It seemed to sense Xuan Zi's gaze. Xiao Bai grew restless in Yang Jian's arms, squirming outward twice before poking out its little head and looking toward Xuan Zi, a tuft of hair sticking straight up.
Yang Jian immediately sensed it and looked over too.
The man was old, dressed in a gray robe stained with oil and looking exceptionally disheveled. The hair atop his head had clearly gone untended for ages, sticking out in every direction like a bird's nest. A large wine gourd hung at his waist, and a big bag of chicken legs sat beside his seat.
"That's Elder Xuan, one of the senior members of the Sea God Pavilion. He's an extraordinary figure in the academy, second only to the Sea God Pavilion Master. But... why would he be here at this time?"
A puzzled look crossed Ma Xiaotao's face.
Elder Xuan rarely appeared in the Inner Court. He spent most of his time in the Outer Court, where he was like an old gatekeeper, sprawled outside the boys' dormitory. All day, he either lounged in a wicker chair eating all sorts of food or drank wine.
Even without Ma Xiaotao's introduction, Yang Jian recognized him from that iconic getup alone.
The Level 98 Super Douluo who would one day succeed Mu En as Sea God Pavilion Master—the Taotie Douluo, Xuan Zi!
He was also an honorary vice cult leader of the Holy Spirit Cult.
It was hard to imagine that under the leadership of a Level 98 Super Douluo, the Shrek Seven Devils had suffered one death and six injuries, nearly being wiped out.
And their enemy hadn't been a Limit Douluo or a Ferocious Beast beyond Xuan Zi's ability to handle. It had merely been an Evil Soul Master at the Soul King level!
That was absurd.
Yang Jian genuinely didn't know what to say.
He couldn't tell whether Xuan Zi was truly that unreliable, or whether the story had deliberately added this whole episode to give the protagonist, Huo Yuhao, more scenes during the upcoming Continental Advanced Soul Master Elite Tournament.
It could have been both, but Yang Jian still felt the former was more likely.
And he was supposed to succeed the Sea God Pavilion Master... Could Xuan Zi really handle that?
He simply wasn't up to the job!
"Second Brother? Huh? It really is you! I was just thinking, with your face, how could there be someone who looked just like you? I can't believe it really is you."
The sudden voice drew Yang Jian's gaze back. He gently stroked Xiao Bai's unruly tuft of hair and saw a handsome, clean-cut fellow who looked like a woman.
"Brother Gongyang, long time no see."
Yang Jian turned toward the voice and spotted an old friend. A smile crept onto his lips.
"Gongyang Mo?"
Ma Xiaotao glanced at Gongyang Mo as he jogged over, then at Yang Jian. She was curious why these two seemingly unrelated people knew each other—and why they addressed each other differently.
"Huh? Ma Xiaotao? What are you doing here?"
Only after reaching Yang Jian's side did Gongyang Mo belatedly notice that the woman standing beside him was Ma Xiaotao. Shock spread across his face.
"You two... you two..."
"Brother Gongyang, I didn't expect you to come watch the Soul Fighting matches too."
Not wanting Gongyang Mo to keep getting hung up on the question, Yang Jian changed the subject.
Gongyang Mo's Martial Soul was the exceptionally rare Rainbow Dragon. Although it was a powerful dragon-type Martial Soul, it belonged to the support class. Like the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, it could only be cultivated to Level 79, beyond which there was no further progress.
For precisely that reason, Gongyang Mo's support abilities were every bit as powerful as those of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda.
The reason Yang Jian knew Gongyang Mo was simple. Like him and Ye Qingyuan, Gongyang Mo was also from the Offering Hall of the Star Luo Empire. His father had a Rainbow Dragon Martial Soul and was a Level 79 Soul Saint, so Yang Jian had known Gongyang Mo even longer than he had known Dai Yueheng.
"Ahem, Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochеn are fighting in the Soul Fighting matches today, so I figured I'd come and watch."
Gongyang Mo explained, then a puzzled look appeared on his face. "Why did you come to Shrek Academy? Didn't you say you didn't want to attend?"
"Since you came to Shrek Academy, what about Qingyuan? Didn't she come with you?"
After so long apart, Gongyang Mo fired one question after another. Yang Jian could only answer helplessly, "I really didn't want to come to Shrek Academy back then, but Qingyuan said she wanted to see what the academy was like. Elder Ye didn't feel comfortable letting her come alone, so I came along with her."
"As for Qingyuan... she's in the Outer Court right now. I'm here because I came to help Senior Xiaotao with something."
Here to help Ma Xiaotao?
Gongyang Mo paused, then immediately understood.
As someone who had been a reserve member of the Shrek Seven Devils alongside them in the previous Soul Master Tournament, Gongyang Mo naturally knew about the Evil Fire that had long troubled Ma Xiaotao. Thinking of Yang Jian's Martial Soul, he understood everything at once.
"Wait, why are Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochеn fighting?"
Ma Xiaotao had some friction with both Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochеn. With the former, it was because they had always been rivals. With the latter, it was because Ling Luochеn had once refused to help her suppress her Evil Fire. But Ma Xiaotao hadn't taken those minor conflicts to heart. She was simply curious why the two of them were fighting.
"Mm... because you haven't been taking part in the Soul Fighting matches lately."
Gongyang Mo sighed and explained, "Dai Yueheng had been wanting to fight you, but you haven't participated in any matches recently. So, with his fighting itch getting the better of him, he started fighting Ling Luochеn instead."
"This is the fourth time they've fought recently. Dai Yueheng won the first three."
"That does sound like Ling Luochеn."
Ma Xiaotao muttered under her breath.
Ling Luochеn had always hated losing, whether she was facing Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, or anyone else. But among the reserve members who had taken part in the previous Soul Master Tournament, Ling Luochеn had made the most progress.
Back then, her cultivation had ranked sixth out of the seven. Now she had climbed to third, behind only Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng.
Did that mean her lose-and-fight-again approach might... actually be working?
"But there's something I'm curious about."
Ma Xiaotao looked at Gongyang Mo, then at Yang Jian, curiosity showing on her face. "Why do you call Yang Jian Second Brother? Aren't you much older than him?"
Ma Xiaotao remembered that the girl who had been following Yang Jian also called him Second Brother.
At first, she'd assumed Yang Jian was the second child in his family, but now that she thought about it... that didn't seem to be the case.
As soon as she finished speaking, Gongyang Mo couldn't help laughing.
"Second Brother, I can answer that, right? I'll tell her."
With that, Gongyang Mo said solemnly, "When Grandma Xian'er found him, he was still swaddled, and he made a V sign. Grandma Xian'er always wondered why a baby abandoned in the wilderness wasn't crying or fussing, but was making a V sign instead."
"Second Brother explained that it meant he was full of life and looking forward to the future. He said he was giving life a V for victory."
"Later, Qingyuan was the first to call him Second Brother, so we all started calling him that too."
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