Huo Yutong?

Xiao Yi unleashed his Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, the three petals within his irises rotating slowly. The effect was dizzying and mesmerizing; the Mandala Snake that had just been charging at him was instantly frozen in place, as if struck by a binding spell.

A pair of eerie, bewitching eyes flicked toward the source of the commotion.

The bushes rustled, and three figures burst out in a frantic rush.

Both sides froze the moment they laid eyes on each other.

The instant Bei Bei saw Xiao Yi, he braced himself as if facing a formidable enemy. His Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul manifested spontaneously, beyond his control, and two yellow and one purple soul rings began to rotate around his body.

Xiao Yi looked at the three people opposite him, feeling somewhat speechless at Bei Bei's reaction. It was just a glance, was it really necessary to be this terrified?

What surprised Xiao Yi wasn't Bei Bei, but the two young girls behind him who were staring at Bei Bei with blank expressions.

That's right, two of them...

One had long black hair tied up into a high ponytail with a butterfly hair accessory, a pretty face, and a pair of pale pink eyes. Who else could it be but Tang Ya?

The other one left Xiao Yi feeling quite puzzled.

She had a petite and delicate frame—or rather, she looked somewhat malnourished. Her long blue hair was tied up simply, and her fair face revealed an unnaturally sallow complexion. More than her features, what caught one's attention most were those lively, starry eyes, which were incredibly dazzling.

A bold guess formed in Xiao Yi's mind. Could it be...

He slowly retracted his martial soul and revealed a friendly smile.

"This Mandala Snake is your target, right? It's only been restrained by my soul skill."

The three of them finally snapped out of their daze. Bei Bei realized his earlier loss of composure and felt somewhat embarrassed, quickly offering an apology.

"Apologies, little brother. We misunderstood you. Thank you for stopping this soul beast for us." As he spoke, he led the two girls forward to apologize to Xiao Yi. In truth, he had been purely terrified by that single glance from Xiao Yi, but Bei Bei decided that was something he could never admit.

Tang Ya, however, was looking at the youth before her with curiosity. Before Bei Bei could speak, she seemed to think of something, her eyes lighting up as she blurted out, "Little brother, would you like to join our Tang Sect?" She had just seen it—this youth had three purple soul rings beneath his feet.

Tang Ya's eyes shone as she stared at Xiao Yi without blinking, making him feel a bit creeped out.

"Xiao Ya." Bei Bei helplessly pushed back the head Tang Ya had thrust forward, earning him a fierce glare from her.

"What should you call me?"

"Teacher Xiao Ya." Bei Bei instantly conceded.

"Apologies, little brother. Teacher Xiao Ya just has this kind of personality, please forgive her. Her name is Tang Ya, the Sect Master of the Tang Sect. This is Huo Yutong, also a member of our Tang Sect. Furthermore, we are all students of Shrek."

"Nice to meet you. My name is Xiao Yi, and I am also preparing to apply to Shrek."

Xiao Yi naturally knew that these three were all from Shrek. This was the first time in the twelve years since he arrived in this world that he had encountered characters from the original story, though he was curious why Huo Yuhao had become Huo Yutong.

He looked at the little girl shrinking behind the other two to lower her presence, feeling a sense of curiosity.

Bei Bei and Tang Ya's eyes lit up.

"So, little brother is also planning to join Shrek? Then you'll be our junior in the future, little brother Xiao Yi."

"Then, little brother, would you like to join the Tang Sect? Our Tang Sect and Shrek were as close as family back in the day."

Xiao Yi's mouth twitched. How was it that this Tang Ya didn't seem very bright?

Bei Bei looked at Tang Ya with a helpless expression. Their Tang Sect only had three members right now; why would a genius like this join them?

"The Tang Sect? Is that the sect founded by the Sea God Tang San?"

"Yes, that's right, that very Tang Sect." Tang Ya glanced at Bei Bei with a smug look.

See? Our Tang Sect is still quite famous.

"This is the sect founded by the Sea God Tang San himself. So, little brother, do you want to join?" Fearing Xiao Yi would immediately refuse, she hurriedly listed the benefits of joining the Tang Sect, such as the Mysterious Heaven Skill and other Tang Sect techniques.

After she finished, seeing no reaction from Xiao Yi, Tang Ya lost some of her confidence. With the Tang Sect having so few people now, she figured the other party wouldn't agree.

"So, you're saying your Tang Sect only has the three of you now?" Xiao Yi looked at the trio with a desire to laugh. At the thought of what he was about to say, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward.

"Yes, that's right." Hearing this answer, Tang Ya wilted on the spot, her eyes turning slightly red.

"The Tang Sect's foundation was seized by the Iron-Blood Sect. Now, we don't even have a sect headquarters."

At the memory of that night, Tang Ya felt as if her heart were being torn apart.

But before she could wallow in her sorrow, Xiao Yi finally failed to suppress the corner of his mouth.

"That's fantastic!"

Tang Ya: ?

Bei Bei: ??

Huo Yutong: ???

Xiao Yi coughed twice, pretending he had misspoken.

"Cough, cough. I mean, it's fantastic that I can become your junior."

Tang Ya was stunned, her hand trembling as she pointed at Xiao Yi.

How is this person's brain wired? I'm the Sect Master of the Tang Sect, and I'm standing right here! How could you say that...

But suddenly, she felt a wave of dejection. It wasn't entirely unreasonable for him to react that way; after all, the current Tang Sect truly had nothing, and he was only stating the truth.

Tang Ya grieved silently on the side, while Huo Yutong went over to comfort her with concern; Xiao Yi remained silent throughout.

Glancing back at Xiao Yi, she felt like a startled little deer under his gaze, shrinking even further into herself, nearly hiding directly behind Tang Ya.

Bei Bei gave an awkward smile and said nothing. It was clear the other party had refused, so he looked at the Mandala Snake lying on the ground like a corpse and hurriedly reminded them.

"Alright, Teacher Tang Ya, come over and absorb the spirit ring. Little Brother Xiao Yi has been suppressing it for quite a while."

Only then did Tang Ya slowly shuffle over, the corners of her eyes still red, hanging with a few small pearly tears.

As Tang Ya passed by Xiao Yi, she glared at him fiercely before scurrying over to the side of the Mandala Snake, pulling out a knife and stabbing it viciously as if venting her anger.

Before long, a purple spirit ring floated out. Tang Ya sat cross-legged and began to absorb it.

Xiao Yi, Bei Bei, and Huo Yutong leaned to the side, waiting for Tang Ya to finish.

Xiao Yi looked at Loli Huo with curiosity. Good heavens, I mean, good heavens—this thing is actually Huo Yuhao? Why is he kind of cute? Loli Huo is actually quite adorable.

Seeing Xiao Yi staring at Huo Yutong, Bei Bei asked curiously.

"What is it, Little Brother Xiao Yi? Do you know our little junior sister?"

Xiao Yi shook his head.

"I don't. I just think Huo Yutong's eyes are very beautiful. They are eye-type martial souls as well, right?"

Feeling embarrassed from being watched, Huo Yutong finally raised her head and gave a soft response.

"Mm."

Her voice is quite pleasant too, Xiao Yi thought to himself, I suggest we just zap her.

"Little Brother Xiao Yi also has an eye-type martial soul, right?" Bei Bei recalled that fleeting glimpse when they first met and was truly startled by that inexplicable sense of oppression.

Xiao Yi nodded gently, and petal patterns emerged within his eyes, magnificent and beautiful, leaving both of them somewhat mesmerized.

Huo Yutong, in particular, felt an inexplicable sense of closeness to Xiao Yi and stopped acting like an ostrich.

Although she was a bit shy and stuttered, she began to chat with the two of them.