Ultimate Soldier and Red Lotus Fire

The distance from Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy to Shrek City was unimaginably vast for ordinary people, but under the guidance of Dragon God Douluo Muen, it took no more than an instant.

Ji Juechen had not even seen how the scenery around him changed. He only felt space twist slightly, and the next moment, his feet were on solid ground. The air was filled with the salty tang of the sea and a unique, refreshing Life Aura.

This was Shrek Academy.

Muen vanished silently after landing, leaving only the words, "Wait for me at Sea God's Pavilion," echoing in the air. Jing Ziyan, meanwhile, was taken away by another teacher to complete her enrollment procedures.

Ji Juechen walked alone along the path leading to Sea God's Pavilion. He neither looked around curiously nor reacted to the reverent gazes cast his way. His world was simple: only what lay ahead, and his sword.

Sea God's Pavilion was the core of Shrek Academy, an ancient and solemn wooden building.

When he pushed open the heavy wooden doors, he saw Muen leisurely drinking tea in the seat of honor, with Xian Lin'er and Yan Shaozhe standing to one side, their expressions complicated.

"Sit." Muen pointed at the cushion across from him.

Ji Juechen sat as instructed, laying his sword across his knees, motionless as a statue.

"Kid, I know you have many questions." Muen set down his teacup and got straight to the point. "But before that, I need to confirm something. What exactly is this so-called 'God-class Soul Ring' of yours?"

Ji Juechen fell silent for a moment before slowly replying, "It is not a Soul Ring."

"Oh?" A sharp glint flashed through Muen's eyes.

"It is part of my sword." Ji Juechen raised his hand. On his wrist, a black mark resembling a sword guard, fused into his skin, flickered in and out of view. "When I desire to grow stronger, it responds to me. Each time, it grants me a new 'Sword Skill.'"

Muen, Xian Lin'er, and Yan Shaozhe's pupils contracted at the same time!

This was not a Soul Ring, but an ability derived from the martial soul itself? This... this had already surpassed everything they knew about martial souls!

"So that's how it is..." Muen suddenly understood, and then an ecstatic expression appeared on his face. "The ultimate path of evolution for an Innate Martial Soul! Not seeking power from soul beasts outside oneself, but seeking it within! Good! Good! Good!"

After saying "good" three times in a row, he rose to his feet in excitement. "Ji Juechen, do you know that you have opened an entirely new path for Shrek, for the entire world of Soul Masters?"

Yan Shaozhe also stepped forward and said solemnly, "Ji Juechen, the Academy has decided to make an exception and admit you into the Inner Court. We will also initiate our highest-level classified training program—the Ultimate Soldier Project!"

"Ultimate Soldier?" A faint ripple finally appeared in Ji Juechen's eyes.

"That's right." Muen sat back down, his expression turning grave. "Future wars will no longer be one-on-one battles between Soul Masters. They will be multidimensional wars involving Soul Tools and Soul Masters. A powerful Four-Ring Soul Sect may be reduced to ashes in an instant under the concentrated fire of a hundred Soul Tool Cannons. Therefore, we need a new kind of warrior. He must possess the strength of a top Soul Master, be able to tear through the enemy's Soul Tool formations like an assassin, disrupt the enemy's morale like a commander, and kill enemy leaders like a war god!"

"That person is an 'Ultimate Soldier.' And you, Ji Juechen, with your inconceivable Spiritual Power and Sword Skills, are the most promising candidate we have ever seen."

A flame lit up in Ji Juechen's eyes. The "battlefield" Jing Hongchen had spoken of, the "war" Muen had described, and the concept of an "Ultimate Soldier" perfectly matched his definition of a "strong person."

"What do I need to do?" he asked.

"First, participate in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Tournament," Muen said. "That will be your best stage and your chance to prove yourself. Before the tournament begins, the Academy will provide you with every resource you need, allowing you to adapt to the power of a Four-Ring Soul Sect as quickly as possible and learn more about Soul Tools."

"I accept." Ji Juechen answered without the slightest hesitation.

Just as Shrek Academy was laying out a blueprint for this future "Ultimate Soldier," a conspiracy against him was already quietly underway in the Sun Moon Empire, thousands of miles away.

Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, in a secret chamber deep underground.

Xiao Hongchen sat cross-legged, his face still pale, but the frustration in his eyes had been replaced by cold hatred. Before him rested a brand-new Soul Guiding Core, surrounded by dozens of metal needles that flashed with a dangerous red light.

"The first phase of the Red Lotus Plan has begun." Jing Hongchen's voice came from the Soul Guiding Communicator, icy and devoid of emotion. "Objective: simulate the attack of a Spirit Type Titled Douluo at thirty percent intensity. Remember, we are tempering him, not killing him. I want to see where this sword's limits lie!"

"Yes, Grandfather!" A hint of madness flashed through Xiao Hongchen's eyes.

He suddenly activated his Soul Power, and the Soul Guiding Core erupted with blinding red light! Countless invisible, aggressive currents of Spiritual Power crossed thousands of miles through a special Coordinate-targeting formation and instantly locked onto Ji Juechen, who was meditating quietly in his Shrek Academy dormitory!

Bzzz—!

It was as though a warning bell had begun ringing wildly in Ji Juechen's mind! A Mental Shock more than ten times stronger than the one he had faced from Xiao Hongchen came crashing down like raging waves upon a storm-tossed sea!

"Good!"

Rather than being alarmed, Ji Juechen was delighted. His eyes shut at once. Clear Sword Heart operated at full force, and within his Sea of Consciousness, a longsword formed from pure sword intent slowly rose to meet that surging expanse of "Red Lotus Fire."

Shrek Academy, Sea God's Pavilion.

Muen abruptly opened his eyes and looked toward Ji Juechen's dormitory. A cold smile curved across his lips.

"Jing Hongchen, you moved quickly indeed. Fine. Let my 'Ultimate Soldier' use your 'Red Lotus Fire' to sharpen his sword!"

An invisible war spanning thousands of miles had quietly begun on Ji Juechen's very first day at Shrek.