Shrek Team on the Brink, Qian Renxue's Luscious Figure

At the bottom of Lake of Life.

An enormous dragon eye suddenly snapped open.

"How could this be?"

"The auras of the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction..."

"How could those two God Kings possibly have offspring? Could it be that the aura I sensed last time was not mistaken? The Goddess of Life truly descended to the mortal realm that time. Interesting. It seems I should not continue sleeping."

A crisp female voice rang out, followed by silence once more.

"My lord. Why have you emerged from seclusion ahead of time?" Di Tian, dressed in a black-and-gold robe, lowered his head respectfully.

"Keep an eye on that person for me. If he comes to the Star Dou Great Forest again, send someone to test him."

"Yes."

After giving all her orders, the giant dragon transformed into an incomparably beautiful woman.

"It seems the heavens have not forsaken my Dragon Clan."

Star Dou Great Forest.

After Gu Linyuan and Qian Renxue left, the Peerless Dragon and Snake also took their granddaughter, Meng Yiran, away from the place of conflict.

"Grandfather. I don't want to go back. I want to travel outside and make my way in the world."

"The world is vast, but Exotic Beast City is too small."

"I used to think I was already a genius. But Tang San and Long Yuan successively made me realize how vast this world is, and how narrow-minded I had been before."

Meng Yiran spoke softly to her grandfather and grandmother.

Her heart was in turmoil.

That young man who had endured Zhao Wuji's full-force blow without suffering a scratch had become impossible to erase from her mind.

Such a peerless talent was unprecedented in the entire continent's history.

She could no longer remain within the Exotic Beast Family.

She had to venture into a wider world.

She also wanted to keep meeting Long Yuan. Even if she could not stay by his side, she...

"Long Yuan is truly outstanding. I..."

Meng Yiran pressed her lips tightly together.

"Yiran. A person like Long Yuan... Forget it. Go if you want."

Chao Tianxiang had intended to advise Meng Yiran, but she did not know what to say.

At the tender age when love first blossomed, what girl would not have her heart stirred upon meeting such an exceptional man?

Her granddaughter's appearance made it clear that she had fallen for him.

"Grandfather will take you to Heaven Dou City. Heaven Dou City is the second-largest city, surpassed only by Spirit City."

"Our Exotic Beast Family has longstanding ties with the Dugu Family. This old man can arrange for you to stay there for a while, and you can also choose to enroll at Heaven Dou Royal Academy." Meng Shu spoke seriously.

After this incident, he gradually came to realize something.

This world had already changed dramatically.

This was now an age overflowing with geniuses.

Meng Yiran's talent was not weak. In the future, she might have a chance to break through to Spirit Douluo.

Such talent would have been considered first-rate thirty years ago.

But among those he had seen today... Tang San, Ning Rongrong, Dai Mubai, Oscar...

Not one of these Shrek Academy students was inferior to Meng Yiran.

Not to mention that monstrously gifted Long Yuan.

By relying on their old friendship with the Dugu Family and asking Dugu Bo to offer his granddaughter some guidance, perhaps Meng Yiran could keep pace. Even if she could not close the gap with the first-rate geniuses, she would not be left too far behind.

"The Dugu Family in Heaven Dou City..." Meng Yiran's eyes lit up.

Elsewhere.

Shrek Academy's campsite.

The bonfire flickered in the night, its orange-red light reflecting off every face, yet unable to dispel the gloom hanging over everyone's hearts.

Everyone sat around the fire, but no one spoke.

The silence was like a massive boulder pressing down on everyone's chest.

Tang San sat at the very edge, his back against a large tree. Dried blood still stained his blue combat uniform, left behind by Gu Linyuan's fists and kicks.

A flask of water rested on his knees. It had already gone cold, yet he had not taken a single sip.

His eyes were open, watching the dancing flames before him, but those once-deep and bright eyes were now hollow like two dry wells.

There was no light.

No spirit.

Nothing at all.

He had maintained that posture for a long time.

Ever since Gu Linyuan had taken his External Soul Bone, Tang San had become far more despondent.

Even someone as strong-willed as Tang San would sink into despair for a time under such circumstances.

This was an External Soul Bone.

Something that could only be encountered by chance.

Moreover, Tang San had lived one life before this one, so he understood certain principles even better. Anyone who accomplished great things had fought their way through one competition after another. Sometimes, failing to obtain a certain opportunity was enough to make one fall further and further behind their peers.

One step behind, always behind.

In his previous life, many top figures had once been evenly matched with those second-rate experts in their youth. Yet after falling one step behind, they fell behind at every turn, and the gap only grew wider.

He, Tang San, had lost an External Soul Bone, while Long Yuan had gained one.

One diminished while the other grew stronger.

The gap had become even greater.

Most importantly, Tang San knew that such opportunities could not be forced.

Even if he broke through to Title Douluo in the future, he might not encounter another External Soul Bone. Otherwise, every Title Douluo would have one.

External Soul Bones were even rarer than Soul Bones.

Soul Bones were out there. As long as one was powerful enough, one could hunt a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast and obtain one.

Tang San was confident that once he grew stronger, it would be possible for him to equip himself with all six Soul Bones. But an External Soul Bone...

Pfft.

"Gu Linyuan, how could you take my opportunity from me?"

"Do you know how precious an External Soul Bone is? Can you even bring out its true potential?"

Tang San's vision went dark, and blood surged from his mouth.

He had always been resolute and could ignore the insults of others.

But losing an External Soul Bone that had practically been within his grasp was too painful a blow.

Especially for someone as desperately poor as Tang San. This treasure was worth several million Gold Soul Coins and could completely improve his life.

Even if he chose not to absorb it himself and auctioned it off instead, the Gold Soul Coins he gained would be enough to buy every rare material needed to forge hidden weapons.

Just then.

A cold voice rang out through the campsite.

"Enough."

Everyone turned toward the source of the voice.

Zhu Zhuqing walked in from the edge of the campsite. Her pace was neither hurried nor slow, and her posture was straight as a pine.

The firelight shone upon her cool face, and those pale eyes were filled with anger.

"Tang San."

"That Man Faced Demon Spider was snatched from Meng Yiran by you. If you had not won the match, that Soul Beast should have belonged to Meng Yiran in the first place."

Tang San's body stiffened slightly, but he did not raise his head.

"Since it never belonged to you in the first place, it is only natural for someone else to take it away. What is the point of sitting here and blaming the heavens and everyone else?"

Silence fell around the bonfire.

Dai Mubai raised his head and glanced at Zhu Zhuqing. His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing.

He suddenly realized that he was finding his fiancée increasingly difficult to understand.

He did not know when Zhu Zhuqing had changed.

She was no longer as silent and indifferent to everything as before.

Her gaze had begun to find a focus.

But that focus was not Dai Mubai.

In the past, if Zhu Zhuqing did not care about him, she would not care about any other man either. But now, she would speak up for another man.

Tang San slowly raised his head, his bloodshot eyes turning toward Zhu Zhuqing.

His gaze was somewhat dazed, somewhat confused, and carried an emotion that was impossible to describe.

"Zhu Qing..."

"Long Yuan took my External Soul Bone, and you're speaking for him?"

"Zhu Zhuqing, could it be that you..."

Tang San broke down. Why could not even his own companions understand him?

"Enough, Third Brother."

Another voice interrupted Tang San.

This time, it was Ning Rongrong who spoke.

She stood up from beside the bonfire. Her short blue hair fluttered gently in the night breeze, and a complicated expression rested on her delicate face.

"Zhu Zhuqing is right."

"Long Yuan did not snatch it from you. He merely won that Soul Beast from you after Meng Yiran lost to you."

"From beginning to end, he never targeted you."

Seeing even Ning Rongrong speak for Long Yuan, not only Tang San but also Oscar and the others were shaken. They could all see that Ning Rongrong cared deeply about Long Yuan.

At any time, Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing might leave Shrek Academy for him.

The Shrek Team had only just been formed, yet it was already teetering on the brink.

However, Gu Linyuan clearly knew nothing of this at the moment.

He held Qian Renxue's soft body tightly, savoring the lush, voluptuous figure unique to a mature woman.

It was not the immature, slender body of a girl that required careful, delicate touches. It was a body matured to perfection, full and supple, one that made people unable to resist sinking into it.

Her waist was slender enough to hold in one hand, yet the curves above it suddenly swelled into fullness, soft and ample. Even through her clothes, he could feel that astonishing elasticity and warmth.

"You're obviously healed already, so how much longer are you going to lie there..." At last, Qian Renxue could not help but complain coyly.