Body Sect
This place is filled with towering peaks, an endless stretch of mountains shrouded in thick mist. The dense fog makes it easy for anyone entering to lose their way and fall prey to the vicious soul beasts lurking within.
Located on the western coast of the Tianhun Empire, this is the true headquarters of the Body Sect.
Through layers of mist, atop a mountain peak, a young man with light blue pupils sat cross-legged in silence. The surrounding mist swirled and undulated, gathering around him like pure spiritual energy as he breathed it in and out.
"Hoo…"
After a long time, he slowly opened his eyes.
His pupils had changed—one golden, one purple, split distinctly like yin and yang. This was the sign of a second martial soul awakening.
But…
Huo Yuhao sighed softly.
These dual-colored pupils were also the hallmark of the White Tiger Duke's bloodline. If he had awakened them from the start, perhaps everything would have been different. But there were no "ifs" in life.
His gaze grew determined.
Ever since he had left the Duke's Mansion, he had only one goal—to take revenge. He wanted revenge against those who had humiliated him and his mother: Dai Huabin, the Duchess… and that man!
"Haha, no wonder he recommended you. Kid, your innate talent may be weak, but whether it's your second martial soul awakening or your growth, you've far exceeded ordinary Body Soul Masters."
A dark green figure appeared beside him, examining his eyes with a sigh of admiration.
When the boy had first joined, he had only been at Rank 21. In just four months, he had reached Rank 29. Although this was due in part to the sect's lavish resources and his second martial soul awakening, his nearly self-torturous training played a significant role as well.
Even as someone accustomed to seeing geniuses, the elder was impressed.
"Do you know… how Cheng-ge is doing now?" Huo Yuhao asked softly.
"That little rascal? He's as cunning as ever. Anyone in this world might die, but I'd bet on him living well. With the endless tricks he's got up his sleeve, even I get chills thinking about it." The elder, known as "Poison Immortal," chuckled.
"By the way, before he left, he made sure to leave a message. He said that in the future, he'd have you lead the Sun-Moon Empire's army to flatten the Xingluo capital—especially that Duke's Mansion…"
Huo Yuhao's pupils shrank sharply as he looked up at the elder in shock.
"Haha, don't look at me like that. With his abilities, figuring out your true identity is child's play." Poison Doesn't Die didn't mind at all.
Huo Yuhao's heart churned violently, and he clenched his fists tightly.
He had thought Cheng-ge accepted him because he didn't know his identity. After all, the Sun-Moon Empire and Xingluo Empire were mortal enemies, and he was the son of the White Tiger Duke. That was why he had tried his best to hide his background.
But to think…
That the man who saved him when he was at his lowest, who took him in without hesitation, who trained him openly and proudly in front of everyone… had known the truth all along.
Huo Yuhao lowered his head, biting his lip to stop his tears from falling.
Xu Cheng's charisma had completely won him over.
In his eyes, Xu Cheng was the son of an emperor, with monstrous strength, terrifying talent, and unmatched strategic prowess. He could single-handedly break out of the Xingluo capital, while Huo Yuhao was nothing but an illegitimate son of a duke—an existence far beneath him.
Yet, despite that vast difference, Xu Cheng had never looked down on him. Instead, he had helped him tremendously.
In the original story, after his mother passed away, Huo Yuhao met Bei Bei and Tang Ya, who filled the void left by his mother's death. That was why he joined Tang Sect and dedicated himself to it.
Now, by coincidence, Xu Cheng had taken on that role instead.
"Enough of that, a man shouldn't cry so easily. Honestly, I was going to buy some underground soul tools to try my luck at Mingde Hall, but after paying, my contact disappeared. Turns out that little brat cleaned up the entire black market in Mingdu and cut off many of their supply chains…" Poison Immortal grumbled.
Huo Yuhao: …
He was confused. Weren't you two on good terms?
"Hahaha, our Body Sect acts freely, according to our own rules. I do like that kid, but if there's something worth snatching, I'll still snatch it." Poison Immortal chuckled.
Huo Yuhao: I don't understand this at all…
"Alright, focus on your training. When you reach Rank 40, you can decide where to go next. If you want to head to the Sun-Moon Empire, I'll send you to the Mingdu Mountain Range."
"You… you're willing to let me go?" Huo Yuhao asked cautiously.
"I wouldn't want to, but that kid might have other plans…" Poison Doesn't Die sighed. "If he comes looking for you, it'll be troublesome. Our Body Sect isn't afraid of problems, but we don't want to create them either."
Huo Yuhao swallowed hard. His understanding of Xu Cheng's terrifying nature deepened.
Even Poison Immortal had to make concessions for him…
-------------------------------------------
"Mecha, activate!"
With the roar of an engine, a crimson mecha powered up.
The hatch opened, and a fiery figure leaped in. The mecha moved as if it had gained sentience.
A short distance from the camp, numerous red-clad figures watched in awe.
Inside the cockpit, a woman in red armor, standing tall and proud, reported, "Commander! Fire Blade is ready for testing!"
"Begin!"
At the front of the group, surrounded by others, a short-haired woman with a stern face issued the order, her voice amplified by soul power to reach the entire camp.
"Yes!"
Inside the cockpit, Fire Blade skillfully operated the controls and activated the cloaking feature.
Instantly, the mecha remained visible to the naked eye but vanished entirely from soul power detection.
Even the leader, a Titled Douluo, couldn't sense it.
"Impressive…" Huo Qing's face lit up with joy.
They proceeded to test the weaponry and defenses, with each feature surpassing expectations.
Later that evening, inside the central tent, Huo Qing, Huo Lei, and Juzi sat together.
"Cheng trusts you enough to make you a commander. He's never been wrong about a person, so don't be nervous. You'll grow into the role." Huo Qing's tone softened, like an elder giving advice.
"Yes, Commander!" Juzi straightened up and saluted.
"Haha, just call me Aunt Qing when we're in private." Huo Qing smiled warmly, pulling Juzi closer and studying her. "Such a good girl… Excellent talent too, coming from Mingde Hall."
Juzi blushed but felt relieved.
Cheng has arranged everything perfectly. Now, it's up to you, Juzi…
Moonlight spilled through a window into a Mingde Hall dormitory.
Zhang Lexuan sat at her desk, long black hair cascading over her shoulders, her loose clothing revealing a glimpse of fair skin. One hand propped up her chin as she stared blankly outside.
After a long pause, she touched the ring on her right hand.
The academy had sent a coded message asking about her progress.
But… it was theft.
She just couldn't bring herself to do it.
From the very first security scan, she had been terrified.
Outside, Xu Cheng wiped a nosebleed.
"So big, so white… No, I mean the ring."
He had already seen through her "secret."
And he was happy to play along.
After all, it was originally a product of Ming De Hall, and it was formed after being packaged by a certain rank eight Spirit Teacher.
Xu Cheng pursed his lips. He didn't know if Shrek was naive or cute. He actually thought of such a way to steal the secrets of mechas and missiles. Did he not think that Mingde Hall was a first-class secret?
Of course, he had no doubt that Shrek was capable of doing this. Huo Hang had stayed in Mingde Hall for three years. From the first day he entered the school, he had started to duplicate the testing equipment. He had gone through the design blueprints of almost everything he could see.
That all-terrain mobile battery was something Mingde Hall had spent a lot of time and resources developing. After he brought it back to Shrek, he began mass production…
"Senior Sister, you don't want the whole continent to know you're a thief, do you?"