Could We Really Go Steal from Shrek?

With that, Kong Deming lightly pressed a button on the metal disc beneath his seat.

Amid a faint whir of machinery, the heavy alloy doors slowly opened, and a tall attendant respectfully entered.

"Prepare the residence I arranged earlier. Take Chenxing and the others to familiarize themselves with it, and help them settle in," Kong Deming instructed.

"Yes, Elder Kong," the attendant answered with his head lowered.

Ye Chenxing thanked him, bowed to Kong Deming once more, and followed the attendant out.

The doors closed again, completely shutting out everything beyond them.

Kong Deming, who had been beaming moments ago, suddenly let his shoulders slump slightly and heaved a long sigh.

Jing Hongchen was taken aback. "Teacher, today is a joyous day. You have gained an unparalleled disciple, and our Sun Moon Empire has welcomed two ultimate-attribute geniuses. Why are you suddenly sighing?"

Kong Deming rubbed his brow. "It is indeed a joyous occasion, but Hongchen... our Sun Moon Empire excels in soul engineering, after all. When it comes to the foundation of martial souls, we are far too lacking."

"This child's talent in dual ultimate-attribute martial souls is something seen once in ten thousand years. Though this old man has reached the pinnacle of soul tools in this age, I truly fear that my attainments in martial soul cultivation will delay such talent. Unlike Shrek Academy, we have no experience nurturing ultimate-attribute soul masters."

However, Jing Hongchen did not seem overly concerned. Instead, he stepped forward to reassure him. "Elder Kong, there is no need to worry. When Shrek Academy first raised their first ultimate-attribute genius, didn't they also know nothing and have to feel their way across the river? The Sun Moon Empire's theories and research methods are more advanced than theirs. There is no reason they can do it while we cannot. And if all else fails..."

Jing Hongchen lowered his voice, a fierce glint flashing through his eyes. "I'll find a way to sneak into Sea God Pavilion and steal that thing for you!"

"Absolutely not!"

Kong Deming's expression hardened as he cut him off without mercy, his tone turning stern. "Put away such dangerous thoughts! What kind of place is Sea God Pavilion? Its foundations are unfathomable. Even if this old man went personally, I would not be certain of returning unharmed. Shrek Academy may well be hiding a true Limit Douluo. For Chenxing's future, we must make long-term plans. We must never take such a risk!"

After receiving such a severe rebuke from his mentor, Jing Hongchen hurriedly lowered his head and humbly accepted it. "Yes, Teacher. Your disciple was rash."

Seeing Jing Hongchen admit his mistake, Kong Deming sighed again and continued, "Unfortunately, among the empire's soul masters, we cannot find many worthy experts to teach him..."

At the words "soul master experts," Jing Hongchen's expression turned grave. He stepped closer and lowered his voice. "Teacher, do you know about the rampant evil soul masters that have plagued the empire since more than a decade ago?"

Kong Deming's face darkened. "I have heard a little."

"The situation is likely far more serious than what you have heard. They have now consolidated into a tightly organized group, and the top-tier strength hidden within it far exceeds our imagination. There are no shortage of Super Douluo among them, perhaps even Limit Douluo, and..." He paused slightly, his tone growing heavier. "I fear that even some of the empire's upper ranks already bear traces of their infiltration."

"Oh? Such a thing has happened?"

He had lived in seclusion for years, pouring all his effort into researching cutting-edge soul tools. Unless it concerned some enormous upheaval that threatened the empire's survival, he paid no attention to it. Yet he had never expected those rats who lurked in the shadows to have stretched their claws so far.

"In that case, Chenxing's existence must not be compromised." Kong Deming suddenly clenched his withered fingers and said gravely, "He possesses Ultimate Light. By nature, he is the sworn enemy of those people. If they learn that Ultimate Light has appeared in this world, they will surely stop at nothing to snuff it out. Listen carefully: you must protect Chenxing at all costs! At this critical juncture, nothing can happen to him!"

"Rest assured, Teacher. I understand the stakes!" Jing Hongchen nodded with utmost seriousness, but then a troubled look appeared on his face. "But... since we lack a foundation in ultimate martial souls, who should guide his martial soul cultivation from here on?"

"This can be considered over time." Kong Deming pondered for a moment. "Before he reaches Rank 30, guiding a child through the basics will be more than manageable. If it truly comes to that, once he reaches the higher ranks, we can simply make a deal with Shrek."

"A deal?"

"What, haven't they always coveted Illustrious Virtue Hall's high-level soul tool technology?" Kong Deming revealed a shrewd expression.

"Those self-important fools have no idea just how far the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology has advanced. With those few makeshift soul engineers in Shrek's soul tool department, who call themselves Rank Eight-and-a-Half soul engineers, tossing them a few obsolete achievements from previous generations would be enough to keep them gnawing on them for ten years." He paused, a crafty gleam flashing through his eyes. "But pay attention to the method. Do not give them a complete system. Only give them the later theoretical results and remove all the preceding derivations. Let them work backward from the answers to derive the formulas, then slowly puzzle it out."

Jing Hongchen's eyes lit up, but he soon frowned again. "But Teacher, if we take the initiative to propose an exchange for ultimate cultivation methods, would that alert them? If they guess that the Sun Moon Empire has produced a genius who needs ultimate-attribute experience, then..."

"It does not matter."

"At times like this, we must make a grand show of it. Not only should we trade, we should demand a great deal more. Add their basic cultivation methods, martial soul theories, and all sorts of miscellaneous things to the list. That way, they will be even less suspicious."

He took a sip of tea and continued, "From what this old man knows of Shrek's people, they will surely try to play tricks on us as well. For ordinary cultivation methods, they might casually fob us off and even pass off physical training like running as some 'ancestral secret technique of Shrek.' As for ultimate cultivation methods—they have no use for such things in their eyes. Given Shrek's arrogance, nine times out of ten they will believe that if they have no ultimate-attribute soul masters, then neither can the Sun Moon Empire. They will not be too guarded against us, which will suit us perfectly."

"Teacher, you are wise!"

Kong Deming rubbed his brow, but could not help smiling bitterly. "Chenxing's extraordinary spiritual power would be an absolute waste if he did not study soul tools under this old man. Yet he also possesses such outstanding talent in dual ultimate-attribute martial souls... If he studies one, I fear it will delay the other."

Jing Hongchen felt the same way. Looking across the entire Sun Moon Empire, perhaps only this ancestor could understand such a luxurious "happy burden" in all of Douluo Continent.

Smack.

Ye Chenxing casually shoved the thick volume of Soul Beast Encyclopedia back onto the shelf.

"Worthy of peak Spirit Sea Realm spiritual power. Reading is practically like having a human scanner..." He rolled his neck and could not help sighing.

In his first life, he had been a seasoned webnovel reader and had developed the ability to skim ten lines at a glance. But this experience—where more than a hundred thousand words of obscure theory could be absorbed with one glance as though carved into his mind, then even automatically categorized and summarized—was truly a first.

"One could only say that this was indeed a fantasy world. Even such inconspicuous details of daily life could differ so greatly."

"Let's see, this should be the last one."

He glanced over the bookshelf, which was densely packed with books: Spirit Hall Ten Thousand Years Ago Introduction to Soul Engineers and the Basics Secrets Hidden in the Star Dou Great Forest Overview of the Far North: The Three Great Rulers Evil Soul Masters and Souls The History of Shrek: Pavilion Masters <Plane Theory and the Possibility of Invasion by Other Planes>...

By his reckoning, it had nearly been a full week since he moved into this small villa. Over the past few days, he had scarcely stepped outside. Aside from cultivating soul power, he had spent his time reading.

There was no other reason. In the original worldbuilding of Douluo Continent, contradictions in the source material were everywhere. Not only did every installment contradict itself, but every arc—and sometimes even the same chapter—contained inconsistencies. This included, but was not limited to: Tang Hao appearing without a hundred-thousand-year soul ring, Di Tian appearing with golden hair, Shrek's Schrödinger's city lord, and the crucial Dragon God story having at least four different versions...

Back when he was merely a reader, he would laugh it off and move on. But now that he was in the real Douluo Continent, he had to verify the current situation all over again. As a transmigrator, placing too much faith in the flawed original information from his memories would only make it easier for him to get himself killed.