Yuhao Chases Her to the Clear Sky Sect, Challenges Er Ming Without Backing Down

After the Continental Advanced Soul Master Tournament preliminaries ended, the organizers gave every team two days to recuperate.

Two days later, the finals bracket drawing would begin.

Shrek should have used that time to treat their injuries, review the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool methods, and thoroughly sort out the clues regarding the Holy Spirit Cult's infiltration of the arena. Xuan Lao had also made it clear that no one was allowed to run around during those two days. Yet Huo Yuhao could not sit still. He stared at the communication soul tool Wang Dong'er had left behind on the table and did not close his eyes for the entire night.

She had not even taken this with her, as if she had severed the path that would let him find her as well.

Before dawn, Huo Yuhao handed the preliminary tactics for the finals to Bei Bei. He also sealed the Sun Moon interference spikes and the remnants of the surveillance soul tools in a box, asking He Caitou to continue analyzing and dismantling them. When Bei Bei saw him packing his outer robes, his expression darkened.

"Where are you going?"

Huo Yuhao said quietly, "The Clear Sky Sect."

Bei Bei's brow furrowed. "The finals start the day after tomorrow."

"I know."

"If you go now, can you make it back in time?"

"Even if I can't, I still have to go."

Bei Bei looked at him without speaking for a long while.

Tang Ya stood by the door and said softly, "Have you thought this through?"

Huo Yuhao nodded.

Tang Ya sighed. "Then go. But don't think a few nice words will be enough to coax her back. Dong'er isn't that kind of girl."

"I know."

Wang Qiu'er stood outside Shrek City's gates, watching his solitary departing figure. Her golden eyes were dark and deep. She wanted badly to go with him, but she could not. Because she knew that, among the people Wang Dong'er least wanted to see right now, aside from Huo Yuhao, she was probably one of them.

Heavy snow and wind swept before the Clear Sky Sect's mountain gate. It was already afternoon when Huo Yuhao arrived. He stood beneath the stone steps and asked the gatekeeping disciples to report his arrival. Upon hearing Huo Yuhao's name, their expressions changed slightly. They did not let him through at once, instead telling him to wait outside the gate.

An hour passed.

Then two hours.

The sky gradually darkened, yet Huo Yuhao remained where he was. Snow settled on his shoulders, then froze into a thin layer of frost under the chill unconsciously emanating from his Ultimate Ice. His injuries had never fully healed, the dull ache in his Spirit Eyes still lingered, and every breath felt as though some blunt object were pressing against his chest.

He did not move.

Nor did he urge them.

Inside the mountain gate, Wang Dong'er stood atop the Clear Sky Sect's wall, watching him from afar.

She had thought she would feel better. Yet seeing Huo Yuhao standing in the snow for so long, seeing his face grow paler and paler while he stubbornly refused even to sit down, only made the resentment in her chest clog up even more tightly.

Er Ming could not bear it any longer. He strode out of the mountain gate, his clenched fists cracking. "Kid, you still dared to come?"

Huo Yuhao raised his head and bowed. "Senior, I wish to see Dong'er."

Er Ming's face darkened further. "You think you can see her just because you want to?"

Huo Yuhao did not argue. "I want to see Dong'er and apologize to her in person."

"So one apology is enough to settle everything?"

"No."

Huo Yuhao looked up. His eyes were bloodshot, but he did not retreat.

"She can refuse to forgive me. She can still tell me to get lost. She can refuse to see me ever again. But I cannot leave without even saying sorry. I also want to explain everything to her clearly. I cannot let her bear all this pain alone in the Clear Sky Sect."

Er Ming sneered and raised a hand, about to blast him away from the mountain gate.

"Uncle Tai!" Dong'er finally rushed out. Da Ming had somehow arrived before the mountain gate as well. He was far quieter than Er Ming, his gaze on Huo Yuhao as deep and heavy as a still lake.

"Dong'er!" Delight flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes, and unconcealed joy spread across his face. "You were finally willing to see me."

"Leave, Huo Yuhao. We have nothing to do with each other, and I don't want to hurt you."

Huo Yuhao said, "No, I won't leave. I came to apologize. Whether you forgive me or not, I hope you'll come back to Shrek with me. I... everyone and I, we all need you."

"You want to take Dong'er away?"

"I do."

"Do you want to apologize sincerely?"

"That is exactly why I came."

"Then get past us first."

Wang Dong'er's heart tightened. "Uncle Niu?"

Da Ming did not look at her. He only said to Huo Yuhao, "Defeat Er Ming within the time it takes an incense stick to burn."

The wind and snow seemed to stop in that instant.

Even Er Ming was stunned for a moment before breaking into a grin. "Big Brother, you really think highly of this kid."

Wang Dong'er panicked. "How is that possible? Even if he suppresses his cultivation, Yuhao can't possibly defeat Uncle Tai! I'll just drive him away. There's no need to make things difficult for him."

Wang Dong'er knew Er Ming's strength very well. Once the Forest King of the Star Dou Forest—the Titan Giant Ape—he was now a Second-Level God. Even after taking human form, he still possessed the strength of a Limit Douluo. Huo Yuhao was a Soul Sage below Rank 80. He had no chance of winning and might not even withstand a single move.

Da Ming said blandly, "That is precisely why it can be called sincerity."

Wang Dong'er's eyes instantly reddened.

Huo Yuhao, however, did not hesitate in the slightest.

"Senior, I accept your proposal. A promise is a promise."

Wang Dong'er abruptly looked at him. Huo Yuhao looked back at her, and through the wind and snow, he said gently, "Dong'er, I will do my best to prove my sincerity."

"Senior, begin."

The fire in Er Ming's eyes paused. Da Ming also glanced at Huo Yuhao. The next moment, Er Ming stepped down the stone stairs.

Boom! The entire snowy ground before the mountain gate sank by an inch.

"Kid, I'll give you a thirty percent handicap. If you can make me take one step back, you win."

Huo Yuhao drew a deep breath, and his Spirit Eyes lit up.

Spirit Detection spread outward, but Er Ming's soul power was far too dense and heavy. He was not an ordinary power attack soul master. That force pressed down like an entire mountain. The instant Spirit Detection touched it, it was numbed by the pure, ultimate power. Huo Yuhao did not force it. Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track flashed beneath his feet, and Ultimate Ice spread across the snow. Icy blue patterns formed a temporary force-dispersing array.

Er Ming laughed. "You've got plenty of tricks."

The first punch descended.

Huo Yuhao did not even see the fist shadow clearly. The ice wall shattered, and Ice Emperor's Protection flashed brightly, cracking inch by inch. The phantom of the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion unfurled behind him, its jade-green scorpion tail sweeping fiercely as it tried to freeze the outermost layer of the fist pressure with Ultimate Ice.

But Er Ming's power was too tyrannical. The ice seal held for less than half a breath before exploding. Huo Yuhao slid backward, his feet plowing two deep furrows through the snow. In the end, he slammed heavily into the edge of the stone steps, blood surging into his throat.

Dong'er's face turned pale as she cried out, "Yuhao!"

Hearing Dong'er's voice, Huo Yuhao pushed himself up with one knee and said hoarsely that he was fine. Yet the moment he finished speaking, he coughed up blood again.

Er Ming snorted. "Fine? You've got a pretty tough mouth."

The second punch came even faster. This time, Huo Yuhao did not retreat. His Spirit Eyes suddenly brightened, and mental interference pressed toward the path of Er Ming's punch. He did not seek to shake Er Ming's spiritual sea; he only wanted the fist pressure to shift by half an inch. At the same time, Ice Empress's Pincers condensed into jade-gold light around his arms, while he forcibly activated the Darkgolden Terrorclaw right palm bone. Sharp golden radiance burst from his fingertips.

Ice, gold, and spiritual power met the attack all at once.

Boom!

Huo Yuhao's arms went numb, his bones feeling as though they had cracked from the shock. The Darkgolden Terrorclaw was bent backward by the fist pressure, and Ice Empress's Pincers nearly collapsed as well. Yet in that instant, Huo Yuhao caught an extremely tiny gap in the flow of Er Ming's power through Spirit Detection. Borrowing the recoil, he shifted half a step sideways.

Er Ming's fist wind grazed his shoulder and struck the ground. The snow exploded, and although Huo Yuhao was still thrown away by the aftershock, he was not completely knocked back as he had been by the first punch.

Er Ming's expression finally changed. "Interesting."

Huo Yuhao knelt in the snow, blood covering his lips, but his Spirit Eyes still shone.

Wang Dong'er's hands clenched even tighter. Her heart ached faintly. She had already forgiven him for more than half of it, and she shouted toward the two fighting figures, "Uncle Tai, stop! How could he possibly be your opponent...?"

"It isn't over yet," Er Ming said.

After saying that, Dong'er turned to plead with Da Ming, urging him to let it go. She could not forgive Huo Yuhao herself, but they could simply send him away.

Da Ming gently patted Dong'er's shoulder and said meaningfully, "Little Dong, if we don't punish him this way, how can we vent your anger for you? If he doesn't even dare accept this test, how can he prove his sincerity?"

Tears fell from Wang Dong'er's eyes. "He'll die!"

Da Ming was silent for a moment before continuing, "Don't worry. He'll be fine. Er Ming knows what he's doing. How could we truly hurt the man you love?"

Wang Dong'er froze and did not argue with Da Ming any further. She understood. Da Ming and Er Ming were not truly trying to beat Huo Yuhao to death. They were asking for an answer on her behalf—whether Huo Yuhao had merely come to coax her back, or whether he was willing to give everything for Dong'er.

Before the third punch, Er Ming put away his smile.

"Kid, the incense is almost burned out, and you still haven't made me take even half a step back."

Huo Yuhao slowly rose to his feet. His vision had already become somewhat blurry, and his spiritual sea hurt as though it were about to split apart. Yet he still pushed his Spirit Eyes to their limit. The phantom of the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion appeared once more, while Ultimate Ice spread beneath his feet into an almost transparent domain of cold.

Eternal Frozen Domain, forcibly unleashed. This was not a complete domain. It was more like, in this desperate situation, he had compressed every trace of Ultimate Ice he could mobilize into a single line. When Er Ming's fist came down, Huo Yuhao did not dodge. He used Spirit Shock to strike the center of the fist pressure, used Ice Emperor's Protection to endure the first layer of impact, used Ice Empress's Pincers to hook the edge of Er Ming's fist wind, then slashed the Darkgolden Terrorclaw along the weakest point of the punch.

He could not hurt Er Ming in the slightest, but he did everything he could to force him back one step.

Even if it was only one step, Dong'er might forgive him. Dong'er could return to Shrek with him.

The black-gold fist pressure and icy blue wave of cold collided with a thunderous crash. Nearly all of Huo Yuhao's defenses shattered at once. His body was launched into the air by the impact, his chest feeling as though it had been pierced through by a massive boulder. The light in his Spirit Eyes dimmed, and his consciousness nearly broke. Yet in the instant he flew backward, the Darkgolden Terrorclaw sliced across the edge of the fist pressure, and Ultimate Ice erupted violently through that crack.

The snow beneath Er Ming's feet froze. His right foot slid backward by half an inch.

Everyone before the mountain gate saw it.

Huo Yuhao crashed heavily into the snow and did not get up for a long while.

Wang Dong'er completely panicked. She threw herself toward him, knelt in the snow, and held his shoulders, her voice trembling.

"Yuhao, Yuhao..."

Er Ming fell silent, and Da Ming did not stop her. Huo Yuhao opened his eyes. At first, all he saw was the endless white snow. Then Wang Dong'er's red-rimmed face came into view.

He wanted to speak, but he coughed up blood first. Wang Dong'er's tears fell onto his face as she said angrily, her voice shaking, "Are you stupid? Why didn't you just give up on me? Why did you come looking for me?... Did you really think you could beat the Titan Giant Ape now?"

Huo Yuhao smiled faintly. "I... can't..."

"But, Dong'er, I did something wrong. This is the punishment I deserve... I missed you. I wanted to see you. I wanted to bring you back. I had no other way."

Huo Yuhao looked at her, his voice so weak it was nearly scattered by the wind and snow.

Wang Dong'er bit her lip, her tears falling even harder.

Er Ming turned his head away and cursed under his breath, "Brat. He really is as tough as Dong'er said. His future is limitless."

Da Ming looked at Huo Yuhao, who could barely stand in the snow, and said calmly, "You pass."

Huo Yuhao struggled to prop himself up. "Th-thank... you... both seniors."

Dong'er looked up. "Uncle Niu... I..."

Da Ming looked at her. "You decide for yourself."

Wang Dong'er helped Huo Yuhao to his feet and remained silent for a long time.

Then she said quietly, "Yuhao, I'll return to the academy with you."

Huo Yuhao's fingertips trembled. He did not immediately say yes, because he feared that the instant he opened his mouth, all his misery would spill out. In the end, he only said softly, "Thank you."

Wang Dong'er glared at him with reddened eyes. "I haven't said I've forgiven you yet."

Huo Yuhao nodded. "That's all right, Dong'er. Being able to see you is already enough."

Er Ming's teeth ached from hearing that. He turned and walked away, still snarling at Huo Yuhao in disgust, "Get lost already. If you die on the road before the finals, don't say our Clear Sky Sect bullied you."

Da Ming raised a hand, and a gentle yet heavy stream of soul power fell upon Huo Yuhao's back, temporarily suppressing his internal injuries.

"You'll be grateful to us. More importantly, treat Little Dong well," Da Ming said, looking at him.

Huo Yuhao's heart stirred. He had sensed it as well. When the third punch landed, the bottleneck that had blocked him for so long had been smashed open by a sliver under the Titan Giant Ape's terrifying pressure. His soul power circulated more smoothly now.

On the way down the mountain, Wang Dong'er supported him as they walked slowly. Huo Yuhao's face was frighteningly pale, yet his palm continued to lightly hold her hand.

"Don't worry," he said, deliberately teasing her when he saw how concerned she looked.

Wang Dong'er gritted her teeth. "Stop trying to act cute."

Huo Yuhao looked toward the night sky in the direction of Shrek. His voice was weak, yet far calmer than when he had arrived.

"This trip was not without gains."

Huo Yuhao did not explain. He merely tightened his grip on her hand. Dong'er's eyes reddened again, but she did not scold him anymore. She only said softly, "Let's return to the academy first."

"Mm."

The two walked side by side down the Clear Sky Sect's mountain path.

The wind and snow covered the stone steps behind them.