Shrek Suffers a Setback

Chapter 45: Shrek Suffers a Setback

When Long Chen woke from absorbing his Soul Ring, Ye Lingling was thrilled.

"Brother Chen, you finally finished absorbing that forty-thousand-year Soul Ring."

"Yeah. I did it."

Long Chen rose to his feet. Feeling the surging Soul Power within him, he saw a more confident and profound light flicker in his eyes.

He could clearly feel that his body had grown stronger, his Soul Power had become more substantial, and his overall strength had reached a new level.

Ye Tianming and his wife came over, looking at Long Chen with pride and relief.

"Xiao Chen, you've done something ordinary people can't do again. Amazing."

"Exactly. Your fifth Soul Ring is already forty thousand years old. It's unbelievable, but you've managed it."

Ye Lingling asked curiously:

"Brother Chen, does your fifth Soul Skill also summon a strange beast through the Demon Qin Sound?"

"Yeah. It's much like the others."

"Then what kind of strange beast did you summon this time?"

"It's a little unusual. It's a bull, but completely different from that One-Horned Rhinoceros."

Even more puzzled, Ye Lingling pressed him:

"What kind of bull is it?"

Long Chen smiled faintly.

"It's called Kui Niu. I'll show you."

After speaking, Long Chen released his Dark Night Demonic Lute Martial Soul once more.

As his fifth Soul Ring shone and he plucked the strings, a huge Kui Ox Phantom appeared out of nowhere.

Unlike the phantoms he had summoned before, the Kui Ox Phantom was a deep blue-green all over, shining like the sun and moon.

In an instant, its light illuminated the entire space.

It looked strange. Its body and head resembled a bull's, but it had no horns and only one leg.

The sound that came from its mouth was like thunder, deafening everyone.

Staring at the breathtaking Kui Ox Phantom before him, Long Chen explained slowly:

"This Kui Niu is also known as the Thunder Beast. It can not only unleash lightning, but also control storms."

At Long Chen's words, Ye Tianming, Ye Susu, and Ye Lingling exchanged astonished looks.

Ye Tianming exclaimed:

"Controlling lightning and storms! That's an incredible ability. Against Fire Attribute Soul Masters, controlling storms will give you the upper hand. Xiao Chen, your strength has reached yet another level."

After taking the Infernal Delicate Apricot, Long Chen had gained Fire Immunity.

The abilities he had gained from Kui Niu would make him even more formidable against Fire Attribute Soul Masters.

Ye Lingling asked next:

"Brother Chen, how many levels did your Soul Power increase?"

"Two. I'm level fifty-two now."

"Level fifty-two! At the rate your Soul Power is growing, you'll catch up with Teacher Qin Ming soon."

Long Chen smiled and nodded without saying anything.

He knew that by the time the two of them returned to the Royal Academy, Qin Ming might no longer be their Team Leader Teacher.

With Dugu Bo's intervention, Shrek's teachers and students would be unable to enter the Royal Academy, and Qin Ming would leave as a result.

The four of them made ready to travel again and ventured deeper into the forest.

After obtaining her seventh Soul Ring, Ye Susu's Soul Power reached level seventy-two. She had officially become a Soul Saint and gained the ability to release her Martial Soul Avatar.

After obtaining his eighth Soul Ring, Ye Tianming's Soul Power reached level eighty-two. He had become a War Soul Douluo, taking his combat strength to a new level.

Afterward, they returned to their home in Heaven Dou City.

~~~~~

A few days later, Long Chen and Ye Lingling returned to Heaven Dou Royal Academy together.

They had barely walked into the academy when they ran into Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan greeted them with a smile.

"Long Chen, Lingling, why did it take you so long to come back?"

"Lingling's Martial Soul evolved, and she broke through level forty. We went to hunt a Soul Beast together."

"What?! Lingling broke through level forty?! The last time we parted, she was only level thirty-five."

Dugu Yan knitted her brows, unable to believe it.

"Long Chen, did you give Lingling some special Medicinal Herbs, like the one you gave me?"

"Yanzi, this was Lingling's own special opportunity. Let's keep it quiet for now."

Dugu Yan raised an eyebrow and joked:

"Fine, fine, fine! You're always so hard to figure out. If you don't want me to know something, there's no point in asking."

Ye Lingling asked:

"Sister Yan, you've got your Fourth Soul Ring now, right? What level is your Soul Power?"

Dugu Yan smiled smugly.

"Just like Long Chen said, my Soul Power increased quite a bit. I'm level forty-four now."

"Level forty-four! Sister Yan, you're amazing."

"That's thanks to your Brother Chen. The increase in Soul Power is secondary. More importantly, when I cultivate now, I won't suffer a backlash from the poison or endure that pain anymore."

"That's wonderful. Now that you don't have to suffer from the poison, your Soul Power will grow even faster."

Long Chen asked:

"Everyone knows your Soul Power suddenly increased this much, right?"

"Of course. Grandpa already reminded me what to say. I told them you found me a medicinal herb that cleared the poison that had built up in my body. The Soul Power I'd been using to suppress it was released, so my level rose all at once."

Long Chen smiled.

"That made-up explanation of yours actually sounds plausible."

"Who cares? They can believe it or not. Haha!"

Dugu Yan suddenly remembered something, and her expression changed.

"Oh, right. I have big news for you. Teacher Qin Ming won't be our Team Leader Teacher anymore."

Ye Lingling was taken aback.

"What happened?"

Dugu Yan explained:

"A few days ago, the Shrek Seven Devils came to our academy, along with several of their teachers. I think Teacher Qin Ming was the one who introduced them.

As far as I know, they wanted to compete in next year's Advanced Academy Soul Master Competition as Royal Academy Team Two.

But they had bad luck. They got into a conflict with the Fourth Prince, Xue Beng, and his companions at the academy entrance.

The Fourth Prince went to Prince Xue Xing, who turned them down.

My grandfather also got involved."

Ye Lingling finally understood.

"Did Teacher Qin Ming resign because of this?"

Dugu Yan nodded with a sigh.

"We'd been with Teacher Qin Ming for years. I never thought he'd abandon us over this and leave with those people from Shrek."

Long Chen had expected this to happen. He asked:

"Then who's our new Team Leader Teacher?"

"I think it's Teacher Liu Zhicheng."

"Teacher Liu Zhicheng?"

Long Chen and Ye Lingling exchanged a glance.

Liu Zhicheng was a friend of Ye Tianming's, and he had looked after Ye Lingling when she first joined the academy.

Not long ago, he had broken through level seventy and become a Battle Soul Saint.

Dugu Yan continued:

"Teacher Liu is great too. He's a Battle Soul Saint. There's almost a year left before the Soul Master Competition, so we'll be learning from him from now on."

To Long Chen, it didn't matter who their Team Leader Teacher was.

All he needed was to stay by Ye Lingling's side and keep her safe.

Long Chen knew that Tang San and the others would meet Liu Erlong in Heaven Dou City, and Blue Tyrant Academy would be renamed Shrek Academy.

They would still be able to compete in next year's Soul Master Competition.