Ju Zi said, "If you"re willing to sell it, I can help you. It should fetch a good price. You can keep it for now, the Silverwolf"s fur will prevent its corpse from rotting. We"ll deal with it once we return to the academy. I believe that the Silverwolf isn"t a spiritual-type soul beast, but its spiritual powers should be quite strong. Otherwise, it shouldn"t be able to control the elements to attack. Aren"t you going to try it? Also, why did your soul rings turn white just now?"
Huo Yuhao shook his head slightly and said, "It"s not what I want yet. As for the color of my soul rings, can"t I have three ten-year soul rings?" As he spoke, he also laughed. This was an answer that no one would believe.
Ju Zi pursed her lips. She had already returned to her gentle persona, and managed to conceal her thoughts well.
Huo Yuhao pondered for a moment and said, "Wolves are usually very sensitive in terms of their sense of smell. Does this Silverwolf also have such a characteristic?"
Ju Zi thought for a moment before replying, "It should. After all, it"s a wolf."
Huo Yuhao said, "Seniors, I may have to separate from the two of you for some time."
Ju Zi was stunned. "Where are you going?"
Huo Yuhao replied, "I"m going to find a suitable soul beast. This Silverwolf is indeed suitable for me, but its cultivation is too low. It"s too easy for me to fuse with it. That"s why I"m going to find a stronger Silverwolf, or some other spiritual-type soul beast. It should be a dangerous journey. That"s why it"s better for me to work alone. Continue with your experiments. I will meet the both of you back at the place we camped last night. If I"m not back in half a month"s time, the two of you must return first."
"No, how can we leave you alone?" Ke Ke a.s.serted righteously. "We have to go together. Don"t forget that we"re soul kings. Three is always better than one in terms of safety. Although your close-combat skills are outstanding, our soul tools are rather powerful too. Our survival skills are equally as good as yours."
Huo Yuhao was stunned. He didn"t expect that this young lady who continuously clashed with him was actually offering help to him at this critical moment. Huo Yuhao could see the sincerity in her eyes.
Ju Zi also nodded and said, "Ke Ke is right. We can"t let you take the risk alone. It"s always safer with three rather than one. Furthermore, we"re the ones who are familiar with the Jing Yang Mountain Range. Let"s go together. Are you scared that we"ll drag you down? I know what you"re going to do. You"re going to scatter the Silverwolf"s blood on the all-terrain exploration vehicle to threaten the lower-level soul beasts not to come close to us. It"s also a good way to test the survival capabilities of the all-terrain exploration vehicle."
Huo Yuhao glanced at Ke Ke before turning to look at Ju Zi. He said seriously, "However, that is very dangerous. The Silverwolf"s blood may attract other types of soul beasts, which can be very strong. Think about it carefully. This all-terrain exploration vehicle can"t ensure our absolute safety."
Ke Ke was a little impatient as she said, "Are you a girl? Why are you so pushy? Let"s go. If your soul power is gone, I can take the controls."
Huo Yuhao nodded at the two of them as he glanced over them. Although Ju Zi had revealed her internal thoughts before, Huo Yuhao had a feeling that it was because he was like a father figure to her. That was why she wouldn"t hurt him.
"Alright, I will protect the both of you as long as I"m alive."
Ju Zi sat lazily in her seat and replied him, "It"s still too early to tell who"ll be protecting who. Just remember that you need to feed us."
Huo Yuhao"s face stiffened, and he shook his head in annoyance. He couldn"t help but think, Are they following me because they want me to cook for them?
Huo Yuhao didn"t set off immediately. He made some minor adjustments, and only moved off after his soul power had been restored to about half.
He controlled the all-terrain exploration vehicle with ease, following the experience that he had already acc.u.mulated. He would only slow down if they had to pa.s.s through a dense forest. He pa.s.sed mountain after mountain, but didn"t rush to scatter the Silverwolf"s blood.
They also met a few soul beasts along the way, but they were all below a thousand years in cultivation. Huo Yuhao used the simplest method to deal with them: he ran them over. This all-terrain exploration vehicle had used a lot of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy"s resources, and the materials used to construct it were very tough. Soul beasts below a thousand years" cultivation couldn"t cause any damage to it.
The quality of soul beasts in the Jing Yang Mountain Range was evidently lower than that of soul beasts in the Great Star Dou Forest. As they followed the branching trails to get closer to the main trail in the forest, they didn"t b.u.mp into a single ten-thousand year soul beast. Including the Silverwolf, only three soul beasts attacked them. The other two perished at Huo Yuhao"s hands and became food.
…...
Huo Yuhao didn"t mindset up a fire in the Jing Yang Mountain Range. Lunch was yet another feast. However, it was different from the grilling the night before. He made soup this time using Silverwolf meat.
The Silverwolf"s bones and fur were preserved, and its blood was smeared on the all-terrain exploration vehicle. Its meat became their delicacy.
Huo Yuhao only decided on his cooking style after examining the quality of the Silverwolf"s meat. The Silverwolf"s meat was quite tough, not tender enough for grilling, which would make it difficult to chew. After a period of cooking, it would taste nicer when it was softer.
He indeed had the sense of a father, just like Ju Zi had said. His delicious meat soup left Ju Zi and Ke Ke pleased. They revealed a greater trust and reliance on Huo Yuhao in their eyes.
"Huo Yuhao, I"m going to stick to you from today onwards. As long as you"re in the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, you have to cook for me!" Ke Ke exclaimed.
Ju Zi teased, "You made him your chef, but what"re you going to offer? Your body?"
"Err…" Ke Ke"s face turned red. However, she threw a threatening look at Huo Yuhao and said, "Do you dare to demand anything from me?!"
"No, I don"t," Huo Yuhao answered smoothly.
Ke Ke wanted to scare him, but she didn"t expect him to answer so readily. She said dismally, "I"m smart, intelligent, and cute. What expression is this? Why don"t you dare to make a demand?"
Huo Yuhao chortled and answered, "Even if I said I wanted something, you wouldn"t budge! I"m only saying what you want to hear. I"m really maligned! Do you want me to beg you to be my girlfriend before you"ll dump me to one side?"
Ke Ke nodded her head forcefully and said, "That should be the case. However, I may give you a chance if you continue your cooking. It"s a pity you"re a little young. Tell me, how old are you?"
Huo Yuhao smiled and said, "Fourteen, going on fifteen."
Silence! Turned heads! Eye contact!
"Ah….!"
Ke Ke and Ju Zi screamed at the same time, shocking Huo Yuhao. Even a few weak soul beasts that were observing them were startled, and fled in fear.
"You"re only fourteen? How"re you only fourteen? You look more like eighteen. Furthermore, you"re already at Rank 40 at fourteen years old, and possess twin martial souls. You"re inhuman!" Ke Ke exclaimed in disbelief.
Huo Yuhao rubbed his nose and said, "I grew a little faster. You don"t have to be so appalled. As for cultivation, the two of you are only three or four years older than me, but you"re soul kings already. I may not even be a soul king at your ages."
Ke Ke shook her head forcefully and replied, "Although I look young, I must say that I"m already nineteen years old. Sister Ju Zi is almost twenty. We"re five years older than you! Generation gap, there"s definitely a generation gap."
Ju Zi chuckled and said, "It"s fine. An older wife can be as loving as a mom. You still have a chance."
"You"re the mom. It"s a pity that I don"t have a sister. Otherwise, I could introduce him to her."
After interacting for a day, the three of them had become completely familiar with one another. Their relations.h.i.+p also became closer after what they had gone through together.
Ju Zi and Ke Ke had trained with w.a.n.g Shaojie and Zimu in the past, but they seemed to be more secure with Huo Yuhao now.
……
After lunch, the three of them took a short break. They only continued after their soul power was restored to their peak levels.
Huo Yuhao remained seated in the main control pod. Before he moved off, he turned to the two ladies and said, "I"ve already smeared the Silverwolf"s blood on the all-terrain exploration vehicle. It"s too late for regrets now."
Ke Ke snapped, "Enough with the c.r.a.p. Let"s go."
Huo Yuhao wasn"t impatient as he said, "If the two of you insist on following me, I must insist on being the team leader from this point on. Although I"m not fully aware of your abilities, you must listen to my instructions. I am definitely more experienced in dealing with soul beasts than the two of you. I can guarantee our safety if we don"t meet a hundred-thousand year soul beast or many ten-thousand year soul beasts."
Ju Zi offered her position to him easily. "Alright, you can be the team leader."
Huo Yuhao said, "Then let"s move off. Seniors, remember not to leave the all-terrain exploration vehicle easily no matter what. This soul tool is able to withstand more damage than you described earlier. It can unleash your soul tools through the windows, too. If there"s a fight, leave it to me. The two of you just need to reinforce me with firepower."
Ke Ke snapped, "Why do I feel more like trash the more I listen to you? Stop spouting gibberish and let"s go!"