Dai Hao heard Dai Yueheng's words, which sounded like final words on his deathbed, and raced desperately toward his tent.
The distance wasn't long, but at that moment, it seemed impossibly far to Dai Hao.
When he arrived, he saw Dai Yueheng's corpse, surrounded by soldiers who watched him with solemn respect.
The once-arrogant duke slumped to the ground as if he had aged ten years, tears and snot streaming down his face.
"One of Dai Yueheng's final wishes was that he never wanted to see you again. He also hoped to be buried near the Mingdou Mountain Range as a soldier of the Star Luo Empire."
After relaying Dai Yueheng's final wishes, which he had entrusted to him in his last moments, Huo Yuhao paid Dai Hao no further attention. He got up and went to find Xuan Zi to help arrange Dai Yueheng's funeral.
Only then did Ma Xiaotao, the others, and the soldiers around them turn their attention back.
"I always thought he was a sanctimonious villain. I never expected him to have such backbone."
Ma Xiaotao remarked casually, but the soldiers around her glared at her in anger.
After all, making such a comment about someone who had just sacrificed himself was somewhat inappropriate.
Gongyang Mo hurriedly pulled Ma Xiaotao aside. How could she speak so carelessly at a time like this?
In Huo Yuhao's hand lay another small fragment of the God of Death's divine seat, which had burst out after its divine consciousness was completely annihilated. He fused it with the fragment he had obtained earlier.
The newly formed divine seat fragment had changed dramatically. To Huo Yuhao's surprise, he found within it a chance to comprehend the Blood Soul Law.
The complete God of Death Avatar carried one-tenth of the main body's Death Law. The portion that had been separated represented the laws governing blood and souls.
The God of Death did have some ability. He had divided his own law into multiple subordinate laws, then spread them out simultaneously, allowing each one to slowly rise in rank.
In the end, he could fuse his many avatars together. The subordinate laws, now advanced, would then merge once more into the Death Law, helping him raise his divine seat to the God King level.
Now that he had obtained one-tenth of the God of Death's divine seat, Huo Yuhao had effectively broken the God of Death's divine seat apart by human hands. He and the God of Death's main body were bound to fight one day.
But Huo Yuhao wasn't worried in the slightest. Tang San was responsible for handling this matter now, which would save him the trouble of having nothing better to do than keep an eye on him every day.
God King Tang was indeed in a difficult position. After Huo Yuhao fully obtained a portion of the God of Death's laws, Tang San sensed that an unfamiliar Divine Realm had established a connection with the one he inhabited.
After sensing that it contained only a single being at the half-step God King level, Tang San breathed a little easier.
Not wanting to give the Destruction God King anything to use against him, Tang San had no choice but to make preparations. He planned to kill the God of Death outright, before the two Divine Realms could come into full contact.
Just then, Huo Yuhao received a message from Mu En. He took out a device resembling an old-fashioned button phone and checked the message Mu En had sent.
The device was a simple communications tool Huo Yuhao had made after his spiritual power advanced to divine consciousness, taking advantage of its extraordinary properties.
Messages were transmitted through several Spirit Forged Signal Towers Huo Yuhao had left along the way. They could receive and emit fluctuations of spiritual power.
This was a new technology Huo Yuhao had researched and developed while Mu En was away acquiring the Snow Empress Embryo last time.
However, these hastily developed signal towers suffered considerable losses during transmission. For now, only Soul Masters whose spiritual power had reached the Spirit Sea Realm could use them.
Over such a long distance, only someone at the Spirit Domain Realm, like Mu En, could transmit a message.
"Yuhao, can you use god-level power again? Was this an accident, or do you have another trump card?"
Hearing Mu En's question, Huo Yuhao replied frankly:
"This time was an accident. I'm afraid it'll be hard to replicate, but I gained quite a lot on this trip."
At that, Mu En continued, "Yuhao, are you willing to step into the spotlight ahead of schedule? This is a great opportunity to pave the way for you to succeed me as Sea God Pavilion Master."
"I intend to pass the position of Pavilion Master on to you early. Once this Soul Master Tournament is over, you can take over as Sea God Pavilion Master."
Huo Yuhao felt no pressure at the suggestion. At present, he could only just manage not to lose in a direct fight against a Titled Douluo.
But with the many methods at his disposal, even if he faced a Limit Douluo, he could retreat with ease.
It would be good to become Sea God Pavilion Master sooner. After all, many of the enemies Huo Yuhao would face in the future were god-level beings.
He could build up his reputation early and prepare to establish the Spirit Pagoda in the future.
"Elder Mu, I have no problem with that. But with my cultivation only at the five-ring level, won't it cause some trouble?"
Hearing Huo Yuhao's concern, Mu En chuckled on the other end.
"Yuhao, don't forget your Simulation Soul Skill. With the might of the Mingdou Mountain Range behind you, you can simulate nine rings and pretend you're already a Titled Douluo."
"Combined with Heaven and Earth Level, who could see that your true cultivation is only at level fifty? By the time anyone sees through the ruse, your cultivation will have already advanced. You'll have nothing to fear."
Huo Yuhao nodded in agreement, deciding to work with Mu En to prop up this empty title.
Unless he was up against a Limit Douluo, Heaven and Earth Level was more than enough to handle anyone below level 98. Once he had them under control, Fate Awakening would weaken their luck, and that alone would give them plenty to worry about. A brief exchange would be enough to hold the stage.
It was just a shame he couldn't use Life Watch. Otherwise, he would have had a chance to fight even a Limit Douluo.
After ending his conversation with Mu En, Huo Yuhao decided to make the most of this Soul Master Tournament, as it was probably the only one he would ever take part in.
And he still had many goals to accomplish at the tournament.
Not long after Huo Yuhao and his group left the military camp and arrived in Star Luo City, the Duchess finally received news of Dai Yueheng's death. She immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.
A guard beside her carefully helped support her ailing body. She had hoped to see Dai Yueheng display his might at the tournament, but now her face was utterly lifeless.
"Could it be that karma truly exists in this world? Huo Yun'er, I already apologized to you. Why won't you let me go?"
The Duchess murmured to herself. But after only a couple of sentences, she spat out several more mouthfuls of blood.
Having lost every last bit of spirit, she collapsed onto the bed as if her soul had left her body.
Blood trickled from the corners of her mouth. Suddenly, she seemed to realize something and turned to look at the guard.
"You poisoned me! How dare you!" With only half a breath left in her, she tried to sound fierce as she berated him.
"I never expected you to hold on to that last breath, even after the shock of the young master's death. It's a pity, but the emperor gave his orders."
"Huo Yuhao has the potential to become a god. Duchess, you've become quite an eyesore. It's time for you to go. Don't waste the young master's painstaking efforts."
The Duchess glared furiously at the guards around her. She tried to curse at them, but when she opened her mouth, only blood poured out.
At last, carrying regret, resentment, grief, and a host of other emotions, Huo Yuhao's lifelong enemy slowly breathed her last.
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