Huo Yuhao met Du Qingyuan's hesitant gaze, smiled lightly, and said: "Let's go take a look."
His Mental Detection had already spread out across the area. He knew the highest spirit power fluctuations of those fighting were only at the Spirit Ancestor level, posing no real threat to him. Seeing Du Qingyuan still frowning with worry, Huo Yuhao added gently, "There must be a patrol team around the Spirit Pagoda. They will arrive in an instant if they hear any noise, so there won't be any danger."
Hearing this, Du Qingyuan took a deep breath, his hesitation turning into resolve: "Good, let's go see together!"
Before the words fully left his mouth, he had already rushed into the alley first, with Huo Yuhao closely following behind. The two rushed into the alley entrance and immediately turned left, the bluestone pavement speeding beneath their feet. After only a few dozen meters, a small open space appeared ahead.
They saw three people confronting each other—or more accurately, one young man, about twenty years old, was being suppressed by two boys aged eleven or twelve. The young man had four spirit rings, indicating Spirit Ancestor cultivation, while the two boys, despite their young age, had both already reached the three-ring Spirit Elder Realm.
When they arrived, the battle was drawing to a close. The cold light of a sword Spirit in one boy's hand was steadily pressed against the young man's heart. Although the opponent hadn't struck a killing blow, this Spirit Master had just come out of the Spirit Pagoda and was inexplicably beaten. The frustration and anger he felt were imaginable.
Just then, Du Qingyuan's stern shout came: "Who are you people? How dare you fight near the Spirit Pagoda!"
Who on the continent didn't know the prestige of the Spirit Pagoda? That young Spirit Master quickly shouted, "They attacked first! I was only forced to defend myself!"
His face was a mixture of red and blue. Being defeated by two boys on the street was already a massive loss of face; if he were then detained by the Spirit Pagoda for causing trouble, it would truly be adding insult to injury. The two boys opposite him, as well as the other two boys behind them who hadn't yet fought, instantly focused their gazes on Du Qingyuan.
When faced with Du Qingyuan's questioning, they showed no fear on their faces, as if the Spirit Pagoda was nothing special in their eyes, not worth much attention. This indifferent attitude completely ignited the anger in Du Qingyuan's heart. Confirming they were only a few three-ring Spirit Elders, he decided not to wait for any patrol team and chose to intervene himself, intending to teach these arrogant youngsters a lesson.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort escaped Du Qingyuan's mouth, and then the four profound purple spirit rings beneath his feet suddenly burst forth. At fourteen years old, he was already a four-ring Spirit Ancestor. It was precisely this kind of talent that led Tower Master Lin Feng to take him as a Personal Disciple.
As Du Qingyuan's Spirit manifested, Huo Yuhao saw his pupils instantly turn crystalline ice-blue. As his fingers extended, sharp claws formed, reflecting a cold sheen under the sunlight. The most striking change was a pair of long, pointed beast ears that quietly stood up on his head, snow-white in color, with faint blue light flickering at the tips. Behind him, four bushy, long fox tails unfurled, their tips looking as if dipped in fresh snow, swaying gently with the fluctuation of spirit power.
Du Qingyuan's Spirit was named Moonlit Spirit Fox, which was a top-tier Beast Spirit. Most common fox-type Spirits focused on agility and attack, but his Moonlit Spirit Fox also possessed a spiritual attribute, making it a rare combination of agility, attack, and control Dual Cultivation.
Facing him, a four-ring Spirit Ancestor, the four boys opposite him showed no panic; instead, a trace of excitement flashed in their eyes. The boy who previously held the sword shouted, "A four-ring Spirit Ancestor, perfect timing! Shao Feng, Xingchi, I leave him to you two!"
Shao Feng and Ren Xingchi, who were called out, stepped forward, their eyes burning with fighting Spirit. As spirit power surged, they simultaneously completed their Spirit manifestation. In front of Shao Feng, a heavy, circular black shield appeared, its surface etched with ancient patterns, faint dark light flowing around the edges. Ren Xingchi slightly bent his body, his muscles bulging, making him much taller overall; it was likely an Ape-type Beast Spirit.
Beneath their feet, three deep purple spirit rings rose simultaneously, their lights interweaving. A cold glint flashed in Du Qingyuan's eyes, and his first spirit ring suddenly lit up. His figure turned into an afterimage as he lunged toward the two opponents.
Shao Feng thrust his black shield forward violently, colliding head-on with the sharp claws, producing a grating sound. Ren Xingchi advanced from the flank, sweeping his ape-like arm, causing the wind to howl. Although they were only Spirit Elders, their coordination was excellent, and the age of their spirit rings was clearly not low; they managed to fight Du Qingyuan evenly, neither gaining an advantage.
Although there were many geniuses on the continent, they were basically already absorbed by the major powers. Like this time, four young geniuses appeared at once; this was definitely not a random occurrence. Huo Yuhao already had a general guess about the origins of these four youths!
Huo Yuhao watched the battle quietly. Du Qingyuan, unable to gain the upper hand for a long time, was clearly becoming anxious, even making a mistake in the fight and nearly getting hit by one of Ren Xingchi's punches. As someone from the Spirit Pagoda himself, Huo Yuhao naturally would not stand idly by at this moment. He did not activate his Spirit, nor did he release any spirit rings, but simply walked calmly toward the three people fighting.
However, just as Huo Yuhao took two steps, a figure intercepted him like a gust of wind—it was the boy who had held the sword earlier. Although his long sword was retracted now, his stance as he stood was as straight and imposing as a drawn sword. This person was named Li Luo; he was the captain of the four-person team and the strongest among them.
Li Luo sized up Huo Yuhao, a smile tinged with arrogance curling at his lips: "Little brother, stay put and don't move. This fight... is not something you can interfere with."
In his eyes, Huo Yuhao looked even younger than them, definitely not their match, especially since they were all geniuses from Shrek Academy! That's right, all four of them came from the first year at Shrek Academy. The reason they were fighting here was to complete their academy's final assessment task. In every city they visited, they needed to defeat opponents stronger than themselves!
The current joint confrontation between Shao Feng and Ren Xingchi against Du Qingyuan was more than just a simple spar; for those two, it was also an assessment. As the captain, he naturally would not allow anyone to interfere, even if this youth didn't seem like much of a threat. Li Luo held his chin high, the arrogant smile habitual to Shrek geniuses still lingering on his lips.
Huo Yuhao remained silent. Three profound black spirit rings, as deep as night, slowly rose from beneath his feet. That pure, heart-stopping black light appeared particularly dazzling under the afternoon sun.
The smile on Li Luo's lips instantly froze. His pupils contracted, and the gaze he fixed on Huo Yuhao was instantly swallowed by shock. Three rings, all ten thousand years! As an elite of Shrek Academy, he knew better than anyone what kind of terrifying talent and foundation this represented.
All contempt vanished in an instant. He gripped his Spirit, the Cold Star Sword, in his hand. Three purple spirit rings manifested, the second ring shining brightly. He chose to attack immediately without hesitation! Cold mist coiled around the sword's edge, and piercing Sword Qi tore through the air, stabbing directly toward Huo Yuhao's face.
However, Huo Yuhao had no intention of sparring right now, as his Mental Detection had already sensed a stronger presence nearby. His first black spirit ring flickered slightly. An invisible Soul Lash accurately whipped into Li Luo's spiritual sea!
"Ugh!"
The sword tip suddenly froze mid-air. Li Luo let out a short cry of pain, curling up as if struck by lightning, and even his Cold Star Sword Spirit instantly dissipated. Huo Yuhao had shown no mercy with this Soul Lash, because he strongly disliked the condescending disdain he saw in the other party's eyes just now.
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