First Cooperation

Ji Juechen and Huo Yuhao's brief yet shocking clash was like a silent declaration, completely establishing Ji Juechen's standing at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. No one dared regard him as merely a strange man clutching an iron sword anymore. Instead, they saw him as a dangerous powerhouse who demanded their respect.

After his defeat, Huo Yuhao fell into a brief silence, seemingly digesting the impact of that battle and searching for a way to counter Ji Juechen's ability to See Through. A peculiar tacit understanding formed between the two. They did not disturb each other, yet secretly observed one another.

That calm was unexpectedly shattered a week later.

To complete a Soul Tool practical course, Ji Juechen, Huo Yuhao, and several other students were assigned to an abandoned Soul Tool testing ground in the academy's back mountain to collect samples of a Rare Metal called Starlight Iron Ore. Jing Ziyan and Wang Donger naturally went along with their respective friends.

The testing ground had been abandoned for years. Broken metal components and scorched earth spoke of past failures and dangers. The air was filled with the faint stench of rusted metal and lingering Soul Power.

"Let's split up. It'll be more efficient," one student suggested.

No one objected, and they quickly dispersed. Ji Juechen headed alone toward an area littered with massive metal wreckage. The system silently activated [Weakness Insight], assisting him in scanning the ground and debris for signs of exposed ore veins.

Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao and Wang Donger carefully searched another area with Spirit Detection.

However, just as everyone focused on their task, a sudden change occurred!

"Bzzz—!"

A low, heart-pounding hum rose without warning from deep underground. Then, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble faintly!

"What's going on? An earthquake?" a student cried in panic.

Huo Yuhao's expression changed. His Spirit Detection instantly plunged underground, and the scene it returned made his scalp prickle. "No! It's a leak from the abandoned Energy Pipelines! It's mixed with some kind of... unstable Soul Residue! Get back!"

His warning came one step too late.

Not far away, a patch of seemingly level ground suddenly collapsed. A dense energy mist streaked with dark purple and murky black erupted skyward like a volcano! The mist rapidly spread, carrying bone-chilling cold and shrill cries that disturbed the mind as it swept in every direction!

"It's a mixture of Wrathful Spirit Energy and Soul Tool Waste Energy! Be careful, don't let it touch you!" Huo Yuhao shouted. Extreme Ice erupted instantly as he tried to raise an Ice Wall ahead of them.

Yet the eerie mist seemed alive. It corroded straight through the Ice Wall without slowing in the slightest!

"Purple Smoke!" Jing Ziyan cried sharply. Her hands formed seals as her martial soul unfurled, and dense purple smoke surged forth to meet the dark purple energy mist. Her Purple Smoke possessed paralyzing and disruptive properties, attempting to hinder its spread.

The two mists collided with a sizzling hiss, eroding and Entangling with each other. Jing Ziyan's Purple Smoke temporarily blocked the front, but the dark purple energy mist covered too wide an area. Several streams still circled around the flanks like venomous snakes, lunging at the panicked students!

Screams rang out! A wisp of mist brushed one student's arm, and his entire arm was instantly coated in frost. His eyes turned dull and unfocused, as if his very soul had been frozen and torn apart!

The scene instantly descended into chaos!

Ji Juechen had been alert the instant the strange sound appeared. Red warnings flashed wildly across the system panel:

[High-concentration mixed energy pollution detected!]

[Component analysis: Soul Tool Waste Energy (73%), Wrathful Spirit Remnants (25%), unknown inert energy (2%).]

[Properties: intense corrosion, Mental Pollution, soul freezing.]

[Recommendation: prioritize evasion. Forced contact requires activation of the advanced Energy Filtration Protocol, which will greatly deplete the host's Soul Power and Spiritual Power.]

Evasion? Ji Juechen looked at the students caught in the blast and hanging by a thread, then at Jing Ziyan, who was releasing Purple Smoke with all her strength, sweat already beading on her forehead, and finally at Huo Yuhao, who was trying to purify the mist with Extreme Ice.

His brow furrowed slightly. Trouble.

At that moment, a surge of dark purple energy mist rushed toward him as if it had a will of its own!

Ji Juechen's gaze turned cold. Trouble had come looking for him.

He did not retreat. The iron sword at his waist suddenly left its sheath! Rather than Soul Power, the blade was covered in an incredibly thin, almost invisible energy filter layer—the external manifestation of the [Energy Filtration Protocol] instantly constructed by the system.

A pitch-black Sword Light slashed into the mist!

"Shhh—!"

There was no Clash of Gold and Iron, only the violent hiss of a red-hot brand plunged into water! The mist directly struck by the blade instantly dissolved and was purified, as though forcibly erased by some Power of Rules! Yet the surrounding mist immediately churned in to replace it, wildly corroding the invisible filter layer on the sword.

Ji Juechen could clearly feel his Soul Power and Spiritual Power draining at an accelerating rate.

"Ji Juechen! Three o'clock to your left—the Energy Core is there! You have to stop its eruption!" Huo Yuhao's urgent voice was transmitted precisely into Ji Juechen's mind through Spiritual Power.

Through Spirit Detection's panoramic view, Huo Yuhao clearly "saw" the source of the underground energy leak—a damaged pipeline core that was continuously spewing energy!

Ji Juechen's eyes narrowed, and the system instantly confirmed the location Huo Yuhao had provided.

[Target confirmed. A high-energy reaction point exists 3.7 meters underground. It is the core of the pollution source.]

[Viable solution: use an attack with extreme penetrating power to destroy or temporarily seal the Energy Node.]

"Cover me." Ji Juechen's cold voice rang out for the first time amid such chaos, directed at Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao did not hesitate in the slightest. "Understood!"

He drove Extreme Ice with all his strength. Rather than attempting to block the mist over a large area, he condensed it into several frigid chains that moved as if alive, Entangling and freezing the energy mist trying to block Ji Juechen's path!

Wang Donger also unleashed a soul skill of the Light Goddess Butterfly. Strands of dazzling Power of Light blasted into the mist. Though less effective than Extreme Ice, they still disrupted and weakened it.

Seeing this, Jing Ziyan immediately understood. She drew in her Purple Smoke and focused on protecting the injured and panicked students.

Ji Juechen moved!

Like a ghost, he sped through the narrow passage Huo Yuhao had carved out with frost, one that the mist continuously tried to erode shut! The iron sword in his hand slashed and struck, constantly purifying and cutting apart the energy mist rushing at him. The system frantically calculated the optimal route and the least costly way for him to swing his sword.

The distance of just a few dozen meters was fraught with danger!

At last, he reached the spot above the core area Huo Yuhao had indicated. The ground trembled most violently there, and dark purple energy gushed forth like a spring.

"Now!" Huo Yuhao shouted.

Ji Juechen's eyes sharpened like swords as he poured all his Soul Power and Spiritual Power into the iron sword without reserve! The blade hummed, and the invisible filter layer shone brilliantly!

Gripping the sword with both hands, he pointed its tip downward, gathering all his strength, will, and ultimate understanding of the "point" into a single line!

"Break!"

With a low shout, the iron sword transformed into a streak of black light and fiercely pierced the earth beneath his feet!

There was no earth-shattering explosion. The ground touched by the sword tip seemed to turn into water, rippling with an invisible wave. An incomparably condensed and razor-sharp sword aura traveled through the blade and into the ground, ignoring the obstruction of soil and stone to strike the Energy Node exactly 3.7 meters below!

"Pop—"

A faint sound, like a bubble bursting, came from underground.

The next moment, the endlessly erupting dark purple energy mist seemed to have had its source pinched off. It abruptly stalled, then swiftly thinned and faded, while the mind-disturbing shrieks ceased at once.

In only a few moments, the spreading mist vanished completely, leaving behind only wreckage and a group of people still shaken with fear.

Sunlight fell once more, shining upon Ji Juechen's still calm face. He slowly pulled out his iron sword. The blade remained as pristine as before, though his breathing was slightly hurried and his face somewhat pale. The system's [Energy Filtration Protocol] had consumed far more than expected.

Huo Yuhao withdrew his soul skill and quickly walked to his side. He looked at him with a complicated expression, which ultimately became a sincere, "Thank you."

If not for Ji Juechen's sword strike of ultimate penetration, resolving this trouble would likely have demanded a far greater price.

Ji Juechen merely gave him an indifferent glance before sheathing his sword.

"Let's go."

He said nothing more and turned toward the gathering point. In his mind, a system notification appeared:

[Joint Tactic execution complete. Large quantities of target Huo Yuhao's combat data updated. Combat Model completion increased to 28%.]

[New environmental data analysis: mixed energy pollution. Response plan archived.]

This time, Huo Yuhao no longer found Ji Juechen's back cold or difficult to approach. What he saw was a powerful companion he could trust in a crisis and entrust his back to.

What an unusual guy!