"Damn it, damn it! The Holy Spirit Cult... they're becoming more and more lawless. Once I've secured my throne, I'll settle accounts with you all one by one!"
Xu Tianran's hands, veins bulging, gripped the specially made wheelchair tightly.
Xu Tianran took a few deep breaths, suppressing his rage, and shouted into the distance, "Someone come here!"
The guards who were patrolling nearby heard Xu Tianran's shout and immediately ran over, kneeling on one knee and respectfully saying, "Your Highness."
Xu Tianran's gaze was icy as he looked in the direction where Bei Bei had disappeared. He commanded, "Prepare the car! I'm going to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy."
"Yes!"
The guard immediately stood up, his eyes filled with a hint of panic, and hurriedly began to make arrangements.
Judging from Xu Tianran's demeanor, he was in a bad mood. At this time, it was natural not to provoke him. As his subordinate, he should do his best to handle things so as not to be implicated.
Xu Tianran tapped his fingers on the armrests of the wheelchair repeatedly, producing a series of dull thuds. His icy aura made the maid who came to push the wheelchair hesitate and dare not approach.
"Get ready and let's go! What are you standing there for!"
Xu Tianran didn't turn around, but he still noticed the maid behind him and said angrily.
The maidservant trembled, stepped forward unsteadily, and grasped the armrest of the wheelchair behind him, stammering, "Yes... yes... Your Highness."
Xu Tianran Xu Tianran snorted coldly, and the maid trembled again, becoming even more disrespectful, and headed towards the gate of the mansion.
Inside the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
Huo Yuhao gripped the wooden sword in his hand, blocking with the blade. A terrifying force emanated from the sword and impacted Huo Yuhao's body, causing the blade to visibly bend.
Click!
The wooden sword snapped instantly, and several small fragments grazed Huo Yuhao's face, leaving tiny bloodstains.
The moment the wooden sword fell to the ground, Ji Juechen's eyes narrowed, and with a flick of his wrist, he thrust the sword forward, its tip pointing directly at Huo Yuhao's heart.
Huo Yuhao frowned, leaned back, and slapped the ground with his right hand, dodging the iron sword as he lunged to the other side.
With a thud, Huo Yuhao rolled several times on the ground, dust billowing up and sticking to his hair and clothes, making him look extremely disheveled.
Ji Juechen smoothly pointed the tip of his sword slightly to the right, leaped into the air, and swung his sword again in mid-air, the blade once more aimed at Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao's eyes widened in panic. He instinctively raised his arm to shield his head and shouted, "I'm not fighting anymore! I surrender!"
Upon seeing Ji Juechen suddenly reversed his Soul Power, forcibly changing his sword move in mid-air, raising the sword tip an inch upwards. The sharp sword energy almost grazed Huo Yuhao's body as it pierced into the wall beside him.
Huo Yuhao smiled somewhat awkwardly, flicked the sword with his finger, and said, "I lost, I lost. Let's fight again next time."
Ji Juechen remained silent, instead coldly drawing his longsword and walking to the side.
"Hehehe, Huo Yuhao, how come you lost again? A Chen didn't even use his full strength." Jing Ziyan, who was watching from the side, mocked.
Huo Yuhao shrugged helplessly. "Yeah, I told you I really can't beat you guys, so don't come looking for me to spar starting tomorrow."
Jing Ziyan propped her head up with her hands and looked at Ji Juechen as he picked up an iron sword from the weapon rack prepared to the side.
She looked at Huo Yuhao and continued, "That won't do. In this academy, you're the only one who can spar with us a few more times. So, even if you can't beat us, we still have to spar."
Huo Yuhao was about to retort when he heard a sword's cry, and a long sword flew gracefully through the air directly towards him.
Huo Yuhao sprang to his feet with a somersault, his right foot stepping back and his body shifting to the side. He then reached forward with his right hand and grasped the iron sword.
Watching his fluid movements, Jing Ziyan covered her mouth and chuckled, " Huo Yuhao, look at your skills, they're not bad at all. What do you mean you can't beat him?"
Ji Juechen didn't waste any words. He made a sword finger gesture with his left hand, gently stroking the sword with two fingers, a rare tenderness appearing in his eyes.
Immediately following, with a light tap of his toes, he charged towards Huo Yuhao, coldly saying, "Continue."
Huo Yuhao rolled his eyes, looked at the iron sword that was about to reach him, exerted force with his wrist, and flicked the longsword upwards, his timing was perfect.
With a clang, the two iron swords clashed head-on, sparks flying.
Ji Juechen's offensive continued unabated, and he suddenly exerted force with both hands, forcefully pressing down Huo Yuhao's longsword.
Huo Yuhao frowned slightly, about to exert his strength to resist.
In an instant, Ji Juechen loosened his grip, released the sword hilt with both hands, changed direction, and gripped the hilt again with his other hands, flicking it upwards.
The sword's edge was pointed directly at Huo Yuhao's face!
Huo Yuhao cursed under his breath, "You brat, all you know how to do is aim for my face?!"
However, Huo Yuhao reacted immediately, leaning back slightly and squatting down abruptly. In an instant, the hilt of his sword landed in his left hand, and he swung it forward, directly attacking Ji Juechen's lower body!
Ji Juechen hurriedly jumped up, barely dodging the attack, and swung his longsword downwards again.
For a time, the two were locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle.
Not far from where the three were sparring, Ju Zi was sitting quietly on a bench, watching their match.
A sweet smile played on her lips, her gaze never leaving Huo Yuhao.
Meanwhile, on the rooftop of a distant teaching building.
Xu Tianran appeared here at some point, and Jing Hongchen stood quietly beside him, watching.
"What's the relationship between Ju Zi and Huo Yuhao?" Xu Tianran put down his binoculars and asked casually, squinting his eyes.
Jing Hongchen respectfully replied, "Your Highness, Huo Yuhao is an exchange student at Shrek. Both he and Ju Zi are Xuan Ziwen's students, so it's normal for them to have some interaction. Moreover, they tested Soul Tool together, so it's normal for them to have some relationship."
"Maybe it was just that Ju Zi happened to be passing by and glanced at Huo Yuhao a few times."
Xu Tianran raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh? An exchange student from the Shrek Academy? I'd like to get to know you sometime."
Jing Hongchen's lips twitched, but she didn't expose Xu Tianran's thoughts. "Do you think I don't know you? You're clearly just after the Ju Zi, why are you bringing up Huo Yuhao?"
However, Jing Hongchen was a smart man; he simply nodded and said, "Your Highness, I can make arrangements for you."
Xu Tianran shook his head and refused, saying, "That won't be necessary. However, you should report to me every day on Huo Yuhao and Ju Zi's whereabouts. I'll see if I can get them to work for me."
Jing Hongchen immediately smiled and said, "Your Highness is wise. I will make the arrangements shortly."
Xu Tianran nodded, but there was always a hint of hostility in his eyes when he looked at Huo Yuhao, though he hid it very well.