"Are you looking for Yuhao? He and Wulin are both at the Soul Spirit Research Institute."
Luo Yanglu looked at Gu Yuena, who had come searching for him. Marveling inwardly at how quickly things were moving between the two, he explained, "Jinxi ran into an issue with his bloodline and needs Wulin's help to resolve it..."
Upon hearing this, Gu Yuena's gaze sharpened, and she turned swiftly toward the Soul Spirit Research Institute.
To prepare for any hidden ploys Tang San might have left behind, she had recently browsed the soul tool network for accounts of his past deeds: defeating the Angel God while still mortal, the boundless divine might of the Sea God, countless legends of Tang Sect hidden weapons slaying gods...
The more she read, the heavier her heart grew. Extracting the Golden Dragon King's bloodline was very likely to strike a nerve with the Sea God and trigger whatever countermeasures he had prepared. Although she trusted Yuhao's strength, her presence would undeniably make things safer.
Yes, pushing Yuhao out in front of her to 'shield' him while she provided backup from behind was a sound plan.
***
"Elder Yi, stay hidden!"
Inside Huo Yuhao's Sea of Spirit, the Tianmeng Iceworm wore an excited look as he warned Elder Yi, "You can't let that Sea God out there notice you!"
With that, Tianmeng peeked out at the external world, eager to see if he could spot that sliver of divine sense.
The countermeasure Huo Yuhao was using was rooted in the souls of both the Soul Spirit and the human. Once activated, if the Sea God's divine sense was capable of observing the outside world, it was bound to perceive it.
Electrolux: "..."
With a helpless smile, Elder Yi refrained from using his own power, merely observing the outside world through Huo Yuhao's vision, ready for battle at a moment's notice.
Back when Huo Yuhao faked his death, Electrolux had put on a show with him, using divine sense to assist Huo Yuhao in forging a God Position. To onlookers, it had seemed as though he had exerted his utmost strength, exhausted his divine sense, and scattered into nothingness alongside Yuhao.
At the time, he hadn't understood why Huo Yuhao was being so cautious. But after hearing Yuhao's explanations, everything had become clear.
*A Godking, hm...*
Elder Yi's gaze deepened.
*You may be stronger than me, but how does a mere sliver of your divine sense compare to mine?*
While the occupants of Huo Yuhao's Sea of Spirit were lost in thought, Tang San's divine sense was thoroughly bewildered, a flood of memories rushing through its awareness.
The solitary figure in the Extreme North, a Soul Master wandering beyond the human world... until the image finally froze on a corpse laden with death energy.
Huo Yuhao was dead. Ten thousand years ago, when the Child of Fortune dissipated, his true body had even taken a deliberate look down at the mortal realm!
"How could he still be alive?"
A chill ran through Tang San's divine sense, its panic so intense that its heart seemed ready to leap out of its throat.
There was no pleasant surprise—only utter horror!
*Main body, aren't you supposed to be a god of wisdom? How do your calculations keep missing things?!*
The reappearance of the Spirit Pagoda's first Pagoda Master would introduce endless variables into their ten-thousand-year plan!
Tang San's divine sense frowned deeply. Remembering something, it immediately began examining the fortune Huo Yuhao possessed.
"It's not him?"
After a thorough sweep, Tang San's divine sense discovered that Huo Yuhao had not regained his status as the Child of Fortune, which left it perplexed.
It had assumed Huo Yuhao was the mastermind behind everything, the one who had stolen Wulin's fortune. Yet this inspection revealed nothing amiss.
Then what was going on?
Tang San's divine sense wore an uncertain expression. Watching Huo Yuhao extract the Golden Dragon King's bloodline power from the Soul Spirit, a flicker of murderous intent mingled with hesitation in its eyes.
Huo Yuhao had founded the Spirit Pagoda, rejected the Emotion God Position, and was now attempting to seize the Golden Dragon King's bloodline. He had walked practically every conceivable path to courting death. Regardless of whether he had anything to do with the mastermind, he deserved to die. Should it eliminate this threat right now? Did he possess any trump card to counter a sliver of divine sense?
Was it worth expending divine sense on an Ultimate Douluo who could never become a god?
The divine sense wavered, a blood-red sword forged from Asura God power flickering in and out of existence in its grasp.
"Yuhao, how is it going?" Gu Yuena pushed the door open and stepped in.
The surging murderous intent vanished in an instant, as though it had never existed. Tang San's divine sense stared at the girl, who appeared ordinary at first glance yet had the surrounding elemental powers bowing in subservience to her, its expression freezing entirely.
*Hahaha!*
The Golden Dragon King bloodline flared with sudden fervor, and within the Golden Dragon King seal, someone seemed to be laughing at him uproariously.
Tang San's divine sense paid it no heed, staring at Gu Yuena in utter shock. *The power to command elements, combined with a connection to the Golden Dragon King... Could she be... the Silver Dragon King?!*
Seeing Gu Yuena arrive, Huo Yuhao's brow furrowed slightly as he exchanged a glance with her.
*Why did you come?*
*...*
Gu Yuena avoided his gaze, looking instead at the Golden Dragon King bloodline being drawn out of Jinyu. In a low voice, she asked, "It truly is His power... How much bloodline power can you extract?"
Though she looked at the bloodline, her eyes kept darting toward Huo Yuhao. Her distracted demeanor did not escape his notice.
She clearly hadn't come for the bloodline at all.
Looking quietly at Gu Yuena, Huo Yuhao arched a brow inwardly.
*Didn't you plan to shield me right in front of you earlier? Why did you come running over now?*
After a brief pause, Huo Yuhao replied in an even tone, "Not much can be drawn out. If we want more of the Golden Dragon King's power, we can't touch him for now."
Last time, when he had set up a Spiritual Beacon, Tang San's divine sense had observed the outside world and wiped it out immediately. Now, as he extracted the Golden Dragon King bloodline and laid bare the grave hidden peril inside Wulin, Tang San's divine sense had refrained from acting for quite some time.
Evidently, the other party was weighing the pros and cons.
Taking both incidents together, Huo Yuhao was practically certain this was no amnesiac Old Tang, but a sliver of Tang San's divine sense that had retained its memories.
Having obtained the information he needed to confirm, and with Gu Yuena here—most likely noticed by Tang San's divine sense—he had to steady the divine sense. He couldn't allow it to lose composure and strike at her because of her arrival.
This Miss Elaina was a bit dense. He could handle Tang San's hidden traps on his own; all he wanted was for her to live peacefully without stirring up trouble...
Gu Yuena paused upon hearing his words. Meeting Huo Yuhao's eyes, she suddenly grasped his line of thinking. After a moment's consideration, she said, "Then we'll do as you suggest. Let him continue to grow for now to see if this bloodline power can be strengthened before merging it with the Dragon God's power."
"A catastrophic battle seems to have taken place in the God Realm. Even the Divine Tools of chief gods ended up on the Douluo Continent, and the God Realm itself has vanished without a trace. It likely won't return anytime soon, so I can afford to wait."
Hearing this unexpected news, Huo Yuhao was genuinely surprised.
Had first-class gods actually fallen during the original battle in the God Realm? Could his mere absence have caused so many changes?
With that in mind, Huo Yuhao swiftly pieced together several crucial details.
No matter how brutal the God Realm's civil war had been, neither The Destroyer nor Tang San would have allowed first-class gods under their command to perish and leave their Divine Tools drifting down to the Douluo Continent.
The gods who fell had most likely been slain by the Golden Dragon King...
And for first-class gods to die fighting the Golden Dragon King implied that the God Realm had been severely understaffed when confronting it initially. Much like the original situation, Tang San was probably the only Godking present at the time.
*When Tang San fought the Golden Dragon King, his condition probably wasn't good. Was it because he had been battered by The Destroyer in the civil war, or was it... the strain of defending the God Realm Core?*
If it was the latter, Huo Yuhao knew the answer by heart; after all, the formula was practically etched in stone.
*'Come and try me if you dare, Golden Dragon King! Even if I must face the turbulent temporal currents and support the God Realm with one hand, I, Sea God Tang San, remain matchless in the world!'*
The next line would definitely be that one, wouldn't it?
*'Godkings Goodness, Evil, save me!'*
Huo Yuhao chuckled inwardly, shaking his head as he glanced toward Tang Wulin.
*Not bad, Old Gold. If my guess is right, you really outdid yourself this time—pounding Sea God Tang San into the dirt and dragging first-class gods down with you.*
*A pity that going by current circumstances, Tang San himself seems largely unharmed. Still, I'll be sure to set up a monument for you.*
Chapter 77