Ancestral Affairs, Reunion in Heaven Dou [6K, Two-in-One] [Seeking Monthly Tickets, Recommendation Tickets, Favorites]

Xiao Cheng's gaze grew distant. "The reason I got angry is because of my grandfather."

"Your grandfather?" Leng Yaozhu was slightly taken aback. "Senior Xiao Zhan? I've heard of him. Apparently, he was a commoner Soul Master who built himself up from nothing in Eastsea City, becoming the current Tower Master of the Eastsea Spirit Pagoda. He even raised a genius like Uncle Xiao. That's already quite remarkable."

"Remarkable..." Xiao Cheng gave a bitter smile. "But there was one thing my grandfather had always brooded over throughout his life."

He paused before beginning to recount that long-buried past.

Xiao Cheng's grandfather, Xiao Zhan, had been born into an ordinary commoner family in Eastsea City. On the Douluo Continent, it was exceedingly difficult for commoners to become Soul Masters. They had no family inheritance, no resources tilted in their favor. Everything depended solely on luck and hard work.

Xiao Zhan had undoubtedly been fortunate—at the age of six, he awakened his Martial Soul, an Azure Shadow Snake, a high-grade wind-attribute Martial Soul. Even more fortunately, his Innate Soul Power had reached Rank Eight. In a city with weak Soul Master forces like Eastsea City, he had already counted as a gifted little prodigy.

The Eastsea Spirit Pagoda noticed the exceptionally talented boy and extended an olive branch—selling Xiao Zhan a hundred-year Soul Spirit through an interest-free loan, which he only needed to repay within three years of graduating from Eastsea Academy.

For a boy from a commoner family, this had undoubtedly been a heaven-sent opportunity. Xiao Zhan gladly accepted the kindness and set foot on the path of a Soul Master from then on.

"My grandfather treasured that opportunity," Xiao Cheng said slowly. "He cultivated diligently, always keeping his feet on the ground and advancing steadily. Soul Elder at fifteen, Soul Ancestor at twenty, Soul King at twenty-six, Soul Emperor at thirty-three... That pace might not have been astonishing, but without family resources and with talent that wasn't monstrous, it was already extraordinarily rare."

Leng Yaozhu and Leng Yulai listened quietly without interrupting.

"Later, shortly after turning forty, my grandfather broke through Rank Seventy and became a Soul Saint," Xiao Cheng continued. "He spent more than half his life's savings to buy a Wind-Splitting Sub-Dragon as his fourth Soul Spirit, allowing his Martial Soul to evolve toward a sub-dragon. He had done it deliberately—after all, for snake-type Martial Souls, pursuing the path of dragon transformation was fairly common on the Douluo Continent. The dominance of dragon bloodlines was beyond question, and dragon-type Martial Souls were generally quite 'easy-mode.' They could display formidable combat power without requiring overly complicated control."

"My grandfather couldn't be certain that his descendants would all possess sufficiently outstanding talent, so he chose a relatively safe path, hoping to lay a better foundation for future generations."

Leng Yaozhu nodded in understanding. As a daughter of the Leng Family, she knew well that stability was the most important thing in a family inheritance. For Xiao Zhan, a commoner Soul Master who had risen from nothing, to consider matters this far ahead showed remarkable foresight.

"What happened after that?" Leng Yulai asked curiously. "What happened later?"

Xiao Cheng's eyes became complicated. "Later... my grandfather could be considered a notable expert in Eastsea City. But once, while carrying out a mission, he encountered a student from the Shrek Academy inner court."

"The Shrek inner court?" Leng Yaozhu was slightly startled. "Those are the core elites of Shrek Academy. Anyone who can enter the inner court is an exceptionally gifted genius."

"That's right." Xiao Cheng nodded. "And that student possessed a true dragon bloodline Martial Soul, which suppressed my grandfather's Wind-Splitting Sub-Dragon through bloodline pressure. At the time, my grandfather had yet to upgrade his Battle Armor after buying the Soul Spirit, but while both sides wore One-Word Battle Armor, my grandfather, a full-fledged Soul Saint, could only wield sixty percent of his strength under that bloodline suppression. In the end... he was utterly crushed and defeated by a Shrek student who was only a high-stage Soul King."

The car fell into brief silence.

"Being defeated was one thing. He was inferior in skill, so there was nothing to say about that." Xiao Cheng's voice carried a trace of suppressed anger. "But after winning, that Shrek student even mocked my grandfather as 'nothing but a mongrel dragon,' looking at him like he was trash."

He put particular emphasis on the words "mongrel dragon."

Leng Yaozhu frowned. "That's going too far..."

"Yeah." Xiao Cheng smiled bitterly. "My grandfather could never forget those words. He didn't resent that student. He resented the feeling of... being looked down on and humiliated. He had worked so hard, climbing step by step from a commoner to the rank of Soul Saint, yet in the eyes of those great-power geniuses, he was still merely 'nothing but a mongrel dragon.' My grandfather knew he wasn't a genius, but he was absolutely not trash either."

"Because of this, when my father, Xiao Ran, chose his Martial Soul Evolution path, he resolutely gave up the path of dragon transformation and instead chose to delve deeply into the power of space." He turned to look out the window. "So, when I saw that Shrek student at the club in Luoning City treating those commoner Soul Masters with that superior attitude, I thought of my grandfather. Those Shrek students relied on being from a prestigious academy, went to small places to stomp weak opponents, defeated commoner Soul Masters whose talent and resources were far inferior to theirs, and still thought it was something to be proud of..."

"It really is infuriating." Leng Yaozhu picked up the thread, her tone carrying agreement. "That's why I hit him so hard earlier and even severed his Martial Soul. Consider it venting some anger for Senior Xiao Zhan."

Xiao Cheng was slightly stunned, then revealed a warm smile. "Thank you, Sister Yaozhu."

"What are you thanking me for? We're close, aren't we?" Leng Yaozhu waved a hand with an expression that said it was no big deal. "Besides, I didn't like that brat either. Winning was one thing, but he beat someone into that state and nearly snapped the man's spine. That went beyond a spar. Giving him a lesson was only right—let him know there's always someone stronger."

Leng Yulai clenched her little fists as well and said seriously, "Xiao Cheng, when we meet the next student, I want to fight too. I want to vent Grandfather Xiao's anger as well."

Xiao Cheng could not help laughing. He reached over and ruffled Leng Yulai's hair. "All right. Then thank you, Yulai."

The atmosphere between the three became relaxed again.

Over the next five days, the three continued driving along their route, intercepting Shrek students in city after city.

Including the boy from Luoning City, they encountered a total of eight targets.

Leng Yaozhu fought three times, Xiao Cheng fought three times, Leng Yulai fought twice, and the three of them fought together once. Eight battles, eight victories. The most dangerous battle had been their joint battle, which had taken place yesterday.

Yesterday, they arrived in a medium-sized city called Qingshi City. According to their intelligence, a relatively powerful Shrek student was active there.

The car stopped in the parking lot near the Spirit Pagoda branch. The three got out and headed toward the branch. After these past few days, Xiao Cheng and the others had gotten smarter and planned to directly ask the local Spirit Pagoda branch for intelligence.

However, before they reached the branch entrance, they heard a commotion and cries of alarm ahead.

Boom—!!!

A deafening explosion erupted from the entrance of the nearby Spirit Pagoda branch, accompanied by blue-violet lightning! Immediately afterward, a figure flew out through the tower doors and crashed heavily onto the steps outside, coughing up blood. He had clearly suffered serious injuries.

"Someone's attacking!" Leng Yaozhu's expression changed.

Xiao Cheng focused his eyes and saw a boy in a Shrek school uniform standing at the entrance of the Spirit Pagoda branch. Blue-violet electric arcs coiled around him, while a layer of fine blue-violet scales covered his arms, radiating a powerful dragon's pressure. A Spirit Pagoda Soul Master lay at his feet. Judging from his clothes, he should have been a branch steward with cultivation of at least the Soul Ancestor rank, yet he was already unconscious.

The boy shook the lightning from his hand and curled his lips. "A Spirit Pagoda Soul Ancestor is only this good? Too weak to take a hit. I hadn't even warmed up before he dropped."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over the surrounding crowd. A disdainful smile tugged at his lips. "Tell your Tower Master that my name is Qin Mo, first-year student of Shrek Academy. If you want revenge, come find me in Shrek City. I'll be waiting there."

With that, he turned to leave.

"Stop!"

A cold shout rang out.

Qin Mo halted and turned around. He saw a boy standing not far away, a head shorter than him, staring at him with icy eyes. Two girls stood beside that boy, one with fiery red hair and the other with wine-red hair as dark as ink. The three stood together, faintly forming an encirclement.

It was Xiao Cheng and the others.

"Oh?" Qin Mo raised a brow and sized Xiao Cheng up from head to toe. "Three more little brats? What, you want to fight me too?"

"You ambushed someone from our Spirit Pagoda, and you think you can just walk away?" Xiao Cheng said coldly. "Aren't you looking down on our Spirit Pagoda a little too much?"

"Ambushed?" Qin Mo sneered. "I walked in openly to challenge him. Your Spirit Pagoda people were just too weak to take even one move from me. How is that my fault?"

He spread his hands, wearing an expression of helplessness. "If you want to blame someone, blame your Spirit Pagoda for being weak. This is how Shrek Academy's final examination works. It's not like I have a choice."

"What a fine 'being weak.'" Xiao Cheng took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his heart as the Azure Sky Divine Spear silently appeared in his hand. "Then I'd like to see exactly how strong you Shrek genius really are."

He was about to step forward when Leng Yaozhu grabbed him.

"Xiao Cheng, don't be rash." Leng Yaozhu lowered her voice. "That guy is a four-ring Soul Ancestor. On your own..."

"I know." Xiao Cheng nodded. "But I'm confident I can fight him one-on-one. You just need to cover me."

Leng Yaozhu hesitated, but ultimately let go. "Be careful."

Holding the Azure Sky Divine Spear, Xiao Cheng strode toward Qin Mo.

Seeing him approach, Qin Mo's eyes flashed with amusement. "Oh? You want to fight me one-on-one? You've got some nerve, but I'm leaving. I'm not interested in playing house with you."

Without saying a word, Xiao Cheng leveled his spear, standing like an iron chain blocking a river. Two purple Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet and circled the spear shaft.

"Two rings? A Soul Grandmaster?" Qin Mo froze for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Hahahaha! A Soul Grandmaster wants to stop a Soul Ancestor? Are you here to make me laugh?"

"Enough nonsense. Make your move." Xiao Cheng's expression remained blank.

Qin Mo stopped laughing, a chill flashing through his eyes. "Since you're looking to die, I'll grant your wish."

Before his words had even faded, his figure vanished from where he stood!

The next moment, he appeared before Xiao Cheng. His fist, covered in blue-violet scales, crashed toward Xiao Cheng's face with the force of Thunderous Might!

That punch was as fast as lightning and as fierce as rolling thunder!

However—

Clang—!!!

An earsplitting clash of metal rang out!

Xiao Cheng raised his spear to block, and the spear shaft collided with Qin Mo's fist, erupting with dazzling sparks and lightning!

Qin Mo felt a tremendous force travel through the spear shaft, numbing his arm slightly! Startled, he used the impact to retreat and pull away again, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"You... what kind of strength is that?!" Qin Mo's eyes widened. "How can a Soul Grandmaster have that much power?!"

Xiao Cheng shook his own slightly numb arm, secretly astonished as well. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's strength truly lived up to its reputation. After being strengthened through Blood Exchange and Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, he possessed eight thousand jin of force in a single arm, yet he had only managed to fight the other side to a draw!

"Looks like you're not completely useless after all." Qin Mo put away his contempt, a serious glint appearing in his eyes. "Interesting. Then let me see how many moves you can take from me!"

Lightning flared from both his hands at once. Blue-violet electric arcs danced around his body, crackling sharply. His third Soul Ring lit up, causing both his speed and strength to surge again. Like a blue-violet bolt of lightning, he lunged fiercely at Xiao Cheng!

Xiao Cheng did not yield either. The Power of Empty Green operated at full capacity, and the Azure Sky Divine Spear transformed into streams of green light in his hands, colliding fiercely with Qin Mo's lightning fists!

Clang clang clang clang clang!

A rapid series of impacts rang out like hammering iron. The two moved so fast that the surrounding spectators could only see one green and one violet figure constantly clashing, separating, then clashing again!

"This guy... he's so strong!" Leng Yaozhu clenched her fists, staring nervously at the battle. She believed Xiao Cheng had already gone all out, but Qin Mo clearly had not yet used his full strength.

Just then—

A powerful aura rapidly approached from afar!

"Stop!"

An angry roar sounded. Then, a figure descended from the sky and landed in the middle of the battlefield. He was a white-haired old man dressed in Spirit Pagoda robes, with cultivation at the Soul Saint rank. He was the Tower Master of the Qingshi City Spirit Pagoda branch.

Seeing the Soul Ancestor steward lying on the ground, his expression immediately darkened. "You little Shrek brat, how dare you attack and injure people on Spirit Pagoda territory! Don't even think of leaving today!"

As he spoke, he stretched out a hand and reached for Qin Mo!

However, just as his hand was about to touch Qin Mo—

"Old man, what kind of skill is bullying children?"

A cold voice rang out. Then, a figure appeared before Qin Mo like a ghost, striking out with a palm and colliding with the branch Tower Master's hand!

Bang!

With a muffled impact, the branch Tower Master staggered back three steps, while the other figure did not move at all.

It was a middle-aged man who appeared to be in his thirties, dressed in a Shrek Academy teacher's uniform with an indifferent smile on his face. He radiated a powerful aura and was clearly a Soul Saint as well. Judging by his aura, his cultivation was obviously higher than the branch Tower Master's!

"A Shrek Academy teacher?" The branch Tower Master's expression darkened. "Your Shrek Academy people came to Spirit Pagoda territory to attack and injure others. As a teacher, not only did you fail to stop him, you're even trying to shield him?"

"Shield him?" The teacher chuckled. "That's an ugly way to put it. Shrek Academy's final examinations have always worked this way. Students need to challenge local Soul Masters in major cities. Your Spirit Pagoda people were inferior in skill and got defeated. There's nothing anyone can do about that. How can you call it attacking and injuring people?"

He paused, his tone carrying a trace of mockery. "Besides, even if it truly was attacking and injuring people, Shrek Academy should handle it internally. It's not the Spirit Pagoda's place to interfere, is it?"

"You—!" The branch Tower Master was so furious that his face turned livid. "What a Shrek Academy! What a distortion of truth! Today, this old man will see whether you can protect him!"

As he spoke, his Soul Rings lit up and Two-Word Battle Armor emerged over his body. He was about to attack!

The Shrek teacher showed no weakness either. Two-Word Battle Armor likewise covered his body, his aura surging as he sneered, "What? You want to fight? Then let's see whether you, a branch Tower Master, are stronger, or I, a Shrek teacher, am stronger!"

Two Soul Saint-level experts faced each other, and the atmosphere in the area immediately became taut with hostility!

Seeing this, Xiao Cheng could no longer suppress the anger in his heart.

"What a Shrek Academy!" he said coldly. "A student ambushes and injures someone, then a teacher comes out to shield him and even turns around to accuse our Spirit Pagoda of bullying the weak? What arrogance!"

Leng Yaozhu was furious as well. "Exactly! A thief crying thief, then turning the tables! Is this how Shrek Academy teaches its students?"

Leng Yulai clenched her little fists, her small face full of outrage. "That's too much!"

Hearing the three, Qin Mo's expression turned somewhat unpleasant—not because of what the Shrek teacher had said, but because once the teacher intervened, his examination was effectively a failure.

The Shrek teacher, however, merely smiled indifferently. "Children, watch your words. It isn't your place to judge how Shrek Academy conducts itself. If you know what's good for you, step aside and let us leave. Otherwise—"

A cold gleam flashed in his eyes. "Don't blame me for being discourteous!"

"Discourteous?" Xiao Cheng laughed in extreme anger. "I'd like to see exactly how discourteous you can be!"

As he spoke, he leveled the Azure Sky Divine Spear, battle intent surging around him. "Sister Yaozhu, Yulai, let's attack together! Since they refuse to follow the rules, we don't need to follow them either!"

"Okay!" Leng Yaozhu and Leng Yulai answered in unison, simultaneously activating Martial Soul Possession!

Leng Yaozhu possessed the Heavenly Phoenix Martial Soul, Phoenix Feather in hand as scorching flames rose around her body! Leng Yulai possessed the Dark Phoenix Martial Soul, with Dark Phoenix Flowing Fire gathering in her palm. The dark flames radiated a cold, profound aura!

The three formed a triangular formation, surrounding Qin Mo in the middle!

Seeing them take up an encircling formation, Qin Mo's expression changed slightly. "You're going to gang up on me?"

"We don't need to talk about honor with Shrek people!" Xiao Cheng shouted coldly, attacking first!

The Azure Sky Divine Spear became a streak of green light, shooting straight toward Qin Mo's chest!

At the same time, Leng Yaozhu's Phoenix Feather slashed diagonally down from the left, blazing with scorching flames! Leng Yulai's Dark Phoenix Flowing Fire became a black streak of flame, sealing off Qin Mo's retreat from the right!

The three coordinated seamlessly, their assault arriving in wave after wave and forcing Qin Mo to respond with all his strength!

Qin Mo roared as lightning around him surged. Blue-violet electricity condensed around his body into the phantom of a thunder dragon, wrapping him completely within it!

Boom—!!!

The attacks of all three struck the thunder dragon phantom at once, erupting in a thunderous explosion!

Lightning, flames, and green radiance intertwined, forming a dazzling, chaotic storm of energy!

But Qin Mo's cultivation was ultimately higher, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul was indeed powerful. He actually endured the trio's first wave of attacks head-on!

"Hmph! Is that all you've got?" Qin Mo sneered, about to counterattack—

At that moment, Xiao Cheng suddenly appeared before him!

"Teleportation!" Xiao Cheng shouted coldly. The Azure Sky Divine Spear carried spiraling green currents as he drove Flood Dragon Exits the Sea straight at Qin Mo's chest!

This strike was as swift as lightning and as forceful as thunder!

Qin Mo's pupils constricted. He wanted to evade, but it was already too late! He could only cross his arms over his chest and take the strike head-on!

Clang—!!!

With a tremendous crash, Qin Mo was blasted backward and smashed heavily into the wall behind him, leaving a huge crater in it!

Before he could get back up, Leng Yaozhu's Phoenix Feather was already pressed to his throat. The scorching flames on its tip made his skin sting.

"Don't move," Leng Yaozhu said coldly. "Move even once, and I'll cut your throat open."

Qin Mo's body stiffened.

He stared at the three with a livid face and gritted teeth. "You... you're ganging up on me. What kind of ability is that?!"

"We don't need any kind of ability against Shrek people." Xiao Cheng stood with his spear lowered and said coldly, "Don't you love using strength to bully the weak? Today, we're using numbers to bully you. What can you do about it?"

"You—!" Qin Mo was so furious that he could not speak.

At that moment, seeing Qin Mo subdued, the Shrek teacher's face immediately darkened. "Let him go!"

As he spoke, his body flashed as he rushed over to save him!

The branch Tower Master tried to block him, but the Shrek teacher's cultivation was a full level higher, and the quality of his Two-Word Battle Armor was better as well. After barely holding him back for a moment, the branch Tower Master was forced away by a palm strike, and the Shrek teacher lunged toward Xiao Cheng and the others!

"Careful!" The branch Tower Master was horrified and tried to rescue them, but it was already too late!

However—

Just as the Shrek teacher was about to reach Xiao Cheng—

A green figure appeared before him like a ghost!

The figure raised a hand and casually struck out with a palm—

Bang!

With a muffled impact, the Shrek teacher was sent flying as though struck by a mountain. He tumbled several times through the air before barely stabilizing himself!

He raised his head, his eyes full of horror. "You... you are..."

The green figure slowly landed, revealing a handsome yet dignified face. He wore a green robe, with faint spatial ripples flowing around him and an unfathomable aura radiating from his body.

It was Xiao Ran!

The reason Xiao Cheng and the others had dared to retort so arrogantly was naturally because they knew someone stood behind them.

"Azure... Azure Douluo?!" The Shrek teacher's face changed drastically, and even his voice became dry.

Xiao Ran looked at him indifferently, his voice so calm that it carried no ripples at all. "A Shrek Academy teacher, what impressive prestige. You came to Spirit Pagoda territory, shielded a student who attacked and injured others, and now you even intended to attack my son?"

With every sentence he spoke, the Shrek teacher's face darkened further.

"I... I didn't know he was your son..." The Shrek teacher hurriedly explained. "A misunderstanding, it was all a misunderstanding..."

"A misunderstanding?" Xiao Ran gave a soft laugh. "I heard you quite clearly just now. You said that even if someone had truly assaulted and injured another person, it should be handled internally by Shrek Academy, and it wasn't the Spirit Pagoda's place to interfere. Is that right?"

Cold sweat broke out on the Shrek teacher's forehead, but he still stubbornly insisted, "That has always been Shrek's way. If Your Excellency Kong Qing is dissatisfied, you may speak to Pavilion Master Bei."

"Using Bei Dexun to pressure me?" Xiao Ran shook his head. "It seems Shrek Academy has truly thought too highly of itself these past few years."

As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed. An invisible force of space immediately imprisoned both the Shrek teacher and Qin Mo!

"Y-You... what are you doing?!" the Shrek teacher cried out in shock and fury.

"Nothing." Xiao Ran spoke indifferently. "I'm merely inviting you to be guests at the Spirit Pagoda headquarters for a few days. Let the people of Shrek Academy come and retrieve you themselves."

He took out two specially made Soul Tool shackles from his storage Soul Tool, sealing the Soul Power of both the Shrek teacher and Qin Mo. Then, with a casual toss, he handed them to the Branch Pagoda Master. "Escort them back to headquarters and hand them over to Vice Pagoda Master Leng."

"Yes, Xiao Spirit Envoy!" the Branch Pagoda Master quickly answered, his gaze toward Xiao Ran filled with reverence.

Afterward, Xiao Cheng and the other two learned from Xiao Ran that most of Shrek Academy's first-year elites were already heading toward Heaven Dou City. Thus, Xiao Cheng decided to prepare to drive directly to Heaven Dou City and meet Shrek Academy's elites.