--- Chapter 32 ---
Land of Shadows.
An "extremely." beautiful woman known by several names and titles sat on a lonely throne. She has long purple hair and red eyes and wears a full-body outfit, emphasizing her voluptuous body and slender shoulders with metallic shoulder pads.
"Boring..." Her pale face was devoid of any emotions but boredom.
Scáthach. A female warrior-queen from Celtic Mythology. The queen and gatekeeper of the foreign territory/haunted ground called the Land of Shadow. She is a prodigy of spearmanship and Rune magecraft.
She possesses an immense power that is enough to obtain control over and close the gate of the "Land of Shadows." which is overflowing with countless ghosts to ward off the dead. She is also known as God Slayer because of the continual slaying of Divine Spirits, making her feared by anyone.
After bathing herself in millions or even billions of lives, Scáthach became immortal. She wanted to die as a human but couldn't do it because no one could kill her. It's saddening because even her precious student couldn't kill her. Their feelings clouded their judgments at the very last moment.
"Hmm?"
An unidentified power abruptly broke through the Land of Shadows, breaking Scáthach control over the "Gate." and creating an odd space & time tunnel connected to somewhere else.
"This is... My connection to Throne of Heroes also was cut off by this force. An overwhelming power that beyond Counter Force and Natural Order actually exists?"
"Is it Zelretch? No, that fool wouldn't be able to enter my domain so easily." It's not just Scáthach who experienced this bizarre event because every Heroic Spirit, divine or not, also met this unknown force.
Scáthach was ready to draw her treasured weapon Gae Bolg and heard something pure yet unexpected coming from the tunnel.
"Do you want a new life?" An innocent childish voice echoed to all Heroic Spirits. They wanted to reply but were afraid of the unknown consequence. Yes, all of them, except Scáthach.
Scáthach felt her instinct activated by this voice and unconsciously muttered, "Yes."
A golden light swallowed Scáthach's whole being and pulled her into the tunnel, making the Land of Shadows more silent than usual.
Scáthach felt weird because all the strength she had honed and trained for years seemed to leave her body. Yet, she didn't feel discomfort because overwhelming rushes of warmth embraced her soul.
"Freedom. For the first time after years of boredom." She mumbled while closing her eyes.
"Finally, peace..."
[Transmigrating...]
...
...
Scáthach opened her eyes and found herself inside wooden cages. She felt weak to her very bones, having no ounce of strength at all.
"Where am I?" She looked around and saw children hugging their knees in fear. A small person suddenly entered the room with an awkward movement, staring at the cages, and eventually stopped at her.
A blue-haired child stood before her, sporting casual attire and a weird-looking mask. His appearance was nothing extraordinary to Scáthach because she had seen so many odd things but those eyes.
'How beautiful... A pair of azure sky-like eyes, gazing at me with such concern.' Scáthach thought while lowering her gaze for a moment. It feels surreal to her because everything happened so fast.
Huo Yuhao was surprised and mumbled, "Purple hair and red eyes..."
Scáthach recognized this innocent voice and raised her head again. "Oh, Are you my master?" She questioned immediately with no hesitation.
"I-, Yes. Yes, I am." Huo Yuhao awkwardly answered while nodding his head. "Anyway, let's get out of this place first."
He grabbed over the iron lock on the wooden cages and crushed them with his hand. He opened all of them effortlessly, releasing the children and Scáthach. After giving them a blanket and recovery potion, he escorted them to the deck.
Some children shivered when seeing the pirates, but Huo Yuhao assured them. "Don't worry. I've defeated all the pirates before rescuing you from the cages. Wait here until my mother comes to pick us up." He declared naturally, to which the rest of the children responded with a nod.
Huo Yuhao brought Scáthach to the upper deck and said, "Ask me anything you want to know right now. I'll answer them honestly."
"Where am I?" Scáthach asked calmly.
"Douluo Dalu. A universe far away from your home universe and possibly possessed more danger because we have an annoying group of Gods that govern over higher dimensions." Huo Yuhao answered while remembering some information about Douluo Dalu's universe.
Scáthach pondered for a moment and continued, "How did you summon me here?"
Huo Yuhao smiled wryly and replied, "I have a special power to do that. It's kinda confidential, so I can't explain the exact process of it."
There is no presence of mana in the air, but something more related to Ki/Natural energy in eastern or maybe Chinese mythology. Scáthach could feel an unknown force flowing inside her veins, which became stronger by "simply." breathing air. The distant universe with the name of Douluo Dalu, Unknown Power, and this child. Everything is new to her.
"I see, then lastly. Who are you?" The former God Slayer stared at Huo Yuhao curiously. She has observed him meticulously and concluded he wasn't a "Normal." child from his strength to his manner of speaking.
Huo Yuhao grabbed the White Goblin Mask and pulled it off his face. He brushed his blue hair, which seemed to become longer after so many rapid advancements, and stared at Scáthach solemnly.
"My name is Huo Yuhao. Nice to meet you." He said while giving his best friendly smile, but unknown to him. His action activated something inside Scáthach's heart.
"Let me pat you!" Even with her new body, Scáthach's womanly instinct "Instantly." was triggered when seeing Huo Yuhao's appearance. Yes, High Human's charm is that high.
"What??"
Scáthach grasped Huo Yuhao's hand and enthusiastically repeated, "Let. Me. Pat. You!"
Huo Yun'er hummed while bringing the Yacht to the pirate ships and saw an unknown purple-haired girl patting her beloved Hao'er. "N-No way... Another one? I left Hao'er for a few minutes, and he met another girl!" She was speechless. And after that, Huo Yuhao has to explain everything to her.
...
...
That day passed quickly, and Huo Yuhao added clean pirates to his subordinate list. He killed pirates entangled in the child trafficking business because those people were beyond repair in his eyes. They aren't good enough to be in the Dragon Nest.
Scáthach surprisingly adapted to the environment very well, but her relationship with Huo Yun'er is a little bit off. Unlike other girls Huo Yuhao met on his journey, Scáthach was a proud warrior and an adult woman who transmigrated into a child's body. So when Huo Yun'er tried to set a boundary, Scáthach reacted indifferently.
Huo Yuhao has to defuse their heated arguments because they are precious to him, especially Huo Yun'er. After giving Huo Yun'er some explanation, she finally lets Scáthach become closer to him.
Meanwhile, Qianye Ying'er wanted to convert everyone on the ship into Huo Yuhao's believer. She somehow succeeded and developed a small cult. And yes, Huo Yun'er and Scathach joined this cult without much persuasion.
Huo Yuhao sat in the captain's room and asked, "Xiao Chen, is it just me, or does every female on the ship seem to hold private gatherings every evening."
The blacksmith coughed on his tea and awkwardly looked around while wiping his mouth. "What are you talking about, Boss? That's just normal evening tea among the ladies." He replied nervously.
"Is that so? It's probably just my feelings." Huo Yuhao chuckled in amusement because he knew everything on the ship. It's not difficult to learn about this little cult's private meeting, but since they are only talking about him and nothing negative, He lets them off.
A few weeks passed without problem, and Huo Yuhao fulfilled one objective from the Start an Organization's Quest. He has over 200 loyal subordinates by recruiting some villagers on the islands they encountered.
[Name: Start an Organization]
[Objectives: Built a Base(0/1), Have at least 200 loyal subordinates(369/200)]
[Reward: 1 Black Gold Upgrading Ticket and 1x Random Training Ground]
"This is going well." Huo Yuhao commented on the top of the Yacht, looking at a fleet of ships following him. "Dragon Nest only needs a base, and we are officially an organization."
"Evo, open my status."
[Opening Status Window...]
[Name: Huo Yuhao]
[Age: 6]
[Race: High Human]
[Sub-Races: True Dragon(+), White Tiger(+)]
[Class: Assassin, Avenger, Paladin, Archer]
[Cultivation Realm: Level 30]
[Martial Soul: Chaotic Purgatory Dragon(+), The Eyes of the Lord(+), Chains of Heaven(2+)]
[Skills: Craftsman, Chef, Alchemist, Blacksmith, Rune Master]
[Extra Skill: Overclock]
[Techniques: Haki(+), Penetrating Fist, Extreme Lightning Mirage, Four Season Saber Technique, Sun Breathing Technique Dagger Mastery, Spear Mastery, Martial Art Mastery]
[Equipment: Eas(42), Baruka's Dagger(A), Failure(Locked), Heavenly Soap]
[Upgrading Tickets: Iron(39), Bronze(7), Silver(23), Gold(1)]
Huo Yuhao stared at his status calmly and commented, "Yep, everything is looking fine so far. But, I should absorb my third spirit ring to reach level 31. As for my Upgrading Tickets, taking those small quests to rescue people is worth it because they have been stacking steadily for weeks."
"Still, the new perks are nice."
[Name: Overclock]
[Type: Extra Skill]
[Grade: S]
[Description: An unique skill that allows one to stimulate the brain and speed up perception by several times, heightening all senses]
[Name: Rune Master]
[Type: Master Skill]
[Grade: S]
[Description: Rune Master is a "special." skill that allows one to manipulate energy with Ancient Knowledge, creating miracles by using spells/runes]
"Hmm, what are you talking about, my disciple?" Scathach walked toward him. "Are you done with the warming up?"
Huo Yuhao turned around with a smile and replied, "Yes, I've finished them all. Though I believed everyone who has to do one million push-ups for a "Warming up." would have died halfway."
"Should I increase it to three million push-ups?" She returned while smiling at him. "Out of all of the people I met in the past, only you're the only one with the most gifted physical capacity, perceptive mind, and *Cough.* adorable appearance."
"As your adaptation is like a cheat to the natural law of progression, why don't we abuse it to the extreme limit."
"Uugh." Huo Yuhao denied her idea.
"Let's just start the training."
"Heh, call me like usual first." A smug smirk appeared on Scathach face.
Huo Yuhao shook his head and answered, "Yes, teacher-!"
"I mean, Yes. Shishou!"