The response speed of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy was far faster than Huo Yuhao had anticipated; in less time than it takes to drink a cup of tea since the first explosion rang out, the academy's defensive system had already been fully activated.
The Spirit Tool defensive turrets that had been hidden everywhere raised their muzzles one after another, and beams of scorching white energy crisscrossed as they fired at the black-clad figures on the ground, cutting their charging formation to pieces.
As for those Soul Engineers who had been oblivious in their respective laboratories, they quickly reacted after hearing Jing Hongchen's roar, rushing out from everywhere with various Spirit Tools in hand to join the battle.
Dean Jing Hongchen was already facing off directly against the Body Sect's Sect Master Du Busi, and Mingde Hall soon received reinforcements, causing Teacher Xuan's pressure to suddenly decrease significantly.
He had originally been locked in a stalemate with a black-clad Body Sect member, but with two more Soul Engineers now by his side to share the attacks on his flanks, he was finally able to catch his breath.
Huo Yuhao watched all of this from the sidelines; the situation within Mingde Hall had initially stabilized.
Although the Body Sect had arrived with fierce momentum, they were, after all, fighting on someone else's home turf.
Once the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy's layered Spirit Tool defensive system was fully operational, even the physically formidable experts of the Body Sect could not gain much of an advantage.
Huo Yuhao's brows furrowed slightly; while observing the battle, his mental force had inadvertently extended downward, and he had keenly captured a faint, elusive aura within a passage that could only accommodate one person.
Extreme cold—that was the aura of an ultimate attribute.
Huo Yuhao's heart stirred slightly; he withdrew his gaze, turned his head to look at Senior Brother He not far away, and sent a voice transmission.
"Senior Brother He, protect Teacher Xuan well; I will be back shortly."
Senior Brother He glanced in Huo Yuhao's direction, did not ask any further questions, and simply nodded slightly.
Although he was currently only a newly-promoted Level 7 Soul Engineer—not even as strong as Teacher Xuan—he had a protective Spirit Tool given to him by Huo Yuhao, which was sufficient to allow him to hold on for a while even when facing a Titled Douluo-level expert.
Having received his response, Huo Yuhao did not hesitate any longer.
Amidst the chaotic sounds of fighting and the humming of Spirit Tools charging up, his figure flashed, and he arrived at the edge of that opening.
Without pausing, he leaped and jumped down into the opening.
The surrounding light rapidly dimmed; the sounds of fighting and the glow of Spirit Tool beams from the hall above were quickly fading away, replaced by a deep and silent darkness.
Huo Yuhao adjusted his posture during the fall, wrapping his entire body in Spirit Power, ready to deal with any situation that might arise at any moment.
After descending over a hundred meters along the narrow passage, Huo Yuhao clearly felt that the surrounding air had suddenly become much fresher.
And that aura of extreme cold, which he had captured earlier, had become increasingly distinct by this point.
Huo Yuhao quickened his pace and saw a massive metal door at the end of the passage.
The door was over ten meters high, its surface smooth and flat, with several dark blue Spirit Tool patterns embedded along the edges, which were currently emitting the faint light of execution indicator lamps.
The door was not completely closed, leaving a gap that could allow one person to pass through sideways, so Huo Yuhao turned sideways and slipped inside.
Behind the door was a laboratory that appeared to be over a hundred square meters in size, with various Spirit Tool devices embedded in the surrounding walls; judging solely by the precision and complexity of those devices, this was clearly the true core of Mingde Hall.
Huo Yuhao's gaze swept around quickly, finally landing on the massive object in the center of the laboratory.
It was a humanoid metal construct standing fifteen meters tall, covered in thousands of core formations; it stood quietly on the experimental platform, and even without any power source, the oppressive feeling characteristic of heavy metal still rushed toward him.
Huo Yuhao silently sighed in his heart; the Sun Moon Empire of this era was indeed at the very forefront of Spirit Tool technology.
The metal giant before him should be the prototype for the mechas of later generations.
To the people of this World, this might be a sufficiently shocking discovery.
But to him, having witnessed the Spirit Tool technology of Ten Thousand Years later, it was nothing special.
He suppressed the emotions in his heart and did not linger here; the aura of extreme cold was coming from even deeper within this laboratory.
Huo Yuhao strode across the laboratory, exited through the door on the other side, and continued moving forward along another similarly narrow and long passage.
The further he went inside, the stronger that chill became; he was already close to his target.
"Who?!"
A low roar suddenly came from ahead, the voice hoarse and vigilant; it was clear that his approach had already been detected.
Huo Yuhao did not stop; instead, he accelerated instantly, hugging the wall as he rounded the corner ahead.
The moment he rounded the bend, his field of vision suddenly widened; this place was clearly much more spacious.
The person before him was also dressed in black, with a burly figure, and most striking of all were his exceptionally thick arms.
Beneath his feet shone eight spirit rings, two yellow, two purple, and four black, arranged neatly.
Clearly, this was a Spirit Douluo from the Body Sect.
Huo Yuhao's gaze only swept over him before locking firmly onto the white tray he was holding in his hands.
Huo Yuhao recognized what it was at a glance; it was the grand finale item from the Star Emperor Auction House four years ago, the god-sealing platform that had been bought by the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy at an astronomical price!
In an instant, Huo Yuhao understood what this was all about.
He couldn't help but blurt out: "So the Body Sect came for the god-sealing platform."
After seeing who it was, the Body Sect Spirit Douluo's originally tense nerves relaxed by more than half.
He only saw a young man; such an opponent could hardly be considered a threat.
Then his gaze narrowed, and a ferocious grin appeared on his rugged face.
"Kid, since you delivered yourself to my doorstep, don't blame me for being impolite."
As he finished speaking, his fourth spirit ring suddenly lit up.
A deep purple light erupted in the dim passage, casting a weird purple hue over his entire face.
He clearly had no intention of wasting words with Huo Yuhao and intended to completely annihilate this youth right here.
However, just as his spirit ring lit up and before he could release his Spirit Ability, he suddenly froze.
Huo Yuhao stood where he was, not even moving half a step, as his Spirit Domain silently unfurled.
In an instant, the deep purple spirit ring that had lit up beneath the man's feet was suddenly extinguished, like a candle flame blown out by the wind.
The man's eyes instantly became unfocused and vacant, his pupils losing their focal point, as if all his consciousness and will had been drained away, leaving only an empty shell standing on the spot.
Huo Yuhao stepped forward slowly, reached out, and took the god-sealing platform from the man's loosened palm.
His movements were very light, and when the tray landed in his palm, his fingertips touched a patch of icy coldness.
Huo Yuhao lowered his head and carefully examined the god-sealing platform in his hands; he discovered that there was an extremely subtle crack on the outer wall of the god-sealing platform near the bottom, which was almost imperceptible if one did not look closely.
And that aura of extreme cold was seeping out through this crack in wisps.
Huo Yuhao's heart stirred slightly; could it be that a Spirit Beast with an ice attribute was sealed inside?
Just as he thought of this, a sharp and excited voice suddenly exploded in his mind.
"It's Snow Empress! It's Snow Empress!"
Ice Empress's voice was practically a roar, completely devoid of the feigned calmness and reserve she usually displayed.
The voice carried an emotion that Huo Yuhao rarely heard from her: excitement, disbelief, and a trace of barely perceptible panic.
"No wonder I couldn't sense Snow Empress's aura back then in the Far North! She was actually captured by humans?!"
"How is this possible? With Snow Empress's cultivation, how could humans possibly be her match?"
She seemed to suddenly remember something; her voice stopped abruptly, and then became even more indignant: "Right! During the auction back then, they said they made their move while the Spirit Beast was undergoing its transformation! Despicable! Truly despicable to the extreme!"
Huo Yuhao listened to the barrage of shouts from Ice Empress in his mind, silently digesting this information.
His fingers gripping the god-sealing platform tightened slightly, his gaze lingering on that crack for a moment, and then he asked in his heart: "Can you be sure it's Snow Empress?"
Ice Empress's incoherent, excited emotions were forcibly suppressed by herself within just a few breaths.
Her voice was now steady again, and she said seriously: "It is definitely her. I have known Snow Empress in the Far North for tens of thousands of years; I can recognize her aura even with my eyes closed. There is absolutely no mistake!"
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.