Half a month later, at the foot of Knight Sacred Mountain.
Huo Yuhao looked up at the peaks ahead, shrouded in rain and mist, and dismounted from his swift horse.
Before he left, Yang Haohan had specifically told him that walking up the mountain would show greater reverence.
He also had to be especially respectful toward the senior inside.
With curiosity in his heart, Huo Yuhao started up the mountain.
Just then, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm spoke gravely from within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness:
"Yuhao, there's more to this Knight Sacred Mountain than meets the eye. Just like your Knight Temple headquarters, it has a powerful formation on it. There's probably something hidden underneath."
Over this period of growth, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had grown considerably larger, and his Spiritual Power had advanced by leaps and bounds.
What was more, with the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's help, the Ice Empress had shown signs of awakening.
Especially when Huo Yuhao broke through to the Fifth Tier and condensed his spiritual core, his breakthrough greatly increased his Spiritual Power, which in turn nourished the several Soul Spirits in his Sea of Consciousness.
Huo Yuhao guessed that perhaps the Ice Empress would truly awaken within a month.
"Brother Sky Dream, Second Grandpa called Knight Sacred Mountain one of the Knight Temple's two sacred lands. There must be something special about it. Be careful when you probe it, and don't let the experts inside discover you."
Huo Yuhao was not particularly surprised by the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's warning. He had already experienced the Knight Temple's hidden strength, so it was only natural that Knight Sacred Mountain had something different about it.
"Don't worry, Yuhao. I'll be careful."
After the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm replied, a long time passed before he spoke again, sounding somewhat worried:
"Yuhao, I've gotten a vague sense of the magical beasts on Knight Sacred Mountain. Just as that Yang Haohan said, almost all of them have the light attribute, and a few have other attributes. But I didn't sense any ice-attribute magical beasts."
Huo Yuhao felt somewhat helpless at that. It seemed he really would have to rely on the ancient teleportation array. Hopefully it would bring him a pleasant surprise.
With that thought, Huo Yuhao offered him some reassurance:
"Brother Sky Dream, we still have a guaranteed fallback. With the strength of my Spiritual Power, my cultivation, and my spiritual core, I can keep going for a long time even while using the ancient teleportation array. That'll be enough to find a magical beast that suits me."
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm did not have much hope for the teleportation array either, but he could only go along with him.
"Let's hope so. Yuhao, you lived on Douluo Continent in your previous life. Do you think you'll be able to sense Douluo Continent when the time comes?"
"Douluo Continent?"
Huo Yuhao was slightly taken aback. That really was possible.
After all, he had managed to come to Holy Demon Continent, and his teacher Electrolux had also gone to Douluo Continent. The two worlds had to be connected.
But were there any Soul Beasts or magical beasts on Douluo Continent that suited him? After all, the Snow Empress, the strongest of the ice-attribute Soul Beasts, had already become his Soul Spirit.
Among the ten great Ferocious Beasts, Di Tian had been defeated by him, and the Evil Eye Tyrant King had more or less become his Soul Spirit too. Was there anyone stronger than Di Tian left?
Being stronger than Di Tian alone was not enough; its attribute also had to suit him. Even if it did not have the ice attribute, it had to have the Mental Attribute.
While he pondered, Huo Yuhao arrived before the formation on Knight Sacred Mountain, and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm tactfully fell silent.
"State your name!"
Just then, an aged voice rang out from all around the mist. Someone with weaker Spiritual Power truly would not have been able to tell where it came from.
"This junior is Huo Yuhao. I have come with a credential from the Knight Temple to seek a suitable mount partner."
Huo Yuhao bowed toward the source of the voice as he spoke.
As soon as he finished, a figure emerged from the luminous mist and looked at Huo Yuhao with curiosity.
"Interesting. You're a very interesting little fellow. This is the first time anyone has ever detected me."
Huo Yuhao looked up and saw what the newcomer looked like.
The man appeared to be in his seventies or eighties and was extremely old, with only a few hairs left on his head. Part of his body was missing, too: he had only one arm and one leg left.
At the sight, Huo Yuhao was filled with respect. This man had rendered great service to the Temple Alliance in its fight against the Demon Clan.
He respectfully bowed again.
"Greetings, Senior!"
"All right, there's no need to curry favor with me. Let me see your credential."
"I'd like to know what's so special about you, boy, that you managed to detect me."
As he spoke, the old man flashed forward and appeared in front of Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao's expression did not change in the slightest. He took the identity credential Yang Haohan had prepared directly from his spatial ring.
But when he raised his hand, the old man caught sight of the Inheritance Ring.
At once, the old man understood that the little fellow before him was not only quite strong, but also had an extraordinary identity.
The old man took the identity credential and opened it. At the very first glance, he cried out in surprise.
"Hmm? You're Yang Haoyu's grandson? I never would have thought it! And Yang Haohan prepared your credential for you. No wonder!"
"Fifth Tier before the age of ten? You've really opened my eyes!"
"What a pity, what a pity. You don't have the sacred light attribute!"
After reading it, the old man returned the credential to Huo Yuhao with a sigh, then said:
"Little fellow, let me see for myself just how gifted you are. First, hold out your hand!"
"Yes, Senior!"
Huo Yuhao held out his hand in front of the old man.
The old man grasped Huo Yuhao's hand with his one remaining hand and began circulating his Spiritual Energy to examine his bones.
A moment later, he spoke with shock written all over his face:
"Boy, why is your age so strange? You seem to be seven or eight, yet also nine."
"I'm not quite sure myself, but at my age, I should have passed the assessment, shouldn't I?"
Huo Yuhao offered no explanation, changing the subject instead.
"Hehe, if someone below the age of ten at the Fifth Tier can't pass the assessment, then no one in the entire Temple Alliance should be able to."
The old man chuckled, then gave him a serious reminder:
"Boy, Yang Haohan should have told you about Knight Sacred Mountain already, but don't blame me for saying more. It's my duty, so I still have to tell you what needs to be said."
As he spoke, the old man took out a token and handed it to Huo Yuhao.
"This token allows you to enter and leave Knight Sacred Mountain once. The time limit is only thirty days. After thirty days, you'll be teleported out even if you haven't found a suitable mount."
"But since you reached the Fourth Tier before turning twenty, you get an additional opportunity to use the grand teleportation array."
"Alas, I'll be frank. There are hardly any mounts on Knight Sacred Mountain that suit you. If you want a suitable mount, you'll have to rely on the teleportation array."
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao bowed to the old man.
"Thank you for the warning, Senior. Knight Sacred Mountain is so wondrous that even if I can't find a suitable mount, I'd still like to go in and have a look."
"After I've had a look around, I'll come out early. Sorry to trouble you then, Senior."
A satisfied expression appeared on the old man's face when he heard this, and he said:
"Good. Knight Sacred Mountain is indeed worth seeing. Boy, let me send you in."
As soon as he finished speaking, he moved behind Huo Yuhao and sent him into Knight Sacred Mountain with a casual wave of his hand.