"?" Opening his eyes and rubbing his head, Huo Yuhao felt a bit confused.
"What's going on? Did I fall asleep?" He looked toward the sunlight streaming through the dorm window and felt that his mind was much clearer than before.
It was still early in the morning, and Wang Dong was still fast asleep in her bed.
Huo Yuhao frowned. He first accessed the memories stored in his spiritual clone through his shared consciousness with the Skydream Iceworm and found nothing unusual. It seemed that he had simply fallen asleep through the night.
The same went for Wang Dong. It was likely her first time entering deep sleep, which explained why she hadn't woken up all night.
"Stop looking around, child. It was I who made you fall asleep yesterday. How was your rest,comfortable enough?"
An aged voice echoed from within Huo Yuhao's spiritual sea.
As if anticipating Huo Yuhao's next question, the voice continued, "Balance between tension and relaxation is necessary. Proper rest is essential,you understand that, don't you?"
Huo Yuhao raised his eyebrows. Of course, he understood that Electrolux meant well,but wasn't his method of helping him "relax" a bit too forceful?
"Senior Electrolux, next time, please tell me in advance before you do something like that."
"Understood," Electrolux replied, sounding somewhat weary. Last night's sleep wasn't ordinary; rather, Electrolux had guided Huo Yuhao's mental power through his divine sense to help him fully relax.
It didn't consume his divine sense, but it was still exhausting work.
"Ahh, that was such a good sleep,but why am I so hungry? Huo Yuhao, let's go eat lunch! If we're late, the cafeteria will close."
Stretching lazily, Wang Dong yawned as she spoke.
"Of course you're hungry,you've slept for a whole day and night. Eat something first."
Huo Yuhao took out a packed meal from his storage soul tool and handed it to her.
"Huh?" Wang Dong froze for a moment, staring in disbelief at the setting sun outside the window.
"What did you say? I thought I only slept for a couple of hours! Oh no, did I catch whatever you have?"
"You're overthinking it. It's normal for your first deep sleep to last longer. It helps your mind and body fully relax,it's good for your mental recovery. It won't happen again."
"Anyway, eat quickly. We've got something to do afterward."
Wang Dong looked puzzled as she ate. "Something to do? Isn't today a holiday?"
Huo Yuhao placed a red, gold-embossed invitation card on the table. "It is, but there's a Treasure Appreciation Gathering happening in Shrek City. They've invited core disciples from Shrek Academy to attend. This is your invitation."
Wang Dong's eyes lit up, and she started eating faster. "Really? I've heard of that! They say Shrek students even get discounts!"
"Yeah. Finish up and get ready. There's a sponsor this time," Huo Yuhao said as he straightened his clothes.
"Huh? A sponsor? Who?"
Wiping her mouth with a handkerchief, Wang Dong looked curious.
"You've met her,Ning Tian from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. She just told me about the event."
"What? Don't tell me she's interested in you!"
Wang Dong suddenly looked wary. "People from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect never do anything without a reason. Don't let them trick you!"
"Mhm," Huo Yuhao nodded. "I understand. She is interested in me,just not that way. She's interested in my future potential. We had a brief discussion this afternoon."
"The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and the Tang Sect have some connections. She's not trying to recruit me, just to establish familiarity,maybe owe a favor at most."
"Still, it'd be a waste not to go. Let's head out,it'll be good experience."
What Huo Yuhao truly cared about, though, were the pills being sold at the event.
To someone with the Eye of Truth, the alchemy methods of the Douluo Continent were unbelievably primitive.
Even from the process of making the Xuan Shui Pill, it was clear that most pills were just crude mixtures of medicinal herbs and soul beast essence blood forced together by their natural energy.
Calling them "elixirs" was generous,they were barely more than medicinal pellets, with no technical refinement.
As Electrolux would say, it was pure waste. With the same ingredients, he could produce results ten times more potent.
Still, this gave Huo Yuhao an advantage. Under Electrolux's guidance, he could refine these rough "pills" into purer and more effective magical potions using proper alchemical techniques.
Though Electrolux was not a potion master by trade, as the most gifted God-ranked mage in the history of the Holy Magus Continent, potion-making was trivial for him.
Next, there were the soul tools. The gathering was a rare chance to see many of them displayed publicly, so Huo Yuhao was eager to study their core inscriptions in detail.
Once Wang Dong finished eating and changed clothes, the two headed to the main gate of Shrek Academy, where they found Ning Tian waiting with her two companions, Wu Feng and Nanmen Yun'er.
Wu Feng's eyes were filled with hostility, while Nanmen Yun'er's body stiffened slightly,clearly still traumatized from their previous encounter during the freshman assembly.
Huo Yuhao ignored Wu Feng entirely; her strength was beneath his notice. Instead, he addressed Ning Tian directly.
"Apologies. I was delayed by training."
"No problem. We only just arrived ourselves. By the way, where's your other teammate?"
"Xiao Xiao's probably busy trying to break through a bottleneck,she won't be coming," Huo Yuhao replied calmly. Xiao Xiao was likely pushing from level 28 to 29.
For most soul masters, channeling and expanding soul power required meditation. Breaking through bottlenecks was a difficult test,meditating for five or six hours straight wasn't unusual.
Unlike Huo Yuhao, whose soul power flowed freely with the Skydream Iceworm's support, others didn't have such "cheats."
After that, the five of them set out together toward the Jubao Pavilion, where the Treasure Appreciation Gathering was being held.
Along the way, Ning Tian noticed Wu Feng's animosity toward Huo Yuhao. Though she didn't know why, as the young mistress of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, she made sure to reprimand Wu Feng,this was an event to build goodwill, not enmity.
After that, Wu Feng restrained herself somewhat.
Shrek City, Jubao Pavilion.
This was the largest store in the entire city, selling all kinds of goods related to soul masters and soul engineers. It had four floors, covered a vast area, and stood over twenty meters tall. Golden and resplendent, its exterior resembled a giant treasure basin.
"We're here."
Inside, they were greeted by young receptionists,girls around seventeen or eighteen, without innate soul power but all beautiful, graceful, and elegantly dressed. It was clear the pavilion had trained them specifically for presentation and allure.
The purpose was obvious: to enhance the pavilion's image and entice the young, impulsive Shrek students into spending more.
After presenting their invitations, a smiling hostess led them deeper inside.
The second floor was reserved for the core disciples' viewing area.
In the center, a series of display booths showcased treasures under crystal glass domes, illuminated perfectly to highlight every detail.
"Welcome, honored guests, to the Jubao Pavilion's Treasure Appreciation Gathering. Please browse freely. If you find anything you like, head to the west side of this floor to make a purchase."
"If you wish to check your credit limit or discount eligibility, that can also be done on the west side."
Though Ning Tian was from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, even she had never participated in a formal evaluation like this before, and certainly not Wu Feng or Nanmen Yun'er. So, under the guide's lead, they all went westward.
As they walked, the dazzling variety of treasures made their eyes swim.
Huo Yuhao soon noticed a large display case with a floating golden-red soul bone inside.
It was the same one that, in the original story, he had spent 9.5 million gold soul coins to buy for Wang Dong.
But this time, Wang Dong didn't seem particularly drawn to it,perhaps because she already possessed another torso bone.
Whatever the case, it didn't matter much to Huo Yuhao,his soul power wasn't aligned with the light attribute anyway.
Still, he gained a lot. Many soul tools were displayed openly, and with his Eye of Truth, their core inscriptions were like open books to him.
He memorized each one effortlessly,even the complex designs of level seven soul tools.
After walking nearly a hundred meters, they reached a counter at the western end. A polite young woman behind it stood and said,
"Welcome, soul masters. Please fill out these evaluation forms."
Five simple forms were placed before them.
Ning Tian, Wu Feng, and Nanmen Yun'er didn't take the forms,they were from the wealthy Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and had no need for credit or discounts. To them, favors owed to Shrek Academy were worth far more than money.
Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong, however, filled theirs out normally.
As someone from a civilian background, Huo Yuhao valued resources more than pride. How he obtained them didn't matter.
Wang Dong simply followed his lead. She wasn't one to bother with social details. Even as the nominal young mistress of the Clear Sky Sect, she hadn't been trained in social dealings,nor did the sect care much for such things.
The Clear Sky Sect relied on absolute strength and the legacy of Tang San, not diplomacy.
"Gentlemen, your credit and discount evaluations are complete," the receptionist said with a warm smile, placing two purple cards before them.
"Your rank is the highest available for your grade,Purple. Each of you has a credit limit of 100,000 gold soul coins, usable once per year. It will need to be reassessed annually."
"With this card, you can enjoy a 10% discount on all purchases, plus additional discounts exclusive to this event."
Huo Yuhao raised an eyebrow and accepted the card.
He had expected Wang Dong to receive a higher rank due to her superior soul power and performance, but apparently, purple was the maximum for their grade.
"Is this the highest level for our year, or is there another reason?" he wondered silently, turning the card in his fingers.
Then he smiled and said to the others,
"Alright, let's continue exploring the Treasure Appreciation Gathering."
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