"Yan Shaozhe, this is what you meant by having everything arranged?"
Xuan Zi looked at Yan Shaozhe, his face full of confusion.
He had sustained injuries during the battle in the Dou Ling Empire's imperial palace, and they still hadn't fully healed.
Yan Shaozhe had invited him here, promising a grand spectacle that would let him vent the resentment in his heart.
So he had come.
He hadn't expected to find himself watching this.
Xuan Zi began to doubt Yan Shaozhe's abilities.
Was he really suited to be dean of the Martial Soul Department?
What a disappointment!
Xuan Zi felt that even he was more reliable than Yan Shaozhe.
"Xuan Zi, I didn't expect Bei Bei to help Ning Tian's team either..."
Questioned in that tone, Yan Shaozhe felt the anger in his chest burn hotter.
What he couldn't bear most was the contempt in Xuan Zi's eyes, as though Yan Shaozhe were utterly unreliable.
He wouldn't have been this furious if anyone else had looked down on him.
But Xuan Zi was the one scorning him.
How could he accept that?
"Bei Bei!"
At the mention of Bei Bei, even Xuan Zi found himself at a loss for words.
After all, Bei Bei was Mu En's only descendant.
He was talented, too, and truly one of Shrek Academy's own.
The two fell silent and watched the match.
"The Seven Treasures turn forth from glazed glass, the first grants a boost..."
Ning Tian supported her teammates while directing the battle.
"Yu Hao, activate Spiritual Sharing. Xie Huanyue, fall back—don't let them surround you. Wang Dong, watch your side..."
The battle proceeded smoothly.
At this rate, they might even win with ease.
The gap was simply too great.
With Ning Tian and Huo Yuhao supporting them, Jin Sheng and Bei Bei swept through their opponents as if they had cheats that revealed the entire map and kept their health topped up.
"Damn it! How did this happen?"
Below the stands, Zhou Yi watched through gritted teeth, her eyes blazing with anger.
This wasn't at all what had been arranged.
Why were Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi fighting alongside Ning Tian's team?
It had shattered every part of the plan.
Seeing the smile spreading across Mu Jin's face in the distance, Zhou Yi felt her fury mount. She couldn't accept this outcome.
She absolutely would not allow it.
"He Caitou, use the thing I gave you."
Zhou Yi looked toward a tall, dark-skinned young man on the field.
He was He Caitou, another core disciple of the Soul Guidance Department.
He was Fan Yu's disciple, which made Zhou Yi his teacher's wife.
"This..."
Hearing her mental message in his head, He Caitou hesitated.
The thing she wanted him to use was far too destructive, and using it would break the rules.
What would happen to him if he used it?
If anyone was killed or injured, would those people let him off?
"He Caitou, are you refusing to listen to me?"
"If you don't do as I say today, I'll have Fan Yu expel you, and I'll reveal your identity."
"Do you really think Shrek Academy knows nothing?"
When He Caitou still made no move, Zhou Yi threatened him again.
She dared to break the rules so openly because she had someone powerful behind her.
Before the melee began, that person had told her that, if absolutely necessary, she could use methods that violated the rules. The academy would reprimand and punish them publicly, but she would be compensated in secret.
Zhou Yi knew that person was using her.
But whenever she pictured Mu Jin's hateful face, she couldn't contain her anger.
Jealousy and rage had robbed her of reason.
If she was being used, so be it. She was willing.
"Yes, Teacher."
At Zhou Yi's second mental message, He Caitou's gaze darkened.
He had never imagined Shrek Academy knew who he was.
And now his teacher's wife was threatening and coercing him, even if it meant ruining him.
But did he have a choice?
If he left Shrek Academy and the people of the Sun Moon Empire learned his identity, he would have no chance of surviving.
He Caitou's real name was Xu He.
He carried the bloodline of the Sun Moon Imperial Family and possessed Twin Martial Souls.
Shrek Academy had kept someone like him on as a core disciple of the Soul Guidance Department. No one would believe there wasn't more to that arrangement.
Ning Que had noticed him from the moment he entered the field.
If anything here could seriously injure Bei Bei and Jin Sheng, it was a Soul Tool.
He's asking for death!
The instant Ning Que saw He Caitou take something from his Storage Soul Tool, his face darkened.
It was a level-five Fixed Soul Guidance Shell.
If it exploded on the field, the consequences were unimaginable.
Was it Yan Shaozhe or Zhou Yi?
Ning Que didn't step forward. He glanced around, then looked at the two of them.
He hadn't even started poaching people from Yan Shaozhe, yet Yan Shaozhe had come looking for trouble.
It seemed he would have to put that plan into motion sooner.
As for Zhou Yi, she was already dead in his eyes.
If he hadn't still had a goal to accomplish, he would have left Shrek Academy rather than keep tangling with them.
He did not stop He Caitou from using the level-five Fixed Soul Guidance Cannon.
With He Caitou's strength and the Soul Tool's level, he couldn't bring out its full power. Forcing it to fire would yield thirty percent at most.
Jin Sheng and the others were strong enough to block that.
Besides, Ning Que could intervene if it came to that.
It would be best if the Fixed Soul Guidance Shell exploded. Only then could he gain the most from it.
With a thought, an Image Recording Orb appeared in Ning Que's hand.
Better to keep evidence.
Given the way those people at Shrek Academy behaved, they might try to wriggle out of it.
The last affair had ended, and he had gained plenty. He had been ready to stop fleecing Shrek Academy and turn his attention to the Star Luo Imperial Family.
He hadn't expected the people of Shrek Academy to be this ridiculous.
They were practically rushing to hand him an excuse and evidence.
Truly, all the careful scheming of clever people couldn't compare to one sudden flash of inspiration from a fool!
He Caitou knew he couldn't let anyone see him use the Fixed Soul Guidance Cannon, so he hid behind the others when he fired it.
But had no one at Shrek Academy noticed?
What about Yan Shaozhe?
How could Yan Shaozhe not know, when he had arranged it?
After seeing what He Caitou was doing, Yan Shaozhe not only failed to stop him, but helped conceal him.
Everything was ready.
"Fixed Soul Guidance Cannon, fire!"
He Caitou poured his Soul Power into the cannon. A shell hurtled straight toward Ning Tian's team, and the backlash from his Soul Power knocked him unconscious on the spot.
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