Spirit Hall's Golden Generation

Spirit Hall's Golden Generation

"No need to test it..." Huo Wu shook her head dazedly. Her rock-solid confidence had been shattered by that single finger. "A loss is a loss... You were right. My speed is too slow. Even if I used Repelling Fire Ring, it would only delay my defeat by a few seconds. I'll leave now. Also, I apologize for what I said in anger just now. I didn't mean to look down on you. You really are very handsome, and you're not some pretty boy."

"At least you have decent taste." Shui Yue'er nodded approvingly.

Shui Bing'er was utterly speechless and raised a hand to her forehead.

Is that really the point?

There should be a limit to being lovestruck, right?

You should be focusing on Ye Qingcang's instantaneous burst of speed just now! He circled behind Mother, a Soul Douluo, and appeared before Huo Wu in an instant, placing a finger wrapped in transparent airflow against her forehead. Every one of those actions displayed his strength. His speed was so fast that even I, an observer, couldn't see it at all—not merely that I couldn't see it clearly. So if he can defeat Huo Wu in one move, he can defeat us in one move as well. That's the point, okay?

As for his appearance, it really is exceptional.

But you have to understand that good looks can't put food on the table.

Appearance is a bonus. Strength is the foundation.

My foolish little sister...

However, Ye Qingcang was more broad-minded than most people could imagine!

How would an ordinary person handle this conflict?

They would drive Huo Wu and the others away.

They might even mock Huo Wu and the others.

But for Ye Qingcang, his roots and branches were proportional!

The deeper his roots reached, the darker and crueler they became.

Yet his branches would also grow lusher, brimming with vitality.

When facing enemies like Tang San, Yu Xiaogang, and Dai Mubai—people who could never become friends—whether they were obvious mortal threats or tumors still lurking in the shadows, he would devour them with the most flawless darkness, sealing off their escape routes step by step, like the ruthless, vicious final bosses in countless comics and novels.

Yet if he possessed only ruthlessness and darkness, Qian Renxue could never have become his friend, nor could he have made everyone in Blue Tyrant Academy wholeheartedly acknowledge him, the number one on the Heavenly Ranking, as though he were a god!

He had always believed that people needed to distinguish four things!

The first: what did one possess?

The second: what did one need?

The third: what could one discard?

The fourth: what could one never discard?

He possessed every item found in fantasy!

What he needed was sufficient spiritual power!

As long as he had enough spiritual power, he could materialize anything that existed only in fantasy. For example, the various ninjutsu he had materialized from Fire Shadow, represented by the Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation he had used against Tang San; the Gate of Babylon he had materialized from Absolute Demonic Front. Although he could not materialize the countless Noble Phantasms contained within the Gate of Babylon—after all, the Gate of Babylon was supposed to contain every Noble Phantasm, even the Holy Grail—his spiritual power was insufficient to create a perfect Gate of Babylon. He could only strip away most of its functions, repeatedly lowering its upper limit to a level he could currently control, then using it as his martial soul and attaching soul rings to it. But even an imitation of the Chains of Heaven still possessed the ability to bind Tang Chen, a God Trial Taker!

And his definition of "sufficient" was infinite spiritual power!

What counted as sufficient?

Only when he himself was satisfied would it be sufficient!

A person's desires could never be fully satisfied!

Therefore, he needed infinite spiritual power!

And infinite spiritual power required an infinitely strong body to wield it!

Otherwise, yin and yang would fall out of balance.

The prime example was Uchiha Itachi from Fire Shadow.

He had been too young, his spiritual power too powerful, and his body had failed to keep up.

In the end, he suffered repeated bloodline illnesses.

That was why he had created the Stellar Martial Path!

With Illusion Realization, pursuing any path of extremes would be a waste of this cheat ability. Illusion Realization meant encompassing all things. In that regard, he and Gilgamesh might have had something to talk about.

As for what he could discard, it was everything except emotions and the people connected to them, life and the people connected to it, himself and the cheat ability that defined him!

In other words...

The Stellar Martial Path?

He could give it up!

Alchemy?

He could give it up!

The Asura Divine Sword?

He could give it up!

The Gate of Babylon?

He could give it up!

Any soul bone, immortal herb, soul ring, or treasure was something he could create as long as he had sufficient spiritual power!

He simply disliked gaining things without earning them!

It was not because those things were particularly precious!

What he could never discard were the principles mentioned above: emotions and those connected to them, such as his adoptive mother Liu Erlong and his friend Qian Renxue; life and those connected to it, such as Violet, who belonged only to him; himself and the cheat ability that defined him, such as Illusion Realization. Those were the things he could never discard.

A person of absolute rationality was a god.

Gods were all lonely.

He did not want to become a lonely god. He only wanted to be a person of flesh and blood.

Thus, his development of Blue Tyrant Academy, his teaching of the Stellar Martial Path, and his promotion of Soul Guidance Technology were simply his contributions to this home. He hoped this home would become better, and he also hoped to bring some better changes to the commoners of this world, giving them hope.

And the reason he chose the philosophy of the strong devouring the weak and instilled it into Blue Tyrant Academy was because this world was neither beautiful nor kind. For now, he stood at the forefront for Blue Tyrant Academy. But one day, these students would graduate and enter this world that was neither beautiful nor kind. Just as resisting the night required not endurance but fire, he demanded that these students prove themselves—at the very least, prove to him that those under his protection were not a bunch of trash, but future towering trees!

Thus, the deeper his roots ran, the higher he stood.

The higher he stood, the farther his gaze reached.

The farther his gaze reached, the broader his mind became.

With a shift in thought and an opening of the mind, the road ahead under heaven suddenly seemed no more than this!

Benefits?

What benefit could outweigh personal ties?

No benefit held its value forever!

Only personal ties endured for all eternity!

Therefore...

"If you don't mind, we can travel together." Seeing Huo Wu's astonished gaze, as well as the surprised expressions of Huo Wushuang, Feng Xiaotian, Shui Feng, and everyone else apart from the Blue Tyrant Academy students led by Violet, Ye Qingcang smiled and extended an invitation to Huo Wu and the others. "I said it before, we were only playing around. I admire your frankness and straightforwardness. There was no conflict from the very beginning, and I never believed there was any conflict that had been escalated. This is merely a special kind of fate between us, existing in such an unusual way. Why not become friends and travel together? We're all from the Heaven Dou circle, and we're all here to hunt soul rings. In the Star Dou Great Forest, we can look out for each other."

"I lost!" Huo Wu stared into Ye Qingcang's sincere eyes. After repeating herself once, she said it again, "I lost to you!"

"Does losing mean we can't be friends?" Ye Qingcang laughed and extended his hand. His open and forthright bearing as a leader made Huo Wu involuntarily feel convinced. "When I, Ye Qingcang, make friends, I never use victory or defeat as the standard. If everyone in the world made friends according to victory or defeat, and anyone who lost to me was unworthy of being my friend, then how many friends in this world would be evenly matched with me?"

Huo Wu involuntarily reached out and clasped Ye Qingcang's hand.

This time, Feng Xiaotian was not jealous.

Someone with no strength but astonishing presence was not worth his attention.

Someone with strength alone but a narrow mind might humiliate him.

But someone who possessed both strength and presence would only make him wholeheartedly convinced.

This friend was worth making!

No acquaintance without a fight—such was the uninhibited flamboyance of youth!

They were all young people!

So, somewhat sheepishly, he admitted to himself that he wanted this friend too!

"Father..." Huo Wu did not notice that Feng Xiaotian's lack of jealousy this time was unusual. After shaking hands with Ye Qingcang, she turned and called out to the dazed Huo Lie in the distance, testing her father's intentions.

"Then we'll impose on you..." Huo Lie's tone was full of emotion. He cupped his fists toward Ye Qingcang and Shui Feng, then greeted Liu Erlong, who had finally arrived. After watching these young people get acquainted, he turned to Feng Wuji, who also wore a nostalgic expression, and smiled. "Being young is wonderful. It feels as if I can see my former self!"

"They're fortunate."

"We weren't this united back then."

"Though I don't know how long this unity of theirs can last, or whether it can endure reality and persist until they reach our age, they are fortunate no matter what."

Feng Wuji's envy was wholehearted. With a sigh, he said, "That child has the aura of a leader. What's luckier still is that he also has a leader's magnanimity. What's most impossible to envy is his appearance—born to be the center of attention, born to lead. You saw it too. They met only once, yet he charmed these young people to this extent. Though they have not yet reached the point of following his every command, he can let bygones be bygones, even making your daughter do the same and become his friend. Incredible, truly incredible!"

"Speaking of which..." Huo Lie casually draped an arm around his good brother Feng Wuji's shoulder. As they waited for the female student who had just killed the Fire Enchanting Spirit to absorb her soul ring, he watched these young people's youth and reminisced about the past. "How did we old-timers meet in the first place?"

"That goes back to a Soul Master Competition between Blazing Fire Academy and my Skywater Academy many years ago..." Shui Feng crossed her arms and walked over with Liu Erlong. Looking at these young people who had unexpectedly merged into the same circle with the arrival of Blazing Fire Academy and Godwind Academy, where water and fire could actually coexist—especially her own daughter Shui Yue'er chatting and laughing with Huo Lie's daughter Huo Wu—her expression was extremely complicated. "You and I met at about this age too, didn't we?"

"More or less. No more than a year apart." Huo Lie rubbed his chin. Since he had never beaten Shui Feng, his tone was somewhat timid. "Back then, we looked down on each other. You said we at Blazing Fire Academy were all brutes controlled by our emotions, and I cursed you women of Skywater Academy as a bunch of cold, icy women. In the blink of an eye, so many years have passed..."

Liu Erlong smiled politely, at a loss for what to say.

Shui Feng clenched her fist, wanting to speak but holding back.

Feng Wuji could only rub his forehead speechlessly.

To be fair, the assessment was completely accurate.

Is your emotional intelligence negative?

The earlier remarks were one thing, but did you really have to recall in such detail, right in front of Shui Feng, how you used to call the women of Skywater Academy cold and icy?

Just as Blue Tyrant Academy, Skywater Academy, Blazing Fire Academy, and Godwind Academy gathered together, expanding their group from more than fifty people at departure to nearly a hundred, another Soul Hunting Squad in the Star Dou Great Forest advanced from another direction in a straight line, heading toward the four academies.

This was an exceptionally elite Soul Hunting Squad.

One Soul King, two quasi-Soul Kings, and four Soul Ancestors were merely the weakest members of the group. Twenty-four Soul Sages formed the backbone of this Soul Hunting Squad, and above them were two Titled Douluo!

Moreover, they were Super Douluo above rank ninety-five!

It could be said that, as long as they did not encounter a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast or a beast tide, this squad could rampage through the Star Dou Great Forest without restraint!

Looking across the entire world, only three factions could field a similar lineup!

Spirit Hall, which possessed nearly twenty Titled Douluo.

The Clear Sky Sect, which possessed nearly ten Titled Douluo.

And the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, which could barely scrape together such a force.

Yet now, the Clear Sky Sect had sealed its mountain and refused to emerge. After being beaten so badly by Spirit Hall that it had lost its armor and weapons, it had even abandoned the Four Element Families. As for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Rongrong was among Blue Tyrant Academy's group, so it was impossible for them to assemble such a team, nor was there any other heir worthy of such treatment. With every other possibility eliminated, there was no need to explain where this elite Soul Hunting Squad came from.

And within this Soul Hunting Squad...

Apart from the two Titled Douluo...

The most eye-catching were the three Soul Kings.

The oldest was only twenty-one.

The youngest was only twenty.

In the era of The Unrivaled Tang Clan ten thousand years later, a twenty-year-old Soul King would already have been first-rate by contemporary standards, comparable to Ling Luochen, Chen Zifeng, Xi Xi, and the others among the Shrek Seven Devils, slightly weaker than leaders fully cultivated by Shrek Academy, such as Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Gongyang Mo. One could imagine what it meant for three twenty-year-old Soul Kings to emerge in this era!

Huo Wu was four years older than Tang San and had only just reached rank forty.

Feng Xiaotian was nine years older than Tang San and was only rank forty-three.

Any one of these three Soul Kings was merely six or seven years older than Tang San, yet they had already reached rank fifty. One of them had even acquired his soul ring, and the accumulated foundation had directly pushed him to rank fifty-one.

According to Yu Xiaogang's theories, such talent would surely make them leaders among Douluo Continent's younger generation in the future, with none able to rival them.

Of course, Yu Xiaogang's theories had never been accurate.

What was a leader?

These three Soul Kings, praised by Spirit Hall as the "Golden Generation," were still far too lacking. Without Ye Qingcang, Qian Renxue would be the leader of the younger generation.

Below Qian Renxue came Tang San and Oscar.

Below Tang San and Oscar came Ning Rongrong, Ma Hongjun, Shui Bing'er, and the Golden Generation. Below them came Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, Huo Wu, Feng Xiaotian, and the others, together forming a pyramid-shaped hierarchy.

It could only be said that this Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang was greatly overrated.

He had never proposed and proven any views of his own from scratch.

Even the few theories he did have had been disproven by Tang San.

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