Huo Yuhao said, “Entering the Sun Moon Empire isn’t difficult, but there are aerial and super-high aerial surveillance soul tools everywhere inside the Sun Moon Empire’s territory. After our previous encounters, the Sun Moon Empire have worked hard on their ground-based aerial surveillance soul tools. Therefore, in order for us not to avoid being discovered after entering the Sun Moon Empire’s territory as much as possible, I think the best way is to proceed on foot. The aerial surveillance soul tools cannot have oscillation or thermal detectors attached to them, so as long as we avoid the big cities, we shouldn’t have a problem reaching Radiant City’s proximity peacefully. We’ll break into groups once we reach Radiant City, and we’ll disguise ourselves before he sneak our way into Radiant City. That should also not be difficult. But…”
He paused for a moment.
The White Tiger Duke asked, “But what?
Huo Yuhao continued, “If we wish to reach Radiant City without leaving a trace at all, I hope that everyone can listen to my commands along the way, at least before we reach Radiant City. That is the only way for me to guarantee that I can bring everyone to the right location.”
“Listen to your commands? Little fellow, how old are you?” One of the Dou Ling Empire’s Titled Douluo asked disdainfully.
The White Tiger Duke frowned, and he was about to say something when the Star Luo Empire’s Shattered Star Douluo lowered his voice and said, “We will listen to whoever is better. We concede that Yuhao is better than we are at concealment and infiltration, and I agree for him to lead us into Radiant City, and I will listen to his commands.”
The Star Luo Empire’s Titled Douluo nodded one after another and expressed their approval.
The Heavenly Sun Douluo’s eyes narrowed. “Are you that confident, little fellow?”
Huo Yuhao smiled faintly. He didn’t seem affected at all by the doubts that the Dou Ling Empire’s Titled Douluo were projecting onto him. “If everyone is willing to listen to my commands during the process, then I do have some confidence. Of course, I am not asking any of you to do anything, I just hope that everyone will move according to my Spiritual Detection when we are executing the mission, so that we can avoid leaving any traces behind.”
The Heavenly Sun Douluo laughed and turned towards Du Busi. “Brother Du, the youngsters are so impressive nowadays! At least, they are definitely much more confident than we were back in the day.”
“I agree.” Du Busi said coldly.
The Heavenly Sun Douluo’s face froze. Du Busi actually agreed? He had an arrogant and prideful personality, but he was willing to let this little fellow lead the operation?
Du Busi nodded in Huo Yuhao’s direction and said, “Since we are to proceed on foot, time is of the essence. We will leave tomorrow morning.”
Huo Yuhao nodded and acknowledged, “Alright.”
The Titled Douluo returned to their respective tents to rest, while the White Tiger Duke requested for Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong to remain because he wanted to hold a welcoming dinner for them.
A tableful of food that wasn’t considered too sumptuous was set out in the commander’s tent. There was meat and rice, but there wasn’t any alcohol. The White Tiger Duke had banned alcohol in his camp, and he led by example.
“Yuhao, welcome back to the Ming Dou Mountain Range. Let me use tea in place of wine and raise a toast to you.” The White Tiger Duke raised his teacup to express his sentiments to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao touched the White Tiger Duke’s teacup gently with his own and said plainly, “You’re too polite, Duke.” Huo Yuhao finally relaxed after interacting with the White Tiger Duke. He stared at the man, who clearly seemed a lot more worn out than before, and he realized helplessly that his own hatred for this man seemed to have become increasingly faint.
“You have travelled far, and you must be hungry. You should hurry and have something to eat.” The White Tiger Duke laughed as he spoke.
Princess Jiujiu and Dai Yueheng accompanied them for dinner. Dai Luoli didn’t seem worthy enough to sit at this table due to his status in the army.
Dai Yueheng was sitting opposite Huo Yuhao, and complicated looks appeared in his eyes from time to time. He was already an eight-ringed Soul Douluo, and in terms of cultivation, he was even more outstanding than the White Tiger Duke was back when they were the same age. However, his advantage didn’t seem like anything in front of Huo Yuhao. Huo Yuhao was seven years younger than he was, but he had already established a resounding reputation in the world of soul masters.
That was especially so for the Spirit Pagoda, which had been developing at an exponential rate over recent years. The Star Luo Empire had their own branch of the Spirit Pagoda, and all soul masters would be proud that they could obtain a Spirit for themselves. The organization’s status in the world of soul masters naturally rose accordingly through the ranks, and their influence increased and expanded at an incredible speed. And the young Huo Yuhao, who was right before him, could be considered the founder of the Spirit Pagoda!
Princess Jiujiu was also staring at Huo Yuhao as strange colors flickered in her beautiful eyes. Huo Yuhao gave her a different feeling every time they met. For instance, what she felt about him in this moment was an immeasurable depth. Yes, she couldn’t even tell what cultivation rank he had reached.
They enjoyed their dinner and exchanged some tea before the White Tiger Duke asked someone to light the lamps inside the tent.
Dai Luoli and Princess Jiujiu left. The White Tiger Duke, Huo Yuhao, and Tang Wutong remained inside the commander’s tent.
“You have something to say to me, sir?” Huo Yuhao asked.
The White Tiger Duke nodded gently as he turned towards Huo Yuhao. He lowered his voice and said, “Yuhao, this operation is extremely dangerous. If not for the fact that your abilities are far too important, I wouldn’t have asked Shrek Academy to let you come. You have to remember that your responsibility is to take them safely into Radiant City, but concealing them will be sufficient. You don’t need to participate when they begin their attack, and once you detect that something is wrong, you have to escape and return. Do not care about the others. Do you understand?”
A thought occurred to Huo Yuhao, and he could clearly read between the White Tiger Duke’s lines.
“Lord Duke, this operation has mobilized perhaps the most elite soul masters across the continent’s three original empires. To be frank, I don’t quite favor this mission. The plan is not detailed and thorough enough, and our enemies are too powerful. Our chances of success are really not favorable. If I act according to your words and don’t participate in the attack, what will happen to them if I leave by myself? If they perish in the Sun Moon Empire, the impact to us…”
The White Tiger Duke fell silent. Huo Yuhao’s senses were incredibly sharp, and he discovered, to his surprise, that a dash of embarrassment flashed across the bottom of Dai Hao’s eyes.
“Yuhao, I cannot explain too much to you. You have to remember to act according to what I’ve said, and ensure your own safety above all else.”
Huo Yuhao’s expression gradually became solemn as he listened to the Duke’s words. Even though he didn’t explain things explicitly, he had spoken clearly enough, and it was evident that this mission had some nuances to it. It definitely wasn’t as simple as it appeared on the outside. But the White Tiger Duke was unwilling to explain what these nuances were, and something was clearly holding him back.
“Alright, I understand.” Huo Yuhao didn’t probe any further. Even though he hadn’t interacted much with the White Tiger Duke, they were related by blood after all! Even he didn’t expect himself to subconsciously trust his father, even though they had never identified as father and son.
The White Tiger Duke nodded seriously and said, “Please act according to what I’ve said. Do remember that.”
“Yes.”
Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong were arranged to stay in a tent on the mountaintop, and allocated one room each. But of course, they chose to sleep together.
Tang Wutong shut the door as she lowered her voice and said, “It seems like there are many problems with this operation! The White Tiger Duke is trying to warn you.” She could see that Huo Yuhao’s eyes seemed a little strange. Others didn’t know about his relationship with the White Tiger Duke, but how could she not know? Judging from his emotions, his hostility against the White Tiger Duke didn’t seem as strong as before. This was fantastic from Tang Wutong’s perspective, since no matter what, they were father and son after all! Furthermore, she knew that this hatred had been bothering Huo Yuhao for a long time.
Huo Yuhao nodded and said, “He must have his reasons for not being able to explain. I don’t think there will be any problems in the first part of this mission, but it’s hard to say what the situation will be like after entering Radiant City. In the end, our task is to bring those Titled Douluo into Radiant City, and what they do has nothing to do with us as long as we complete our task. What the White Tiger Duke was trying to tell me was exactly that, and that’s why he kept reminding me again and again.”
Tang Wutong looked on as Huo Yuhao looked like he was contemplating. She asked probingly, “He seems very concerned about you.”
Huo Yuhaoo glanced at her. “Just ask whatever you wish to ask, Wutong. We don’t have to beat about the bush with each other.”
Tang Wutong punched his shoulder gently and said, “You’re so annoying, I’m just concerned about you. I think that your hostility towards him doesn’t seem as strong as before.”
Huo Yuhao forced a laugh and said, “Even though I’m not willing to admit it, that appears to be happening. In the days that you were gone, I went back to see my mother’s grave. It has been repaired and renovated, and he should be responsible for that. Afterwards, when we fought in the Star Luo Empire, we interacted a little more. I have been affected, and that’s inevitable. But I have to avenge my mother.”
Tang Wutong nodded silently and said, “Let’s talk about that after everything else. No matter what their mission’s target is, their final goal is the same: to deal as heavy a blow as they can to the Sun Moon Empire so that their invasion can be delayed. Let’s return to the academy after completing our task.”
She didn’t continue the conversation, like she wanted to avoid talking about it. The reason for that was because she understood that trying to change the hatred in Huo Yuhao’s heart overnight wasn’t possible. In the end, he had been bullied a lot when he was young, and his mother had died from her illness. These things were closely related to the White Tiger Duke’s Mansion, and she could thus only gradually reduce the hatred in his heart. Even if he had to take his revenge in the future, at least he would control himself in what he would do.
Huo Yuhao said, “You’re right. No matter what their target is during this operation, their final aim will be the same. We just have to do what we have to do. There’s only one person I want to protect, and that’s you.”
Tang Wutong giggled. “I’m a Titled Douluo, so we’ll see who has to protect who.”
Huo Yuhao laughed and said, “You can protect me too! Come, protect me, quickly.” He opened his arms to Tang Wutong as he spoke.
