Chapter 578: Yuhao, What Do You Think?
As Kong Deming looked at Huo Yuhao, he couldn't help but admire him. He genuinely believed that Huo Yuhao had the potential to become a deity.
After all, the sheer strength of the spiritual power that Huo Yuhao had used to suppress his medicinal energy was simply too overwhelming. In his entire lifetime, he had never encountered a spiritual type soul master this powerful.
Although Kong Deming had never personally seen a true god, he had read plenty of books published by Shrek Academy.
Even the legendary Tang San, despite the exaggerated stories surrounding him, had nowhere near this level of spiritual power when he was just a Soul Sage.
If someone like Tang San could become a god, why couldn't Huo Yuhao?
Meanwhile, in the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters, Ye Xishui's face darkened with anger.
"Kong Deming! What a joke! 'Seclusion'? That's just an excuse! Of all places, he just had to go to Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy to seclude himself? Is it safer than the Imperial Consecration Hall? He's clearly treating us like fools!"
Her expression turned ice cold as she stood up from her chair and said, "Xiaoyao, let's go. We're storming Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy! I want to see whether Kong Deming will continue ignoring us!"
For the past ten days, she had been waiting near the academy, simply to discuss the matter of making the Holy Spirit Cult the Empire's State Protected Religion.
She firmly believed that, with her and Xiaoyao's influence, along with Xu Tianran's persuasion and a few enticing benefits, they could convince Kong Deming to accept the proposal.
If Kong Deming agreed, there would be no more obstacles to making the Holy Spirit Cult a state recognized religion.
After all, as the greatest soul engineer of the Sun Moon Empire, Kong Deming's expertise was unrivaled. Nearly every high level Rank 9 soul engineer had been personally mentored by him, allowing them to avoid countless pitfalls in their own research.
This was an immense favor that many soul engineers owed him.
Furthermore, these Rank 9 soul engineers had their own disciples, families, and associates, forming a vast and intricate network of connections throughout the empire's soul engineering community.
At the core of this network stood Kong Deming himself.
His recent capture of Xuan Zi had only further cemented his reputation.
Not only had he severely damaged Shrek Academy's prestige, but he had also elevated his standing among soul engineers, making his influence greater than ever before.
Thus, unless he personally endorsed the Holy Spirit Cult's rise as a state religion, it would undoubtedly face massive resistance from the soul engineering community.
If that happened, not even Xu Tianran could push the decree through.
After all, the Sun Moon Emperor was not an absolute ruler, especially not a newly crowned monarch like Xu Tianran.
But what infuriated her the most was that, since becoming an Ultimate Douluo, this was the first time she had been left waiting so long.
If Kong Deming had a legitimate reason, she wouldn't be this upset.
But Jing Hongchen's excuse was that Kong Deming was in seclusion and this was relayed directly from Xu Tianran to her and Long Xiaoyao.
To her, this was clearly a pathetic excuse to avoid them.
Long Xiaoyao, however, did not immediately follow her. Instead, he let out a sigh before speaking calmly.
"Xishui, calm down. Perhaps things are not as you think."
"I've known Kong Deming for many years. Based on his personality, he wouldn't fabricate a 'seclusion' excuse just to avoid Xu Tianran. Maybe he really was in seclusion, and Jing Hongchen simply passed along the truth."
"After all, everyone knows that Kong Deming is fiercely loyal to the Sun Moon Empire. He has no reason to have Jing Hongchen lie on his behalf."
Ye Xishui's gaze remained cold.
"Then tell me, what should we do? If we just sit here waiting, when will the Holy Spirit Cult finally become a state religion?"
Long Xiaoyao pondered for a moment.
If they forcefully stormed Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, things could spiral out of control.
Kong Deming, after all, was a Rank 10 Soul Engineer capable of rivaling an Ultimate Douluo.
And more importantly, the Holy Spirit Cult and the Sun Moon Empire were supposed to be allies.
If they pushed too hard, their relationship with the Empire could become strained, which would not be beneficial to the Holy Spirit Cult's long term goals.
Even though Long Xiaoyao detested the Holy Spirit Cult, he knew Ye Xishui was determined to strengthen it.
Since he couldn't change her mind, he could only try to give her the best possible advice from the Cult's perspective.
After a brief pause, he said:
"Let's go to the academy, but we can't storm in. Instead, we should speak with Jing Hongchen first to inquire about Kong Deming's status."
"Try to keep a polite tone.
And as for Xu Tianran, let's not notify him yet. If Kong Deming has truly left seclusion, we can inform Xu Tianran then and convince Kong Deming together."
Ye Xishui took a deep breath before finally nodding.
"Fine."
With that, the two left for Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy.
Back at the academy, Kong Deming looked at Jing Hongchen with a frown.
"The Emperor wants to discuss an important matter with me?"
Jing Hongchen nodded.
"Yes. But I have no idea what it is about. I tried probing for more details, but Xu Tianran wouldn't tell me anything."
This was puzzling to Jing Hongchen.
As one of the highest ranking officials in the Sun Moon Empire, he had access to countless classified secrets.
Yet Xu Tianran had refused to disclose anything to him about this matter.
Even now, he had no clue what was so urgent that the Emperor himself insisted on meeting Kong Deming.
Kong Deming clasped his hands behind his back, his expression pensive.
What exactly was Xu Tianran planning?
Was it an assassination mission against Shrek Academy's experts?
Did he want Kong Deming to develop a new weapon for the upcoming war?
He glanced at Xuan Ziwen, almost about to ask for his opinion but then quickly changed his mind.
His personal disciple was an excellent soul engineer, but utterly useless when it came to political analysis.
Finally, Kong Deming's gaze landed on Huo Yuhao.
A warm smile appeared on his face.
"Yuhao, what do you think?"
Huo Yuhao's expression became thoughtful before he answered firmly:
"Elder Kong, I have an informant inside the Holy Spirit Cult.
Recently, I received some highly reliable intelligence from within their ranks. I can confirm that this 'important matter' is related to making the Holy Spirit Cult a State Protected Religion."
Kong Deming's eyes narrowed slightly.
Huo Yuhao had an insider within the Holy Spirit Cult?
And not just any insider, but someone highly placed enough to obtain internal intelligence?
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