As an agility-type Soul Master, the black-clad Soul Emperor was naturally astonishingly fast.
In just a few short seconds, his aura could no longer be sensed anywhere in the vast academy.
Only the Sword Douluo beside Ning Hao could faintly sense the direction he had gone.
At the same time, this left him with many questions.
"Sect Master, I understand why you trust Ning Huan and let him command the Hidden Guards as he pleases."
"But this matter surely concerns the White Tiger Duke Mansion and even the Star Luo Empire..."
"Aren't you afraid that his youth and carelessness might affect the situation?"
Ning Hao did not answer him immediately.
Instead, he walked slowly to the window, clasped his hands behind his back, and took in the entire academy from his vantage point.
"Uncle Sword, what do you think of Xiao Huan?"
Caught off guard by his sect master's question, the Sword Douluo was momentarily stunned.
Then he lowered his head and pondered for a moment before slowly giving his assessment.
"His talent, temperament, and intelligence are all exceptional. He knows when to advance and when to retreat, understands right from wrong, and values loyalty."
"From major sect affairs to everyday life, we never have to worry about him."
"Other than his decidedly mediocre talent in close combat, even I can only offer him meaningful help in terms of experience."
"Then do you think the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect can keep a hidden dragon who has already begun to emerge?"
The old man fell silent.
He truly could not think of an answer.
He could only stand quietly behind Ning Hao and listen as he murmured to himself.
"We all know that Xiao Huan's origins are mysterious."
"But neither you, I, nor Uncle Feng and the others have ever brought it up—not even once."
"As if we'd all tacitly agreed to leave it unspoken. Hmm, that little sly fox has done the same."
In a daze, Ning Hao recalled the verbal sparring between the old-timer and the youngster. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
In the end, he couldn't help but laugh aloud.
Only after enjoying himself for quite a while did he return to the topic.
"He needs a safe place to grow, and the sect needs a wedge to break the deadlock. It's mutually beneficial."
"But favors are always harder to repay than material things, and most of what we can offer is material..."
At this, the Sword Douluo, who had only half understood so far, suddenly caught on.
"So that's why you've been sharing as much real authority as possible, to bring him closer to us?"
"Exactly!" Ning Hao replied with a bright smile.
"Given how lazy he is, once everything is taken care of, he'll probably dump the mundane affairs on someone else as soon as he can."
"For him to willingly get involved in the continent's conflicts this time has already exceeded Ning's expectations."
"What's more..."
He paused, his radiant smile growing even brighter.
"Chances are, Tian'er knows what Xiao Huan wants to do!"
"Even if she doesn't know the specific details, she must at least understand the key parts!"
"So, let the children handle their own business. There's no need for us adults to meddle. We just need to give them enough support~"
"But my daughter's grown up and has secrets now. She's even hiding them from her own father. It does make this old man a little sad~"
Sword Douluo: "..."
What the hell!
No wonder you've been so confident this whole time!
So you'd already guessed the young mistress's little scheme!
Then why were you going on about all that?
Just messing with an old man?
What a waste of emotion!
And so, at an unexpected time and place, half of Ning Huan and Ning Tian's secret was casually exposed.
After all, if Ning Hao could tell his daughter was hiding something, that meant he had his suspicions.
Even without knowing the key details, he'd already grasped the broad outline!
Otherwise, even if he didn't get involved in the matter at the Duke's Mansion, he would have sent the Sword Douluo along.
Not for anything else, but to clean up after those two kids if they ran into trouble!
"Come on, Uncle Sword. It's time to move on to the next step of our plan."
"Tsk... I have to admit, blowing up your own house is pretty thrilling."
As the door creaked shut and their conversation faded into the distance, the continent was poised to be swept up in turmoil once more.
Time flew by, and three years passed in the blink of an eye.
During that time, undercurrents continued to roil beneath the continent's surface.
Yet three major "accidents" quietly shattered the calm that had lasted for years.
The first thing worth mentioning was undoubtedly the many prodigies springing up like mushrooms after the rain.
As the older generation of powerhouses withdrew behind the scenes, the younger generation gradually began shouldering the burden.
These newly risen talents had taken up the banner of the era from their predecessors, making their voices heard across the continent.
The Evil Fire Phoenix, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, the Hongchen Family, and others were all among them.
But of them all, Zhang Lexuan and Dai Huabin were unquestionably the most outstanding.
The former needed no introduction.
After years of Shrek's wholehearted cultivation, her strength had already surpassed that of her peers.
Two years ago, she had followed Ning Huan's advice and, when hunting for her Eighth Soul Ring, specifically asked two elders to accompany her for protection.
She still hadn't managed to evade that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
But she had absorbed the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and Spirit Bone almost completely unharmed.
It was a far cry from the tragic, total annihilation she had suffered in the original story.
And with Xuan Zi's gluttony no longer causing trouble, Shrek widely publicized Zhang Lexuan's achievement of reaching Soul Douluo with a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring.
After a great deal of maneuvering, her fame had even begun to rival that of the Black and White Sacred Dragon from a century ago.
As for the latter...
Well, to outsiders, he was enjoying boundless glory!
But only Ning Huan, the one pulling the strings behind the scenes, knew how much substance there really was to the "genius" Dai Huabin.
He had burst onto the scene three years ago and was now a mid-rank Soul Ancestor.
Compared with the Soul Elder he had been at the same point in the original story, the price of being more than ten levels ahead was easy to imagine.
Any skilled reader of fortune who stopped by the White Tiger Duke Mansion would easily notice.
The mass of imperial golden qi gathering above it, which had accumulated for years and was beginning to rise, had already been quietly depleted by quite a bit.
Perhaps when that golden qi ran dry, the day would come for him to repay the price.
But Ning Huan would have preferred him to use up even more.
Huo Yuhao... still had the blood of the White Tiger Duke Mansion in his veins!
The second matter had to do with Evil Soul Masters.
The reason was still the chain of butterfly effects caused by Zhang Lexuan's unharmed breakthrough to Soul Douluo.
For some unknown reason, Shrek, which should have remained quiet for a long time, suddenly sent out more than half of its inner-court disciples and elders.
They roamed the entire continent, killing Evil Soul Masters without a word.
The campaign was so large-scale that even the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters in the Sun Moon Empire was caught up in it.
The Holy Spirit Cult, which in the original story had not emerged until the second Soul Fighting Tournament, was also exposed to the public several years early.
For a time, panic spread across the entire continent.
In the end, Mu En had no choice but to step forward himself, and only then was the storm barely quelled.
Of course, butterflies didn't flap their wings for no reason.
The information about the Evil Soul Masters' gathering had been deliberately passed to Shrek by Ning Huan through Zhang Lexuan.
For no other reason than to find something for those idle elders to do.
Shift all their attention to their old nemesis, and let them kill each other to their hearts' content!
Before you continue