Watching Ning Fengzhi leave, Zhen Hua turned to Xiong Jun beside him, "Tower Master Xiong, how much do you believe?"
Xiong Jun looked at Huo Yuhao, "About eighty percent. At least the part about Qilin Douluo's experience is mostly accurate. My disciple's father is indeed Tang Ziran. Although he is a mecha designer for the Federation, he is originally from Star Luo."
He had heard Wu Lin mention that his parents had been targeted by evil soul masters. Now, knowing the relationship between Tang Ziran and Qilin Douluo, Xiong Jun couldn't help but speculate.
Perhaps the reason Tang Ziran and his wife were targeted by evil soul masters was... the Dark Qilin.
Zhen Hua subconsciously frowned, "So, that Ning Fengzhi came specifically for you and me?"
"That's possible." Xiong Jun stood up, "But we can't ignore the intelligence from Star Luo. Your Excellency Zhen Hua, what do you plan to do?"
"According to Star Luo's plan, the personnel participating in the exchange will stay in Star Luo for about a year. Na'er, Yuhao, and Wu Lin are all from your Spirit Pagoda. Although the offender who attacked me is related to Star Luo, finding the culprit is not as important as the safety of the younger generation."
Zhen Hua shook his head, "Moreover, with my strength, going to Star Luo might make me a liability you need to protect. So, whether to participate or not is up to your Spirit Pagoda."
"I need to consider it and discuss it with the other tower masters... but it's highly likely we will participate."
Xiong Jun glanced at Gu Yuena and Huo Yuhao.
Regardless, these two are definitely going to Star Luo Continent, so it's best to go along with Ning Fengzhi's plan. The key is Wu Lin's side... It's a bit troublesome.
I need to talk to Tang Ziran and his wife.
After learning the information from Ning Fengzhi, Xiong Jun and Zhen Hua became busy.
Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena didn't disturb them and left the office, only to receive an unexpected invitation.
"Do you two have time now? The Heaven Dou City governor is hosting a banquet to welcome our delegation members. Miss Dai Yun'er would like to invite you both to join."
Lin Yuhan stood at the corner of the corridor, holding two gilded invitations, with a polite smile on her face, although she felt a bit awkward.
In terms of status, these two are not inferior to Miss Dai Yun'er, so her formality is justified. But having just challenged the Blacksmith Association and now delivering invitations, she felt her face burning.
If she had known it would turn out like this, she wouldn't have told Miss Dai Yun'er about Huo Yuhao's presence here.
Hearing this, Gu Yuena frowned.
Dai Yun'er? The Dai family from Star Luo? When did she get involved with Yuhao?
Huo Yuhao reversed at Lin Yuhan and shook his head slightly, "Sorry, we're not interested."
Without waiting, he walked out of the Blacksmith Association.
Dai Luoli... Because of a debt of gratitude, Huo Yuhao didn't kill him and even gave him some convenience through the Spirit Pagoda, but the grudges from ten thousand years ago have long since faded with the dust. The current Dai family of Star Luo has nothing to do with him.
Lin Yuhan raised an eyebrow, thought for a moment, and then said in a low voice:
"Your martial soul is the same as Miss Dai Yun'er's, both with blue eyes and skilled in spiritual power. Although Miss Dai Yun'er is slightly weaker than you, she is only at the four-ring level now, and her spiritual power is already close to the Spirit Abyss Realm. That's why she is interested in you."
To determine if their martial souls are the same, it's not difficult with the current research on martial souls in the soul master world. Every major faction has summarized the martial souls that have appeared on the continent. Hence, the evaluation of unique martial souls exists.
A unique martial soul refers to a martial soul that has only appeared once in the history of soul masters. For example, the inner courtyard's senior brother of Shrek Academy, Lan Muzi, possesses such a martial soul.
Of course, Lin Yuhan didn't know this. But she knew that the first-generation tower master of the Spirit Pagoda had a unique martial soul, and no similar martial soul has appeared since.
The Spirit Eye martial soul is not unique, and Huo Yuhao and Dai Yun'er share so many similar traits, so determining if they have the same martial soul is not difficult.
When Huo Yuhao was at the four-ring level, he was at the Spirit Abyss Realm, while Miss Dai Yun'er was at the peak of the Spirit Sea Realm, close to the Spirit Abyss.
With the spiritual detection skill, Miss Dai Yun'er is now a level-six maker, while Huo Yuhao is a dual-professional level seven, likely with a similar spiritual detection skill.
Although it might seem impolite, in Lin Yuhan's eyes, Dai Yun'er is like a weaker version of Huo Yuhao. Being this similar... it can't be a coincidence.
"Aren't you curious, Huo Yuhao..."
Lin Yuhan's words were suddenly cut off, as if an invisible hand had gripped her throat. She saw Huo Yuhao turn around, his ice-blue eyes faintly emitting a suffocating pressure.
"I said, I'm not interested."
Lin Yuhan barely maintains her smile, unable to hide the shock in her eyes. She quickly bowed and withdrew, "Alright, I understand. Sorry to disturb you."
Only after her figure disappeared at the end of the corridor did the golden light in Huo Yuhao's eyes gradually fade.
Seeing this, Gu Yuena whispered, "Yuhao, do you dislike the Dai family?"
"The grudge is settled, nothing more to say. Neither liking or disliking them."
"I see..."
Looking at Huo Yuhao's calm expression, Gu Yuena felt slightly relieved, "That Dai Yun'er has the same martial soul as you, Yuhao. What do you think?"
From what Lin Yuhan said, in terms of achievements, Dai Yun'er seems like a mini version of Yuhao.
She's not much younger than them and isn't a reincarnated soul master, but her spiritual power is already close to the Spirit Abyss Realm... This shows that the Spirit Eye is indeed a top-tier spiritual attribute martial soul. Its enhancement of spiritual power is terrifying.
"Her martial soul and mine are fundamentally different now," Huo Yuhao shook his head, "Of course, I prefer my current Spirit Eye martial soul."
In the original story, the origin of the Spirit Eye martial soul has two explanations.
Early on, it was said to be a mutation, while later it was said to be inherited from his mother. However, the examples of martial soul's second awakening and Dai Yun'er basically refute the latter.
The full name of the White Tiger martial soul is the Evil Eye White Tiger, and having double pupils is its characteristic. After the protagonist's martial soul's second awakening, he gained the evil eye characteristic of the White Tiger martial soul.
Dai Yun'er even has a twin martial soul, Spirit Eye and Nether Spirit Cat. It's clear that the Spirit Eye martial soul is related to the White Tiger martial soul.
Perhaps this is one of the reasons why he didn't primarily cultivate the Spirit Eye martial soul for the second awakening ten thousand years ago, and why he chose to integrate the Undead martial soul into the Spirit Eye martial soul ten thousand years later.
He can accept having the bloodline of the White Tiger Duke's family, but the double pupils... he instinctively resists them.
"Alright, what Dai Yun'er's martial soul doesn't matter."
Huo Yuhao looked towards the direction of Sky Sea City, "We'll be traveling soon, and who knows when we'll return. Let's go say goodbye to everyone."
The distance between Star Luo Continent and Douluo Continent is vast, with the round trip taking about half a year. How long the exploration of the Dragon Valley will take is also unknown.
This journey will take a while before we can return.
...
"What? They refused?"
Dai Yun'er stood in the room arranged for them by the Sky Dou City governor, holding a soul communicator, her brows tightly furrowed.
She had thought that with the delegation members and her status, inviting Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena to the banquet wouldn't be a problem. However, the news from the other end of the communicator surprised her.
"Miss Dai Yun'er, Mr. Huo Yuhao clearly stated he has no interest in the banquet, and his attitude was very firm," Lin Yuhan's voice came through the communicator, tinged with helplessness and awkwardness.
Dai Yun'er was silent for a moment, quickly thinking. She knew Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena's statuses were extraordinary, especially Huo Yuhao, who is the next heir to the Spirit Pagoda. If he really didn't want to come, there was nothing she could do.
She pouted, "Forget it then, come back. We'll talk about it later."
What Dai Yun'er didn't expect was that she wouldn't get a chance to see Huo Yuhao until it was time to return to Star Luo Continent.
As the Star Luo delegation moved around, the leaders of the four major factions headed by the Spirit Pagoda and the Federation Speaker learned of Ning Fengzhi's plan and made their responses.
Among them, Shrek Academy, which has always had ties with Star Luo, was the most supportive of this plan.
If this exchange and cooperation could completely dispel the tension between the two continents and truly bring the dawn of peace to every corner of Douluo Continent, it would be the outcome Shrek Academy most desired.
So they quickly arranged the candidates and leaders for the exchange activities through a series of "competitions" like the promotion matches.
Inside the Sea God Pavilion, the atmosphere was solemn and serious.
Yun Ming's gaze fell on Amorous Douluo Zang Xin and said gravely, "Amorous, you will be in charge of leading this exchange activity. The Holy Spirit Sect has been dormant for ten thousand years, and the power they have accumulated in secret should not be underestimated. You must proceed with caution."
Zang Xin nodded slightly, a sharp glint in his eyes, "Rest assured, Pavilion Master, I will ensure everything goes smoothly."
Yun Ming pondered for a moment and added, "From what I know of Qiangu Dongfeng and others, after learning that Shrek has you as the leader, they probably won't send a Limit Douluo-level powerhouse to participate, at least not openly. After all, too many top-tier experts entering Star Luo could easily alert the enemy. Therefore, you might be the only Limit Douluo on the surface, and the pressure on you will be considerable."
Zang Xin smiled faintly, his tone steady:
"It's fine. We'll tackle whatever comes our way. If the Holy Spirit Sect dares to show themselves, I'll make sure they never return."
At the same time, at the headquarters of the Spirit Pagoda.
At the top of the towering Spirit Pagoda, beyond the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, clouds churned in the sea of sky, while inside, the atmosphere was tense and somber.
Qiangu Dongfeng stood with his hands behind his back, his deep gaze fixed on the large soul screen in front of him. The screen was divided into dozens of smaller sections, each displaying the image of a high-ranking member of the Spirit Pagoda.
"The Federation has agreed to this exchange plan, but it must be conducted under the name of the academy. Shrek Academy has already started preparing for this exchange activity. The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy has also contacted me, intending to have Spirit Pagoda students studying at their academy participate. I think we can agree. What are your thoughts?"
The matter of the Holy Spirit Sect's Dark Qilin involves Tower Master Xiong Jun's disciple and Divine Craftsman Zhen Hua.
Now that their Spirit Pagoda is aware of the relevant intelligence, it's only right that we respond. However, the choice of participants and the form of participation is something to consider.
In the midst of a heavy silence, Di Tian was the first to speak.
"That's fine. This approach aligns with the Spirit Pagoda's usual way of doing things. But who do you plan to send as the leader?"
"I plan to send Spirit Envoy Zhao."
Di Tian and Qian Gu Dongfeng exchanged a glance and nodded slightly.
With Di Tian's agreement, naturally, no one else would object.
However, some were uneasy about the origins of this exchange activity.
Leng Yaozhu frowned, "Aren't you all worried that this might be a plot by Star Luo Continent? According to the Star Luo delegation, when our personnel arrive in Star Luo, it will coincide with their continent-wide Soul Master Academy Tournament. Coupled with the Holy Spirit Sect, doesn't this remind you of something that happened ten thousand years ago?"
Unlike our Douluo Continent, Star Luo Continent still maintains the tradition from ten thousand years ago of regularly holding a continent-wide Soul Master Tournament. This is mainly due to the strength of the younger generation on both sides.
After all, in our Federation, if we were to arrange a Soul Master Academy Tournament for those under twenty, with monsters like Sky Douluo and Soul Calming Douluo participating, could the others handle it? Would there be any point in competing?
Star Luo doesn't have such concerns, so they continue the tradition.
But this tradition, combined with the Holy Spirit Sect, makes Leng Yaozhu uneasy.
"Remember, there's nothing new under the sun, only cycles repeating. The possibility of Star Luo and the Holy Spirit Sect collaborating is not out of the question."
"You're talking about how the Sun Moon Empire allied with the Holy Spirit Sect ten thousand years ago to eliminate the geniuses and strongmen from the original three Douluo countries during the Soul Master Tournament, right? Now that you mentioned it, it does feel familiar."
The speaker was a red-haired man.
One of the Ten Great Fierce Beasts, the guardian of the Lady of Luck, the unseen beast in Douluo 3, Scarlet King!
This fierce beast, whose fate by this era is unknown, whether he became a soul spirit or perished, now appears "alive" in the high-level meeting of the Spirit Pagoda. He lightly tapped the table with his finger, a flash of blood-red light in his eyes:
"But Lady Heaven Phoenix, don't forget the most crucial point, times have changed."
"Unlike ten thousand years ago, the Star Luo Federation is not the Sun Moon Empire. The current Holy Spirit Sect is not the invincible force it once was with two Limit Douluos; it's just a bunch of rats in the gutter. And our Spirit Pagoda is not comparable to the forces that were wiped out back then!"
"If they dare to make a move, we'll make them pay the price!"
The air in the conference hall instantly froze, but no one refuted Scarlet King's words.
As he said, the Spirit Pagoda is not comparable to the original three Douluo countries.
"I'm just worried about the safety of the younger generation."
Leng Yaozhu frowned, looking at Qian Gu Dongfeng, "Let my sister go too. When it comes to dealing with evil soul masters, the Execution Department has the most experience."
After some consideration, Qian Gu Dongfeng nodded slightly, "That's fine."
On the Federation side, the Dark Department will certainly send people to Star Luo in secret, likely the Acting Minister. With three experts in dealing with evil soul masters present, it is indeed reassuring.
But when Huo Yuhao learned of this news, he felt somewhat inexplicable.
Dark Blood Demon, Dark Bell, Dark Phoenix vs. the Holy Spirit Sect?
Is this a conflict between the old and new Holy Spirit Sects?
Or is it this formula,
The plan to eradicate the Holy Spirit Sect was set by the Holy Spirit Sect's Four Heavenly Kings!