"Lottery Draw *1"
"A Message (To be completed)"
The moment Huo Yuhao killed the second brother, two lines of text appeared on his retina. However, Huo Yuhao didn't intend to check them immediately, deciding to return to the valley to assess the casualties of the merchant guild and mercenary group.
The valley was no longer as lush as before, as if swept by a gale, filled with rubble and craters.
Not far from the valley was a large crater ten meters in diameter, the mark left by the fourth brother's Wood Explosion Technique.
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but gasp as he passed by, marveling at the terrifying power of this corpse-explosion-like soul skill.
Whether it was Ice Explosion Technique, Corpse Explosion Technique, or the Wood Explosion Technique he had witnessed, none were harmless.
The Corpse Explosion Technique, in particular, created the strongest record in the history of Douluo Continent in the hands of the Death Messenger, single-handedly raising the bar for explosive soul skills.
Of course, the Holy Spirit Sect's Supreme Elder, Xuanzi, deserved much credit for this.
Huo Yuhao arrived at Langshan, who was lying on the ground, a healing-type Soul Master bandaging his wounds nearby.
Upon seeing Huo Yuhao, Langshan forced a strained smile.
The deep, bone-revealing wound on his chest was still bleeding. It was remarkable how resilient Beast Soul Masters were; an ordinary person would likely be in the underworld by now, yet he could still smile.
Huo Yuhao said helplessly, "Leader Langshan, you should lie down. Don't let the wound worsen."
"Also, I've killed that evil Soul Master who escaped. Don't worry about the rest of the way."
Digesting Huo Yuhao's words, Langshan's pupils constricted slightly, a hint of disbelief in his eyes.
However, he quickly regained his composure, ignoring the healing-type Soul Master's pleas, and propped himself up with his hands.
His bloodshot eyes looked earnestly at Huo Yuhao, and he solemnly said, "Thank you so much, Brother Danzo."
Huo Yuhao nodded at him, then left without saying anything more, walking directly to Li Fei's side.
"How's the wound?"
Hearing the familiar voice, Li Fei stopped bandaging and looked up, saying,
"It hurts like hell."
"But thankfully, I can still feel the pain."
Li Fei smiled with relief, his chest heaving from the near-death experience.
He looked at Huo Yuhao, who was squatting down and sitting cross-legged beside him, and said, "This time I really had a stroke of luck!"
"Those evil spirit masters didn't apply corpse poison to their claws, otherwise I would really be dead here."
Huo Yuhao smiled at him and said, "Not applying corpse poison means those evil spirit masters probably intended to eat people."
Li Fei nodded in agreement, but still maintained his optimistic and sunny expression, saying, "Yes, it's good that they fought amongst themselves."
"Looks like I wasn't destined to die."
"Brother Danzo, when we get to Xuanfeng City, I'll treat you to dinner at the best restaurant there and to a show at the most luxurious brothel. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Huo Yuhao patted his shoulder, but didn't respond to his invitation. Out of the corner of his eye, he unexpectedly saw Xiao Xiao hugging her knees and covering her face under a large tree in the distance.
"I'll go check on Miss; she's probably terrified."
Xiao Xiao curled up, burying her head in her knees, biting her lip, her face pale, her legs trembling uncontrollably. Her mind was filled with the scene of the evil spirit master's rampage.
She only dared to lift her head a crack when she felt someone sit down beside her.
But as soon as she looked up, her eyes met Huo Yuhao's.
"Ah!"
she suddenly exclaimed in surprise, then frantically wiped her tears and snot with her small, childish hands.
The result was an increasingly messy face.
Finally, she gave up in despair, hugging her knees and muttering,
"You didn't come here to laugh at me, did you?"
"Fine, laugh if you want. I don't mind."
Huo Yuhao burst out laughing at her dirty little face.
Amidst the laughter, Xiao Xiao's legs tightened, her fingers turned white, and she wore a pitiful expression.
Suddenly, she felt a warm, large hand stroking her head.
The laughter beside her ceased, and a gentle voice flowed into her ears like a stream: "See, you're quite bothered, aren't you?"
"It's normal to be afraid of that kind of scene."
"You can feel fear, which means you still have reverence for life."
"That's a good thing. Reverence for life leads to cherishing life, and cherishing life allows you to transcend death."
"Never become accustomed to scenes of carnage; some people will worry."
Huo Yuhao gestured for Xiao Xiao to look behind her, and she turned to see Xiao Dingyuan looking at her with concern.
Xiao Xiao pursed her lips, turned her head back to stare at her toes, and said, "Besides being scared, I hate my own weakness even more."
"Uncle, do you know? I'm actually already level 20."
"I'm only one spirit ring away from becoming a Great Spirit Master."
"From the moment I awakened my martial spirit until now, I've always been seen as a genius by everyone. They say I can become a Title Douluo in the future."
"In spirit battles with my peers, I rarely lose."
"But those were just performance-like sparring sessions. Today I realized that in the face of a real life-or-death crisis, I don't even have the courage to summon my martial spirit."
"Those with lower spirit power levels than me are fighting bravely, while I, the slightly stronger one, can only tremble and hide in the back, trying to keep my legs from shaking."
"I hate that version of myself, it's so embarrassing."
Huo Yuhao rubbed her head and said, "There are no born strong people."
"My former captain once told me, 'A true strongman is one who, even realizing his own weakness, still charges towards the ice and snow.'"
Xiao Xiao was silent for a moment, then looked up, her emerald green eyes fixed intently on Huo Yuhao's, and said, "Uncle, I want to become strong!"
"Next time I encounter something like this, I don't want to be a weakling!"
"I've decided to go to Shrek Academy!"
Hearing Xiao Xiao's words, Huo Yuhao's face stiffened; he hadn't expected this turn of events.
However, he quickly recovered; for Xiao Xiao, Shrek Academy was, to some extent, a good choice.
Nevertheless, Huo Yuhao still intended to remind Xiao Xiao.
"Child, if you go to Shrek Academy, you must avoid the first-year class."
"There's a teacher there named Zhou Yi who treats her students like they're from the Sun Moon Empire; if you run into her, you probably won't be able to handle it."
Xiao Xiao tilted her head in confusion, but nodded solemnly nonetheless.
Huo Yuhao and Xiao Xiao sat for a while, and the eastern sky began to lighten.
The merchant guild and mercenary group in the valley were ready to depart.
However, a glance around revealed that almost everyone had some kind of injury, with Lang Shan lying on the ground, his younger brother Lang Yan taking his place.
Li Fei waved to Huo Yuhao, signaling that the caravan was ready to depart.
Huo Yuhao returned to the group with Xiao Xiao, then mounted his horse and escorted the left flank of the caravan, continuing along the originally planned route.
(End of Chapter)