Custom Training

Huo Yuhao slowly opened his eyes.

Before he could fully wake up, a faint Ju Zi fragrance slipped into his nose.

Very close.

Unnaturally close.

Huo Yuhao was silent for two seconds before lowering his gaze to his chest.

A fair, tender arm was draped across it.

Looking to the side, he saw Ju Zi curled up beneath the blanket, both arms wrapped around his waist as she slept peacefully.

Just as expected.

This little girl had snuck into his bed again last night.

It had been exactly four days since he had been stuffed into a sack and carried back.

And over those four days, similar incidents had happened almost every day.

On the first day, Huo Yuhao thought Ju Zi had merely been worried that he might run away in the middle of the night, so she had come to keep watch herself.

On the second day, he began to feel that something was off.

By the third day, he had fully understood.

This was not guarding him at all.

She was clearly after his body.

Huo Yuhao raised a hand, trying to pry apart the two arms around his waist.

However, the moment he touched Ju Zi's wrist, her sparkling eyes opened.

The two stared at each other wide-eyed.

The room fell silent for several seconds.

"Good morning."

Ju Zi's voice was soft and sleepy, yet her hands showed no intention of letting go.

Huo Yuhao looked at her expressionlessly.

"Sister Ju Zi, didn't you promise yesterday that you wouldn't crawl in here again?"

"I didn't crawl in."

"Then how did you get in?"

"I pushed the door open and walked in."

Ju Zi answered with complete naturalness.

Huo Yuhao's mouth twitched.

That made way too much sense.

For a moment, he could not find any way to refute her.

Seeing the helplessness on Huo Yuhao's face, amusement flashed through Ju Zi's eyes.

The pavilion nearest the water got the moonlight first.

In her previous life, the total time she had truly spent with Huo Yuhao had not even exceeded a hundred days.

Much of what she knew about him had come from other people.

But there was one thing Ju Zi was absolutely certain of.

Huo Yuhao valued loyalty and affection.

As long as she acted first, pushed everyone else who treated him well behind her, then slowly made him accustomed to her presence...

Given enough time, he naturally would not be able to escape.

As for them still being young...

Wasn't that perfect?

She had all the time in the world.

"Time to get up."

Ju Zi released him with satisfaction and sat up on the bed.

Huo Yuhao stared at her for a long time before finally sighing.

Forget it.

He was living under someone else's roof.

And a man could not bite the hand that fed him.

Let her hug him. It would not cost him a piece of flesh.

Other than making him feel a little guilty...

After breakfast.

Huo Yuhao and Ye Guyi stood side by side in the open space outside the small courtyard.

Holding a sheet of paper filled with writing, Ju Zi looked at the two of them with great seriousness.

"First, run five laps around the camp."

Ye Guyi frowned slightly.

"That's all?"

She was already a Rank 32 Soul Elder.

This level of training posed almost no pressure for her.

Ju Zi looked up, a gentle smile appearing on her face.

"That's the first item."

Half an hour later.

Ye Guyi carried a heavy piece of soul tool metal on her back. Her expression remained calm, though her breathing was somewhat faster than usual.

Beside her, Huo Yuhao was already exhausted like a dead dog.

"Huff... huff..."

He braced both hands on his knees as sweat continuously dripped from his forehead.

"Sister Ju Zi."

"Yes?"

"Are you sure this is training an eight-year-old should be doing?"

"I cut it in half."

Ju Zi lowered her head to glance at the paper and said seriously, "Originally, you were supposed to add another three sets of weighted squats."

Huo Yuhao: ...

And this was already cut in half?

He now seriously suspected that Ju Zi was not preparing to raise a future husband, but rather a humanoid soul beast.

But he had to admit it.

This training regimen was indeed effective.

When Huo Yuhao first arrived here, his body had been rather weak from long-term malnutrition.

If he ran even a little too fast, his chest would feel tight and he would struggle to breathe.

Yet after only a few days of training, coupled with the nutritious meals Ju Zi had arranged, his physical condition had visibly improved.

At least after five laps now, his legs merely felt weak.

He would not drop dead on the spot.

"Rest for fifteen minutes."

Ju Zi handed over two water flasks.

Ye Guyi took one and looked up at her.

"Who taught you this training method?"

"I put it together myself."

"You?"

The suspicion in Ye Guyi's eyes visibly deepened.

Ju Zi was only ten years old.

Even if she had begun studying from inside her mother's womb, it would have been difficult for her to devise such a complete physical training regimen.

Over the past few days, Ye Guyi had discovered that every training exercise had been calculated with remarkable precision.

It could push the body to its limit without truly damaging its foundation.

Ju Zi smiled faintly.

"Soul tools require calculations. Cultivation is no different."

Ye Guyi fell silent for a moment and did not press further.

Beside them, Huo Yuhao unscrewed his flask and gulped down several mouthfuls.

That excuse might fool Ye Guyi.

But fool him?

Not a chance.

This training method was most likely another good thing Ju Zi had brought back from the future.

In truth, Huo Yuhao was right.

After Xu Yunhan awakened his martial soul in her previous life, Ju Zi had specifically gathered the foundational training methods of the major families of the Sun Moon Empire.

After countless revisions, discussions, and refinement, this current regimen had finally taken shape.

Using this method, Xu Yunhan had laid down an extremely solid foundation from childhood.

His second soul ring had already reached the thousand-year level.

For his fourth soul ring, he had even successfully absorbed a ten-thousand-year soul ring.

Before Ju Zi passed away, Xu Yunhan had cultivated to Rank 98, becoming the youngest Ultimate Douluo and ninth-grade soul engineer in the history of the Sun Moon Empire.

It was precisely that powerful strength that allowed him to escape countless assassination attempts.

Now.

Ju Zi had brought out this method ahead of time.

It was not only for Huo Yuhao.

Ye Guyi was also within the scope of her training.

After the rest ended, the two continued training.

Huo Yuhao activated his first soul skill, and his somewhat muddled mind instantly cleared.

His movements gradually became more standard, while his breathing maintained a steady rhythm throughout.

Ye Guyi stood beside him, occasionally reaching out to correct his posture.

"Straighten your back."

"It's already straight."

"Not straight enough."

"Sister, I'm only eight."

"So?"

Huo Yuhao had nothing to say.

Fine, fine, fine.

One future wife and one future sister.

They were both training him like livestock, weren't they?

Not far away, Ju Zi quietly watched the scene, her eyes full of gentleness.

At that moment, Shao Xing walked over from outside the camp.

He came to Ju Zi's side and handed her a wooden box.

"Miss, we found what you wanted."

Ju Zi reached out and accepted the wooden box.

The lid opened.

Inside lay seven or eight murky, dark pieces of gelatinous solid, their surfaces carrying a faint greasy sheen.

These things looked utterly unremarkable.

Yet every piece was whale gelatin that was around a thousand years old.

Ju Zi picked up one of the pieces and inspected it carefully, the smile on her face becoming gentler.

After failing to conquer the Douluo Continent in her previous life, she had not idled away her time. Instead, she had worked hard to raise Xu Yunhan. It was also through that experience that she investigated many matters concerning cultivation on the Douluo Continent and formulated a complete cultivation plan for her precious son.

The facts proved that the cultivation plan she had created was highly successful, and now, after her rebirth, that successful experience was proving useful once more.

As a mother, she knew very well that her son was outstanding, but she also understood Huo Yuhao's excellence even more clearly.

Huo Yuhao was still young, leaving far more room to shape him. Ju Zi would make sure he grew strong and flourished.