Xiao Wu didn't really feel much of anything about the world, war, justice, or things like that. She wasn't moved or shaken just because she heard Huang Tian's lofty ambitions.
But as long as she had a halfway decent reason to back it up, she could keep muddling along.
After all, deep down, she didn't want to leave Huang Tian.
She interpreted her compromise as supporting her boyfriend's dreams, and quickly accepted Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing's presence. She was just as cheerful, innocent, and straightforward as ever.
In fact, the three of them got along very well.
In the days that followed, Huang Tian and Shrek had several more clashes.
For example, he was utterly shocked that Shrek Academy served nothing but steamed buns, plain congee, and pickles for meals, and he couldn't accept it.
He believed food was an important source of energy for the body and essential to training and its results, so he would rather make the long trip to Suotuo City to eat.
He openly resisted and opposed Flender's educational ideas, like encouraging gambling and fighting, and claiming that anyone who was afraid of getting into trouble was a good-for-nothing.
Fortunately, these disagreements were eventually smoothed over without any major conflict.
Then, about three months after he joined the academy, the worst clash erupted.
But it wasn't about ideals, disputes, or old grudges. It was about who would lead the team and who would be in charge.
The Great Soul Arena in Suotuo City was willing to pay ten thousand Gold Soul Coins to invite Shrek to face Imperial Fighting Team on the main Soul Fighting Arena the next day. There was no way the money-loving Flender would turn them down.
However, whenever Shrek had competed in team Soul Fighting before, internal disagreements had led them to enter as two separate groups of four.
Tang San led Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun, while Huang Tian led Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing. Even when they lost because they were one member short, the two groups still wouldn't speak to each other.
Imperial Fighting Team wasn't an ordinary team. Four of them would certainly lose, but if all seven fought, they would not only have to leave one member out, they would also need to appoint a captain and strategist.
Yu Xiaogang favored Tang San because he was a control-type Soul Master. Huang Tian only accepted himself, and flatly refused to let Tang San join the team. Otherwise, he would leave the academy. Flender tried to smooth things over by proposing Dai Mubai as a compromise, but neither side accepted it.
Unable to settle the dispute, Tang San challenged Huang Tian that night and began a no-holds-barred Soul Fighting match. In the heat of battle, he suddenly brought out a Hidden Weapon and launched a sneak attack.
But Huang Tian had seen it coming. He switched to his Second Martial Soul and beat Tang San so badly he was left seriously injured.
The Shrek Team—and, in fact, the whole academy—had officially entered the Huang Tian era. He was the sole captain and strategist, and also took on some of the duties of a coach and instructor.
Tang San alone was willing to accept guidance from Yu Xiaogang.
After that, the dream turned into a series of short scenes.
[Huang Tian devised a way to eliminate Ye Lingling, the enemy team's healer, right at the start of the fight. Then, relying on his heaven-defying healing and crowd-control abilities, he narrowly defeated Imperial Fighting Team.]
[Because Shrek lacked a spot in the Soul Master Tournament, they joined Imperial Fighting Academy as a second team after Qin Ming persuaded them.]
[One day, Dai Mubai, who had always thought Xiao Wu was Huang Tian's only girlfriend and had been trying every way he could to win Zhu Zhuqing over and rekindle their relationship, suddenly caught sight of Huang Tian with an arm around each of two women.
After being beaten up, he angrily left Imperial Fighting Academy. Meanwhile, Tang San repeatedly challenged Huang Tian for the captaincy and suffered crushing defeats each time. Disheartened, he joined Blue Tyrant Academy with Yu Xiaogang, whose influence had dwindled more and more.]
[Xiao Wu discovered that Ning Rongrong's relationship with Huang Tian was far from ordinary. It was very different from a normal boyfriend-girlfriend relationship.
This little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect not only respectfully called Huang Tian her Master in private, but also wore a collar ornament around her neck with Huang Tian's name engraved on the inside.]
[Imperial Fighting Team had lost to Shrek several times, and its members began to grow curious about Huang Tian's training methods. But after what happened with Yu Xiaogang, he had become extremely secretive about anything related to them.
Only Dugu Yan was willing to provide books on toxicology and teach him about poisons. Ye Lingling, who was also a healing-type Soul Master like him, taught him a thing or two in private.]
[To challenge for the Soul Master Tournament championship, Huang Tian followed Flender's advice and gave his Second Martial Soul three Thousand-Year Soul Rings. Once his Soul Power reached level forty, both his Martial Souls absorbed a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast for their fourth Soul Rings.]
[As Huang Tian tried to solve the poison problem afflicting Dugu Yan, he discovered that some of the plants in Dugu Bo's Herb Garden had extraordinary properties remarkably similar to those of the exotic flower he had eaten before.]
[After getting Dugu Bo's permission, Huang Tian secured the right to use the exotic flower in exchange for helping him detoxify. Xiao Wu, Dugu Yan, Ning Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, Oscar, Ma Hongjun, and Ye Lingling each received one.
Not only did their Soul Power surge in a short time, but their Martial Souls and cultivation talents also underwent obvious improvements to varying degrees.
Among them, Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul transformed into a dragon, and Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.]
Ever since Huang Tian claimed the captaincy, the dream had entered its wish-fulfillment stage. Even though he wasn't the protagonist, the rabbit was thoroughly engrossed.
Until this scene:
[Huang Tian confessed to Xiao Wu that he had long since discovered she was a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, but his feelings for her hadn't changed in the slightest.
To keep her identity from being exposed, Huang Tian urged her to return to Star Dou Forest and lie low on the eve of the Soul Master Tournament.]
The immense shock made the rabbit's heart stop for an instant. Her head buzzed.
But then she was completely engulfed by an even greater wave of joy.
Her deepest worry—or rather, the greatest heartache she'd carried all along—had been resolved. In the scene and outside it, they both wept with joy, both trembling with excitement.
The rabbit cried out in her heart,
"Hahaha, Huang Tian—no, Brother Tian—I knew I was right about you!"
Xiao Wu hugged Huang Tian with all her might, tears streaming down her face as she said,
"I knew you were a lecher. Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling won't escape your clutches forever, either, but it's fine. Xiao Wu forgives you."
Hearing that, Huang Tian was stunned.
"Y-you... how did you know?"
"Hmph, you're always thinking I'm stupid, but I'm not stupid at all. Most of the time, I'm clever as hell."
Xiao Wu had a smug smile on her lips, looking as if she thought herself very clever.
The rabbit could clearly feel how delighted she was.
It wasn't just happiness. It was trust and reliance, too.
All her fear vanished in an instant, and every worry dissolved.
"Huang Tian may be a bit of a lecher, but that's exactly why he doesn't care that I'm a Soul Beast. As long as I'm pretty, what else would matter to him?"
"The rule among Soul Beasts is that the strong rule. Huang Tian is so powerful, so what's wrong with him having a few more girlfriends? He deserves them."
[Huang Tian still plans to conquer the world and bring all under heaven to heel. Once he becomes emperor, wouldn't it be perfectly normal for him to have three palaces and six courts?]
Feeling Xiao Wu's thoughts,
the rabbit couldn't help nodding.
"That's right. Exactly."
Before you continue