Shrek Appears! A Twisted Development!

Meanwhile, outside a small city named Silves.

A group of over a dozen people was making their way toward the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.

The old man leading the group had a hawk-like expression and wore thick glasses, possessing the temperament of a shrewd merchant.

Beside him, another middle-aged man in simple black clothes and a crew cut wore a sullen, brooding face.

"Xiao Gang, do you know exactly where the Heaven Dou Royal Academy is located?"

"Flender, you're the Dean—if you don't know, how would I?"

The two held a map, muttering and bickering with each other; naturally, this was the Shrek group.

At this point in time, they had accepted Qin Ming's invitation and were heading to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy to report for duty.

Unaware of the recent changes, they were proceeding according to their established plans.

"Dean, Master, I know the address..."

It was Ning Rongrong who spoke; she had been to the Royal Academy before.

Guided by her, the Shrek group took no detours and arrived at their destination smoothly.

Looking at the vast, scenic training grounds surrounding them, everyone, including Tang San, couldn't help but show expressions of amazement.

However, the harmonious atmosphere did not last long; as soon as the group ventured deeper, they were intercepted by a large number of imperial soldiers.

"Strange, this is a place for spirit master cultivation, why are there ordinary soldiers guarding it? And there are so many of them—it looks like a regular legion!"

Tang San, with his keen mind, sensed something unusual.

He looked toward Ning Rongrong, who was leading the way, only to see her face filled with confusion.

Clearly, such a bizarre scene was not the norm for the Royal Academy; even she felt completely bewildered.

"It's never like this!"

Ning Rongrong whispered to her companions.

No sooner had she spoken than they were surrounded by soldiers.

Several low-to-mid-level spirit masters stepped forward, keeping a safe distance as they vigilantly interrogated the Shrek group about their origins, looking as if they were facing a great enemy.

"So you are friends invited by Teacher Qin Ming. My apologies for the offense; there have been some incidents recently, so we are under total lockdown."

The officer explained apologetically, holding a natural respect for spirit masters.

Flender nodded silently; being newcomers, it was best not to say too much.

Soon, they followed a few students and arrived directly near the Academic Affairs Office.

If things had followed the original plot, they would have encountered the Third Prince, Xue Beng, at this moment, leading to a conflict that would sow the seeds of future trouble.

Afterward, while meeting with Meng Shenji and the other committee members, Prince Xue Xing would have arrived with Dugu Bo, ultimately ruining their enrollment.

But... the situation now was clearly different.

Dugu Bo and Gu Rong, two Title Douluo, had gone missing one after the other.

Even if the imperial family hadn't received intelligence like Qian Renxue, they realized the situation was dire.

Naturally, they immediately contacted the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and both sides synchronized their actions, entering a state of total lockdown.

The Royal Academy was of the utmost importance, so they had arranged for a legion to guard it, and committee members like Meng Shenji were busier than ever.

As the three most powerful Spirit Douluo in the imperial faction, they had already been summoned to the palace; how could they have time to deal with small fry?

This caused the subsequent process to be simplified.

The development was completely twisted: Shrek was being integrated into the Heaven Dou Empire!

Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong, who had been leading the way, spotted a disciple from her sect.

"Young Miss, the Sect Master ordered me to wait here and instructed you to return to the sect immediately."

To such a request, the mischievous Ning Rongrong could not possibly agree directly.

Staying with Shrek was so much fun; why would she want to go home? She shook her head and refused on the spot.

This commotion caught the attention of her teammates, and Tang San, Xiao Wu, Oscar, and the others curiously gathered around.

"Cough, Young Miss, let's step aside and talk."

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect disciple showed a difficult expression upon seeing this.

"No need, these are my comrades who have been through life and death with me. If you have something to say, say it now!"

Ning Rongrong waved her hand, looking unquestionable, which gave the disciple a headache and made him even more hesitant.

Seeing the other party acting coy, Ning Rongrong grew impatient and urged him, saying if he didn't speak now, she would leave!

"Sigh, alright, the situation is this."

"These matters were not meant for outsiders to know."

"But since you said... they are your comrades, I ask that you all keep this strictly confidential."

He explained the general situation; because of Dugu Yan, the disappearance of Dugu Bo was no longer a secret.

Afterward, Gu Rong went to investigate and never returned. With two great powerhouses meeting with misfortune one after another, the entire empire fell into a panic.

"What! Grandpa Gu is missing!"

Hearing this, Ning Rongrong's expression turned to one of horror.

She immediately realized why her father had told her to return home.

Her young mistress temper vanished, and she stopped being coy, bidding farewell to Tang San and the others before departing with the disciples.

However, she would not see Ning Fengzhi upon her return; as one of the leaders of the Upper Three Sects, he was currently staying at the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.

Would the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect ignore the matter after something happened to Gu Rong? The answer was naturally no. Ignoring the risks, Sword Douluo immediately headed for the Sunset Forest.

He issued an early warning and hid carefully, avoiding detection by the outpost base. Noticing that the interior was teeming with experts, Chen Xin weighed the situation and gave up on forcing his way in, returning to make the gathered intelligence public.

"In other words, the enemies in the Sunset Forest are not just one or two?"

"They set up arrays to form a barrier and established solid defensive fortifications?"

"That sounds... not much like the habits of soul masters; it's more like the operations of conventional warfare."

At this moment, inside the main hall of the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.

Everyone had gathered, and it had effectively become a command center.

The feeling of an impending storm lingered in everyone's hearts, making their expressions look very grim.

The one who had just spoken was the head of the only family among the Upper Three Sects, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family, known as Yu Yuanzhen.

"So I suspect this is the prelude to a large-scale invasion! Someone is targeting the Heaven Dou Empire!"

"But it is strange; although Martial Soul Hall possesses numerous Title Douluo, they do not have many conventional troops."

"The Star Luo Empire is the opposite; their soldiers are indeed elite, but I have never heard of them having anyone capable of defeating Poison Douluo or Bone Douluo."

Based on the clues brought back by Chen Xin, everyone expressed their opinions and discussed, the scene becoming heated.

The more they talked, the more they felt that the guys occupying the Sunset Forest were truly too mysterious.

Possessing high-level combat power comparable to Martial Soul Hall while also appearing to implement militarized management? Which faction could achieve this?

"Could it be that Martial Soul Hall and the Star Luo Empire have allied?"

Someone proposed this point of view, but it was quickly rejected.

Don't joke; there are only three major forces on the Douluo Continent, a fact known to everyone.

If the other two were to join forces, crushing the Heaven Dou Empire would be easy; there would be no need to be so circuitous.

"Alright, dwelling on these things is meaningless. What we need to discuss now is how we should handle this?"

"Should we assemble a large army to launch an attack, disrupting the opponent's layout before they can gain a firm foothold, or should we wait and see?"

Emperor Xue Ye was not a wise ruler.

Sitting on his throne, he only felt restless and anxious.

He threw the question out, his gaze sweeping over the ministers below, as well as the Crown Prince "Xue Qinghe."

Qian Renxue laughed inwardly, thinking that this was the question she had been waiting for—the time to use her identity had arrived!

She wanted to know the situation at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, but she was unwilling to let her confidants take the risk, so there was only one way.

She let the others discuss first, then finally stood up to summarize their opinions, using a seemingly compromise-based plan to finalize the next course of action.

"Father, we cannot sit still and wait for death!"

"The enemy is very strong, and may even be getting stronger!"

"Even if there are risks, even if there are casualties, at the very least... we must probe the identity of the opponent!"

"Whether it is Martial Soul Hall or the Star Luo Empire, only by knowing who the enemy is can we better consider our countermeasures!"