I, Tang Sect, Don't Look at Talent, Only Fate

Chapter 4: My Tang Sect Doesn't Look at Talent, Only Fate

After eating the whole roasted rabbit, Tang Ya and Bei Bei both looked thoroughly satisfied, savoring the lingering taste and even wanting to catch another Soft Bone Rabbit for round two.

After that came a torrent of praise from Tang Ya and Bei Bei, saying the roasted Soft Bone Rabbit was seasoned perfectly, flavored all the way through, and utterly irresistible.

Huo Yuhao automatically filtered out their words. After fobbing them off with, "As long as you enjoyed it," he stood up and bade them farewell, preparing to set off alone to see the true form of the Ten-Year Wind Baboon, bearer of numerous Epic-level titles.

Watching Huo Yuhao's departing figure, Tang Ya sighed happily. "He's all alone, and he seems to have some foundation in Soul Power. His grilling skills are so refined too."

"He's practically the perfect cook for our Tang Sect... Pah, pah, the perfect disciple."

Tang Ya had let slip and blurted out what was truly on her mind.

If she could lure Huo Yuhao into the Tang Sect, she could have grilled fish every three days and roasted Soft Bone Rabbit every five. Tang Ya did not dare imagine how blissful that would be. Besides, Soft Bone Rabbits had exceptionally strong reproductive capabilities and were incredibly numerous.

Speaking of the Soft Bone Rabbit's outstanding breeding ability, one simply had to mention a certain Buddha.

Perhaps the five-colored divine light that had once shone so brilliantly above Buddha's head would one day have only one color left. That would be...

Hearing Tang Ya accidentally say the word "cook," Bei Bei smiled helplessly and pondered for a moment.

"I can vaguely sense that he has Level Ten Soul Power, but beneath his outward calmness and restraint, there seems to be a trace of ruthlessness. I don't know whether that's just my imagination."

Tang Ya fell silent at his words. A faint, imperceptible sadness flashed through her eyes, but she quickly put on a cheerful expression again and waved with a smile.

"It's fine. Everyone has moments when they get ruthless. And with cooking skills as good as his, he must have gone through some things when he was young to learn how to fend for himself."

Bei Bei nodded. "That's true. From his behavior just now, he was clearly somewhat wary of us."

"We can follow him and observe for a while. So far, his character seems sound. Back at Stream Side, I noticed that this restrained fellow suddenly erupted with an aura comparable to a Soul Grandmaster. We can consider drawing him into the Tang Sect."

He felt that anyone fooled by Huo Yuhao's seemingly reserved, timid, and weak appearance would definitely suffer a terrible loss.

Delight welled up in Tang Ya's eyes. "So you agree?"

Bei Bei gave a bitter smile. "Great Tang Sect Master Miss Tang Ya, our Tang Sect is no longer as prosperous as it once was."

"Before you took me as your disciple, the Tang Sect consisted of you alone. And since your ambition is to restore the Tang Sect, our current principle for recruiting disciples is 'don't look at talent, only fate.'"

"Even any ordinary soul master we recruit could become a core pillar of our Tang Sect."

Bei Bei had read some of the Tang Sect's records and remembered clearly.

Many years ago, the Tang Sect had required prospective disciples to undergo talent tests and pass layer upon layer of examinations. Only the finest survivors of that process were qualified to become Tang Sect disciples.

But now?

Test talent?

Sorry, no testing.

Layer upon layer of examinations?

Sorry, none of that either.

As long as one joined the Tang Sect, they became a direct disciple, one of the top three figures in the entire Tang Sect aside from the sect master.

Bei Bei continued, "Little Brother Huo has a good temperament. You can tell from his clothes that his family circumstances probably aren't very good. Our Tang Sect can only take in disciples like him now."

"When the time comes, we can tell him that joining our Tang Sect comes with countless benefits. Not only can he directly learn several of the Tang Sect's ultimate arts, but he can also gain the opportunity to study at Shrek Academy, the number one academy on the continent."

"The benefits are endless. I can't think of any reason Little Brother Huo would refuse."

Bei Bei looked toward the direction Huo Yuhao had gone, feeling that he had truly put a great deal of thought into restoring the Tang Sect's former glory.

Tang Ya looked at Bei Bei curiously. "I never expected you to be this crafty."

Bei Bei dusted off his clothes and chuckled. "You can't put it that way. Little Brother Huo grilled fish and roasted rabbit for us. Whether or not we can recruit him into the Tang Sect, we should still protect him for part of the journey."

The Tang Sect no longer hoped for any genius. As long as an ordinary soul master seized the chance to join, they would become one of the Tang Sect's foremost outstanding disciples.

At this moment, Huo Yuhao carried his pack and headed deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest.

Whether this would go well depended on Tian Meng and Old Yi.

"As the saying goes, when the cart reaches the mountain, there'll be a road; when Huo reaches the forest, there'll be a cheat. I didn't take the wrong path, did I?"

As Huo Yuhao pondered, three options appeared before him.

Option One: Wait where you are for Tang Ya and Bei Bei to come over. Completion Reward: One Rejuvenation Powder Recipe

Option Two: Proceed to the right and battle a Tang San-style Mandala Snake. Completion Reward: One Antidote Pill Recipe

Option Three: Proceed to the left and defeat the dream-chaser—the Ten-Year Wind Baboon—who seeks to seize Godhood Fate and dreams of becoming the future Beast God. Completion Reward: One Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid Recipe

Hm? That was considerate. It even gave him navigation.

Huo Yuhao had already planned to head left. Since an option had appeared now, getting a reward for free along the way was pretty nice too.

Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid was a cultivation-assisting spiritual liquid created by Yao Lao in Doupo. Its main function was to strengthen one's foundation and nourish one's vitality, increasing the cultivation speed of the Dou Qi realm through medicinal baths.

Although he did not know which soul master realm the Dou Qi realm corresponded to, it should still be somewhat useful given his current cultivation as a soul master.

Huo Yuhao chose Option Three and headed left.

After walking for an unknown length of time, a wooden sign by the roadside caught Huo Yuhao's attention: "In 50 meters, you will enter the outer dangerous zone of the Star Dou Great Forest. High-combat-power soul beasts have been spotted here. Please watch your safety."

Huo Yuhao did not know whether this so-called "high combat power" referred to a Ten-Year Wind Baboon.

No longer hesitating, he touched the White Tiger Dagger, making sure he could draw it smoothly, then stepped past the wooden sign by the road.

In the Original Work, Huo Gua had been able to fight a Wind Baboon to a draw with the White Tiger Dagger, ultimately killing it at the cost of his life. Now that he had at least gotten a basic grasp of Eight Extremities Collapse, there was no reason for the Wind Baboon not to crack apart.

As Huo Yuhao walked down the road, his eyes suddenly felt a slight sting. This was the Spirit Eyes Martial Soul's innate ability to warn him of danger.

Everything within his sight seemed to slow down. Faint currents of air swirled around his eyes, and then, suddenly, a dark shadow flashed past on the left side of the road ahead.

"As expected, it's here. The Wind Baboon wants to dance too."

It was a baboon roughly a meter tall, its entire body covered in brownish-yellow fur. Its eyes were brown, its arms unusually long, and its claws bore sharp nails. Its fangs protruded from its lips, while a fierce gleam shone from its eyes.

The true "Beast God" had arrived—boasting ten years of cultivation, with bare stats and no gear.

Huo Yuhao took off his glasses to show this beast the respect it deserved.

Looking across the entirety of Douluo Dalu 2's Original Work, there were two strongest opponents with the highest value.

One was the strongest Soul King, the Death God Messenger, whom Chicken Leg Douluo encountered while leading a team to wipe out Evil Soul Masters after infiltrating Shrek.

The other was the strongest ten-year soul beast before him—the Ten-Year Wind Baboon, which had nearly killed Huo Gua.