Lan Xuanyu spoke up at the opportune moment, his tone gentle. "If student Huo Yuhao is afraid of death, he doesn't have to join the Guardians; everyone will understand..."
This sarcastic, passive-aggressive tone was truly unpleasant to hear.
For a moment, most of the Shrek team adopted a "watching the show" attitude, especially the likes of Yao Haoxuan and Chen Zifeng.
Huo Yuhao gave a faint, understanding smile. "I am being responsible for myself. I'm not like student Lan Xuanyu, who uses his life as collateral for stubborn words."
Lan Xuanyu's expression instantly darkened. "What did you say?!"
"Forget it, forget it..." Wang Yan walked over with a bitter smile to smooth things over. "After all, student Huo Yuhao hasn't joined the Inner Court yet, and the Guardian missions aren't mandatory. If he doesn't want to go, he won't go. We are all from the same academy; pay attention to unity."
Wang Yan clearly directed that last sentence at Huo Yuhao, making it seem as though Huo Yuhao had become the target of public criticism within the team.
Xuan Zi stopped looking at Huo Yuhao and instead brandished the wine gourd in his hand. "Little Wang, explain the mission and distribute the equipment. This time, I shall lead the team personally. It's just a minor Evil Soul Master; what kind of waves can they possibly stir up? We must let these death-seeking fools know the majesty of my Shrek!"
As soon as Xuan Zi said this, even Lan Xuanyu's spirits lifted, a look of pleasant surprise flashing in his eyes.
In his past life, the Evil Soul Masters had already been incorporated into the Federation's secret service. Although he hadn't seen them much, he had at least heard of them. Almost all of them were heinous criminals, and many possessed eerie abilities, terrorizing regions and disrupting the world order.
Against these villains who threatened world peace, the justice-minded Lan Xuanyu naturally wanted to wipe them out entirely!
"Yes," Wang Yan complied, taking out rings from his storage Soul Tool and handing them to each member of the preparatory team.
Huo Yuhao, being tactful, stepped to the side.
Lan Xuanyu looked over the Guardian uniform on his body and couldn't help but frown. This equipment couldn't be called luxurious; it was merely "better than nothing." A leather armor set that looked questionable in its damage-absorption capabilities, plus a dark green mask and cloak.
...And that was it.
Lan Xuanyu tugged at the leather armor, sighing inwardly. If only he had Battle Armor; what could this pittance of gear actually defend against?
"...Our monitoring mission this time is to head to a mountain range bordering the Star Net Empire and the Sun Moon Empire to find and kill a group of bandits known as the Hand of Death. The Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament is drawing very close. Therefore, we must complete this task within three to four days."
Different eras had different definitions of Evil Soul Masters. There were also some who possessed Evil Martial Souls but acted normally; such people could not be considered Evil Soul Masters.
However, a few criteria were set in stone. Those who cultivated by devouring Soul Power, Soul Rings, Mental Power, flesh, souls, or Martial Souls were all classified as Evil Soul Masters.
Oh my, why does it feel like both Lan Xuanyu and Tang San practiced exactly according to these criteria? How strange...
...
Star Net Empire, Central Region of the Mingdou Mountain Range.
"...Sister Xiao Tao, didn't you go to the military camp with them?"
Ma Xiaotao walked gracefully over to Huo Yuhao and sat down, watching the sunrise with him. She teased, "There's a lonely little friend here; big sister is kind-hearted, so I came to keep him company."
Huo Yuhao gave a bitter smile. "Thank you, Sister Xiao Tao, but I'm not that fragile yet."
Ma Xiaotao stopped talking and leaned against Huo Yuhao, watching the beautiful sunrise and enjoying this rare moment of tranquility.
When the sun had fully risen, Wang Yan and the others found Ma Xiaotao and Huo Yuhao. They had obtained some intel from the Star Net military camp and were preparing to enter the mountains to suppress the bandits.
Originally, Huo Yuhao didn't plan to follow, intending to wait for them to finish before heading to Star Net City together. But seeing these guys in their "green skins," he felt a sense of foreboding and stepped forward.
"Be careful. Take this with you."
In Huo Yuhao's palm was a Class 5 trigger-type defensive Soul Tool. Ma Xiaotao pursed her lips. Then, under the astonished gazes of Gongyang Mo, Ling Luochen, and the others, Ma Xiaotao—who had always looked down on Soul Tools—actually accepted it...
Out of concern for his teammates, Huo Yuhao had already stuffed a Soul Tool Shield into the hands of Ning Tian and Wu Feng before leaving. As for He Caitou, he already had his own.
"...Junior Yuhao, do you have any more of those Soul Tool Shields? I want to buy one."
"I... I want to buy one too!"
Huo Yuhao looked with surprise at Gongyang Mo and Ling Luochen, who had stepped forward voluntarily. He blinked twice and then pulled out two more small metal plates, placing them in their hands.
"No need to buy them. I'll give them to senior brother and senior sister for protection."
After Gongyang Mo accepted the shield, he stared blankly at Huo Yuhao's picture-perfect handsome face and couldn't help but add: "Junior Yuhao, you are so kind..."
His voice even had a slight tremor, making Huo Yuhao's heart shudder, as if Blue Silver Grass were crawling all over him.
"...You'd better give it back to me."
Gongyang Mo laughed it off and quickly pulled back. "Hey, hey... just kidding, just kidding."
Seeing this, Chen Zifeng couldn't help but sneer. To think that noble Martial Soul Department elites would use cowardly things that only "fools" from the Soul Tool Department use—Ma Xiaotao really was going backward in life.
Hearing Chen Zifeng's sneer, Ling Luochen gave him an annoyed look, not wanting to deal with him. Just as Gongyang Mo was about to retort, Xuan Zi's voice came from nearby.
"With this old man here, why would you need such things! Just go and kill the enemy boldly. They're just a few bandits and an Evil Soul Master; how could they be a match for you Inner Court elites? Have some confidence!"
Despite what he said, Ma Xiaotao and the others still tucked the defensive shields away close to their bodies.
Xuan Zi gave a mocking laugh and poured a few more gulps of aged wine into his mouth. His eyes were hazy, seemingly reminiscing about the past.
Back then, he was young and handsome, carrying the bloodline of a Divine Beast, and was the number one genius of the Shrek Inner Court. He traveled far and wide, acting heroically and leaving behind a legendary romantic legacy on the Douluo Continent. Recalling it now, he really missed it more than a little.
Then, Xuan Zi couldn't help but speak up. "Do you know? When I was wandering the continent in my youth, I had a very famous nickname!"
"In my era, as long as I announced this title, it would strike terror into the hearts of Evil Soul Masters!"
The highly emotionally intelligent Yao Haoxuan immediately stepped forward and inquired with great interest, "May I ask what Elder Xuan's title used to be? Could us juniors hear it?"
Xuan Zi wiped the wine from his mouth and said with immense pride:
"I! Xuan Zi! The Evil Soul Master Slaughter Machine!"