Over twenty thousand may sound like a lot, but in reality, it wasn't that impressive—each piece was just too small. For instance, Huo Yuhao had used up all of the Evil God Thorn pieces just to form this sword that could barely fit two people.
"Come on up."
Huo Yuhao stepped onto the Evil God Sword first, then gestured for Ye Lingling to follow.
The little girl didn't understand what this was for but obediently stepped on anyway.
"Master, I'll be right back."
Huo Yuhao looked at Du Bushi, who was still feasting like there was no tomorrow.
"Go ahead, I'll wait for you in town," Du Bushi replied, waving him off without even looking.
Huo Yuhao nodded. In the next moment, the Evil God Thorn shot up into the sky. Since they were in the outer region, there was no need to worry about soul beast attacks.
"Wow! We're flying! Faster, higher!"
Ye Lingling wasn't afraid of heights at all—in fact, she was thrilled.
Three hours later, the two of them arrived at Shrek City. Huo Yuhao used his mimicry soul skill to alter their appearances. Even Ye Lingling had been transformed into a short, burly man with a full beard.
It was her first time witnessing something like this. It was practically magic. She couldn't stop exclaiming in wonder.
The Body Sect was located in the southeastern region of the Donar Province of the Heavenly Soul Empire, atop Skyvault Peak. The peak was flat on top, almost as if someone had sliced it clean off. The sect buildings were majestic and imposing, occupying nearly a hundred square kilometers.
Today, the Body Sect was anything but calm. All Title Douluo had received a summons from the sect master to head to the Council Hall. Even those in closed-door cultivation were called out, including several high-ranking Soul Douluo.
"Sect Master, the three council elders and the Elders' Council have all arrived."
Inside a side hall, Lingyin Douluo Ran Hongyue came in to report.
Inside the hall were none other than Du Bushi and Huo Yuhao. The two had already been in the sect for three days. During this time, Huo Yuhao had stayed hidden from view. Since he was still a student at Shrek, and in case there were spies from Shrek inside the sect, his identity had not yet been revealed publicly.
Of course, the Title Douluo elders were already aware.
"Mm," Du Bushi responded softly, then looked at Huo Yuhao.
"Disciple, come with me."
Huo Yuhao nodded and followed behind, sensing that something big was about to happen in the Body Sect.
The Council Hall was already filled with people. Eight Title Douluo, including Huang Yan, who had recently obtained his ninth soul ring, as well as three Soul Douluo, were all gathered.
The affairs of the Body Sect were mainly handled by these three Soul Douluo, while the Title Douluo remained above worldly concerns and rarely involved themselves with power.
The eleven of them sat quietly, not exchanging a single word—everyone already knew each other well.
Just then, the hall doors opened. Three figures entered. Leading them was Sect Master Du Bushi, followed by Lingyin Douluo Ran Hongyue on his left, and Huo Yuhao on his right.
"Greetings, Sect Master."
Everyone stood up and bowed in unison.
"Be seated," Du Bushi waved a hand and sat at the main seat. Then he added, "Disciple, sit next to your master."
The Council Hall had a rectangular table with only one chair at the head—the sect master's seat. Now, the sect master was asking someone to sit next to him. That alone carried heavy implications.
At his words, the nine Title Douluo and three Soul Douluo all turned their gaze toward Huo Yuhao. It seemed the sect master valued this young man more than they had imagined.
At first, Huo Yuhao felt a bit awkward—it was important to know one's place—but with so many people staring at him, he didn't want to seem timid. So he boldly dragged a chair over and sat beside Du Bushi.
This gave the impression that the two of them were co-hosting a meeting.
Once everyone was seated, Du Bushi turned to a Soul Douluo.
"Qingyang, speak. Any news from the Dou Ling royal family?"
The Soul Douluo named Qingyang stood up respectfully.
"Sect Master, the Third Prince of the Dou Ling Empire just left our sect yesterday. They offered generous terms: a ducal title for each of the Elder Council members, a marquis title for yourself and Elder Jin—hereditary and perpetual. They also promised to finance the construction of a new sect headquarters in the western part of Dou Ling City if we relocate."
Although all Soul Douluo and Title Douluo in the sect were called elders, there was a clear difference in status. The Title Douluo were part of the Elder Council, while Soul Douluo were ordinary elders—naturally with different treatment.
Everyone in the hall was shocked. Was the Dou Ling Empire really this generous? They were throwing around titles like they were nothing. There were six ranks of nobility: Viscount, Baron, Count, Marquis, Duke, and Prince.
Even the Dai Clan of the Star Luo Empire only received a duke's title after ceding power to the current royal family. Now the Dou Ling Empire was offering nine dukedoms and one princely title. And that princely title was supposed to be reserved for royalty! On top of that, they were all hereditary.
Even Du Bushi found this suspicious.
"Do we know why they're being so generous?"
Another Soul Douluo stood up.
"Sect Master, ten days ago, the Donglin Principality declared independence from the Dou Ling Empire. Their king dropped the royal title and proclaimed himself emperor."
Huo Yuhao mulled over the geography of this small country in his mind. It was in the northeastern corner of the Douluo Continent, with very little territory. Rumor had it their royal court only had a few Soul Sages. With that kind of power, what gave them the courage to challenge the big guy Dou Ling Empire? Were they just trying to live out a fantasy before dying?
"Oh? And what does that have to do with Dou Ling's generosity?"
A Title Douluo asked.
The Soul Douluo replied,
"Three days after Donglin's announcement, the Dou Ling Empire sent a 200,000-strong army to quell the rebellion. Donglin deployed only 50,000 troops in response. On the second day, a full-scale battle broke out at the border, and surprisingly, Dou Ling was utterly defeated. That's all the intel we've received so far."
Everyone in the hall looked at each other—so the Donglin Principality wasn't bluffing after all.
"Hmm. Keep our people monitoring the situation. Report back immediately if anything new comes up."
Du Bushi ordered.
"Yes, sir."
"What about the Heavenly Soul Empire?"
This time, Du Bushi addressed the last Soul Douluo who had been silent the entire time—the only female among the three.
"Reporting to the Sect Master, the Heavenly Soul Empire offered five duchies, but they're regular hereditary titles. However, they're willing to hand over full control of Wodo City to us."
It was clear from her tone that she wasn't very impressed with their offer.
Everyone else frowned as well. Ordinary hereditary titles weren't particularly valuable, and as for Wodo City, they were just offering administrative control—it wasn't like granting a proper fiefdom. What were they thinking? Did they see the Body Sect as their glorified housekeeper?
(End of Chapter)