Ghostly Apparition's Showdown, Schemes Come to Naught (Two-in-one, 4000-word chapter, seeking collections and votes)

Inside the dormitory, Huo Yuhao returned to his room and immediately sat cross-legged on his bed, decisively closing his eyes to enter meditation.

Only in this way could he soothe his chaotic thoughts and the turmoil within his mind.

Wang Dong sat opposite him, watching with a face full of concern.

It was not until half a quarter of an hour later that Huo Yuhao slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air and opened his eyes.

"Yuhao, how are you? Do you feel any better?"

The moment Huo Yuhao opened his eyes, Wang Dong leaned in close, holding a precious-looking medicinal pill she had produced from somewhere, intending to feed it to him.

"This is medicine from my family for healing injuries. Take two."

Huo Yuhao decisively declined.

"No need, I'm fine."

Hearing this, Wang Dong looked him up and down with suspicion. Only after confirming that Huo Yuhao had returned to his usual rational state did she heave a sigh of relief, though she couldn't help but complain.

"Yuhao, what happened to you today? Why were you so impulsive?"

"Even if you really wanted to kill Wu Feng, you couldn't do it inside the academy. And you even talked back to that teacher who suddenly appeared."

Wang Dong did not know the identity of Xuan Zi and mistakenly assumed he was a teacher from the outer courtyard.

"This is going to be troublesome. If that teacher decides to target you, you might very well be expelled because of this incident!!"

Wang Dong spoke incessantly, as if she had a belly full of words, but every sentence was filled with worry for Huo Yuhao.

Within the Sea of Consciousness, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, who had been forced awake by the incident, was also chattering away.

"That's right, Yuhao, what was wrong with you today? You weren't calm at all. I already told you that a human powerhouse was approaching, so why did you insist on continuing your attack?"

With one human and one silkworm speaking simultaneously in reality and within his Sea of Consciousness, Huo Yuhao felt as if his head were about to burst.

"Alright, alright! Stop talking for a moment!"

Facing the pincer attack from both sides, Huo Yuhao could only helplessly call for a halt.

"Just let me have some peace."

Seeing Huo Yuhao in this state, both Wang Dong and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache, and they silently shut their mouths.

Huo Yuhao took several deep breaths, forcing his emotions to settle.

He had already sensed that something was wrong.

Although the main event today had not deviated from his intentions, the development of the situation had slipped out of his control.

Huo Yuhao felt no guilt for wanting to kill Wu Feng; that was simply the price she deserved to pay for her actions.

But the process should not have been like this.

He seemed to have lost control.

Just as Wang Dong and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had said, even if he truly wanted to kill Wu Feng, why did he lash out with malicious words at Xuan Zi, who had arrived later?

There was no purpose, no reason—it was purely an indiscriminate release of malice and emotion.

This behavior was completely unnecessary and did not align with his usual habits.

He had just been telling Ma Xiaotao earlier, It is he who controls his emotions, not his emotions that control him.

Huo Yuhao could accept gathering all his feelings, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, and killing Wu Feng with pure, rational intent.

But he could not accept being like he was today, driven by his emotions and unable to control his actions while trying to kill her.

Although both paths led to the same result, the significance behind them was vastly different.

Suddenly, a thought struck Huo Yuhao.

The Ghost Killing Art seemed to have mentioned this point.

The latter behavior was referred to by the Ghost Demon Venerable as...

Killing Intent Backlash!

Huo Yuhao snapped his eyes open, realizing where the problem lay.

He had actually suffered from Killing Intent Backlash???

But how was that possible?

According to the principle of the Ghost Killing Art converting killing intent, killing intent did not appear out of thin air. Under conscious control, it used a specific guide to convert all of one's excess emotions into killing intent, which was then condensed into killing aura.

It had a limit; it would not exceed the threshold that Huo Yuhao's body could withstand.

Simply put, No matter how the emotions within Huo Yuhao shifted, they were still his own changing feelings.

And these feelings were supposed to be within a safe range that he could accept.

Just as his hatred for the White Tiger Duke was intense, it was never enough to crush him or cause his emotions to collapse.

Otherwise, Huo Yuhao would have gone mad long ago.

It would be the same if he used the Ghost Killing Art to convert all that hatred into killing intent.

The total amount remains unchanged and would not exceed the limit he can withstand.

In other words, under normal circumstances, as long as Huo Yuhao does not actively absorb external emotions into his body, he will never be at risk of losing control.

This is also the ingenuity of the Ghost Killing Art.

By discarding superfluous emotions during battle and converting them all into tangible killing intent, one can keep their mind in a state of absolute rationality, preventing fear and sentimentality from affecting their judgment.

It kills two birds with one stone.

Looking at it from this perspective, his recent Killing Intent Backlash is very suspicious.

Huo Yuhao recalled the event carefully.

The killing intent he released at that time seemed to far exceed the limit he could accept, reaching two or three times his normal state, and even peaking at around five times.

This was what led to the Killing Intent Backlash, ultimately causing him to lose control of his emotions.

This killing intent must have been external and not his own, because Huo Yuhao's current body simply cannot bear the heavy burden brought by such an amount of killing intent.

Well then, time for a no-prize quiz.

Where did this extra killing intent come from?

It's so hard to guess...

"..."

Huo Yuhao's expression darkened instantly.

Ghost Demon Venerable!!

You old bastard!!

You're plotting against me again!!!

Inside Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness.

Sensing Huo Yuhao's low mood, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm began to reflect on whether he had been too harsh with his previous words.

After all, Huo Yuhao is still just a child.

It is normal for a child to get emotional and lose control of himself.

So, he cleared his throat, his little eyes darting around, attempting to shift Huo Yuhao's attention to a lighter topic.

"By the way, Huo Yuhao, have I told you about my God-Making Plan for you yet?"

Coincidentally, just as he spoke, Huo Yuhao arrived in the Sea of Consciousness, intending to settle the score with Ghost Demon Venerable.

Of course, he knew it was impossible to have a direct confrontation with Ghost Demon Venerable right now.

That was unrealistic.

And irrational.

He had already emerged from the state of Killing Intent Backlash and could think calmly.

But at the very least, he had to make his stance clear.

This was the second time Ghost Demon Venerable had plotted against him, and he hadn't even bothered to hide it; he could absolutely not allow this to continue.

If this can be tolerated, what cannot?

Enough is enough.

Once or twice is one thing, but he must never let it happen a third time!

If Ghost Demon Venerable can manipulate the killing intent on his body today, he could manipulate him entirely tomorrow.

If that happened, he would truly be finished...

Thus, Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and, having made up his mind, entered the Sea of Consciousness.

However, the timing of Huo Yuhao's arrival caused Sky Dream Ice Silkworm to have a beautiful misunderstanding.

He assumed that Huo Yuhao was interested in his cultivation plan, which was why he had entered the Sea of Consciousness.

So, he excitedly wiggled his comical, chubby white body over to Huo Yuhao's side and began to describe his God-Making Plan in great detail, along with his vision for their bright future together.

His plan was nothing more than the second martial soul, the Ultimate Ice, and then working hard to cultivate so that Huo Yuhao could take him and Ice Empress to ascend to the God Realm in bliss.

Huo Yuhao was all too familiar with this; he could practically recite it backward.

His attention was not on Sky Dream Ice Silkworm at all.

While pretending to listen to Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's rambling, Huo Yuhao quietly glanced at the Black Cyclone that represented the location of Ghost Demon Venerable.

The cyclone showed no reaction, as if it had truly been in a deep slumber for all this time.

Huo Yuhao almost believed it.

Ever since he came in, the old bastard had been playing dead.

Addicted to playing dead, are you!!

It seems I need to find a way to lure him out.

Huo Yuhao looked at Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, who was busy praising how wonderful Ice Empress was, then glanced at Ghost Demon Venerable, who seemed determined to play the coward, and suddenly an idea struck him.

As everyone knows, In an era where Ghost Demon Venerable attained the status of Venerable and slaughtered everyone across the Five Domains and Two Heavens to the point that no one dared to show their face, there was one person who could repeatedly cause trouble for Ghost Demon Venerable and still remain unscathed.

She was even a dual cultivator of Lightning Path and Soul Path.

Thunder Ghost True Monarch, Jing Lan.

A petite, youthful-looking female Gu Immortal.

Commonly known as, A loli.

Coincidentally, when Ice Empress took on a human form, she also appeared to be a loli.

Just like Jing Lan, they were both cold, aloof lolis.

Thinking of this, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but curl his lips upward.

Action speaks louder than words!!

I refuse to believe you won't come out for this.

Thus, he feigned curiosity and asked Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.

"So, Brother Sky Dream, what does this Ice Empress look like? Is she really as beautiful as you say?"

"Nonsense!! My Bingbing is the most beautiful of all!!"

Hearing Huo Yuhao's words, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm became instantly agitated; he would never allow any human or beast to question Ice Empress's beauty!!

He utilized his immense mental power to project a massive Ice Jade Empress Scorpion within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness, every detail rendered with absolute precision.

Huo Yuhao twitched his mouth.

Who wants to see this? I'm not interested in bugs.

So, he pretended to be unimpressed and said, "Brother Sky Dream, I think Ice Empress is just average. She doesn't really fit our human aesthetic."

"What do you mean by 'your human aesthetic'?!"

"What do you humans know about aesthetics!!"

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was so angry at Huo Yuhao's words that he stomped his feet, decisively manifesting Ice Empress's human form.

The massive projection of the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion vanished instantly, replaced by a small green-haired loli with twin tails, her youthful face wearing an incredibly haughty expression.

Huo Yuhao grew excited immediately.

That's it, that's perfect!

A loli is exactly what I needed!!

His excited gaze instantly triggered Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's vigilance. He flashed forward, blocking the space between Huo Yuhao and the projected Ice Empress, his eyes filled with defensiveness.

"Brother warns you, don't get any funny ideas. Bingbing has long been Brother's bug!"

Still being possessive?

Huo Yuhao couldn't help but roll his eyes at him.

He wasn't some loli-con; the one who needed to be shocked was someone else.

Sure enough, the moment this classic loli image of Ice Empress appeared, Ghost Demon Venerable within the Black Cyclone slowly opened his eyes, watching the projection manifested by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's mental power with great interest.

As the master of the Sea of Consciousness, Huo Yuhao naturally sensed Ghost Demon Venerable's movement immediately and felt secretly triumphant.

Told you to play dead, keep playing then? Why'd you stop??

Old monster!!

Should have shocked you to death sooner!!

Just as Huo Yuhao was feeling smug and preparing for the next step of his plan, he suddenly realized, Why had Sky Dream Ice Silkworm suddenly gone silent?

He turned to look, only to find that Sky Dream Ice Silkworm looked as if he had been frozen in place, his expression and posture locked in the same defensive stance from a moment ago, completely motionless.

Something is wrong...

A sense of foreboding suddenly welled up in Huo Yuhao's heart.

Sure enough, the next moment, the Black Cyclone that had been shrouding Ghost Demon Venerable gradually dissipated, and a figure, completely unfamiliar to Huo Yuhao, slowly stepped out from within.

The person had a slender build, cold eyes, and long hair draped to his waist, with a faint, callous smile playing on his lips.

At a single glance, one could feel a deep, suffocating madness radiating from him.

Most importantly, Huo Yuhao sensed an aura from him that originated from the same source as his own.

The aura of the Ghost Killing Art!

Ghost Demon Venerable!!

Huo Yuhao's scalp went numb in an instant.

He did not know why the other party would suddenly make such a move, actually revealing his true face before him!

Had he finally stopped pretending? Was he preparing to possess his body??

Why did he appear at this time?? Did he already have absolute certainty??!

Was he not afraid that he would drag them both down to destruction??!!

In an instant, countless thoughts flashed through Huo Yuhao's mind; the current situation had clearly exceeded his original expectations!

Huo Yuhao could not understand what the Ghost Demon Venerable was trying to do at all, and that was exactly what made his back turn cold.

The current situation was like, Huo Yuhao just wanted to sit at the table to eat, but the Ghost Demon Venerable came over and flipped the table directly!!

Tastes bad?!

Then nobody gets to eat!!

A person who completely ignores pressure!!

Huo Yuhao was practically on the verge of tears, able only to pray incessantly in his heart.

Lord Demon Venerable, I regret it; why don't you just go back!

I can completely pretend I didn't see anything; wouldn't it be better if we all just kept playing happily together...

But the Ghost Demon Venerable clearly would not grant his wish.

Just as Huo Yuhao was stunned, the Ghost Demon Venerable had already arrived beside the projected, young girl-shaped Ice Empress, nodded with satisfaction after carefully admiring her for a moment, and then with a wave of his large hand, threw her entirely into the Black Cyclone behind him.

Clearly, he was keeping her as a collection.

Then the Ghost Demon Venerable turned his head to look at Huo Yuhao with a playful smile.

"Why that expression? Isn't this what you wanted to see?"

That cold gaze seemed to pierce through all of Huo Yuhao's thoughts.

Huo Yuhao felt his heart crawl with unease; he felt like dying right now.

His inner voice was screaming frantically.

Lord Demon Venerable, I am illiterate!! I don't understand what you are saying!!

Why don't you just keep acting?! Don't start with something so intense right away!! My little heart can't take it!!!

But Huo Yuhao also knew clearly that this was impossible.

Since the Ghost Demon Venerable had done this, he must be trying to obtain something; otherwise, he would have no reason to appear before him so early.

Thus, Huo Yuhao tried hard to control his emotions, managed his facial expressions, and feigned a look of belated realization, excitedly stating.

"Is it Master? Have you finally awakened? That is truly wonderful!!!"

For those last three words, Huo Yuhao used a great deal of effort to keep himself from saying them through gritted teeth, making himself appear as happy as possible.

Facing Huo Yuhao's feigned ignorance, the Ghost Demon Venerable's expression did not change in the slightest; the corners of his mouth still held that playful smile, and those dark, gloomy eyes seemed capable of piercing through everything.

"There is no need to put on this pathetic act."

"I believe that communication between you and me can be much simpler and more effective."

Hearing these two sentences from the Ghost Demon Venerable, Huo Yuhao's heart skipped a beat, and the sense of unease he felt at the beginning grew even stronger.

Sure enough, the Ghost Demon Venerable's next sentence was like a cruel, sharp claw, viciously tearing away the disguise he had hidden for so long, revealing the bloody truth that Huo Yuhao had buried deep in his heart.

"After all..."

"You and I are both Demon from Beyond."