MTLNOVEL Chapter 23: Huo Yuhao is not human
At East Sea Spirit Pagoda Airport, the spacious and bright departure hall resembles a modern palace.
The marble floor, polished to a reflective sheen, mirrors the hurried footsteps of travelers and the shadows of their trailing suitcases.
Hua Yichen and Huo Yuhao stood at the edge of the hall, watching as a Soul tool plane descended.
Hua Yichen turned to Huo Yuhao and said, "Let's go. It's time to welcome the eldest lady from headquarters."
Huo Yuhao nodded, his gaze shifting to the silver-haired figure stepping off the plane.
He hadn't expected her to come to the East Sea for her studies. This would save him a great deal of effort.
Gu Yuena disembarked, her eyes immediately catching sight of the two figures approaching her.
Her gaze lingered on Huo Yuhao, and for a brief moment, her steps faltered.
Memories of the past few years flashed through her mind, and her eyes flickered with a hint of emotion.
All of this had been brought about by the young man before her.
...
"Miss Gu Yuena, welcome to the East Sea Branch. I am Hua Yichen, the Pagoda Master of the East Sea Branch," Hua Yichen greeted with a warm smile as they met.
Gu Yuena bowed slightly, her demeanor polite and composed. "It's an honor to meet you, Pagoda Master Hua. I've heard much about you."
Her gaze then shifted to Huo Yuhao, and she extended her right hand without hesitation. "Hello, I'm Gu Yuena."
"Huo Yuhao," he replied, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly as he shook her hand.
The moment their palms touched, he felt a surge of energy.
His soul power was forcibly activated, and the air around them grew noticeably colder.
Ice Elemental Mastery!
"So, this is her way of testing me," Huo Yuhao thought, his expression remaining neutral.
"She's here to confirm my identity, isn't she?"
The difference between twin martial souls and ordinary soul masters was significant.
When a twin martial soul user switched between their martial souls, their soul power would rapidly align with the new martial soul, and its attributes would change accordingly.
Recently, Huo Yuhao had been experimenting with the autologous martial soul fusion technique, frequently switching between his two martial souls.
At this moment, he was using his Ice Jade Scorpion Empress Martial Soul, which granted him the attribute of ice.
But who was Gu Yuena? She was the Silver Dragon King, a god.
Her mastery over the elements far surpassed human comprehension.
Even in her current weakened state, the Ice Scorpion Jade Empress Martial Soul was insignificant before her.
It was nothing more than a suppressed force.
The moment their hands touched, Huo Yuhao's ultimate ice attribute soul power was completely overwhelmed.
Gu Yuena was, without a doubt, the natural enemy of all elemental soul masters.
In his sea of consciousness, Tianmeng's voice erupted in disbelief. "What's going on? How can she suppress Yuhao's ultimate ice? How can such a soul master exist among humans?"
Bing Bing, though equally unsettled, maintained her composure.
She turned to the only person present who might have answers. "Elder Yi, who is she?"
Electrolux's voice was grave. "She is not human. She is a god. Yuhao, you must be careful."
Huo Yuhao's tone remained calm. "Don't worry, Elder Yi. Her strength is limited in her current form. This is merely a suppression of attributes. I have a plan to handle her."
In this era, the divine realm no longer existed, and god-level beings were exceedingly rare.
Even those who remained were bound by restrictions, unable to unleash their full power.
Only the Silver Dragon King, despite sealing her strength after taking human form, remains the least restricted in her actions.
If necessary, she can still unleash considerable power.
Dealing with her naturally requires careful planning.
Hoping that offering the soul beasts a chance at survival would deter her from making a move would be the height of foolishness.
Ten thousand years have passed, and Huo Yuhao has spent too much time contemplating this.
Even if only through exhaustive deliberation, he has devised strategies to handle various crises.
For instance, this one.
Divine Throne, it's time for you to pay some rent!
Through their brief contact, Gu Yuena detected Huo Yuhao's ultimate ice element soul power and confirmed his identity.
However, she frowned.
It was impossible for a human to live for over ten thousand years, let alone undergo something akin to reconstruction.
What was Huo Yuhao's situation? Had he lived for thousands of years to reach this era? And for what purpose?
She considered probing further, but recalling Huo Yuhao's benevolence toward the soul beasts, she decided against it.
There would be plenty of time to uncover the truth in the future. For now, confirming Huo Yuhao's identity was enough.
As she withdrew her hand, Gu Yuena suddenly sensed a ripple of mental energy.
'Is he reacting to my provocation?' she wondered.
'Given Huo Yuhao's temperament, he wouldn't be this way after discovering I can suppress his ultimate martial soul… Wait, this isn't an attack?'
Gu Yuena initially thought Huo Yuhao might be angered by the loss of control over his soul power, but she soon realized it wasn't a spiritual attack.
Instead, it was… spiritual sharing?
Her violet eyes flickered with curiosity, but she didn't resist.
Even with her strength sealed, her spiritual power, while not as outwardly potent as Huo Yuhao's, retained its divine essence.
It wouldn't be easy for him to overwhelm her.
The spiritual connection formed instantly, and then… Miss Gu Yuena's calm and composed expression vanished. She froze in place, utterly stunned.
Huo Yuhao had already withdrawn his hand and turned to Hua Yichen with a smile. "Teacher Hua, Senior Luo should have prepared lunch. Let's take Miss Gu Yuena there."
Hua Yichen glanced thoughtfully at Gu Yuena, who stood motionless, then at Huo Yuhao.
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
How rare. I've actually witnessed Yuhao retaliate against someone's provocation.
He had sensed the fluctuations of ice elemental energy and spiritual power in the air moments ago.
The ice element likely belonged to Gu Yuena's martial soul, while the spiritual power was unmistakably Huo Yuhao's.
Is it the arrogance of a genius? Having lost face, does she now seek to salvage her pride?
It seems, however, that she has not been able to align with the expectations of this esteemed young lady.
Not dwelling on this, Hua Yichen turned and gestured for Gu Yuena to follow. "This way, Miss Gu Yuena."
Huo Yuhao also nodded politely to Gu Yuena before turning to walk in the direction of the Spirit Pagoda.
Gu Yuena hesitated for a moment, then followed the two of them.
Her violet eyes, however, lingered on Huo Yuhao's back, a flicker of unease in their depths.
Is that the mark of a super artifact?
And that aura of origin, it was no ordinary super artifact!
Even now, she only had fragments of knowledge about super artifacts and did not possess one herself.
Does Huo Yuhao have a super artifact?
Could it be that he became a god ten thousand years ago?
Or perhaps he was an immensely powerful god who descended to the Douluo plane due to the crisis in the God Realm?
No, that couldn't be.
As soon as this thought crossed her mind, Gu Yuena dismissed it.
The ascension to godhood was a monumental event.
Even if she had been in slumber, with her power, she would have sensed such a transformation.
If that wasn't the case, then considering Huo Yuhao's many peculiarities, her expression grew solemn.
To have lived from ten thousand years ago until now, to have delved so deeply into the study of souls and soul contracts, he couldn't possibly be an ordinary human.
Moreover, some of the magical formations involved in the soul contracts are not native to the Douluo plane at all.
Could he be… the reincarnation of a god? With a super artifact in his possession, is he a first-level god, or perhaps… a true God King?
Gu Yuena, with her memories of the Dragon God, began piecing together an astonishing conclusion.
But how could someone with such otherworldly knowledge and a super artifact be an ordinary person? That was impossible!
Furthermore, with Huo Yuhao's accumulation of power ten thousand years ago, whether he had created his own godhood or inherited a divine position, he would already have been at least a first-level god or higher.
Yet, he had not seized the opportunity to ascend to godhood.
Instead, he remained on the Douluo Continent.
This could only mean he had greater ambitions… or that the divine realm had forbidden him from becoming a god.
The former suggested that Huo Yuhao was the reincarnation of a god above the first level, one who disdained the lesser divine positions.
As for the latter… would the divine realm really go out of its way to hinder a human?
No matter how flawed the divine realm might be, it wouldn't stoop to such levels, would it?
That could only mean Huo Yuhao himself was the issue, he was not human from the very beginning! (Huo Yuhao: Who are you calling not human?)