The Teacher Who Came to Atone

"Half a step to level one hundred. Hah." After sizing up Elder Bei's Martial Soul Avatar, Ming Yue suddenly lost interest.

He gave a disdainful snort and waved a hand. Void Archives once again took the form of Judah, and the Divine Grace Barrier enveloped Elder Bei and the Golden Ancient Tree!

"How impressive, half a step to level one hundred~"

Ming Yue's gentle voice sounded like a demon's whisper to Elder Bei.

His Martial Soul Avatar and all his Soul Power vanished in an instant. He stared in disbelief as he opened and closed his hand.

"What kind of Soul Skill is this!?" Shock filled his aged face.

Elder Bei suddenly sensed something and turned to look. The Golden Ancient Tree, which had been slowly recovering and sprouting new growth, now seemed frozen in time.

"Heh heh heh. I've heard that ever since Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao ascended to the Divine Realm, each successive Sea God Pavilion Master of Shrek Academy has followed a secret order."

"Whoever inherits the position of Pavilion Master must merge with this Golden Ancient Tree when they're close to death."

Ming Yue had neither the intention nor the interest to answer his confusion. He simply walked forward slowly, speaking to himself.

"Your teacher—the previous Sea God Pavilion Master—must have done the same, right?"

He stopped outside the Divine Grace Barrier and smiled gently at Elder Bei.

"..." Elder Bei didn't answer. He merely lowered his head so Ming Yue couldn't see his expression.

"Heh. How interesting. That 'thread,' which resembles Blue Silver Grass but carries a nobler aura..."

"It was originally just clinging to the tree—or, rather, parasitizing it."

As he spoke, he pointed to a thin strand marked with blue-gold patterns, now visible on the Golden Ancient Tree within the Divine Grace Barrier.

Ming Yue then sneered. "But because of the sacrificial acts of brainwashed lackeys like you..."

"This natural star lord, originally belonging to Douluo Planet and equal in stature to the plane's will, would have developed sentience and taken human form in just over ten thousand years."

"Instead, it became the advancement fuel for that Sea God Tang San you people worship—his mother, no less!"

Ming Yue's sneer rang like a thunderclap, making Elder Bei jerk his head up inside the barrier.

Following Ming Yue's gesture, he saw the same thing: the blue-gold thread was already beginning to coil around the Golden Ancient Tree's roots!

"Blue Silver... Emperor!?"

His body swayed violently, and Elder Bei opened his mouth in disbelief.

His former teacher's teachings surfaced in his mind, along with the pride on his teacher's face as he had desperately merged himself with the Golden Ancient Tree on the verge of death!

Now that he knew everything they had done had nothing to do with Shrek's glory, and that they had merely been making wedding clothes for Tang San's family, Elder Bei could only feel the bitter irony.

"Shrek Academy? Tang San Academy?"

"Douluo Continent... or Tang San's continent?"

His knees buckled, and he fell to his knees before the Golden Ancient Tree. A quiet "Teacher!" escaped him, and two streams of tears followed.

Seeing this, Ming Yue couldn't help sighing.

"I have to admit, Tang San knows how to train dogs. Are the ancients naturally better at it?"

Then he raised a hand and clenched it. The Divine Grace Barrier contracted until it covered only the Golden Ancient Tree.

"Now that you know the truth, do you still want to fight to the death for that so-called Shrek glory?"

Ming Yue smiled gently as he asked.

"Heh." Elder Bei gave a self-mocking chuckle and slowly rose to his feet. "The grave mistake has already been made. But you've told me all this at such a time..."

"I assume you have a way to set things right?" He looked straight at Ming Yue and asked calmly.

"Oh? So you've come to your senses?" Ming Yue studied him, sensing a special quality in Elder Bei now.

"From the moment I merged with the Golden Ancient Tree, Shrek had already perished for good."

With a complicated sigh, Elder Bei turned serious.

"Any grand-sounding excuse would be false now. Not for Shrek, not for the people of the world, and certainly not for Douluo Planet."

"I do this only as the disciple of a sinner. Since my teacher raised me, I must make amends for him here."

As he spoke, the aura of Heaven-Gifted Douluo, a powerhouse half a step from level one hundred, rose once more.

But this time, Elder Bei no longer represented Shrek. He represented only himself—and his teacher, the sinner!

"Haha! What a fine way to make amends." Ming Yue applauded in praise, then continued.

"From what I've just observed, the essence of your Martial Soul carries a trace of destruction."

"So the method is simple. Inside the Divine Grace Barrier, you'll do as your teacher did and give up everything. Merge yourself into it."

"Leave what comes next to me."

As Ming Yue spoke, he snapped his fingers again. The Divine Grace Barrier expanded in an instant, enveloping him, Elder Bei, and the Leng Sisters.

"..." The feeling was completely different from when he had been inside the barrier before. Elder Bei stared at Ming Yue, momentarily dazed.

"What, you don't trust this Tower Master?" Seeing that he still hadn't reacted, Ming Yue raised an eyebrow.

"I truly don't know whether this continent is fortunate or unfortunate to have you on it!"

Elder Bei came back to himself and calmly shook his head. Then he suddenly smiled in acceptance. "Looking back, my life has been quite eventful."

"Only now, with death near, have I realized how false my life was. Such is life!"

"Qiangu Mingyue, I've never begged anyone as a weakling in all my life. But before I die, I want to ask you for one thing."

Soul Power surged throughout his body. The Soul Rings around Elder Bei shone, and his Martial Soul Avatar began to appear.

"Go ahead." Ming Yue's gentle expression remained unchanged.

"I never had a son or daughter. Yun Ming is my only disciple. So after I die, I hope you'll give that child a chance to live."

With that, he didn't wait for Ming Yue's answer. He laughed twice and formed several strange hand seals.

He shouted, "Teacher, I've come to atone for you!" Then his enormous Martial Soul Avatar charged headlong into the Golden Ancient Tree!

Brilliant light blazed within the Divine Grace Barrier, under Ming Yue's control.

Elder Bei's fusion no longer nourished the blue-gold thread. Instead, it turned into pure gold pigment!

Starting near the roots, it spread upward, covering and devouring the blue-gold thread bit by bit!

"Ah... the old man was useful after all. But asking me for favors before dying? Does he think I'm some kind of kindhearted person?"

Taking the hands of the sisters beside him, Ming Yue led them toward the edge of the Divine Grace Barrier and looked up at the sky.

"Little Scumbag's tendrils have mostly been cut off, so Plane Spirit, try to hold on a little longer."

He murmured and turned his gaze away. In the distance, the puppets were intercepting Yun Ming and the others, then dragging them back.