"Um... if I may be so bold as to ask, while student Huo Yuhao was in Class 10, did you never think about forming a team with other students to compete?"
"..." Huo Yuhao shook his head. "No. According to my teacher, this is supposedly an internal evaluation given to me by the academy, though I personally don't feel such an evaluation holds much meaning."
Hearing this, a relieved smile appeared on Ning Tian's face. "Then it seems I haven't arrived too late... There is something I'd like to discuss with Huo Yuhao. When we form teams in the second grade, could Wu Feng and I join student Huo Yuhao's team?"
Huo Yuhao raised an eyebrow. Ning Tian, whose speech was almost airtight, reminded him of another person: the Princess of the Star Net Empire, Xu Jiujiu.
Ning Tian didn't say she was inviting Huo Yuhao to join her team; instead, she said she and Wu Feng would join his team. This could be seen as placing Huo Yuhao on a pedestal.
Talking to such a person was very comfortable, but one had to be equally cautious.
At the same time, Huo Yuhao sighed inwardly. They were both disciples of great sects, so why did Wang Dong have such a loose tongue?
Huo Yuhao didn't agree immediately but asked instead, "May I ask what this evaluation is? I am of the Control System, while student Ning Tian should be of the Auxiliary System. Logically, we shouldn't be in the same class, right?"
Ning Tian nodded silently. Just as she was about to speak, a waitress dressed in a maid uniform pushed a small cart forward to deliver the cakes.
"Hello, here are your desserts. Please enjoy... ah?"
The newcomer was none other than the current Sect Master of the Tang Sect, Tang Ya.
Huo Yuhao was somewhat surprised to see Tang Ya in a maid uniform. She certainly wasn't here to experience life; could she be here... working a part-time job?
From that perspective, this Tang Sect Master was slightly more useful than he had imagined.
Huo Yuhao smiled and greeted Tang Ya. "Senior Tang Ya, hello... no, I should call you Sect Master Tang."
Tang Ya's expression stiffened for a moment. She looked at Huo Yuhao, then at Ning Tian and Wu Feng, forcing a stiff smile onto her face.
"Um, yes, please enjoy your meal, students." Somewhat flustered, she placed the pastries on Huo Yuhao's table and ran off with her cart.
"Student Huo Yuhao, do you know her?"
Huo Yuhao nodded. "We've met once. She previously invited me to join the Tang Sect, but I refused."
Ning Tian narrowed her eyes slightly. "The Tang... Sect. It's best not to get too involved with that sect; they are 'off' in many aspects."
Huo Yuhao grew interested. "Oh? Why do you say that, student Ning Tian? Ah, by the way, can I start eating?"
"Haha, of course, of course. Let's eat and chat."
After stuffing a spoonful of cake loaded with cream and large cherries into her mouth, a look of bliss appeared on Ning Tian's face. Even Wu Feng seemed slightly enchanted.
Huo Yuhao couldn't help but nod inwardly. It seemed girls really do love these desserts.
Ning Tian's voice was steady, with no sound of chewing to be heard. "Ten thousand years ago, the flourishing Martial Soul Hall was replaced by the Tang Sect. The Tang Sect once became the genuine number one sect in the world; even the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, which was then one of the Upper Three Sects, ranked below it. It was truly unparalleled for a time."
"But ten thousand years later, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect still stands, while the Tang Sect has long since withered. It's not just that the development of so-called hidden weapons failed to keep up with the times; the primary reason lies within the Tang Sect itself."
Huo Yuhao blinked. He remembered Sister Xiaotao saying something similar.
"Let's ignore the bizarre requirement that every generation's Sect Master must have Blue Silver Grass as their Martial Soul. Back then, the Nine-Colored Goddess Ning Rongrong and the Sea God Tang San were both part of the Shrek Seven Monsters, close friends, and she was the first Vice Sect Master of the Tang Sect. Naturally, she obtained the so-called Tang Sect secret manual, the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record."
Ning Tian's voice carried a hint of disdain. "But since the Sea God Tang San ascended, without exception, not a single Tang Sect disciple practicing the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record has been able to catch up to the first Sect Master, Sea God Tang San. Our Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect also had ancestors who read the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, but after practicing it, their cultivation speed didn't change at all. Instead, after reaching the rank of Soul Saint, their Soul Power circulation became sluggish, becoming a burden."
Then, Ning Tian revealed a bombshell.
"There were also people who tried to branch out based on the Mysterious Heaven Skill within the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, compiling their own cultivation methods. But without exception, they all died sudden, mysterious deaths."
"What?!"
In this era, cultivation methods have naturally made significant progress compared to ten thousand years ago, even developing the Soul Core cultivation system. It was normal for certain powerful forces to create their own techniques for their disciples.
Just as Huo Yuhao himself practiced the Spirit Ice Technique taught to him by Baili Du—how should he put it? It was as if it were a cultivation method tailor-made for him; it was incredibly suitable.
Techniques can be self-created or borrowed, but what was the deal with dying suddenly after developing new techniques based on the so-called Mysterious Heaven Skill?
Deviating into madness might be a coincidence once or twice, but if it happened every time, there was no need to ask—someone was doing it intentionally.
Huo Yuhao stuffed a large strawberry into his mouth. "Does student Ning Tian mean to say... this Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record left by the first Tang Sect Master, Sea God Tang San, is unsuitable for cultivation?"
Ning Tian's words actually carried her own selfish motives. As the young master of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the reason she came to Shrek was not only to build her own team but also to find a suitable guardian partner.
At least so far, Huo Yuhao was very pleasing to her eyes, so she naturally didn't want him joining some nonsense Tang Sect.
Ning Tian shrugged. "I didn't say that... forget it, let's stop the topic of the Tang Sect."
Then, her tone became a bit more serious. "Student Huo Yuhao should have heard of the Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament, right?"
Seeing Huo Yuhao nod in affirmation, Ning Tian continued: "The corresponding rules should also be clear to student Huo Yuhao, so I won't say much. The reason I sought you out is simple: in next year's Shrek Academy preparatory team selection trials, I hope to team up with student Huo Yuhao, complete the Shrek Outer Court preparatory team evaluation, and represent Shrek Academy in the competition held in Star Net City next year."
"...I see, so that's it." Huo Yuhao finally understood why Ning Tian had come to find him.
He gave a bitter smile. "...Does this count as an internal evaluation for a great sect?"
Ning Tian returned a somewhat melancholy smile. "Student Huo Yuhao is indeed clever; I knew I couldn't hide it from you. If I say yes, will you still choose me as your partner?"