Douluo: Dragon King Huo Yuhao Lives Ten Thousand Years Later

Chapter 161 You Have a Successor, Juechen (Two Chapters Combined)

In the heart of Mingdu, a colossal tower rises from the ground, piercing the clouds as if to pierce the sky.

Even from a distance, pedestrians can only barely make out its upper and middle sections—the majestic tower shimmers with a faint silver glow, like cold iron bathed in moonlight, icy and mysterious. The octagonal tower walls reflect sharp outlines in the sunlight, while the higher parts are already hidden in the swirling clouds.

The entire tower exudes an invisible sense of oppression, making people hold their breath and feel as if their souls would be devoured if they looked at it for even a second.

This is the headquarters of the Spirit Pagoda.

Through its Soul Spirit technology, the Spirit Pagoda has gathered top research talent and powerful individuals, accumulating immense wealth that rivals that of a nation. The Federation even directly gifted eight seats in the Council of Representatives to the Spirit Pagoda—and it's worth noting that there are only 108 seats in the Federation's Council of Representatives.

This demonstrates the pivotal role the Spirit Pagoda plays within the Federation.

"Why is that sword madman still sitting there?"

"He stayed there for a full ten days, didn't he? Was it to challenge Huo Yuhao?"

"Everyone who was waiting before has left, but he's still waiting there."

In the main hall on the ground floor of the Spirit Pagoda, staff members huddled together in small groups, whispering amongst themselves. Every now and then, their eyes would drift towards the solitary figure in the plaza outside the pagoda—Ji Wufeng.

Ji Wufeng of the Ji family, sixteen years old this year, is a five-ring Soul King. This man, who is commonly known as the "Sword Madman," has been sitting quietly in the square in front of the Spirit Pagoda for ten days.

He held a gray-white sword in his arms, remaining motionless despite the wind and sun. Even more strangely, for the past ten days, not a single speck of dust had been able to land within three inches of him.

"He's probably waiting in vain. Huo Yuhao likely won't come. The news of Huo Yuhao being invited by Mingde Hall has spread far and wide recently. Perhaps he's still preparing to enter Mingde Hall..."

Before he finished speaking, the entire hall suddenly fell silent.

Because Ji Wufeng made a move.

He slowly opened his eyes, and his jet-black pupils seemed to hold the essence of a thousand swords returning to their source.

"coming."

Ji Wufeng's voice was very soft, but it made everyone passing by in the Spirit Pagoda Square tremble and look up in the direction he was looking.

In the distance, three figures walked over, but Ji Wufeng saw no one else but the young man in white attire at the front. The people around him seemed to be influenced by his will, and their eyes were only on that young man.

"Spirit Transmission—Huo Yuhao! He's finally here!"

The crowd watched the approaching figure, then glanced at Ji Wufeng, and vaguely understood something. In the tense atmosphere, they subconsciously retreated, leaving a hundred feet of open space in the center of the square.

Huo Yuhao arrived bathed in the morning light, his hair fluttering slightly in the morning breeze. When his gaze fell upon Ji Wufeng, a barely perceptible trace of reminiscence flashed in his eyes—the resemblance was striking, not in appearance, but in that pure sword intent and fighting spirit, almost identical to that sword fanatic from ten thousand years ago.

"The Ji family?"

Huo Yuhao landed ten steps away from Ji Wufeng.

“Ji Wufeng.” Ji Wufeng stood up and stared at him.

"No wonder." Huo Yuhao nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the morning dew clinging to Ji Wufeng's body, and suddenly smiled, "Ten days of meditation, just for this one sword?"

"Ever since I saw your punch two years ago, I've been looking forward to it. Please enlighten me."

Ji Wufeng bowed deeply.

Even though they were mentally prepared, the square was still thrown into an uproar.

The rule that you can't fight within a kilometer of the Spirit Pagoda doesn't apply to whether you're an insider or not. If you really want to challenge them, there's no need to fight here, right?
Ji Wufeng ignored these comments. Ten days of wind and sun had left their mark on him, but his eyes had become even sharper, like unsheathed swords.

Huo Yuhao watched the increasingly powerful aura of the person in front of him, but did not say anything to spoil the mood. He simply nodded slightly.

"it is good."

A single, simple word instantly silenced the entire square. Everyone held their breath, their eyes wide, afraid of missing a single detail.

Since his battle with Shrek Academy two years ago, Huo Yuhao hasn't fought in public. Now he's going to have a showdown with the younger generation of the Ji family. Will they be able to witness a spectacular battle today?
But the tranquility was shattered by the sound of hurried footsteps in the distance. Five law enforcement officers in silver-white uniforms were rushing over. The captain, with a grim expression, shouted, "Stop! Private fighting is prohibited within a kilometer of the Spirit Pagoda!"

Gu Yuena and Gu Ruiqiu, who had stopped not far away, frowned and were about to stop them, but the situation had already changed.

Ji Wufeng suddenly moved, his right hand gently stroking his sword, and a sharp sword intent instantly erupted from his body.

"Zheng——"

A clear, resonant sword cry echoed through the sky.

The onlookers paled in horror. The lower-level Soul Masters felt their hair stand on end, as if countless sharp swords were pressed against their throats, and they staggered backward in unison. Even the Soul Saint level experts looked grave.

"This...this is really the aura that a Soul King can possess?"

"As expected of the Ji family's sword... The sword intent accumulated over ten days actually made me feel threatened. It truly lives up to its reputation!"

A Soul Saint from the Spirit Pagoda couldn't help but sigh.

The Ji family, known throughout the Soul Master world as an oddity, is unique not only because their lineage dates back ten thousand years, making them descendants of the first generation of members of the Spirit Pagoda, but also because their core lineage possesses the Martial Soul of "Formlessness"!
Legend has it that the martial soul of the Ji family's ancestor, the Sword Maniac Douluo, was a meteorite iron from outer space. By constantly nurturing it with his soul power, he infused his soul into the sword, eventually transforming his martial soul into energy and perfectly merging it with the meteorite iron. Man and sword became one, inseparable.

A legendary spirit passed down Ji Juechen's insights from generation to generation. However, the Ji family initially did not pursue these insights, which could only be understood intuitively. They only studied them because they concerned the core inheritance of their ancestor.

After all, how many people in history have advanced to level 97 Super Douluo with only level 3 innate soul power?
Having such respectable ancestors, they did not want their legacy to be lost.

But it's difficult, so very difficult!
For centuries, for millennia, no one could truly grasp the essence of it. It wasn't until thousands of years ago, when another exceptionally talented member of the Ji family—Ji Wuxia—emerged, that this stalemate was finally broken.

The other party abandoned the family's traditional cultivation methods, no longer clinging to the past path, but instead used his heart to control his soul and his soul to transform his will. After ten years of arduous cultivation, his martial spirit actually gradually "disappeared"—no, to be precise, it was completely integrated into his spirit and flesh, and then into the sword he had honed since childhood, becoming a generation of sword god.

This phenomenon is known in the Ji family as "refining a weapon to infuse the soul," which involves altering the martial soul through acquired means. It is similar to the legendary divinely bestowed martial soul and is a unique inheritance of the Ji family!
What their original martial soul was is no longer important. Those who can complete the refining and soul infusion of their martial soul will have their martial souls energized and fused with the artifact that the soul master has nurtured since childhood. The artifact chosen by the Ji family is naturally a sword!

From then on, the core lineage of the Ji family was finally established, making them one of the most mysterious existences in the world of Soul Masters. Thousands of years later, very few people in the Ji family can still complete the process of refining weapons and infusing them with souls, and there have even been periods of generational gaps. However, every core disciple who has completed this process is a formidable figure.

Ji Wufeng was one of them!

Ji Wufeng remained deaf to the discussions from the outside world. The energy and spirit he had accumulated during ten days of meditation were released without reservation at this moment, and his entire being seemed to transform into a peerless, ferocious sword drawn from its sheath. The sword's gray-white blade glowed with sword patterns inch by inch, leaving a trail of flame like a shooting star in the air.

This wasn't just a friendly spar; it was a life-or-death struggle! Faced with this terrifying sword intent, Huo Yuhao's eyes flashed with a sharp light. No spirit rings appeared, no fluctuations in spirit power occurred; only a change in his gaze—

The entire world seemed to freeze instantly. Ji Wufeng's sharp sword intent seemed to have crashed into an invisible wall, collapsing three feet in front of Huo Yuhao. Even more terrifying, an indescribable sense of oppression descended from the sky, making Ji Wufeng's hand holding the sword suddenly feel as heavy as a thousand pounds.

Huo Yuhao knew that this was the kind of battle the other side craved.

Between the two, a battle of pure essence has begun—without any soul skills or techniques, only the most genuine clash of intents!
Ji Wufeng gritted his teeth, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He felt as if he were in the deepest ocean, every movement requiring him to contend with the pressure of the entire world.

At this moment, in terms of momentum, he was completely at a disadvantage! The sword intent emanating from his body was easily torn apart like thin silk by sharp scissors in front of Huo Yuhao's condensed and tangible intent.

But Ji Wufeng was not discouraged. His sword was throbbing with excitement, and the fighting spirit in his eyes grew stronger.

He still didn't use his soul skill, but the light in his hand grew increasingly dazzling and continued to expand. What expanded was not the physical sword, but a transparent yet brilliantly radiant sword shadow.

The sword shadow trembled slightly, radiating a lively aura. Although it lacked an aggressive, oppressive feel, Ji Wufeng's aura instantly surged to the Soul Emperor level upon its appearance!

The passersby were all deeply moved.

"Sword Soul?!"

It's not about the unity of man and sword, nor is it about sword intent; it's about the soul of the sword!

The realms of swordsmanship—Sword Intent, Sword Soul, Sword God. A swordsman who possesses a Sword Soul can gain an incredibly powerful boost, potentially increasing their power by one level. Becoming an unparalleled powerhouse in the future is practically guaranteed.

Ji Wufeng actually reached this level while still a Soul King? Or even earlier?

However, this was not surprising to some of the geniuses of the Spirit Pagoda.

The possessor of a sword spirit, feeling its meaning, understanding its profundity, possessing its soul, and obtaining its essence, is the sword spirit.

The Ji family's path of refining weapons and imbuing them with souls is as difficult as ascending to heaven. It takes several generations to complete one. The previous one was Ji Xuanqiu, the tower master. But once completed, it will surely become a sword soul in the future!

Because their martial spirit is something they forged themselves, few people understand their martial spirit better or love their sword more than they do.

Moreover, the Sword Soul Realm usually requires a Soul Ring as a support, but the Ji family does not need one. Their Martial Soul is their soul, which is their "Sword Soul"!
Ji Wufeng's sword intent surged as his sword spirit blossomed, and in the next moment, he seemed to transform into a strange ray of light, hurtling towards Huo Yuhao while skimming the ground. An astonishing sword aura filled the entire space, and the oppressive force caused Huo Yuhao's robes to flutter without wind, the rustling fabric seeming to emit a silent lament.

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao smiled and finally moved. He made a fist with his right hand and pushed it forward simply. This punch had no fancy moves, yet it seemed to contain the ultimate truth of the universe.

What is sword intent, sword soul, and sword god?

The essence of cultivation lies in essence, energy, and spirit. True swordsmanship is the perfect combination of the essence, energy, and spirit possessed by the Soul Master and the sword.

The so-called sword intent, sword soul, and sword god are all realms derived from this foundation, and are ultimately extensions of 'I'!

Wherever Ji Wufeng's fist passed, his sword intent, powerful enough to cleave mountains and rivers, melted away silently, like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun. Huo Yuhao's fist had no dazzling soul rings, no gorgeous soul skills, only the purest "intention".

"boom--"

Just as the fist and sword were about to collide, everyone felt as if the air within a radius of tens of square meters seemed to collapse inward, and everything around them became distorted.

But the sword and the fist did not actually collide; it was just that two intentions collided.

On the left, sword energy surged like a tide, stirring up a boundless killing intent in the void.

To the right, however, lay eternal silence. There was no wind, no sword cries, only a pure, clear emptiness. That silence was not nothingness, but a profound stillness that encompassed all things, a realm where even time seemed to stand still.

Two forces clashed fiercely in the void. Each collision caused the entire space to tremble violently. Sword energy shattered one after another, but the silence remained unmoved, even silently swallowing the broken sword energy.

The difference is clear at a glance.

The tranquil atmosphere on the right is like a world of its own, an absolute realm that transcends moves and techniques, a product that truly touches the pinnacle of artistic conception!
Ji Wufeng's originally indifferent face underwent a subtle change; the shock he felt at that moment was indescribable. Only someone who had experienced it firsthand could truly understand how astonishing the aura Huo Yuhao was exuding.

There is a god among them, a realm he has not yet reached!
But what Huo Yuhao felt from that punch was more than just that.

The pinnacle of swordsmanship requires not just mastering one of sword intent, sword soul, or sword spirit, but rather a perfect combination of all three. It involves infusing one's emotions and will into the swordplay, fusing essence, energy, and spirit into one. Swordsmanship executed in this way becomes a domain, a realm of its own—that is the true sword!

He saw such a shadow in the punch that Huo Yuhao threw.

"I saw it two years ago, and it's indeed impressive. He had already integrated his essence, energy, and spirit back then." Ji Wufeng's emotions were still unsettled, but his eyes flashed with a sharp light as he tried to capture the essence within the fist's strike.

Seeing this, Huo Yuhao's lips curled up slightly. After his fist and sword were locked in a stalemate for about a second, he suddenly exerted his strength, and then a deafening roar suddenly exploded.

--boom!

Centered on the point where the two clashed, large cracks and collapses suddenly appeared on the ground, spreading outwards at an extremely fast speed until they reached tens of meters before gradually stopping.

Ji Wufeng instantly retreated twenty meters. After regaining his footing, his face was extremely pale, and his sword-wielding hand was stained with blood. But his eyes were filled with unprecedented excitement, without any sign of discouragement. "I lost."

He uttered three words, then sat cross-legged on the ground, meditating and reflecting on his gains, completely unconcerned about the bloodstains on his body and the stares of others.

'...What a memorable scene.'

A look of nostalgia crossed Huo Yuhao's eyes.

A sword, a punch... they were once like that too.

You have a worthy successor, Juechen.

Without lingering, Huo Yuhao headed straight for the entrance of the Spirit Pagoda.

At this moment, the onlookers suddenly came to their senses, still in disbelief, "A Soul King who possesses sword intent and sword soul actually lost in a contest of 'intent'?"

First he was invited by Mingdetang, and now he has suppressed the descendants of the Ji family with his artistic conception. He just wants to ask, is there anything that Huo Yuhao can't do?

A master of everything, a jack of all trades, what kind of monster is this?

The enforcement team looked at the messy square and the three departing figures, then their eyes flashed with a fierce light as they looked at Ji Wufeng, who was meditating.

You caused all this trouble, and yet you're still so calm?

We'll settle the score after you've come to your senses!
(End of this chapter)