As Huo Tian left the top floor of the Sea God Pavilion, Huo Yutong went to the balcony, sat cross-legged, and circulated the Soul Power within her to cultivate.
Drawn by Huo Yutong's Martial Soul, the Holy Light Spirit Eyes, countless motes of light poured out of the Golden Ancient Tree and gathered toward her.
Mu En looked at Huo Yutong on the balcony and pondered for a while. The cane in his hand vanished in an instant, and he walked out of the room with his hands behind his back, his expression calm.
Mu En took the stairs to the second floor. Yan Shaozhe was sitting at a desk, reading a book intently.
"Teacher."
Yan Shaozhe turned and spotted Mu En. He immediately stood up and approached him with short steps.
With the outer court's first-year classes about to begin, Yan Shaozhe had been staying in the outer court's Martial Soul Department lately. Half an hour earlier, he had received Mu En's voice transmission.
Yan Shaozhe had hurried over from the outer court.
"Xiaotian is going into seclusion this time to break through to Quasi-Soul Douluo. Once the outer court's first-year classes begin, have Wang Yan teach the children in Class One theoretical knowledge for seven days."
"Don't let the children in Class One do any physical labor for now. Xiaotian will make his own arrangements when he returns!"
Mu En raised his head and looked at Yan Shaozhe solemnly. Yan Shaozhe silently nodded beside him.
"To think Xiaotian's cultivation would reach Soul Douluo after just a year away! Once he breaks through to Quasi-Soul Douluo, it will be time for him to obtain his eighth Soul Ring, too."
"I'll go make the arrangements for the outer court right away!"
Yan Shaozhe pressed his palms together, rubbed them, and gave a light clap. Then he turned, descended the stairs, and left the Sea God Pavilion.
"Perhaps our Shrek Academy might produce another god after ten thousand years."
With his hands behind his back, Mu En silently surveyed the empty library. He turned and headed upstairs with steady steps.
Meanwhile, Huo Tian followed the Sea God Pavilion's secret passage deeper into the Golden Ancient Tree. The closer he came to its core, the denser the light elements and the world's primal energy became.
Huo Tian stopped, put his hands on his hips, and looked up at the Golden Ancient Tree's broad branches and trunk. Many cultivation rooms had been built in its core.
The cultivation rooms inside the Golden Ancient Tree were places many Shrek students dreamed of cultivating in. One day of cultivation here was worth four or five days outside.
"So big."
Huo Tian released his Martial Soul, and a pair of Vermilion Bird flame wings spread behind him. Guided by his Soul Power, he slowly rose toward the cultivation rooms above.
Huo Tian's personal cultivation room was in the Golden Ancient Tree's core region. He slowly landed on the platform and pushed the door open.
A wave of warmth washed over him from inside. Evil Fire burst from Huo Tian's body and canceled it out. The cultivation room was very simply furnished.
There was only an ice bed inside the cultivation room, with the rest of the space entirely empty. From time to time, the bed gave off a bone-chilling cold.
Huo Tian strode over and paced near the ice bed. Then he leaped up and, supported by his Soul Power, hovered above it.
In an instant, the Evil Fire on Huo Tian's body and the ice bed's cold began to repel each other. Waves of vapor filled the cultivation room, surrounding him at their center.
Six Soul Bones appeared out of thin air in Huo Tian's hands. Each shone with light, as though responding to his Vermilion Bird Martial Soul.
The Vermilion Bird phantom within Huo Tian spread a pair of great, fiery-red wings and let out a cry as waves of heat burst forth.
At the summons of the Vermilion Bird Martial Soul, the six Soul Bones slowly rose. They began to give off a scorching aura and floated quietly directly above Huo Tian.
Evil Fire erupted all over Huo Tian's body. His red robe burned away in an instant, turning to ash and smoke that dispersed through the room. Huo Tian now hovered stark naked above the ice bed.
The Vermilion Bird Divine Mark between Huo Tian's brows and the Divine Fire Origin at his heart burst with golden light. The two streams of energy drew each other in and fused together.
Huo Tian's heartbeat stood out sharply in the quiet chamber. Each beat tugged at his Soul Power.
Huo Tian began to sink into slumber. The Vermilion Bird Divine Mark and the Divine Fire Origin began to control his consciousness, and his entire body floated upward until it was level with the six Soul Bones.
Huo Tian's body spread out like the character 大.
The first of the six Soul Bones to fly forward was the five-hundred-thousand-year Vermilion Bird Torso Bone. It radiated scorching heat from end to end and was exactly the same size as the bones of Huo Tian's own torso.
Under the joint control of the Vermilion Bird Divine Mark and the Divine Fire Origin, a fissure began to appear across Huo Tian's chest, running from the base of his neck to the very bottom of his abdomen.
The skin of Huo Tian's entire upper body split down the middle. His internal organs and blood vessels were all laid bare, while the Evil Fire within him fiercely protected his organs.
Huo Tian trembled all over, sweat dripping from his forehead like rain beneath the ice bed. The five-hundred-thousand-year Vermilion Bird Torso Bone immediately merged into his own torso bones.
The instant the Vermilion Bird Torso Bone began fusing with the bones inside Huo Tian's torso, the heart-piercing pain jolted him awake.
Huo Tian clenched both fists and stared at the ceiling with determination in his eyes. A little blood seeped from his lips as he bit down hard on them.
Eight Soul Rings appeared behind Huo Tian. Each began releasing energy into his back, and with this energy supporting him, the pain in his chest gradually eased.
The temperature throughout the room kept rising. After twelve hours of arduous fusion, the Vermilion Bird Torso Bone completely replaced Huo Tian's original torso bones.
Huo Tian hovered in the air, the waves of air he released stirring his long red hair. The Vermilion Bird Divine Mark between his brows and the Divine Fire Origin at his heart began tracing a pattern.
Huo Tian felt an itch across his upper body. He lowered his head and saw that a Vermilion Bird's head had appeared on his left chest. A complete Vermilion Bird tattoo was etched across his upper body.
"Fuck! At this rate, I'm turning into a street punk!"
Huo Tian let out a weary breath with a helpless expression, though the tattoo did look rather cool. The other five Soul Bones once again flew toward their corresponding parts of his body.
The Soul Bone fusion began once more.
A shrill cry rang out from within the Golden Ancient Tree, spreading outward from its interior.
The Golden Ancient Tree.
Sea God Island.
Shrek Academy, Shrek City.
--
It traveled all the way to the core of the Star Dou Great Forest. Throughout the forest, Soul Beasts trembled and lowered their heads, as though respectfully welcoming their new sovereign.
At the very center of the Lake of Life lay a gigantic Golden-Eyed Black Dragon.
"What the hell?!"
Di Tian, who had been sleeping, sensed an oppressive might deep within his bloodline. In fear, he raised his entire dragon head and looked toward the bottom of the Lake of Life.
The Ferocious Beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest hurried to the Lake of Life, all looking at Di Tian with puzzled gazes.
"Interesting!"
The Silver Dragon King in the Lake of Life opened one purple eye. Her voice echoed throughout the lake.
The Ferocious Beasts all prostrated themselves respectfully on the ground.