Douluo Dalu 2: Unrivaled Tang Sect - Chapter 611.2. The True Mastermind

Huo Yuhao said plainly, “I was in my most difficult time when you first launched your attack. When that happened, your spiritual power was in my brain, and Long Xiaoyao’s immense soul power started revolting because I had used too much soul power. I was in trouble both from the outside and from the inside, and I could have crumbled at any moment. It was almost impossible for me to turn things around with my own strength. Then, you appeared.”

“Your biggest mistake was that you wanted to preserve my body too much. Therefore, you didn’t attack my spiritual soul core as soon as was possible, and chose to control me instead, while assimilating my spiritual sea at the same time. You did that because you were afraid that attacking my spiritual soul core would cause me to lose control over my soul power, and if that happened, you could only accompany me as we blew up together.”

“That is all true. If you had chosen to attack my spiritual soul core instead, we would have perished together in the end. Fortunately, you didn’t do that, and I have to thank you for that. You were unwilling to die, and so am I, because I still wish to accompany my lover for all of eternity. Thank you for giving me this opportunity.”

“I borrowed the Ice Empress’ strength to temporarily seal Long Xiaoyao’s violent and vigorous soul power as I readjusted and realigned my body at the same time. I didn’t have any strength to retaliate against you at that point, and that was also when you had your greatest opportunity. If you had chosen to attack my spiritual soul core before using your formidable power to take over my body as quickly as possible, you might have completed your possession. But you were too paranoid because I wasn’t retaliating, and you reacted logically by attempting to dominate my spiritual sea for stability. Under normal circumstances, your decision would have been right, but I’m different from normal people. My spiritual sea is no longer within human boundaries, because there is an aura from another world contained within it. Therefore, I wasn’t afraid of you dominating my spiritual sea from the beginning to the end, because you cannot possibly become my spiritual sea’s true master, and neither can you wipe out my consciousness.”

“Therefore, I reacted according to what you were hoping for. I struggled for a few moments before I stopped, while I concentrated on my own soul power, to control it.”

“My effort over that period of time finally allowed me to completely withdraw and stabilize the disorganized and messy soul power within my body, and I even managed to gain control over some of Long Xiaoyao’s soul power. My situation was completely stabilized, while you also gave me a pleasant surprise because you integrated your spiritual origin into my spiritual sea. I initially believed that only my companions, my Spirits, could do so, but it turned out that you could, too. Therefore, I have to thank you. Right now, I have wholly absorbed my ninth soul ring that you’ve given me, and my spiritual power has exceeded that of any living being on the continent. Not even the Beast God, Di Tian, can compete with me in that respect. I believe that your spiritual power was probably at around the same standard even during your strongest times. Therefore, I must thank you.”

“I know you really wish to ask, how have I done all this? I should tell you, too, because you will die with unresolved grievances otherwise. What you just felt was happiness, anger, sorrow, and bliss. You felt the power of emotions, as my spiritual sea contains power that doesn’t belong to this world: a godly seed. The God of Emotions has set his eyes upon me and my talents, and he’s given me this opportunity. How can you dominate my spiritual sea with this godly seed around?”

“You…” The Evileye Tyrant King was over the top with fury, and his enormous Evil Eye radiated black waves. However, how could he fight against the Snow Empress, who had also burned her spiritual sense to integrate herself into Huo Yuhao? The Snow Empress was third among the Ten Great Savage Beasts, and the Evileye Tyrant King would have had a hard time defeating her even during his strongest times, not to mention under these circumstances.

A short blade that was emanating faint mist hovered in midair, and the blade was pointed downwards. Icy-blue sword light pointed right at the enormous Evil Eye projected in the sky.

The Evil Eye had lost all color and liveliness, and there were only grey hues deep within his pupil: the color of hopelessness and defeat!

Chilly sword light descended upon the Evil Eye mercilessly and brutally pierced into it. Huo Yuhao’s soul power, which had been held back over so many days, finally erupted.

Those whirlpools that were mixed with spiritual power and soul power rose once more, and Huo Yuhao’s spiritual soul core guided them as they swiftly rushed into his spiritual sea.

Whirlpools appeared one after another inside his dark red spiritual sea, and golden specks of light dispersed in all directions. Happiness, anger, sorrow, and bliss switched in between one another and suppressed the Evileye Tyrant King’s spiritual power to the point that he couldn’t control his own spiritual power effectively anymore. The Evileye Tyrant King could only look on as golden light fused into Huo Yuhao’s spiritual sea continuously, and his Morning Dew Dagger’s icy radiance was breaking down and disintegrating the Evileye Tyrant King’s frozen spiritual sense piece by piece.

Tang Wutong, who was sitting opposite Huo Yuhao with her legs crossed, opened her eyes and watched as the dark red patterns over Huo Yuhao’s face gradually receded. The Evileye Tyrant King’s projection behind his back dissipated, and she heaved a sigh of relief as she closed her eyes once more. This time, she no longer worried about anything as she entered deep meditation.

……

Three years later.

The Star Luo Empire’s capital, Star Luo City.

The sky was grey, and the stench of smoke and gunpowder permeated the air. The heavens were dim and gloomy, and dark clouds threatened to shower the city with a monsoon.

Less than a third of Star Luo City’s northern city walls were still standing, but defensive perimeters of soul tools could still be seen. The other three sides had the same setup as soul tools resembled a forest of metal as they protected the city.

However, there was an even larger and denser forest of metal outside this one.

Fifty kilometers to Star Luo City’s west, and fifty kilometers to Star Luo City’s north, the air was filled with insidious murderousness, and all kinds of surveillance soul tools dotted the skies. They were all pointed toward Star Luo City.

Vast patches of soul tools that formed numerous soul tool fronts stretched across the earth, and they resembled an immense pincer that could pinch down on Star Luo City at any moment.

Star Luo City was the three native empires’ final defensive line. Yes, the city was their last defense.

The Heavenly Soul Empire was destroyed more than three years ago.

The Sun Moon Empire’s Emperor, Xu Tianran, had suddenly passed away not long afterward, and the crown prince, Xu Yunhan, ascended to the throne. The War God Empress ruled the empire on the new Emperor’s behalf.

The continent welcomed a period of peace that didn’t even last a year. When everyone believed that the Sun Moon Empire had descended into disarray and chaos to the point that the war would be delayed for another few years, the Sun Moon Empire’s great armies launched another invasion without warning over two years ago.

The Sun Moon Empire had deployed eight soul engineer legions, who had discreetly followed the Heavenly Soul Empire’s northern borders towards the east and eventually broke through the Dou Ling Empire’s northern borders. They ambushed the Dou Ling Empire so quickly that they couldn’t even react.

The invincible soul engineer legions used but eighteen days to fight their way outside Dou Ling City’s gates.

Dou Ling City was broken before Shrek City’s reinforcements could arrive. Xue Lingxun took her remaining troops and escaped, and rendezvoused with Shrek City’s soul engineer legions as they retreated continuously after consistent defeats.

The War God Empress, Ju Zi, personally led seven other soul engineer legions and the Sun Moon Empire’s four hundred thousand-strong army toward the Ming Dou Mountain Range, which was on the Star Luo Empire’s western border. The Sun Moon Empire unleashed a heavy bombardment against the Ming Dou Mountain Range that lasted for ten days, and forced the Star Luo Empire to mobilize their main forces towards the western regions to defend themselves so that they couldn’t reinforce the Dou Ling Empire.

In an attempt to break the Sun Moon Empire’s pincer attack, the White Tiger Duke Dai Hao had personally commanded three legions of soul masters to ambush the Sun Moon Empire’s armies along the Star Luo Empire’s northern borders that had once belonged to the Heavenly Soul Empire. However, he suffered an irrevocable defeat as the Sun Moon Empire’s first batch of linked defensive soul tools supported by high-energy compression array soul tools unleashed their immense power along the Heavenly Soul Empire’s borders, and they repelled the White Tiger Duke’s ambush just like that.

The Dou Ling Empire had Shrek Academy’s help, and they finally stabilized their southern regions into a standoff against the Sun Moon Empire. The Sun Moon Empire’s three hundred thousand soldiers that came a month later entered the Dou Ling Empire through the Heavenly Soul Empire and consolidated their dominated territories, and they completely conquered Dou Ling City, along with more than half of the Dou Ling Empire’s territories.

The Sun Moon Empire’s invasion was launched on all fronts, while the War God Empress, Ju Zi, personally commanded the three armies.

Three gaping holes were blown through the Ming Dou Mountain Range one month later, and the Sun Moon Empire’s armies streamed in as they broke through the Star Luo Empire’s defensive perimeters one after another with support from their soul engineer legions. They broke the Ming Dou Mountain Range and regained control over it.

The Star Luo Empire’s armies were beaten back continuously, and suffered heavy losses. Their five soul engineer legions that they had just established were almost utterly crippled as their inferior soul tool technology became the main reason for their defeat.

The Dou Ling Empire managed to stabilize themselves with Shrek Academy’s help on the other side. However, they couldn’t do anything to push back against the Sun Moon Empire’s formidable soul tool fronts.

Shrek Academy couldn’t be in two places at once, and the academy couldn’t support both empires at the same time. They could only choose to reinforce the Dou Ling Empire, because the empire was in an extremely dire situation.

The continent descended into another impasse, but both the Star Luo Empire and the Dou Ling Empire didn’t know that Ju Zi’s true motive wasn’t to dominate the entire continent in one go. The Sun Moon Empire mobilized many workers and smiths after they dominated the Dou Ling Empire’s northern regions, and they began excavating the mines and metals that they had discovered around the borders between the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Dou Ling Empire under two beast-ranked soul engineer legions’ protection.

Large volumes of rare metals were transported back to the Sun Moon Empire, and they were used to build and improve upon all kinds of soul tools.

The Sun Moon Empire reduced their budget on researching and building stationary soul cannon shells. Instead, they diverted their resources and budget towards high-energy compression array soul tools. They decreased the size of their high-energy compression array soul tools continuously while maintaining their strength as much as possible at the same time.

Six months later, Kong Deming led the Sun Moon Empire’s Worship Hall as they achieved another breakthrough in their soul tool technology. They mastered the art of absorbing and storing light, and they absorbed and stored sunlight to become persistent and long-lasting fuel for their high-energy compression array soul tools. Their equipment was oversized and clumsy even though they could store sunlight for a long time, but even so, they opened a new door for their soul tool technology.