Chapter 453: Chapter 453: Leaving the Extreme North, Setting Off for Shrek Academy!
Zhang Lexuan’s figure flickered as she descended, landing several meters from Huo Yuhao. Her black robe lifted lightly in the wind and snow.
"How exactly do you know me?"
Her voice remained cool as ever, though her eyes now held scrutiny.
"Empty your sea of consciousness."
As Huo Yuhao’s words fell, spiritual light flared within his eyes as he looked at her.
A clear yet icy stream of spiritual power poured into her spiritual sea.
Zhang Lexuan’s brows knit slightly.
Almost instinctively, she was about to circulate her own spiritual power to resist.
But in the next instant—
scene after scene surged into her mind like a tidal wave.
"This is..."
Shock appeared on her face.
What she saw—
was the future.
At first, she assumed it to be some masterful illusion, nothing but fabrication.
But when she witnessed this generation of Shrek Seven Monsters being ambushed before the Spirit Master Tournament, suffering grievous casualties—
the color drained completely from her face.
Not a single detail was wrong.
As a reserve member of Sea God Pavilion’s inner cabinet, she naturally knew of the academy’s subsequent arrangements.
Yet the images in her mind aligned perfectly with those confidential plans.
Could it be...
that all of it was real?
Huo Yuhao’s expression remained calm, like a lake upon the snowy plains.
Within Shrek Academy, many people had once shown him kindness.
He had chosen to reveal only part of his memories. Zhang Lexuan would surely pass the information on to those people—thus repaying, in some measure, the bonds of his previous life.
He turned and began to leave.
He had taken only a few steps—
when Zhang Lexuan’s slightly hoarse voice came from behind.
"Wait."
Huo Yuhao stopped.
"I want to ask you..."
"Are you willing to join Shrek Academy?"
Huo Yuhao was about to refuse instinctively.
But Zhang Lexuan continued:
"Shrek is the number one academy on the continent."
"In the name of the academy’s senior disciple and as a reserve member of Sea God Pavilion, I guarantee you the highest level of cultivation."
"You will become one of the continent’s top experts in the shortest possible time."
She had seen the future.
She had seen this generation of Shrek Seven Monsters suffer devastating losses.
The reserve members, with an average age of barely fifteen, were forced to take the stage in their place.
Without the boy before her—Huo Yuhao—this year’s Spirit Master Tournament would end in Shrek’s defeat.
Shrek Academy had monopolized the title of "strongest" for many years. The championship crown of the tournament could not be lost.
Fate was profound and unpredictable. Even glimpsing the future did not guarantee it could be completely altered.
Though she did not know—
why this Huo Yuhao had not joined Shrek Academy as he had in the future—
the safest course of action...
was to bring him into the academy.
This time,
Huo Yuhao did not immediately refuse.
Zhang Lexuan’s words—"become one of the top experts in the shortest possible time"—echoed repeatedly in his mind.
Within his sea of consciousness,
Skydream Iceworm rolled over lazily.
"Yuhao, staying in the Extreme North allows you to cultivate without distraction. In the short term, it may seem faster—but entering the world is also a form of cultivation."
"You’ve already refined the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow. From here on, your cultivation speed will inevitably slow."
"The Shrek Academy of this world has profound foundations. There are opportunities there that shouldn’t be missed."
The gray bead trembled slightly.
Electrolux’s aged voice sounded.
"Yuhao, judging from the memories of your previous life, Shrek Academy’s Ancient Golden Tree is a tremendous opportunity."
"You have only just begun my necromancy. Fundamentally speaking, in this life you still need the Ancient Golden Tree to enhance your life origin—so that necromancy and the power of life may reach balance."
As Skydream and Elder Yi spoke one after the other,
the Titan Snow Demon King racked its brain, trying to contribute something as well.
But everything worth saying had already been said.
Planning cultivation was not its strength.
After holding it in for quite a while, it finally blurted out:
"Skydream and Elder Yi are right!"
Huo Yuhao’s face showed contemplation, as if carefully weighing the decision.
"That one..."
"...Sigh!"
Within his sea of consciousness, Skydream Iceworm rolled over.
"What kind of existence is Brother Zhexian? Why would he care about a mere Shrek Academy?
"Besides, entering the mortal world to cultivate was the very path he advocated."
"He himself lingered in the mortal realm—becoming a god and immortal amid worldly life."
Huo Yuhao let out a soft breath and slowly nodded.
"I understand."
He turned around.
His gaze met Zhang Lexuan’s eyes.
Even someone as cool and composed as Zhang Lexuan felt her heart tighten slightly at that moment.
This boy was far too unfathomable.
Leaving aside his knowledge of the future—
at merely twelve or thirteen years old, he had severely injured the vice-captain of the Shrek Seven Monsters with a single move.
If such talent were to join another academy, it would pose a tremendous threat to Shrek.
"I will not join Shrek Academy."
The moment those words fell—
Zhang Lexuan’s delicate brows drew together, and a deep sense of disappointment welled up inside her.
Huo Yuhao continued:
"But I can agree to participate in the Spirit Master Tournament as a reserve team member."
"If I compete and achieve results, I want Shrek Academy to permit me to cultivate within the Ancient Golden Tree."
"And provide me with Mystic Water Pills that can enhance innate Spirit Power, as well as the Tang Sect’s Mysterious Heaven Skill and Purple Demon Eyes."
He spoke calmly:
"In addition, I will not take part in the reserve team’s daily drills. I will not be considered a Shrek student. I want the freedom to come and go as I please."
Amid the wind and snow,
Zhang Lexuan’s jade-like face remained cool.
But if one looked closely,
one could see joy and difficulty flickering together within her amber eyes.
"The qualification to cultivate beneath the Ancient Golden Tree has always been a reward reserved for tournament champions—and only for academy students."
"As for Mystic Water Pills, I can make that decision myself."
"However, Purple Demon Eyes and Mysterious Heaven Skill are secret arts of the Tang Sect. Unless you are willing to join the Tang Sect..."
"Then forget it."
Huo Yuhao did not hesitate in the slightest. He turned and began to leave.
"Wait!"
Watching the boy’s utterly decisive back, Zhang Lexuan rarely revealed a trace of headache. Biting her lip lightly, she said:
"Once I return, I will immediately report to my teacher."
"How about you come back to the academy with me..."
"No need. In one month, I will wait for you at Shrek’s main gate. Just tell me the result then."
Huo Yuhao’s voice drifted back through the snow as his figure gradually disappeared.
If Shrek did not agree to his conditions, traveling the continent would be fine as well.
Just as Brother Skydream had said—
even that one had entered the mortal world to cultivate.
He, too, should follow in those footsteps.
Zhang Lexuan stood quietly in place for a moment.
Then, with a light flutter of her sleeves, she vanished into the vast snowstorm.
Within only dozens of breaths,
she caught up to the Shrek team—now reduced to thirteen members.
Her cool gaze swept past Bei Bei without stirring the slightest ripple.
Once we return to the academy, I will ask my teacher to dissolve this engagement.
Since his heart already belongs to another, and my own ambition lies in safeguarding Shrek’s glory, romantic feelings are nothing but a burden to me.
She lifted her eyes toward the depths of the storm.
Huo Yuhao...
No matter what, I must have him join Shrek Academy.
...
Huo Yuhao returned to the cave of the Titan Snow Demon King and began packing his belongings.
In truth, there was little—only two spare fur coats and a few spiritual herbs preserved in ice and snow.
"I’ll head to the small town on the outskirts of the Extreme North first, exchange these herbs for some money, then set out for Shrek."
He stood at the mouth of the cave,
looking back at the boundless snowy wilderness.
The cold wind, carrying fragments of snow, rushed toward him, stirring the black hair before his brow.
This year, he had cultivated here in hardship—from confusion to resolve. Every inch of the ice field bore the imprint of his footsteps.
"I want to become stronger."
"And I want to live freely."
"Unbound by anyone or anything."
Huo Yuhao turned and stepped forward, never looking back.
He merged into the endless wind and snow, his footprints branding the road of departure.
