The Overbearing Yet Gentle Young Sect Master

The boy's slight body tensed faintly as Ning An's gentle, healing voice drifted down from above, like a ray of warm sunlight softly knocking upon the door to his heart, sealed away for so many years.

At the question, Huo Yuhao abruptly raised his head. A faint yet stubborn light instantly flared in his previously dull, pitch-black eyes.

He nodded heavily without the slightest hesitation, his head bobbing urgently and forcefully. His eyes brimmed with sincere longing, and his voice still carried an unspent sob:

"I do! I really do!"

"I don't want to be separated from the Young Sect Master!"

From the moment Ning An had saved him, that ray of light had completely illuminated his dark and bleak life.

The acceptance of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the teaching of orthodox supreme arts, the warmth and protection he had never experienced before—these were what he had dreamed of since childhood.

He had long regarded Ning An as someone to rely on, even as a faith.

He could hardly accept being away from Ning An.

But just as that burning yearning rose within him, the inferiority rooted in reality crashed over him like an icy tide, instantly drowning him completely.

Huo Yuhao seemed to think of something, and his gaze began to dart away.

He lowered his head slightly, his fingertips clenching the hem of his worn clothes so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"But... I'm not qualified."

"My innate soul power is only Rank One. My talent is pitifully low, and I only have Rank Thirteen soul power right now."

"Shrek is the top academy on the entire continent. Someone like me simply isn't qualified to enroll."

Good thing Heavenly Dream was asleep at the moment. Otherwise, it would definitely have grabbed a hammer and fiercely knocked Huo Yuhao on the head.

Huo Yuhao longed to follow in Ning An's footsteps and enter that top academy, but the inferiority deep in his bones made him feel unworthy.

Seeing how cautious he was, Ning An sighed softly in his heart and gently shook his head.

He bent down, meeting the gaze of the flustered boy before him.

"Huo Yuhao, I'll only ask you one thing."

"In your heart, do you want to go, or not?"

"I don't want to hear anything else. You don't need to think about any of that either."

It was a simple sentence, domineering yet gentle.

In an instant, it shattered the reason suppressing Huo Yuhao!

At that moment, Huo Yuhao could no longer hold himself together.

The grievances and helplessness he had accumulated over the years, coupled with the warmth and favoritism washing over him now, completely broke through all his defenses.

"Wah... sob... I... I want to!"

His suppressed crying suddenly rang out. The boy no longer cared about the gazes of others as tears burst forth like a breached dam. Large, scorching teardrops rolled down, washing away the thin dust lingering on his cheeks.

Other than his mother, no one had ever favored him like this.

The Young Sect Master... the Young Sect Master only asked whether he was willing!

As long as he was willing, he would clear away every obstacle for him. The Young Sect Master... he was truly, truly too good.

How could he not weep at such tenderness and partiality?

Tang Ya watched Huo Yuhao cry his heart out, then looked at the gentle and refined Ning An. She seemed to understand Ning An's plan.

After thinking for a moment, she stepped forward, her tone carrying a hint of hesitation and regret.

"Young Sect Master."

"Every year, the Tang Sect holds one exemption quota for Shrek enrollment, allowing direct admission without an examination."

The moment those words fell, Huo Yuhao's crying body stiffened. He slightly raised his little face streaked with tears, and a faint spark of hope suddenly ignited in his eyes.

An exemption quota!

Did that mean he truly had a chance to go to Shrek together with the Young Sect Master?

But in the next moment, Tang Ya's words sent the hope that had just risen within him plunging straight into the abyss.

"However... this quota belongs to the Tang Sect and can only be used by Tang Sect disciples."

"Little Yuhao is now a member of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, not a disciple of my Tang Sect. By rights, this quota cannot be used."

As her words fell, the light in Huo Yuhao's eyes went out completely. The sobs he had just suppressed surged up his throat again. He lowered his head deeply, his heart filled with the disappointment of dashed hopes.

So it still wouldn't work.

Then wouldn't the Young Sect Master have to keep thinking of another way? Wouldn't that take a great deal out of him?

Just as the boy worried about Ning An—

Ning An's calm voice slowly rang out.

"Rules are dead. People are alive."

His calm gaze swept over Tang Ya as he spoke indifferently.

"Now, in a sense, the Tang Sect and the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect are one."

"Someone from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect using a Tang Sect spot is only natural!"

Before Tang Ya could respond, Ning An turned to Bei Bei beside him, a calm question in his eyes:

"Bei Bei, if that method doesn't work, you can pull some strings. There should be a way to get little Yuhao enrolled, right?"

Bei Bei's eyes lit up at once!

The Young Sect Master had said as much.

How could it possibly not work?

Even if he had to go to Sister Le Xuan or his great-grandfather, he would make it happen!

His tone was firm and resolute, brimming with confidence:

"Young Sect Master, rest assured! Leave this matter to me!"

"There absolutely won't be the slightest problem with little Yuhao's Shrek enrollment!"

With him, Shrek's "crown prince," around, such a trivial matter was hardly worth mentioning!

Huo Yuhao, who had still been worried just moments ago, was completely stunned as he listened to their conversation.

The next instant, overwhelming surprise and gratitude surged through him, and tears far more violent than before streamed down his face.

He covered his face and cried until his whole body trembled, his sobs hoarse yet filled with joy.

He could go to Shrek!

He wouldn't have to part with the Young Sect Master!

A worthless boy with only rank-one innate soul power could actually enter the greatest soul master academy on the continent, follow his light, and move forward at his side!

Standing nearby, Ning Tian blinked his clear eyes as she watched Huo Yuhao cry like a little mess, thoughtfully handing him a clean brocade handkerchief. Her small face was filled with a gentle smile as she sincerely rejoiced for him.

The Third Elder stood behind them, his expression calm and his eyes full of approval.

The Young Sect Master's breadth of mind and vision far surpassed those of ordinary people. Having such a Young Sect Master was the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's greatest fortune.

That crying youth would likely never forget the Young Sect Master's kindness for the rest of his life.

It was no exaggeration to say that if the Young Sect Master told him to die right then, he might agree without hesitation!

Tang Ya was also completely relieved. Her brows relaxed as she sincerely felt happy for Huo Yuhao, and she was even more thankful than ever for her and Bei Bei's decision to submit to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

But just as everyone began to relax!

A faint rustling sound quietly spread from deep within the forest.

A dim, dark-green mist silently drifted out through the gaps between the trees.

The mist was cold and damp, carrying a faint fishy-sweet stench. It looked thin and harmless, yet it instantly turned the surrounding air bone-chillingly cold. The moment the nearby grass and trees touched the mist, their branches and leaves visibly withered, blackened, and died!

Clearly, this dark-green mist was poisonous—and not ordinarily so.

The Third Elder's expression sharpened. Instinctively stepping forward to shield Ning An and the others, he fixed a cold gaze in the direction from which the mist had come:

"Young Sect Master."

"Some blind snake seems to have set its sights on us."