Huo Zhanji and Dai Ying exchanged a glance before looking at the elfin-like girl holding the fat cat.
"Um, well, we're here to find Dad... Lingbing Douluo!"
"We're his relatives."
"Um, may I ask who you are?"
"We might... we might have the wrong address."
The Shadow Cat stared at Dai Ying and Huo Zhanji with its large, dark eyes for a moment, then tilted its head.
It was the second oldest being to follow Huo Yuhao, earlier than Tianmeng Ice Silkworm and Golden Tortoiseshell, only a little later than the Remnant Dream Blade.
Now it had begun to develop sentience and would soon be able to connect to the magic network.
In its memory, there was never a trace of these two people.
Xia Die's eyes revealed deep doubt, her fair and shapely legs shifting slightly backward, a little wary, but not afraid.
Because she knew that her brother Adam was right beside her.
"Your Excellencies, you have come to the right place."
"This is indeed the home of Spirit Ice Douluo."
Dai Ying had a bad feeling and asked softly,
"May I ask what your relationship is with Spirit Ice Douluo?"
Xia Die answered without hesitation, speaking earnestly and solemnly to the two of them,
"Spirit Ice Douluo is my father."
"This is Shadow Cat, my father's cat."
Shadow Cat nuzzled Xia Die's pretty face and meowed at the two of them in response.
"Meow!"
Hearing Xia Die's ethereal and firm words, Huo Zhanji and Dai Ying were stunned, their minds buzzing.
"Father...Father?"
Dai Ying took a half step back, her eyes filled with disbelief.
She was certain that her father only had two children, and given the relationship between her father and mother, it was impossible for him to have cheated.
This timeline was so different from theirs!
Where was their mother now?
Of course, their timeline's "Huo Yuhao" hadn't told them about Ju Zi and Xu Yunhan.
"You...who is your mother?"
Xia Die's hand was already on the door, her amethyst-like face wary.
A normal person, faced with this kind of blatant disarming, would have already unleashed their martial soul and attacked.
It was only because Xia Die was so kind that she spoke so much to two strangers.
Xia Die was the gentlest and kindest of all Huo Yuhao's creations; the power of death had not corrupted her heart, and she remained steadfast.
Perhaps it was precisely this noble soul that moved the Death God, residing at the lowest level of the world.
Xia Die was also well aware that her father was an orphan, her mother had died long ago, and she had no relatives—all of this had been told to her by Huo Yuhao himself.
"Gentlemen, if there's nothing else, please leave."
"My father is not currently in Xilu City."
Xia Die prepared to close the door, but Dai Ying hurriedly said,
"Wait a minute!"
"Um! Could you make a video call so we can meet with Lingbing Douluo?"
"This is very important to us! Please."
Dai Ying and Huo Zhanji showed sincere expressions; they truly had nowhere else to turn.
Unable to contact the gods, with no clue about time travel, and their father forbidding them from contacting their maternal grandfather in the divine realm, their only hope now lay with Huo Yuhao in this timeline.
Xia Die, seeing their sincere expressions, showed a conflicted look on her usually indifferent face.
She didn't want to trouble her father; Xia Die knew Huo Yuhao was doing something very important in the far north.
Suddenly, she noticed ripples in the air behind them, and Adam's figure reappeared, nodding slightly to her.
Xia Die released her hand from the closing door, put down the Shadow Cat, and the Shadow Cat squatted down next to Xia Die's calves, staring at the two people in front of her, looking ready to activate its Spinosaurus form at any moment.
As a noble cat, it knew when it could hiss and when it couldn't.
"Hmm."
"But I need to ask Father first."
Dai Ying and Huo Zhanji breathed a sigh of relief and said in unison,
"Thank you very much."
Xia Die summoned the magic network screen, found Huo Yuhao's contact information, and then sent a message to inquire.
'Golden Chef': "Father, two people have come to the door.
They say they are your relatives and want to meet you."
"Can we video chat?"
Huo Yuhao was sunbathing on the icy beach in the far north.
Not far away was the Far North Shipyard, which was under rapid construction.
The Titan Snow Demon Clan and the Ice Bear Clan were working hard with human engineers to complete the installation of various facilities.
Ice Phoenix Clan and Ice Dragon Clan flew in the sky, helping to transport materials.
There were also spirit attribute soul beasts like Mirror Beasts coordinating the cooperation between the various divisions.
At the current construction speed, the Far North Shipyard will be completed in about a week, and then it will take another three months to complete the construction of the ocean-going vessel, the Sailor.
"Xiuxiu, get me a glass of juice."
A girl with long, dark blue hair and eyes stopped her small hand that was moving on Huo Yuhao's shoulder and said with a look of disgust,
"Why don't you just get it yourself?"
Huo Yuhao removed the two slices of cucumber covering his eyes and said with a hint of sadness,
"You know, I'm the one who took you in now."
"You eat my food and use my things."
"You used to let me touch your belly." "
Now that you're in human form, you don't even want me to touch your belly anymore, you complain about getting me a glass of juice."
"The world has really changed." "
Xiuxiu, you don't want a video of me patting your belly to be posted on the magic network, do you?"
Bai Xiuxiu's face darkened, she pinched Huo Yuhao's shoulder hard and said through gritted teeth,
"Please calm down."
"I've seen this kind of talk too many times on the magic network!"
I suspect you started this trend!"
"I'll get it for you."
Bai Xiuxiu went to a small shed not far away to get the juice.
Huo Yuhao glanced at her back and then continued to look at the boundless sea.
This hungry shark had completed its transformation seven days ago.
Ten thousand years was no threshold for this princess of the Demon Soul Great White Shark; she easily crossed it.
The moment she stepped onto land, she was captured by the magic network and successfully connected.
Every night before bed, this little shark would silently recite the name of the Spirit Lord in her dwelling.
She would recite it again upon waking in the morning, nagging Huo Yuhao more punctually than an alarm clock.
Huo Yuhao sensed a message from the magic network and clicked to see it was from his adorable Butterfly.
He sat up straight and glanced at Butterfly's message.
"Oh ho, I didn't go looking for those two, and they actually came looking for me?"
"Interesting."
Huo Yuhao didn't even need to guess; he knew it was those two bastards.
And they probably wanted to steal his gold coins.
Huo Yuhao initiated a video call with Butterfly; he wanted to see what those two were up to.
Far away in Xilu City, Butterfly saw Huo Yuhao initiate the video call and immediately accepted.
"My dearest Butterfly, and my big fat cat, how have you been lately?"
A smile appeared on Xia Die's indifferent yet exquisite face as she gently picked up the Shadow Cat, prompting Huo Yuhao to exclaim, "My daughter has grown up so beautifully, her strength and spirit are unparalleled!"
"Mmm!"
"We're about to go to the Continental Advanced Soul Master Tournament with everyone."
"The Shadow Cat has gotten fatter recently."
"Meow!"
The Shadow Cat twisted its body slightly in dissatisfaction and meowed softly.
Xia Die rested her chin on the Shadow Cat's large black head, feeling the softness and warmth of its fur.
Huo Yuhao watched this scene with a smile.
"Alright, turn the screen around and let me see what my relatives look like. So I have relatives after all."
Xia Die turned the magic network screen around, and Huo Yuhao's face instantly turned serious as he scrutinized Dai Ying and Huo Zhanji's appearances.
Dai Ying and Huo Zhanji looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar faces on the screen, both feeling somewhat nervous.
"Dad..."
Huo Zhanji was about to speak when Huo Yuhao immediately made a shushing gesture to interrupt him, then said:
"Don't say it out loud, I'm not."
"But it is indeed quite interesting."
"Introduce yourselves."
The two immediately straightened up and began to introduce themselves seriously.
"Huo Zhanji, Martial Soul: Spirit Eye."
"Dai Ying, Martial Soul: Goddess of Light Butterfly."
Huo Yuhao chuckled, looking at the older, black-haired girl, and said,
"Surname Dai?"
"Not bad."
"However, did your father ever tell you?
Don't easily accept the surname Dai in this era."
The last sentence carried a chilling undertone, causing Dai Ying to tremble.
Huo Zhanji, standing beside her, suddenly felt paralyzed.
He realized the last sentence didn't seem to be spoken through a screen. He frantically mobilized his soul power and mental energy, looking up to see the magic network screen was now empty.
A large hand slapped Huo Zhanji's shoulder, the abyss-like mental energy pressing down on him, making it hard to breathe.
Dai Ying felt the same way; her Soul Douluo's soul power and mental energy seemed trapped in quagmire, completely unable to circulate.
"Why...?"
Huo Yuhao stood in front of Xia Die, gently stroking her head, and said to the side,
"Audrey, take Xia Die home to sleep. She has to go to school tomorrow.
I want to practice with my two good boys."
An elegant blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl appeared out of thin air, gave Huo Yuhao a slight bow, and gently led Xia Die back into the villa.
Xia Die glanced at Huo Yuhao, somewhat worried, but still obediently returned to the villa with Audrey.
Adam also came to Huo Yuhao, his golden eyes calmly watching the two who were unable to move.
"Why?"
"Because your surname is Dai."
Huo Yuhao glanced at the two, waved his hand, and the surrounding space instantly changed, arriving in the forest outside Xilu City.
Huo Zhanji and Dai Ying felt their bodies relax and gasped for breath.
Huo Yuhao's figure suddenly appeared in front of Huo Zhanji, his dark eyes slightly brightening, and Huo Zhanji's spiritual eyes involuntarily opened as well.
"Your name is quite good."
"That guy doesn't seem to have completely given up; he even knows to let you have the surname Huo."
"Get lost, I want to have some fun with your sister."
Huo Yuhao slapped Huo Zhanji away, sending him flying.
He couldn't even unleash his Fallen Angel skill, crashing straight into a rock wall and embedding himself deeply.
The surrounding rock wall seemed to come alive, beginning to envelop him within the rock.
Huo Yuhao had held back, not killing him.
If Huo Zhanji had come alone, Huo Yuhao might have taken him out for a nice meal.
Unfortunately, he had a sister surnamed Dai beside him.
At first, seeing the two of them on the screen, Huo Yuhao wouldn't have been so angry.
But seeing their bloodline so familiar in reality, and the fact that one of them had the surname Dai, made Huo Yuhao very uncomfortable.
"You born evil brat from the Dai family, let me see what you're made of to dare to have the surname Dai!"
Huo Yuhao waved his hand, and a huge, pale skeleton appeared beside him, a white longsword slashing down fiercely towards Dai Ying.
The longsword carried a terrifying aura, the surrounding air being whipped up into a violent gust of wind.
Dai Ying's mouth opened slightly, as if she was about to say something, but was swallowed by the airflow, her long black hair fluttering in the wind.
"The third move of the Nine Absolute Techniques of the Underworld, Underworld King Transforms into a Blade for Instant Strike!"
Dai Ying gritted her teeth, unleashing the Nine Absolute Techniques of the Underworld that her teacher, Ah Dai, had taught her.
This move was the most powerful sword technique in Ah Dai's world, and also Dai Ying's most proficient move.
A gigantic blade of ghostly blue light formed in mid-air, carrying terrifying evil and ruthless energy to meet the white longsword in the sky.
White and gray-blue collided in mid-air, the resulting terrifying sword force almost tearing the earth apart; the surrounding trees were reduced to dust in the sword force.
Huo Yuhao's eyes flickered slightly upon seeing this move.
This Nine Absolute Techniques of the Underworld was indeed impressive, its techniques more ingenious than any other sword technique in the Douluo Continent.
He silently used the immense computing power of the magic network to completely record this move, intending to analyze it later.
"The inherently evil brat from the Dai family, not bad moves."
"Where's the second strike?"
Huo Yuhao still didn't move.
A second, even more imposing white longsword appeared in the air, instantly igniting with pitch-black flames, with Amaterasu instantly attaching to it.
The second longsword fell, shattering the Netherworld Slash, and then its shadow covered Dai Ying's entire body.
The entire forest could witness this enormous longsword; the mere wind pressure from its fall left an empty white line in the verdant forest.
She hurriedly used the second move of the Nine Absolute Techniques of the Netherworld, Netherworld Continuous Flash, desperately holding off the white longsword burning with high-temperature black flames.
The ground beneath her feet crumbled inch by inch, and her soul power began to rapidly deplete.
Huo Yuhao's eyes brightened slightly, activating Spiritual Empowerment, and countless threads of spiritual power extended into the void.
This time, Huo Yuhao imbued space with spirit.
The surrounding space displayed magnificent scenes like a kaleidoscope.
Huo Yuhao waved his hand, and the activated space transformed into countless invisible blades, piercing towards Dai Ying, who was supporting the white longsword.
Dai Ying's hair stood on end. After all, she was once a god, and her senses were extremely sharp.
"The fourth move of the Nine Absolute Techniques of the Underworld, Underworld Shadow!"
The attack, originally intended for offense, was now used for evasion.
Dai Ying transformed into several ghostly blue shadows, fleeing in all directions.
Invisible spatial blades tore through the shadows, locking onto her true form.
Then, the blades converged, forming a long spear like a kaleidoscope, first sealing off space before stabbing fiercely towards her chest.
Dai Ying realized this attack was impossible to defend against; it was an attack purely composed of space.
Using her martial soul, the Goddess of Light Butterfly, Dai Ying dodged to the side.
The spatial spear pierced her shoulder, leaving a bloody hole from which crimson blood flowed.
The activated earth, combined with the activated space, bound Dai Ying.
Dai Ying's soul power was visibly depleted. Normally, as a Soul Douluo, she wouldn't be this weak.
However, this world was frantically rejecting her, causing her soul power consumption to increase exponentially, especially considering the injuries left by the spatial turbulence within her body.
"Dad! Stop!"
Huo Yuhao, carrying the dazzling Sun Wheel Spear, slowly approached Dai Ying, saying,
"Oh?"
"You're even calling me 'Dad' to save your life?"
"I despise you."
(End of Chapter)
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