High in the sky, the ice dragon wings on Huo Yuhao's back burst open.
He streaked through the clouds like a ray of light, trailing a wake hundreds of meters long.
The mighty draconic aura of his ice dragon Martial Soul fused with the Ice Empress Soul Ring's utter savagery. The almost tangible, freezing pressure cleared his path the entire way; no Soul Beast was foolish enough to dare block him.
Within his Sea of Consciousness, the Ice Empress, who had become a Wisdom Soul Ring, stared at the sight before her in shock.
"Yuhao, is this book that being's legacy?"
Feeling the vast, ocean-deep pressure emanating from the Martial Scripture, the Ice Empress's pupils nearly contracted into vertical slits.
"Yes. It's called the Martial Scripture, and it contains the legacy of that being-the Martial Ancestor," Huo Yuhao replied.
The Ice Empress shifted her gaze away from the Martial Scripture, then pointed at the gray bead lying dormant nearby, her voice still puzzled. "Then what about this gray bead? Did the Martial Ancestor leave it to you too?"
"No." Huo Yuhao shook his head.
He weighed his words. "When Tian Meng and I were merging, he suddenly tore through space and descended into my Sea of Consciousness. But the Martial Scripture didn't object to his entry at the time, so he probably poses no danger to me."
"And when I underwent my ice dragon Martial Soul Awakening, I sensed what seemed to be a tremor from him, but he soon fell dormant again. I imagine the day he awakens shouldn't be far off."
The Ice Empress looked thoughtful.
Meanwhile, in the outside world, Huo Yuhao soon flew out of the Far North's core region and sped toward the human world.
He had not used the Soul Power provided by the Ice Empress Soul Ring and Soul Bone to raise his Soul Power Level. Instead, he had strengthened his foundations and opened as many meridians within his body as possible.
Now, Huo Yuhao could thump his chest and declare that he possessed the strongest foundations in the history of the Douluo Continent. Even the seven gods from ten thousand years ago fell short of him.
Watching the Ice Empress continually converse with Huo Yuhao, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm felt a jumble of emotions.
He knew he would not have made the same choice as the Ice Empress.
Yet when he recalled the scene of Huo Yuhao unleashing the Great Heavenly Thunder Sound, even the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's once-unwavering resolve to follow Huo Yuhao to godhood and eternal life began to waver slightly.
Huo Yuhao continued onward, only withdrawing the Ice Empress Soul Ring once he had flown out of the Far North.
Along the way, he had obtained a thousand-year Second Soul Ring for his Spirit Eyes from one of the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's own kin.
Because the Ice Silkworm Clan was so weak, they had evolved an illusory simulation ability that allowed them to mimic the appearance of any Soul Beast.
Earlier, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had used this very ability to mimic the Snow Empress's aura and call out to the Ice Empress.
Huo Yuhao had obtained this Soul Ring specifically to conceal the Ice Empress Soul Ring.
With his current physical constitution, Huo Yuhao could easily have obtained a ten-thousand-year Ice Silkworm Soul Ring.
But, once again, because Ice Silkworms were so weak, even after making a long circuit around the Far North's outskirts, Huo Yuhao had failed to find a single one.
Fortunately, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm could manually upgrade Soul Rings, sparing him an awkward situation.
Soon, when the smoke from Northern Plains City's cooking fires appeared before him, Huo Yuhao folded his ice dragon wings and headed straight for a restaurant.
He was ravenous. For the past few days, he had been gnawing on food frozen harder than bricks. Combined with the physical exertion of obtaining his Martial Soul, his stomach had long since begun to revolt.
"Owner!"
Huo Yuhao slapped all the Gold Soul Coins he had onto the table. "Whatever meat you have, bring me two portions of everything to start!"
His appetite was now frighteningly large. Even with the kitchen swinging its ladles so fast they left afterimages, they could not keep up with the speed at which he ate.
In the end, the owner was practically kicking the back of his own head with his heels as he raced to the butcher's next door to keep restocking.
"How is he even human? Not even a Soul Beast could eat as much as him."
Some diners stared at Huo Yuhao and whispered among themselves, suspecting that he was a Soul Beast from the Far North that had taken human form.
Huo Yuhao glanced at them, then set the Heavenly Scale Ancient Halberd beside him.
The watching diners instantly fell silent and began earnestly counting just how much meat Huo Yuhao could eat.
Huo Yuhao converted energy extremely quickly.
No sooner had a plate of meat entered his stomach than it was swiftly converted into pure Soul Power, nourishing his nearly dried-up meridians.
The entire dining hall was so quiet one could have heard a pin drop. All the diners were dumbfounded.
Could this young man actually keep eating?
In the end, the owner sat on the floor, panting, without the strength to buy any more meat.
Still not quite satisfied, Huo Yuhao patted his stomach. "Owner, the bill!"
The owner shakily rose to his feet and respectfully saw Huo Yuhao out.
Had this been an ordinary Soul Master, he would have dared to waive the bill in the hope of forging a friendly connection.
But this young man's appetite was clearly not something an ordinary Martial Soul should have.
If he formed a connection with someone like this, the slightest misstep in the future would most likely see his entire family slaughtered by the young man's powerful enemies.
Huo Yuhao had no idea what the owner was thinking. After purchasing all his supplies in Northern Plains City, he continued toward Heaven Dou City.
Now that his Second Martial Soul had awakened, it was time to join the Body Sect.
In only around two days, Huo Yuhao traveled from Northern Plains City to Heaven Dou City.
Looking up at the magnificent city with over ten thousand years of history, Huo Yuhao felt faint ripples stir within him, only for them to soon settle again.
"It's you? Did you get your Soul Ring?"
Not long after Huo Yuhao entered the city, Su Tong appeared a short distance away.
She looked at Huo Yuhao, whose appearance had changed drastically, utterly puzzled.
Had the aura of the Far North around Huo Yuhao not grown even stronger, with cold practically pouring off his body, Su Tong would not have recognized him at all.
"Sister Su Tong?"
Looking at Su Tong, who was about to leave the city, Huo Yuhao asked, "Aren't you a student at Di'ao Academy? Why are you heading out of the city now? Going Soul Hunting?"
"Who ever told you I was a student at Di'ao?"
Su Tong said, "I haven't joined any Soul Master faction. I only came to Heaven Dou City to broaden my horizons."
Understanding dawned on Huo Yuhao.
Sensing the faint pressure emanating from Huo Yuhao, Su Tong frowned slightly.
When she had met Huo Yuhao before, she had merely found his aura familiar, reminiscent of a Soul Beast from the Far North, which was why she had been willing to speak with him.
But now, the aura emanating from Huo Yuhao actually made her Heavenly Snow Woman Martial Soul feel pressured.
This was a frightening thing, because the Heavenly Snow Woman Martial Soul was indisputably an Ultimate Martial Soul.
In some respects, the Heavenly Snow Woman was even a more powerful Martial Soul than the Ice Jade Scorpion.
All of this was because the Heavenly Snow Woman was a living being formed from the condensation of the world's purest ice-element Yuan Power, a life most beloved by the ice element.
What kind of Martial Soul must Huo Yuhao possess to make the Heavenly Snow Woman Martial Soul feel pressured?
"Young Brother Huo, did you come back this time to join Di'ao Academy?" Su Tong asked.
She was now certain that Huo Yuhao must possess an Ultimate Martial Soul.
"Do you think Di'ao Academy is worthy of your talent?"
Su Tong believed Huo Yuhao must have sensed her Martial Soul as well.
Thus, she now all but cut straight to the point. "They have no experience nurturing Martial Souls like ours. If you insist on joining a faction, why not go to Shrek Academy?"
Huo Yuhao shook his head. "I won't join Di'ao Academy, and I won't join Shrek Academy either."
Su Tong's frown deepened.
Did Huo Yuhao intend to be like her, a Soul Master who developed independently?