"I was born in the darkness, and I am also one who devours the darkness!"
The voice wasn't loud, yet it echoed through the empty woods, continuously invading the bandits' ears and striking at their tense, fragile nerves.
Amidst the dark night, the youth appeared eerily atop a tree. Dressed in a black robe, a pair of eyes beneath his hood flashed with dark purple, demonic light, his lips curling into a smile as he stared at the people in the forest.
Huo Yuhao stood upon the treetop, the black sword in his hand melting and dissolving into the black robe.
Countless threads blasted forth from his right hand, instantaneously blanketing the place like a huge web.
"Damn it! Damn it, it's Shadow! It's him, absolutely him!"
"Activate your Martial Souls! Quick, activate your Martial Souls!" Someone shouted.
Hair and sharp claws instantly sprouted from the bandits' bodies, with Soul Rings orbiting around them in twos and threes, generally at the Soul Grandmaster level.
Two yellow and two purple Soul Rings emerged around the leading bandit, shockingly marking him as a formidable Soul Ancestor.
The leader roared, "Don't panic! What is there to fear, I'm right here..."
Whoosh-
The wind swept through the forest, surging over with an encroaching bloody stench.
"Clatter! Clatter!"
From behind came the sudden sound of Gold Soul Coins colliding, crisp and heart-stopping.
"Who's there!" The leading bandit whipped his head around.
With trembling pupils, countless rays of light shot out from the forest. Before he could finish speaking, they were tightly bound in place by the threads.
Those sharp threads instantly restricted them, rendering them unable to move!
The most terrifying part was that he hadn't even activated his Martial Soul!
"Shadow is a place that hides the light, and you lot are not worthy of possessing these."
Before anyone knew when, Huo Yuhao had actually appeared in front of several of them, leisurely tossing a Gold Soul Coin.
"Gold coins... Let me see..." Huo Yuhao lowered his voice, excitedly opening the chest on the carriage.
The glittering Gold Soul Coins made him immensely excited in just an instant!
The threads in his hand slowly tightened, and the bandits were hoisted directly into midair. Bloodstains were instantly squeezed out from their hands and feet, dyeing their collars red in the blink of an eye.
"Shadow, spare... spare us, I am willing to hand all my treasures over to you..." The leader's eyes were filled with fear as he pleaded.
"Hm? But once you're dead, your treasures are mine anyway!" Huo Yuhao narrowed his eyes, grinned, and violently tightened his right hand!
Countless blossoms of blood!
Blood sprayed onto the surrounding trees, dyeing them a bright, crimson red!
These bandits were wiped out on the spot without even having the chance to fight back!
At this moment, the black robe on Huo Yuhao's body began to writhe slowly, as if it had a life of its own and wanted to cover the Gold Soul Coins.
Swish, swish, swish!
Three black figures bolted out from the side, arriving directly in front of Huo Yuhao and half-kneeling down.
"Lord Shadow!" The three spoke in unison, their tones filled with respect.
Huo Yuhao gave a dry cough, withdrew his expression, straightened his posture, and turned around.
Taking advantage of the gap, the Slime robe stealthily hooked a Gold Soul Coin and immediately returned to his body.
The person in the middle of the three stood up, lowered her hood, and three thousand strands of dark hair cascaded down, instantly revealing an exquisitely beautiful face to Huo Yuhao.
"Lord Shadow! The surrounding bandits have all been cleared out, and these three were found inside the bandit carriage."
Si pointed at the three young girls behind her subordinates and petitioned Huo Yuhao.
"Hm?"
Huo Yuhao sized up the three young girls. Their eyes carried a trace of fear and some apprehension, their small hands tightly clutching the hems of the two subordinates' garments.
The dark purple light in Huo Yuhao's eyes grew even more intense. "Take them back to be trained. Since they survive within the shadows, entering the Garden is their best choice!"
The young girls looked at the tall figure before them, coupled with that deep voice which seemed to possess a magical, irresistible force.
At this moment, they shared the same faith!
Shadow!!!
Si nodded, beckoning to her two subordinates. "0001, 0002, take them back to the Garden and slowly tutor them. Also, notify the other members to step up the retrieval work."
"Understood, Lady Si!"
0001 and 0002, the two females, immediately vanished from the spot with the three children.
Huo Yuhao remained expressionless in place.
More black shadows came flitting over from afar. Watching chest after chest of Gold Soul Coins being carted away from behind him, Huo Yuhao felt an incomparable ache in his heart.
"Shadow, is there anything else that needs to be done?" Si stepped forward and asked with concern.
Huo Yuhao instantly snapped back to his senses, slowly raising his head to stare at the full moon overhead, and said in a deep voice, "The ten-thousand-year situation is about to collapse, right when Shadow makes his debut..."
"A situation that had lasted ten thousand years..."
"Si" murmured, repeating Huo Yuhao's words. By the time she came to her senses, Shadow was long gone.
"Si" smacked her forehead, quickly pulled up her hood, and suddenly realized, "Shadow was reminding me! It looks like it's time to begin the 'Sun Moon Plan'!"
In an instant, "Si" disappeared from where she stood.
The next day.
Within the territory governed by the Duke's Mansion, in a small town, at Yun'er's Tailor Shop.
"Hey, have you heard? Another band of bandits has disappeared recently. They say the woods are covered in blood. It's terrifying!"
A crowd gathered around Liu Laosan as he spoke in hushed, mysterious tones.
Huo Yuhao propped his head up with one hand. With the other, hidden from everyone's sight, he kept squeezing the black hand gripper.
The noisy sounds outside bored him.
"Young master, why aren't you practicing your sword today?"
Someone greeted him. When he got no reply, he could only continue listening to Liu Laosan.
"Liu Laosan, have you actually seen it or what? All you do every day is make up stories. Tch!" One person scoffed, clearly unconvinced.
"Young master, you know what? I only believe what you say." Another person called out to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao shook his head, and the man stopped asking.
"Don't be so sure you don't believe me. I even know who did it!" Liu Laosan protested, raising his voice.
If even the young master didn't know about it, how impressive would it be if he told them!
"Then tell us!"
"Exactly, exactly!"
Liu Laosan smugly started to speak, then stopped. "All right, I'll tell you. It was Shadow..."
Following his gaze, they saw a well-equipped squad, each member with a tiger-head emblem embroidered on his chest, jogging toward them in neat formation. They stopped right outside Yun'er's Tailor Shop.
"Quick, go, go..."
At the sight of them, everyone scattered. Liu Laosan had vanished long before the rest.
The squad lined up in two rows outside the shop. A middle-aged man stepped forward from among them. He was the squad's leader.
"Young master, we've come to escort Second Madam back to the mansion," Shabo said respectfully.
Huo Yuhao nodded, got up, and opened the door. Then he called inside, "Mother, Father sent Shabo to take you home."
Huo Yun'er answered softly, lifting her skirt slightly as she slowly walked out. "I know, Yuhao. Then let's head back first."
"Shabo, let's go."
With Shabo leading the way, Huo Yun'er gracefully climbed into the carriage.
"Yuhao, hurry and get in. We're going home," Huo Yun'er said with a smile, joy in her heart.
She would soon see her husband, so of course she was happy.
Shabo interrupted, "Madam, the young master is supposed to travel to Shrek Academy on his own. I'm afraid he can't return with us."
Huo Yun'er frowned, displeased, and was about to ask him about it.
"Madam, this was all ordered by the master. Please don't make things difficult for me." Shabo looked troubled, lowered his head, and pleaded with her.
"Mother, it's all right. Don't worry. I was planning to study at the academy anyway, so this works out. You can rest easy."
Huo Yuhao immediately spoke up to reassure her.
Hearing that her son felt the same way, Huo Yun'er had no choice but to let it go. Heart aching, she said, "Yuhao, why don't we go back first? I'll discuss it with Brother Hao..."
Shabo was helpless, too. His young master simply hadn't inherited the duke's powerful White Tiger Martial Soul. Instead, his Martial Soul had mutated into Spirit Eyes, and he had only just reached level ten.
Even more regretfully, if the young master's Martial Soul had mutated into a sword-type Martial Soul, his talent with the sword would have made him a genius among geniuses.
What a pity!
"It's all right, Mother. This is also a test from Father. Just trust me." Then he held out his hand to Shabo. "Shabo, give me the letter of recommendation."
As if granted a pardon, Shabo quickly pulled a Soul Guidance Ring from his robes and handed it to Huo Yuhao.
"By the way, young master, you can go to Shrek City first and find the owner of this shop. He's an old acquaintance of mine."
"If anything comes up, you can ask him for help. As for getting a Soul Ring, the White Tiger Guards arranged by the master will take you once you reach Shrek City. You'll need to hurry!"
Shabo tucked an address into Huo Yuhao's arms and gave him a few more instructions before finally stopping.
Seeing that her son was determined, Huo Yun'er had no choice but to say goodbye to him.
The squad members were very efficient. While the two said their goodbyes, they closed the tailor shop.
"Young master, this is all I can do for you. Please wait a moment. I'll escort Madam back to the mansion first." Shabo cupped his fists.
Huo Yuhao nodded, watching the convoy gradually disappear into the distance. At his signal, two dark figures quickly followed it.
He weighed the Soul Guidance Ring in his hand. His spiritual power passed through it, revealing a full hundred Gold Soul Coins and the letter of recommendation inside. He beamed with delight.
"Gold coins really do make people happy!"