"I won't say anything to make you let go of your hatred. You call me Senior Brother, and all I can advise is that you follow your own thoughts."
"Mm." Huo Yuhao nodded heavily, his gaze on the commander's tent gradually becoming resolute.
"Oh, right. Didn't you say you had something else to discuss earlier?"
"Yes. Big Brother Wang, do you know about Spirit Fusion?"
Seeing Wang Nan's gaze, Huo Yuhao scratched his head awkwardly again. "I didn't mean it like that. Do you know what Spirit Fusion feels like?"
Wang Nan shook his head.
"I don't know what it feels like, but for people who can achieve Spirit Fusion, their Spirits must be similar or complementary and have a very high degree of compatibility."
Huo Yuhao was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. Wang Nan's words were something a teacher at the Academy had mentioned before, and they aligned with his own thoughts. His first Spirit was a mutated Spirit, and even more so, a rare spiritual attribute. His second Spirit was an ultimate Spirit, and his third Spirit even originated from another World.
He also knew Wang Dong'er's Spirit, the Bright Goddess Butterfly, which seemed to have no connection with his Spiritual Eye. How could it be such a coincidence? What exactly was going on between him and Wang Dong'er?
Hearing Huo Yuhao's words, Wang Nan also roughly guessed something. Perhaps it was another "coincidence" that made him realize something.
Looking up at the sky, he stood up and patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder. "We still have to travel tomorrow, so get some rest tonight. When your cultivation becomes stronger, your doubts will naturally lessen."
Huo Yuhao also stood up and followed him.
In his spiritual sea, Iliex sighed softly, deep in thought.
Inside a tent, Xu Sanshi opened his eyes, looking at the empty bed beside him, then turned to look at Beibei, who was meditating.
Everything in the military camp was simplified. Marshal Dai Hao could not arrange a tent for each of the Shrek people, so all the male disciples lived together.
"Does Yuhao have something on his mind?"
Beibei, who was beside him, also slowly opened his eyes and looked outside the tent. "He should be able to handle it."
"Yuhao really doesn't seem like a child his age. Look at those two girls his age; that's how they should be at this age." Xu Sanshi said, feigning maturity. "Oh, right, did you see Yuhao's close-combat spirit tool?"
"Which one are you talking about?"
"The one with the patterns that look particularly similar to White Tiger Duke's."
"You've seen it too?" Beibei frowned.
"I'm not blind."
"If you weren't blind, how could you have… Senior Brother Gongyang…"
"Alright, alright!" Xu Sanshi suddenly raised his voice to interrupt Beibei. "I'm serious. What if Yuhao really has something to do with White Tiger Duke?"
"Trust Yuhao. No matter what it is, at least I'll stand by him."
"Me too." He Caitou, who was meditating nearby, suddenly spoke, his muffled voice coming out.
"Keep your voices down. This is still White Tiger Duke's territory. But Caitou, weren't you meditating?" Xu Sanshi quickly lowered his voice.
"I was meditating, but I stopped when I heard you two talking."
"Sigh, you Tang Sect Senior Brothers really have a good relationship."
"I invited you to join the Tang Sect, but you wouldn't."
"Let's forget about that. I also have a Sect at home waiting for me to inherit."
"Alright, we still have to travel tomorrow, so hurry up and meditate."
The tent fell silent again, but Beibei didn't immediately enter meditation. Instead, he looked in the direction of the Sun Moon Empire, his brows slightly furrowed.
The next morning, the Shrek group had already arrived outside the military camp, and Princess Xu Jiujiu personally bid them farewell.
"Marshal Dai still has to inspect other camps, so he cannot say goodbye to everyone. I apologize."
"Military matters are important; we dare not trouble the Marshal." Zhang Lexuan looked at Princess Xu Jiujiu, who was already wearing light armor. "Is Your Highness Jiujiu not planning to return?"
"War has broken out. I will stay on the front lines for a while."
After another round of pleasantries, everyone finally left the military camp. Disciples like Xu Sanshi and Huo Yuhao, who could not yet fly on their own, had already put on their flying spirit tools and soared into the sky.
Ma Xiaotao held Wang Dong'er in her arms, and with a flap of her golden-red wings, she also flew into the air.
"Senior Sister."
"What's wrong?" Zhang Lexuan glanced at Beibei, who had not yet flown into the air.
"The Academy's elders…"
Zhang Lexuan looked in the direction of the Sun Moon Empire, silent for a moment. "The elders have their plans. My job is to bring you all back to the Academy safely."
She was also worried about the elders, but just as Xuan Zi said, they, who were here, were the future of the Academy and could not afford any mishaps.
…
Tianhun Empire, within the Sunset Forest.
Here, it had gradually become difficult to distinguish between day and night since an unknown time. Even with the sun high in the sky, the forest remained dim.
Some fine dust was permeating the center of the Sunset Forest and spreading outwards.
Piles of Spirit Beast and human corpses had already accumulated on the ground, and under the influence of this dust, they were decaying at an extremely fast rate.
The Sunset Forest was enveloped by gradually spreading miasma. The forest was dim, making it difficult to discern direction. The Spirit Beasts living within it crashed around like headless flies, and only those with higher cultivation or better luck managed to escape, running desperately into the distance.
Although the area outside the Sunset Forest was sparsely populated, many people were inevitably affected during the escape of so many Spirit Beasts. Even some passersby were caught in the chaos.
Towns that had received advance warnings and were guarded by Spirit Masters fared better. Some towns that could not resist in time, or were unable to contend with the Spirit Beasts, simply vanished under the trampling of the Spirit Beasts.
At the same time, on Sea God Island at Shrek Academy, Cai Meier was frowning, looking at the information in her hand.
Martial Soul Department Head Yan Shaozhe and several elders had not yet returned after leading the Shrek Seven Devils to the Sun Moon Empire for the Elite Competition. She had taken over the affairs of the Inner Courtyard.
However, the news that came was not good.
The Shrek Supervisory Group had been carrying out missions, and many Inner Courtyard Disciples had been sent out. However, several Disciples sent to the Tianhun Empire had lost contact.
And just now, news arrived from outside the Academy about a riot in the Sunset Forest. Countless Spirit Beasts surged out of the forest and rushed outward, causing considerable unrest in the surrounding areas, and even leading to many casualties.
Even if no Disciples had gone missing in the Tianhun Empire, Shrek Academy would not stand idly by in the face of a Spirit Beast riot. However, in the face of such a riot, there were almost no people left in the Academy who could be sent out.
Just as Cai Meier was looking worried, her heart suddenly stirred. Several familiar auras seemed to have appeared on Sea God Island.