Let us leave aside those embarrassing affairs in the Undead Half-Plane.
In the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy's resting area, Xiao Hongchen leaned back in his chair with his legs crossed, idly playing with a metal sphere. A somewhat helpless expression hung on his face.
"Old Xu always takes quite a while whenever he goes into seclusion."
He shook his head, tossing the metal sphere into the air before catching it again.
"The arena has already been repaired for over ten days. Even the Round-Robin Tournament has ended."
"Today's Quarter-Finals will be over, and the Semi-Finals come after that. If he still doesn't emerge from seclusion, this year's All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Tournament will be over."
Meng Hongchen sat beside him, boredly watching the match on the arena. At his words, she raised her eyes, her tone calm yet carrying a hint of seriousness.
"Brother, that doesn't make much sense."
"Absorbing a Soul Ring and refining a Spirit Bone—neither of those can be done quickly."
"Besides, he's absorbing a Dragon Pill from a Soul Beast over a hundred thousand years old this time. Half a month might genuinely not be enough."
Xiao Hongchen could not help shooting his sister a sidelong glance, a faintly annoyed look appearing on his face.
"Hey, whose sister are you, anyway?"
"Why are you always speaking up for Old Xu?"
"I'm siding with reason, not family."
Meng Hongchen snorted, unease flashing through her eyes.
"I've always felt that someone has been watching us in secret these past few days."
"And Tianming said his current situation isn't safe either. The Three Douluo Kingdoms and Shrek Academy won't let him off so easily."
"I actually hope he stays in seclusion longer—preferably until the tournament is over."
At those words, Xiao Hongchen fell silent as well.
Only