Favored by Fortune

At Ning Fengzhi's words, all the color drained from Oscar's face.

Though he was reluctant, Ning Fengzhi's voice remained gentle. "If fate brings you together again, there'll be plenty of chances to meet."

"Dad!" Ning Rongrong panicked and grabbed Ning Fengzhi's sleeve. "What are you talking about? Oscar's a good person!"

"He's talented, too. He's a food-type Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power. Didn't you say the sect was most short on auxiliary Soul Masters?"

Ning Fengzhi looked down at his daughter.

In Ning Rongrong's eyes, he saw worry, displeasure, and even tears about to spill over.

But he had no intention of explaining. He only shook his head gently.

This concerned his daughter's future. He had to be cautious.

He didn't want his daughter to one day suffer what Xiao Wu had suffered. By then, it would be too late.

"Uncle Jian."

Ning Fengzhi called out softly.

An elderly figure appeared behind Ning Rongrong without a sound.

Sword Douluo Chen Xin, a Titled Douluo of rank ninety-seven and the true bedrock of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"Miss, the Sect Master has his reasons," Sword Douluo said, his voice old and calm.

Ning Rongrong had no choice but to let Sword Douluo escort her toward the gates of Spirit City.

As she walked, she kept looking back. Oscar stood frozen in place, his expression as though someone had doused him with a bucket of ice water.

She looked at Sword Douluo again. He still stared straight ahead.

Then she looked at her father. Ning Fengzhi walked at an unhurried pace, not a trace of emotion showing on his face.

At first, Ning Fengzhi had indeed thought that what happened with Xiao Wu was just an accidental revelation.

Though the transformation of Soul Beasts into humans was rare, there were records of it. Tang San was Xiao Wu's companion, and it was only natural for him to be grief-stricken.

But later, Ning Fengzhi heard what Bibi Dong said, along with Chrysanthemum Douluo's mockery.

Those words sounded harsh at first, but once Ning Fengzhi calmed down and thought them over, the more he considered them, the more wrong they seemed.

Ever since their first meeting, he had found Tang San difficult to read.

A boy in his teens, yet his words and actions were flawless, and he handled every social situation with perfect tact.

There were so many people at Shrek Academy, yet every one of them obeyed him without question.

That alone wasn't much.

Perhaps he was mature beyond his years because of his family background.

But when the Immortal Herb fell from Xiao Wu twice, and Chrysanthemum Douluo kept reminding them, those people still had not doubted Tang San at all. That was when Ning Fengzhi began to sense something was wrong.

Not sensing anything wrong was the biggest sign that something was wrong.

That simply wasn't how normal people reacted!

He had already reached a conclusion.

Tang San had secrets.

Perhaps all of Shrek had become suspicious.

If not for his connection to Tang San, Ning Fengzhi would have done whatever it took to recruit Oscar into the sect.

But now...

Ning Fengzhi shook his head slightly.

For Rongrong's safety, it was better to let the matter go.

Sword Douluo escorted Ning Rongrong beyond the gates of Spirit City.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's retinue departed in grand procession, and soon not a soul remained.

On the high platform, Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan watched the people from Shrek show no doubts about Tang San at all, each of them fired up as they swore to help him find Xiao Wu. He couldn't help laughing again.

"Ridiculous."

Golden Crocodile Douluo stood beside him, his aged face expressionless. Yet a thoughtful glint passed through his pale green eyes.

"Not ridiculous."

Chrysanthemum Douluo froze and turned to look at the second most powerful figure in the Worship Hall.

Golden Crocodile Douluo stood with his hands behind his back, gazing in the direction the people from Shrek had gone. His voice was hoarse and low. "That boy named Tang San is likely one favored by fortune."

Chrysanthemum Douluo frowned. "Favored by fortune?"

"The fortune of heaven and earth is mysterious beyond understanding," Golden Crocodile Douluo said slowly. "Some people are born under heaven's favor, and everything they do goes smoothly."

"Even when something is riddled with flaws, others just can't see the problems. Even when an explanation is full of holes, everyone insists on believing it."

He paused, his gaze settling on Chrysanthemum Douluo.

"Those blessed with such fortune can naturally influence other people's judgment.

Ordinary Soul Masters become duller in their instincts when facing him, their vigilance slackens, and even their most basic suspicions vanish for no reason.

You can't help but feel that he's right, that he's done well, that he's someone you can trust."

After listening, Chrysanthemum Douluo blinked.

"But I never thought he was trustworthy."

He spread his hands, his orchid fingers sketching a circle in the air.

"From beginning to end, I thought something was off about him."

Golden Crocodile Douluo glanced at him, the corner of his aged mouth lifting in the faintest smile.

"That's because you have Spirit Hall behind you."

Chrysanthemum Douluo froze.

"Spirit Hall commands half the continent, the Worship Hall is filled with Titled Douluos, and the Grand High Priest's Soul Power is unrivaled in this age."

Golden Crocodile Douluo's voice was steady and forceful. "A great power is itself the strongest shield against the influence of fortune.

You stand atop Spirit Hall, a towering mountain. That so-called fortune of Tang San's naturally can't affect you in the slightest."

He turned his head and looked toward where the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's retinue had disappeared.

"Look at Ning Fengzhi. Wasn't he once full of trust in Tang San, too?"

Chrysanthemum Douluo followed Golden Crocodile Douluo's gaze, deep in thought.

"Ning Fengzhi has the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect behind him, the second-ranked sect of the age. So when he began to scrutinize Tang San, the sect's deep foundations had already canceled out most of fortune's influence."

Chrysanthemum Douluo nodded as if he understood.

He couldn't say he believed much in this thing called fortune, but Golden Crocodile Douluo had made his case, and it would be awkward to argue.

Besides, regardless of whether Tang San was blessed with fortune, that boy had gotten on his nerves from the first moment Chrysanthemum Douluo laid eyes on him.

Golden Crocodile Douluo's words merely gave his instincts a theoretical basis.

Bibi Dong, standing at the center of the high platform, remained silent throughout.

She didn't join Golden Crocodile Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo's conversation.

But she heard every word Golden Crocodile Douluo said.

Favored by fortune.

Able to make people believe even things riddled with flaws.

Able to win the trust, even for a time, of the dignified Ning Fengzhi, Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

A boy in his teens could already do all that.

Bibi Dong's gaze slowly darkened.

Someone like him had now made an enemy of Spirit Hall.

His father had killed the previous Pope.

Spirit Hall had exposed his secret desire for a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring right to his face.

His disguise had been torn open at the seams. Even if the fortune behind him could make most people keep believing him, he himself knew full well that Spirit Hall had seen through him.

Someone like him couldn't be allowed to live.

"Given the chance, I will kill Tang San!"