Emerging from Seclusion

The cracks in the Golden Ancient Tree closed as the golden light faded away.

When Yan Jingzhe stepped out of the tree hollow, a light breeze was blowing across Sea God Lake. He stood atop the Ancient Tree's gnarled roots and looked up at the sky—just past noon, the pale sun hung overhead, bathing all of Shrek Academy in clear light.

He flexed his wrist and increased the circulation speed of the two Soul Cores within his dantian by another level.

Then, he stopped suppressing his aura.

For three months of seclusion, he had been holding it in. Holding in his soul power, his presence, and the instinctive overflow produced by the Yin-Yang Complementary Twin Soul Cores. But now, it was time to let it go.

That aura surged from the roots of the Golden Ancient Tree. At first, it was like a spring emerging from underground, thin and gentle. Then it grew faster and fiercer, becoming a soaring pillar of golden light in the blink of an eye. The beam pierced the clouds, tearing a massive opening through the azure sky overhead. Clouds rolled back in every direction, exposing an even higher expanse of heaven, translucent beneath the golden radiance.

The entire Shrek City felt it.

The first to react were the ordinary people in the city with low cultivation. Street vendors suddenly could not hold onto the goods in their hands. An old man dozing by the roadside snapped his eyes open. Several children chasing one another seemed to have their shoulders pinned down by something, freezing in place in unison, too frightened to move. As that aura swept past, everyone felt the same thing—a colossal creature seemed to have turned over above their heads, making their hearts tighten under the pressure.

Then came the Soul Masters within the academy.

The students attending class on the field all raised their heads. Some dropped what they were holding and did not even bother to pick it up. Teachers in classrooms abruptly stopped halfway through their lectures and turned to look outside.

In Sea God Pavilion, Mu En had been reading by the window. When the aura surged over, the pages in his hands did not stir in the wind, yet his fingers slowly closed the book. He rose, walked to the window, and looked toward the straight golden pillar over the Golden Ancient Tree. He said nothing, but the corner of his mouth twitched faintly.

In the Library Pavilion, the book in Elder Chu's hand fell onto the table with a slap. He adjusted his glasses, stared blankly for three seconds, then slowly stood and walked to the door.

Inside a secret chamber of Sea God Pavilion, Elder Song had been meditating. When that presence swept over him, the reddish-gold flames around his body abruptly surged out of control, shooting more than a foot into the air. He opened his eyes, his clouded old gaze blinking twice before that aura. Then he rose and strode outside.

There were also Elder Xuan, Elder Lin, Elder Zhuang... The elders of Sea God Pavilion all put aside what they were doing at the same moment. Some emerged from their rooms, some rushed over from the training grounds, and some came from the Outer Court.

Above the canopy of the Golden Ancient Tree, a streak of golden radiance rose into the sky and transformed into the phantom of an enormous Light Phoenix. The Phoenix neither spread its wings nor cried out. It merely hovered quietly in the air, its entire body burning with pale golden flames like a sun resting on the horizon, dyeing all of Sea God Lake a warm gold.

Yan Jingzhe rose from the Golden Ancient Tree.

He ascended slowly, unhurriedly, like a leaf carried upward by the wind. Yet everyone who looked up at him felt an indescribable sense of oppression—not because of his speed or strength, but because of the natural, undeniable weight that emanated from him.

He stopped above Sea God Lake, more than a hundred zhang above its surface. His silver-white hair scattered in the high-altitude wind, while golden light shone from within him, coating his outline in a faint halo.

The entire Shrek City could see him.

He swept his gaze over the academy below. He saw the people looking up at him, the several pavilion elders standing before Sea God Pavilion, Xian Lin'er and Feng Ling standing side by side at the entrance to the Soul Guidance Department Teaching Building, and the disciples Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong craning their necks beside the freshman assessment arena.

Then his gaze settled on a window on the second floor of Sea God Pavilion.

Mu En was standing there.

The old man wore a dark blue robe, his graying hair stirred gently by the wind. His eyes were like two deep pools. He met Yan Jingzhe's gaze across half the lake for a moment, then took a single step out through the window.

Mu En rose into the sky far faster than Yan Jingzhe. In nearly the blink of an eye, he had reached Yan Jingzhe's opposite side. The old man hovered in midair, standing atop a faint cluster of blue lightning, his robes snapping loudly in the high-altitude wind.

Master and disciple hung facing one another above Shrek City, silently meeting each other's eyes as everyone in the city looked up at them.

"Teacher." Yan Jingzhe spoke first. His voice carried far through the air, clear and resonant after being amplified by soul power. "Your disciple has successfully broken through his limits in seclusion. I ask for your guidance."

Mu En looked at him, paused for two seconds, and then smiled. There was gratification in that smile, pride, and a hint of the old man's eager fighting spirit.

"Good," Mu En said. "As your teacher, I also want to see just how strong a Soul Master with Yin-Yang Complementary Twin Soul Cores truly is."

Before his words had even faded, Mu En moved.

His aged body abruptly straightened, countless streams of gilded holy light flowing around him. The phantom of the Radiant Holy Dragon martial soul soared into the heavens behind him, its dragon eyes lowered as it looked down upon the earth. Nine Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, purple, black, black, black, red, red, red—circled neatly at his side.

Elder Mu shouted in a deep voice, "Sovereign Over All!"

Vast spiritual power and Ultimate Light soul power fused instantly, transforming into an invisible imperial might that swept across a thousand-meter radius. The air shuddered violently. Broken stones on the ground all floated upward. An opponent's Soul Ring radiance dimmed by thirty percent of its own accord, their minds suppressed as though beneath a massive mountain, their limbs stiffening until they could barely mobilize their soul power.

All will to resist was crushed beneath that kingly intent. Light dragon power condensed into a palm strike that blasted forth. Wherever its palm wind passed, pale golden ripples spread through space. Its physical impact carried a spiritual storm capable of tearing apart the soul, delivering a dual assault. Those struck would not only suffer grave bodily injuries—their spiritual seas would also bear an imprint of submission, leaving them with an involuntary sense of helplessness, as though they could only bow their heads and surrender.

Before Sea God Pavilion, Elder Xuan looked up at the golden light in the sky and said softly, "Senior Brother is serious this time."

Elder Lin adjusted his glasses without speaking. However, his eyes remained fixed on the sky without blinking, unwilling to miss even the slightest detail.

Mu En pushed both hands forward, and an incomparably terrifying pressure bore down on Yan Jingzhe.

Sovereign Over All.

Mu En's signature technique, gathering all his strength into one attack. Across the entire Douluo Continent, fewer than three people could receive this move head-on.

At that moment, everyone in Shrek City held their breath. Even from hundreds of zhang away, the oncoming pressure made their chests feel tight, as though the sky above their heads had dropped several inches.