Douluo Continent: Becoming a disciple of Jing Liu, illuminating all the gods

Chapter 74 (Untitled)

The second courtyard is much more spacious, covering 300 square meters. There are still side rooms on both sides, and in front is a tall building with a plaque hanging on it that reads "Council Hall".

Before Huo Yuhao even arrived, he heard laughter coming from inside the council hall. Unable to contain his excitement any longer, he darted out and rushed into the council hall in a few strides.

There were three people in the council chamber at this moment. One of them was He Caitou, who had returned earlier than Huo Yuhao, and it was he who had made the laughter earlier. Opposite He Caitou stood two young men.

The man on the left is over 1.9 meters tall, with broad shoulders and a dignified appearance. His imposing figure gives people a feeling of stability like a mountain.

The man on the right wore a long robe, had a handsome face with a faint smile, deep eyes, and long hair simply draped over his shoulders. He was less dashing than the man on the left, but more refined and scholarly.

"Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother!" Huo Yuhao shouted and rushed over.

The person on the left was none other than Xu Sanshi, and the one on the right was none other than Bei Bei! Seeing Huo Yuhao rush in, the two were overjoyed and quickly went to greet him. The four brothers immediately embraced each other.

The four of them were so excited that they could hardly contain themselves and it took them a while to calm down.

Bei Bei looked at Huo Yuhao with a smile and said, "Junior Brother, you're finally back. Two and a half years! A full two and a half years!"

Huo Yuhao nodded vigorously and said, "Isn't that right? Two and a half years. I've been longing to go home for ages, but the exchange program isn't over yet. Senior Brother, I really miss you all! How are you all doing?"

Beibei smiled and said, "We're all doing very well. How is it? Our Tang Clan is already taking shape. How does it feel?"

Huo Yuhao said sincerely, "Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, thank you for your hard work. I really didn't expect that in just two years, we would already have our own territory. Although we haven't seen the whole picture yet, it's already quite impressive."

Beibei said, "We've been waiting for you to come back and take charge. From now on, you must shoulder the responsibilities of our Tang Clan to the fullest."

"Me, in charge?" Huo Yuhao was taken aback for a moment, then immediately shook his head vigorously, "No, no, how can I? It should definitely be the senior brothers who take charge!"

Xu Sanshi laughed heartily, "What did I tell you? I knew this kid would try to shirk responsibility. Who would compete with you for such hard work!"

Beibei said with a bitter face, "Junior Brother, the future development of our Tang Sect will definitely focus on Soul Tools. And you and Caitou are the Soul Tools Masters."

Huo Yuhao said, "Senior Brother, I have no problem contributing to our Tang Sect; I will do my best. But you can only be in charge of our Tang Sect. We can handle the technical aspects of soul tool manufacturing, but I know absolutely nothing about sect coordination and management!"

Beibei laughed and said, "I don't know either, but you'll get it with more practice. Alright, you've come all this way, let's not talk about this now, sit down and rest for a while."

"Okay." Huo Yuhao readily agreed and sat down with excitement.

Only then did he have time to observe the layout of the council hall. The hall was simply and rusticly furnished, with blue brick floors and maroon furniture that exuded an antique charm. There were twenty chairs on each side of a long table. The main seat on the inner side faced south.

He Caitou said, "Senior Brother, how far has our Tang Sect developed now? Tell me and Junior Brother about it!"

Beibei nodded and said, "Our Tang Sect is developing very quickly, even exceeding my own expectations. This is mainly thanks to the blueprints that Junior Brother sent back."

The blueprints Huo Yuhao recorded at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy were first sent to Bei Bei, who then made copies before handing them over to the academy. Shrek Academy possessed all the blueprints for the soul tools from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. However, the soul tools Huo Yuhao designed himself were unique to the Tang Sect. This decision was made after Bei Bei discussed it with Huo Yuhao through letters and explained the reasons to the Sea God Pavilion.

After all, the Tang Sect needs funds to develop. With funds, they can attract more talent and grow stronger.

Shrek Academy has now become Tang Sect's biggest backer, not only providing initial funding but also recommending students from its outer and inner academies who are not currently affiliated with any sect. These students can join Tang Sect as long as they wish.

It's still in its early stages, and only a very small number of students are willing to join the Tang Sect. However, with the rapid development of Shrek Academy's Soul Guidance Department, the Tang Sect will undoubtedly be one of their best destinations in the near future. This is an opportunity that Bei Bei has keenly grasped.

An academy is, after all, an academy; it can only cultivate talent, but it can't retain many. Especially for graduates of the outer academy, after six years of study, if they can't pass the entrance exam for the inner academy, they have to leave. But sects are different. A sect can accept disciples for life. As long as the sect is strong enough to provide disciples with a good cultivation environment and financial foundation, it can naturally retain them.

It was precisely because of this that Shrek Academy had already set out a plan to develop its own sect before Elder Mu passed away.

However, Shrek Academy is far too famous. Creating a Shrek Sect independently is clearly unrealistic and would attract criticism and trouble. The Tang Sect, on the other hand, has a long history and is inextricably linked to Shrek Academy. Rebuilding the Tang Sect with Shrek Academy as its backing is obviously a much better choice.

Beibei's biggest regret was that, because he wasn't completely certain about this, he hadn't told Tang Ya the good news yet, wanting to surprise her after everything was confirmed. But unexpectedly, Tang Ya disappeared without a trace after leaving.

"Currently, our Tang Sect is mainly divided into two parts: the Inner Hall and the Outer Hall. Our Inner Hall and Outer Hall are different from the Inner and Outer Courts of the academy. Our Inner Hall is mainly responsible for the management of the sect, the production of soul tools, and so on. The Outer Hall is for external affairs, such as future negotiations and battles with other countries. The Inner Hall now has more than 30 people, plus some skilled craftsmen, making it nearly 100. The Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon you designed is now being produced at a rate of ten per month. This is already at the fastest possible speed. The orders are all from Shrek City and the academy."

"Sanshi is in charge of the outer hall. It's still in the establishment stage. We've recruited some students from the outer academy, but no inner academy students have been willing to join our Tang Sect yet. But I believe that as our Tang Sect continues to grow stronger, everything will get better."

At that moment, Bei Bei introduced the current structure of the Tang Sect, as well as the situation of the inner and outer halls, to Huo Yuhao and He Caitou.

The Tang Sect's soul tool manufacturing workshop is somewhat similar to the Mingde Hall, but it is not entirely underground; rather, it is semi-underground. Some key components are completed in the basement, while ordinary components are manufactured in the foundry on the ground floor.

Currently, the Tang Sect only produces the Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon as a soul tool, along with some cannonballs. Even so, it will take a full two years to fulfill the orders from Shrek Academy and Shrek City.

"Yuhao, I was just thinking of discussing this with you when you get back. Do you think our Zhuge Divine Crossbow cannons can be exported? If so, we can expand our scale directly. Manpower isn't a big problem. The Soul Guidance Department of the academy has already designated our place as a pilot site for student internships, and they can pay them a certain amount of money to help us manufacture the core magic array and some components."

Huo Yuhao shook his head and said, "Senior Brother, I think it's better not to export the Zhuge Divine Crossbow for now. But if funds allow, we might as well expand the scale and accumulate more stock. We can consider exporting it after we return from the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Battle Tournament."

Beibei said, "Given the characteristics of our Zhuge Divine Crossbow, I believe they would be very interested if we showed it to the Star Luo Empire and the Heavenly Soul Empire. Although the Zhuge Divine Crossbow is complex to manufacture, it doesn't require too much rare metal. The shells alone will be a huge source of revenue for us in the future. I've already discussed it with the academy. The Soul Guidance Department will set up a special area for us, recruit more skilled workers, and mass-produce Soul Guidance shells. All the finished, fixed-equipment Soul Guidance shells will be transported back to Shrek City for storage. Externally, we will only sell those below level four that can be mass-produced."

Huo Yuhao said, "Senior Brother, you should make the decision yourself."

Beibei laughed and said, "When we first tested your Zhuge Divine Crossbow, it really startled Sanshi and me. We thought that if we were the target, we probably wouldn't be able to escape unscathed! However, our Tang Clan's products can't be so limited, but to develop better, we need more capital. So, we must make money from this war."

At this point, a hint of worry flashed in his eyes: "The Sun Moon Empire has become increasingly assertive in the last two years. Although there is an internal struggle for the throne, the crown prince who seems to be in the lead is a hardliner. Once he ascends the throne, war will likely be difficult to avoid."

He Caitou asked with some surprise, "You mean that legless guy?"

Bei Bei nodded and said, "Don't underestimate him. This Xu Tianran is quite remarkable; he's brave, resourceful, and a staunch advocate of war. If it weren't for the blueprints Yu Hao sent back, we wouldn't have known that the three kingdoms originally from the Douluo Continent were so far behind others in terms of soul tools. With their advanced soul tools and large numbers of soul tool masters, I don't think the Star Luo Empire and the Heavenly Soul Empire could withstand them once war breaks out!"

Xu Sanshi said, "When that time comes, our Zhuge Divine Crossbow will finally have a purpose."

He Caitou laughed and said, "That's for sure. The Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon designed by Junior Brother combines the Zhuge Divine Crossbow mechanism technology of our Tang Sect with soul power propulsion. In terms of power, it is similar to a level 5 fixed-position soul guide cannon, but it can fire multiple shots and consumes very little soul power. It can even be operated by ordinary people after being pre-charged. This is something that no existing soul guide device has. As long as there are enough of them, the power will be quite strong."

The Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon designed by Huo Yuhao wasn't particularly powerful in terms of its raw power. However, it could use various fixed-mount soul-guided projectiles. Its most terrifying aspect, as he demonstrated to Jing Hongchen, was its ability to be linked with the triggering mechanism of the Tang Sect's mechanical hidden weapon, the Zhuge Divine Crossbow. The Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon itself was extremely easy to operate, requiring only a Great Soul Master level Soul Master to control.

If Huo Yuhao had the kind of sealed baby bottle designed by Xuan Ziwen, he could even have ordinary soldiers operate the Zhuge Divine Crossbow, and the baby bottle would only need to be replaced after firing for a period of time.

Of course, since the Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon is a fixed-mount soul-guided device, its demand for fixed-mount soul-guided shells is naturally enormous. To accommodate more shells, its size is also considerable. Therefore, it excels more in defense and is somewhat less effective in offense.

Huo Yuhao said, "Senior Brother, I've recently made some improvements to the Zhuge Divine Crossbow Cannon, which we can incorporate into the next batch. I've drawn up detailed blueprints. I also have a few other designs that we can try making."

Beibei laughed and said, "Okay. There's no rush. Look, you've only just gotten back and we've already been talking about this all along. So, how about it? The competition is in a few months, are you confident? I gave Elder Xuan my assurance. That's why he allowed us to stop training and focus all our energy on the Tang Sect."

Huo Yuhao laughed and said, "Senior Brother, you're the captain, you should be the one saying how confident we are!"

Bei Bei said, "Yu Hao, are you trying to cheat? Your senior brother will have to check whether you've neglected your cultivation these past two years, aside from your soul tool."

Huo Yuhao smiled without saying a word. He Caitou, standing beside him, said, "Senior Brother, you didn't see it. Back at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, Yuhao single-handedly fought against the elites of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, beating them to a pulp. This year's championship is definitely ours. We won five years ago, so this time is even more certain."

Beibei said, "We can't be too careless. We have many opponents. This competition is being held in the Sun Moon Empire. I believe the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy is also determined to win. We may not be able to take the championship so easily."

Xu Sanshi said, "You're worrying unnecessarily. Just watch me. As long as it's an individual competition, I think I can handle it all by myself."

Beibei glared at him, annoyed, and said, "Don't mention the competition. You should deal with Nannan first."

Upon hearing the name "Nan Nan," Xu Sanshi deflated like a punctured balloon, plopped down, and looked utterly dejected.

Huo Yuhao said, "By the way, Senior Brother, I have some good news to tell you."

"What?"

"Chen Qiye is back?"

"What!!!!"

(End of this chapter)