Shrek Inspection Team Mobilizes

His mother wanted him to make an issue out of this illegitimate son.

But the letter also mentioned several crucial pieces of information: a Titled Douluo of unknown origin, several Titled Douluo under his command, an ancient formation, a mysterious tower, the same name as Spirit Hall, the Princess treating him with respect, the Protector Douluo bowing...

These were not things his mother could fabricate.

If all of it was true, then this Martial Soul Academy truly deserved the attention of the Shrek Inspection Team.

It might even warrant Shrek Academy's attention.

Dai Yueheng rose to his feet and paced several times around the Cultivation Room.

He was a member of the Shrek Inspection Team. His duty was to monitor unusual forces across the continent and deal with those that threatened its stability.

If the Martial Soul Academy truly possessed several Titled Douluo as his mother claimed, and their origins were unknown, then the Inspection Team indeed had both the authority and obligation to investigate.

What was more, the academy was located in White Tiger City—his home.

"Fine, then."

Dai Yueheng made his decision.

He would go to White Tiger City and see for himself just what kind of den the Martial Soul Academy was.

Not for the hatred in his mother's heart, but for the duties of the Shrek Inspection Team.

And also for... the younger half-brother he had never met.

Dai Yueheng pushed open the door to the Cultivation Room and headed toward the Shrek Inspection Team headquarters.

The night wind brushed against his face, while his steps remained firm and steady.

Martial Soul Academy. Shen Zhou.

I'm coming.

Shrek City, Inspection Team Headquarters.

When Dai Yueheng pushed open the door, several people were already seated in the hall.

"Yueheng? What are you doing here so late?" The speaker was a red-haired woman of around twenty-two or twenty-three. She had a lovely face, slightly upturned phoenix eyes, and an intense, burning aura surrounding her.

She was none other than Ma Xiaotao, deputy leader of the Shrek Inspection Team, a six-ring Soul Emperor whose Martial Soul was the Evil Fire Phoenix.

"Sister Xiaotao." Dai Yueheng nodded. "I need to make a trip to White Tiger City."

"White Tiger City?" Ma Xiaotao raised a brow. "Isn't your family there? Going home to visit?"

"Not entirely." Dai Yueheng took his mother's letter from his robes and handed it to Ma Xiaotao. "My mother wrote to say that a mysterious 'Martial Soul Academy' has appeared in the eastern outskirts of White Tiger City. Its Dean is suspected to be a Titled Douluo, and several Titled Douluo serve under him.

Their origins are unknown, and they share a name with the Spirit Hall from ten thousand years ago. They may be plotting something."

"Martial Soul Academy?" Ma Xiaotao took the letter and skimmed through it quickly, her frown deepening. "Titled Douluo? Several of them? Is your mother sure she didn't exaggerate?"

"My mother may..." Dai Yueheng paused and chose his words carefully. "She may have personal feelings about certain matters, but the descriptions of their strength in the letter should not be false.

Besides, Princess Jiujiu went there under imperial orders to test them. After she came out, she treated Shen Zhou with great respect, while Protector Douluo Cheng Gang even bowed to him.

Cheng Gang is a Level 91 Titled Douluo. Anyone who could make him bow was certainly no ordinary person."

"Cheng Gang?" Ma Xiaotao's pupils contracted slightly. "That Cheng Gang with the Thousand Jun Ant Martial Soul? A Level 91 Titled Douluo?"

"Exactly."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Ma Xiaotao stood and paced across the room.

She had served in the Shrek Inspection Team for three years and handled quite a few difficult cases, but few had involved Titled Douluo.

Especially not several Titled Douluo—this was no longer something she could decide on her own.

"How many people do you plan to bring?" Ma Xiaotao asked.

"I'll bring a team to assess the situation first," Dai Yueheng said. "If it is truly as the letter says, we'll report it to the academy afterward."

"I'll go with you." Ma Xiaotao spoke without hesitation. "Several Titled Douluo? Going alone would be suicide."

Dai Yueheng opened his mouth, wanting to say that he was no pushover either. But considering the other side had Titled Douluo, the gap between six rings and nine rings truly was not something courage could make up for, so he nodded.

"Who else wants to go?" Ma Xiaotao swept her gaze over the other Inspection Team members in the hall.

"I'll go." A Black-clothed Youth stood up. He was around twenty-four or twenty-five, with a cold expression and the Shadow Leopard as his Martial Soul.

"I'll go too." A large, powerfully built man also rose to his feet, his Martial Soul being the Iron Arm Ape.

"Count me in." A delicate-looking woman closed the book in her hands and smiled.

Ma Xiaotao counted them. Including herself and Dai Yueheng, there were six in total.

Three men and three women, four six-ring Soul Emperors and two five-ring Soul Kings. It was a respectable lineup.

"Let's go. We'll set out tonight." Ma Xiaotao waved a hand grandly.

The group of six left the Inspection Team headquarters. The moment they stepped out the main gate, they ran into a white-haired old man with a hunched back.

The old man wore a gray cloth robe, his hair was a disheveled mess like a bird's nest, and he carried a wine gourd in his hand. He reeked of alcohol.

He narrowed his eyes at Ma Xiaotao and let out a drunken burp.

"Xiaotao, where are you going so late at night?"

Once Ma Xiaotao saw his face clearly, her expression changed slightly, and she hurriedly clasped her hands in salute.

"Elder Xuan."

Dai Yueheng and the other Inspection Team members also saluted in turn.

This scruffy-looking white-haired old man was one of the elders of Shrek Academy's Sea God Pavilion, a Level 98 Super Douluo—Xuan Zi.

His Martial Soul was the Godly Taotie Bull. Within Shrek Academy, his status was second only to Mu En's. He was a true peak expert.

"Hehe, cut the formalities." Xuan Zi waved his hand and looked at Ma Xiaotao with a smile. "I asked where you're going. Sneaking around in the middle of the night instead of sleeping."

Ma Xiaotao hesitated, but ultimately told him the truth.

"Elder Xuan, a 'Martial Soul Academy' has appeared near White Tiger City. Its Dean is suspected to be a Titled Douluo, with several Titled Douluo under his command. Their origins are unknown, and they share a name with the Spirit Hall from ten thousand years ago.

Yueheng's mother wrote to request an investigation, so we plan to take a team there to have a look."

Xuan Zi's eyes immediately lit up.

His murky old eyes instantly became clear and sharp, like two blades drawn from their sheaths.

He lowered his wine gourd and straightened his back. Even the smell of alcohol around him seemed to fade.

"Spirit Hall?"

When those words left his mouth, they carried an indescribable feeling.

Not hatred, nor anger, but... excitement.

Ma Xiaotao was startled by his reaction. "Elder Xuan, you..."

"Little girl, do you know what Spirit Hall was?" Xuan Zi looked at her, his eyes gleaming.

"An organization destroyed ten thousand years ago. It once ruled the continent for several thousand years," Ma Xiaotao answered.

"Right, but not entirely." Xuan Zi stood with his hands behind his back and looked up at the night sky, his voice carrying a trace of reminiscence. "The reason Spirit Hall was destroyed back then was because our Shrek Academy predecessors led the effort.

Ancestor Tang San, the Shrek Seven Devils... they overthrew Spirit Hall and established a new order."

"For ten thousand years, Spirit Hall's remnants have never truly been eradicated.

Every now and then, someone would emerge waving Spirit Hall's banner, swindling and deceiving people.

But those were all minor matters. At most, they only reached the level of Soul Douluo."

He paused and looked at Dai Yueheng.

"You said that Shen Zhou has several Titled Douluo under his command?"

Dai Yueheng nodded. "That is what my mother said."

"Several Titled Douluo... Hehe." Xuan Zi rubbed his hands together, his eyes filled with greedy light. "This is no minor matter.

If we can truly root out a nest of Spirit Hall remnants, that would be a tremendous achievement!"