Aftermath of the Calamity

"Lottery Draws ×1"

"One piece of information (to be completed)"

The moment Huo Yuhao killed Second Brother, two new lines of text appeared on his retina. However, he did not plan to check them immediately. He decided to return to the valley and assess the casualties among the merchant caravan and Mercenary Group.

The valley was no longer as lush as before. It looked as though it had been swept by a level-eight gale, with rubble and craters everywhere.

Not far from the valley was a massive pit ten meters across, the mark left behind by Fourth Brother's Wood Explosion Technique.

Even as Huo Yuhao passed by it, he could not help clicking his tongue and marveling at the terrifying power of this type of Soul Skill, similar to the Corpse Explosion Technique.

Whether it was the Ice Explosion Technique, Corpse Explosion Technique, or the Wood Explosion Technique he had just witnessed firsthand, none of them were anything to scoff at.

The Corpse Explosion Technique had even allowed the Death Messenger to create the greatest record in the history of Douluo Continent, single-handedly elevating the prestige of explosion-type Soul Skills.

Of course, Xuan Zi, the Supreme Elder of the Holy Spirit Cult, deserved much of the credit for that.

Huo Yuhao walked over to Lang Shan. Lang Shan was lying on the ground while a Healing Soul Master nearby bandaged his wounds.

Upon seeing Huo Yuhao, he forced an ugly smile.

The wound in his chest was so deep that bone could be seen, and blood was still seeping from it. Beast Soul Masters really did have formidable vitality—an ordinary person struck like that would probably have long since gone to the underworld to draw a number, yet he could still smile.

Huo Yuhao said helplessly, "Captain Lang Shan, you should lie still. Don't let the wound get worse."

"Also, I've already killed the Evil Soul Master who escaped. You don't need to worry about the road ahead."

As Lang Shan processed Huo Yuhao's words, his pupils contracted slightly. He found it hard to believe.

But he quickly calmed down. Ignoring the Healing Soul Master's attempts to stop him, he stubbornly braced both hands against the ground and pushed himself into a half-sitting position.

His bloodshot eyes stared earnestly at Huo Yuhao before he solemnly said, "Thank you beyond measure, Brother Danzo."

Huo Yuhao nodded at him, then left without saying anything else and walked over to Li Fei.

"How's the wound?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Li Fei stopped bandaging himself and looked up.

"It hurts like hell."

"But fortunately, I can still feel the pain."

Li Fei revealed a relieved smile, his chest heaving violently from the aftermath of surviving the disaster.

Looking at Huo Yuhao, who had crouched down and sat cross-legged beside him, he said, "We really got lucky this time!"

"Those Evil Soul Masters didn't put Corpse Poison on their claws. Otherwise, we'd really have died here."

Huo Yuhao smiled at him. "The fact that they didn't use Corpse Poison means those Evil Soul Masters were probably planning to eat us."

Li Fei nodded in agreement, but he still wore that optimistic, sunny expression. "Yeah, good thing they turned on each other."

"Looks like it wasn't my time to die."

"Brother Danzo, once we reach Xuanfeng City, I'll treat you to a meal at the finest restaurant there and a show at the most luxurious brothel. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

Huo Yuhao patted his shoulder but did not respond to the invitation. Out of the corner of his eye, he unexpectedly spotted Xiao Xiao in the distance, sitting beneath a large tree with her knees drawn up and her face covered.

"I'll go check on the Young Lady. She was probably frightened badly."

Xiao Xiao curled up with her head buried in her knees. She bit her lip tightly, her face pale and her calves trembling uncontrollably. Her mind was filled with the sight of the Evil Soul Masters slaughtering everyone around them.

Only when she felt someone sit down beside her did she dare raise her head slightly to see who it was.

But the moment she looked up, her eyes met Huo Yuhao's.

"Ah!"

She startled suddenly, then frantically wiped at her tears and snot with her tiny hands.

The result was only to make her face messier and messier.

In the end, she simply gave up and hugged her knees, saying in a muffled voice, "You're not here to laugh at me, are you?"

"Forget it. If you want to laugh, then laugh. I won't care."

Hearing that, Huo Yuhao looked at her dirty little face and burst out laughing.

Amid his laughter, Xiao Xiao curled herself up tighter and tighter, her fingers turning white as she wore a deeply aggrieved expression.

Suddenly, she felt a warm, large hand stroke the top of her head.

The laughter beside her vanished, and a gentle voice flowed into her ears like a stream. "See? You do care after all."

"It's perfectly normal to be afraid after seeing something like that."

"The fact that you can feel fear means you still hold reverence for life in your heart."

"That's a good thing. Only by revering life can you cherish it, and only by cherishing life can you transcend death."

"Never grow accustomed to scenes of flying flesh and blood. There are people who would worry about that."

Huo Yuhao gestured with his eyes for Xiao Xiao to look behind her. When Xiao Xiao turned around, she saw Xiao Dingyuan watching them with a worried expression.

Xiao Xiao pursed her lips, turned back, and stared at her toes. "Besides being afraid, I hate my own weakness even more."

"Uncle, do you know? I'm actually already level 20."

"I only need one more Soul Ring to become a Soul Grandmaster."

"From the time I awakened my Martial Soul until now, I've always been a genius in everyone's eyes. They said I could become a Titled Douluo in the future."

"When I sparred in Soul fights with people my age, I rarely lost, too."

"But those were only sparring matches, like performances. Today, I realized that in a real life-or-death crisis, I didn't even have the courage to summon my Martial Soul."

"People with lower Soul Power Levels than mine were fighting with all their might, while I, who was supposedly stronger, could only hide at the back, trembling as I tried to keep my legs from shaking."

"I hate that version of myself. It's so humiliating."

Huo Yuhao rubbed her head. "No one is born strong."

"My former captain once told me this: [A true strong person is someone who still charges toward the ice and snow after realizing their own weakness.]"

Xiao Xiao fell silent for a while, then raised her head. Her emerald-green eyes stared earnestly into Huo Yuhao's as she said, "Uncle, I want to become strong!"

"The next time something like this happens, I don't want to watch helplessly from the sidelines!"

"I've decided to go to Shrek Academy!"

Hearing Xiao Xiao's words, Huo Yuhao's expression stiffened. He had not expected things to develop this way.

But he soon accepted it. For Xiao Xiao, Shrek Academy could barely be considered a good choice.

Still, Huo Yuhao intended to give Xiao Xiao a reminder.

"Child, if you go to Shrek Academy, make sure you avoid First-Year Class One."

"There's a teacher there named Zhou Yi. She trains her students like they're people from the Sun Moon Empire. If you run into her, you probably won't be able to handle it."

Xiao Xiao tilted her head in confusion, but she still nodded solemnly.

Huo Yuhao and Xiao Xiao sat there for a while until the eastern sky began to lighten.

The merchant caravan and Mercenary Group in the valley had finished preparing and were ready to depart.

But at a glance, nearly everyone was carrying some injury. Lang Shan could not even get up, so his younger brother, Lang Yan, took over his duties.

Li Fei waved directly at Huo Yuhao, signaling that the convoy was ready to depart.

Huo Yuhao brought Xiao Xiao back to the group, mounted his horse, and guarded the left side of the convoy as they continued along their originally planned route.