By the time El finished soaking in the Lake of Life, enjoying a fragrant, silky bath so comfortable it made him kick his feet up, five days had passed before he saw Huo Yutong again.
"?"
A question mark appeared over El's head as he looked at the beautiful girl before him.
If her aura and his Reverse Scale had not confirmed it, El would never have imagined that the girl standing before him was Huo Yutong.
Even though she had a good foundation, when El first met Huo Yutong, her cheeks had been gaunt, her chin pointed, and her whole body had barely any flesh on it. Her complexion had also carried a sickly pallor.
One could say that little Huo had previously only qualified as pretty, and much of that beauty had come from her lovely, large eyes.
But after Bi Ji tempered her body, the girl's appearance underwent an enormous transformation.
Her once skeletal body had filled out a little. Her small face and chin were still somewhat pointed, but now they had a healthy curve to them.
Her skin was luminous and smooth as jade, with a rosy flush beneath its fair surface. Even the scars left by abuse at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion that had gone untreated had vanished.
The pitiful little girl was gone. Now, at first glance, Huo Yutong was unmistakably an adorable little girl raised in wealth and comfort!
"E-El..."
Little Huo greeted him timidly.
Then she hurried over to El with quick little steps and clutched his sleeve.
For now, she only felt safe when El was beside her.
Huo Yutong knew this was not quite right.
But at present, she had no way of freeing herself from her dependence on El.
To be honest, if she had a choice, she did not want to free herself from it either...
"Wow!"
El's eyes lit up as he looked at Huo Yutong beside him. Then he grabbed little Huo's shoulders, his delighted tone carrying a hint of exaggeration.
"Little Yu Tong has become so beautiful!"
"Come on, let me have a look."
Wearing a slightly teasing smile, El looked her over from left to right and even circled around her once.
At the boy's actions, two rosy clouds swiftly colored Huo Yutong's little face.
"Not bad!"
After briefly sensing her energy, El confirmed Huo Yutong's current soul power level.
"Level seventeen. You've exceeded the target, too."
A medicinal bath of that caliber had only raised her soul power by six levels, and six levels at the one-ring stage at that. It seemed Bi Ji really had poured considerable effort into this.
El pulled little Huo, who was a little more confident but still somewhat timid, behind him.
Having done that, he gave Bi Ji, who had arrived with Huo Yutong and kept her head lowered the entire time, a meaningful smile.
"...Well done."
Finally, stroking little Huo's now even silkier hair, El nodded in satisfaction, acknowledging Bi Ji's work.
"Once I break the rule preventing beasts from becoming gods, I'll find you a suitable divine seat."
"I wouldn't dare!"
Bi Ji lowered her head even further.
"Working toward the Soul Beast Clan's revival is my duty. How could I dare covet a reward from Your Highness!"
"Tch!"
El curled his lips in displeasure.
"If I say I'm giving it to you, just accept it.
"Although, right now, this promise is only a grand pie in the sky."
"But in the future, when a divine seat is placed before you, you had better not refuse me again."
"Otherwise, you really can stay in the lower realm for the rest of your life."
Shaking his head, El waved Bi Ji away, allowing her to leave on her own.
"Are you ready?"
El asked Huo Yutong softly.
"To obtain your second martial soul."
"Mm-hmm!"
Little Huo nodded vigorously. Although a trace of fear remained in her eyes, it vanished in a flash, replaced by determination and anticipation.
"I'm ready!"
El nodded in satisfaction.
Good, very spirited! Her vigor, energy, and spirit all look excellent!
Then he called for his capable general, the strongest expert the beast race could currently field.
"Di Tian."
"Your Highness!"
The Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King bowed his head and dropped to one knee.
"Take us to Sunset Forest."
"Yes."
Di Tian stood and swept one hand through the air. A pitch-black rift appeared once again in the open space beside them.
Huo Yutong's steps faltered slightly, and she examined it a few more times.
Compared to the spatial rift that had appeared before, this one was clearly more unstable. Not only did its irregular edges shift more violently, but faint, hollow noises also came from within the passage.
Seeing her puzzled gaze,
El took her hand and led the way toward the spatial rift, explaining as he went.
"Someone has placed a restriction over the place we're heading to."
"Its spatial coordinates are slightly out of alignment with the real world. Without the corresponding token, it's very difficult to locate."
"That's why the spatial passage Di Tian tore open is fluctuating a little."
The boy drew Huo Yutong a little closer to himself.
Most of little Huo's petite body was enveloped in his embrace, and El's distinctive scent, crisp yet intensely assertive, surrounded her completely.
Out of El's sight, the tips of Huo Yutong's ears, hidden beneath her hair, began flushing at a visible speed until they resembled two tiny, translucent red crystals.
"Don't worry. This is normal."
"I'm here. No one will want to hurt you."
"...Mm."
Huo Yutong lowered her head and gave a muffled hum of assent, then tightened her grip on his sleeve.
The two crossed the spatial passage without incident. Together with Di Tian, who trailed only half a step behind, they emerged before a jade-green toxic miasma that blanketed the entire valley.
"Jade phosphorus seven-absolute flowers..."
Looking at the half-meter-tall, nine-leaved flowers covering the landscape, El sighed in wonder.
"If the continent's poison-attribute Soul Masters knew there were so many jade phosphorus seven-absolute flowers here, and even nine absolute flowers, who knows what an upheaval it would cause."
Perhaps, even in this era when research into soul-guided medicines had made great strides, they could allow poison-attribute Soul Masters to regain the deterrent power Poison Douluo Dugu Bo had possessed ten thousand years ago.
Looking at a ten-thousand-year jade phosphorus nine absolute flower, El's thoughts began to wander.
If nothing else, he could bundle these things up and sell them to Du Busi. If Du Busi used them to refine his innate lethal poison, he might just break through to the limit.
This jade phosphorus nine absolute poison was even a dirty bomb, capable of putting enemies between a rock and a hard place.
Meanwhile, behind the three of them, a small patch of poisonous mist, mostly green with a little rainbow coloring, crept along the ground and quietly approached them.
Then, seizing its opportunity, it shot out like a venomous snake that had lain in wait for ages, its sharp fangs aimed straight at the center of El's back!
"Have I given you too much face?!"
Faced with such a clumsy sneak attack, El did not even turn his head. His crimson eyes instantly became orange-gold dragon pupils.
His frame grew taller, and layers of scales spread over him.
Martial Soul Possession!
At the same time, the purple Thousand-Year Soul Ring occupying the second position behind him blazed with light.
Second Soul Skill: Cataclysm Rotation!
A ring of icy-blue flame instantly spread outward from El.
This was no ordinary flame with special properties and attributes. It was Ultimate Ice that was "burning"!
Everywhere the icy flames passed, the poisonous mist melted away like ice and snow in spring.
Ultimate ice and fire, two utterly different and even opposing elements, fused together through the power of El's soul skill!
This was his second soul skill. It could combine two, or even multiple ultimate elements into a temporary "new element."
The "new element" would possess the traits of every element fused into it, while remaining free of attribute conflicts for five seconds.
Of course, this effect could be ended early, allowing the different ultimate elements to clash and produce extraordinarily powerful destructive force.
The icy-flame halo just now was something El had prepared specifically for this poisonous gas, which could only be countered by ultimate ice and fire attributes.
"Your Highness's might is divine!"
Di Tian offered praise at just the right moment.
He had long known the properties of this toxic miasma, and he also knew these things could not possibly pose the slightest threat to His Highness the Radiant Dragon King.
For that reason, he had never intended to intervene.
"Ahem!"
Having dealt with the insolent nuisance, El adjusted his throat and finished clearing it.
Then, facing the poisonous mist under Huo Yutong's and Di Tian's puzzled gazes, he spoke:
"Senior, whenever the weather turns rainy and overcast, do both sides of your rib cage feel numb and itchy? And does it gradually get worse? Also, every night around midnight, do you feel needle-like stabbing pains at the crown of your head and around your heart..."
Huo Yutong: ?
Di Tian: ?
There was no one here besides them, was there?
Who was El (His Highness) talking to?!
Before you continue