Zhuang Yusen, Lin Huiqun, Song Yunzhi, and Xuanzi stood around Mu En, each wearing a grave expression.
Including Mu En, there were five Elders in all.
Lin Huiqun planted her cane and took half a step forward, making a dull thud.
"If you leave now, we at Shrek Academy will pretend none of this ever happened."
Her aged voice was exceptionally cold.
At her words, Xuanzi's brows drew together sharply, his displeasure almost spilling across his face.
"Leave?"
"With all of us here, you think we can't keep those two?"
"They dared to barge into Shrek Academy. They have to pay for it!"
His eyes were fixed on Leng Yaozhu, full of defiance.
The others nodded in agreement.
Since when had Shrek let someone come right to its doorstep and still meekly back down?
They had indeed never seen a Soul Ring configuration of six black and three red.
They had only ever heard of one in the history books, and even their hearts had skipped a beat when they saw it for the first time.
She was powerful, sure, but Shrek Academy had plenty of Titled Douluo.
And not all of them had arrived yet. More Titled Douluo were still on their way.
No matter how powerful she was, could she really beat all of them?
With the five Elders releasing their auras at once, five Titled Douluo-level pressures converged.
Only then could they just barely match Leng Yaozhu's aura.
Leng Yaozhu folded her arms across her chest and lifted her chin slightly, her gaze sweeping over the five Elders one by one.
There wasn't a trace of worry on her face, either.
Aside from Mu En, who had once been a Limit Douluo,
not one of the other four had even touched the threshold of that realm.
Anything short of Limit was trash.
"Is everyone here?"
She spoke lightly, her tone barely changing.
"If not, wait until they all arrive, and I'll send you on your way together."
She didn't even need to release her Soul Spirit.
Those five old coots in front of her, along with the Titled Douluo around them who hadn't yet made a move—added together, they still didn't put much pressure on her.
Mu En sat in his wheelchair, his hands clasped over his knees, his cloudy old eyes narrowed slightly.
He said nothing.
Unlike the others, he had once been a Limit Douluo.
Although his body was now half-crippled and his strength greatly diminished, no one understood the power of a Limit Douluo better than he did.
In fact, the aura radiating from the red-haired woman before him seemed even stronger than he had been at his peak.
There were differences even between Limit Douluo.
Let alone Super Douluo.
It was no use, no matter how many Super Douluo stood behind him.
They might not be able to stop her.
At most, if every one of them fought with their lives on the line, they could hold the woman back and keep the little boy here.
But what then, after they kept him?
Shrek Academy would face the vengeance of a furious Limit Douluo.
Could Shrek Academy withstand that?
In his heart, the answer was a giant question mark.
Mu En raised a hand, stopping them.
The other three didn't know what Mu En intended, but they trusted him completely.
Mu En surely had his reasons.
Xuanzi, on the other hand, still had his mouth open, ready to say something, but one look from Mu En silenced him.
Mu En's gaze settled on Leng Yaozhu.
"You didn't come here to start a war with Shrek Academy, did you?"
"As for this little boy's sister, Shrek Academy was indeed at fault."
He turned his head slightly and glanced at Zhou Yi, who was sprawled on the ground, blood still at the corner of her mouth.
"But Zhou Yi has already been punished."
Before he could finish, Xuanzi's voice burst out.
"Elder Mu."
Xuanzi strode forward, his expression grim.
"Since when has Shrek Academy ever bowed its head to anyone?"
"They came to Shrek Academy and ran wild, and we're supposed to apologize to them?"
"If word gets out, where will that leave Shrek Academy's reputation?"
At Xuanzi's words, Mu En slowly turned his head and fixed him with a cold, stern gaze.
"Be quiet!"
His cloudy old eyes were full of disappointment.
He truly hadn't expected Xuanzi to have made no progress at all. Why else would he be willing to back down?
Because he had no confidence, and because the cost would outweigh the gains.
Xuanzi's mouth was still open, the words in his throat not yet spoken, but they were abruptly choked off.
His Adam's apple bobbed, then he closed his mouth.
He took half a step back, not daring to say another word.
Seeing Elder Mu's disappointed gaze again... It hurt.
When Leng Yaozhu saw Mu En backing down, she felt a little disappointed. She had wanted to see for herself what Shrek had been like ten thousand years ago.
Once the fighting began, she would have her Soul Spirit take Gu An and Xiao Xiao away and protect them.
It seemed she wouldn't get the chance now.
She turned and looked at Gu An without answering Mu En.
She was simply the nuclear weapon, there to exert force and keep them in check.
Fighting was her job. The rest was up to Xiao An.
Gu An caught Leng Yaozhu's gaze and nodded.
He took two steps forward and stood in front of Leng Yaozhu, facing the five Elders.
"The price she just paid was only punishment for trying to hurt my sister."
Gu An raised a hand and pointed at Zhou Yi, sprawled on the ground.
"Shrek Academy nearly destroyed the future of a Twin Martial Souls prodigy."
"You destroyed my sister's future!"
"You have to compensate my sister for her emotional distress, missed schooling, psychological treatment, derailed prospects, risk of damage to her Twin Martial Souls, trauma from being humiliated by a teacher in front of everyone, emotional distress from being ostracized by her teammates, and loss of fairness from the academy covering it up..."
Gu An finished counting on his fingers, lowered his hand, and looked at Mu En.
"My sister's suffered so much!" After saying that, he dabbed at the corner of his eye as if wiping away nonexistent tears, his face blazing with anger.
Standing behind Gu An, Xiao Xiao heard one compensation fee after another tumble from his mouth.
She was dumbfounded, but quickly caught on.
She covered her head with both hands, furrowed her brows, scrunched up her little face, and let out a series of whimpers.
"My head hurts so much."
As she held her head, she secretly peeked through her fingers at the Shrek higher-ups opposite her.
Then she quickly closed her eyes again, putting on an even more agonized expression.
"When the Hell White Tiger knocked me flying just now, I think I hit my head. I'm so dizzy. I feel awful."
"Ah~ I'm dying!"
Her voice was soft and sweet, with a hint of weakness.
Her whole face was practically spelling out a line of huge characters.
I feel awful.
I need compensation.
Everyone on Shrek Academy's side had their mouths twitching.
Who there didn't know the green-haired little girl was obviously just putting on an act?
When she'd stood behind the red-haired woman moments ago, her eyes had been bright, and there hadn't been a hint of discomfort on her face.
Now that compensation had come up, suddenly her head hurt, suddenly she felt awful, suddenly she needed compensation.
Wasn't this just blatant extortion?
Xuanzi's face flushed red, the veins on his forehead bulging.
His fists clenched tight, his whole body trembling slightly.
The thing he couldn't stand most in this life was the humiliating feeling of someone riding on his head and taking a dump.
But just as he was about to step forward, Mu En's gaze swept over him.
Xuanzi's feet stayed planted on the ground. He didn't dare make a fuss.
Mu En turned his attention back to Gu An.
At last, his expression turned somewhat grim, and the wrinkles on his face deepened.
He remained silent for several breaths.
Then he said coldly, "What do you want?"
Gu An looked at Mu En, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.
"I want ten Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones, or one Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone."
Gu An paused.
"And..."
He looked Mu En in the eye and said, each word deliberate, "the Dragon Core in your possession."