"Yuhao, what are your plans for the future?" the White Tiger Duke asked.
The atmosphere between them was no longer so cold. Huo Yuhao answered frankly, "I don't have any plans. I'm getting ready to leave the Duke's Mansion right away."
"Why?"
"What's there to ask why about? Your wife doesn't like me anyway, and everyone else looks down on me behind my back. Why should a son born out of wedlock like me stay here and invite a cold shoulder?"
That was how Huo Yuhao truly felt. In fact, if not for his mother, he would have run off on his own long ago.
A certain old woman seemed to have a persecution complex, finding fault with him every day. Seriously, how was a son born out of wedlock with only one level of innate soul power supposed to threaten her sons' position?
The more Huo Yuhao thought about it, the more annoyed he became. The duchess had always treated him coldly. Only after he repeatedly made it clear that his surname was Huo and that he intended to leave the Duke's Mansion, with another connection also coming into play, had that old woman gradually settled down.
"As for afterward, I'll keep running my barbecue shop in the city, marry three or four wives, and coast through life," Huo Yuhao said. "I don't care about some lousy noble title. As a son born out of wedlock, what could I inherit at most-a viscount's title or a baron's? What good is a title... wait..."
Halfway through speaking, Huo Yuhao's expression suddenly changed. He asked earnestly, "Can I marry that many wives without a noble title?"
The White Tiger Duke: "..."
He did not know whether to laugh or cry, and the solemn atmosphere lightened a little.
He had thought Huo Yuhao had finally realized the prestige and importance of a noble title. He had never expected this to be what concerned him.
The White Tiger Duke answered, "As long as the feelings are mutual, even a commoner can."
"Oh, good, then."
"Only, I hope you won't make the same mistake I did," the White Tiger Duke added.
"Of course I won't," Huo Yuhao said flatly.
"And besides that? Have you never thought about striving for greater heights? I see limitless potential in you. I believe that, given time, your name will resound across the continent."
Had anyone else been there, they would surely have thought the White Tiger Duke had gone mad.
After all, Huo Yuhao's soul power was only at level ten, and his innate soul power had only been level one. Meanwhile, geniuses his age had already begun striving to become three-ring Soul Elders. How could he possibly catch up?
But Huo Yuhao knew those were not merely words of comfort.
He, too, had discovered something different about himself. It had begun on the day of his martial soul awakening.
Normally, the higher someone's innate soul power, the more dazzling the light the crystal ball would emit during their awakening.
When Huo Yuhao underwent his martial soul awakening with the mindset of making a ten-pull, he was left somewhat stunned. He had not summoned any weapon, nor had fur or scales grown on his body.
There was only a voice looping in his mind.
Your martial soul is your eyes.
A rare body martial soul.
Of course, back then, he had not known what a body martial soul was.
Before he had time to puzzle over it, the soul power test followed.
The moment Huo Yuhao's hands touched the crystal ball, a dazzling light burst forth.
This was a sign of innate full soul power!
But the light lasted far too briefly-so briefly that everyone thought they had imagined it.
In the blink of an eye, the dazzling light contracted, leaving only a dim glow inside the crystal ball.
"Martial soul: eyes. Innate soul power: level one."
The awakening official announced the result-and, with it, the limits of Huo Yuhao's future achievements.
Some household servants cast contemptuous looks at Huo Yuhao.
"I heard he's the duke's illegitimate son with a maid."
"Only level one. A waste of space, just as expected."
"Stop talking. The duke isn't here, and the duchess has forbidden us from discussing these things."
But one woman did not care.
Huo Yun'er crouched down with a soft laugh and looked into Huo Yuhao's eyes. Those ice-blue eyes shone with a wondrous light.
"Little Yuhao's eyes are so beautiful. No one else has eyes like them."
"My Yuhao has been so clever since he was little. How could these be ordinary eyes? Let's call them Spirit Eyes, all right?"
That was the first time Huo Yuhao truly understood what a mother's love meant.
His memories of his martial soul awakening were crystal clear. Huo Yuhao would never forget them for as long as he lived.
He remembered every detail of that moment and firmly believed one thing:
That dazzling light had absolutely not been an illusion.
During the test, he had felt as though something had sucked the soul power out of his body. By now, he had a fairly good idea of the reason.
The problem lay with his second martial soul.
Ice.
Not only did he possess a body martial soul, he was also one of the rare people with twin martial souls.
As an elemental martial soul, ice was unusual, but not uncommon.
Yet no one had noticed when it awakened-not even Huo Yuhao himself.
At first, it had been nothing more than a wisp of cold energy that no one detected.
That cold energy seemed to have taken up residence inside him, feeding on his soul power like an icy cavern.
Anyone with twin martial souls should have innate full soul power, but Huo Yuhao was an exception.
As a child, he refused to believe in fate, convinced that human will could conquer heaven, and cultivated his soul power with mad determination. But every time his soul power finally increased, the cold energy in his dantian devoured it, leaving only a little behind.
Huo Yuhao was dumbfounded.
After gaining recognition as the duke's son, he had taken a few medicinal pills as well. As expected, every last one fed that bottomless pit of cold energy.
Before long, however, Huo Yuhao also discovered the "benefit" of this second martial soul: the soul power left behind was incomparably pure, as though it had been refined. This also made his foundation much steadier than those of other Soul Masters.
Under the influence of his second martial soul, despite all his hard work cultivating, he had only just reached level ten soul power this year.
That was the secret of Huo Yuhao's martial souls. No more than five people in the entire Duke's Mansion knew it.
And the White Tiger Duke was one of them.
He had discovered Huo Yuhao's unusual talent.
Once, his youngest legitimate son, Dai Huabin, had gotten into a conflict with Huo Yuhao. He had ordered everyone else not to intervene and let the two settle it themselves.
The way they settled it was simple and brutal: he had two children, only seven or eight years old, fight!
No one dared question the White Tiger Duke's decision, nor did anyone believe Dai Huabin, who was already at level ten and possessed the White Tiger martial soul, would lose to Huo Yuhao, who had not even reached level five.
Yet the victor was Huo Yuhao.
Perhaps it was because of his body martial soul. Although it had a mental attribute, his physique had also improved greatly once he began receiving proper nutrition.
His methods had admittedly been somewhat dishonorable, involving underhanded moves and dirty tricks, and had exposed his secret as well.
Fortunately, only the White Tiger Duke, a Soul Douluo, had discovered Huo Yuhao's twin martial souls.
But even he had failed to notice that Huo Yuhao's twin martial souls possessed another terrifying detail.
"If you want to pursue power and keep growing stronger, I can offer you three paths," the White Tiger Duke said.
Huo Yuhao listened with a rare seriousness. "Let's hear them."
"First, join the army with me directly. I believe you can grow quickly in the army and on the battlefield. As commander of the entire army, I won't give you any special treatment, but I can guarantee that you won't face any danger from outside the battlefield."
When he spoke of the army, the White Tiger Duke's tone grew solemn.
"As for your soul rings, I'll take care of them."
"Next."
Huo Yuhao said nothing more and waved his hand, his manner suggesting that he had rejected the option outright.
The White Tiger Duke was not surprised. He continued, "Second, attend Star Luo Royal Academy. Her Highness the princess said she could reserve a place for you at any time."
A princess?
Hearing that title, Huo Yuhao froze for a moment, a graceful figure appearing in his mind.
"Jiujiu?"