After eating their fill, the three of them hacked their way through the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, heading toward Shrek Academy.
Along the way, Huo Yuhao not only gave them a preliminary demonstration of his Soul Skill, much to Bei Bei and Tang Ya's delight, but also showed off Huo Gua's stats.
On the first day, Huo Yuhao's Purple Demon Eye had actually reached the first level, Insight.
Even the two of them had spent quite some time mastering the basics back when they first started.
Bei Bei and Tang Ya were so astonished they nearly stripped Huo Yuhao bare to examine him from head to toe.
Huo Yuhao's preliminary guess was that this was related to the golden light that had entered his Sea of Consciousness earlier.
It was the power the Will of Douluo had driven into his Sea of Consciousness to guard against Ghost Demon Venerable, so naturally, it was no small matter.
Most of it had been used to isolate Ghost Demon Venerable's will, but some of it had still seeped out.
Though the amount was so slight it was nearly imperceptible, it was, after all, power condensed from the consciousness of the entire world. Even so, it was of great benefit to him at this stage.
Since his Sea of Consciousness was in his mind, the energy that seeped out naturally entered his body. With the Purple Demon Eye stimulating and guiding it, he had been able to reach the first level so quickly.
But Huo Yuhao couldn't possibly tell Tang Ya and Bei Bei about this.
Even if he did, they wouldn't understand what had happened.
So there was no way Bei Bei and Tang Ya would find anything, and in the end they could only let it go, simply concluding that the change came from the combination of the Purple Demon Eye and Huo Yuhao's Spirit Eye Martial Soul.
Whatever the cause, it was definitely a good thing for cultivation.
Huo Yuhao didn't care much about that. He'd known all along how well his Spirit Eye Martial Soul suited the Purple Demon Eye. Instead, he was more concerned about another of the Tang Sect's secret arts—their main cultivation method, the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
There was still a copy of the Ghost Killing Art in his mind, personally bestowed by Ghost Demon Venerable and undoubtedly a hundred times more powerful than the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
But, as he'd already thought, he didn't dare cultivate it!
Who would dare practice a technique given to them by Ghost Demon Venerable?
So from the very beginning, Huo Yuhao had set his sights on the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
As for how he would explain himself when Ghost Demon Venerable woke up, he'd deal with that when the time came.
First, he had to get past the present hurdle.
At first, because they were worried about his injuries, Bei Bei and Tang Ya hadn't handed the technique over to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao couldn't act too eager, either, so he could only wait.
Now, several days had passed, and after repeatedly confirming that Huo Yuhao's injuries were no longer a concern, Bei Bei and Tang Ya finally felt comfortable giving him the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
After reminding him of the finer points again and again, they had Huo Yuhao sit cross-legged where he was and begin his first proper cultivation session.
The two of them stood watch nearby, keeping him safe.
After all, they were still in the Star Dou Great Forest. They had to show it at least a little respect.
But while Bei Bei was serious, Tang Ya was far more relaxed.
She stretched lazily, then beckoned Bei Bei over to sit beside her.
"No need to be so vigilant."
"Xiao Yuhao did so well cultivating the Purple Demon Eye. The Mysterious Heaven Skill won't give him any trouble."
Bei Bei considered this and decided she had a point.
He'd already cleared out the nearby Soul Beasts, so there was no need to stay so tense.
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao began cultivating the Mysterious Heaven Skill in earnest.
As a wisp of pure, gentle Soul Power welled up from his meridians, the worry weighing on Huo Yuhao's heart finally eased.
He'd thought that old Ghost Demon Venerable might have tampered with his body somehow to stop him from cultivating other techniques.
It seemed he'd been overthinking it.
If he could circulate that wisp of Soul Power through one complete minor circuit, it would mean he'd officially mastered the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
A cultivation technique couldn't be changed lightly. He could use that as an excuse to fob Ghost Demon Venerable off later.
Looks like I won the first clash.
So Ghost Demon Venerable wasn't that hard to deal with after all.
At the thought, Huo Yuhao couldn't help smiling.
Bei Bei and Tang Ya had no idea what was going through his mind. They assumed the poor boy was simply happy to be experiencing cultivation for the first time.
That smile looked especially grating to them.
"I examined Yuhao's meridians before. They've nearly withered away, clearly because he was malnourished as a child," Bei Bei said suddenly, folding his arms.
"Huh? What should we do?" Tang Ya blinked, looking confused.
"Should we buy Yuhao some supplements?"
"Too much of a good thing can be harmful." Bei Bei shook his head. With his experience, he could see what was going on.
"Yuhao's meridians are too fragile. Even if you gave him more nourishment, his body couldn't retain it right now."
"Then what do you mean...?"
Tang Ya pondered his words.
"It'd be best if we could find something to cleanse Yuhao's meridians," Bei Bei said, apparently hinting at something.
"You mean...?"
Tang Ya's eyes suddenly lit up. She turned to look at Bei Bei and sure enough, caught a wicked smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"You're awful!"
Tang Ya immediately understood what he meant and gave him a thumbs-up.
The meaning couldn't have been clearer.
Go right ahead, I, the sect leader, will back you to the hilt!
Just as the two of them settled on a perfect extortion plan, Huo Yuhao suddenly groaned. The Mysterious Heaven Skill's circulation abruptly broke off, and he collapsed forward.
"Yuhao!"
Tang Ya and Bei Bei immediately realized something was wrong and rushed over to catch him.
Huo Yuhao's breathing was chaotic. Bei Bei couldn't make sense of it. The Mysterious Heaven Skill was an extremely gentle technique, so how could it have caused such severe backlash?
But there was no time to think. He immediately sent his Soul Power into Huo Yuhao's body, trying to calm the power running wild within him.
But the moment he examined Huo Yuhao, Bei Bei's expression changed dramatically.
Inside Huo Yuhao, the gentle Soul Power of the Mysterious Heaven Skill that should have been there had vanished. In its place was Soul Power that was bone-chillingly cold and filled with killing intent.
The Ghost Killing Art.
Just as Huo Yuhao was about to complete one full minor circuit of the Mysterious Heaven Skill and officially master it, the Ghost Killing Art in his mind had, for some unknown reason, begun circulating on its own. In an instant, it surged out, swept everything aside, and took its place!
By the time Huo Yuhao realized what had happened, it was too late.
Using the Mysterious Heaven Skill's final wisp of power, the Ghost Killing Art had forced its way through the minor circuit's final barrier, becoming the first cultivation technique he'd successfully mastered.
At the same time, Huo Yuhao was struck by the backlash of that violent killing intent, and his vision went black.
But fortunately, once it had achieved its goal, the Ghost Killing Art faded away on its own, leaving only black Soul Power flowing through Huo Yuhao's body.
"I'm fine, eldest senior brother, Sister Xiao Ya. I'm fine."
After a brief spell of dizziness, Huo Yuhao came to and waved at them.
Feeling that the Soul Power in his body had been completely converted into the Ghost Killing Art, Huo Yuhao could only let out a long sigh.
That was that.
Stay humble and calm.
Before you continue