Oscar, Dai Mubai, and Ma Hongjun also gathered around Tang San, their faces wearing just the right amount of delight.
Dai Mubai patted Tang San on the shoulder, a complicated light flickering in his Evil Eye. His voice was warm. "Xiao San, congratulations! A thirty-rank Soul Elder at twelve—you really are one of the monsters of Shrek Academy!"
Ma Hongjun stood to the side, smiling too, with a hint of sycophancy in his eyes.
Pride doesn't put food on the table. If I want to become a god, I have to suck up to Tang San.
Flender and Zhao Wuji clearly hadn't noticed anything off about the three of them. They simply assumed they were genuinely happy for Tang San.
Flender stroked his beard and smiled.
"Now that Tang San has broken through, you should all take good care of him. Zhao Wuji and I have something to discuss, so we'll leave you to it."
Zhao Wuji nodded as well and reminded them, "Get plenty of rest. Your health is your capital."
"Thank you, Dean and Teacher Zhao," Tang San said respectfully, his eyes full of gratitude.
Dai Mubai immediately chimed in, "Don't worry, Dean. We'll take good care of Xiao San!" As he spoke, he shot Oscar and Ma Hongjun a pointed look.
Seeing this, Flender and Zhao Wuji smiled with satisfaction and turned to leave.
They were glad to see the students getting along so well, never guessing what might be hidden beneath that seemingly harmonious scene.
Dai Mubai and the others helped Tang San into the room. Before going in, he took special care to glance at Fu Qin and Xiao Wu, smiling and nodding at them, his eyes full of "brotherly affection."
Fu Qin responded coolly, though he was secretly laughing to himself. With the Intelligence-Reducing Halo in effect, Tang San still thought they genuinely cared about him. What laughable naivety.
"Great, now that Tang San's moved out, we can finally have some peace and quiet."
Xiao Wu watched Tang San's door close, beaming with delight as she took Fu Qin by the hand and led him into their room.
Back in their shared room, Xiao Wu shut the door behind her and instantly became like a clingy little cat, throwing herself into Fu Qin's arms. She rose onto her toes and kissed him, her movements full of ardor.
"Fu Qin, I want you again," she murmured, her voice a little hoarse. Her hands roamed restlessly over his back.
Fu Qin held her tightly, feeling her soft, delicate body against him.
He felt an unbearable itch all over.
The temperature in the room gradually rose, and an unusual air filled the space.
Xiao Wu's breathing grew more labored. She pressed herself against him, her eyes blazing with desire.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the room next door was unusually tense.
Tang San sat on the edge of the bed. His face was still pale, but his gaze was razor-sharp as he looked at Dai Mubai and the others.
"You three have recovered your memories too, haven't you?"
His voice was low and composed, carrying an unquestionable authority.
After his rebirth, he had been quietly observing them. The strange behavior of the three had long since aroused his suspicions.
Dai Mubai and the others exchanged glances, each seeing understanding in the others' eyes.
Dai Mubai spoke first. The warmth vanished from his face, replaced by a deep, complicated look.
"I didn't expect you to figure it out too. That's right—we've all recovered our memories from our past lives."
Oscar sat in a chair to the side. The usual playful grin was gone from his face, and his eyes were deep and serious.
"Xiao San, you must be wondering why we were reborn too, right?"
Tang San nodded, his expression grave.
"I could never figure it out. The Divine Realm was as solid as a rock, so why did you suddenly return to your youth? Did something happen to the Divine Realm?"
A question had always haunted him. In his previous life, he had been a God King, protecting the Divine Realm's order. Even when he was reborn to search for his wife, he hadn't noticed anything amiss.
Ma Hongjun drew a deep breath, pain and anger showing on his face as he slowly spoke.
"Something happened? It was far more than that. It was destruction—utter destruction!"
Tang San's pupils contracted. "What do you mean? Was the Divine Realm destroyed?"
"It was Huo Yuhao!" Dai Mubai said through gritted teeth, hatred filling his Evil Eye.
"After you and the other gods founded the Great God Circle, Huo Yuhao took over the Divine Realm's core after your death. We thought he'd protect the Divine Realm, but who could have known he was a madman!"
Oscar continued.
"He discovered that Wang Dong wasn't an independent person, but merely a small fragment of Wutong's soul. Once Tang Wutong returned, Wang Dong disappeared completely—in other words, she died."
Tang San jolted, his face full of disbelief. "How... how did he find out? He was nothing but a dog I kept by my side. If he hadn't been the Child of Fortune, he'd never have gotten near my daughter!"
"It's all true!" Ma Hongjun's voice trembled.
"After Huo Yuhao learned the truth, he kept his anger hidden on the surface, but secretly, he was plotting all along."
"He believed the Divine Realm's rules had killed Wang Dong, and that you so-called God Kings had allowed it to happen. In the end, he resolutely destroyed the Divine Realm's core!"
"The Great God Circle had only just been founded and was already unstable. Once the Divine Realm's core was destroyed, the whole Great God Circle collapsed in an instant!"
Dai Mubai's voice was filled with despair and fury. "We gods were annihilated in the force of its collapse. I thought it was all over, but who would've guessed we'd be reborn here?"
A deathly silence fell over the room, broken only by their heavy breathing.
Tang San sat on the edge of the bed, his face as pale as paper, his mind in chaos.
He had never imagined that after his death, the Divine Realm would suffer such a calamity—and that the culprit would be Huo Yuhao, the loyal dog he had raised!
He couldn't understand Huo Yuhao's pain, nor could he accept his decision to destroy the Divine Realm.
It was the achievement of generations of gods, the home of countless living beings—and now it had all been destroyed. It was too cruel.
"So you were all reborn as youths after the Great God Circle collapsed?" Tang San asked hoarsely, sounding uncertain.
Oscar nodded.
"That's probably it. Maybe the space-time turbulence caused by the Divine Realm's core being destroyed carried our divine souls into the past."
Dai Mubai's gaze turned vicious. "Whatever the reason, now that we're reborn, we can't let history repeat itself! Huo Yuhao—we'll settle the score with him sooner or later!"
Ma Hongjun looked at the three of them, but his thoughts were different.
He didn't want to help the wicked like he had in his previous life, or join in their "celebrations" again.
In this life, he only wanted to protect those he cared about and prevent those tragedies from happening.
As for Huo Yuhao, although he had destroyed the Divine Realm, perhaps he had only been fighting against its injustice?
The atmosphere in the room grew heavier and more complicated.
Four people reborn, each harboring different thoughts.
Meanwhile, next door, the green hat atop Tang San's head was glowing brighter and brighter.
With only a wall between them, he was holding Xiao Wu by her soft waist and helping her train her Soft Technique with wild abandon.
He could faintly hear the discussion in the next room. From the System Panel's notifications, he learned the truth about Dai Mubai and the others' rebirth.