...
As dawn broke, a golden-red ray of sunlight just peeked over the horizon.
Ten thousand meters above the ground, the wind howled.
Xuan Hao hovered in the clouds, his silver hair dancing in the wind, looking down at the magnificent Soul Master Holy Land below—Wuhun City.
He did not choose to land immediately.
"Buzz".
Xuan Hao slowly closed his eyes, and his powerful mental energy instantly transformed into an invisible ripple, spreading outwards from his body.
With the aid of elemental perception, his mental sensitivity was amplified more than tenfold in an instant.
The mental radar, which originally could only cover a radius of several miles, now looked like a god looking down on the world, easily sweeping the entire Wuhun City and the surrounding mountains into its entirety.
The early-rising vendors on the street, the Holy Emperor warriors on patrol, and even the subtle auras of powerful figures in the Papal Palace and the Hall of Worship, all transformed into clear points of soul power in his mind.
Xuan Hao's mental energy swept around the Papal Palace several times.
He paid special attention to those low-level, dull soul energy fluctuations.
However, after scanning the entire area, he did not find the iconic trace of Yu Xiaogang's soul power at level 29.
"Looks like that guy hasn't arrived yet."
Xuan Hao slowly opened his eyes, a faint golden light flashing in them before he breathed a sigh of relief.
At the speed of the carriage, even if Yu Xiaogang travels day and night, he should arrive in the next two days.
Now that I've gotten ahead, I have complete control over the situation.
Xuan Hao did not brazenly go to the Papal Palace to find Bibi Dong.
His figure swayed, and he transformed into a blurry black shadow, descending from the sky with the wind.
The training ground on the back mountain of the Martial Soul Academy.
First, I went to my good senior sister Hu Liena to sound her out and see what the current trend in the Papal Palace is.
"Whoosh."
A soft rustling of falling leaves rang out as Xuan Hao landed steadily in Hu Liena's private training ground.
This is the quietest corner behind the Martial Soul Academy.
The yard was lush with vegetation, and hundreds of furry foxes were gathered there.
Among them are white foxes and fire foxes, and many are even soul beasts that have cultivated for thousands of years.
These foxes, who were usually very intelligent and even a bit arrogant in the academy, didn't dare to make a sound the moment Xuan Hao landed.
Even the leading thousand-year-old foxes, upon sensing the innate aura of a top predator emanating from Xuan Hao, were so frightened that they tucked their tails between their legs, lay obediently on the ground, and dared not move.
Xuan Hao looked at the foxes and a twitch appeared on his lips.
He still remembered that in order to coax Hu Liena, he had often been a "fox-catching expert" in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Most of the top-quality foxes in this yard were caught by him and given to his senior sister as pets.
Under an ancient tree in the center of the training ground.
Hu Liena, dressed in a pink fitted long dress, was sitting cross-legged.
She placed her hands in a mudra on her knees, her eyes closed, and a faint spiritual energy rippled around her, clearly in a state of high concentration during her morning practice.
Xuan Hao did not make a sound to disturb her.
He casually walked to the swing set and sat down, resting his chin on one hand, quietly watching Hu Liena under the tree.
Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.
The sunlight completely filled the entire yard.
"call..."
Hu Liena, standing under the tree, exhaled a long breath of turbid air, and the spiritual energy surrounding her gradually receded.
Her long eyelashes trembled slightly as she slowly opened her naturally alluring fox-like eyes.
However, before she could even get a good look at the scenery, a tall, familiar figure came into view.
Hu Liena froze on the spot, rubbed her eyes, and thought she was hallucinating because of her excessive longing.
"What? It's been more than two years, and you don't even recognize your junior brother anymore?"
Xuan Hao sat on the swing, waved his hand at her, and slightly parted his lips.
"Xuan Hao?!"
Upon seeing that face that was both infuriatingly handsome and excessively beautiful, Hu Liena's beautiful eyes instantly lit up with astonishing surprise.
Without the slightest hesitation, she sprang up from the grass like a pink lightning bolt, opened her arms, and threw herself into Xuan Hao's embrace.
"Bang."
A soft, warm embrace filled my arms.
Hu Liena hugged Xuan Hao's neck tightly, buried her face in his chest, and her body trembled slightly with excitement.
"Cough, my dear senior sister, could you please be a little gentler?"
Xuan Hao took the opportunity to hug her voluptuous body, patted her back, and teased her.
"You're a Soul Emperor now, after all. If I weren't tough, you would have broken two of my ribs today."
Hearing the teasing, Hu Liena blushed slightly and reluctantly withdrew from his embrace.
But her hands were still tightly gripping Xuan Hao's clothes, and the surprise in her beautiful fox eyes quickly turned into deep resentment.
"You bastard, you actually know how to come back?!"
Hu Liena bit her red lips and glared at him resentfully.
"Tell me the truth, why did you sneak back to see the teacher last time and leave without saying a word? You didn't even see me! Do you even consider me your senior sister?"
"The situation was special last time, and I left in a hurry. It really wasn't intentional."
Xuan Hao coughed lightly, then skillfully reached out and ruffled Hu Liena's hair, smoothing it down.
After Hu Liena calmed down, Xuan Hao pulled her to sit down on the stone bench next to him, and his expression became serious.
Let's not talk about that now.
Xuan Hao looked at her, "Teacher, how have you been lately?
I've been in seclusion in Heaven Dou City for over a year, which means it's been almost two years since I last returned to Spirit City.
Is she alright?"
Upon hearing Xuan Hao ask about Bibi Dong, the joy on Hu Liena's face instantly faded at a visible speed.
She lowered her eyes, sighed helplessly, and shook her head slightly:
"Not good. To be precise, very bad."
"Ever since you came back last time and caused that scene with the teacher in the back hall of the Papal Palace, her mood has been in a terrible state, and even her temper has changed a lot."
"Teacher, actually... I've always been thinking about you."
Hu Liena looked at Xuan Hao and said in a complicated tone, "Half a year ago, she specially sent Elder Yue Guan to Tian Dou City to see how you were doing."
"But you've been in seclusion for over a year. Elder Yueguan's search in Tiandou City was fruitless; he couldn't find any information and had to return empty-handed."
Xuan Hao stroked his chin: "I've heard about that. So, what exactly is going on with her recent unusual behavior?"
"She seems to be getting more and more anxious."
Hu Liena frowned, her eyes filled with deep worry. "It's like she's in a rush.
Every time I went to see her over the past year, she seemed anxious."
"In the past, when I went to see her, she would patiently chat with me, care about my life, and give me pointers on my soul skills. But now, she always has a cold face.
As soon as I walk in, she doesn't even want to say much to me. The first thing she says is to urge me to go back to the secret room to cultivate in seclusion. She's terrifyingly strict."
Hu Liena clutched her skirt sadly: "She always tells me to mind my own business and focus on becoming stronger, and not to worry about her."
"I feel... that the teacher is hiding something from everyone. She is carrying too much pressure and is on the verge of collapse."
At this point, Hu Liena suddenly turned around and grabbed Xuan Hao tightly.
"Xuanhao, now that you're back, hurry up and go to the Papal Palace to see your teacher."
"I don't care what secrets you two had back then.
But I do know that in this world... perhaps now only what you say to her can she truly listen to."
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