Du Busi laughed heartily, then reached straight out and grabbed Huo Yuhao by the collar.
He shot off the ground like a dark green meteor. "You fly too slowly. Let this old man carry you!"
Huo Yuhao felt his vision blur, wind howling past his ears, and he was already soaring into the sky in Du Busi's grip.
Xue Xin stood on the ground with a hand shading his eyes, watching their retreating figures with a helpless smile.
"Let's go." He lowered his hand and turned to Su Tong. "I'll take you to complete your enrollment first."
"With Sea Dragon secured, Yuhao is very close to becoming a Soul Elder."
"When that time comes, you two and the other Heavenly Body Guards will have to pay more attention to the Heaven Dou patrol duties."
Su Tong was a little worried about staffing.
Following the principle of preferring a shortage to accepting inferior recruits, Su Tong did not want to recruit people at random just to fill the Azure Dragon Guard's ranks.
The Azure Dragon Guard was not only the loyal core Huo Yuhao had built from scratch, but also the starting point of Su Tong's first attempt to become part of a group.
She wanted to forge the Azure Dragon Guard into an elite force whose name resounded across the Douluo Continent.
Xue Xin smiled gently at Su Tong. "You don't need to worry about that."
"The Di'ao team's captain, Jiang Peng-his talent, strength, and family background dictate that he will enter the empire's center of power in the future."
"When Yuhao returns, I'll suggest to him, as the commander, that Jiang Peng become an auxiliary member of the Azure Dragon Guard and lead the entire Di'ao team on patrol with you."
Then Xue Xin explained to Su Tong why he had made this arrangement.
Jiang Peng and every member of the Di'ao team had grown up in Heaven Dou City. Having these peers accompany them would help Huo Yuhao and Su Tong become familiar with Heaven Dou City more quickly.
At the same time, this would also help the two of them develop coordination with the Di'ao team, avoiding the awkward situation of not knowing one another's abilities during next year's Soul Master Tournament.
Su Tong frowned in thought for a while, then asked, "Headmaster, won't this interfere with the Di'ao team's daily training?"
Xue Xin waved a hand. "You don't know the details. The city defense army's patrol duties are being gradually transferred to the Heavenly Body Ring."
"At this stage, you only need to set aside two days each week to take part in patrols."
"As for the team's training," Xue Xin said as he led Su Tong toward the academic affairs office, "the Body Sect has already agreed to assign two elders to help with special training."
"Besides, patrol missions are themselves a form of tempering."
At this point, a trace of anger flashed through Xue Xin's gentle eyes.
"Things haven't been peaceful lately. There are more and more Evil Soul Masters, and traces of them have even been found in Heaven Dou Auxiliary City."
"When the time comes, with the Body Sect's elders and the academy's teachers protecting you, fighting Evil Soul Masters and seeing some blood will benefit you too."
Hearing Xue Xin's words, Su Tong suddenly recalled what she had seen and heard during her years traveling through the Heaven Dou Empire.
Evil Soul Masters...
Su Tong's gaze grew firm, her words ringing with conviction. "Headmaster, I understand."
Meanwhile, in the skies above the Body Sect.
The dark green meteor that was Du Busi crashed down onto the Body Sect's plaza, sending clouds of dust billowing up.
Huo Yuhao looked at the azure Sea Dragon, fully a hundred meters long and covered in fearsome scales, and intense fighting spirit rose involuntarily in his eyes.
Although Du Busi had sealed Sea Dragon's Soul Power, preventing him from self-destructing, his physical foundation remained intact.
His brute strength was tremendous. At that moment, under the direction of a Body Sect elder, more than a dozen disciples were restraining him firmly with iron chains.
Seeing Du Busi descend from the sky, Sea Dragon's lantern-sized draconic eyes instantly filled with extreme savagery.
He began struggling madly, pulling the chains taut until they let out a teeth-grating screech of metal.
The dozen or so disciples shouted in unison, their Soul Power erupting simultaneously, and firmly suppressed Sea Dragon once more just as he was about to break free.
"We're all rough folk in the Body Sect," Du Busi said, clearly aware of what his sect was like. "Killing Soul Beasts for meat is fine, but raising them is difficult."
"So, Yuhao, what you need to do next is learn to use your Second Awakening proficiently before this Sea Dragon wears himself to death."
"Originally, I wanted to shatter his soul for you so you could absorb his Soul Ring directly."
"But after sensing the aura of your Second Awakening, this old man changed his mind. You'll withstand his Soul Shock yourself."
Huo Yuhao stepped forward, and the Azure Sky Profound Ice Dragon Martial Soul instantly possessed his body.
The pressure of a fully realized True Dragon Martial Soul bore down on Sea Dragon in rolling waves.
Upon sensing Huo Yuhao's aura, Sea Dragon's enormous body shuddered violently, and an indescribable fury surged into his eyes.
He now understood why Du Busi had captured him and brought him back.
Sea Dragon let out a deafening roar, his azure scales flaring as he tried like mad to attack Huo Yuhao.
"Teacher," Huo Yuhao asked, turning around, "how many years of cultivation does he have?"
"Around nineteen thousand." Irritated by Sea Dragon's noise, Du Busi knocked him unconscious with a slap before continuing, "About that much. Don't tell me you aren't confident."
A confident smile curved Huo Yuhao's lips. "Don't worry, Teacher. I'm certain I can do it."
"Good!" Du Busi laughed. "Then go recover to your best condition now!"
"Remember, you must become proficient in your Second Awakening before this beast wears himself to death! Otherwise, you might not withstand his Soul Shock!"
Over the following period, apart from cultivating the Talisman Master Secret Method and Soul Magic, Huo Yuhao devoted all his energy to studying his Second Awakening.
His comprehension was already astonishing, and with Du Busi, Hong Yue, and the others constantly guiding him, his progress could only be described as rapid.
Although he had yet to reach the point where he could enter his Second Awakening with a mere thought, he could now swiftly switch states in combat.
That brief interval was extremely fatal against a Soul Master like Du Busi, but for Huo Yuhao and Sea Dragon, it was already enough.
"Yuhao."
The Ice Empress spoke from within the Sea of Consciousness. "Although Sea Dragon is restrained by the Poison Sect Master, he is ultimately a draconic Soul Beast with a temperament even more savage than an Ice Jade Scorpion's. His final counterattack before death will certainly be extremely fierce."
"It doesn't matter."
Huo Yuhao's expression remained calm. "If I still let a ten-thousand-year Sea Dragon's Soul Shock wreak havoc now, I wouldn't be qualified to continue cultivating the Martial Scripture."
He strode up to Sea Dragon.
Sensing Huo Yuhao drawing closer, Sea Dragon's savage eyes abruptly erupted with towering hatred.
Every scale on his body bristled, and his draconic might surged outward like a tide.
Even with his Soul Power sealed, that terrifying pressure still left some of the weaker Body Sect disciples feeling suffocated.
Du Busi reached out and gripped the chains, looking toward Huo Yuhao. "Want to fight him?"
Huo Yuhao nodded. "Yes."
He raised his head to look at the sky. The Body Sect's powerhouses had already sealed off every direction to prevent Sea Dragon from escaping.
"If I don't even dare fight a Sea Dragon this weakened, how can I have the face to call myself a Body Sect disciple?"
Du Busi burst into hearty laughter at those words. "Good! Well said!"
"This beast is already so weak. If you still can't beat him, don't go around telling people you're from my Body Sect!"
Then he swept his hand sharply, and every iron chain binding Sea Dragon snapped apart in an instant.
Freed from his restraints, Sea Dragon roared, his enormous body rearing up with a thunderous rumble!
Feeling Soul Power flowing through his meridians once more, he fixed his draconic eyes firmly on Huo Yuhao, killing intent boiling!