Three-Eyed Golden Ni: Be My Bandit Queen, Di Tian: No Way

Shrek Academy, Sea God Pavilion.

Xuan Zi rushed back at the fastest speed of his life.

He burst into the study, face flushed red and panting like an ox, pouring out everything that had happened in the Star Dou Great Forest.

From Mu Tianyi successfully absorbing the spirit ring, to his departure to forage for food, to the Soul Tool shattering, the person vanishing, and the footprints extending toward the Great Fierce Land...

He detailed every single thing, leaving nothing out.

Mu En sat in the grand armchair, his expression shifting from joy to darkness, eventually becoming increasingly unsightly.

After Xuan Zi finished speaking, the study fell into a long, heavy silence.

Mu En stood up.

He did not fly into a rage, did not smash anything, and did not even raise his voice; he simply looked at Xuan Zi, the heavy disappointment in his gaze more suffocating than any scolding.

"Xuan Zi," Mu En began, his voice calm to the point of being chilling, "you have disappointed me too much."

Xuan Zi lowered his head, fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, saying nothing.

He knew that any explanation at this moment would be pale and hollow.

Mu En had entrusted his most cherished descendant to him, yet he had managed to lose the boy in the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest.

This was not mere negligence; it was an unforgivable mistake.

"I will accept whatever punishment follows," Xuan Zi said, his voice hoarse. "But Uncle-Master, the priority now is to save Tianyi."

Mu En closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He knew that, of course.

Although there was an agreement between Shrek Academy and the Star Dou Great Forest that human Title Douluo were not to trespass into the core area, he could no longer afford to care about that.

Even if Di Tian was still there, and even if he was no longer a match for him.

Mu En leaned on his cane and walked toward the door, his steps as steady as a mountain.

"Let's go." The old man's voice was not loud, yet it carried an unchangeable resolve.

"Given Di Tian's temperament, if Tianyi was merely brought into the Great Fierce Land, he should still be safe."

Mu En paused without turning back.

"This time, I fear things will blow up. I only hope Di Tian will not hold it against an old man like me."

"If it truly reaches a point beyond reconciliation, I will leave this old life of mine there as an apology."

Mu Tianyi rubbed his lower back, which had been bruised from the fall.

He sat up from the grass and looked at the golden cat before him, who was being impossibly earnest.

"Dage kuotuowalu." (But I refuse.)

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni's vertical eye widened abruptly.

"Why?"

Her voice spiked, carrying a sense of offended disbelief.

As the Emperor Auspicious Beast, she had never known anyone to dare refuse her.

"I don't want to be anyone's cook," Mu Tianyi said, brushing the grass clippings off his clothes. "I have dreams, my own things to do, and my own path to walk. I can't stay here and roast meat for you every day."

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni's tail lashed out, the cluster of golden flames at its tip carving a bright arc through the air, causing the surrounding temperature to rise sharply by several degrees.

"Old Bear said that in the Star Dou Great Forest, whoever has the biggest fist makes the rules. If you want to have a say, your fist has to be bigger than everyone else's."

"Your fist isn't bigger than mine, so you can't refuse me," the Three-Eyed Golden Ni said, lifting her head, her vertical eye brimming with fighting spirit. "I want to duel you."

Mu Tianyi: "...Huh? What on earth?"

"Arm wrestling." The Three-Eyed Golden Ni raised a front paw and flashed her paw pad at him. "If you win, I'll let you go. If I win, you make me delicious food—roast that good meat for me every day."

Mu Tianyi looked at the golden paw, which was larger than his own head, then looked down at his own thin arms and legs.

He fell silent.

Then he fell silent again.

"You call this a duel?"

He dared not imagine what kind of nonsense the fierce beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest had been feeding the Emperor Auspicious Beast.

"That's enough, little one. Take a rest."

Di Tian appeared suddenly.

"Di Tian, what are you doing?"

"Although... well, in short, it is time for you two to say goodbye."

Di Tian's expression was calm, but his gaze remained fixed on Mu Tianyi, as if he were sensing something.

He had been resting idly when a message suddenly arrived from Ten Thousand Demon King, stating that the Bright Sacred Dragon and Taotie from Shrek were suddenly rushing toward the Great Fierce Land.

Hearing that the people from Shrek dared to violate their agreement, Di Tian's short temper immediately flared, and he intended to teach the two a lesson.

His peripheral vision swept over the Three-Eyed Golden Ni... and Mu Tianyi beside her.

Di Tian: "..."

He roughly understood why those two were heading toward the Great Fierce Land.

He stepped forward to take a look.

Good heavens, it really was the bloodline of the Bright Sacred Dragon.

That settled it.

Di Tian withdrew his gaze and looked down at the Three-Eyed Golden Ni beside him, his tone uncharacteristically gentle.

"Little one, let him go."

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni looked up abruptly, her tone puzzled.

"Why?!"

"His family has come looking for him." Di Tian lifted his chin, gesturing toward the direction of the outer perimeter of the Great Fierce Land.

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni's ears twitched, and her vertical eye blinked twice, as if digesting this information.

"Family..."

She murmured the word, her gaze suddenly changing.

Family, she understood that.

Di Tian was her family.

Old Bear, Old Demon, Sister Bi Ji...

Although they were always nagging, and although the things they taught were strange, they were still her family.

If something were to happen to her one day, Di Tian would be worried too.

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni lowered her head, her golden tail flicking reluctantly.

"Fine." Her voice was muffled, "You can go."

Mu Tianyi had not expected things to turn around so quickly.

He had just been pondering how to escape from the claws of a ten-thousand-year Auspicious Beast, and in the blink of an eye, he was told he could leave.

He stood up subconsciously and looked at the Three-Eyed Golden Ni.

That proud golden cat was currently sitting by the lake, her vertical eye half-closed.

Her gaze was fixed on the ground, her tail sweeping the grass rhythmically, her expression carrying a stubbornness that said, "I don't want to deal with you, but hurry up and leave."

"Hey, human." The Three-Eyed Golden Ni suddenly spoke, her voice soft, "What is your name?"

Mu Tianyi was stunned, the corners of his mouth curving upward involuntarily.

"My name is Mu Tianyi."

The Three-Eyed Golden Ni's ears twitched, as if she were committing the name to memory.

She did not speak again, but turned her face away, facing him with the vertical eye on her forehead, as if taking one last look at him with her third eye.

Meanwhile.

At the boundary between the Great Fierce Land and the Mixed Zone.

Two figures were streaking toward the core area at an astonishing speed.

The two released their auras without reservation, causing the soul beasts along the way to flee frantically from hundreds of meters away.

Xuan Zi trailed half a step behind Mu En, following closely.

Both of their gazes were locked on the depths of the dense, dark forest ahead; they exchanged no words, but their speed continued to climb.

Suddenly...

Mu En's figure came to a sudden halt, and Xuan Zi stopped his footsteps at almost the same moment.

In the air ahead, an aura as vast as an abyss surged forth.

Mu En's gaze narrowed slightly, a golden light flashing deep within his pupils.

Three steps in front of him.

The space was torn apart as if by an invisible giant hand; a pitch-black rift ripped open from the void, its edges churning with dark spatial power.

From the rift, a figure stepped out.

Dressed in black with black hair, his face was handsome to the point of being demonic, and his eyes were a deep, profound gold, as if they were two burning suns.

There was no soul ring light around him, but the sense of oppression emanating from his very bones made the air within a thousand-meter radius thick as syrup.