Huo Yuhao stared at the strange sight in his Sea of Consciousness, his brow furrowing involuntarily.
"Cultivating alone isn't a long-term solution. Neither resources nor safety can be guaranteed."
He murmured to himself, his gaze grave. "As for this mysterious clock..."
"Could absorbing too much power of time have caused this change?"
"It seems I can only go to Shrek Academy first and study it slowly later."
However, what troubled him even more was the change in his Sea of Consciousness.
In fact, Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness was now in a peculiar state, separated and divided into three entirely distinct spaces.
One of them was the space where Tian Meng resided.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's enormous body lay lazily curled up inside, muttering a few words from time to time and adding a touch of a different kind of life to the space. It was also the most normal part of the Sea of Consciousness, no different from his previous life.
Huo Yuhao had provisionally named another space the Time Sea of Consciousness.
A clock sat there, and as if it were alive, it occasionally gave off clear, ringing "clang, clang, clang" sounds that echoed through the space.
The Time Sea of Consciousness was an exceptionally peculiar space, where the wonders of creation and destruction played out at every moment. The elements within it seemed to intertwine and reform in disorder; brilliant light flashed from time to time, the first signs of creation.
At other times, dark vortices churned, devouring everything around them and symbolizing destruction. In this space, time seemed to have lost its meaning, with no fixed pattern to its passage.
The final space was naturally the Sea of Divine Soul where the Third Prince resided.
After thinking it over again and again, the only advantages of Shrek Academy were that it would allow him to develop safely and provide the best way to hide from that fellow in the heavens who observed the Douluo Continent at intervals. If something changed about him and he went somewhere else, he had no doubt that Tang San would descend directly to the lower realm, become an ordinary person, and interfere in its affairs.
The events in Qiankun Asking Love Valley were still vivid in his mind.
Huo Yuhao had intended to leave this place and head for Shrek.
However, just then, the sounds of a fierce battle nearby rang in his ears, drawing his attention. Out of caution, Huo Yuhao moved, swiftly leaping into a large tree.
He instantly activated his Martial Soul. Using the mental detection of his Spirit Eyes Martial Soul, he quickly pinpointed the battle's exact location and made his way there.
From a branch, he looked down from his lofty position and saw two people locked in a fierce fight with a Mandala Snake. The two figures were very familiar: Bei Bei and Tang Ya, his friends from the Tang Sect in his previous life.
Bei Bei was already a three-ring Soul Elder, and his strength was not to be underestimated. But the Mandala Snake before him was just as troublesome. Snake-type Soul Beasts were known for their cunning, and with the added advantage of its poison attribute, this thousand-year Soul Beast was by no means easy to subdue.
"So it's them." Huo Yuhao stood on the branch without making any rash moves.
Bei Bei and the Mandala Snake were trading blows, so presumably he had no need of help. Huo Yuhao simply leaned against the tree and continued watching; rushing over might instead make them suspect that he was some passing Evil Soul Master or the like.
Meanwhile, a sweet-smelling poisonous gas filled the air, spreading constantly in every direction. To Huo Yuhao, however, it was nothing. Once he circulated his cultivation technique, the gas could not get anywhere near him.
With the boost from his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul, Bei Bei's right arm was instantly covered in hard, bluish-purple scales that gleamed with a cold metallic sheen.
His three Soul Rings shone brilliantly, hovering in the air and releasing powerful Soul Power fluctuations. He shouted to Tang Ya, "Xiao Ya, find the right moment to use your Entanglement skill!"
No sooner had he spoken than he shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. His First Soul Ring blazed, and his right hand instantly formed a dragon claw wreathed in lightning, crackling with flashes of light. Moving with nimble strides, he charged at the Mandala Snake and swung the claw, striking fiercely at his target.
Indeed, he had activated his first Soul Skill-Thunder Dragon Claw. The attack was immensely powerful, and the air was filled with the acrid stench of electrical scorching. But snake-type Soul Beasts had always been exceptionally cunning. The Mandala Snake easily twisted its body, deftly avoiding the fierce blow before pulling back and slithering to the side in an instant.
Seeing this, Bei Bei continued to grapple with the Mandala Snake. After several exchanges, Tang Ya finally seized a fleeting opportunity. Her slender brows shot up as she cried in a low voice, "Blue Silver Entanglement!"
In an instant, vines formed from Blue Silver Grass burst from the ground and nimbly coiled toward the Mandala Snake. In the blink of an eye, the snake was bound fast, unable to move.
The trapped Mandala Snake was clearly unwilling to admit defeat. It opened its bloody maw and spewed out another cloud of pink poisonous mist that spread around it.
The poisonous mist expanded rapidly, shrouding the entire battlefield like an eerie fog. Bei Bei was also affected; his vision was obstructed, and his movements grew sluggish.
He hurriedly pulled a white porcelain bottle from his robes, poured out the pills inside, and swallowed them without hesitation. Then he passed the bottle to Tang Ya.
"Xiao Ya, this Mandala Snake is too cunning. Its poisonous mist is impossible to guard against. Fall back for now!" Bei Bei shouted. Tang Ya took the bottle and swallowed a pill. Understanding at once, she naturally knew what Bei Bei intended to do and immediately retreated as he had asked.
Seeing Tang Ya withdraw to safety, Bei Bei could finally unleash his full strength without reservation. He took a deep breath and released his third Soul Skill-Thunderous Fury.
At once, the blue lightning around his right hand flared brilliantly, crackling and popping. His entire right arm seemed to be wrapped in a giant thunder dragon. This was an amplification skill that could instantly increase Bei Bei's attack power by fifty percent.
Bei Bei charged fiercely at the Mandala Snake again as it struggled to break free. This time, the dragon claw on his right hand was even more powerful than before. Wherever it passed, the air seemed to tear apart with a piercing howl.
He swung the dragon claw and smashed it hard into the Mandala Snake. The blow carried astonishing force, splitting the snake's flesh and shattering even the blue vines binding it with its lightning.
The Mandala Snake was slammed heavily into the ground and lay motionless, seemingly unable to fight any longer. "Looks like it's finally over." Bei Bei let out a long breath, relief showing on his face.
Seeing that the matter was settled, Tang Ya ran out excitedly and shouted to Bei Bei, "Well done, Bei Bei!"
Just then, however, Huo Yuhao keenly sensed that something was wrong. He could clearly feel that the Mandala Snake was not quite dead and was preparing to launch a fatal counterattack.
Worse still, Huo Yuhao realized that this time, the Mandala Snake's target did not seem to be Bei Bei, but... This is bad! Huo Yuhao cried inwardly.