Douluo: Dragon King Huo Yuhao Lives Ten Thousand Years Later

Chapter 199 Holy Spirit Suppressing the Soul (4,000 words)
The worship ceremony began with Huo Yuhao and unfolded slowly.

Huo Yuhao himself stepped down from in front of the memorial tablet and silently watched everything, but deep in his eyes surged a wave that no one else could see.

The chanting of eulogies rose and fell, echoing throughout the solemn mourning hall. It echoed in the solemn mourning hall until—

The Holy Spirit Douluo took over the place of worship and walked past Huo Yuhao.

Their eyes met for a fleeting moment, and the Holy Spirit Douluo gave Huo Yuhao a gentle, warm smile and nodded slightly. A hint of confusion lingered in her smile, but it didn't affect her subsequent actions.

Holy Spirit Douluo stepped forward to the memorial tablet and bowed respectfully. Then, instead of reciting the prepared eulogy as others did, she softly recounted her experiences.

“I was born in a village that was neither rich nor poor. When I was a child, I heard the old people in the village say that it used to be a slum, and the living conditions and environment were very poor. But with the arrival of certain people, things changed.”

Everyone in the mourning hall was taken aback, clearly having never heard of this part of her past.

Meanwhile, some quick-thinking representatives of various factions began to scrutinize the high-ranking members of the Spirit Pagoda with strange looks.

They already knew who those people were.

The Spirit Pagoda's methods are truly all-encompassing; it actually managed to gain the favor of the Holy Spirit Douluo from a young age...

Sure enough, the Holy Spirit Douluo's next words confirmed their guess.

"They are spirit mediums... or rather, unofficial staff of the Spirit Pagoda."

Soul Masters from impoverished families can receive assistance from the Spirit Pagoda. Through the two-way selection feature between Soul Spirits and Soul Masters, the Soul Spirit can choose the Soul Master, thus obtaining their first Soul Spirit without having to immediately pay the Federal Currency required to purchase a Soul Spirit.

However, as a price to pay, Soul Masters must gradually repay this money after graduating from the intermediate academy. Alternatively, they can accept arrangements made by the Spirit Pagoda and the Federation to go to various places and perform work within their capabilities.

The group of people who came to the village where the Holy Spirit Douluo lived were just like this, and their work in the slums was naturally... poverty alleviation.

Holy Spirit Douluo continued gently:

"These spirit masters have stayed in the village for more than a decade. The work they do is ordinary, but also very important—building infrastructure, teaching children to read, do arithmetic, and about martial spirits, and helping children of the right age awaken their martial spirits for free..."

"The power of role models is immense. Their arrival has injected new vitality into villages and towns that were still slums. After all, in the eyes of the townspeople, they are noble Soul Masters. Even they are helping the villages and towns develop, so what reason do we have not to work hard? Perhaps those Spirit Masters are just fulfilling their duties, but no one can take their efforts for granted."

"Gradually, the muddy dirt roads became stone-paved roads, the leaky thatched houses were replaced by brick and tile houses, and the village even built its first formal Soul Master enlightenment school. During this process, some Spirit Masters left, and some fell in love with the people in the town and stayed. Of course, there were also newcomers who filled the vacancies left by those who left."

"Some lucky children became Soul Masters after their Martial Souls awakened, and they studied and grew up in the academy. When they grew up, they became the next generation of Spirit Transmission Masters... In this way, the town gradually developed and transformed from a slum into a well-organized village."

Those present knew that Holy Spirit Douluo omitted the hardships and darkness of the story, retaining only the most beautiful parts.

However, at this moment, no one will disturb the Holy Spirit Douluo's memories.

"I heard you once said, 'Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.' That must be the most accurate description of it, right?"

Looking at the spirit tablet, the Holy Spirit Douluo said, "Hearing such a story, I couldn't help but stay and help the people in the village heal. However, as my strength gradually increased, I found that my soul power was getting stronger and stronger, and limiting myself to one village was not the best choice."

“My hands are small, and no matter how hard I try, life will slip through my fingers, but I still want to hold up as much as I can. So, I embarked on a journey and began to travel throughout the Federation. And from that moment on, my horizons have been constantly broadened.”

"Ten thousand years ago, evil spirit masters ran rampant, and there were many instances of massacring cities and destroying countries. There are no such records now. Fifty years ago, a plague raged, and countless people were in danger. The Emerald Swan Clan came to the rescue... This was a scene that could not have happened ten thousand years ago."

"The development of villages and towns by spirit masters, the disappearance of the era of evil spirit masters, and the peaceful coexistence of spirit beasts and humans are the result of the efforts of countless people and spirit beasts. But that initial glory was undoubtedly left by you."

The Holy Spirit Douluo's clear, spring-like voice flowed past his ears. Huo Yuhao's eyelashes trembled slightly as he saw the woman in the light green dress clasp her hands together, her fingertips gleaming with a faint, shimmering soul power, and bow deeply.

"Your Majesty Lingbing, thank you for lighting the way for us..."

……

No one left during the worship ceremony; everyone left together only after the last person finished worshiping.

As the crowd began to disperse, Gu Yuena was about to ask Huo Yuhao to go home together when she discovered that there were already two people standing next to him.

One of them is Zhao Chengyuan, and the other is the Holy Spirit Douluo.

When Holy Spirit Douluo saw Zhao Chengyuan approaching, he smiled slightly and said, "You two talk. I'll go and have a chat with Snow Empress first."

Zhao Chengyuan watched the Holy Spirit Douluo leave before turning to Huo Yuhao. His short, silver-gray hair gleamed with a cool sheen under the dim light of the mourning hall, but his eyes sparkled with interest.

"At such a young age, your cultivation has already reached the Soul Emperor stage. You are truly a force to be reckoned with. It seems that your cultivation speed is even faster than that of the Sky-Supporting Douluo. No wonder the Tower Masters are so confident that you will become the next Tower Master."

Huo Yuhao was somewhat surprised that Zhao Chengyuan took the initiative to strike up a conversation. Hearing this, he raised an eyebrow and said, "Senior Zhao, you flatter me. If we're really talking about the speed of soul power cultivation, you're much stronger than me. There are rumors that you broke through to Super Douluo before you were even twenty years old."

Zhao Chengyuan smiled and said in a voice transmission, "In the end, he used special methods, which are no match for a true genius like you. Moreover, once you reach a certain level of cultivation, you still have to rely on your own comprehension. External things are not omnipotent."

"..."

Although he was being modest, there was a subtle, almost imperceptible smile in his words, making Huo Yuhao feel as if he were in Versailles.

Having ascended to demigod status instantly by taking elixirs, what more could one ask for?
Ten thousand years ago, even the Soul Masters didn't have the ability or the means to take such a pill with minimal side effects.

Rolling his eyes inwardly, Huo Yuhao transmitted his voice, "I heard that His Majesty Zhenhun once said that he ate so many pills that he vomited in order to become a Limit Douluo. I wonder if that's true?"

That's right, the Zhao Chuanling Envoy in front of us is the Soul Douluo, who is also the original Dark Blood Demon.

As a Limit Douluo, even if the Spirit Pagoda wanted to preserve this trump card, it couldn't just let Zhenhun lie there doing nothing. If they waited until they needed it to use it, wouldn't all the resources they'd provided have been wasted?

The truly wise hide in plain sight. Give him the identity of a spirit messenger as a cover, so he can participate in some affairs openly and legitimately. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

In any case, a Super Douluo with exceptional talent but exhausted potential and unable to break through to the limit... is acceptable to all parties.

Zhao Chengyuan's eyes flickered slightly as he glanced at Huo Yuhao with some surprise. Then, a smile appeared on his lips. "I didn't expect that the Snow Emperor Tower Master and the others had already told you about the Execution Department and about me... Yes, I did say that. But it was just a joke. If it happened again, I would definitely still eat it."

"After all, when it comes to pure soul power cultivation, my talent is really not that great, far inferior to freaks like you and Sky Douluo. If I hadn't joined the Spirit Pagoda, I wouldn't have a future." In the current Federation, a soul master like him would find it difficult to achieve anything without the support of the Spirit Pagoda. Not to mention surpassing Sky Douluo in terms of the age required to advance to Title Douluo.

In fact, without the opportunity given by the Spirit Pagoda, he might have become an evil spirit master long ago.

So the talk of getting tired of the food or feeling nauseous is just a joke.

Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao's eyes flickered slightly.

In his memory, if this era had proceeded as originally planned, there would have been two individuals who had been promoted to titles before the age of twenty.

One was Hades Douluo, and the other was Dark Blood Demon. The former was nineteen, while the latter's progress was even faster; he was not yet sixty when he fought his final battle, but he had already become a Super Douluo more than forty years ago. In other words, he became a Super Douluo in just over a decade…

However, both of them are in rather special circumstances. The Dark Blood Demon cultivates by absorbing the souls of other creatures, while the Underworld King cultivates through killing and death, which cannot be considered a normal method of cultivation.

Huo Yuhao wasn't entirely clear on how much bloodshed the Dark Blood Demon's advancement had caused in the original development, but he did have relevant memories of the Underworld King's advancement.

Hades wasn't born with full soul power; he only achieved this transformation after slaughtering an orphanage. When he advanced to Super Douluo at the age of twenty-five, he had killed 100,000 people. Later, he continued to kill soul beasts in the ocean, and by the time he reached Limit Douluo, probably a million lives had perished at his hands.

The Dark Blood Demon's ascension speed was even faster than that of Hades, so it's clear that many humans and soul beasts had fallen at his hands.

His situation was too extreme; ordinary cultivation methods were almost ineffective in increasing his soul power, and he could only improve it by absorbing soul energy. If he hadn't joined the Spirit Pagoda this time, the possibility of him becoming an evil soul master would have been extremely high…

"Senior, have you come to see me now because you have some advice for me?"

"I wouldn't call it giving you guidance, I'm just a little curious about you. After all, I've been away from headquarters for many years, so it's only right that I take this opportunity to meet the successor that all the tower masters have their eyes on."

Zhao Chengyuan said, "But now it seems you're even more interesting than the rumors suggest. After I learned about your situation before, I noticed your rapid advancement made me suspect you might have used some special methods. But after getting to know you up close, I can only sigh that there are many extraordinary talents and geniuses in the world..."

Zhao Chengyuan and Huo Yuhao chatted for a long time, from the road to the mourning hall all the way to the first floor of the Spirit Pagoda, before he said goodbye and left at Zhao Yao's call.

Before leaving, his last words surprised Huo Yuhao slightly: "I need this identity as a Spirit Summoner as a cover, also for my daughter's sake. She doesn't know that I am the head of the Executive Department of the Spirit Summoning Tower. So please keep my affairs a secret."

Is the Dark Blood Demon finally living a life of comfort with a wife, daughter, and a warm bed?
Before this era awakened, I could never have imagined such a scene.

Thinking it over, Huo Yuhao nodded in agreement and watched the two leave.

"Yuhao, this guy's personality is a bit unexpected. He's surprisingly serious. I thought someone who could say something like 'I've been taking pills until I'm sick of them in order to reach the limit' would be an interesting and quirky person."

Upon seeing this, Tianmeng Bingcan, who had been shocked by Zhenhun's awe-inspiring speech, retorted from the sea of ​​spirits.

Hyotei rolled her eyes. "When meeting with juniors as an elder, it's natural to put on a certain air. Do you think everyone is like you?"

Anyone who can say something like that can't seem very serious, even in the context of Soul Douluo.

Moreover, a child's personality sometimes reflects the parents' personality. Ice Emperor also knows what kind of personality Zhao Yao, the daughter of the Soul Douluo, has.

All I can say is... they truly are father and daughter.

After Gu Yuena and the others left, she walked up to Huo Yuhao and asked curiously, "Yuhao, what's wrong? What did he say to you telepathically just now?"

"It's nothing, we were just chatting about cultivation."

Huo Yuhao shook his head and looked at the figures walking towards them.

"However, now that he has set this precedent, it will probably take some effort from here on out."

Before the worship ceremony, even if the high-ranking members of the Spirit Transmission Tower and representatives of various forces were interested in him, they couldn't easily approach him for a chat. But things were different after the ceremony.

Similarly, Xue Di, Xiong Jun, Qian Gu Dong Feng, and others were gradually surrounded by many guests who came to strike up a conversation.

Social interactions and interpersonal relationships are always unavoidable.

"Then I'll go with you." Gu Yuena chuckled. "If you don't want to talk to them, I'll just give them a cold shoulder and make them back down."

Na'er had a cold face...

That could indeed create an awkward atmosphere, after all, it was a skill honed through countless trials to deal with Gu Rachel.

Thinking of this, Huo Yuhao suddenly looked around. "Speaking of which, where's Rachel? Why has she disappeared again? Her recent behavior has been a bit strange, like she's been avoiding me."

"I don't know, she just finished participating in the worship ceremony and then disappeared..."

As she said this, a look of confusion appeared on Gu Yuena's face.

This grand celebration was the perfect opportunity for Rachel to fulfill her role and call her sister. Why would the other party leave the scene for no reason?

And it's strange that Rachel didn't bother her all day, even though she wasn't in charge of managing the celebration. Add to that her previous unusual behavior...

A sense of unease rose in Gu Yuena's heart. "Could she have run into some serious trouble? If so, why didn't she discuss it with us?"

Huo Yuhao became increasingly certain of one of his conjectures and said quietly, "Is it possible that the trouble she's encountering is related to us?"

Gu Yuena was taken aback.

"Don't worry, she can't hide. Her home is right here. We can find her and get to the bottom of things later."

Huo Yuhao saw that the female congresswoman from the Federation had walked up to him, so he temporarily ended the conversation.

"I didn't expect you to be the one to greet me first... Miss Nunnally, is this your public identity?"

(End of this chapter)