Taking Huo Yuhao as a Disciple

Huo Yuhao froze for a moment.

He instinctively looked at the man before him with long silver-white hair. The other man's gaze was as calm as a deep pool, revealing no emotional fluctuations whatsoever. Yet he had said, "Show me your soul skill," as casually as if it were merely an offhand remark.

Huo Yuhao hesitated for a moment.

He had only just obtained his first Soul Ring and had not even had the chance to fully master his soul skill. More importantly, the being that called itself Skydream Iceworm had just said a whole lot to him in his Sea of Spirit—something about a Million-Year Soul Beast and four great soul skills.

"Don't be nervous."

Yan Jingzhe seemed to see through his hesitation. He smiled faintly and casually sat down on a tree root beside them, crossing his long legs. He looked as relaxed as if he were sunning himself in his own backyard.

"I am the dean of the Shrek Soul Guidance Department, a Rank-98 Titled Douluo. I would not covet the secrets of a one-ring Soul Master like you. I only asked you to demonstrate your soul skill because I wanted to see whether your Martial Soul is suited to the development path of Soul Guidance Devices."

He said it casually, but Huo Yuhao certainly did not take it casually.

A Rank-98 Titled Douluo.

Those words struck Huo Yuhao like a hammer, leaving his mind buzzing. He had grown up in the Duke's estate and seen plenty of Soul Masters come and go. The strongest had only been the six-ring Soul Emperor by his father's side. What did a Titled Douluo represent? They stood at the pinnacle of the Douluo Continent. Even the ruler of a nation had to show them due respect.

And now, such a person was sitting before him, speaking to him in such a mild tone.

"I... I'll give it a try." Huo Yuhao took a deep breath, and his expression turned resolute.

He then closed his eyes and tried to mobilize the soul power within his body. A faint white glow lit up in the sockets of his Spirit Eyes Martial Soul. He could feel a warm power slowly circulating at his brow, while a silver-white Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet. It was his first Soul Ring, a Million-Year Soul Ring from Skydream Iceworm.

To outsiders, it appeared to be an ordinary Soul Ring produced by a ten-year Soul Beast.

But Yan Jingzhe knew that it was a Million-Year Platinum Soul Ring that surpassed even red Soul Rings. Still, he said nothing, merely raising his brows slightly.

"My Martial Soul is the Spirit Eyes." Huo Yuhao opened his eyes, white light flowing within his pupils. "My first soul skill is... Spiritual Detection and Mental Sharing."

As his words fell, a white Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet and slowly revolved. An invisible mental ripple spread outward from him, sweeping through the surrounding trees, rocks, and bushes like ripples across water.

Huo Yuhao extended the range of his Spiritual Detection toward Yan Jingzhe, trying to synchronize the image he perceived with him. This required the other party's cooperation. If Yan Jingzhe resisted with his spiritual power, there was no way Huo Yuhao's current level of spiritual power could establish a connection.

But Yan Jingzhe did not resist. Instead, he closed his eyes and carefully felt it out.

"A radius of thirty meters," he accurately stated the data Huo Yuhao had just measured. "It can penetrate obstacles and create mental images. Not bad. As expected of a top-tier soul skill bestowed through a Soul Beast's sacrifice."

Though the image was black and white, every detail was precise.

As expected of a soul skill left behind by the Million-Year Soul Beast Skydream Iceworm after its sacrifice.

"Will the effects of this soul skill improve once your soul power rises?" Yan Jingzhe stood, dusted off robes that had no dust on them, and walked over to Huo Yuhao, looking down at him.

"Yes." The boy tilted his face up at him. There was nervousness in his eyes, anticipation as well, and a trace of almost imperceptible—humility—hidden deep within them.

It was the expression of a child who had never been treated kindly, an expression that only surfaced when he was taken seriously by a powerful person. He did not dare believe it, yet could not help hoping.

Yan Jingzhe looked at him for two seconds, then suddenly smiled.

"Your name is Huo Yuhao?"

"Yes."

"Who else is in your family?"

Huo Yuhao lowered his eyes and fell silent for a moment. "There was also... my mother, but she is gone now."

Yan Jingzhe nodded, understanding perfectly well.

"Huo Yuhao," he said. His voice was neither loud nor soft, but every word was crystal clear. "I asked whether you were willing to join the Shrek Soul Guidance Department, and you said yes. But I have changed my mind."

Huo Yuhao abruptly raised his head, his face turning pale in an instant.

Seeing the sudden change in his expression, Yan Jingzhe could not help laughing. He shook his head. "I'm not rejecting you."

"I want to take you as my disciple instead. Are you willing?"

Huo Yuhao was stunned.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. A Rank-98 Titled Douluo wanted to accept him as a disciple?

"Y-you... are you telling the truth?" His voice floated unsteadily.

Yan Jingzhe did not waste words. He raised his right hand, and nine Soul Rings bloomed one after another beneath his feet. One yellow, two purple, three black, and three red—nine Soul Rings slowly revolved around him. Though he deliberately restrained most of their pressure, that brief instant of release alone seemed to freeze the air for hundreds of meters around them.

The force of that aura nearly drove Huo Yuhao to his knees, but Yan Jingzhe reached out and supported him with a gentle stream of soul power.

Three red Soul Rings.

Huo Yuhao's pupils shook. No matter how ignorant he was, he knew what red Soul Rings represented—Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings. Red Soul Rings could only be obtained by killing Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts. There were only a handful of Titled Douluo across the continent with Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings, yet the man before him had three.

"My name is Yan Jingzhe. I am a Rank-98 assault-type Titled Douluo. My Martial Soul is the Light Phoenix, and I am a Rank-9 Soul Engineer." Yan Jingzhe withdrew his Soul Rings and spoke calmly. "When I accept disciples, I do not look at their background. I only look at two things: character and talent. Those two mental soul skills you displayed earlier are more than enough to prove that your talent is exceptional. As for your character..."

He glanced at Huo Yuhao's worn clothes and wounds that had yet to fully heal.

"An eleven- or twelve-year-old child entered the Great Star Dou Forest alone to obtain a Soul Ring, was gravely injured by Soul Beasts, and was later given a Soul Beast's sacrifice. After waking up, you did not panic or break down. You could still speak calmly with me. That kind of character is enough."

Hearing those words, Huo Yuhao's eyes suddenly stung.

He remembered his mother holding his hand before she died and saying, "Yuhao, you must live on." He remembered the days when he had been looked down upon and bullied in the Duke's estate. He remembered crossing mountains and rivers alone to reach the Great Star Dou Forest, nearly dying in the jaws of Soul Beasts.

No one had ever thought there was anything special about him.

And now, a Titled Douluo standing at the peak of the continent had crouched down and told him in all seriousness—you are very good.

"Your disciple, Huo Yuhao, pays respects to Master!"

Huo Yuhao dropped to both knees, his forehead striking the ground heavily.

Yan Jingzhe did not stop him. He accepted the bow, then bent down and pulled him back up.

"Get up. My lineage is not so particular about formalities. From now on, just offer a greeting when we meet. There is no need to kneel."

He patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder, and a thick stream of soul power entered Huo Yuhao's body, making one circuit along his meridians. The internal injuries that had not fully healed quickly improved under the nourishment of that soul power. Huo Yuhao felt warm all over, and even more than half the exhaustion from his days of travel faded away.

"Thank you, Master," Huo Yuhao said quietly.

"Mm. No need to be so formal."