How Many Resources Did This Waste?! (Please Bookmark)

Break time between matches...

"Yuhao, come take a look at this."

Within the Sea of Spirit, Huo Yuhao watched as Xia Liang handed him a glass bottle filled with a liquid that shimmered with a strange emerald-green glow.

An Enchanted Bottle. This was something that could not be crafted, and Xia Liang had only managed to find three over the past few days.

The main reason was that Xia Liang had long since used up all the Enchanted Bottles he had acquired before. After all, enchanting required experience.

Huo Yuhao took it. The bottle felt slightly cool to the touch. When he pulled out the cork, a crisp, refreshing aura spread through the Sea of Spirit.

The moment he brought the mouth of the bottle close to his nose, Huo Yuhao felt his body involuntarily begin absorbing the power within.

"I think I'm absorbing it, but nothing feels wrong. It's just that my stamina is recovering very quickly."

Huo Yuhao answered honestly. He did not feel any particular change in his body; it merely felt like drinking water to replenish his strength.

"Is that so?"

Xia Liang began to think. Could it be that this Enchanted Bottle had no special effect in Douluo Continent? Could it only restore stamina? Still, that seemed acceptable. After all, in the original version of Minecraft, it only granted experience, and not much at that.

"Alright. Get some proper rest. There's still a battle tomorrow."

"Okay."

Huo Yuhao nodded. Just as he was about to leave and rest, a purple-black portal beside the Sea of Spirit suddenly split open. Tianmeng, in human form, staggered out of it.

His iron chestplate was covered in scratches and dents, its edges stained with gray stone dust. He gripped an Enchanted Diamond Pickaxe in one hand, looking completely disheveled.

"Brother Tianmeng? Where have you been all this time?"

Huo Yuhao stared at his bedraggled appearance in surprise. He had barely seen Tianmeng these past few days and had initially been puzzled, but Xia Liang had told him not to worry, so he had not pressed the matter. He had not expected Tianmeng to look like this when he finally reappeared.

"Fine, I've dug up the five stacks of diamonds you wanted. Remember what you promised me!"

Tianmeng threw the diamond pickaxe to the ground with a dull clang.

Then he took out a chest and placed it by his feet before angrily turning toward a corner of the Sea of Spirit. His steps carried a resolute air of don't talk to me. Finding a flat spot, he dropped straight down onto it, sprawled out his limbs, and panted heavily.

"Bingbing, for you, I've already sold myself!"

"Boohoohoo~"

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao scratched his head and looked at Xia Liang.

"It's nothing, just a small deal."

Xia Liang waved a hand. It was only a small deal; it would not exhaust Tianmeng to death. For the sake of that Ice Empress, he was still working quite hard.

The corner of Xia Liang's mouth lifted imperceptibly as he stored the diamonds from the chest in his storage space. He still could not mass-produce diamonds, so they could only be mined by hand. In truth, Xia Liang had no use for them at the moment. They were for Electrolux's experiments.

Electrolux was studying undead creatures and enchantments over by the mob farm. During enchanting, diamond tools were the most unusual vessels for enchantments, so Xia Liang was currently desperately short on ores.

So he could only find a slave to help mine diamonds.

In the outside world, Huo Yuhao paid little attention to the matches that followed. His current strength already surpassed that of the other freshmen by a great deal. Even when they encountered that defense-type Soul Elder, the three of them coordinated easily, and Wang Dong ended the battle with a single slash.

Xiao Xiao did not even need to use her ultimate move.

However, their comfortable run of battles was shattered by the appearance of one person.

"Yuhao?"

Wang Dong was the first to sense that something was wrong and looked toward Huo Yuhao. The anger in the latter's eyes was nearly overflowing.

"Yuhao, want to kill him? I've got your back. It'll be fine even if you kill him."

"Yeah, Yuhao. Your Spiritual Shock could kill this guy in one hit now. With us here, you don't need to be afraid at all."

Tianmeng also poked his head out from the corner, his tone more serious than usual. His spirits had long been intertwined with Huo Yuhao's, so he already knew everything about Huo Yuhao's past. At the sight of Dai Huabin's face, a trace of coldness entered his voice as well.

With Xia Liang here, it would not matter even if Huo Yuhao tortured Dai Huabin to death on the spot.

Shrek's strongest person was Mu En. He did not believe Mu En would be willing to die for someone like Dai Huabin.

Looking at Dai Huabin ahead of him, a cold, sharp glint flashed through Huo Yuhao's eyes. He slowly suppressed the surging fury within him. His clenched fists loosened bit by bit, his knuckles returning from deathly white to their normal color, and his heavy breathing gradually steadied.

"No." Huo Yuhao's voice was hoarse, as though squeezed from the depths of his throat. "I want him to watch the White Tiger Duke's Estate fall."

"Just don't let hatred consume you."

Xia Liang's voice came from the depths of the Sea of Spirit. Hatred was Huo Yuhao's motivation to grow stronger, but it was also his weakness.

Of course, even if Huo Yuhao was not taking revenge now, Xia Liang would still collect some interest.

"Die..."

Xia Liang condensed the power of authority into a death curse within Dai Huabin's body.

That settled it. When Huo Yuhao wanted to make a move next time, he could use this to torment him.

For the rest of the day, Wang Dong could tell that Huo Yuhao was not himself. Though he claimed not to care, his heart was still far from calm.

That night, under Wang Dong's persistent questioning, Huo Yuhao finally told him the truth.

"Huh? The White Tiger Duke's Estate actually treated you like that? Your senior didn't do anything?"

Wang Dong was deeply shocked after hearing about Huo Yuhao's past. With that senior's strength, destroying a duke's estate guarded by an ordinary Title Douluo should have been easy, right?

"I want to take revenge with my own hands."

Huo Yuhao fell silent for a while before speaking.

Sensing Huo Yuhao's hatred, Wang Dong understood his resolve.

"If you run into any trouble, you can come to me for help."

Hearing Wang Dong speak so loyally, Huo Yuhao smiled and asked, "Would your family agree to that?"

"My affairs have nothing to do with them."

At the mention of family, Wang Dong turned his face away. If they truly fought, his family definitely would not agree. But if he acted alone, it would be much easier.

If it came down to it, Wang Dong would let the White Tiger Duke's Estate injure him, then bring his First Daddy and Second Daddy there to seek justice.

The next day, the finals were about to begin, and Huo Yuhao's group was preparing their strategy.

The strongest against the strongest—Wang Dong naturally intended to face Dai Huabin, but Huo Yuhao rejected the idea.

"I'll deal with him. You deal with Zhu Lu."

"Hm?"

"Hm?!"

Wang Dong considered it for a moment, then agreed, but Xiao Xiao beside them was thoroughly confused.

"Yuhao, he's a three-ring Soul Elder. Wang Dong should go instead."

Xiao Xiao said worriedly. Dai Huabin was a three-ring Beast Soul Elder with a tiger martial soul focused on slaughter. It would be too dangerous for Huo Yuhao to face him.

"It's fine, Xiao Xiao. Trust Yuhao."

Wang Dong said. Huo Yuhao's strength was more than enough to deal with Dai Huabin, though since Dai Huabin was a three-ring Soul Elder, he might need to use that mode.

"Why are you going along with Yuhao's nonsense too, Wang Dong?"

Xiao Xiao was speechless. Leaning back with her arms crossed over her chest, she could not understand why neither of her teammates took a three-ring Soul Elder seriously.

She eyed Huo Yuhao's calm, unruffled face suspiciously, feeling that the two of them were hiding something from her. "It's about time. Let's head to the assessment area."

After making thorough preparations, the three of them headed together toward the assessment area.

For this final match, nearly all outer courtyard teachers without classes had gathered in the viewing area. Even Yan Shaozhe, the dean of the Martial Soul Department, had come personally to watch.

"Huo Yuhao, level 19..."

How many resources had this wasted!!!

He had entered at level 11 and risen to level 19 in just a few months. How many cultivation resources had been consumed in between? Those heavenly treasures and spiritual power herbs, if given to any talented student, would probably have already pushed them past the second ring.

Yet all that had been poured into Huo Yuhao, and he was only level 19? How many resources had this wasted?! Yan Shaozhe lightly tapped the armrest twice with his fingers, a trace of resentment flashing through his eyes.

"Well, if it isn't Dean Yan. What brings you here?"

A deep voice came from beside him. Hearing it, Yan Shaozhe frowned and turned to look.

"Vice Dean Qian, what wind blew you to the Martial Soul Department's assessment finals?"

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Yan Shaozhe could guarantee that this fellow had not come for anything good.

"Didn't Lin'er say she wanted me to come scout some talent? What, Dean Yan, am I not welcome?"

Yan Shaozhe: "..."

He now recalled the terms he had promised the Soul Guidance Department, and his heart ached even more. Before the freshman tournament had even ended, the Soul Guidance Department had already come to poach students. They were moving far too quickly.

"But let's make this clear first: the students must agree themselves. You cannot force them." Yan Shaozhe lowered his voice, staring directly at Qian Duoduo.

After Yan Shaozhe finished speaking, Qian Duoduo spat. "Do I look like someone who forces sales and purchases? I'm not as shameless as certain other people." His gaze drifted toward Yan Shaozhe, making it painfully obvious who those "other people" were.

Yan Shaozhe turned his face away, refusing to look at Qian Duoduo. He snorted through his nose and returned his gaze to the arena. The dean and vice dean sat "harmoniously" beside each other, divided by an invisible line, neither willing to look at the other.

"Take your positions at the edge of the arena. You may only attack after I announce the start."

The two sides withdrew, but their battle of gazes had already begun. Huo Yuhao's eyes remained fixed on Dai Huabin.

Noticing Huo Yuhao's stare, Dai Huabin refused to be outdone. Ferocity flickered in his twin eyes, and a faint killing intent seeped out.

Seeing Huo Yuhao's bearing, Qian Duoduo felt as though he had found treasure. His main reason for coming here was to observe this student named Huo Yuhao.

"Begin!"