Chapter 260: Huo Yuhao and Juzi, Star Luo Empire on the Brink of Collapse!
Using the blueprint of the Zhuge Divine Crossbow, Huo Yuhao integrated its principles with soul tool technology, creating a unique soul tool that left Xuan Ziwen astonished. Impressed by Huo Yuhao's talent, Xuan Ziwen invited him to join the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, but Huo Yuhao declined.
Instead, seizing the moment, Huo Yuhao turned the tables and tried to recruit Xuan Ziwen to the Tang Sect. Xuan Ziwen, however, merely scoffed at the idea and refused. Unfazed, Huo Yuhao proposed a wager. If he could present ten soul tools of equal caliber to his crossbow-soul tool fusion, Xuan Ziwen would have to join the Tang Sect.
The bet was made, and with that settled, Xuan Ziwen continued teaching Huo Yuhao about soul tools. Despite his ingenuity in combining the Tang Sect's hidden weaponry with modern technology, Huo Yuhao was still far behind Xuan Ziwen when it came to knowledge of soul tools.
One day, while Huo Yuhao was engrossed in learning, a lively, seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl with black hair and large, bright eyes burst into the laboratory. Her playful demeanor filled the room. In the live stream, the audience learned her name—Juzi.
Juzi?!
Upon seeing her, Lin Yu's thoughts began to race.
Could the upcoming question be related to Juzi?
Though there were plenty of potential topics concerning Shrek Academy and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, it seemed likely that the tension between Juzi and Huo Yuhao would take center stage, especially given their complicated future. After all, Juzi secretly used an external fertilization method to conceive Huo Yuhao's child—a fact Tang San must have known but chose not to stop.
In the future, after Juzi gave birth to Xu Yunhan, Tang San, as a divine law enforcer, shockingly used the child as leverage to force Juzi into silence, an undeniably despicable act.
In Lin Yu's mind, this was one of the darkest blemishes of Tang San's character.
Meanwhile, the live stream continued.
In the story, Huo Yuhao and Juzi became friends after a series of events. Juzi developed feelings for Huo Yuhao, charmed by his cooking skills and the care he showed her. But their relationship was never meant to be.
Not only was Tang San, hidden in the shadows, watching over Huo Yuhao, but Juzi was also aligned with Xu Tianran, the crown prince of the Sun Moon Empire. Xu Tianran intended to marry Juzi and crown her empress. Furthermore, Huo Yuhao knew that Juzi's ultimate enemy was the Star Luo Empire, the place of his birth.
In the end, after a bittersweet farewell kiss, Juzi and Huo Yuhao went their separate ways.
But the live stream didn't stop there.
The scene shifted to a secluded room. Xu Tianran, unable to produce an heir due to his injuries, pressured Juzi to conceive a child Prince Tianhe for the sake of the Sun Moon Empire's future. Under Xu Tianran's orders, Juzi was forced to seek out Prince Tianhe.
Following Xu Tianran's command, Juzi ultimately killed Prince Tianhe, using a specialized soul tool to collect what she needed for the task.
Later, just as Juzi was about to undergo a special procedure with royal physicians to ensure the fertilization process was completed, the camera switched again—this time to the far north.
In the icy wilderness of the far north, Juzi and Huo Yuhao met once more. The two shared their feelings, but it was clear their paths would never align. In a final, tender moment, Juzi kissed Huo Yuhao, putting him to sleep with the use of the intoxicating agent, Ten Thousand Drunken Nights.
As Huo Yuhao lay unconscious, Juzi utilized a special soul tool and discreetly extracted what she needed from him.
At this point, everyone watching the livestream understood the truth.
Juzi had outwitted Xu Tianran. Instead of using Prince Tianhe's "seed," she collected it from Huo Yuhao during their meeting. The child she intended to bear would not be of the Sun Moon Empire's royal bloodline but of Huo Yuhao's.
The scene then shifted again, this time to a vast military encampment.
In this part of the story, tensions arose as Juzi clashed with Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong'er—who had now become Tang Wutong—over something as trivial as a grilled fish. The encounter turned sour as Juzi witnessed Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong flaunting their affection for each other.
Enraged and heartbroken, Juzi rushed towards Huo Yuhao, yelling in despair, "Huo Yuhao, do you even know… I…!"
Before Juzi could finish her sentence, a sudden flash of golden light shot from the golden trident emblem on Tang Wutong's forehead, violently forcing Juzi to stop. The words she intended to scream were abruptly stifled.
Everyone watching the live stream was left to wonder what had happened.
Then, in a voiceover that echoed across the screen, a stern and familiar voice warned, "If you don't want to perish along with your child, then bury this secret deep in your heart, forever!"
Wait… is that Tang San's voice?
The entire audience was shocked as they immediately recognized the authoritative voice of Tang San from previous livestreams.
So, Tang San knew about Juzi's plan to bear Huo Yuhao's child?
The audience was taken aback, stunned by the revelation.
Of course, given that Tang San had been manipulating events behind the scenes, using his daughter Tang Wutong as a pawn to keep close to Huo Yuhao, it wasn't surprising that he would be aware of everything involving Huo Yuhao. After all, Tang San was a god, and nothing escaped his attention.
Yet, this revelation sparked another question that puzzled everyone:
If Tang San knew about Juzi's pregnancy and her plans, and considering Huo Yuhao was deeply in love with Tang Wutong, why didn't Tang San intervene?
For now, there were no answers to be found.
The livestream continued.
After being threatened by Tang San, Juzi, dejected, left in sorrow. The camera then fast-forwarded three years.
The scene now unfolded over a war-torn city, identified as the capital of the Star Luo Empire.
Dark clouds loomed over the city, threatening to unleash a torrential storm at any moment. The once-mighty northern walls of the capital lay in ruin, reduced to less than a third of their original height. Only the other three walls remained standing, though they, too, were battered from countless sieges.
To the west and north of the city, a hundred miles away, two defensive soul engineer formations were positioned, valiantly defending the last bastion of the Star Luo Empire.
As the camera zoomed in on the soldiers within the formations, their conversations revealed the current state of affairs.
The audience was reminded of the collision between the Sun Moon Continent and the Douluo Continent from previous broadcasts, and the four great empires that once ruled the land: the Sun Moon Empire, Star Luo Empire, Heavenly Soul Empire, and Dou Ling Empire.
Through the soldiers' exchanges, the audience learns about the tragic fate of the Heavenly Soul Empire.
Three years ago, the Sun-Moon Empire had annihilated the Heavenly Soul Empire. Soon after, Emperor Xu Tianran of the Sun Moon Empire mysteriously died, and his son Xu Yunhan ascended to the throne. Empress Juzi, now the reigning Dowager Empress, assumed power as the de facto ruler.
At first, the remaining two empires of the Douluo Continent—the Star Luo and Dou Ling Empires—thought there would be a period of peace.
But suddenly, the Sun Moon Empire launched eight soul engineer legions, swiftly obliterating the Dou Ling Empire.
Now, the Star Luo Empire was the last empire standing.
Yet even this final bastion was on the brink of collapse.