Shifting Blame, Letting Strength Speak

Those aristocratic families, those sects, those so-called "experts," those incited civilians...

All their voices combined...

Still failed to make Chen Yu retreat even half a step.

Not only had he refused to back down, he had escalated matters and flipped the table outright.

What exactly was he trying to do?!

Had he gone mad?!

At that moment, one of the elders finally could not hold back any longer.

He turned, his gaze stabbing toward Zhuo Shi like a blade, his tone filled with unmistakable dissatisfaction and accusation.

"Zhuo Shi, look at your plan!"

"Not only did it fail to solve the problem, it directly pushed Chen Yu into declaring war on us!"

His voice was sharp and piercing.

It echoed back and forth through the Sea God Pavilion.

Although the other elders did not speak...

Their gazes also turned toward Zhuo Shi in unison.

Some were reproachful, some helpless, while others simply wanted someone to vent their frustration on.

Hearing this, Zhuo Shi snorted coldly. His face was livid, and his chest heaved violently.

He slammed a hand onto the table, rose to his feet, and roared.

"What could I have done?"

"That guy is a madman!"

His voice carried fury, but also a trace of helplessness that even he was unwilling to admit.

He had thought there was strength in numbers.

He had thought Chen Yu would care about public opinion.

He had thought that within the rules, this was their home ground.

But he had been wrong!

Chen Yu simply did not care about public opinion!

He did not care about rules at all!

If he wanted to fight, he fought. If he wanted to mobilize the Seven Great Legions, he mobilized the Seven Great Legions. So what if the whole world opposed him?

At this moment, everyone wore grave expressions.

They had not expected Chen Yu to directly mobilize the Seven Great Legions under such circumstances!

The Seven Great Legions...

Seven-eighths of the Federation's military strength...

Had been deployed in full just like that.

He was tearing all pretense apart with them!

No probing.

No pressure.

Not even any bargaining.

He had simply launched a war outright!!!

At this moment, one elder's lips trembled slightly. His fingers tapped unconsciously against the tabletop, producing a rapid series of faint sounds.

Another elder had his eyes closed and his brow tightly furrowed, as though he were considering something—or avoiding something.

Others lowered their heads without saying a word, merely staring blankly at the grain of the wooden table.

At that moment, Cai Yue'er spoke.

Her voice was low and hoarse, carrying dissatisfaction and gloom that had been suppressed for far too long.

"I said from the very beginning that Shrek should have had its own people among the Eight Great Legions!"

"If you had listened to me, how could we have fallen to this state today?!"

Her cold gaze swept across everyone present. Her eyes held both anger and the smug superiority of someone saying, "I told you so."

She wore a plain-colored robe, her silver hair combed meticulously. Her face was aged, yet it still exuded a sharp and imposing air.

An elder sneered upon hearing her words and retorted without any courtesy.

"Cai Yue'er, you make it sound easy."

"Several of the Eight Great Legions had always followed our orders."

"If Chen Yu had not rotated through the Eight Great Legions for training and kicked our people out, we would not be in this situation now."

His voice was filled with mockery. Clearly, he had little regard for Cai Yue'er's claim that she had seen it coming.

Anyone could play the wise prophet after the fact. The problem was that they really had tried back then; they simply had not succeeded.

Elder Cai looked at him, her expression darkening as she countered.

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't I propose arranging for new people to be sent in?"

"You failed to accomplish it yourselves. What does that have to do with me?"

Her voice rose slightly, carrying obvious displeasure.

In her view...

She had offered the right suggestion. Poor execution was someone else's problem, and she would not take the blame.

At that moment, another elder sighed softly and shook his head, his tone full of helplessness.

"How can you blame us for that?"

"Because of Elder Long, we broke with the Spirit Pagoda."

"If Qiangu Dongfeng had not kept blocking us from getting involved, we would have long since succeeded in placing our own people."

When he mentioned the words "Elder Long," his voice noticeably dropped, and his gaze became somewhat evasive.

Long Yeyue was already dead.

Yet her lingering authority remained. Even the elders seated here did not dare to freely comment on what she had done.

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone fell silent.

The Sea God Pavilion sank into an oppressively still silence. Even the sound of breathing became exceptionally clear.

At the mention of Long Yeyue...

No one knew what to say.

That lawless Supreme Elder.

That Light and Dark Douluo who would charge into the Spirit Pagoda and slap people at the slightest disagreement.

That legendary figure who had allowed Shrek Academy to run rampant across the entire continent for decades.

While she had been alive...

No one had dared to say no to her.

But after her death, the mess she left behind weighed upon everyone's shoulders.

If she had not broken with the Spirit Pagoda, Qiangu Dongfeng would not have opposed Shrek at every turn, and they could have smoothly planted their own people among the Eight Great Legions...

They would not have been powerless to retaliate when Chen Yu made his move.

They would not have been trapped inside Shrek City by the Seven Great Legions, helpless and at a loss.

But what could they do now?

Long Yeyue had been dead for a long time.

Blaming her was useless now.

At this moment, the people of Shrek finally understood just how enormous a mess that lawless Supreme Elder, Long Yeyue, had left behind.

While she had been alive...

Shrek had been powerful, prestigious, and invincible because of her.

After she died...

Shrek had to pay the price for her former willfulness and tyranny.

You reaped what you sowed.

Only, this harvest was far too bitter.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Finally, Yun Ming spoke.

His voice was not loud, yet it carried a steady strength that broke the dead silence within the Sea God Pavilion.

"Everyone, there is no need to panic."

"So what if Chen Yu has mobilized the Seven Great Legions?"

"In the end, strength will speak for us."

Seated in the main seat, he leaned forward slightly, his hands folded atop the table, his gaze calm and resolute.

There was not the slightest trace of panic on his face, as though it was some insignificant place rather than Shrek Academy that had been surrounded by the Seven Great Legions.

The moment he spoke, everyone's eyes brightened slightly.

The lowered heads lifted, and hope rekindled in those dim eyes.

That was right, so what if there were Seven Great Legions?

Those ordinary soldiers, those mechas, those Soul Guidance Cannon Platforms—before truly supreme experts, they were nothing more than ants that could be crushed at will.

On the Douluo Continent...

Strength was what ultimately mattered.

And Shrek Academy...

Was never lacking in strength.

At that moment, Yun Ming wore a confident expression. The corners of his lips rose slightly, revealing a smile that showed everything was under his control.

"Just watch."

"Once Chen Yu finds himself unable to back down..."

"That will be the time for our counterattack."

His confidence was not an act. It was assurance born from strength.

He was the Sky-Propping Douluo, a Peak Quasi-God, an existence standing at the very pinnacle of the Douluo Continent.

Even if Chen Yu truly was stronger than him.

Killing him would still be impossible.

And as long as he did not fall...

Shrek's backbone would not fall!