Shrek Outer Court,
Several days had passed since Ma Xiaotao and the others had taken down that Evil Soul Master gang.
Huo Yuhao still stuck to his daily grilled-fish routine and God King check-in. Today was no exception.
His grilled fish had grown steadily more popular among the Outer Court students, and the line kept getting longer.
As the sky gradually darkened, the queue at his stall finally dwindled to nothing.
Tang Ya and Bei Bei hadn't come by today. Without Tang Ya, the big eater, gobbling up the stock, a few extra fish were left over.
Wang Dong sat on a little stool beside him, holding a small handful of Copper Soul Coins and counting them with relish.
The young master had gotten more and more practiced at collecting money. Even the clink of the copper coins sounded pleasing to her ears now.
Since it was getting late, Huo Yuhao turned down the fire a little, planning to close up once he had grilled these last few fish.
Just then, a steady set of footsteps came to a stop in front of the stall.
Unlike the other students, the newcomer didn't hurry to place an order. He stood there, studying Huo Yuhao with interest.
Huo Yuhao kept working. He only raised his head casually and glanced over.
At the very first look, his fingers paused for half a second as he turned the fish. His heart could no longer remain calm.
The man wore the red uniform exclusive to the Shrek Inner Court. He was tall and straight-backed, with handsome features and a warm smile.
He was exceptionally handsome, with an innate air of nobility.
But that wasn't the point. Huo Yuhao had seen Inner Court students before. Even if Xuan Zi appeared here now, it wouldn't stir the slightest ripple in his heart.
But this man was different.
At a glance, Huo Yuhao had noticed his striking eyes.
Double pupils.
The double pupils unique to the White Tiger Duke's bloodline.
Huo Yuhao's movements paused for half a second.
He had never met this man, but those unmistakable eyes and his status as an Inner Court student left no need for guesswork.
Dai Yueheng.
The eldest son of the White Tiger Duke Mansion, and Dai Huabin's older brother.
The Ghost Killing Art inside Huo Yuhao instinctively began to circulate faster. A pure, murderous intent stirred faintly through his meridians.
He took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed it.
What a coincidence.
He hadn't even gone looking for trouble with the White Tiger Duke Mansion, and now this young master had delivered himself right to his doorstep.
A thread of killing intent showed in Huo Yuhao's eyes. Even the Ghost Killing Art couldn't completely suppress it.
He had thought he would meet Dai Huabin first, as he had in the original story. He hadn't expected to run into Dai Yueheng here instead.
Was this the will of heaven, or fate playing tricks on him?
But none of that mattered.
To him, Dai Huabin and Dai Yueheng were the same.
They were both his enemies.
He would settle accounts with them sooner or later. It made no difference who came first.
Oblivious to all this, Dai Yueheng stood in front of the stall, looking the slender young boy up and down.
The more he looked, the more he felt there was something vaguely familiar about the boy. But he couldn't remember where they might have met.
Dai Yueheng shook his head and decided to stop thinking about it for now.
He had made a special trip here today mainly because of what Ma Xiaotao had said.
A new student who had earned such lavish praise from a woman as arrogant and crazy as Ma Xiaotao—and whom she protected so fiercely—was certainly worth seeing in person.
If he really was a rare talent, then as long as Dai Yueheng could draw him into the White Tiger Duke Mansion, he would surely become a powerful asset in the future.
With that in mind, Dai Yueheng didn't hesitate any longer. He decided to start by building some rapport between them and spoke up.
"You're Huo Yuhao, the junior, right?"
His voice was warm and carried an easy charm that made people feel as if they were basking in a spring breeze.
"Give me two grilled fish."
Any other new student in the Outer Court would probably have been overwhelmed with honor at being approached by an Inner Court senior.
But Huo Yuhao didn't even look up. His voice was flat and devoid of emotion.
"Not for sale."
The smile on Dai Yueheng's face stiffened.
He wondered if he'd heard wrong.
The kid hadn't even looked at him before turning him down outright?
Dai Yueheng frowned slightly, but chalked it up to a genius's peculiar temper. He didn't take it to heart and made another offer.
"Junior, there are still two left, aren't there? I'll pay double."
Huo Yuhao flipped one of the grilled fish over. His tone remained utterly unruffled.
"Not for sale."
The smile on Dai Yueheng's face stiffened again.
A new student from the Outer Court had actually refused an Inner Court senior who'd come to buy from him? And he'd refused twice??
Dai Yueheng looked around. The queue was gone.
He turned back and pointed at the three fish sizzling and spitting oil over the grill, still maintaining the poise of a senior.
"Junior, there are still two left, aren't there?"
"Your senior came all this way after hearing about them. Can't you make an exception?"
Huo Yuhao turned the fish in his hand. His movements were steady, but his voice had grown even colder.
"I said they're not for sale."
That made three times.
Wang Dong sat beside him, sensing the tension.
She was usually proud, but she knew how much status Inner Court students held at Shrek.
The man before them wore a red uniform, and his strength was unfathomable. Huo Yuhao didn't need to start a fight with him over a few fish.
Wang Dong hurried to her feet, trying to smooth things over.
"Senior, I'm really sorry. Someone paid in advance to reserve these fish, so we have to keep them."
Dai Yueheng's expression softened a little at that.
If they'd been reserved, then that was understandable.
He was just about to take the offered out and say, "Then I'll come back another time."
But Huo Yuhao tossed the brush onto the cutting board with a dull thud.
He turned to look at Wang Dong.
"Don't make excuses for me."
Wang Dong froze.
Huo Yuhao turned back to Dai Yueheng and made no effort to soften the truth.
"No one reserved them."
"I simply don't want to sell them to you."
The few Outer Court students who hadn't left yet stopped in their tracks and sucked in a sharp breath.
Was this new student insane?!
That was an Inner Court senior!
The warm mask on Dai Yueheng's face finally fell away. No matter how much he wanted to recruit Huo Yuhao for his own use, being humiliated in public like this—and three times in a row—was more than anyone could stomach.
"Junior."
Dai Yueheng's voice sank, carrying the weight of someone used to looking down on others.
"You seem to have a serious problem with me."
"I, Dai, can honestly say I've never offended you. Isn't this behavior of yours a little too disrespectful to an Inner Court senior?"
Huo Yuhao looked at him.
He looked at that face, so similar to Dai Hao's, and at the hypocritical way the man clearly wanted to strike but still insisted on putting on airs and talking about reason.
Huo Yuhao felt his stomach churn with disgust.
Everyone from the White Tiger Duke Mansion was cut from the same cloth.
They put on an air of upright virtue, yet behind closed doors, they could watch someone be tortured to death without lifting a finger.
"You're overthinking it."
Huo Yuhao curled his lip, his voice full of undisguised mockery.
"I simply think you don't deserve to eat my grilled fish."
Those words tore away any pretense between them.
The anger in Dai Yueheng's eyes could no longer be contained.
He stepped forward half a pace.
That half-step alone sent the powerful pressure of a Six-Ring Soul Emperor crashing down on Huo Yuhao.
He didn't summon his Martial Soul. It was just the pressure of his Soul Power.
Dai Yueheng had thought it through. There was no need to reveal his Martial Soul just to teach a one-ring newbie a lesson.
All he had to do was make the kid suffer a little and teach him about rank and respect. That would be enough.
Wang Dong's face changed drastically. She instinctively started to summon the Light Goddess Butterfly and shield Huo Yuhao.
But Huo Yuhao moved faster.
He pulled Wang Dong behind him and planted himself firmly in front.
Under the pressure of a Six-Ring Soul Emperor, Huo Yuhao didn't even bend a knee.
The Ghost Killing Art surged wildly inside him, dispelling the pressure bearing down on him. He raised his head and faced Dai Yueheng's Six-Ring Soul Emperor might, his eyes brimming with madness.
Unnoticed by anyone, a thread of extreme cold quietly seeped from the corner of his mouth.
In truth, Ghost Demon Venerable had been right before. He was the only one who truly understood what Huo Yuhao was thinking.
Huo Yuhao had never had much to care about.
In his eyes, Dai Huabin and Dai Yueheng were one and the same.
They were both his enemies, a bunch of dead men walking.
It made no difference who died first.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had said before that he could still take full control of Huo Yuhao's body and make one all-out attack.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm didn't have much offensive power to begin with, but dealing with a mere Six-Ring Soul Emperor would still be easy.
As for whether Dai Yueheng would die or be crippled after Sky Dream Ice Silkworm acted, what punishment the Academy would give him, and whether his secret would be discovered...
As he'd said before,
Huo Yuhao didn't care.
Just as Huo Yuhao gathered his strength and decided to let Sky Dream Ice Silkworm take over his body, an angry shout rang out from far away.
"Dai Yueheng!!"
"What the fuck are you doing!!"
Before you continue