Chapter 55: Wave and Journey
--- Chapter 55 ---
A week passed quickly after the representatives of each faction returned safely. And as Huo Yuhao expected, the news about Dragon Nest's assets over Rune Stones and several other things exploded and spread like wildfire, becoming a hot topic in a matter of a day.
People are curious about the technique or the Rune Mastery Dragon Nest utilized to create Rune Stones, but the mysterious yet new organization isn't dumb enough to reveal it. There is no way Huo Yuhao allowed an outsider to know Dragon Nest's secrets because he knew just how greedy one could get.
After several months of neverending curiosity, those greedy factions would start to pressure Dragon Nest to reveal the secret, but like Naga once said. Dragon Shouldn't and Never bow to anyone.
As for the Dragon Auction Event. It ended satisfactorily because Dragon Nest gained quite a decent amount of rare material and some spirit bones. Meanwhile, a "certain." group was quite unlucky because their representatives were ambushed by Evil Spirit Masters, causing them to lose 2/5 of their Black Rune Stones. Yes, we are talking about Body Sect.
When the representatives of the Body Sect wanted to return immediately to their factions, a legion of Evil Spirit Masters in the coastal area ambushed them without mercy. Even though they are strong, a group of Evil Spirit Masters is tough to beat. This unfortunate event generated a hate spark, causing the Body Sect to declare war against Evil Spirit Masters.
...
...
Dragon Nest's Treasure Land, Advalon.
Huo Yuhao swept over Advalon's Third Wave with a group of Title Douluo. They wiped the Spirit Beast off the face of the Self-Evolving Dungeon's domain and flattened the surrounding land because it would trigger the Training Field to evolve nicely later.
"Arise." A blue-haired young man in dark-plated armor and six floating mechanical arms walked toward ten 100.000 years old spirit beasts. He didn't even worry about the terrifying enemies before his blue eyes and called several gigantic shadowy creatures to the living world.
[Great Waterfall Ape(Shadow) Lvl.94]
[Hercules Beetle Emperor(Shadow) Lvl.95]
[Everlasting Bear Lord(Shadow) Lvl.91]
[Silver Beast King(Shadow) Lvl.93]
[Mountain Lion King(Shadow) Lvl.92]
[Bronze Dragon King(Shadow) Lvl.97]
[Azure Sky Dragon(Shadow) Lvl.97]
[Tree Spirit Fairy(Shadow) Lvl.96]
[Emperor Black SwordFish(Shadow) Lvl.94]
Nine shadowy creatures emerged from Huo Yuhao's shadow and surrounded him like his loyal servants. They are his Shadow Generals brought back through Darkness Manipulation and Death Manipulation.
Unfortunately, This self-created skill based on Ashborn's original ability is limited because Huo Yuhao couldn't create more than 9 Shadow Generals right now. He had to tap more into his Fourth Spirit Ring's skills and even maybe upgrade it to 1.000.000 years old later.
"Open, Toolbox." Huo Yuhao said and watched his shadows slaughter the Dungeon's Monsters.
[Opening Toolbox...]
[Name: Toolbox]
[Type: Pocket Living Workshop]
[Grade: SSS]
[Description: Toolbox is a Pocket Living Workshop. It's a pocket dimension, incorporating several Spirit Engineering-based tools inside, akin to a Blacksmith Workshop the user could use to create all kinds of equipment]
A slime-like creature floated beside Huo Yuhao. Yes, Toolbox is an adorable golden blob of water with dim black lights around its round body. Huo Yuhao created Toolbox a few months after Dragon Nest revealed itself to the world because he didn't want to use Eas as a workshop. Eas is Huo Yuhao's trusted armor, so he couldn't waste it to become an anvil and forge.
"Palu, give me a bow." Huo Yuhao chuckled slightly and called the Toolbox's nickname, causing the golden slime to shine in joy and spew out a bow made of Spirit Bones and several other rare materials.
"YEE~!" The slime squealed excitedly.
[Name: Luminous Spine]
[Type: Reinforced Bow]
[Grade: S]
[Description: A powerful bow created from 25.000 years old Spirit Bone, Luminos Beast's Horn. Given a shape similar to a Spine after several refinements with rare materials]
[Skill: Light Horn Arrows]
Huo Yuhao grasped the Luminous Spine and stared at the pure white bow. He felt the comfortable handle and his spirit energy rushed into the body's weapon.
[Silver Ranger Class was in effect]
"Multi Shots." Huo Yuhao pulled the silk-like bowstring and used the Luminous Spine's skill to create an arrow with a horn-like head.
SWOOSH!
As Huo Yuhao released the bowstrings, over fifty arrows flew out like light pillars. "Let's do it faster." He brought Frost from inventory and activated Dawn Bringer's Class to increase his speed, fading into the darkness slowly.
[Dawn Bringer Class was in effect]
[Extreme Stealth activated]
ROAR! ROAR!
Huo Yuhao's Shadow Generals have a monster smackdown with 100.000 years old Advalon's monsters. He entered the chaotic ground and swung Frost to create a thick Ice Barrier around them.
BOOM!
The Great Waterfall Ape smacked 100.000 years old Dungeon Monsters with its shadowy water blade. And Huo Yuhao smiled because the water would help Frost's Ice Manipulation.
"Bronze Age." The Bronze Monarch blasted shadowy-colored waves and destroyed the area.
The other Shadow Generals wiped the Dungeon Monster clean and left ten shining crimson spirit rings on the area. Huo Yuhao flicked his finger and used Rune Master's Skill to store these rings into Rune Stones.
"Seal." He clenched his hand gently.
ZZT!
"Area 01 is clear." Scathach's nonchalant voice entered Huo Yuhao's earpiece.
"Area 02 is clear." Qianye Ying'er reported while breathing heavily. It seemed she had a hard time against 100.000 years old spirit beasts but still won in the end.
"Area 03 is clear."
"Area 04 is clear."
"Area 05 is clear."
"Area 06 is clear."
Several reports from other higher-ups coming right after Qianye Ying'er and Huo Yuhao nodded because everyone was doing well. "Area 07 is clear." Huo Yuhao replied while looking at the sunrise.
He chuckled and added, "Good work, everyone! Let's grab some drinks and meals!"
Everything was alright until Advalon advanced more than Huo Yuhao had assumed. The Self-Evolving Dungeon noticed its owner's power and absorbed one of his aspects, driving a new stage before the next evolution.
"Young lord, a new beast has arrived on Area 03." Liu Mei's solemn voice arrived on Huo Yuhao's earpiece. He frowned when hearing it, using the Dawn Bringer Class to create Shadow Clones.
Huo Yuhao turned around and saw a Chimera-like Spirit Beast appear before his eyes. He asked Evo to scan the Beast and smiled because it was a "great." opportunity for everyone to get a rare Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone.
[Name: Chimera]
[Type/Species: Dungeon Monster/Spirit Beast]
[Age: 500.000 years old]
[Description: Chimera is Advalon's byproduct, an amalgamation of all Spirit Beasts spawned so far and possessed great power that rival Hyper Douluo's strength]
"Yuhao, Can I kill this thing?" Scathach suddenly asked through the earpiece. She has an enthusiastic smile when seeing a new Dungeon Monster appear. And her battle spirit was burning with excitement.
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but smile and pushed the earpiece's all-call button, "Do it, Shishou. And Everyone, this is code red. Be careful of the Chimera's strength because that thing has power that rivals Hyper Douluo."
"Roger!" They responded firmly.
With everything in motion, Huo Yuhao summoned the Chains of Heaven, and seven spirit rings appeared out of thin air, shining with crimson lights. Except for the Seventh Spirit Ring because it has a "murky." brown color.
[5th Spirit Ring]
[Name: Warrior Incarnation]
[Type: Spirit Ring/Will's Piece]
[Age: 696.900 years old(Growing)]
[Description: Warrior Incarnation is Last Will's Piece from the Campione's Universe. It allowed the host to wield a force that negated one's power and divinity]
[Spirit Skills: Golden Sword, Authority Negation Chains, Anti-Divine Chains]
[6th Spirit Ring]
[Name: Karma's Core]
[Type: Spirit Ring]
[Age: 800.000 years old]
[Description: Karma's Core is Spirit Ring from Karmic Beast, Spirit Buddha Lotus. It wielded the power of Karma and even affected worldly events]
[Spirit Skill: Karma Sealing Chains, Karmic's Gaze, Desperado(Passive)]
[7th Spirit Ring]
[Name: Heaven and Earth's Essence]
[Age: 1.000.000 years old]
[Description: A crystallization of Advalon's Second Core. It contained power over Heaven and Earth]
[Spirit Skills: Enkidu's True Avatar, Eternal Age of Babylon, Enuma Elish]
"Divine Constructs."
Huo Yuhao's fifth and seventh spirit rings gradually released an intense ancient light and transformed the land around them into a Golden Domain full of Chains of Heavens. "Pierce him, Enuma Elish." He looked at the Chimera and ordered the divine-binding weapon.
BOOM!
Over a thousand chains flared from the ground and soared to the Chimera, pressuring the whole 07's sector area with terrifying forces.
ROAR!
The Chimera tried to fight back by releasing intense lightning, but under the Authority Negation, It quickly negated. Enuma Elish covered the sky and fell to the Chimera, swarming the Dungeon Beast like no tomorrow.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Absolute Destruction, Huo Yuhao didn't leave the Chimera to fight back and used "decisive." force to kill it. He created wormholes to move the Dungeon's Beast and called upon the Golden Sword to behead it.
[Avenger Class was in effect]
"O Sword, shine with brilliance for the sake of my victory and justice!"
Huo Yuhao's Eyes of the Lord activated and used the Divine Reflection to copy Chimera's characteristics. He lifted the Golden Sword and swung it gently, cutting the Dungeon Beast's head off.
[You have killed Chimera]
"Phew... How is everyone?" He asked while pushing the earpiece.
Qianye Ying'er sighed in relief and replied, "Thanks for sending your clone here, Yuhao. The Chimera is far stronger than I expected."
"Everything is alright, Kiddo." A burst of laughter reached the earpieces, coming from Yun Han. The Drunken Ocean Douluo was standing in the Chimera's light essence currently.
"Go get some drinks, old man." Huo Yuhao laughed too. "Advalon would start advancing soon."
Other replies came to Huo Yuhao's earpieces, reassuring him that everyone was alright and not injured. However, the most unexpected response is Scathach, who killed two Chimera herself in just a few seconds. She only lifted five of her seals, which means the God Slayer's strength has increased again.
[Advalon is evolving...] Giana's warning echoed.
[Please return to the outside world quickly]
After looting everything, Huo Yuhao and the Dragon Nest's elite warriors returned to the Trisakti. Huo Yuhao told Liu Mei to count the resources they gathered from Advalon's Third Wave. Sitting on the floor, Scathach plopped her head on Huo Yuhao's lap and groaned in a giddy mood.
"Congratulations, Shishou." Huo Yuhao brushed Scathach's purple hair.
Scathach giggled and replied, "You know already?"
The Dragon Nest's leader shrugged his shoulder and commented, "Of course. Your Spirit Circuits released a more potent Spirit Energy, which means your innate strength has reached the Tenth Stage."
After studying Universal Breathing Technique and Spirit Circuits further, Scathach and Huo Yuhao discovered that the mastery of both "actually." was divided into ten layers.
The 1st to 3rd layer showed how a Spirit Master could manipulate Spirit Energy within their Spirit Circuits. This stage also indicated how skillful one's breathing technique was And boosted one's strength three times.
The 4th to 6th layer showed how a Spirit Master could manifest Spirit Circuits onto the physical world, usually in the shape of an imperfect mask. This stage is called "Soulification." and boosts the Spirit Master's power by five times.
The 7th to 9th layer is an advancement of the previous stage, but the manifestation is perfect. Usually, the Spirit Master's face "literally." was covered by a perfect-looking mask with the Crest Symbol on it. This stage boosted one's strength by ten times.
However, All nine layers only boosted the Spirit Master's strength by a "certain." period, roughly one to three hours. And the last layer allowed Spirit Masters to increase their strengths by fifteen times constantly. No cooldown period because they can use Universal Breathing Technique indefinitely.
"Let me take a nap," Scathach said while closing her eyes.
Huo Yuhao caressed her hair and replied, "Go sleep, Shishou. We have a journey tomorrow."
...
...
The following day.
At the Dragon Nest's warping gate, Huo Yun'er hugged her beloved son like a koala and cried because she didn't want him to go. "Nooo! I don't want Hao'er to go!" She yelled while tightening her grip.
On the side, Qianye Ying'er and Scathach were speechless because Huo Yun'er agreed to let Huo Yuhao go last night. Yet, She changed her mind so quickly.
"Ma'am, you know that Yuhao can return anytime he wants to the Dragon Nest, right?" Qianye Ying'er suddenly said, which stopped Huo Yun'er for a moment. "He easily could create a wormhole to the front door of our house while yawning."
"Yes, I can do that." Huo Yuhao added with a weak smile.
Huo Yun'er wiped her tears clean and asked, "Will you return for a noon cuddle? What about the night? I can't sleep without you on the bed."
"I also need a morning kiss..."
Huo Yuhao kissed her on the cheek and returned, "Sure. Now, can I go?"
The mother embraced Huo Yuhao with all her might and used Time Manipulation to freeze the area to make this moment even longer. After quite a long moment, she freed him.
"G-Go... Visit me often. Or I'll find you personally."
"I love you, mom." Huo Yuhao said while hugging her back.
As the young man waved his hand and entered the warp gate with his companions, Huo Yun'er picked tissue from her spatial storage and wiped her tears.
"I missed Hao'er already..."
"Um, Mistress." Liu Mei approached Huo Yun'er and naturally explained. "The factions that agreed to our Student Exchange Program have sent their students to Java Island."
"I was about to tell the young lord, but he has gone on his journey. Here is the list."
Huo Yun'er picked the tablet from Liu Mei's hand and scanned through the list. Since Huo Yun'er was distracted from Huo Yuhao's journey, she could focus more on this. And after reading the document keenly, Huo Yun'er nodded because almost all of the factions agreed besides Body Sect.
"Take them to the 1st Branch of the Dragon Nest Academy." She replied while returning the tablet.
Liu Mei nodded calmly and added, "What about the representatives who arrived alongside the student?"
Huo Yun'er mulled for a few minutes because she couldn't let representatives have too much control. After all, They are here to monitor if Dragon Nest Academy is teaching things to their students or not. "Where are the representatives right now?" She questioned with a solemn look.
"Dragon Nest's Third Base. Tower City, Orario." Liu Mei clicked on her tablet and showed Huo Yun'er a hologram of a group of people.
Huo Yun'er smirked and said, "Well, let's greet them first."
...
...
Huo Yuhao, Qianye Ying'er, and Scathach arrived at the Northern Sea City and were "immediately." welcomed by Dragon Nest's members who guarded the warp gate.
"Welcome to the Northern Sea City's base." A young woman bowed to Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao shook his head and replied, "Raise your head."
"Thanks, my lord." She bowed even more, which caused Qianye Ying'er and Scathach to giggle on the side.
"Anyway, let's go to the Star Dou Forest first." Huo Yuhao said while picking White Ogre Mask.
"Finally, an exciting journey." Scathach stretched her body a little and wore a black mask to cover her lower face.
Qianye Ying'er followed Huo Yuhao and Scathach's acts, wearing a pure white veil to cover her appearance. She looked around the Northern Sea City and smiled because it's been six years since she was here. "Yuhao, is there something important in the Star Dou Forest?" She couldn't help but ask curiously.
Huo Yuhao chuckled behind his mask and answered, "Well, we are going there to find a worm."
"A worm??"
"Yes, a worm."
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