Xuan Zi Weeps Bitterly; Jing Hongchen, Xiao Hongchen, and Meng Hongchen Visit

Inside Sea God Pavilion,

Elder Zhuang emerged from a side room, his face grave.

His gaze swept over Xuan Zi, who stood in the corner looking utterly dejected, then passed over Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and the others in the pavilion before finally settling on Mu En, who sat in his chair.

"Xixi's life has been saved."

His expression darkened, grief appearing on his face. "But her spine has been crippled, her dantian completely destroyed, and all her cultivation is gone. She will never stand again for the rest of her life."

"Xiaotao was corroded by evil energy, which detonated all the evil fire she had accumulated over the years. I can only suppress it for now. We will have to find a way to drive that evil energy from her body later."

Thud!

Xuan Zi collapsed onto the floor, covering his face with both hands as he broke into sobs.

"Wuwu, it was all my fault!"

"I was the one who harmed the children!!"

Consumed by rage, Xian Lin'er strode up to Xuan Zi and kicked him to the ground.

"You bastard!!"

"Because of you again! Because of you again!!"

"Two generations of the Seven Monsters have been ruined in your hands! Besides drinking and eating meat, what else can you do!!"

"Lin'er!" Qian Duoduo was frightened out of his wits. He hurried forward and pulled Xian Lin'er back, frowning as he said,

"It happened too suddenly. Elder Xuan did not do it on purpose. Right now, we should think of a way to find some heavenly treasures and save the children."

Xian Lin'er glared at Xuan Zi, her eyes filled with disappointment.

Yan Shaozhe, Elder Zhuang, and the others sighed at the sight, saying nothing more.

Xuan Zi was clearly Shrek Academy's second-strongest expert, a pillar holding the seas steady.

Yet his temperament was so unreliable.

They had thought what happened to the previous generation of the Shrek Seven Monsters would change him, but he had repeated the same mistake again.

Xuan Zi lay sprawled on the ground, his eyes vacant and offering no defense whatsoever.

Choking with sobs, he crawled to his feet and knelt before Mu En. "Mu Lao, I harmed the children."

"I am a sinner. I will leave Sea God Pavilion and withdraw from Shrek Academy."

Mu En lifted a finger, and an invisible force of soul power pulled Xuan Zi to his feet.

"Xuan Zi, this is not your fault." He spoke hoarsely. "The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger only appeared in historical records from twenty thousand years ago. It should have been an extinct soul beast."

"It was skilled at lying dormant and grew its soul power by devouring soul masters and soul beasts. It was an exceptionally evil soul beast."

"You were not wrong to search for evil soul masters. The children were simply unlucky to encounter such a powerful evil soul beast."

"None of us wished to see this happen, but since it has happened, we must find a way to deal with it and resolve it."

He looked at Elder Zhuang. "Little Zhuang, Xixi and Xiaotao will need more of your effort. It would be good if you could ease some of their pain."

"Also, take a look at Dai Yueheng and the others. Do not let any hidden injuries remain."

"Yes, Mu Lao." Elder Zhuang nodded in agreement.

"Shaozhe." Mu En looked at Yan Shaozhe. "The academy must take responsibility for this. Ask the royal families of the four great empires whether we can purchase a heavenly treasure capable of healing injuries, and save Xixi if possible."

"As for the tournament a year from now, once Xiaotao, Yueheng, and the others recover, there should not be any problems."

"However, the reserve team for the new generation of Shrek Seven Monsters should also be put on the agenda as soon as possible."

"Understood, Teacher." Yan Shaozhe replied. "I will handle all of this properly."

Mu En nodded, then finally looked at Xuan Zi, whose face was streaked with tears and mucus, and sighed inwardly.

His end was near, yet Xuan Zi was still so unreliable.

Shrek Academy currently lacked top-tier combat power, and Xuan Zi was an indispensable part of it.

"Xuan Zi, do not say such things again. Running away is the most irresponsible thing you can do."

"Be more attentive from now on. Evil soul masters are stirring, and the academy cannot afford to lose a top-tier combatant like you."

"If you leave just like that, do you intend to dump all the burden onto children like Shaozhe and Meier?"

Compared to Mu En's terrifying age, Yan Shaozhe and Cai Meier truly could be considered children.

Xuan Zi nodded through his sobs.

Mu En inwardly breathed a sigh of relief, then raised his head and muttered, "The Sun Moon Empire's soul engineering technology is developing rapidly. In a few days, I will make a trip there and see just how far their soul engineering technology has progressed."

"In the next couple of days, Jing Hongchen, the master of Illustrious Virtue Hall, will come to visit the academy. You should all be on your guard... Hmm?"

He suddenly looked into the distance. "What a coincidence. We were just talking about him, and he has arrived."

"Shaozhe, go receive him. Judging by Jing Hongchen's manner, he has not come with good intentions!"

"If Yao Haoxuan and the others cannot handle it, go find that boy Ye Ming. If he defeats the two children Jing Hongchen brought, you may allow him to cultivate in the Golden Tree."

Although Yan Shaozhe was somewhat puzzled, he had always trusted Mu En's words.

"Yes, Teacher. I will go receive Hall Master Hongchen at once."

On Shrek Academy's training field.

Ye Ming, Gu Yuena, and the others completed the task of one hundred laps with great ease. To them, those hundred laps barely counted as a warm-up.

For everyone else, however, those hundred laps were rather strenuous.

By then, all the students had completed their hundred laps and stood loosely gathered in Shrek Square.

Not long after, Zhou Yi returned with a gloomy expression and looked at the crowd. "Those whose names I call, step forward. Cheng Cheng, Tang Dao, Zhuge Yun..."

A total of nine people had their names called.

The students who had been called leisurely stepped forward.

"You nine may return to pack your luggage and leave the academy. From this moment on, you are no longer students of Shrek Academy."

"Ah?"

"Teacher, why!"

Zhou Yi had been holding back a bellyful of anger. She said coldly, "Shrek Academy does not need students who resort to tricks. You may have strength, but without a proper mindset, once you are trained into talents, you will bring nothing but disaster to any nation rather than help."

"You thought I would not see anything just because I left? Hmph, trying to cut corners!"

"If you refuse to accept this, you may report me to the Academic Affairs Office. But now, you may leave!"

The nine were all stunned. Yet faced with Zhou Yi, they did not dare resist and could only leave the training field dejectedly.

"What are you all still standing around for? Get back to class!"

At Zhou Yi's command, the remaining students hurriedly ran toward the classroom, terrified.

As though he had not seen Zhou Yi lose her temper, Ye Ming walked straight up beside her and asked, "Teacher Zhou, were those people in the sky just now students? What happened to them?"

Zhou Yi had not wanted to say anything, but when she thought of Ye Ming's strength and how he had not made her lose face just now, she knew that this boy would surely become a member of the new generation of Shrek Seven Monsters.

So she relented and told him the information she had learned.

"Those people were the Shrek Seven Monsters. This time, they went to the Star Dou Great Forest..."

After listening, Ye Ming inwardly thought, Just as expected. With Xuan Zi leading them, it was only natural that there would be deaths and injuries.

Just as he was about to enter the teaching building, he suddenly saw Yan Shaozhe leading three people into the academy.

There was one elder and two youths.

The elder had white hair and a pipe clenched between his teeth. An Illustrious Virtue Hall emblem was displayed on his chest.

The remaining two were a boy and a girl. The boy was handsome and the girl beautiful, both dressed in the uniforms of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.

Ye Ming turned around and met the gaze of the girl with long wine-red hair.

The wine-red-haired girl's eyes lit up. She said to Xiao Hongchen beside her, "Brother, look, that person is so handsome!"

"Hopelessly lovestruck." Xiao Hongchen glanced at the silver-haired youth and curled his lip. "He is about as handsome as me!"

He sneered. "What use is being handsome? Strength is what matters most!"

Ye Ming was somewhat puzzled. Judging from the way the three were dressed, they were the three generations of the Hongchen Clan.

Jing Hongchen, Xiao Hongchen, and Meng Hongchen.

What were they doing at Shrek Academy at this time?