Dark Ring, I Love You

Seeing the Dark Ring in Cai Yue'er's hand, Juggler wasn't the only one who felt relieved. Lan Kai felt something similar, as though Song of Guan Yu were echoing in his ears.

To be fair, setting aside Twisted Three Kingdoms' abuse of the song, Song of Guan Yu was actually pretty good if you listened to the tune itself.

Perhaps if it had been given a different name, like "Twisted Three Kingdoms' Main Theme," that certain Folding-Glasses Guy might have had less to complain about. After all, the song's biggest flaw was that it was called Song of Guan Yu without Guan Yu in it.

Still, Juggler seemed eager to get back into the action. Lan Kai had also gotten his fill of being Super Taro today, so it was more fitting to leave what came next to Juggler.

Besides, Lan Kai was curious whether Juggler would say that iconic line from the Ultraseven movie again. He also wondered if Juggler would excitedly transform into Juggernaut Ultraman the moment he got the Dark Ring back.

At that thought, he immediately turned around and patted Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi on the shoulders, signaling for everyone to hurry away from there.

"Boss Lan, what exactly is...?"

Zhang Yangzi was the first to slide down the railings on either side of the steps. Once he reached the ground, he looked up at the sky and asked in confusion.

"Teacher Juggler's true strength is no less than that of Sky-Piercing Douluo Yun Ming of Shrek Academy. A mere Silver Moon Dog... Douluo is no match for him."

Lan Kai waved a hand, telling everyone not to worry.

"But, Boss Lan. That Silver Moon Dog... Douluo has something in her hand. Even from this far away, I can feel the terrifying dark energy coming from it. Are you sure it's fine?"

Zhang Yangzi still wasn't reassured and instinctively pressed on.

"Don't worry. If that Silver Moon Dog... Douluo had brought out a Light Ring like my Martial Soul, then this battle might have had some suspense.

"But she brought out a Dark Ring. So today's headlines, besides our 'Ten percent Soul Power, half a quarter hour, Shrek unbeaten, no heads left behind,' will have another one: 'Shocking! Sea God Pavilion Elder of Shrek Academy gets beaten senseless by a Spirit Envoy of the Spirit Pagoda—and even turning evil doesn't help! Is this the collapse of human nature or the distortion of morality?'"

As he spoke, Lan Kai glanced at Gu Yue.

Gu Yue simply watched the battle in the sky, seeming a little tense.

Up above, Cai Yue'er had already raised the Dark Ring. A wave of dark red energy coursed through her body, turning her silver Battle Armor dark red as well. The full moon in the sky became a blood moon.

"Kehehehe! So this is the power of this divine artifact? Juggler, you and Eastsea Academy can just lie down and die!"

Feeling the terrifying energy from the Dark Ring, Cai Yue'er's laugh took on a whole new villainous flavor. She raised a hand toward the blood moon, and a bright red beam of moonlight descended from the sky, crashing toward Juggler.

If Juggler dodged, the beam would strike the people below who hadn't yet managed to evacuate the assembly hall and kill them all.

But Juggler merely drew a circle before himself with the Snake Heart Sword. A dark red shield of light appeared, casually blocking Cai Yue'er's attack.

Then disappointment showed in his eyes.

"I remember now. When Yun Ming of Shrek Academy fought back then, he also didn't care whether the people of Ming Capital lived or died, causing massive damage.

"So not caring whether the people around you live or die really is a fine tradition of Shrek Academy."

The next moment, Juggler suddenly accelerated in midair, charging toward Cai Yue'er at an incredible speed. The Snake Heart Sword in his hand came crashing down toward her head.

Cai Yue'er unleashed another Soul Skill, and a series of blood-red shields appeared before her, repeatedly blocking Juggler's Snake Heart Sword.

At the same time, she retreated through the air, constantly widening the distance between them.

But the next instant, a beam shot up from the ground, forcing Cai Yue'er to pause for a moment.

Juggler immediately caught up and shattered the last blood-red shield, swinging at Cai Yue'er's right hand, the one gripping the Dark Ring.

Cai Yue'er was horrified. Her whole body instantly became a beam of light and merged into the blood moon formed by her Martial Soul Avatar. But the Dark Ring fell from her hand, and Juggler caught it in one swift motion.

"Dark Ring, I love you!"

Juggler looked at the Dark Ring, which held so many memories for him, and had just said the words when an expression of distaste crossed his face.

This Dark Ring was only a small replica, with a fraction of the original's power. It couldn't even let Juggler transform for a short while.

So Juggler ignored Cai Yue'er, who had merged into the blood moon of her Martial Soul Avatar. He immediately tossed the Dark Ring upward, then swung the Snake Heart Sword, opening a spatial passage in the air.

Juggler swung the Snake Heart Sword again, and a blood-red sword beam struck the Dark Ring with pinpoint accuracy, smashing it to pieces and sending the resulting shockwave and fragments into the spatial passage.

The next moment, the passage closed, and the blood moon in the sky turned back into an ordinary full moon.

Before Cai Yue'er could react, Juggler unleashed Snake Heart Style Swordsmanship again. The full moon in the sky suddenly stopped completely. A pitch-black crack appeared across its surface, and before everyone's eyes, it slowly split in two. It grew even dimmer as it fell from the sky.

Soon, the two halves of the moon turned back into Cai Yue'er. She didn't become a split-in-two "jail teacher," though; she simply lost consciousness in midair.

Down in the assembly hall, Shen Yi had just managed to get the seven members of Shrek Academy's team to the infirmary when she saw Cai Yue'er plummeting from the sky again. She sighed heavily, feeling that life was hard, and hurried back into the air to catch Cai Yue'er once more.

Juggler paid Cai Yue'er no mind. He descended straight in front of Lan Kai and the others, glanced at Gu Yue, then fixed his gaze on Lan Kai.

"Be more careful next time. Firing a beam without transforming must take a lot out of you, right?"

"What can I say? She kept trying to fire beams at me. Too bad I'm not strong enough yet, or I'd really like to blast her to pieces."

Lan Kai shrugged. The Speperion Ray he'd fired earlier had been meant to stop Cai Yue'er in midair, and he had nearly drained all the energy in his body to do it. If he transformed now, the red light on his chest would flash incessantly.

Still, if it meant making that Silver Moon Dog Donkey suffer a setback and recovering the Dark Ring, this level of energy consumption was nothing.