Chapter 26: Very Curious
Crimson walls enclosed vast stretches of land. Inside the walls stood numerous luxurious buildings—second only in grandeur within Xingluo City to the Xingluo Imperial Palace.
At the main entrance of the complex, two majestic golden-painted tigers stood guard on each side. Above hung a grand plaque inscribed with five powerful characters written in a flowing script:
— White Tiger Duke's Manor.
In the Xingluo Empire, the White Tiger Duke wielded influence second only to the royal Xu family. In some eyes, his power even surpassed that of the Xu royal line, as the White Tiger clan was a heritage spanning millennia.
Thus, wherever the White Tiger clan went, its members walked proudly, and few dared to provoke them.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Within the lavish White Tiger Duke's Manor, there also stood cramped and dilapidated buildings.
In one such shabby wooden shack, furnished simply and worn, sat a thin, pale-faced youth with delicate features.
Not only was his frame frail, but his constitution was poor.
Years of malnutrition had left his meridians clogged with impurities, many of which were blocked. His slender channels could barely handle the flow of soul power.
This youth held a very interesting identity: the illegitimate son of the White Tiger Duke, Huo Yuhao.
It was hard to imagine that, despite being White Tiger Duke Daihao's son, he lived such a miserable life. Judging by his complexion and physique, he likely hadn't eaten a full meal in ages. His residence was worse than that of commoners.
After struggling to circulate soul power through a full great cycle, Huo Yuhao opened his eyes, revealing bright eyes that hardly matched his weak body.
"Level ten… finally level ten!" Huo Yuhao clenched his teeth fiercely. His clear eyes glowed with a streak of blood-red hatred.
"Mother… Yuhao is level ten now. I can finally obtain a soul ring!"
"If I don't die, when I return here again, I will bury the entire White Tiger Duke's Manor with you!"
…
"My lord!"
A dark green figure silently appeared. A middle-aged man with dark circles around his eyes and a somewhat gloomy aura stood behind Lin Yun.
Lin Yun stopped cultivating and slowly opened his eyes.
Over eight months, Lin Yun's cultivation had risen from level thirty-four to level thirty-seven. More than two levels came from his own training; the rest resulted from absorbing the external soul bone of a yao ling.
This external soul bone did not significantly increase Lin Yun's soul power but greatly enhanced his mental strength.
Moreover, the soul skill attached to this external soul bone did not disappoint:
[Spatial Traversal].
A specialty of the yao ling clan, it allowed free roaming through space, appearing and disappearing mysteriously.
"It's you, Ten-Thousand Demon King. How's the surveillance on the matter I asked you to monitor?" Lin Yun turned to the slightly bowed Ten-Thousand Demon King behind him.
Indeed, this gloomy middle-aged man was one of the beast kings of Star Dou Great Forest, ranked fifth on the top ten ferocious beasts list—the Demonic Eye Demon Tree, Ten-Thousand Demon King.
Lin Yun's request to the Ten-Thousand Demon King was simple:
"My lord, I have confirmed that the human youth you asked me to watch broke through to level ten a day ago. Early this morning, he set out for Star Dou Great Forest," the Ten-Thousand Demon King said quietly.
"Good work. Keep watching. When he nears Star Dou Great Forest, report back to me!" Lin Yun nodded with satisfaction.
"Yes!" The Ten-Thousand Demon King silently departed.
Indeed, Lin Yun tasked the Ten-Thousand Demon King with keeping constant watch on Huo Yuhao, immediately learning when he would arrive at Star Dou Great Forest.
If Huo Yuhao were killed, he would never have suspected that during his cultivation, a soul beast of near-Extreme Douluo level was secretly monitoring his every move.
The Ten-Thousand Demon King's true form was the Demonic Eye Demon Tree—a plant-type soul beast with excellent endurance, capable of remaining motionless in one place for extended periods.
If other soul beast experts were assigned to tail Huo Yuhao, they might be unwilling. But with the Ten-Thousand Demon King, it was more like changing training locations.
Furthermore, soul beasts...
Cultivating or not made little difference.
"It seems the plot has already begun. In a few days, Huo Yuhao should 'accidentally meet' Tang Ya and Beibei, right?" Lin Yun gazed at the lake's rippling surface stirred by a gentle breeze, quietly thinking.
"Then… it's time for me to head to Shrek Academy!"
"Di Tian!" Lin Yun suddenly called out.
"My lord!" Di Tian, his top subordinate, appeared instantly.
"Go and get me a recommendation letter at the main city level. I'm about to start my plan!" Lin Yun looked toward Shrek City, a mysterious smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Yes, my lord!" Di Tian respectfully agreed, his face also glowing with joy and anticipation.
The lord's plan was finally underway!
Six days later, the Ten-Thousand Demon King returned with news that Huo Yuhao was only fifty kilometers from Star Dou Great Forest.
This distance was very close.
During these days, Di Tian somehow helped Lin Yun acquire a recommendation letter for Shrek Academy, naturally bearing Lin Yun's own name.
"This is my alias in the human world," Lin Yun told Di Tian.
With the recommendation letter secured, all that remained was Huo Yuhao.
Lin Yun intended to stay and watch personally to see if, after he preemptively intercepted Electrolux, Huo Yuhao's trajectory would change in any way.
Speaking of Electrolux, Lin Yun instinctively sank his consciousness into the spiritual sea, glancing at the small gray orb floating midair.
Shortly after obtaining the Life Spirit Gold, Electrolux told Lin Yun he planned to enter seclusion. With the Life Spirit Gold, he could use its vast vitality to repair his divine consciousness.
Although his divine consciousness no longer risked extinguishing thanks to the Life Spirit Gold, it could continue to grow stronger.
The stronger Electrolux's divine consciousness became, the more memories he could recall and the more help he could provide Lin Yun, costing only a negligible amount of life force. Lin Yun let him be.
Lin Yun wondered whether, if Huo Yuhao merged with Tianmeng Ice Silkworm, more fragments of Electrolux's divine consciousness might be emitted again.
He was very curious!
So he planned to personally observe Huo Yuhao's merging with Tianmeng Ice Silkworm to see if any unexpected developments would occur.
After all, Huo Yuhao was a protagonist in the original story, so it was necessary to treat him cautiously.
"Thank you for your hard work, Ten-Thousand Demon King. You may leave now," Lin Yun nodded to him.
"Tell Di Tian that person's location. Then, Di Tian, the two of us will go take a look!"
(End of chapter)
Hey readers! If you're eager to dive into advanced chapters, consider joining our Patreon. By joining, you'll get access to 20 chapters ahead and enjoy 8 new chapters per week. Plus, we have 8 more exciting fics with the same chapter release rate, giving you a total of 64 chapters per week! Join now and keep the adventure going!
Patreon: https://patreon.com/anish_44