Douluo Dalu 2: The True God King-Chapter 373: [DD2]:

Staring at Su Yu, Jing Hongchen's eyes flickered, his thoughts unreadable.

Su Yu, however, didn't care much about what Jing Hongchen was thinking. He stared at Xiao Hongchen, observing him, and then said with a teasing tone, "Brother-in-law, your soul power seems a bit unstable."

"Did you take some kind of pill or something?"

Xiao Hongchen: "..."

Yes, you guessed it.

I did take something.

But the thing is... even after taking it, my level is still lower than yours. Does that even make sense?

Xiao Hongchen's eye twitched. It wasn't Su Yu's level that shocked him the most, though.

The sheer density of Su Yu's soul power was the real blow.

Su Yu had made such great progress, yet his soul power remained so condensed.

How did he even manage that?

Xiao Hongchen couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he thought about it.

The only explanation: ordinary people just can't compete with someone who has a cheat-like existence.

After a moment of silence, Xiao Hongchen sighed deeply. "Su Yu, how exactly did you achieve this?"

Su Yu's expression turned a little more serious as he replied, "Through constant trials and tribulations."

He wasn't lying.

Over the past two years, he has been through countless challenges.

Xiao Hongchen: (ー_ー)!!

"Fine, maybe this is just your unique opportunity, something no one else can compare to."

"But it's good that you've reached the level of a Soul Sage. This gives us more confidence in winning the championship."

Jing Hongchen, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.

After all, the Ice God Palace was an ancient power, and there were many unknown aspects about it.

Su Yu's progress might seem shocking, but when compared to the mysteries of the Ice God Palace, it wasn't entirely impossible.

Su Yu lightly rubbed his chin, pondering for a moment, then said, "Hall Master, I might not represent the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy in this Soul Dueling Tournament."

"Why not?"

Jing Hongchen was puzzled, and Xiao Hongchen stared directly at Su Yu.

Even Meng Hongchen, standing next to Su Yu, looked at him in surprise.

"You mentioned earlier that sects are allowed to participate in this tournament, right? So I thought I'd form my team and join the fun."

Su Yu chuckled.

Jing Hongchen was taken aback. "Your Ice God Palace is participating in this tournament? Are you coming out of seclusion?"

Naturally, his first thought was the Ice God Palace.

If the Ice God Palace were to emerge into the world, it would undoubtedly send shockwaves across the continent.

After all, the power of the Ice God Palace was something that no other force on the continent could ignore.

Su Yu shook his head. "No, the Ice God Palace has no intention of coming out of seclusion for now. I'm planning to create a new sect."

"A new sect?"

Jing Hongchen's eyes flickered as he looked at Su Yu thoughtfully.

Xiao Hongchen, unable to hold back any longer, asked, "Then what about the Illustrious Virtue Hall? I'm confident in myself, but without you, there's no guarantee we can win the championship."

There was something Xiao Hongchen didn't say out loud—if Su Yu became a competitor, he wouldn't have much confidence in defeating him.

Back when his soul power was more than ten levels higher than Su Yu's, he couldn't beat him.

Now, Su Yu's soul power had surpassed his. Could he win?

Xiao Hongchen had no illusions about it.

He was always confident, but not blindly so. He knew how strong Su Yu was.

"Brother-in-law, you need to have more confidence in your strength," Su Yu said with a grin.

Xiao Hongchen rolled his eyes.

I have confidence in myself, but I know how strong you are.

Do you think I don't know whether I can beat you or not?

Xiao Hongchen grumbled inwardly. Suddenly, he remembered something and turned to look at Wang Dong'er, who was standing beside Su Yu.

"Wang Dong'er, what about you? Don't tell me you're going with Su Yu as well?"

Without hesitation, Wang Dong'er replied, "Where Su Yu goes, I go. If he wants to form a sect for fun, of course, I'll support him."

Xiao Hongchen: "..."

He knew it.

But Wang Dong'er wasn't what Xiao Hongchen was worried about.

It was when he noticed his own sister, Meng Hongchen, looking at Su Yu differently that he started to panic.

"Meng, you can't leave your brother at a time like this! We're family!"

Xiao Hongchen pleaded, his face full of despair.

If Meng Hongchen decided to join Su Yu, the situation would get much worse.

Meng Hongchen was incredibly strong, and her unique cold poison was a trump card.

"Meng'er would never leave. She's so obedient. How could she abandon her big brother?"

Su Yu patted Meng Hongchen's head with a smile.

Meng Hongchen gave Su Yu a puzzled look, then nodded. "Yes, brother, I'll stay with the academy team."

Don't think I didn't see the way you looked earlier.

You're only staying because Su Yu told you to, aren't you?

Sigh... girls do grow up and can't be kept at home.

Xiao Hongchen sighed helplessly.

At this moment, Jing Hongchen spoke again. "Su Yu, why have you suddenly decided to form a new force?"

Su Yu explained, "Mainly for convenience. Also, I want to create a new force focused on soul tool research."

The Ice God Palace was a pure soul master-centric power. Conducting soul tool research there was awkward.

Moreover, the Ice Snow City environment wasn't suitable for soul tool research.

The Ice God Palace's strict rules and isolationist nature meant they couldn't easily involve themselves in the outside world without causing an uproar.

Having an intermediary power would make things much easier.

Most importantly, the Ice God Palace wasn't suitable for recruiting a large number of powerhouses.

The Ice God Palace only accepted ice-attributed soul masters.

Exceptions like Jiang Nannan and Lan Lan were rare and couldn't become the norm.

If too many non-ice soul masters joined, it would inevitably lead to conflict.

After all, the Ice God Palace had a history stretching back tens of thousands of years, and its tradition of accepting only ice soul masters was deeply ingrained.

In a way, this exclusivity made them unwelcoming to outsiders.

It was similar to how the Body Sect only accepted body martial soul users—outsiders could never truly integrate.

But forming a new power changed things. It allowed for greater freedom in recruiting strong individuals.

Many people Su Yu had an eye on could be brought into this new power.

This new force could research soul tools that the Ice God Palace couldn't, and it could also act as a new front to intervene in the continent's affairs.

There were countless benefits.

For Su Yu, adding the title of a sect leader was no big deal.

Hearing this, Jing Hongchen narrowed his eyes and studied Su Yu for a while, his expression becoming strange.

"Su Yu, you're quite ambitious, aren't you?"

The Ice God Palace was already the strongest traditional soul master force, capable of dominating the continent with soul masters alone.

Now, Su Yu wanted to create a new force focused on soul tools.

What was this kid planning?

Jing Hongchen couldn't help but suspect Su Yu's intentions.

"Hall Master, you're overthinking it. I'm just bored and want to start my own business," Su Yu laughed.

"Isn't the Ice God Palace enough for you?" Jing Hongchen asked.

Su Yu chuckled and said, "That's different. The Ice God Palace is an ancient force that worships the Ice God. Even though I'm the young master, it's ultimately not something I created."

"I just want to prove myself."

Su Yu spoke casually, portraying himself as a second-generation heir trying to prove his worth.

Jing Hongchen rolled his eyes, not believing a single word.

He had always suspected that Su Yu harbored grand ambitions, but he had no evidence.

"So, what kind of organization do you want to create? And where do you plan to establish your sect?"

Su Yu responded offhandedly, "Since the focus will be on researching soul tools, the Sun Moon Empire is naturally the most suitable place."

"As for the name of the organization, let's call it the Palace of the Gods."

Jing Hongchen: ?????

Palace of the Gods?

Are you still claiming you don't have grand ambitions?

Are you bold enough to even choose that name?

"Su Yu, don't you think that name is just a bit too arrogant?"

Jing Hongchen pointed to the sky—this was, after all, a world where real gods existed.

Su Yu smacked his lips. "Arrogant?"

"I don't think so."

"But if the Hall Master thinks it's too much, I'll change it. Let's call it the Temple of the Gods instead."

Jing Hongchen: "..."

Xiao Hongchen: "..."

Wang Dong'er: "..."

Meng Hongchen's eyes sparkled—no matter what, she thought Su Yu was cool.

Jing Hongchen rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. "How is that any better than Palace of the Gods? It's still too arrogant!"

"Can't you pick a name that doesn't include the word 'gods'?"

"...Fine, I'll compromise. Let's call it Heaven's Gate."

Jing Hongchen: Pfft!

Why don't you just ascend to heaven already?

"You brat, can't you come up with a normal name?" Jing Hongchen said helplessly.

Su Yu sighed and reluctantly said, "Heaven's Gate isn't acceptable either. Fine, I'll compromise further. Let's call it the Holy Temple. That should be fine, right?"

"Holy Temple... Holy... It's okay, I guess."

Although it still sounded a bit arrogant, it was much better than anything involving 'gods.'

Of course, this was only true in the world of Douluo.

"'Holy Temple' doesn't sound great. How about 'Holy Gate' instead?" Meng Hongchen suggested.

"I don't think that sounds good either. 'Holy Gate' has a weird ring to it, almost like it's related to the Holy Spirit Church," Wang Dong'er countered.

"If you ask me, just call it the Holy Slayer Palace. The Holy Spirit Church calls itself 'Holy,' so we'll specifically target their 'holiness.' Heh heh." Xiao Hongchen chimed in with a mischievous grin.

Wang Dong'er's eyes brightened. "That's a good one! Su Yu, what do you think?"

Su Yu's mouth twitched. Holy Slayer Palace? Isn't that way too over-the-top?

Of all the names, Su Yu thought this was the most arrogant one yet.

In Su Yu's eyes, anything involving 'gods' was manageable, but the phrase 'holy slayer' felt like tempting fate.

Jing Hongchen massaged his forehead in frustration, feeling a headache coming on.

Xiao Hongchen, that little troublemaker, dared to say anything.

Holy Slayer Palace? He came up with that? If the Holy Spirit Church caught wind of this, it would stir up trouble.

Although Jing Hongchen had distanced himself from the Holy Spirit Church after listening to Su Yu, he still didn't want to provoke them.

Those lunatics were best left alone.

"Yu, I think Holy Slayer Palace is a great name. What do you think?" Meng Hongchen looked at Su Yu expectantly.

Su Yu sighed. "Fine, we'll call it the Holy Slayer Palace."

Holy Slayer Palace it is. What's the worst that could happen?