The Third Reason

[Douluo II Period]

When the three characters "Yan Shaozhe" were finally branded upon the Sky Screen.

The entire world seemed to have been pressed on mute.

The wind stopped, and the clouds stagnated.

Everyone's breathing froze completely at this very moment.

On Shrek Plaza, the tens of thousands of teachers and students felt their minds go blank.

Inside the headquarters of the Holy Spirit Cult, the bloodthirsty and murderous Evil Soul Masters wore expressions of absurdity and bewilderment.

After a brief, deathly silence, a mountain-collapsing, tsunami-like uproar erupted!

Holy Spirit Cult headquarters.

"Pfft—"

Zhongli Wu could no longer suppress the surging blood in his heart, and a mouthful of dark red blood sprayed out, staining the ground before him with a shocking filth.

He staggered backward, his tall frame swaying as if all his strength had been drained in an instant.

He stared fixedly at the Sky Screen, and in those bloodshot eyes, all the anger, killing intent, and resentment.

Were replaced by an emotion called "absurdity."

Yan Shaozhe.

The man who had cuckolded him.

The culprit who had made him the laughingstock of the entire continent.

Was actually the son of his own half-brother?!

He was his own—biological nephew?!

He, the leader of the Holy Spirit Cult, had actually been cuckolded by his own biological nephew!

"Hee... hee... huff..."

A strange laugh, like a broken bellows, wheezed from Zhongli Wu's throat.

"What a wonderful mother I have..."

Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy.

On the high platform, Yan Shaozhe, who had been firmly suppressed by Elder Xuan, completely collapsed the moment he saw the final judgment of the Sky Screen.

"No—this isn't true! This isn't true!!"

He clutched his head and let out a heart-wrenching roar, his voice filled with despair and disbelief.

He could admit to being promiscuous, admit to violating morality, and even admit to having an affair with an Evil Soul Master and fathering a bastard child.

Because deep down, he had always believed that he was normal and stood on the side of the light.

Everything he had done was merely a weakness of human nature, a "minor mistake" that could be forgiven.

But now, the Sky Screen had revealed the truth in the most cruel way possible!

In his bones, in his blood, flowed the very same filthy blood of the Evil Soul Masters he despised and hated the most!

His own grandmother was the current Supreme Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult, one of the most evil existences in this world!

The identity he had been so proud of his entire life had, at this moment, turned into a colossal joke!

He, Yan Shaozhe, was a descendant of an Evil Soul Master!

This total collapse of his self-perception was more painful than being killed ten thousand times over!

Beside him, the usually indifferent Xuanzi now wore an expression of unprecedented complexity.

He looked at Yan Shaozhe, who was acting like a madman at his feet, his eyes filled with shock and uncertainty.

However, the judgment of the Sky Screen showed no signs of stopping.

It was as if it intended to grind Yan Shaozhe's already riddled heart into dust!

Hum— The golden light shone mercilessly once again!

[Next, we elaborate on the final reason for Yan Shaozhe's placement on the list!]

[Suppressing dissent, indulging descendants]

There's more?!

Everyone's heart gave a violent jolt!

Just how many more secrets was this Yan Shaozhe hiding?!

The image on the Sky Screen slowly shifted.

It was a dim, dense forest, where Yan Shaozhe was meeting secretly with Feng Ling.

This time, however, Feng Ling was cradling a sleeping little girl in her arms.

The girl appeared to be about three or four years old, carved from jade and exceptionally adorable.

Her short, fiery red hair was striking, even in the dim light.

From the Sky Screen, Feng Ling's voice emerged, filled with boundless sorrow and heartache.

["Shao-zhe... our child... he... he didn't make it..."]

["The powers of light and darkness clashed too violently within his body, and in the end... they exhausted his life force..."]

Upon hearing this, Yan Shaozhe's body shuddered violently, a look of agony crossing his face.

Feng Ling's voice continued, carrying a glimmer of hope.

["But the heavens have shown mercy; he left us a descendant... this is our granddaughter."]

["The powers of light and darkness within this child have, by some stroke of fortune, achieved a delicate balance, allowing her to barely survive."]

["But this balance is incredibly fragile and could spiral out of control at any moment due to intense emotional fluctuations, causing her to be consumed by the evil fire..."]

As she spoke, Feng Ling carefully handed the girl in her arms toward Yan Shaozhe.

["Shao-zhe, I know that you and Cai Mei'er have never had children. Take her back to Shrek. Only at Shrek, under your wings, can she receive the best protection and guidance, and only then might she have a chance to live..."]

Looking at this granddaughter who shared his bloodline, looking at that sleeping face that bore a slight resemblance to his own.

Yan Shaozhe's cold heart melted in an instant.

He reached out with trembling hands and took the small, warm body.

This was his descendant, the continuation of Yan Shaozhe's own life!

["What... what is her name?"]

Yan Shaozhe's voice carried a gentleness never heard before.

Feng Ling shook her head, a desolate, bitter smile appearing on her face.

["We were always hiding and fleeing, so we never had time to give her a formal name. She only has a nickname: Little Peach."]

["How about... we use the surname I had before I joined the Holy Spirit Cult."]

["Ma."]

["Let's call her... Ma Xiaotao."]

BOOM!

The moment the name "Ma Xiaotao" appeared on the Sky Screen, every teacher and student at Shrek Academy felt as if their brains had exploded!

Ma Xiaotao?!

The one nicknamed the "Flame Maniac," who possessed the Ultimate Fire Phoenix martial soul and was hailed as a once-in-a-century genius of Shrek Academy?!

The Senior Ma Xiaotao, whom countless Shrek students revered and admired as a goddess?!

She was actually the granddaughter of Yan Shaozhe and an Evil Soul Master?!

In this instant, countless doubts from the past were suddenly connected!

Why was Ma Xiaotao's martial soul the Evil Fire Phoenix, requiring Ultimate Ice to suppress it?

Why did Dean Yan Shaozhe favor Ma Xiaotao so much, granting her almost every request?

Why was she designated as the leader of the Shrek Seven Devils, even knowing her martial soul had defects?

So that was it!

The root of everything lay right here!

Inside the inner courtyard of Shrek Academy.

A stunning girl with a fiery figure and hair like burning flames stood atop a pavilion, watching the Sky Screen alongside other inner courtyard disciples.

The moment she heard her own name, the shock and disbelief on her face froze in place!

She felt the world spinning, a chill rushing from the soles of her feet straight to the top of her head!

She had always believed she was an orphan abandoned by her parents, and that Dean Yan had taken her back to the academy out of kindness to raise her with care.

But as it turns out...

Dean Yan is her biological grandfather?!

And her biological grandmother is the Vice Sect Master of the Holy Spirit Cult?!

Her great-grandmother is the Supreme Sect Master of the Holy Spirit Cult?!

That evil fire within her body that caused her such agony... it originated from her own bloodline?!

"No... this is impossible..."

Ma Xiaotao's delicate body trembled violently, her face drained of all color, as she muttered to herself.