Damaged Foundation? Huo's Grilled Fish

"What do you mean, 'might'? Xuan Zi, please, tell us!"

Bei Bei's eyes were full of anxiety. Xuan Zi merely glanced at him, taking his outburst as worry, and did not grow angry at his breach of courtesy.

Xuan Zi chose his words as carefully as he could. "I'm afraid her foundation has been damaged. She may even become a cripple!"

"What!?"

This time, it was not only Bei Bei. The other students cried out as well.

"How could that happen? Sister Lexuan, she—"

None of them could believe their ears. How could Sister Lexuan, the strongest person in their eyes, become a cripple?

Zhang Lexuan's deathly pale face and the blood at the corner of her mouth had not escaped Lu Yi's notice. His feelings were tangled.

Before this, she had been the pillar holding everyone up, the person they felt safest relying on. Yet today, she had been brought to this.

He knew Zhang Lexuan's tenacious vitality would eventually let her recover fully, but seeing her like this still made his heart ache.

Tears streamed down Xuan Zi's aged face. Shrek had spared no effort in raising Zhang Lexuan as a candidate for Sea God Pavilion Master two generations from now, yet she had suffered all this because he had craved a few Soul Beast eggs.

Once again, crushing guilt surged through him. But what was done was done. As the one responsible, he could only do everything he could to make amends.

"Effective immediately, Soul Hunting is over. I'll take the fallen students and the injured back to the academy."

The situation was urgent. He needed to return to the academy as quickly as possible so the injured could receive better treatment.

"Everyone else will return under Han Ruoruo's lead!"

Han Ruoruo stepped forward and accepted the order solemnly.

As the most senior member of the group, she would have no trouble leading them out of the Star Dou Great Forest.

The appearance of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast here had been an accident. In fact, while they had waited for Zhang Lexuan to absorb her Soul Ring, not a single Soul Beast nearby had dared approach.

Xuan Zi lifted Zhang Lexuan with his Soul Power, along with the maimed student and the bodies of the four who had died.

Out of respect for the fallen students, he could not put their bodies in a Storage Soul Tool.

And despite his level 98 strength, with the others lacking Flying Soul Tools, he could take only a few people with him.

Leaving Han Ruoruo to lead the rest back to the academy was the best choice they had.

He rose into the air with the six of them, then flew north at breakneck speed without looking back. In an instant, he was gone.

Ten people remained, with Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming at their head.

Han Ruoruo watched Xuan Zi disappear into the distance, then turned her gaze on the dispirited group. Her expression sharpened. "Look at you, hanging your heads! Lexuan isn't as fragile as you think. Pull yourselves together!"

She had held back plenty earlier, unwilling to deal another blow to teammates already reeling. Now, though, some things had to be said.

"Wu Ming!"

Hearing Han Ruoruo call her by name, Wu Ming raised her head in confusion and pointed at herself. "Me?"

When Han Ruoruo nodded, Wu Ming asked, "What is it, Sister Ruoruo?"

The Inner Court was a place where strength ruled. Both she and Han Ruoruo were level 70 Soul Saint candidates, so they ought to have been equals.

But Han Ruoruo was a control-type Soul Master, had commanded on the battlefield for years, and had entered the academy several years before her. Most of the time, Wu Ming followed her lead.

"You charged to the front in that fight. That was good, but—" Han Ruoruo's face was stern. "You focused so much on the power of your Soul Skills that most of your attacks missed and you even injured your teammates. Luckily, Tang Ya and the others were there to clean up your mess. Otherwise, we'd have lost more than four people!"

Wu Ming flushed at the accusation, but she could find no words to refute it. All she could do was fume.

Seeing this, Han Ruoruo did not press her further.

Her gaze passed over Zhu Song and settled on the other three students. "Don't think getting into the Inner Court means you can focus only on raising your Soul Power. Until you're strong enough to stand on your own, teamwork still comes first. This trip should be a warning to all of us. When we get back, every one of you is doing extra training!"

The three youngest Inner Court students listened and nodded obediently. Zhu Song was privately relieved to have escaped a scolding, only to meet Han Ruoruo's stern gaze. He quickly lowered his head.

That was as far as the lecture went. Its main purpose was to lift the group's spirits. Han Ruoruo let the sternness leave her face and looked at Lu Yi, Bei Bei, and the others. "You really did better than expected. Just don't learn from us and turn a fight into a complete mess!"

She gave them no chance to answer. "It's getting late. Outer Court registration starts in a few days. Get yourselves ready. We leave in fifteen minutes!"

The ten of them gathered their things and set out that morning. By evening, they had left the Star Dou Great Forest and reached a narrow path.

They kept a modest pace to spare Lu Yi and Huo Yuhao's stamina.

When a clear stream came into view ahead, Tang Ya rushed over first.

"Boo-hoo... Little fish, come to your big sister!" Tang Ya's tears flowed as she watched the fish swimming in the stream, and she called Bei Bei over.

Crackle!

A powerful current shot from Bei Bei's palm and spread beneath the water. A moment later, several green fish of different sizes floated to the surface.

Tang Ya swiftly scooped up all the stunned fish and laid them before Huo Yuhao, brimming with excitement.

"Little Yuhao, they're all yours!"

The Inner Court students knew nothing of Huo Yuhao's skill at grilling fish. They took out their rations and made a quick dinner of them.

Lu Yi, however, had eaten grilled Shadow Leopard meat for three days straight. By now, he felt as though his sense of taste was fading.

The meat had certainly done wonders for his cultivation. After nine meals of grilled meat in three days, his Soul Power had settled firmly at level seventeen. But his taste buds had paid for it with their lives.

He desperately needed a normal meal to bring his dead taste buds back to life.

So Lu Yi stepped forward to help prepare the fish. Before long, a grill had been set over the campfire.

As he watched Huo Yuhao turn the fish with care, Lu Yi grew more curious.

He had heard plenty about little Huo's grilled fish. Today, he would finally find out what it tasted like.

Soon, the smell of grilling fish grew richer and richer.

The aroma curled around Lu Yi's nose and roused the greedy worms in his belly.

When three fish came off the grill, Tang Ya snatched one up at once. Bei Bei courteously let Lu Yi have the next.

Lu Yi did not stand on ceremony. He thanked Bei Bei, took the fish, blew on it, and bit in.

In an instant, crisp skin and tender flesh met on his tongue, mingled with savory saltiness. Each made the other taste better.

"Delicious!"

Lu Yi felt his taste buds come back to life. He gave Huo Yuhao a thumbs-up, then hurried to take another bite.

The aroma and Lu Yi's verdict drew even the older students out of their cultivation. One after another, they opened their eyes.

Unable to contain her curiosity, Wu Ming reached Huo Yuhao first. She studied the grilled fish intently. "What did you put in this? Make one for me too!"

She pulled out a Gold Soul Coin and pressed it into Huo Yuhao's hand before he could object.

With Wu Ming leading the way, the other students followed, each pulling out money.

Huo Yuhao felt the heavy Gold Soul Coins in his hand and stood at a loss.

He had never seen so much money. For a moment, he did not know whether to accept it or refuse.

Beside him, Tang Ya's eyes lit up. A way to get rich had suddenly occurred to her.

She patted Huo Yuhao at once. "Little Yuhao, keep grilling! Senior Brother Bei and I will catch some more!"