Yuhao, You Know Divination Too?

Jing Hongchen flipped one hand, taking the enormous metal cannon barrel from his shoulder and tucking it beneath his arm as he smiled at Xuan Zi.

"So it is Elder Xuan Zi of the esteemed Sea God Pavilion. A pleasure to meet you."

As Jing Hongchen spoke, he stepped back and rose into the air, widening the distance between them so he could fight Elder Xuan Zi. At the same time, he quietly activated the two Ninth-Grade Defensive Soul Tools on his chest: Red Dust's Favor and Red Dust's Blessing.

This showed just how cautious he was. His Soul Guidance Cannon had already finished gathering energy, giving him every advantage, yet he still chose to keep his distance and prepare his defenses.

Seeing Jing Hongchen assume a fighting stance, Xuan Zi frowned deeply. "Red Dust Hall Master, this behavior of yours..."

"Could it be that you are declaring war on me?" Xuan Zi's face darkened with displeasure.

He never doubted his own formidable strength, but under these circumstances, if he fought Jing Hongchen, they could at most end in a draw.

Jing Hongchen slowly shook his head with a smile. "No, no, no. I am doing this for your own good, Xuan Zi. That temper of yours just now was not a good thing."

"When I brought out this Ninth-Grade Energy Gathering Soul Guidance Cannon, did you not suddenly feel much calmer?"

Xuan Zi caught the mockery in his words and was so angry that his beard bristled. If he had been certain he could subdue the other man, he would have slapped him long ago.

Wouldn't you be furious if your students had been killed? Of course, Xuan Zi would not say that aloud. It would only make him more of a laughingstock.

Under the protection of a Level 98 Super Douluo leading the team, one student had actually been killed and another seriously injured by a soul beast less than a hundred thousand years old. It was utterly absurd.

What Xuan Zi found even harder to accept was that the Three Soul Ghost Mantis that had escaped from his hands had been blasted into a near-death state by a single shot from someone else.

Xuan Zi snorted coldly. "Mingde Hall Master, are you threatening me?"

"I am merely helping you speak calmly."

Jing Hongchen waved his hand and said unhurriedly, "Xuan Zi, it looked like you had quite a difficult time chasing that mantis just now."

Xuan Zi kept a straight face. "What do you mean?"

Jing Hongchen gestured toward the Soul Guidance Cannon tucked under his arm.

"Oh, what I mean is, look at the Red Dust's Blessing I am wearing, and this Ninth-Grade Energy Gathering Soul Guidance Cannon of mine, Red Dust Annihilation."

"Each shell is slightly more powerful than a Titled Douluo's full-force strike. If you are interested, we can spar in the sky."

Several black lines appeared across Xuan Zi's forehead. If not for the students he was accompanying, given his temperament, he would not have minded fighting Jing Hongchen properly.

For the students' safety, Xuan Zi suppressed the anger in his heart and said in a deep voice, "Mingde Hall Master, what exactly are you trying to say? Speak plainly."

Jing Hongchen chuckled. "Since we severely wounded this Three Soul Ghost Mantis, this soul beast should naturally be left for us to handle."

"No. This beast must die!" Xuan Zi's tone was filled with hatred. If he did not kill the Three Soul Ghost Mantis, he would have no way to answer to the children.

"Perfect."

The smile remained on Jing Hongchen's face. "We were already planning to kill it for its Soul Ring. We will give you the Three Soul Ghost Mantis's corpse afterward. How about that?"

Xuan Zi fell into brief contemplation. He truly only wanted the Three Soul Ghost Mantis dead, but that did not mean he was willing to give up its Soul Ring. After all, it was nearly a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.

Shrek publicly claimed neutrality, but it was clearly hostile toward Sun Moon.

Xuan Zi believed that every bit the enemy grew stronger was an indirect weakening of Shrek.

Rather than strengthen themselves, it was better to put pressure on Sun Moon.

"Mingde Hall Master, I was the one who discovered this Three Soul Ghost Mantis first. I was merely careless for a moment and let it escape to live a little longer."

"Even if you had not interfered, I would have caught up to it soon enough."

Seeing that the other party was preparing to act unreasonable, Jing Hongchen's smile faded. From Xuan Zi's furious appearance when he had given chase earlier, he could infer some of what had happened.

After all, Xuan Zi already had all nine Soul Rings. There were only two reasons for him to hunt a soul beast: either he wanted a Soul Bone, or he was helping a student obtain a Soul Ring.

If Xuan Zi had merely wanted a Soul Bone, he would not have been so furious just because it had luckily escaped. He could simply catch up to the soul beast again.

That left only one reason for Elder Xuan Zi's rage to have reached such heights: this soul beast had harmed the students under his protection.

With that thought, Jing Hongchen narrowed his eyes. "Xuan Zi, you are not alone, are you?"

"If you insist on making trouble over this Soul Ring, then I must educate you and those people you brought along about the power and effects of the Ninth-Grade Energy Gathering Soul Guidance Cannon, Red Dust Annihilation."

Xuan Zi was stunned upon hearing this. It was not that he feared Jing Hongchen. With his incomparably powerful physical strength, he could certainly withstand several explosions from a Ninth-Grade Soul Guidance Cannon.

Though he often spoke disdainfully of Soul Tool technology, saying things like, "It is merely a trivial path. As long as a Soul Master's cultivation is strong enough, there is no need to fear it at all."

Xuan Zi still understood the absolute advantage of Soul Guidance Cannons: their terrifying area-of-effect damage.

The threat that high-grade Soul Guidance Cannons posed to low-level Soul Masters was immeasurable. A single ordinary Ninth-Grade Soul Guidance Shell was enough to destroy a small city.

Not to mention a Ninth-Grade Energy Gathering Soul Guidance Shell. Jing Hongchen might casually fire a shot over here, only for the students over there to be caught in the blast.

Xuan Zi could at most make things difficult for Jing Hongchen verbally. Actually fighting him was absolutely out of the question.

Sigh, it was all for the children's safety.

After thinking for a long while, Xuan Zi sighed and compromised. Suppressing his resentment, he said, "Jing Hongchen, you have truly taken great advantage of us this time. Hurry and kill this beast, then hand its corpse over to me."

Jing Hongchen smiled. "It seems you are not entirely a brainless brute. If you had thought for a while longer, we might have needed to discuss who gets the corpse as well."

After saying that, Jing Hongchen gave Xu Sheng a look, signaling him to deliver the finishing blow to the dying Three Soul Ghost Mantis.

Xu Sheng nodded and released his Tool Martial Soul, the Ancient Ingot Blade. It resonated with the Level 8 Melee Soul Tool he had crafted himself, producing extraordinary power.

He directly used the Ancient Ingot Blade Martial Soul Avatar and slashed through the air. Empowered by his tremendous arm strength, a streak of light containing a trace of blade intent swept forward. A startling rainbow flashed past, and the Three Soul Ghost Mantis died instantly.

Before long, a Black Soul Ring emerged from the Three Soul Ghost Mantis's corpse, streaked with several threads of red and emanating an unfathomably deep glow.

Xu Sheng grinned, looking somewhat friendlier toward Xuan Zi. "I have long heard of the Level 98 Taotie Douluo's great name. Now that I have seen you in person, you truly are extraordinary."

"Oh? Even you have heard of me?"

Seeing that the Three Soul Ghost Mantis was thoroughly dead, Xuan Zi felt as if a great vengeance had been avenged. He took a large swig of wine.

That even a random researcher from Mingde Hall had heard of his fame made Xuan Zi feel quite pleased with himself.

"I was just being polite."

Xu Sheng replied as he carried the Ancient Ingot Blade toward the Soul Ring. "After all, I am about to break through to Soul Douluo, and this is such a high-quality eighth Soul Ring. I am rather happy."

Xuan Zi gave a soft snort without speaking, continuing to bite into a chicken leg and drink wine.

Jing Hongchen used Soul Power to lift the Three Soul Ghost Mantis's corpse and handed it to Xuan Zi. "Take this."

"I hope that the next time we meet, you will not go madly chasing a soul beast less than a hundred thousand years old. Hunt something with a little more value."

A certain Evil Soul Master: Do I have enough value?

Although Xu Sheng's process of absorbing the Soul Ring was rather difficult, he ultimately succeeded. Xuan Zi also took the Three Soul Ghost Mantis's corpse and returned the way he had come.

Jing Hongchen descended from the sky and watched the earthy-yellow streak of light disappear into the distance. "Heh, he looks down on Soul Tool technology, yet in the end, he is still constrained by Soul Guidance Cannons."

"When we develop even higher-grade Fixed-Array Soul Guidance Shells someday, a couple of them for Shrek Academy will wake these brutes up."

Jing Hongchen then said to his two subordinates, "Now that we have successfully helped Xu Sheng obtain his Soul Ring, I will return to Sun Moon first. I hope to witness the successful development of that Soul Tool technology within my lifetime."

Xuan Ziwen knew which Soul Tool technology the Hall Master spent every day researching.

It was known as Mingde Hall's ultimate secret weapon, the highest achievement in the Soul Tool field, the crystallization of all senior researchers—Experiment No. 1.

Xu Sheng naturally made use of their bond to ensure Xuan Ziwen did not retain even the slightest attachment to the Heaven Dou Empire. "Rest assured, Hall Master. Once Xuan Ziwen and I finish paying respects to his ancestors, we will immediately return to Mingdu."

Zhang Lexuan directed the disciples to rest where they were. Before long, she saw an earthy-yellow streak of light flying toward them.

Before Elder Xuan Zi even landed, a student eagerly stood up and asked, "Elder Xuan Zi, did you kill that Three Soul Ghost Mantis?"

"That beast is dead." Elder Xuan Zi landed before everyone and tossed the Three Soul Ghost Mantis's corpse onto the ground.

"But I was not the one who killed it."

Zhang Lexuan fell silent.

The disciples did as well, their expressions somewhat awkward. The scene was quiet for a moment before everyone helplessly accepted the result. At least the culprit was dead.

Zhang Lexuan turned and directed everyone to set up tents. The disciples selected a patch of ground and cleared it out, then worked together to pitch camp.

Tang Ya had been craving Huo Yuhao's Grilled Skewers for a long time. "Hiss, ha, hiss, ha, Little Yuhao, let's grill some skewers."

With Tang Ya, Bei Bei, and Dugu Luo eagerly helping, they set up the grill, sliced up the meat Huo Yuhao had frozen, and threaded it onto skewers. Huo Yuhao began grilling, and before long, the mouthwatering aroma of roasted meat filled the air.

Zhang Lexuan's nose twitched. Although the rich fragrance stirred her appetite, her face retained its cool and detached expression.

She slowly walked over to Huo Yuhao and took out a square plastic container. It was the nutritious meal she had brought from the academy.

"Huo Yuhao, here. This is for you."

Zhang Lexuan shared her nutritious meal with Huo Yuhao, stuffing the plastic container into his arms.

Huo Yuhao was stunned. What did this mean? Did she think his Grilled Skewers were unhealthy?

But he quickly noticed that Zhang Lexuan's dark eyes kept shifting back and forth, glancing at the nutritious meal in his arms before looking at the Grilled Skewers on his grill.

Huo Yuhao suddenly understood. He accepted her plastic container and handed Zhang Lexuan a large bundle of Grilled Skewers. "These are for you."

"Mm, thank you, little brother Huo Yuhao." Zhang Lexuan took the Grilled Skewers. Having achieved her goal of exchanging food, she could not help smiling.

Compared to the Grilled Skewers, she felt that her nutritious meal was utterly bland.

Huo Yuhao once again showed that warm smile of a boy next door. "It's nothing, Le Xuan Jie. You shared your food with me too, didn't you? Also, you can just call me Yuhao."

"Alright, Yuhao." Zhang Lexuan nodded slightly and began eating the Grilled Skewers in small, elegant bites.

Bei Bei smiled awkwardly. "Haha, how is it, Eldest Sister? Little Brother Huo's Grilled Skewers are delicious, right?"

Zhang Lexuan raised her eyes and gave him a faint glance before calmly looking away. "Mm."

Bei Bei could tell that Zhang Lexuan had come over this time simply because she wanted Grilled Skewers, not because of him. Yet he was actually quite happy about it.

He picked up several skewers and handed them to Tang Ya. "Xiao Ya, haven't you been thinking about these for a long time? Hurry and eat."

Tang Ya sniffed at the Grilled Skewers, delight spreading across her face. "Hiss, ha. They smell so good."

Beside them, Dugu Luo smelled the enticing aroma of the Grilled Skewers. She wanted some but was too embarrassed to ask. Her pair of Jade Eyes kept flickering, while several traces of red appeared on her otherwise pale cheeks from her inner conflict.

Huo Yuhao naturally noticed and turned to look at Dugu Luo.

She immediately pretended to be very busy. A map lay spread across the ground, and her fingertips traced the routes on it back and forth as she muttered, "We go from here, then from here."

Huo Yuhao smiled and handed her a bundle of Grilled Skewers. "Sister Dugu, you should eat too. We can look for the places on the map together later."

"Oh, okay, Yuhao." Dugu Luo folded up the map and put it away before accepting the Grilled Skewers. The corners of her lips curved up as she unconsciously revealed a gentle smile.

As Tang Ya ate Huo Yuhao's freshly grilled skewers, she asked with a bright smile, "Yuhao, you are already so strong. Have you decided which academy you want to attend?"

Bei Bei eagerly chimed in, wanting to recruit him into Shrek Academy.

"That's right, Little Brother Huo. We all need to receive an academy education and gain knowledge."

"Why not come to Shrek Academy? You are eleven years old and already a Two-Ring Soul Master. I can tell my teacher and have you enter any first-year class without an entrance exam."

Zhang Lexuan recalled the Detection Map from earlier. She had really enjoyed the sensation of being within the range of that Soul Skill.

After considering it, she said, "Little brother Yuhao, if you are willing to study at Shrek, I can speak to an Elder. I can actually take you as my disciple."

Huo Yuhao was stunned again. Zhang Lexuan could already take disciples? But she seemed to be cultivated as the successor to the Sea God Pavilion Master.

"Le Xuan Jie, that will still depend on whether someone recognizes my talent... That teacher leading your group, the one you call Elder Xuan Zi, does not seem very interested in my Soul Skill."

The moment Zhang Lexuan heard the words Elder Xuan Zi, her expression immediately turned icy. Of course, it was only directed at Elder Xuan Zi.

Seeing that the atmosphere was off, Dugu Luo tugged on Huo Yuhao's sleeve and asked with the map in hand, "Yuhao, look, there are three paths branching off here. Which way should we go when the time comes?"

Huo Yuhao blinked. Three paths? Had That Lord increased the difficulty of the route to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well?

"Don't worry, Sister Dugu. Let me simulate it in advance."

Huo Yuhao used his Simulation Soul Skill to create a fortune-stick cylinder filled with dozens of objects resembling bamboo sticks.

With a thought, the cylinder began to shake.

A moment later, a bamboo stick fell out, though the result was something Huo Yuhao had simulated at random.

The right path. Great misfortune. The worst possible lot.

Dugu Luo looked utterly fascinated. "Yuhao, are you divining? You know divination too?"

"Just a little. I have some understanding of fortune."