Rising Sun Crisis, the Hidden Dragon Sets Out

A sleepless night.

The lights in Shrek Academy's council hall burned from dusk until dawn, their brilliance illuminating solemn, grave young faces.

Tang Wulin walked slowly into the hall, his heart completely settled. The joys and sorrows of two lifetimes that had surged before the window—fallen old friends and the desolation of wandering alone—were all pressed deep into his heart. The agony of being powerless in his previous life, of watching his companions and homeland vanish beneath artillery fire, and the drifting uncertainty of this life after being separated from his teachers had ultimately become the firmest obsession in his heart.

Fortunately, he had people to care about in this life, and he had strength.

The vast spiritual power of the Spirit Domain Realm lay dormant and steady within his mind. Beneath his clothes, the Three-Word Battle Armor, Dragon Moon Whisper, concealed all its radiance and pressure. The god-grade armor forged from eight rare metals had perfectly fused with his bloodline, soul power, and spiritual power, ready to be summoned with a single thought.

At the center of the council hall, an enormous Douluo map lay spread out. Rising Sun City on the northern frontier of the Sun Moon Empire had been heavily circled, densely marked with the latest intelligence.

Bei Bei stood before the map with his hands behind his back, anger gathered between his brows.

Only days had passed since everyone returned from the Valley of Questioning Emotions trial, yet the Sun Moon Empire had already laid a vicious trap. After the explosive chaos at the Hall of Virtue in Mingdu, many participating disciples from major sects of the Heaven Soul Empire, Dou Ling Empire, and Star Luo Empire had been unable to evacuate in time and remained stranded in Mingdu.

Taking the opportunity, Sun Moon Crown Prince Xu Tianran had acted, detaining all the foreign participating soul masters and transferring them together to Rising Sun City, a major northern stronghold, where they were imprisoned.

Xu Tianran's intentions were obvious. He meant to use the hundreds of sect prodigies as hostages to force the major powers of the continent to bow their heads, paving the way for his future plan to conquer the continent. Should the sects refuse to compromise, these young people would become sacrifices.

"All captured hostages are being held in the underground Deepwater Prison beneath Rising Sun City."

Bei Bei's finger landed heavily on the map, his voice low.

"Rising Sun City lies on flat, open ground with no natural defenses. It is a militarized fortress, filled with detection soul tools and patrol mecha units, under uninterrupted twenty-four-hour surveillance. Soul-Annihilating Powder has been added to the prison water, continuously suppressing martial souls and dissolving soul power. Those trapped inside are eroded by the drug's effects day after day. The longer we delay, the weaker their chances of survival become."

The atmosphere in the hall was oppressive.

Huo Yuhao sat at one side, pale-faced, with endless grief and cold hatred lingering in his eyes. The wounds left by the Valley of Questioning Emotions had not faded. Wang Dong'er had fallen into slumber and was resting at the Haotian Sect. This pain of helplessness made him even less able to ignore the hundreds of hostages trapped in prison.

Xu Sanshi's expression was solemn, while He Caitou frowned deeply. Standing side by side nearby were two people of vastly different temperaments: the cold, sword-bearing man in black was the sword fanatic Ji Juechen, while the beautiful yet icy girl beside him, wreathed in purple mist, was Jing Ziyan. Not far away, Ye Guyi stood quietly in a simple white dress, a faint holy radiance surrounding her. Her Divine Angel Martial Soul naturally restrained the evil soul masters of the Holy Spirit Cult. Nan Qiuqiu, usually lively but now full of worry, clenched her fists tightly. Her mother, Nan Shuishui, was also trapped in Rising Sun City's water prison.

Bei Bei took a deep breath and presented the academy's finalized two-pronged plan, following the original arrangement exactly.

"Our only chance is to create a vacuum in their forces and snatch people from the tiger's jaws. Both plans will be carried out simultaneously.

First, a direct diversion.

Elder Xuan will lead Shrek's elders and senior experts to the border between the Sun Moon Empire and the Heaven Soul Empire, launching continuous harassment attacks. We will deliberately create the illusion of a full-scale war and force the Sun Moon Empire to deploy its main northern legions, high-ranking soul engineers, and Title Douluo to reinforce the border.

Objective: draw away the defenses around Rising Sun City and briefly create a gap in its security.

Second, infiltration and surprise attack: penetrate deep into enemy territory and rescue the hostages.

While the frontal battlefield draws all attention, we will form an elite squad, bypass the checkpoints along the way, secretly infiltrate the Sun Moon Empire's interior, and head directly for Rising Sun City to rescue everyone."

At this point, Bei Bei's gaze swept across everyone in the hall as he finalized the complete roster for the infiltration squad.

Huo Yuhao, Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, He Caitou, Ji Juechen, Jing Ziyan, Ye Guyi, Nan Qiuqiu, and Tang Wulin.

Nine people in total.

Jiang Nannan and Xiao Xiao, who had originally remained behind at Shrek, would still stay at the academy according to the plan. They would handle rear support and intelligence transmission and would not participate in this infiltration mission.

Everyone's eyes fell on Tang Wulin in unspoken agreement, filled with trust.

They had all witnessed this mysterious young man's three years of grueling cultivation in the Star Dou Great Forest. His combat strength was extraordinary, and his forging skill stood unrivaled in the world. He had personally crafted exclusive One-Word Battle Armor for the other eight members of the squad, greatly increasing the entire team's survival capabilities. No one knew that Tang Wulin had already reached the Spirit Domain Realm, wearing the one and only Three-Word Battle Armor, Dragon Moon Whisper. He was the squad's most vital spearhead and defensive bulwark.

"This mission is nine chances of death for every one chance of survival," Bei Bei said gravely. "Rising Sun City is heavily defended. Aside from the regular garrison, evil soul masters from the Holy Spirit Cult are stationed there as well. If we are exposed, we will be isolated and helpless, facing the encirclement of hundreds of thousands of enemies.

"Yuhao, you will still take charge of reconnaissance and battlefield control. Your spiritual detection is our greatest reliance for infiltration."

Huo Yuhao nodded slightly. "My spiritual detection covers a range of ten miles. I can scout out hidden sentries and traps in advance."

"That is still not enough."

Tang Wulin spoke slowly. An invisible and vast Spirit Domain quietly unfolded, enveloping the entire council hall. Majestic yet delicate spiritual power flowed outward, gentle but impossible to underestimate.

"Your Spirit Sea Realm spiritual sense is sufficient for conventional reconnaissance. But the Sun Moon Empire's high-level detection soul tools and the spiritual scans of the Holy Spirit Cult's evil soul masters are highly specialized. Our tracks could easily be exposed."

He calmly added, "I have broken through to the Spirit Domain Realm. My domain can cover the entire team, conceal all life auras and soul power fluctuations, and negate most detection methods. Yuhao, you will handle precise reconnaissance ahead, while my Spirit Domain provides concealment, large-scale warning, and a final safeguard. The two will complement each other."

The moment the words "Spirit Domain Realm" fell, everyone present had their pupils contract, their hearts stirred into turbulent waves.

It was a spiritual realm that countless Soul Saints and Soul Douluo could never reach in their lifetimes, rare even among Title Douluo. Yet this young man, merely a Four-Ring Soul Ancestor, possessed such terrifying spiritual cultivation.

Bei Bei suppressed the shock in his heart, and the light in his eyes grew even brighter. "With Tang Wulin joining us, our chances of success will rise dramatically."

He then finalized every detail of the operation:

"At dawn tomorrow, Elder Xuan will depart first and begin the border diversion.

We will leave half a day later, take a roundabout route to avoid heavily guarded checkpoints, and fly low while concealed into the Sun Moon Empire's interior.

After entering the city, our first priority will be to investigate the water prison's defenses, understand the properties of the Soul-Annihilating Powder, and confirm the hostages' conditions.

We will secretly prepare an antidote, remove the drug's effects from the hostages' bodies, and gather everyone together. Once the operation begins, we will break through at full speed, withdraw from Sun Moon territory, and return to the Heaven Soul Empire.

The sole purpose of this mission is rescue. Do not linger in battle unless necessary. As many hostages as possible must be brought back—ideally, not a single one left behind!"

"Understood!"

The nine answered in unison, their battle intent ringing clear and forceful.

Tang Wulin raised his eyes toward the southern horizon, and a trace of tenderness passed through his heart.

Deep within the Star Dou Great Forest, Gu Yue was still waiting for him to return.

In his previous life, he had been unable to protect his companions and could only watch everything turn to dust beneath artillery fire.

In this life, he wore the Dragon Moon Divine Armor, wielded Spirit Domain spiritual sense, and bore ten thousand years of inheritance.

He would never allow tragedy to repeat itself. He would never permit these young sect disciples to become bargaining chips in the games of the powerful.

Rising Sun City was a dragon's pool and tiger's den, but he was going in.

He would personally shatter the prison forged by the Sun Moon Empire.

The hidden dragon was fully prepared. All that remained was dawn, when he would set out for the crisis.