tang Ya casually intended to recruit Wang Dong into the Tang Sect. But after Wang Dong learned that Tang Ya was from the Tang Sect, she immediately stated that she wanted to join the Tang Sect.

Naturally, Ling Mo would not miss this opportunity after hearing their conversation. While marveling at how quickly the opportunity had come, he said, "Count me in if you're joining the Tang Sect. I've never joined a sect before, and it would be nice to have some people I know there. The thing Senior Tang Ya used to attack Senior Xu earlier should have been Hidden Weapons, right? I'm very interested in that. Can I learn it after joining the Tang Sect?"

Naturally, Tang Ya was happy that two people wanted to join her sect at once. However, their overly decisive attitudes made her hesitate instead. Although the Tang Sect had declined, there were no shortage of people harboring ill intentions toward it.

"After joining my Tang Sect, of course I'll teach you the Tang Sect's ultimate arts and Hidden Weapons. But I still need to think about it and observe you both a little more." In the end, Tang Ya decided to consider further whether to allow the two of them to join the Tang Sect.

The atmosphere in the audience stands was lively, and naturally the atmosphere atop the Soul Dueling Platform was no less heated. However, Ling Mo knew the result of this duel perfectly well.

Sure enough, with the help of Huo Yuhao's Mental Soul Skill, Beibei easily claimed victory. The cost, however, was Huo Yuhao exhausting his Soul Power and collapsing. In the end, Beibei fed him a medicinal pill and sent him back to the dormitory.

After returning to his own dormitory, Ling Mo began cultivating. If he remembered correctly, during this year's holiday, Huo Yuhao would obtain the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion as his Second Martial Soul of Ultimate Ice. Not long afterward, he would be selected for the Shrek Seven Devils Reserve Team and be taken by old man Xuan Zi and teacher Wang Yan to participate in the Soul Dueling Tournament attended by the All Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy. Therefore, Ling Mo needed to reach Rank 30 as soon as possible and add a Soul Ring to his Herrscher Martial Soul. Otherwise, he would have no chance of winning against Soul Masters whose Soul Power Levels were thirty or even forty ranks above his. But a three-ring Herrscher Martial Soul would be completely different. If Ling Mo added three Soul Rings to his Herrscher Martial Soul and unlocked six Herrscher Modes, he dared say that anyone below seven rings would get ground into the floor.

Ah, I hope it's Black Abyss White Flower. Otherwise, when I reach Rank 30, I won't have the heart to add a Thousand-Year Soul Ring to my Herrscher Martial Soul. If not that, then Heavenly Fire Sacred Judgment would work too! I'm not picky! Ling Mo howled inwardly at the sky.