Chapter 102: Vermilion Ice Toad

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Seeing that Huo Yuhao had agreed, Xu Tianran wasn't surprised. He understood that geniuses often came with ambition.

At present, although Xu Tianran was somewhat wary of Huo Yuhao's potential, it wasn't enough to cause real concern. The benefits Huo Yuhao could bring him were simply too great. As a result, Xu Tianran viewed him more as a partner—someone he could trust to a certain extent.

"Little Huo, when will you be available?"

Xu Tianran asked in an unusually friendly tone.

"Any time."

Huo Yuhao was a little creeped out by Xu Tianran's sudden friendliness. Goosebumps ran up his arms as he replied with mild discomfort.

"In that case, seven days from now, Chief Instructor Xu Tianyuan of the Royal Dragon Soul Engineer Legion will come to Mingde Hall to collect the first batch of weapons you've produced. At that time, you'll accompany him and take those soul tools for ordinary soldiers to the outskirts of Mingdu. There, you'll assume command of a newly trained, thousand-man battalion of commoner soldiers. That will be your unit."

"Understood, Your Highness."

Huo Yuhao replied politely, indifferent. New recruits, huh? Well, that might not be a bad thing. They weren't as experienced as veterans, but they adapted quickly to new things. That made them easier to manage—something he preferred.

After that, Xu Tianran left Mingde Hall, and Huo Yuhao returned to his usual work routine. Day after day, he was buried in soul tool research, living more like a full-time researcher than a student.

One day, after finishing his work, Huo Yuhao decided to reward himself with a rare treat—a visit to that well-known barbecue restaurant in Mingdu. This time, he even invited Meng Hongchen to join him.

He waited downstairs at the Hongchen residence—his home now, too—for her.

Before long, a cheerful figure stepped out of the gates. Huo Yuhao looked up and saw Senior Meng in a cute and casual outfit.

Smiling, he waved to her at the entrance. When she reached him, he said,

"Senior, you're as beautiful as ever today."

Meng Hongchen giggled sweetly and extended her hand toward him.

"Hehe, of course I am! Who do you think I am?"

Huo Yuhao stared at her hand, a little stunned.

Meng Hongchen pouted playfully, her voice soft and scolding.

"Honestly, Yuhao, how are you supposed to take me out for dinner if you don't hold my hand?"

Realizing his mistake, Huo Yuhao's face flushed slightly. Without hesitation, he took her hand. Meng Hongchen's expression finally softened, and she smiled brightly.

"Now that's more like it! Let's go!"

She tugged him along, skipping forward excitedly. Watching her from behind, Huo Yuhao felt a bit helpless.

'Who's taking who out again?'

As they walked through the lively streets of central Mingdu, Huo Yuhao felt the warmth of her hand and gradually relaxed. He had been working non-stop lately, practically reverting to the workaholic state of his past life, with no time for himself.

When they entered the barbecue restaurant, the good-looking couple immediately became the center of attention.

"Ah, just in time! There's one four-person table left."

Meng Hongchen said in surprise as they sat down.

Huo Yuhao nodded with relief. He had forgotten that today was a rest day in the Sun Moon Empire. Naturally, a popular spot like this would be packed.

'Guess our luck isn't too bad today.'

Once they ordered, the two began chatting.

"Senior, how's the search for those three ingredients going?"

After resolving the initial backlash from Meng Hongchen's cold poison, Huo Yuhao had learned from the Snow Empress that three specific heavenly treasures were needed to permanently solve the problem.

He had already used life energy to cleanse and strengthen Meng Hongchen's body, greatly enhancing her constitution. To some extent, she had even inherited a fraction of his own undying physical traits as the host of the origin of life.

But that alone wasn't enough. The two conflicting forces of ice and fire still raged within her body, generating cold poison that harmed her from within. To stabilize that, they needed to find a permanent balance between the two elements and further purify her toad-like beast bloodline to help her control them.

First, she would need to consume two top-tier elemental herbs—one ice-type and one fire-type—to become immune to both elements. This would suppress the internal conflict and prevent more cold poison from forming.

According to the Snow Empress, the ideal herbs were the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Fiery Apricot Delicate—both rare elemental plants.

Together, they wouldn't just resolve the internal clash but would allow Meng Hongchen to harness the very poison it produced, giving her Vermilion Ice Toad spirit a terrifyingly potent poison attribute.

When the Snow Empress first mentioned these herbs, Huo Yuhao had immediately thought of the famous Icefire Yin Yang Well. Didn't those exact two ten-thousand-year plant-type soul beasts live there?

Although he'd instructed Jing Hongchen to search for substitutes, Huo Yuhao had already decided that he would likely need to visit the Icefire Yin Yang Well in person—not just for Meng Hongchen's sake, but for his own plans and others he cared about.

Then there was the issue of purifying her divine beast bloodline. If she managed to balance the ice and fire within her, the risk of backlash would drop dramatically. But even then, nothing was guaranteed. If her body wasn't fully resistant to poison, a single mistake could be fatal.

That was why purifying her bloodline was critical. The ancient toad-like beasts were known for complete immunity to toxins. If they could awaken that purity within her inherited spirit—now partially awakened through her martial soul fusion with Huo Yuhao's ultimate ice—it would greatly improve her resistance.

Even if she didn't gain complete immunity, it might be enough to save her life in a crisis.

But how exactly should one purify a divine beast bloodline?

Not even the Snow Empress knew. She figured it would require some ancient heavenly treasures tied to those original toad beasts. So for now, Huo Yuhao had asked Jing Hongchen to search and hope for some luck.

Still, there was another possible lead.

In her seventy-thousand-year life, the Snow Empress vaguely recalled that a ten-thousand-year Vermilion Ice Toad had once emerged in the Extreme North. That kind of advancement was nearly impossible unless its bloodline had somehow been purified.

Though the Snow Empress never found that particular soul beast and eventually dismissed the matter, she now suggested that Huo Yuhao and Meng Hongchen visit the Extreme North to investigate any possible clues.

(End of Chapter)

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