Defeat Every Enemy and You'll Be Safe

After returning to the dormitory, Mu Yuan began cultivating.

Perhaps because of his talent, Mu Yuan's body automatically absorbed energy from the outside world to strengthen itself. That was also why his cultivation speed was so fast.

At this moment, Mu Yuan's Soul Power had already reached the peak of level forty-nine.

External energy flowed continuously into Mu Yuan's body, transforming into Soul Power as his bottleneck gradually began to loosen.

For ordinary Soul Masters, breakthroughs in rank often came with bottlenecks.

These bottlenecks were related to talent, and they became increasingly difficult to overcome the further one progressed.

There were many typical examples.

For instance, Tang San's teacher, Yu Xiaogang, had been trapped at the level twenty-nine bottleneck, unable to break through to Soul Elder for his entire life.

But for Mu Yuan, such bottlenecks were practically nonexistent.

Two hours later, Mu Yuan's Soul Power naturally broke through without the slightest obstruction, reaching level fifty, the Soul King realm.

Mu Yuan opened his eyes.

"Next, I need to prepare to hunt my fifth spirit ring."

His fourth spirit ring was twenty-six thousand years old. He had felt virtually no pressure while absorbing it, and the mental impact brought by the Ten Thousand Year Spirit Ring had been effortlessly devoured by his Divine Tree Martial Soul.

Now that he had reached the Soul King realm for his fifth spirit ring, all aspects of Mu Yuan's physical condition had improved immensely compared to when he was a Soul Ancestor. Based on his own situation, he conservatively estimated that he could now attach a spirit ring between fifty thousand and sixty thousand years old.

Mu Yuan left his room, came outside Shrek Academy, and sent out a signal.

Soon, more than a dozen figures emerged from the shadows.

"Your Highness!"

Mu Yuan nodded and said, "I've already broken through to level fifty and need to hunt my fifth spirit ring. Send people to the Star Dou Great Forest to find a Wood Attribute Spirit Beast around fifty to sixty thousand years old. Mark its location and report it to me."

The group hurriedly agreed before leaving.

These people were Soul Masters from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Mu Yuan did not intend to head to the Star Dou Great Forest himself to search for a spirit beast.

Although the Star Dou Great Forest was the largest spirit beast forest on the continent, spirit beasts over ten thousand years old were not common, and those over fifty thousand years old were even rarer. If Mu Yuan searched on his own, who knew how long it would take to find a suitable spirit beast.

This was where the value of a faction became apparent.

The Soul Masters of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would first locate a suitable spirit beast, then report to Mu Yuan. This would save a great deal of time.

By afternoon, as the sky gradually darkened, Flender gathered everyone together again.

Tang San and the others had already prepared themselves and adjusted their condition to its peak.

However, Flender did not look at them. Instead, he turned his gaze toward two others.

"Oscar, have you two finished running twenty laps?" Flender stared sharply at Oscar through his glasses.

Perhaps it was an illusion, but the deeper into the night it got, the more imposing Flender seemed.

Oscar answered, "I finished, Dean."

Flender said coldly, "I asked whether you two finished, not whether you did!"

Oscar swallowed and turned to look at Ning Rongrong, who was also looking at him.

Oscar gritted his teeth. "We finished!"

Flender smiled and stepped forward to pat Oscar on the shoulder.

"Very good. Such a fine spirit of friendship. Then go run another twenty laps. If you don't finish, you don't get to eat. I've already sealed your Soul Power, so don't even think about undoing it!"

Oscar said nothing more. He silently turned and ran outside.

Flender said, "Do you not understand why I'm doing this? The reason is simple. Oscar lied. No matter the reason, lying is not a good quality. I hope you all understand that!"

Flender then turned to Ning Rongrong. "Now tell me, did you complete the task I assigned this morning?"

Ning Rongrong answered bluntly, "No!"

Flender sneered. "Was it because you thought it was too tiring? Or were you afraid of hardship? Or perhaps you disliked the academy's food? So you went with Xiao Wu to Suotuo City for a big meal, then wandered around the commercial district for most of the day."

Ning Rongrong's expression darkened. "You had me watched?"

Flender said coldly, "As the dean, I am responsible for every student in this academy. If Oscar's lie can be excused because he couldn't bear to see you punished, then your mistake is utterly unforgivable. Leaving the academy without permission, refusing to follow the academy's arrangements, and making an upperclassman lie for you. Not one of these is a mistake an outstanding Soul Master should make. If this were a battlefield, there would be only one outcome for you: execution under military law. Death, nothing more."

As Ning Rongrong listened to Flender, her brows furrowed slightly. Yet when she heard the latter part, she smiled instead.

Ning Rongrong said, "Flender, you're wrong. It wasn't because I thought it was tiring, nor was I afraid of hardship. I simply believed that the training you assigned was unreasonable, so I didn't follow it!"

Flender had never expected Ning Rongrong to answer like that. His brows immediately knitted together as he stared at her. "You'd better be able to tell me exactly what is unreasonable about it."

Ning Rongrong met his gaze without fear and stated clearly, "Your remarks during the day. You told us to strengthen our physiques and practice our ability to escape. That's complete nonsense. No matter how much a Support Soul Master trains, they can never compare to an Assault Type Soul Master. What's the use of training so well? In my view, the only thing a Support Soul Master needs to train is their support ability. Everything else is just a waste of time!"

Flender sharply rebuked her, "On a battlefield, a Support Soul Master with your way of thinking would be the first to die! Once you're dead, what use is it if you've trained your support ability well?"

Ning Rongrong said, "Safety is the responsibility of Battle Soul Masters. My only task is support."

As she spoke, Ning Rongrong glanced at Mu Yuan, the corners of her lips curling upward slightly. "My father once taught me that as long as I support Mu Yuan properly, Mu Yuan can defeat any enemy that attacks us among those of the same rank. Therefore, there is no need to worry about safety at all. What, do you understand Support Soul Masters better than my father does?"

Flender secretly groaned inwardly at her words.

He knew Ning Rongrong's identity, so naturally he did not dare claim to understand Support Soul Masters better than Ning Fengzhi, who was hailed as the Number One Under Heaven Support Soul Master.

In truth, there was nothing fundamentally wrong with his theory. It was applicable to most Support Soul Masters.

But faced with a special case like Ning Rongrong, he had no way to refute her.

Flender could only forcefully argue, "Are all opponents on the battlefield of the same rank?"

Ning Rongrong did not fall for it at all. "Naturally, someone else would deal with those high-ranking Soul Masters. If a Titled Douluo really came to attack a Soul Grandmaster like me, would training my physique let me escape?"

Flender was instantly left speechless.

Ning Rongrong gave a sly smile. "It isn't impossible for me to acknowledge your theory. Father said that Mu Yuan has no enemies among those of the same rank, and that as long as I support him well, he will never be in danger. As long as you can find someone who can defeat Mu Yuan, or hurt me while under his protection, I'll acknowledge your theory!"

Flender was now stuck between a rock and a hard place. If he refused, his authority would surely suffer greatly in front of everyone. For the sake of his pride, he could only grit his teeth and agree.

"Fine. I will make you thoroughly convinced!"

Ning Rongrong smiled gently.

"I'm very much looking forward to it, Dean Flender."

In truth, those were not Ning Fengzhi's exact words. They were what he had said in private when trying to persuade her to become engaged to Mu Yuan.

But Flender naturally could not tell the difference.

Now, she had not only silenced Flender, but also gotten him to find someone to fight Mu Yuan for free. In the end, if Mu Yuan was truly defeated, she could use it as an excuse to refuse her father's demand that she become engaged to him.

It was simply killing three birds with one stone. Ning Rongrong could not help admiring her own cleverness.