As soon as the words fell, the entire hall sank into deathly silence.
Mu En, Xuan Zi, and the others all froze, staring in unison at the rune shimmering with soft golden light in midair, disbelief written all over their faces.
"Talents can stack while cultivating??"
Xuan Zi shot to his feet, eyes wide.
"Yuhao, you're not joking, are you? How could such a wondrous contract exist in this world?"
"Elder Xuan, I'm not joking!"
Huo Yuhao nodded seriously and explained the contract's principles and effects to everyone in detail.
"...For example, after you sign the contract with me, Elder Mu, you'll not only be nourished by my Life Crystal, but you'll also share my talents, greatly increasing your cultivation speed.
I can also receive feedback from your Bright Sacred Dragon talent, which will greatly benefit my cultivation as well."
"Good. Let me take a look."
Mu En's smile faded. His expression solemn, he reached out and lightly touched the golden rune.
A gentle, pure energy flowed into his body at once, entirely free of malice. The rune's structure was exquisitely intricate, far beyond any Soul Guidance Array or contract he had ever seen.
He studied it closely for a full quarter of an hour before slowly withdrawing his hand and taking a deep breath. His eyes brimmed with shock and delight.
"It's real! This contract is real! It works even better than Yuhao said!"
"What?!"
The hall erupted. All the elders excitedly sprang to their feet and crowded around Huo Yuhao.
Their eyes shone as they gazed at the contract rune, as if they were looking at some priceless treasure.
"This is wonderful! With this contract, even old bones like us have hope of advancing further."
"Hahaha! Maybe I'll break through to Limit Douluo before I die!"
"Yuhao! You really are a lucky star for Shrek!"
Mu En looked at the excited crowd, then turned to Huo Yuhao, who was watching expectantly, and spoke in a clear voice:
"Yuhao, I'll be the first to sign this contract!"
"I'll sign too!"
Xuan Zi immediately raised his hand.
"Count me in! I've wanted to find out what it feels like to stack talents for ages!"
"And me!"
"I'll sign too!"
The other elders chimed in one after another, afraid they'd be too late.
Before long, news of Huo Yuhao's contract spread throughout the entire academy.
With Elder Mu of the Sea God Pavilion vouching for it, more than ninety percent of Shrek Academy's students and teachers had signed a Talent Sharing Contract with Huo Yuhao in just a few days.
The academy's cultivation atmosphere reached unprecedented heights. Students could be found burying themselves in cultivation everywhere, and more than a dozen breakthroughs in Soul Power were reported every day.
As the core of the contract, Huo Yuhao reaped unimaginable benefits.
His cultivation soared like a rocket.
In just one week, he broke straight through to the twentieth level, becoming a Soul Grandmaster!
Meanwhile, outside the east gate of Shrek Academy,
a middle-aged man dressed in coarse clothes and carrying a peddler's shoulder pole was crouching by the roadside, selling candied hawthorns.
He wore a simple, honest smile, but his gaze kept flicking toward the academy gates.
He was none other than Du Busi, the Body Sect's leader, disguised as a vendor.
He had been lurking here for three days, asking around every day for information about Huo Yuhao.
"Hey, little brother, want a skewer of candied hawthorns? Freshly made and sweet as can be."
Du Busi called out with a smile, stopping Xu Sanshi as he was about to leave.
Xu Sanshi happened to be craving some. He paid for a skewer, took a bite, and said with his mouth full,
"Sure thing, boss."
Du Busi leaned closer and asked, as if it had just occurred to him,
"Little brother, I heard a remarkable monster recently appeared at Shrek.
Some Huo Yuhao, who even came up with a contract that lets people share talents? Is it really that amazing?"
"Of course it is!"
Xu Sanshi perked up at once and replied smugly,
"Boss, you have no idea how amazing that contract is! Once you sign it, your cultivation speed shoots up several times over!"
Du Busi's heart jolted, but he kept his expression calm.
"That impressive? Then this Huo Yuhao must be a genius with extraordinary talent, right?"
"You bet!"
Xu Sanshi nodded and said with a smile,
"Little Huo doesn't just have a Life Crystal—his Martial Soul is special, too. It's a Body Martial Soul called the Spirit Eye, and it has top-tier Mental Attribute!
Teacher Wang Yan said his Body Martial Soul is even higher quality than the Martial Soul passed down through our sect!"
"What?! A Body Martial Soul?!"
The candied hawthorn skewer slipped from Du Busi's hand and hit the ground with a smack. He sprang to his feet, eyes bulging, his voice changing pitch.
Xu Sanshi jumped at the sight of him and asked in confusion,
"Yeah, a Body Martial Soul. Boss, why are you reacting so strongly?"
"N-no reason."
Du Busi took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed his excitement, but his trembling hands gave him away.
A Body Martial Soul!
It was actually a Body Martial Soul!
And the rarest kind of all—a Body Martial Soul of the eyes with a Mental Attribute!
This was practically a successor sent to the Body Sect by heaven itself!
He clenched his fist, a vicious glint flashing in his eyes.
Mu En, you old fox!
How dare you poach a disciple from the Body Sect!
Huo Yuhao had a Body Martial Soul, so he was destined to belong to the Body Sect!
He absolutely could not stay at Shrek Academy!
He had to come back to the Body Sect with me!
Suppressing the excitement surging in his chest, Du Busi grabbed Xu Sanshi by the arm and urgently pressed him,
"Little brother, do you know where Huo Yuhao is right now? I happen to want to buy some of his Life Crystals and see how well they work!"
"Oh, him? He's at his usual spot around the corner!"
Xu Sanshi casually pointed toward the bustling snack street not far away.
"He sells Life Crystals there every afternoon, and business is booming. If you go too late, they'll all be gone. If you want to buy some, you'd better hurry, boss."
"Wonderful! Thanks, little brother!"
Du Busi's voice trembled with excitement.
Before the words had even left his mouth, he tossed the peddler's shoulder pole to the ground and took off in the direction Xu Sanshi had pointed, sprinting so fast he didn't even stop to pick up the candied hawthorns scattered on the ground.
"Hey? Boss! Your stall!"
Xu Sanshi called after him, but Du Busi had already vanished into the crowd.
Xu Sanshi looked at the abandoned shoulder pole and the candied hawthorns scattered across the ground. Scratching his head, he muttered in confusion,
"What a strange boss. He even left his stall behind. Was there really any need to rush that much?"
Meanwhile, around the corner of the snack street, a crowd still packed the area in front of Huo Yuhao's stall.
Ever since the Talent Sharing Contract had been introduced, demand for Life Crystals had soared even higher.
They had originally been used only to improve one's constitution, but when combined with talent stacking, they could double cultivation speed again. The students were now fighting tooth and nail to get their hands on them.
Huo Yuhao sat on a low stool, hurriedly portioning out crystals and collecting money, a gentle smile on his face.
After all his practice during this time, the awkwardness he'd felt when he first set up his stall was long gone. His movements were now thoroughly practiced.
Just then, an invisible pressure silently spread out. The students gathered around the stall felt their bodies grow heavy and instinctively stepped aside.
A middle-aged man in coarse clothes leisurely emerged from the crowd and walked straight up to Huo Yuhao's stall.
It was Du Busi, who had rushed over.
Before you continue