Dawn pierced the clouds, spilling a faint glow over Shrek Academy's training ground. Morning practice should have been full of youthful energy, but an invisible, suffocating gloom hung over everything.
Lin Chen blended in among the trainees. He stood tall without drawing attention, deliberately suppressing the formidable Soul Power of a Level 53 Soul King until all that remained was the faint fluctuation of a Soul Elder in the thirties. He looked no different from the other students his age. Within his dantian, the unabsorbed medicinal power of the Immortal Herb remained dormant, like a slumbering primordial force, ready to unleash earthshaking might at a single thought. Yet he held it in check, unwilling to reveal even a fraction of his true strength.
He appeared to be taking part in basic Martial Soul combat drills with the others, but his spiritual sense had already spread silently through the area. Half his attention was fixed on the Academy's surroundings; the other half watched the three girls beside him. Not the slightest unusual fluctuation escaped his notice. After sending a message to Spirit Hall last night, he had timed everything precisely: Tang San's attempt to silence them and Spirit Hall's covert sentries would both converge on Shrek today.
Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong followed Lin Chen's instructions to the letter, keeping their strength concealed and showing no trace of the boost from the Immortal Herbs.
Xiao Wu sparred with Dai Mubai, her lithe figure weaving and darting about. Every so often, she pretended to stumble, a sheen of sweat appearing on her cheeks as though she were running out of strength. Yet her eyes remained bright as she kept watch on the Academy's perimeter. The powerful body bestowed on her by the Lovesick Heartbreak Red meant that even while pretending, she felt no fatigue at all. Zhu Zhuqing fought at close quarters with Ma Hongjun, using the Hell Spirit Cat's footwork with just the right amount of skill. She neither tried to win nor let herself fall behind. Her cool features seemed calm, but she kept her Soul Power taut beneath the surface. Her senses were the sharpest, and she had already detected faint traces of murderous intent drifting from afar. Ning Rongrong held her seven-tiered Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda steady, its support light spreading evenly across the training ground. She carefully kept the boosts at their usual strength, making no change from her routine, while quietly linking a strand of Soul Power to Lin Chen. If danger arose, she was ready to call upon the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's source power.
The three girls understood one another without a word. They kept up the appearance of ordinary training, but were already prepared for anything. They trusted Lin Chen's plan completely and only needed to wait for his signal.
Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun, on the other hand, were still panting from the intense training, drenched in sweat and completely oblivious to the undercurrents swirling around them. Oscar slumped to the ground, took a swig of water, then looked at Lin Chen, who remained perfectly composed, and sighed. "Lin Chen, you're unbelievably steady. With training this intense, you haven't even broken a sweat."
"I'm just good at controlling my breathing." Lin Chen smiled faintly. His tone was casual as he drew back some of his spiritual sense, maintaining his flawless disguise and seeming like nothing more than an ordinary student of middling ability.
Not far away, Flender and Zhao Wuji stood side by side on the viewing platform, their eyes sweeping across the training ground. They were still full of hope for Tang San. "By my reckoning, Tang San should have made good progress in his cultivation and be ready to return to the Academy. With Tang Hao teaching him personally, he'll surely be much stronger than before. Once our Shrek Seven Devils are reunited, who at the Soul Master Tournament will be able to stand against us?"
Zhao Wuji nodded emphatically, his face full of agreement. "That boy was gifted to begin with. After this period of training, he's bound to break through his bottleneck. When he gets back, Shrek will be on even firmer footing."
At their words, a trace of icy disdain flashed through Lin Chen's eyes.
These two mentors, wholeheartedly longing for their student's return, would never have imagined that Tang San had already snuffed out the last spark of affection within him. All he wanted now was to murder them and erase every witness. At this very moment, he was quietly closing in on Shrek, his killing intent surging. Nor could they know that another force had already slipped into hiding at their Academy, drawn there by a secret letter from Lin Chen.
Just then, Lin Chen's spiritual sense caught two hidden auras, utterly different from each other.
One was sinister and savage, wrapped in undisguised killing intent like a poisonous snake in the night. It was slowly approaching from the depths of the woods west of Shrek Academy, carefully suppressing its Soul Power in an attempt to sneak in unnoticed. It was Tang San, come to silence them. He thought he had concealed himself perfectly, unaware that the murderous aura around him had already given him away.
The other was cold and obscure, its presence steady and restrained. Three figures lay hidden among the treetops beyond the Academy, giving off not the slightest trace of killing intent as they silently watched. Their methods were just like those of Spirit Hall's covert sentries. Clearly, Lin Chen's message, sent by throwing knife last night, had reached its destination. Spirit Hall's people had arrived at the appointed time and were lying low, waiting for the right moment to act.
Two currents, one malevolent and one concealed, were converging on Shrek. Every move was under Lin Chen's control.
He remained composed, showing no sign of what was happening. He did not even send the three girls an explicit signal, merely giving them a subtle look to tell them to keep up their act and make no rash moves.
By now, he had no need to act in person.
He had lured Spirit Hall into the game to borrow its strength and eliminate Tang San. Tang San wanted to silence them, so why not have Spirit Hall face him? That would not only put an end to Tang San's murderous scheme, but also let Lin Chen watch Spirit Hall and Tang San weaken each other. It would keep his secret message from being exposed, protect the three girls, and conceal both the unabsorbed Immortal Herb's power and his strength as a Level 53 Soul King. It was a plan with benefits on every side.
At the edge of the woods, Tang San hid behind a tree trunk, his Soul Power wrapped tightly around him as he suppressed his presence to the bare minimum. His eyes were sinister as he stared at Shrek Academy, murderous intent roiling within them.
He watched Lin Chen on the training ground, chatting happily with the three girls and enjoying everyone's trust. Jealousy and hatred swelled in Tang San's chest until they nearly burst through it. If Lin Chen hadn't appeared out of nowhere and stolen Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong's favor; if he hadn't gotten close to uncovering the secrets of Tang San's Twin Martial Souls and Clear Sky Hammer, Tang San wouldn't have risked sneaking back to kill him.
In Tang San's eyes, Lin Chen had to die. The three girls who knew his secret couldn't be allowed to live, either. Even mentors like Flender and Zhao Wuji, who knew about his past, had to die with them. Only by uprooting them all could he prevent future trouble.
He clenched his fists until his fingertips turned white, silently waiting for the perfect moment to slip inside. He planned to strike while everyone was tired from training and their guard was down, wiping them out in one fell swoop.
His mind was full of his flawless plan, and he failed to notice the three icy gazes fixed on him from the treetops nearby. Nor did he suspect that the seemingly ordinary youth on the training ground had everything under control.
Lin Chen gently rubbed his fingertips together, a calm, confident look in his eyes.
Tang San, you've gone to such lengths to silence everyone, yet you don't realize you've long since become a pawn in this game.
Let's see how you, the hunter who thinks himself so clever, escape the layers of this net today.
A breeze swept across the training ground and lifted a few fallen leaves. Invisible smoke already drifted over Shrek.
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