[Achievement Triggered!]
[Achievement: Chen Zifeng's Preaching and Teaching. Reward: Sword Qi Gu]
[Sword Qi Gu: A Level 3 Gu, related to sword dao. Upon activation, releases a pale white, translucent sword Qi.]
[Evaluation: The sword's radiance spans three thousand miles!]
[Achievement Triggered!]
[Achievement: Gong Yangmo's "Life-Saving Grace". Reward: Seven-Flavored Wine Gu]
[Seven-Flavored Wine Gu: A level 3 Gu, assists soul masters in refining, purifying, and compressing soul power.]
[Evaluation: The Soul Core—path to invincibility!]
[Achievement Triggered!]
[Achievement: Ling Luochen's "This Is the Ultimate Ice!" Reward: Ice Muscle Gu.]
[Ice Muscle Gu: A Level 3 Gu. Enhances the Gu master's physique with ice-forged muscles, granting exceptional defense.]
[Evaluation: Ice muscle, jade bone—perfection incarnate.]
[Achievement Triggered!]
[Achievement: Xuan Zi's "Luck in Misfortune". Reward: All-Out Gu]
[All-Out Gu: A Level 5 Gu. It fully activates the shadow of bestial power, unleashing 100% of the user's physical strength.]
[Evaluation: No need to raise your head to see me—I stand above all.]
Four achievements in a row!
For Ling Luochen and Xuan Zi, Huo Yuhao had already completed their achievement tasks before, so obtaining Level 3 and Level 5 Gu was expected. But Chen Zifeng and Gong Yangmo were puzzling.
Both were only Soul Kings, and their roles in the original plot had been minor. Why did their achievements reward Level 3 Gu right from the start?
With this doubt, Huo Yuhao revisited the achievement system's description—only to find a clause stating: "The final interpretation right belongs to the achievement system."
If he had to rationalize it:
First: People like them rarely triggered achievements—one or two at most in a lifetime.
Second: The Gu's rank wasn't solely tied to the task-giver's strength but also to Huo Yuhao's current power.
Third: The reward also factored in the task's difficulty.
Under these conditions, this unprecedented outcome made sense.
This time, the annihilation of the Death Messenger Group had been incredibly lucrative for Huo Yuhao—especially the Seven-Flavored Wine Worm .
By Douluo Continent's rules, Level 1 and Level 2 Gu offered little help to someone like him, the possessor of a Ultimate Martial Soul . Even if they refined his soul power, the gains would be marginal.
But compression was different—it was tied to the Soul Core's formation!
On Douluo Continent, once a soul master reached Titled Douluo, their liquid soul power would solidify.
Deposited in the dantian, it would form a Soul Core, a rotating vortex that autonomously absorbed external soul power, drastically boosting combat prowess and recovery. Hence the saying: "Achieve the title, and ascend to the heavens in one step."
In the original work, the protagonist Huo Yuhao condensed three Soul Cores , elevating his strength far beyond his peers. His first—a Spiritual Soul Core in the upper dantian—was formed upon breaking through to Soul Sage, albeit narrowly, thanks to Skydream's intervention.
Huo Yuhao, traversing a similar path, planned to condense his Soul Core early: one at Soul Sage , one at Titled Douluo, and one at Ultimate Douluo .
Initially, he assumed he'd need the Level 4 Nine-Eyed Wine Gu to begin the process. Yet the Seven-Flavored Wine Gu alone provided a pleasant surprise.
'Once the tournament concludes, I'll attempt it.'
'Even if the Soul Core isn't fully formed, the soul power refinement alone will be a massive boost.'
…
Though Huo Yuhao's freezing had prevented some corpses from detonating, the remaining explosions were devastating—especially the corpse poison, lethal if untreated.
Disheveled and weary, Xuan Zi carefully examined the survivors. Thankfully, Huo Yuhao's intervention had averted fatalities, but injuries were rampant.
Of the seven inner courtyard disciples Ma Xiaotao protected by a soul shield and Huo Yuhao were unharmed. The other five were severely wounded but conscious.
Ling Luochen and Xixi, distant from the blast's epicenter and shielded by Ling Luochen's Ice Armor, suffered only minor internal injuries—blood at their lips, but able to stand.
Gong Yangmo and Chen Zifeng , lacking defensive skills and caught near the blast, were worst off. Even with Huo Yuhao's ice armor, they lay gasping, bodies bloodied and poisoned.
Huo Yuhao's thoughts: I'm only a Soul Ancestor. Using my power to save others is already a favor. As long as they're alive and intact, don't expect more.
Dai Yueheng , though sturdy, had internal injuries akin to the original plot—rendering him unable to fight at full strength for half a month.
Huo Yuhao smirked inwardly.
The Ice Soul Sword Realm prioritized offense, not defense—especially against shockwaves. His true aim was ensuring Ma Xiaotao used her shield.
As for dai Yueheng's plight? It was merely collateral.
The outer courtyard disciples watched awkwardly, wincing at their seniors' misery.
Wang Yan, grim-faced, asked, "How bad is it, Elder Xuan?"
Xuan Zi ran a hand through his disheveled hair, eyes red with guilt. "Ling Luochen and Xixi will recover in ten days with pills. Gong Yangmo and Chen Zifeng… the poison has infiltrated their bodies. They need immediate treatment."
Wang Yan distributed antidotes, then checked on the others.
Huo Yuhao replied calmly, "Sister Xiaotao and I are fine."
Dai Yueheng clenched his fists. "My heart's damaged. It'll take half a month to heal fully."
Meaning he'd miss the tournament's early rounds.
Wang Yan sighed in relief. "Thanks to Yuhao, this could've been far worse."
The others also sounded their gratitude:
Chen Zifeng, sprawled on the ground, gasped, "Yuhao… without you, I'd be dead."
Gong Yangmo added solemnly, "A life-saving grace demands repayment. How about I—"
"No. Stop right there." Huo Yuhao cut him off. Some rewards are better left unclaimed.
Ling Luochen, Xixi, and Dai Yueheng also thanked him.
Xuan Zi took a swig of wine, frustration simmering. Once again, under his leadership, Shrek's elite had been crippled—and the culprit was already dead, leaving him no outlet for his rage.
But now wasn't the time for self-pity. Gong Yangmo and Chen Zifeng needed urgent care.
"Wang Yan," Xuan Zi said gravely, "you'll take charge of the tournament. I'm returning these two to the academy. We leave immediately."
With that, he hoisted the wounded and vanished into the sky.
Wang Yan exhaled. He knew Xuan Zi blamed himself, but the fault wasn't his alone. Who could've predicted a Soul King unleashing a Soul Saint-level attack via corpse explosion?
At least, thanks to Huo Yuhao, disaster was averted. Truly, the Twin Martial Souls' possessor is extraordinary.
…
A day later, Shrek Academy.
The golden table in the Sea God Pavilion gleamed as always, but the atmosphere was heavy. Recent years had seen an unusual frequency of emergency meetings.
Seated at the head, Mu En spoke softly, "Xuan Zi, explain why you've summoned us."
Xuan Zi stood, voice hoarse. "Yesterday, the Shrek Seven Monsters encountered an evil Soul King from the Death Hand Bandits. He detonated corpses with the force of a Soul Saint's full strike, critically injuring Chen Zifeng and Gong Yangmo. Dai Yueheng, Ling Luochen, and Xixi also sustained wounds requiring half a month's recovery."
He bowed deeply. "This is not my first failure as a leader. I take full responsibility."
Yan Shaozhe interjected, "This wasn't your fault. A Soul King rivaling a Soul Saint? No one could've anticipated that."
The others nodded. Such absurd power was unheard of, even among evil soul masters.
Yan Shaozhe added, "Your Godly Taotie Bull Martial Soul's hunger is a known burden. This was an anomaly."
Xuan Zi's guilt eased slightly. Compared to the past disaster where eight inner disciples died to a 100,000-year soul beast, this was… manageable?
Elder Song tapped the table. "The pressing issue is the tournament. With only two member of the main team left, how do we uphold Shrek's 10,000-year legacy?"
Yan Shaozhe proposed, "Substitute inner disciples like Yao Haoxuan or Luo Sheng. The reserve team's Beibei and Xu Sanshi can support Huo Yuhao and Ma Xiaotao initially."
Honestly, Ma Xiaotao and Huo Yuhao alone could carry the tournament. But caution prevails.
The elders approved, even the Soul Tool Department—Luo Sheng was one of theirs, after all.
Finally, all eyes turned to Mu En. The decision was his to make.
…
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