Bibi Dong was about to finish off Zhang Yuexuan when a furious roar rang out from not far away.
"Stop!!!"
Xuan Zi's eyes bulged with rage. Beneath his feet, two yellow, two purple, four black, and one red Soul Rings lit up in succession.
"Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul Avatar."
Xuan Zi transformed into the Godly Taotie Bull and rushed in front of Zhang Yuexuan at tremendous speed.
Bibi Dong's gaze turned icy as she glanced toward the distance, where a clear phoenix cry rang out. She decided not to engage the people from Shrek Academy directly.
"I've killed enough for today. From now on, whenever I see someone from Shrek Academy, I'll kill them. If I see two, I'll kill them both."
With that, Bibi Dong transformed into a streak of purple light and fled.
Before long, Yan Shaozhe arrived at the scene, panting. The sight before him was one he would never forget.
The eleven young men and women in red Inner Court uniforms had become cold corpses. Three days earlier, they had been a group of lively, spirited young people. Now, except for Zhang Yuexuan, who was sobbing uncontrollably, they were all dead.
"An Evil Soul Master did this!" Xuan Zi said viciously.
"An Evil Soul Master?!" Yan Shaozhe exclaimed in shock.
"I fought her for only a moment, but her Soul Power was steeped in evil. It was an aura of ultimate evil. There can be no mistake."
Xuan Zi then walked over to the eleven dead Inner Court Students and suddenly knelt before them.
Yan Shaozhe was taken aback by this unusual sight, while Zhang Yuexuan was struck as if by lightning.
"Children, I've failed you!" Xuan Zi said solemnly.
He should have led the group himself. With his strength as a Level 98 powerhouse, protecting these twelve students would have posed no problem.
If he hadn't acted on a whim and decided to use the trip to observe how the children handled themselves alone in the Star Dou Great Forest, this terrible tragedy would never have happened.
"Elder Xuan, please get up." Zhang Yuexuan knelt beside Xuan Zi.
"Elder Xuan, we should hurry and take the children's bodies back. Shrek must avenge them!"
After helping Xuan Zi to his feet, Yan Shaozhe assisted Zhang Yuexuan in carrying the bodies.
Xuan Zi transformed into the Godly Taotie Bull. The eleven Inner Court Students' bodies lay across his broad back as he carried them back to Shrek Academy.
Shrek Academy was divided into the Outer Court and the Inner Court.
The Outer Court had six grades, from first to sixth. Every year, the academy held examinations, and students who ranked near the bottom were dismissed.
Only sixth-year students with outstanding results could join the Inner Court and gain access to the academy's core. These exceptionally gifted children were the academy's future pillars, and one of them might even become Shrek Academy's future dean. As a result, the Inner Court usually had only around fifty students.
What Yan Shaozhe had feared had come to pass.
Inside Sea God Pavilion, Mu En stared grimly at the eleven Inner Court Students' bodies, laid out in neat rows below him, his heart filled with fury.
Xuan Zi stood silently to one side.
Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, Qian Duoduo, Cai Mei'er, Elder Lin, and the other senior academy officials wore icy expressions, their fists clenched tight.
"This is the work of an Evil Soul Master. The children's wounds are getting worse. Even the light power of the Golden Ancient Tree can't dispel it. Their attacker is a Soul Master with the attribute of ultimate evil."
Mu En let out a long sigh. "A hundred years ago, my teacher fought the strongest Evil Soul Master of that era, Old Ghost Zhongli, to a standstill. Not long afterward, my teacher passed away from his severe injuries. I imagine Old Ghost Zhongli must have died long ago as well."
"I never imagined that, after a century, another Evil Soul Master would appear on the continent and inflict such heavy casualties on Shrek Academy."
"Since Shrek Academy was founded ten thousand years ago, we've never suffered a tragedy like this," Xuan Zi said gravely. "Mu En, I've failed these children. I've decided to resign as deputy head of the Shrek Supervision Group."
With that, Xuan Zi turned to leave.
"If you leave Shrek Academy, where will you go?" Mu En asked.
"I'll find the culprit who killed them and bring back her head." Killing intent surfaced in Elder Xuan's eyes.
"I want revenge as much as you do, but this matter involves the Holy Spirit Cult."
"The Holy Spirit Cult?!"
Xuan Zi had spent the past three days wandering the Star Dou Great Forest. He had only just learned that the Heavenly Dragon Sect had been destroyed.
"Let holy light illuminate the earth, and let the holy spirit descend upon the mortal world."
Signed: Holy Spirit Cult.
Xuan Zi tore apart the slip of paper bearing the words written in the students' blood and erupted in fury. "This is too much! Mu En, I suggest we join forces with the three great empires and root out the Holy Spirit Cult, which is hiding in the shadows."
"That is exactly what I intend to do."
Mu En looked around at everyone and said, "Shaozhe, take the children's bodies back to their families and see that they're properly buried. The academy will cover all expenses."
"Yes." Yan Shaozhe nodded.
"Xuan Zi, I'm giving you a chance to atone for your failure. You'll lead the Shrek Supervision Group. Make sure the fleeing Evil Soul Master is killed here on Douluo Continent."
"Yes!" Xuan Zi clasped his hands in salute. The deaths of the eleven students had hit him hard.
"I'll contact the three great empires about this. The Holy Spirit Cult is an organization made up entirely of Evil Soul Masters. It absolutely cannot be allowed to remain on the continent."
No secret could stay hidden forever. The deaths of thirteen Inner Court Students at Shrek Academy sent shockwaves across the entire continent.
The three great empires promptly contacted Shrek Academy and dispatched powerful figures to eliminate the Evil Soul Masters who had appeared out of nowhere and restore peace to the continent.
Star Luo City.
The bustling city showed no sign of panic over the appearance of Evil Soul Masters. The people knew that no Evil Soul Master would dare brazenly attack Star Luo City.
"Whoosh!"
A pale blade of light swept across the sky.
Like a streak of white silk, it swept into the Soul Masters of the Star Luo Empire patrolling the skies with Flight Soul Tools strapped to their backs. They plummeted from above in an instant.
Heads and blood rained down, along with severed limbs.
In the blink of an eye, Star Luo City descended into chaos.
"Preposterous!"
An angry shout rang out from the Star Luo Imperial Palace.
Bibi Dong had landed her attack and fled at once, giving her opponent no time to react.
By the time the Star Luo Empire's powerful figures and Xuan Zi arrived, Bibi Dong had already escaped.
"Damn it!" Xuan Zi roared at the sky.
The Star Luo Emperor, Xu Jiawei, was furious and ordered that the culprit pay for the bloodshed.
With her strength alone, Bibi Dong stirred up a storm across the land. All of Douluo Continent was plunged into fear of the Evil Soul Masters. People dared not leave their homes, and the three great empires were overwhelmed as panic spread and the world fell into chaos.
At Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Qin Chuan received Snow Hatred Value almost every day. He realized that Bibi Dong had gone on a killing spree.
Meanwhile, far away in the Sun Moon Empire, in the Demon Forest.
A magnificent building stood amid the forest's bands of black mist.
Zhong Liwu, dressed in armor, flung his wine cup to the ground and roared in fury, "Who did this?! Who pinned this shit on my Holy Spirit Cult?!"
Before you continue