"Good. You're finally here," Yan Shaozhe said.
Huo Yuhao cupped his hands in apology. "I apologize for my tardiness, dean Yan."
Nodding politely towards Cai Mei'er, he then walked over towards He Caitou, Ye Xiaosheng and the other students.
Ye Xiaosheng frowned, feeling a bit peeved by such nonchalant behavior from Huo Yuhao for being late to such an important matter.
He wanted to speak about it, but a hand placed on his shoulder stopped him.
"Senior Ye....correct? I believe this is our first meeting," Said Huo Yuhao.
"You know me?" Ye Xiaosheng raised his eyebrows, surprised.
Huo Yuhao lightly chuckled, "Who wouldn't? You're one of the youngest class 6 soul engineers in the academy. Even teacher Fan Yu couldn't help praising your talents whenever we have a conversation."
"O-Oh, really? He mentions me, huh.... I mean, I couldn't be compared to great talents such as junior Huo and junior He! I've heard that you were already a class 6 over a year ago while junior He over there is class 6 as well! How could I be mentioned in the same sentence as you two?"
"Nonsense! Senior Ye, you're a talent above many. From my personal opinion, you could even stand amongst the geniuses in the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy."
"Hehehe. You flatter me too much junior..." Despite his words, Ye Xiaosheng looked immensely pleased. His earlier irritation vanished like smoke. A light blush crept up his ears as he scratched his cheek sheepishly.
Unbeknownst to him, Huo Yuhao looked at him with half-lidded eyes.
He naturally knew what Ye Xiaosheng was thinking earlier, the latter was centuries too young to hide his emotions from him.
He knew people of his type; someone regarded as a "genius" who didn't have competition for so long but the moment that there was someone younger, faster, and undeniably more gifted, a mix of resentment and insecurity began to fester beneath the surface.
Huo Yuhao had seen it too often—those polite smiles that barely hid clenched teeth. That thin veil of courtesy covering the bruised ego.
Ye Xiaosheng wasn't hostile, not yet, but he was the type who could become dangerous if left unchecked.
It'd be best to weed out the root of the problem before it blooms.
'As long as he doesn't step out of line, I wouldn't have to do anything...drastic.'
"Hm? Looks like they're here early." Yan Shaozhe said, who was looking out a window. He stared at a group of people in clothes that was primarily used by the Sun Moon Empire and leading the group was a familiar face to him—
Jing Hongchen, a Titled Douluo but is more well-known and renowned as Class 9 Soul Engineer.
Throughout the entire continent, there was no Class 9 soul engineer in the Three Douluo Kingdoms except for the Sun Moon Empire. From what Yan Shaozhe and other elders had heard, there were as many Class 9 soul engineers as the total number of Titled Douluos of Heavenly Soul Empire and Dou Ling Empire combined.
Does anyone understand what that means? It means the Sun Moon Empire has dozens of Titled Douluo! Even if they were weaker than the average Titled Douluo, their cultivation couldn't be denied. To nurture a Titled Douluo would cost someone astronomical resources, time, and luck. But to nurture a Class 9 Soul Engineer required all of that—and genius-level intellect on top.
The fact that the Sun Moon Empire could sustain so many was a terrifying testament to their technological prowess and resources.
Well, being a soul engineer is a very lucrative profession. Soul tools are highly sought-after by many.
Moreover, Jing Hongchen stands at the top of other class 9 soul engineers as the dean of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy and the Hallmaster of the Illustrious Virtue Hall. There was even rumors that, without any accidents, he had the potential to become the legendary Class 10 Soul Engineer!
That speaks how great his soul engineering prowess and talent.
"Huh. Well, there's some familiar faces," Huo Yuhao commented as he had also seen the group with the use of his Spiritual Detection. He of course didn't hide his observation and the spiritual power fluctuations was naturally detected by Jing Hongchen and others.
Who he was talking about was naturally the Hongchen siblings; Meng Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen, as well as Elder Ma's grandson — Ma Rulong. The last one was the captain of the Sun Moon Imperial Academy Team's captain during the grand competition almost 2 years ago.
Huo Yuhao was more interested in the siblings. After almost 2 years later, they've made impressive progress in their cultivation.
Xiao Hongchen was a soul king when they last met, but now he had broken through to rank 62 Soul Emperor.
Huo Yuhao wonders if his soul engineering skills didn't lag behind because he focused on his cultivation.
As for Meng Hongchen, her cultivation was a little behind her brother as she's a peak Soul King. Huo Yuhao gives her about a couple of weeks before she breaks through to Soul Emperor, especially since she's studying in Shrek Academy soon.
But he's also curious about her martial soul—
Red Eyed Ice Toad. It's an extremely rare martial soul, and a powerful soul beast in the wild as well. They're known to possess three attributes: ice, fire, and poison! Its main attribute is poison, with ice second and fire last.
From what Huo Yuhao had gathered, those with this kind of martial soul is a bit like Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire Phoenix; experiencing an excruciating pain of ice and poison. But he's more interest in what was described as: "Their body goes through ice and fire to create a deadly poison". If what the information he got was true, then that meant that Meng Hongchen has an ice-fire physique like him but inferior.
'These two are incredibly talented people with the potential to reach Transcendent Douluo and Class 9 soul engineer with the right guidance, unfortunately they're tied to the Sun Moon Empire. Convincing them to sever ties with their families and friends will be... quite difficult.
It would solve all of my problems if I take control of the empire, but that's better said than done.'
Huo Yuhao rubbed his chin, his face expressionless.
'Hmm. Convincing a pair of siblings to defect isn't something that can be done with words alone. I'd have to give them either something tempting or....twist their sense of reasoning, both a challenge to do without having to rely too much on my Sharingan.'
The deterioration of his sight was still gradually, but also slowly, progressing. Even if he hadn't used his Mangekyou Sharingan for months, its curse still gnawed at him. That dull ache behind his eyes would creep in more often now, especially under stress.
Blindness wasn't a possibility. It was an eventuality.
But he wasn't worried. He already went through this phase twice. As long as his eyes becomes "Eternal", everything will be fine.
But he didn't have another set of Mangekyou Sharingan eyeballs to swap with for it to become "eternal". He would be worried if he didn't have an assurance thanks to his Eye of Destiny, giving him a vague feeling that his eyes would become "eternal".
Huo Yuhao grinned, a cold glint flickered across his eyes. "Well, I always welcome a challenge."
Both siblings felt a foreboding feeling in their gut, making them shiver.
Meng Hongchen was utterly confused by the feeling, since chills haven't bothered her almost her entire life.
"Alright everyone! Our....friends from afar has arrived. Pack your belongings and get ready to head out," Cai Mei'er said.
Huo Yuhao and the others nodded.
An hour later.
Both parties met at Maple Leaf City's central plaza. The Hongchen siblings quickly located Huo Yuhao, who stood at the back of the group.
When Xiao Hongchen saw Huo Yuhao, he gritted his teeth.
He still vividly remembered when he first met Huo Yuhao. He poked and tried provoking him, not believing that his soul rings were all of high quality and thought they were the works of an illusion, soul tool, or some treasure.
But when he continued effortlessly winning matches in the competition, Xiao Hongchen's confidence and by the end of the semi-finals nearly two years ago, Xiao Hongchen no longer saw Huo Yuhao as some fluke or fraud—he saw him as a threat that he truly was.
A monster in the shape of a teenager.
Moreover, Huo Yuhao's cultivation was around as his back then. If he managed to cultivate to soul emperor right now, does that mean he has another 100,000 year old soul ring?!
'Thankfully he's not as talented in soul engineering than he is at cultivation,' Noticing the lack of a soul engineer badge on Huo Yuhao, Xiao Hongchen inwardly sighed in relief. Taking that small win as a comfort in his heart.
What would his reaction be if Huo Yuhao was actually a Class 7 soul engineer by Shrek Academy standard? Even if it couldn't be compared to the standards of the Sun Moon Imperial Academy, but after he learns their many teachings and knowledge, could Xiao Hongchen be compared to him at all?
As for his sister....
'He's still looks as handsome as ever! Kyaaa!' Meng Hongchen inwardly cheered, subtly but not really, glancing at Huo Yuhao's face.
Meng Hongchen is a genius of her own right, but is normally known to be half-assed in regards to her own training and studies. But what she really sets her eyes on are incredibly handsome men.
When she first saw Huo Yuhao during the last grand competition, she was enamored.
Although it was strange to see his black hair from the first few matches turned completely white at the end, even till now, because of some accident she heard from Elder Ma—that didn't matter! It was his face that mattered!
His skin was white as porcelain, his features clean and defined like they were sculpted by an artisan with a grudge against imperfection. Eyes sharp as blades, yet often softened by a calm, unreadable expression. And that white hair? It only made him more distinct—otherworldly, even.
'He looks like someone who walked out of a dream...or a nightmare,' Meng Hongchen thought, slightly swooning but quickly composed herself—she could still vividly remember that blue glowing demon avatar he had used in his first match.
Not that she'd ever admit it to anyone else, especially not her brother, but back then when she saw that gorgeous face and that demonic avatar he had.... it made her feel a tingle in her nether regions.
She secretly even requested from some channels to get a picture of Huo Yuhao, only for no one was able to get one! It was driving her nuts for almost 2 years without seeing his face. The frustration and irritation was what made her lag behind her brother in both cultivation and soul engineering skills.
She glanced again, this time more carefully.
'Still flawless....and still ignoring me. Tch! Rude.'
At the same time, Xiao Hongchen stood beside her, arms crossed, brows twitching. He could feel the hormones radiating off his sister and it made him sick.
"Snap out of it," he muttered under his breath. "He's not some prince from your trashy romance novels. He's dangerous. And most importantly, he's our enemy! So get your head out of the gutter."
Meng rolled her eyes but didn't argue. Her heart didn't care for logic. Not when that bastard looked like that.
Little did she know....
Huo Yuhao heard everything.
All of his senses are enhanced naturally because of his body constantly being refined and forged by high quality energies like: ultimate ice and ultimate fire, absorbing some of the heavenly tribulation's energy, recovering from said heavenly tribulation, constantly absorbing life energy from the lake of life for several months, and practicing the Eight Inner Gates.
'Well, one down already...' Huo Yuhao smiled.