Upon hearing these words, the members of the Soul Hall instantly conjured up a scenario in their minds where Feng Piaoling had swallowed his pride and even resorted to playing along with the enemy for the sake of revenge. When they looked at him again, their eyes welled up with tears. Even the two grown men, Huang Chutian and Wang Gang, began wiping away their tears.
Although Xuan Ziwen did not know Feng Piaoling's background, a smile appeared on his face upon seeing him like this, and his gaze toward him carried a few more degrees of recognition and praise compared to before.
Feng Piaoling stood at the edge of the laboratory corridor, looking down at the crowded playground below. With his back turned to everyone, he said:
"In this world, not everything will go as you wish. The longer you live... the more you can realize that reality is fraught with helplessness, pain, and emptiness. Where there is light, there must be shadows. If there is a concept of a victor, there must simultaneously exist a loser. And what we must do before we are strong enough is to utilize every resource at our disposal to strengthen and enrich ourselves, thereby becoming the ultimate victors."
Hearing this, everyone nodded heavily. At this moment, Feng Piaoling's silhouette seemed to magnify infinitely in their minds. Each of them clenched their right fist, their fighting spirit soaring and their confidence brimming. Even Ju Zi was affected by the atmosphere, and the gaze she directed at Feng Piaoling gradually lit up with a spark.
Right at that moment, Na Na walked out of the laboratory, her eyes already swollen and red from crying. She approached Feng Piaoling, her knees buckling as she prepared to kneel, but Feng Piaoling raised his hand and released a gentle wave of teal soul power to support her.
"You do not need to do this. Although I value your martial soul and talent and wish to invite you to join my sect, rescuing your parents was not done to force your gratitude in return."
Na Na nodded gently, "Thank you, Master, for helping me fulfill my greatest wish. From this day forward, you are my master. I am willing to serve you as a servant and a maid for the rest of my life, faithful until death."
She had long sworn in her heart that whoever could rescue her parents and help their souls find liberation would be recognized as her master. It was just a pity that up until now, she had never found anyone capable of rescuing her parents and helping their souls move on. Now that Feng Piaoling had saved her parents and helped them find peace, Feng Piaoling would be her master from this day forward.
Feng Piaoling, however, shook his head, "I only recruit companions, not servants. If you insist on recognizing me as your master, then I am sorry, but I cannot allow you to join."
"This..." Feng Piaoling's words caused Na Na, who had been determined to acknowledge him as master regardless of his rejection, to freeze in astonishment.
"I told you long ago that our boss is very kind."
"Why are you still standing there in a daze? Hurry up and call him boss."
Seeing this, Lan Susu and Lan Luolu, who were on good terms with her, hurriedly stepped forward to strike while the iron was hot.
Na Na smiled understandingly, "Boss."
Though she said it out loud, in the deepest recesses of her heart, she had already regarded Feng Piaoling as her master.
"Jie jie jie..." Feng Piaoling smiled faintly, "Na Na, in my capacity as the Hall Master of the Soul Hall, I welcome your arrival."
The next day, Feng Piaoling imparted the Azure Lotus Sword Manual to both Xuan Ziwen and Na Na. It was worth mentioning that Na Na, much like Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, and Cui Yajie, also possessed the talent to cultivate the Soul-Cleaving Divine Eye. Consequently, Feng Piaoling immediately taught it to her.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side of the story, right as Feng Piaoling was instructing Na Na, Huo Yuhao had braved countless dangers and finally returned to Shrek Academy. It was only due to the side effects of his Glacial Ape martial soul that he had needed to dig holes along the way to settle down and deal with the aftereffects, which ultimately caused a significant delay. As a result, he arrived several days later than he had in the original timeline. Consequently, almost everyone believed that something had happened to him.
"Teacher Zhou, has Yuhao still not returned? How about I go over to the Soul Tool Department to ask again?"
This was already the countless time Dai Huabin had come to ask Zhou Yi.
Zhou Yi's brow was tightly knit, and her eyes could hardly conceal her anger, "There is no need to go. I have already asked. What on earth is that brat Huo Yuhao trying to do? He clearly told me that the Soul Tool Department had arranged a teacher to help him acquire his soul ring, but Fan Yu told me that Huo Yuhao told him the Martial Soul Department had arranged a teacher to help him acquire his soul ring—he lied to both sides. The result is that absolutely no one went with him. Tell me, how is it not courting death for a spiritual-system soul master with barely any offensive capabilities to hunt for a soul ring entirely on his own?"
Hearing this, Dai Huabin grew even more anxious, "Ah, what should we do then? No, I need to go look for him..."
"Stand right there, you are not allowed to go anywhere." Zhou Yi pressed down on his shoulder, letting out a long sigh in her heart.
With Huo Yuhao having been gone for so long, the odds were high that he was already dead. She had already lost Huo Yuhao as a student; she could not afford to lose Dai Huabin as well. If something happened to him too, then she would truly have no hope left of being reinstated to her position.
"Teacher Zhou." Dai Huabin was so anxious that tears were on the verge of falling.
Zhou Yi comforted him, "I am sure he was simply delayed by something. How about this, go look for Bei Bei and Tang Ya first. Huo Yuhao belongs to the Tang Sect; perhaps he went to look for Bei Bei and Tang Ya to help him hunt for a soul ring? It would be for the best if they aren't around. With the two of them present, Huo Yuhao shouldn't run into any danger; they likely just haven't found a suitable soul ring yet. After all, as you know, spiritual-system soul beasts are exceptionally rare."
"Alright." Dai Huabin turned and left.
The moment his front foot left, Zhou Yi dashed out of the window, leaping toward the senior division. In reality, Zhou Yi had already sought out Tang Ya and Bei Bei to ask them. Those two had not taken Huo Yuhao to hunt for a soul ring. She wanted to have Tang Ya and Bei Bei hide before Dai Huabin arrived, lest Dai Huabin do something reckless out of despair.
A short while later, Dai Huabin located Bei Bei and Tang Ya's classroom, and the result was naturally that they were nowhere to be found. This allowed his heart to breathe a sigh of relief.
On the way back to the dormitory, images of his life and studies in the same dormitory with Huo Yuhao over the past year continuously surfaced in Dai Huabin's mind. The two of them had studied together, cultivated together, participated in the freshman evaluation together, been beaten by Feng Piaoling together... they had walked through Shrek's beautiful first year together.
Gradually, Dai Huabin became dazed and lost in thought. He had already passed his twelfth birthday, making him a few months older than Huo Yuhao. In his entire life, this was only the second time he had missed someone this deeply. The last time it was Feng Piaoling—an enemy, so he died. This time, it was Huo Yuhao. It was his lover.
He didn't know why, but ever since the entrance examination concluded, his mind had been entirely filled with the other youth's silhouette. Now, the break had long since ended. He had returned, but what about him? Where had Huo Yuhao gone? Could he have already returned to the dormitory?
Carrying the anticipation within his heart, Dai Huabin ran back to the dormitory alone. The result was naturally an empty room.
Dejected and despondent, Dai Huabin curled up on the bed by himself, neither cultivating nor sleeping. Just like that, he wrapped his arms around his legs, pressed his cheek against his knees, and stared blankly toward the dormitory door, his mouth continuously murmuring Huo Yuhao's name.
This scene looked precisely like a wife awaiting her husband's return home!
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