Spirit Condensation Wisdom Skull

Emperor Xue Ye was decisive and efficient. After settling several of the matters discussed above, he brought the conversation to an end.

Leaving the study, Yu Xiaogang was escorted by a maid all the way to the palace gates.

A lavishly decorated carriage had been waiting there for some time. Yu Xiaogang climbed aboard, where two middle-aged men were seated: Ning Fengzhi and Sword Douluo Chen Xin.

Seeing them, Yu Xiaogang immediately clasped his hands in greeting. "Sorry for the trouble, having you two wait here for me."

"Ah." Ning Fengzhi stepped forward and pressed down Yu Xiaogang's hands, then smiled. "There's no need for that. We were the ones who brought Grandmaster here, so naturally, we should take you back as well. We should see things through to the end. Besides, you've now been appointed Imperial Advisor, so we can treat each other as equals."

Yu Xiaogang didn't insist further. He nodded and said, "Sect Master Ning surely wasn't waiting outside this whole time. If you really were, I'd be terribly embarrassed."

"Imperial Advisor, you needn't worry." Ning Fengzhi waved a hand. "Uncle Jian and I just went to the Eastern Palace. The crown prince, Xue Qinghe, is my disciple, and he's quite interested in this year's Advanced Soul Master Academy Competition."

"I told the crown prince some of the details, and now he holds Shrek Academy and the Imperial Advisor in very high regard."

Xue Qinghe? That must be Qian Renxue!

But I can't tell anyone about this yet. I've only just become Imperial Advisor; I need to accomplish something first.

Yu Xiaogang's thoughts turned, then he smiled. "That's an honor for Shrek Academy."

The two then talked about Ning Rongrong. Yu Xiaogang didn't hide anything about her relationship with Oscar, and when Ning Fengzhi heard the details, a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

When they arrived at Shrek Academy, Yu Xiaogang got out of the carriage and headed for the academy gates.

At the same time, two figures emerged from the guardhouse beside the entrance. They were Liu Erlong and Flender, who had been waiting for him.

The three entered the academy together, and Yu Xiaogang recounted his conversation with Emperor Xue Ye along the way.

In the dormitory.

Yu Xiaogang collapsed onto the bed and let out a long sigh. Weariness immediately washed over him.

But then he remembered that most of the night had already passed, and that the system still had a new entry waiting to be completed.

He got up, sat cross-legged on the bed, and summoned the System Panel.

[Select the entry "Spirit Condensation Wisdom Skull" to begin the corresponding task: enter the Illusion Realm and defeat the fifty-thousand-year Phantom Spirit Fox.]

Late at night.

Beside a lake in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Yu Xiaogang's figure suddenly appeared.

Splash, splash...

The soft sound of flowing water suddenly reached his ears. Yu Xiaogang looked up toward the lake.

Moonlight spread across the surface, lending the whole lake an unusually sacred appearance.

In the middle of the lake, a woman was bathing.

The moonlight traced the elegant outline of her snowy-white back. She dipped both hands into the water and gently scooped up a handful.

Water streamed through her fingers, but she leisurely lifted it and let it fall over her body.

The cool, bright water patted against her fair skin, trickled over her neck and shoulders, then slid down her smooth, jade-like back before flowing back into the lake.

The moment the scene appeared before Yu Xiaogang's eyes, his gaze seemed drawn to it by some invisible force. He couldn't look away.

The girl in the lake shook her light-gold hair, then slowly turned around.

A flawless face came into view. When the woman saw Yu Xiaogang, there wasn't a trace of a young maiden's shyness in her eyes. Instead, a hint of seductive allure showed through, and a smile appeared on her face.

She swam to the edge of the lake, then slowly emerged from the water and walked toward Yu Xiaogang.

Yu Xiaogang remained rooted to the spot from beginning to end, his expression growing vacant.

The woman stopped in front of him. Her vivid red lips parted, and her enticing voice rang out.

"Am I beautiful?"

Yu Xiaogang's expression remained vacant. He didn't answer.

The woman then raised her right hand and placed it against Yu Xiaogang's chest.

Feeling his heart beating vigorously beneath her palm, the woman immediately smiled.

Her smile grew wider and wider, shifting from bewitching charm to something close to madness.

A sinister gleam flashed in her eyes, and a sharp, terrifying voice came from her mouth.

"Foolish human."

The slender hand resting against Yu Xiaogang's chest began to swell, transforming in an instant into a blood-soaked fox paw.

The woman's body swelled as well. Her graceful figure became a black fox nearly three meters tall.

Its fur was caked with blood. The fox threw its head back and let out a cry as a thick red haze spread in an instant.

The sacred lake, which had shimmered silver moments before, turned into a foul-smelling pool of blood.

A bloodthirsty frenzy glinted in the fox's eyes. It lunged and sank its teeth toward Yu Xiaogang's head.

Just then, a transparent vertical eye opened on Yu Xiaogang's forehead. A beam of purple light shot out and pierced the fox between the brows.

The fox's body froze. Its blood-soaked jaws stopped just above Yu Xiaogang's head.

Yu Xiaogang's eyes instantly cleared. His Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul possessed him, and the Thousand Year Soul Ring around his body activated at once.

Dragon Claws, each a full meter long, extended from his hands and pierced straight through the fox's body.

Yu Xiaogang jolted both arms. The fox before him was torn completely in half and fell to the ground.

Looking at the fox demon's body, split in two, Yu Xiaogang's eyes glimmered faintly purple. He said,

"A fifty-thousand-year Phantom Spirit Fox. Its Spirit Power should be on par with a peak Soul Saint's. But after my Purple Demon Eye broke through to the Mustard Seed Realm, my Spirit Power had already edged past the threshold of a Soul Douluo, so its illusion didn't affect me."

"Luckily, this Phantom Spirit Fox had invested all its talent in Spirit Power, leaving its physical body extremely weak. Even with a thousand-year Soul Skill, I could tear it apart with ease."

[Task complete. Obtained Spirit Condensation Wisdom Skull]

In the dormitory.

Yu Xiaogang's consciousness returned to his body. Within the panel in front of him, a skull glowing a deep blue slowly took shape.

Flames burned in its eye sockets. As if it were conscious, it looked straight into Yu Xiaogang's eyes.

Two beams of blue light shot into Yu Xiaogang's eyes. An invisible force lifted his consciousness, and he began to drift through a vast ocean of azure Spirit Power.

The skull moved slowly through the air, descending little by little until it finally settled around Yu Xiaogang's brain.

As the azure light flowed into it, the skull gradually shrank and slowly merged into Yu Xiaogang's head.