Time flies like a weaver's shuttle, and the days pass like an arrow. Another year had gone by.
Inside the small courtyard of the woodchopping shed at the Duke of White Tiger's Mansion.
"Cultivation is not for winning fights, nor is it to gain the praise of girls. Rather, it is to use cultivation to make the body and mind healthy, and to make life fuller and more meaningful."
"Becoming stronger is also not for defeating others, but for conquering yourself. If you lose your way because of someone else's power or your own, you will never truly mature."
Sitting on a small stool, Little Yuhao blinked his eyes, understanding only half of what was being said.
Baili Du smiled at him and asked, "Are you wondering why I don't teach you how to cultivate, but instead teach you these things that seem quite useless?"
Little Yuhao hesitated for a moment before nodding silently.
Over the past year, Baili Du had not taken him to obtain a soul ring. Instead, he had imparted vast amounts of knowledge, told countless stories, visited several fun places, and taught him a cultivation technique called the Spirit Ice Technique. At night, he left Yuhao to control his own soul power and explore cultivation on his own.
To be honest, although listening to Baili Du's lectures wasn't exactly boring, Little Huo Yuhao felt a degree of anxiety since his soul power showed no signs of breaking through.
Obtaining a soul ring meant becoming a true soul master, which meant possessing the power to seek justice for himself and his mother!
"You must remember one thing forever: cultivate the mind before the path," Baili Du said calmly. "If you do not have a proper understanding of your own power, then when you become powerful in the future, you will only fail that power and bring disaster to the world."
His words were earnest and heavy, sounding as if they were meant not just for Huo Yuhao, but for his own past self.
Huo Yuhao looked at his small hands in confusion; he didn't understand the meaning behind these words. To be fair, let alone a six-year-old child, how many adults could truly grasp such a principle?
"It's fine if you don't understand yet. Just remember it for now. When the time comes, you will naturally realize its truth. Now, I will tell you about the historical Martial Soul Hall and the Tang Sect—and of course, the Rakshasa God and the Angel God."
Little Yuhao immediately sat up straight. He knew that Uncle Baili Du was incredibly knowledgeable, possessing wisdom that spanned from astronomy to geography and the depths of history. Children, after all, love stories.
"Martial Soul Hall was founded nearly 20,000 years ago by the first Angel God. The purpose was to..."
"And the Tang Sect was founded by the Sea God Tang San. I'm sure your mother has told you many of his stories, so I won't repeat them. The establishment of the Tang Sect, however, was..."
After Baili Du finished his narration, Little Yuhao wore a look of deep contemplation.
Looking at him, a flicker of satisfaction appeared in Baili Du's eyes. He could tell the little fellow had taken the words to heart.
"In your view, for the sake of the continent and the common people, which had a greater impact? The Tang Sect or the Martial Soul Hall?"
Little Yuhao did not hesitate, stating loudly, "The Martial Soul Hall!"
"Why?"
"Because they awakened martial souls for commoners for free and gave out subsidies to soul masters. But the Tang Sect sold those hidden weapons to nobles and soul masters; it was essentially meaningless for the development of humanity."
Baili Du nodded silently. "Then in your view, why did both the Tang Sect and the Martial Soul Hall exit the stage of history?"
This question stumped Huo Yuhao, who didn't know how to answer for a moment.
Baili Du simply smiled. "Your talent is the same as the former Angel God Qian Renxue—Innate Level 20. But you saw what her end was."
"I am not saying Qian Renxue was wrong; she simply lost. Because she lost, the history of the Douluo Continent judged her as wrong. Along with that, the contributions the Martial Soul Hall made to humanity were completely negated."
"Justice lives in the hearts of the people. Whoever is good to the people, their hearts will naturally lean toward them. What the Tang Sect did had nothing to do with fairness or justice; its development was meaningless to society, so it naturally vanished under the wheels of history."
Baili Du firmly believed that in this era, a Tang Sect without Huo Yuhao could never rise again!
Just like Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect ten thousand years later—on the surface, they were destroyed by the Holy Spirit Cult using Grade 12 God-Slaying shells, but in reality, it was a coalition of the Douluo Federation's upper echelons, the Spirit Transmission Pagoda, and the War God Temple who spared no expense to destroy them.
Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect belonged in the dustbin of history.
Let the Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao, once hailed as the "Leader of the Tang Sect and Shrek's Revival," drive the final nail into their coffin!
Little Yuhao nodded thoughtfully. "Uncle Baili, are you telling me that there is no absolute good or evil in this world? That the side that loses is the one labeled 'evil'?"
Baili Du nodded in approval. "Excellent! As long as you understand this point, you can view all things in the world dialectically."
I really am impressive! Even I have to admire my own cleverness, Baili Du thought.
Before Baili Du could continue his lecture, a foul "barking" sound came from the entrance.
"Bastards, are you blind? Don't you know the Young Master has returned? Get out here and welcome him!"
The dilapidated door of the woodchopping shed was kicked open. Through the doorway, eight strong guards with white tiger patterns embroidered on their chests could be seen—the White Tiger Private Guards, clearly loyal "lapdogs."
Huo Yuhao looked toward the door. He had almost forgotten that the Duke's mansion required servants to kneel by the roadside to welcome masters like Dai Huabin or Dai Yueheng when they returned. Everywhere you went, people were divided into ranks...
Since Baili Du had been guiding his cultivation all day, such matters had naturally slipped his mind. Of course, after meeting Baili Du, Huo Yuhao had never performed such an act a second time anyway.
Baili Du had taught him: a person must not have arrogance, but they must have a backbone; one must live with self-respect and pride. This sentence was etched into Little Huo Yuhao's mind.
A young man in luxurious white clothes embroidered with python patterns walked to the door. He was very handsome with dual pupils, exuding an aura of high-born nobility and a cold gaze.
"Hmm?" The young man stopped, looking into the shed with disgust. "No sense of rules at all... beat them."
After saying this, he walked away quickly, as if afraid the sight would dirty his eyes.
Among the eight guards, four immediately lunged into the shed, their expressions fierce as if they held a blood feud with Huo Yuhao.
Baili Du smiled and shook his head, then patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder. "The use of power is not just for conquering yourself. More importantly, it is for protecting yourself."
"Go, Yuhao. Show them your power!"
Little Huo Yuhao hesitated for a split second, then his gaze became iron-clad as he nodded heavily.
"...Come on!"
With a surge of thick soul power, Little Yuhao's small body grew slightly taller. His hands transformed into sharp blue dragon claws, four pairs of eight deep blue dragon wings unfurled from his back, and a phantom-like, thick dragon tail lashed violently behind him.
Specifically, his eyes transformed into cyan-gold vertical pupils, releasing an indescribably terrifying pressure.
Deep blue water light and black-purple lightning snakes danced upon his dragon claws. With a casual wave, a purple light sliced through the air, carrying a scorched smell. The four guards who had rushed in were instantly paralyzed by the sensation, unable to move.