A Tragedy Unfolds! Huo Yuhao!

Over the next while, Dai Yuhao brought the first form of the Human Emperor Sword Technique to a proficient level. Reaching mastery would depend on improving his Soul Power. At the same time, the Small Heavenly Cycle within his body had been perfected, allowing him to cultivate on his own without end.

Today, Dai Yuhao had gone to help his mother carry firewood back to their side room, hoping everyone would have an easier winter. But the moment he entered, he collided with a young man.

This young man was Dai Yuhao's nominal second brother, Dai Huabin!

"Who was that? Are you blind?!" The golden-haired youth's face flushed red. Seeing Dai Yuhao sprawled on the ground in ordinary commoner's clothes only made his anger flare higher.

"Someone! Teach this little bastard a proper lesson!"

Having received their master's order, several servants immediately grabbed firewood from nearby, raised wooden clubs, and swung them down at Dai Yuhao. Just as he was about to be struck, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Mom!"

Yes, it was Huo Yuner. She had just returned from fetching water, and the moment she entered, she saw her son about to be beaten. She rushed over at once. But as the disgraced Huo Yuner, she was beneath the servants' notice.

Blow after blow landed viciously on her body.

"Mm!"

Though pain wracked her body, Huo Yuner did not dodge, because she had to protect her son beneath her. Watching his mother shield him from the attacks, Dai Yuhao grew frantic and tried to break free.

Suddenly, an irresistible force swept over him. It prevented Dai Yuhao from exerting any strength at all, which was why, despite possessing the strength of a Soul Scholar, he remained pinned beneath Huo Yuner.

High above the Douluo Plane lay a world like a celestial realm. Within one of its palaces that soared into the clouds, a blue-haired man watched the mother and son in a crystal ball with a smug expression.

"Feel the pain well, Child of Destiny! Only then can you be of use to me!" He extended his right hand, as though everything were under his control.

Back at the Duke's Estate, as Huo Yuner endured the storm of club strikes, Dai Yuhao was so frantic that he nearly cried. Yet he could not summon any strength. For some reason, he felt so weak, so helplessly unable to protect his mother.

Suddenly, Dai Yuhao thought of someone and immediately contacted the figure meditating quietly within his mind.

"Brother Liu Ju, hurry! Hurry and save Mom!" Dai Yuhao's voice echoed throughout the Spirit Sea. Liu Ju emerged from his meditation, and upon hearing Dai Yuhao's plea, his heart jolted as he immediately checked the situation outside.

"You're courting death!" Liu Ju burned with rage. They dared harm his little brother's mother? The last remnants of power within him erupted instantly. Before using it, he glanced at his right hand.

As the Human Emperor Power within Liu Ju flowed into Dai Yuhao's body, Dai Yuhao instantly broke free from Huo Yuner's embrace. With fists and kicks, he sent the servants who still intended to attack his mother flying.

Huo Yuner was already covered in wounds. Seeing his injured mother, Dai Yuhao could no longer contain his rage. A vast surge of spiritual energy erupted from him.

Spiritual energy gathered around his fists as he punched and kicked the servants before him, leaving them severely injured. Some might say they were innocent, but if you wielded the blade, you had to bear the consequences of handing it over.

As the servants were sent flying one after another, Dai Yuhao slowly walked toward Dai Huabin. Seeing such an arrogant commoner, Dai Huabin was furious.

He immediately summoned his Martial Soul. His body began to swell, black stripes appeared across parts of him, white fur emerged over his body, and a White Tiger phantom appeared behind him.

Boom!

A piercing sound tore through the air as Dai Huabin sprang forward, ready to teach this fool who did not know his place a proper lesson.

As the tiger claw was about to strike Dai Yuhao's head and he still showed no reaction, Dai Huabin's lips curled upward. Scared stiff? Hmph! If you dare provoke me, you must pay the price.

But just as the tiger claw was about to hit Dai Yuhao's head, an unimaginable pressure descended. Golden light flickered in Dai Yuhao's eyes, and an emperor-like might swept over Dai Huabin's entire body.

His body stiffened in place. Looking at the enormous pair of eyes behind Dai Yuhao, Dai Huabin felt as if his soul were about to be torn away beneath their gaze.

Seeing Dai Huabin standing there in a daze, Dai Yuhao slowly raised his right fist. Pure Soul Power poured into it, and he threw a punch that struck Dai Huabin hard in the abdomen, sending him flying into the wall.

The instant he was sent flying, Dai Huabin left behind a yellow trail. Clearly, the enormous eyes behind Dai Yuhao had frightened him so badly that he wet himself.

After sending them flying, Dai Yuhao immediately went to Huo Yuner's side, helped her up, and brought her into the side room. He laid her on the bed, his face full of anxiety. Unfortunately, the old steward was not at the Duke's Estate.

Dai Yuhao was frantic. He had no money on him and could not afford to summon a doctor. Huo Yuner was already taking more breaths out than in. His eyes bloodshot, Dai Yuhao held his mother's hand. All he could do now was pray silently.

But it was useless. Huo Yuner slowly turned her head, looked at Dai Yuhao's tear-reddened eyes, and gently brushed them.

She comforted him softly, "All right, Yuhao, don't cry."

"Mom is just tired. I need a good rest."

Cough, cough, cough!

But her body had been forced beyond its limit. As her breathing weakened, Huo Yuner fell stiffly onto the bed. Her constitution had already been frail, and after enduring the servants' clubbing, she finally collapsed.

"Mom!"

His heart-rending roar echoed beneath the heavens. The light vanished from Dai Yuhao's eyes as he murmured the word "Mom," again and again. But the family member lying on the bed would never answer him again.

Yet Dai Yuhao knew that the dead had to be buried for peace. He carried his mother on his back. Though her body was cold, Yuhao could still feel her warmth and tenderness.

He took the sturdy White Tiger Dagger from his arms and began digging into the ground. Rain began to fall from the sky as Dai Yuhao dug numbly, even when his hands had become a bloody mess.

But Dai Yuhao knew he had to lay his mother to rest. With that thought, he found the strength to dig harder. Once the grave was finished, he took out the quilt he had brought along, laid it in the pit, and gently placed his mother inside.

Then he filled in the grave and erected a marker, carving each word with the White Tiger Dagger: "Grave of Mother Huo Yuner!"

"Mom! I, Yuhao, swear here that I will make Dai Huabin and the Duchess pay for this in blood! From this day onward, I will no longer bear the surname Dai! My surname is Huo! My name is Huo Yuhao!"

Boom!

A clap of thunder resounded, as though heralding the birth of a god of slaughter. Huo Yuhao silently put away the White Tiger Dagger and slowly walked back toward the side room.