Huo Yuhao had already climbed aboard the Soul Guidance Flying Carriage. Wang Hong was still beside it, listening to Wang Yan's nagging. The message was simple: Wang Hong absolutely had to keep Huo Yuhao safe.
"He's my most precious student. Keep a close eye on him. If anything happens, just wait until I come home for winter break—I'll deal with you!"
"I know, cousin. Besides, this is a Spirit Hall mission. We can't just act as we please, but his safety is guaranteed."
"Let's hope so..." Wang Yan had been talking for so long that his mouth was getting dry. He took a thermos from his Soul Tool, sipped some hot water, then waved Wang Hong off.
"I'll say no more. Get going, and come back soon."
Wang Hong plopped into the driver's seat and answered with a quick "Got it." He gave the reins a sharp tug, and the Sky Soul Horse pulling the carriage spread its wings. The muscles in its four legs tensed as it accelerated into the open space ahead.
In the blink of an eye, the Sky Soul Horse's neigh still lingered where it had started, but the carriage, propelled by its Soul Guidance engine, had already flown out of Wang Yan's sight. It was now a tiny black dot on the distant horizon.
Meanwhile, inside the Soul Guidance Flying Carriage, Huo Yuhao could now sense the faint vibration as it started moving through his Martial Soul, unlike the first time he'd ridden in one. But that didn't make him think Soul Guidance Flying Carriages were nothing special. After all, even across the whole Douluo Continent, there were hardly any people whose Mental Power could match his.
The fact that even Huo Yuhao could feel a slight tremor showed just how astonishingly advanced the carriage's shock-absorption system was.
"By the way, Brother Wang Hong, what exactly is my mission this time? The prize Spirit Hall is offering is so valuable. This can't be a simple task, right?"
Huo Yuhao leaned over the window connecting the passenger cabin to the driver's seat and asked.
"It really isn't. And what I said earlier in Cousin Wang Yan's office was just a cover story for outsiders. This mission was actually prepared specifically for you."
"According to Director, the target is quite unusual: a plant-type Soul Beast that specializes in cultivating Mental Power. In terms of physical strength, it might not even withstand a strike from the most ordinary kitchen knife. But when it comes to Mental Power, it could rank among the top ten on the continent."
"Top ten on the continent?" Huo Yuhao was surprised. Now he understood why the mission had to be him.
The Dream Silkworm that Wang Hong had registered as his First Soul Ring with Spirit Hall had been a strong contender for the title of the continent's foremost Soul Beast in terms of Mental Power. Yet somehow, it had ended up as Huo Yuhao's Soul Ring. Either Huo Yuhao had incredible luck, or his Martial Soul had given him Mental Power far beyond that of ordinary people.
And Spirit Hall clearly preferred to believe the latter.
"That's right. This Soul Beast is called the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine. According to the records, it evolved from a Soul Beast called the Ghost Vine that existed ten thousand years ago. It gave up its excellent ability to reproduce in exchange for the power to affect the minds of humans and other Soul Beasts."
"Even a Hundred-Year Soul Ring-level Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine can drag people into illusions. Its illusions are so convincing that even a Soul Master at the Soul King level might fall for them and become its food."
"Even Soul Kings can fall for it..." Huo Yuhao could hardly imagine it. In his mind, a Hundred-Year Soul Beast was usually no more than a plaything for a Soul King. Yet this Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine could turn the tables and make a Soul King its prey. Just how terrifying did its Mental Power have to be?
But... if that was the only reason, Huo Yuhao couldn't see why Spirit Hall would hunt down this Soul Beast. Did they consider it too dangerous to humans and fear it might grow powerful enough to challenge even Spirit Hall?
"Brother Wang Hong, I should ask: why does Spirit Hall want to hunt it down—or rather, them?" Huo Yuhao felt that the reason he'd imagined didn't hold water. There had to be a more plausible explanation.
"Since you're asking, I may as well tell you. Director's daughter, Tang Ya, has reached level twenty in Soul Power and happens to need a suitable Soul Ring."
"According to eyewitness accounts, that Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine is somewhere between six hundred and nine hundred years old. Miss Tang Ya happens to need a Second Soul Ring with a powerful Mental Attribute, so the mission to hunt it was issued in Spirit Hall's name."
"But... the Spirit Soul Masters assigned to the first mission underestimated the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine's strength, and the first team had to make an emergency retreat. Our task is to join the second team and help Miss Tang Ya create an opportunity to land the final blow."
"My Bubble Martial Soul can trap the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine. Aside from its mental attacks, its body is actually quite fragile. With your Mental Power and Spirit Skills, Lord Huo Yuhao, resisting its mental attacks shouldn't be too difficult. Your task is to use your weapons to weaken it until a single strike can kill it."
After hearing Wang Hong's explanation, Huo Yuhao nodded to show he understood.
The general plan was that Tang You needed a Hundred-Year Soul Ring with a Mental Attribute for his daughter, Tang Ya, and the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine was the best option he could find.
As luck would have it, this Soul Beast required a powerful Mental Power cultivator and a Soul Master with strong control abilities to work together. Tang You had thought of Huo Yuhao and Wang Hong.
So he'd left the chance to take on the mission to Huo Yuhao, even willing to offer Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and Aromatic Silk Beauty—two Immortal Herbs—to make sure Huo Yuhao would accept it.
Though now it seemed Tang You's concern had been unnecessary. In fact, even if the mission's reward had been ordinary, Huo Yuhao probably would have accepted it.
After all, in this world where Spirit Hall still existed, the structure of the Soul Master World was bound to undergo tremendous changes. These missions were the easiest way for Huo Yuhao to witness those changes at such a young age.
But setting all that aside, the other information Wang Hong had let slip was also worth thinking over.
For example, what Huo Yuhao was most curious about now: what kind of Martial Soul did Tang Ya have?
Huo Yuhao was certain that whether it was ordinary Blue Silver Grass, Tang Ya's Dark Blue Silver Grass from his previous life, or the legendary Blue Silver King and Blue Silver Emperor, the Mental Attribute was less than useless to them.
To put it plainly, the Mental Attribute was completely worthless for a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul. It wasn't merely something that would be a shame to discard—even if it were given away for free, nobody would want it.
Huo Yuhao thought it over carefully. It seemed that in this life, he really didn't know what Tang Ya's Martial Soul was. But considering that her Second Soul Ring needed a Mental Attribute... he couldn't help suspecting that Tang Ya was also a mental-type Soul Master.
"Brother Wang Hong, this may be a little forward of me... but I'm curious. What's Sister Tang Ya's Martial Soul? Why does she need a Second Soul Ring with a Mental Attribute?"
"Miss Tang Ya's Martial Soul?" Wang Hong rubbed his chin and thought for a moment before answering:
"It seems to be a special kind of Blue Silver Grass, with silvery-white patterns."
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