Yu Xiaogang: You Will Be the Second God

On the night the holiday began, Gu Mingyuan did not stay in the dormitory to celebrate. He went to South City alone.

The Spring Return Apothecary's door was still half-closed.

The gray-clad clerk who had been turned into a puppet stood behind the counter, his eyes vacant. When Gu Mingyuan entered, he asked no questions. He simply shut the shop door and led Gu Mingyuan into the underground chamber.

Blood dripped onto the statue's base, and scarlet lines lit up one after another.

Chilling spiritual power gathered, forming the familiar phantom of a woman.

"Level thirty?"

The moment the phantom appeared, she sensed the change in Gu Mingyuan's Soul Power.

"Yes," Gu Mingyuan replied.

"Twelve years old and level thirty. It seems you could make the list yourself."

Her tone remained flat, but Gu Mingyuan's value to the Holy Spirit Cult was clearly no longer what it had been.

"The holiday lasts a month. Do you plan to stay in Shrek City or return to the Star Luo Empire?"

"Neither." Gu Mingyuan looked up. "I'm going to hunt for my third Soul Ring."

"Didn't Shrek promise to find the most suitable Soul Rings for the top three teams in the freshman assessment?"

"The targets the academy offered were all too ordinary. Besides, that opportunity might be more useful for a Soul Ring with a higher age."

Gu Mingyuan continued, "I need a Soul Beast that can disperse and channel impacts. Ideally, it would have hard bones and exceptional physical strength."

The phantom studied him for a few seconds.

"How old a Soul Ring do you intend to absorb?"

"There's no precise standard for that," Gu Mingyuan said calmly. "I only need to know where I can find such a Soul Beast."

The chamber fell quiet for a moment. The phantom guessed that the boy probably intended to absorb a Soul Ring beyond his level.

She suddenly raised a hand and sent a thread of spiritual power into the stone platform. With a click of machinery, a hidden compartment slowly sprang open. Inside lay a map and a pitch-black iron token.

"Cold Jade-Horned Rhinos live on the outskirts of the Far North. Their bones have a layered structure. When struck, they can channel the impact down their spines, through their limbs, and into the ice beneath their feet."

"Half a month ago, the Far North Branch Altar discovered a group of them. We believe it's a herd."

A perfect match!

Gu Mingyuan stepped forward and picked up the map.

It showed a route through the northern Heaven Dou Empire. One area near the Far North had been circled in red ink.

"This token will prove your identity," the phantom continued. "Once you reach Frostfall City, go to the Black Feather Medicine Shop in the west of the city. The branch altar will provide you with a map, a guide, and basic supplies, but it won't hunt the Soul Beast for you."

"That's enough."

Gu Mingyuan put away the map and token.

"There's no need to take risks over the age of your Soul Ring. As long as you do your work well, the Cult will decide what's best for your future Soul Rings." The phantom offered him a few words of advice. His value made him impossible for her to ignore.

Gu Mingyuan said nothing. He had no intention of using the Holy Spirit Cult's methods, nor did he plan to work for the Cult forever.

"One more thing," the phantom said suddenly. "How is the task I gave you progressing?"

Gu Mingyuan knew she meant the peripheral organization.

"So far, I've kept two people. One gathers information in the city, and the other can locate targets and relay messages over long distances."

"Eight months, and only two people?"

Her voice turned cold.

"Shrek City is right under the academy's nose. The more people I recruit, the sooner we're exposed." Gu Mingyuan remained composed. "I need people who will be useful for the long term, not fools who'll charge into Shrek to die after a little persuasion."

The phantom did not immediately argue.

The intelligence Gu Mingyuan had submitted on Ma Xiaotao had already shown that he had judgment of his own.

"The Cult can allow you to move slowly, but it cannot allow you to stand still forever."

The phantom looked down at him. "Before the end of the next academic year, I want to see a team that can actually carry out missions."

"Understood."

The phantom gradually faded, and the red light in the statue's eyes went out.

Gu Mingyuan turned and left the chamber.

The Cold Jade-Horned Rhino's ability suited his goal. More importantly, the end of the first academic year meant Huo Yuhao would soon head for the Far North.

Gu Mingyuan knew that, but he could not report it directly to the Holy Spirit Cult.

He could hardly tell Feng Ling that he had read a novel called The Unrivaled Tang Sect.

Only after he confirmed with his own eyes that Huo Yuhao had left Shrek and found traces of his journey north would the information have a credible source.

As for what the Holy Spirit Cult would do once it learned of this...

That would be beyond Huo Yuhao's control.

Meanwhile, in a dormitory at Shrek Academy.

Huo Yuhao folded a thick cotton coat and stuffed it into his Storage Soul Tool.

A fur hat, leather boots, a fire starter, dried rations, rope, and a map of the northern Heaven Dou Empire still lay on his bed.

They had cost most of his savings, but Huo Yuhao did not begrudge a coin.

He had finally reached level twenty.

"The day's finally here!"

In the Sea of Spirit, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm rolled over excitedly, his enormous body setting ripples of golden light in motion.

"Yuhao, I've waited a whole year for this! Once we reach the Far North, your Second Martial Soul will be within reach!"

Huo Yuhao stopped packing.

A Second Martial Soul.

Though he had heard the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm speak of it countless times, those words still made his heart race.

Twin Martial Souls.

When he returned to Shrek, everyone would see him in a new light.

Gu Mingyuan was strong. He had even blocked the Golden Road head-on.

But that was only for now.

Once Huo Yuhao had his Second Martial Soul, the gap between them would rapidly close—perhaps even reverse completely. Then the academy would understand just how foolish it had been not to name him an official core disciple!

And those who had hurt his mother would all pay for it!

"Yuhao, stop grinning and check your cold-weather supplies."

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm urged him on. "It gets colder the farther north you go. Once we enter the Far North, ordinary cotton coats and leather boots will soon be useless. You must follow my instructions exactly."

"I understand, Brother Sky Dream."

Huo Yuhao nodded solemnly.

At the other end of the Sea of Spirit, Yu Xiaogang walked forward slowly with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Yuhao."

"Grandmaster."

Huo Yuhao immediately straightened up.

After nearly a year together, he had a fair idea of what this so-called God-Teacher was like. It would be unfair to say Yu Xiaogang was completely useless, but so far, he might have been less useful than Huo Yuhao's grilled fish.

Yu Xiaogang looked at him with a hint of satisfaction.

"If you succeed in obtaining your Second Martial Soul on this journey, I will formally accept you as my second personal disciple."

Huo Yuhao froze.

"Second?"

"That's right."

Yu Xiaogang lifted his chin slightly, pride and nostalgia in his eyes.

"My first personal disciple was, of course, Tang San, who attained the divine positions of both Sea God and Asura God ten thousand years ago."

"Your talent may not yet match Tang San's, but you possess the Spirit Eyes Martial Soul and are about to gain a Second Martial Soul. Train according to my methods, and you will be the second god!"