Unfortunately, Huo Yuhao had not yet obtained his fifth spirit ring. The spirit power he absorbed could only be temporarily stored in his body.
"Obtaining the fifth spirit ring must be put on the agenda," Huo Yuhao thought to himself, eyes narrowed as he continued absorbing Dai Yueheng's bloodline.
Over the past few days, Huo Yuhao wasn't merely completing missions—he had also been investigating suitable spirit beasts for himself. He had made some discoveries.
The Primordial Spirit of the Ice Jade Centipede hovered nearby, keeping watch for Huo Yuhao.
The Ghost Banner martial soul floated up, and Electrolux acted to shield Huo Yuhao's presence.
Dai Yueheng, like a dazed maiden, was manipulated at will by Huo Yuhao.
As the White Tiger bloodline within Dai Yueheng was gradually drained, Huo Yuhao could clearly feel that his own White Tiger bloodline was being strengthened.
However, most of the bloodline was naturally being absorbed by the Variant Ice Venom Centipede martial soul.
Finally, the Variant Ice Venom Centipede martial soul absorbed enough White Tiger bloodline to reach a critical point—triggering a metamorphosis and attempting to automatically merge with Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao hurriedly suppressed it, preventing the centipede from surfacing.
If it left behind any trace of its aura, things would get complicated.
By this point, Dai Yueheng's White Tiger bloodline had been completely drained.
The consequences began to manifest.
Loss of bloodline is devastating to a spirit master!
Dai Yueheng's White Tiger martial soul emerged involuntarily, letting out a sorrowful cry. Its aura was incredibly weak.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black—six spirit rings floated into view.
The next second—
Dai Yueheng's sixth spirit ring shattered.
His spirit power level plummeted like floodgates opening—utter collapse.
Fifth ring, fourth ring… one after another, his spirit rings broke apart.
Until even his first spirit ring shattered completely.
Inside Dai Yueheng, not a trace of spirit power remained.
The once-vibrant White Tiger martial soul had become a thin shadow, its tiger eyes devoid of light.
Only then did Huo Yuhao stop, withdrawing his roots.
Dai Yueheng's martial soul had been utterly crippled—he was no longer a spirit master.
Casually, Huo Yuhao healed the gaping wound in Dai Yueheng's neck.
"No need to thank me."
With his martial soul ruined, Dai Yueheng wouldn't survive the night without help.
No—lasting even half an hour would be a miracle.
The 100,000-year-old Snow Lotus had also completely drained the essence of Dai Yueheng's flesh and blood.
As for his soul… since his martial soul was destroyed before death, his soul held little value.
In fact, it was even less nourishing than that of a hundred-year-old spirit beast.
Technically, Huo Yuhao could have killed Dai Yueheng first, absorbed his soul, and then his bloodline.
But since this was his "first meal" from the White Tiger Duke's household, Huo Yuhao wanted it fresh.
No waste—but life still needs a sense of ritual.
Huo Yuhao was about to leave.
Silently, just as he had silently arrived—waving his sleeve and taking away Dai Yueheng's bloodline.
Yet, Dai Yueheng's feeble voice suddenly rose beneath him:
"Who… are you…"
Dai Yueheng, regaining a bit of consciousness, immediately realized he had been attacked. His body was racked with pain and weakness; his inner spirit power had vanished.
The thought of being crippled flashed through his mind—he couldn't believe it. He preferred to believe he'd been poisoned.
Then he saw the black-robed figure standing before him.
He struggled to see the face beneath the hood—but all he saw was utter darkness.
"Oh? You're awake~ As expected of Dai Hao's son."
A clean, youthful voice came from under the hood—but it wasn't Huo Yuhao's original voice.
Dai Yueheng's pupils shrank. Shock gripped his heart.
The opponent knew his identity?!
Then, a pair of red and blue heterochromatic eyes lit up beneath the black robe—eerily glowing against the darkness.
Dai Yueheng's voice quivered. He felt those eyes looked terribly familiar.
"Those eyes…"
"That's right~ They're the Evil Eyes of the White Tiger bloodline. But mine are far superior."
Huo Yuhao continued, "Actually, I should be calling you 'big brother.' Nice to meet you, Dai Yueheng."
"You're… Father's illegitimate son? You're the one who attacked me?!"
Dai Yueheng's gaze turned ferocious.
He realized—Huo Yuhao must be Dai Hao's bastard.
But for a bastard to attack the legitimate heir?
How dare he?!
Huo Yuhao smiled slightly.
"I hate that look in your eyes."
The next second, the black robe swept forward.
"AAAHHH!!!" Dai Yueheng let out a screaming wail.
"My eyes…!!!"
Where his eyes once were, only two bloody sockets remained—ghastly and grotesque.
Huo Yuhao now held a pair of eyeballs in his hand.
"You dare cripple me, you bastard!" Dai Yueheng roared in fury.
At that moment, when Huo Yuhao ripped out his eyes, they became locked in an unbreakable feud.
Huo Yuhao calmly stepped forward, placing his foot on Dai Yueheng's mouth.
His clear voice, now demonic in Dai Yueheng's ears, whispered:
"Rather than bastard, I'd prefer you call me…"
'Compassionate Demon!' (Cihang Yao)
A thick ghostly aura burst from Huo Yuhao, invading Dai Yueheng's body—accelerating his decay and inflicting immense pain.
This move was purely meant to torture him.
Dai Yueheng writhed on the ground, bleeding from all seven orifices—utterly wretched.
Huo Yuhao smiled again, finally allowing Electrolux to withdraw his concealment.
He left with flair.
But he hadn't gone far when a flare suddenly shot into the sky and exploded.
"Oh? Still have strength to fire a signal flare? Heh…"
Without looking back, Huo Yuhao slipped away under the cover of night, returning to his tent.
He didn't alarm a single soul.
At the moment the flare burst, Chen Zifeng and the others rushed toward Dai Yueheng's location to aid him.
But when they arrived, they found a Dai Yueheng that had been tormented beyond recognition.
They were all shocked.
"Boss Dai!"
"Yueheng!"
Chen Zifeng and the others rushed forward to try and save him.
Gongyang Mo's Rainbow Dragon martial soul activated and began releasing spirit abilities—but had no effect on Dai Yueheng.
As Chen Zifeng helped lift him up, everyone's expression changed.
They all saw the two bloody holes on Dai Yueheng's face—his eyes were gone.
When Chen Zifeng probed his body with spirit power, his face changed dramatically.
"Boss Dai's spirit power… it's been crippled!"
"How could this happen?!"
"This aura… it's an evil spirit master!"
Ling Luocheng sensed the faint ghostly energy and made the judgment.
"Damn evil spirit master!"
Yao Haoxuan clenched his fists in anger.
Dai Yueheng suddenly grabbed Chen Zifeng's hand with his last strength and muttered the enemy's name:
"Compassionate… Demon…"
Splurt—
He coughed up a mouthful of blood and died, his limp hand falling away.
And thus, the White Tiger Duke's eldest son fell.
"Boss Dai!"
Chen Zifeng shouted frantically.
Ling Luocheng's cold face revealed a hint of grief.
Xixi covered her mouth and wept softly into Ling Luocheng's embrace.
The signal flare drew attention.
Many spirit masters were awakened and rushed to the scene.
The first to arrive was Ice Phoenix Douluo.
When she saw Dai Yueheng's corpse, she fell silent.
This joke… had gone too far.
Dai Yaoheng's death stirred quite a commotion.
On one hand, it was due to his identity.
He wasn't just a student of Shrek Academy — he was also the eldest son of the White Tiger Duke's household.
Prince Xueyu immediately sealed off the news, covering up Dai Yaoheng's identity.
As long as it remained hidden until the beast tide passed, Dai Yaoheng's death wouldn't affect the Heavenly Soul Empire.
After all, he died wearing the uniform of the Shrek Supervision Squad.
Dying on a Supervision Squad mission was considered normal losses.
Any issues? Go ask Shrek Academy.
Prince Xueyu was merely concerned that if news leaked now, Dai Hao might lose his mind and take it out on the Heavenly Soul Empire, possibly starting a war in the south.
That would be a major headache for the empire.
But even knowing that someone from the Shrek Supervision Squad had died was big news for the average soul master.
The other reason for the commotion was Dai Yaoheng's strength.
A Soul Emperor-level powerhouse had been silently killed, stripped of his soul power, and tortured to death.
The more people thought about it, the more terrifying it became.
What kind of power would it take to do that?
Given Dai Yaoheng's abilities, it would require at least a Soul Douluo — maybe even a high-level one. Even if it was a Soul Sage, they'd need special techniques.
No one believed that the evil soul master responsible was below the level of Soul Sage.
Even Prince Xueyu had to take the matter seriously.
What he thought were a few rats sneaking in turned out to be a Siberian giant hamster.
Thus, the Ice Phoenix Douluo revealed herself, stationed at the camp to intimidate the hidden evil soul masters.
But she couldn't put everyone at ease.
For a while, paranoia ran rampant.
Sects and academies increased protection for their disciples. Anyone going on missions had to be accompanied by elders or teachers.
As for the remaining members of the Shrek Supervision Squad, they didn't leave. After contacting the academy, they chose to stay and vowed to avenge Dai Yaoheng.
Prince Xueyu, naturally, encouraged their decision and actively dispatched soldiers to support them.
What else could he do?
This incident also led Beibei and Vena to learn about the presence of Shrek Academy's inner court students, and Beibei even approached them to offer help.
However, the inner court members refused.
After all, Huo Yuhao and his companions were merely outer court students, not part of the Supervision Squad. As for their identity and strength — the inner court didn't care.
In their eyes, two four-ring Soul Ancestors and one three-ring Soul Elder couldn't contribute much.
Ling Luocheng even stated that if they needed help, they would come ask Huo Yuhao's group themselves.
Huo Yuhao thought their suggestion was quite reasonable.
Vena had no objection.
Only Beibei felt a bit disappointed.
He believed that if he enjoyed the honor of Shrek Academy, he should also contribute to it.
"Shrek Academy's honor, huh..." Huo Yuhao murmured in his heart.
In the original story, that so-called honor caused the original Huo Yuhao, Beibei, and others to suffer a lot, even pushing them to do some questionable things.
Dai Yaoheng's death didn't affect Huo Yuhao. He was still eager to drag Beibei and Vena on missions.
But the Imperial Guard Commander was now on edge. He stayed on high alert every time they went out.
Huo Yuhao also secretly spotted the Tyrant Dragon Douluo's presence.
Clearly, he had come to protect Huo Yuhao and Vena from the shadows.
Huo Yuhao pretended not to notice — focusing on his missions and soul collection.
At the same time, he finally identified a soul beast suitable for his fifth soul ring for the variant Frost Centipede martial soul — the 40,000-year-old Zhuqing Ice Toad.
The same one from the original story — Meng Hongchen's martial soul.
Not only did the Zhuqing Ice Toad exist, but it lived right at the boundary between the extreme north and human territory, although it was elusive.
Huo Yuhao searched for a long time before finding one suitable for him.
The Zhuqing Ice Toad is a poisonous ice-type soul beast. In the extreme north, it's known as the "King of the Crevices" because it lives in the borderland between the frigid wilderness and the human world.
Due to its small population and erratic movements, it's rare. Its greatest power lies in its poison — a result of cultivating with the coldest energy of the world.
Interestingly, though its body is ice-type, its eyes are fire-type — a rare trait. It survives by balancing ice and fire, producing a unique toxic cold.
On the snowy ground, a trail formed by a soul beast was visible, with small soul beasts lying dead on both sides.
They had all died from poisoning.
The source of the poison? The trail itself!
This is another trait of the Zhuqing Ice Toad — it leaves long-lasting poison wherever it walks.
"What a terrifying soul beast! Little Brother Huo, is it up ahead?" Beibei marveled at the deadly poison as he asked.
"Yes, Big Brother Beibei, that one's the Zhuqing Ice Toad I need," Huo Yuhao nodded and then turned to the others. "I'll go alone to hunt it. Don't approach until I finish absorbing the soul ring."
Vena raised an eyebrow.
The Imperial Guard Commander immediately objected, "No! Our mission is to protect your safety!"
Vena nodded in agreement.
Huo Yuhao looked at them strangely, then said softly, "A few drops of poison from a 40,000-year-old Zhuqing Ice Toad can kill a diamond mammoth-sized soul beast. For humans — even high-level Soul Sages can't withstand a single hit. Even its battle poison mist is lethal to you. Only my Ultimate Ice can resist it. Are you sure you want to follow?"
A 40,000-year-old soul beast is on par with some Soul Emperors and Sages. In the original story, Meng Hongchen's poison was even more deadly.
"..."
The Commander fell silent, looking helplessly at Vena.
Your Highness, we really can't handle this!
Vena still looked worried. "But…"
"Don't worry," Huo Yuhao smiled. "My Ultimate Ice naturally counters the Zhuqing Ice Toad's ice-fire properties. A 40,000-year-old beast is not a big threat to me."
"…Alright then. Yuhao, you must stay safe. Even if you can't get the soul ring, I'll ask Father to find you one that suits you better." Vena couldn't stop the boy chasing power.
What else could Beibei do? All he could offer was support.
"Little Brother Huo, you can do it!"
Then, Huo Yuhao stepped forward alone, following the poisonous trail left by the Zhuqing Ice Toad.
One hour later.
Huo Yuhao looked at the floating 40,000-year-old Zhuqing Ice Toad soul ring with satisfaction.
With one move of his Ghost Banner, the Toad's spirit was drawn inside.
His Ultimate Ice suppressed the creature's ice-fire attributes. His liquefied poison wasn't inferior either.
The Toad only had one advantage: 40,000 years of soul power. But in close combat, it didn't have much else — strong vitality and attack power, maybe, but not enough to matter.
Its abilities were all centered around ice and poison — both of which were countered by Huo Yuhao.
He didn't even need special tricks. Regular martial skills were enough to beat it into submission.
Then Huo Yuhao plucked out the Zhuqing Ice Toad's eyeballs and placed them next to Dai Yaoheng's eyeballs.
Both were excellent materials.
Though Dai Yaoheng didn't have heterochromia, his eyes were nourished by the White Tiger bloodline. With refinement, they could become usable magical tools.
The Zhuqing Ice Toad's eyes were even more valuable.
Then, Huo Yuhao sat cross-legged to absorb the soul ring.
The poison mist that had spread during the battle acted as his natural shield — no need to worry about being attacked by other soul beasts in the wild.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Poison Trail!"
"It activates the cold poison in the victim's body. The cold poison consumes the victim's soul power to activate itself and spread outward, leaving a poisonous trail. Anyone who touches the trail will also be poisoned, but will not leave behind another trail."
This was a derivative of the poisonous ability left behind by Zhu Qing's Ice Toad while walking, fused with the effect from the fourth soul skill which used soul power to trigger toxicity.
Though not the strongest ability of the Zhu Qing Ice Toad, it was certainly an interesting one.
"Doesn't that mean anyone who gets hit by my cold poison is basically Singed?" Huo Yuhao rubbed his chin and suddenly burst into laughter.
If he released dozens of Singeds at once, the scene would be spectacular.
After breaking through from absorbing the soul ring, Huo Yuhao's accumulated soul power burst forth.
Soul Power Level: 58!
He had just stepped into the Soul King realm and was already on the verge of touching the Soul Emperor level.
This massive leap was due to Huo Yuhao previously absorbing the soul power of Du Busi, Dai Yaoheng, plus soul power refined using the mountain goat's corpse, and the soul power from the 40,000-year Zhu Qing Ice Toad soul ring.
He had directly jumped eight levels.
Among them, Dai Yaoheng's soul power had the lowest conversion efficiency—after all, absorbing it was merely a side-effect of absorbing his bloodline. Even so, despite the low efficiency, the purity of the converted soul power was quite high.
There was no need for his Ultimate Ice attribute to purify it further.
But the soul power boost wasn't the main thing—the real benefit was the enhancement of his poison attribute.
A droplet of poison floated in Huo Yuhao's palm—it was crystal-clear, emitting a rainbow glow, like a precious gem.
But that beauty was deceptive—this single drop could kill a Soul Douluo!
Of course, a poisoned Soul Douluo wouldn't die instantly—they might still have time to find an antidote… or slap Huo Yuhao twice before going down.
Huo Yuhao still couldn't go head-to-head with a Soul Douluo yet.
Because from the Soul Sage level and up, soul masters could use their Martial Soul True Body, giving their combat power a huge boost.
If the poisoned Soul Douluo refused to use their True Body, Huo Yuhao wouldn't mind giving it a try.
"Brother Hao, you're just one step away from making your poison reach the Ultimate level!" Tianmeng Iceworm said excitedly.
"If your poison attribute also becomes Ultimate, you'd be a dual-Ultimate soul master! You'd be terrifyingly powerful!"
"Yeah, but taking that final step is incredibly difficult," Huo Yuhao sighed.
The Ultimate Attribute is all or nothing—even a sliver short, and it doesn't count.
Otherwise, Ultimate Attribute soul masters wouldn't be so rare. If people could just stack soul rings of the same attribute to force it, they'd be everywhere.
But in reality, even Limit Douluos like Mu En aren't Ultimate Attribute users. Even Du Busi, with three 100,000-year soul rings, never reached Ultimate Poison.
Ultimate attributes are either innate—or nearly impossible to attain.
"To take that final step," Huo Yuhao mused,
"Either I need the right natural treasure to fundamentally evolve my attribute to Ultimate Poison..."
"Or I need to absorb more powerful poison-type soul rings—achieve a qualitative change through quantitative buildup. If I could absorb a soul ring with the Ultimate Poison attribute directly, I'd transform instantly!"
"Or... if I could absorb the bloodline power of an Ultimate Poison soul beast, that might work too."
Huo Yuhao pondered over methods to enhance his poison attribute.
But the problem was—in the entire Douluo series, no one—neither soul beasts nor soul masters—had ever possessed Ultimate Poison.
Some Ultimate attributes had poison as a side-effect, such as Ultimate Fire carrying Ultimate Fire Poison.
In fact, Huo Yuhao's poison attribute could also be seen this way: Ultimate Ice carrying Ultimate Cold Poison.
But this kind of poison was still dependent on the power of another Ultimate Attribute.
What Huo Yuhao wanted was to raise poison itself to the Ultimate level and merge it with his Ultimate Ice, greatly enhancing both.
Like how Three-Eyed Golden Lion wielded Ultimate Fire and Ultimate Light together.
"As for natural treasures related to poison, there's only the Snow-Colored Swan Kiss left."
"If I could absorb another 100,000-year poison-type soul ring and use the Snow-Colored Swan Kiss to stimulate its toxicity, I might just cross that threshold," Huo Yuhao said.
"But I don't know if the Swan Kiss still exists…"
"I must say, that's quite a bold plan," Electrolux couldn't help but appear and comment.
"I don't know if that'll help you reach Ultimate Poison—but I do know this: even with a 100,000-year Snow Lotus protecting you, there's no guarantee you'll survive. You may even die."
"Any suggestions, Elder Yi?" Huo Yuhao asked curiously. There was something in Electrolux's tone.
Electrolux didn't keep him guessing. He said bluntly:
"Yuhao, have you ever considered—what is the true essence of poison?"
"The essence of poison?" Huo Yuhao thought for a moment and replied, "To damage biological organisms."
"I ask you a mystical question and you give me a science answer?!" Electrolux retorted, then gave the answer himself:
"Poison is an elemental attribute!"
"In the world of Douluo, poison is like ice—an elemental force. Just with a different focus."
"Please, go on." Huo Yuhao looked attentive.
Electrolux, now in teacher mode, continued:
"From my observation, soul masters use poison in two forms—one is through toxins and poisons, and the other is elemental poison. To achieve Ultimate Poison, what must be enhanced is the poison element, not just the toxins."
"Soul masters today use poison by combining poison elements and toxins. Most poison-related skills focus on toxins and their accumulation. The elemental aspect is neglected. How can one hope to reach the Ultimate Poison this way?"
Huo Yuhao immediately folded his hands in reverence. "Elder Yi, please teach me!"
"The method is simple," Electrolux said. "You must purify it! Ordinary poison can't reach the ultimate level because it's not pure enough!"
"You must revert your Cold Poison into raw poison attribute, then refine that attribute to its purest state. Then your poison attribute will become Ultimate Poison!"
"The Ice Jade Centipede race gave up poison entirely to gain Ultimate Ice—this is the opposite."
"But it will consume massive amounts of time, energy—and perhaps even your fate (luck)."
Huo Yuhao blinked. "Elder Yi, do I still have a chance?"
"Of course you do," Electrolux nodded. "But if you don't use fate to accelerate, it might take over a hundred years."
Huo Yuhao's response—
"Any alternative plans?"
A hundred years was too long!
And using luck for this? Might as well use it to boost his strength directly—better cost-effectiveness.
"If there's no plan B, then so be it. Ultimate Poison isn't essential."
To his surprise, Electrolux nodded again, "There is a plan B."
"Huh?" Huo Yuhao was curious. "Please, Elder Yi, share it!"
"That is—to strengthen the traits of your poison attribute. Even if you can't purify the elemental part, you can still enhance the inherent characteristics—this too boosts the elemental side."
"Different attributes have different traits."
"Take ice for example—its traits are freezing and cold. When these reach their peak, ice becomes Ultimate Ice."
"Poison may not be aggressive like other elements, but its destructive and corrosive power is unparalleled—that's your focus."
"But to improve elemental traits, you'll need great comprehension and real-world experience—it's no easier than grasping laws."
"…Oh," Huo Yuhao hesitated. "Is there a plan C?"
"…I think you are Plan C!" Electrolux retorted.
Huo Yuhao chuckled sheepishly. "Alright, I get it. Let's go with plan B then. If it works, great. If not, no regrets. So, what should I do?"
Electrolux replied, "Keep layering your poison attribute. Also, seek out properties with destructive traits—deepening your understanding. You can use your Eye of All Laws to assist with perception. And if you can enhance that eye, even better."
"Got it…" Huo Yuhao nodded thoughtfully.
After putting away the corpse of Zhu Qingbingchan, Huo Yuhao prepared to return and savor it slowly.
Black, black, black, black, black!
Five black spirit rings floated around his Variant Frost Centipede Martial Soul.
This wasn't camouflage — it was the real color of its spirit rings.
The reason the second ring turned from purple to black wasn't due to any complicated method.
It was simply because Huo Yuhao infused it with fortune energy.
After discovering that fortune could refine martial souls, Huo Yuhao experimented further and found it could also refine spirit rings, spirit bones, and soul tools — even ordinary stones, though with varying cost-efficiency and results.
When refining a spirit ring with fortune, its age could increase. The refined ring would then form a subtle connection with his life-bound spirit ring — though it wouldn't itself become life-bound.
How to use this subtle connection was still something Huo Yuhao was exploring.
Increasing a ring's age only enhanced its effect — it couldn't increase his soul power level.
To keep things consistent, Huo Yuhao raised his second ring to the ten-thousand-year level, using up all the fortune he had accumulated over two weeks of "harvesting" at Shrek Academy.
But beyond ten-thousand years, refining further would cost exponentially more fortune.
The poison-related second spirit ability, now at the ten-thousand-year level, didn't gain new effects — just a longer-lasting toxicity when attached to objects, and smoother usage.
Still, the true age of a spirit ring must not be publicly revealed.
The Variant Frost Centipede spread its wings. The Skydream Iceworm activated its spiritual ability, using its mimicry skill.
The five spirit rings changed appearance: purple, purple, black, black, black.
That's right — the Skydream Iceworm had copied the core soul skill of its own race onto the Variant Frost Centipede, since it also had spiritual attributes, and at its core, this martial soul was linked to the Skydream Iceworm, the ancestral being of the iceworm race.
Huo Yuhao then used methods to mask his strength and aura.
The fifth ring of the Variant Frost Centipede faded away, leaving only four visible rings.
His aura also dropped from that of a high-tier Soul King to a 44th-level Soul Ancestor.
It seemed logical — absorbing a forty-thousand-year ring and rising four levels.
This disguise didn't hinder his combat capabilities much.
The only limitation was that he couldn't openly use the fifth skill.
But Huo Yuhao's combat style didn't rely heavily on spirit skills anyway.
"Brother Hao, your soul power quality is nearly ready. You can start trying to condense a soul core," the Golden Turtle reminded him.
Compared to the Skydream Iceworm, who had slept its way to a million years, the Golden Turtle — who had cultivated to a hundred thousand years — had more credibility on the topic of soul cores.
Soul beasts also had to condense soul cores to break through 100,000 years. The Golden Turtle had done so back then.
As for the Skydream Iceworm — it didn't even know how it got its core. It just woke up one day and found it inside, thinking someone had stuffed a toy in while it slept.
"Condensing a soul core, huh? I'll try when I get back," Huo Yuhao nodded.
If a five-ring Soul King could condense a core, it would significantly speed up his cultivation.
And Huo Yuhao had basically met all the requirements for it.
He didn't return immediately.
Having a rare moment of freedom, he wanted to see if he could hunt some soul beasts nearby.
His Ghost Banner martial soul had already collected over twenty ten-thousand-year soul beast spirits. He planned to use this beast tide to gather 100 of them — or spirits of Soul Kings — to boost the Ghost Banner's strength another level.
Then, he'd be ready to act against the dragon soul — the light-attribute ice dragon soul trapped inside a crystal.
Luckily, that dragon soul was still asleep and unaware that Huo Yuhao had it.
Standing on high ground, Huo Yuhao activated Qi Vision and scanned the surroundings.
"Great, nothing in sight."
No ten-thousand-year beasts nearby.
So, between scheming and guessing, Huo Yuhao chose diWei Nation.
Flipping his hand, a palm-sized turtle shell appeared. He tossed in a few homemade copper coins and began to shake it.
Proper diWei Nation doesn't work like this — but for cultivators, external tools are just for formality. What matters is one's own power.
Even if there were inaccuracies, Huo Yuhao didn't need it to be exact — just not wildly off.
"Tell me where I can find what I need."
He threw the coins from the shell. They fell and arranged themselves on the ice.
After examining them and checking the direction, Huo Yuhao smiled and locked onto a location.
"Got it!"
He packed everything away, recalled the Variant Frost Centipede, stomped the ground, and dashed off at full speed.
"Quick trip there and back."
Soon, he saw figures in the distance.
Huo Yuhao suddenly stopped. His Evil Eye martial soul's enhanced vision allowed him to see clearly — they weren't soul beasts, but people!
"Humans, huh? That's fine too."
He was about to proceed when he noticed — the group was chasing someone.
More precisely, two people were being hunted by a larger group.
As they got closer, Huo Yuhao recognized the targets.
The ones being hunted were two black-robed individuals with faint traces of necromantic energy — likely evil soul masters.
He had seen one of them before — the one who had sold the mysterious soul bone.
One was a Soul Emperor, the other a Soul King — neither had ideal ring setups.
The pursuers were disciples from two sects:
Tianlong Sect and Dilong Sect.
Leading them were the young masters of each: Yu Tianlong and Nan Qiuqiu.
Though Yu Tianlong and Nan Qiuqiu weren't that strong individually, they had numbers. Their teams also had Soul Kings and Soul Emperors — no wonder they could chase two evil soul masters.
Huo Yuhao narrowed his eyes and released his Skydream Divine Sense.
Sure enough, the Skydream Iceworm spoke:
"Two Soul Douluos are following behind. Judging by their robes, one from Tianlong Sect, the other from Dilong Sect."
"What a pity…"
If there was only one Douluo, Huo Yuhao would have tried to take everyone out.
But against two Douluos, unless he used his trump cards, he couldn't guarantee it — and those weren't meant for such situations.
Still, even if he couldn't take them all, he would claim the souls of those two evil soul masters. He might even discover the method to forge mystic soul bones from them.
The sect disciples spotted Huo Yuhao too — though they couldn't make out who he was yet.
"Friend ahead!" Yu Tianlong shouted. "Help stop them! They're evil soul masters who murdered Shrek investigators!"
The two black-robed men panicked at those words.
The Soul King shouted,
"I'm not! I didn't! Don't make stuff up!"
"How can small fry like us take the fall for this!?"
The Soul Emperor yelled at Huo Yuhao:
"Get lost! Don't interfere!"
They were running from a whole group — Huo Yuhao was alone. Could he stop them?
Actually, yes — he could.
And Yu Tianlong's shout sparked Huo Yuhao's interest.
"Frost Centipede — reveal yourself!"
The Variant Frost Centipede appeared, expanding to nine meters long, directly blocking the "You're courting death, brat!"
Two evil soul masters, sensing that Huo Yuhao only had the power of a Soul Ancestor, showed no fear. Without even pausing, they charged straight at him, intent on breaking through by force.
In their mental link, the Skydream Iceworm roared, "Don't harm my master!"
The Mutated Frost Centipede Martial Soul twisted and flipped in midair, colliding head-on with the two evil soul masters.
In the next moment, their expressions changed drastically.
A tremendous force sent them flying, blood surging up their throats.
But the centipede's attack didn't stop. Two centipede legs stabbed forward, aiming to pierce right through the enemies.
Shocked to their core, the two men realized—they had provoked the wrong person.
The Soul Emperor reacted in time, forcefully twisting his body to kick the Soul King, using the momentum to send them flying in opposite directions. They barely dodged the deadly stab.
Even so, the centipede legs still tore through their robes, revealing their true appearances—two haggard-looking men, both with nothing particularly distinctive in their features.
Both were beast-type martial soul users, currently in martial soul possession states.
"What a pity," the Skydream Iceworm muttered regretfully. It hadn't been able to kill them instantly.
The Frost Centipede flicked off their black robes.
Now intercepted, the evil soul masters had lost their momentum.
Disciples of the Sky Dragon Sect and Earth Dragon Sect soon caught up.
"Thank you, friend!" Yu Tianlong said politely. As the young master of the Sky Dragon Sect, his demeanor showed considerable refinement.
"It's you?" Nan Qiuqiu looked at Huo Yuhao in surprise. She remembered him well—not just for his striking looks, but also because he was one of the three people under the protection of soldiers, a detail that had long piqued her curiosity.
Now, seeing his martial soul, her curiosity deepened.
Yu Tianlong glanced at Nan Qiuqiu, a bit surprised she recognized Huo Yuhao. But he didn't dwell on it and continued, "Friend, let my Sky Dragon Sect handle their capture…"
"No! It should be Earth Dragon Sect!" Nan Qiuqiu stepped forward coldly.
She'd deal with Huo Yuhao later—for now, she wasn't going to let her rival sect take the credit.
Indeed, although both sects had discovered and pursued the evil soul masters together, they were fierce competitors.
Their relationship was complicated.
Originally one sect, the two had split. Earth Dragon Sect had since harbored rebellious ambition to challenge Sky Dragon Sect's dominance. Yet, for various reasons, the Sky Dragon Sect could not destroy them outright. Likewise, Earth Dragon Sect hadn't touched their foundation. The two had been entangled ever since.
They even operated out of the same city—an arrangement rare across the continent.
Fortunately for Sky Dragon Sect, their deeper heritage had kept them in the lead. But Earth Dragon Sect was rapidly growing and never gave up its challenge, putting more and more pressure on its rival.
During this beast tide, disciples from both sects were competing again.
Now, having jointly discovered evil soul masters, the race to capture them became another battle for supremacy.
The two hidden Soul Douluo did not interfere, leaving the task to Yu Tianlong and Nan Qiuqiu.
Whoever captured the evil soul masters would claim the victory, earning prestige for their sect.
After all, the evil soul masters had just murdered members of the Shrek inspection team. Many eyes were watching this closely.
For these sects, reputation was everything. It was the key to recruiting disciples. Strength and fame mattered far more than benefits.
Ordinary soul masters only cared about those things.
Yu Tianlong didn't argue further. "Let's move—capture them!" he ordered.
"You're shameless!" Nan Qiuqiu snapped. "We'll move too!"
Just as both groups were about to act—
A terrifying aura enveloped them.
Looking up, they saw the mutated Frost Centipede Martial Soul rise, poised for battle, radiating hostility.
Huo Yuhao stood beside it, arms crossed over his chest.
"Friend, what do you mean by this?" Yu Tianlong asked sternly.
Huo Yuhao ignored him. He stared at the evil soul masters and said coldly, "You're the ones who ambushed the Shrek inspection team!"
"Huh? He's from Shrek Academy?" Yu Tianlong and Nan Qiuqiu were both surprised.
"It wasn't us!" the Soul King protested loudly.
The Soul Emperor, however, frowned. He sensed danger emanating from Huo Yuhao.
"Whether or not you did it, you're evil soul masters. Time to face judgment!"
Purple, purple, black, black!
Four soul rings of shocking quality appeared on the Frost Centipede Martial Soul.
The spectators nearly forgot to breathe.
Even the two hidden Soul Douluo's auras wavered.
"Frost Centipede—Armor Up!" Huo Yuhao shouted.
The mutated Frost Centipede transformed into armor, enveloping Huo Yuhao's body.
This time, the armor wasn't just upper-body—it included leg armor, now enhanced by the White Tiger bloodline he had absorbed from Dai Yaoheng.
The armor gleamed ice-blue with gold, black, and white patterns. A gossamer-thin cloak fluttered behind him, reflecting seven-colored light.
This added leg armor improved Huo Yuhao's mobility and leg strength, even if it didn't boost overall amplification.
Already stunningly handsome, Huo Yuhao now looked dazzling in this brilliant armor, leaving many young women mesmerized.
Even Nan Qiuqiu was momentarily dazed.
In the next instant, Huo Yuhao vanished, a flurry of snow erupting where he had stood.
The evil soul masters' pupils shrank.
"Extreme Ice: Frost Centipede Fist!"
Huo Yuhao reappeared, smashing a fist into the Soul King's chest.
Too late to react, the Soul King took the blow directly.
The punch pierced his heart. The blood that spurted out froze into crystals instantly.
Dead on the spot.
Huo Yuhao quietly absorbed the soul into his Ghost Banner.
He flung the body aside and vanished again in a burst of snow.
The Soul Emperor activated his fifth soul ring—
"Fifth Soul Skill: Extreme Speed!"
He fled with enhanced speed, just as a punch cratered the ground where he had just stood.
"So fast!" Yu Tianlong and the others could finally react.
They hadn't even seen Huo Yuhao's movement. That a Soul Emperor had barely reacted stunned them.
Was he really just a Soul Ancestor?
"Wait!" the Soul Emperor cried, terrified. "We didn't kill the Shrek inspectors! We never killed anyone! We only cultivated using soul beasts!"
"Hmph. Once an evil soul master, always an evil soul master!"
Huo Yuhao showed no mercy, striking again.
The Soul Emperor scrambled to dodge. Though Huo Yuhao only had four rings, the Soul Emperor didn't dare to fight back.
That fear prolonged his life—for a moment.
"You Shrek people really want to wipe us out?" he howled.
He met Huo Yuhao's icy gaze. There was no emotion in Huo Yuhao's eyes.
"I won't waste words on trash like you."
Huo Yuhao stepped forward, snow swirling around his feet.
The Soul Emperor cried out in desperation, "I'll fight you!"
His sixth soul ring glowed.
"Sixth Soul Skill: Corrosive Bite!"
"You still resist? That only adds to your crimes!"
Huo Yuhao punched again. Behind him, a nine-meter phantom of the Frost Centipede appeared!
"Extreme Ice—Frost Centipede Fist!"
Like teleportation.
He appeared behind the Soul Emperor. A huge hole now gaped in the man's chest.
A long gouge had been carved in the snow-covered ground between them.
In that instant, the Soul Emperor realized—
Huo Yuhao simply wanted to kill him.
"Huh… huff…"
He tried to say something, but his body was encased in ice before he could finish.
Huo Yuhao turned slightly, glancing coldly at Yu Tianlong and Nan Qiuqiu.
"I'm taking the corpses back to the Academy. Any objections?"
Snowflakes landed silently on the two stunned sect heirs, jolting them back to their senses.
"N-No…"
They shook their heads hurriedly.
Huo Yuhao's brutal slaying of a Soul King and Soul Emperor was now burned deep into their memories.