Shrek City

"Have you heard?"

"Something huge happened in the Heaven Dou Empire!"

Inside a tavern in Shrek City, guests chattered noisily among themselves. Their topic was none other than the Evil Soul Master incident that had shaken the entire continent recently.

Before this, no one could have imagined that Evil Soul Masters would be so brazen as to openly release Soul Power within an empire's territory.

"Exactly! Diao Province is in complete chaos now. The Heaven Dou Empire's Royal Guard has sealed off the entire province.

"A merchant friend of mine is trapped there and can't get out."

"I was lucky. I left Diao Province before the lockdown. But what's going on with Shrek Academy? Why is this place under martial law too?"

A potbellied merchant dressed in refined clothes wore a face full of relief. He had nearly been unable to leave Diao Province. If he had been trapped there and his goods had been delayed, every day would have meant severe losses.

His companion at the same table said with a grin,

"Your friend is really going to suffer. Let's hope he doesn't go bankrupt over this."

"As for Shrek City, you don't know the whole story. Half a month ago, three Soul Saints ignored Shrek City's newly issued flight ban and barged into the city.

"After that, who knows what happened? A whole bunch of powerhouses flew out from Shrek Academy! Someone even saw Lord Taotie personally heading out!"

"That sight! I've never seen so many powerhouses in my life! Those old merchant associations were so scared they nearly shut down and ran, thinking the Body Sect had come to attack again!"

The merchant looked at his deliberately mysterious companion, curiosity burning inside him.

"Stop keeping us in suspense. You can turn one sentence into an eight-hundred-word essay. So what exactly happened?"

His companion rested both hands on the table, glanced around, and lowered his voice.

"Insider information. A while ago, I treated several Shrek Academy teachers to a meal, and they let it slip."

"In the Heaven Dou Empire's Evil Soul Master incident, the previous generation's number one prodigy of Shrek Academy appeared.

"Because of him, Shrek Academy's powerhouses mobilized in full force. Diao Province has probably been completely locked down by now. Every inch of soil will be turned over—they want to see the person alive, or the corpse dead!"

Surprise appeared on the merchant's face as he spoke softly.

"The number one prodigy? The one who disappeared? I remember him. He won the championship at the Continental Advanced Soul Master Tournament. Didn't Shrek say he was dead?"

His companion spread his hands, indicating that he had no idea. "Who knows?"

"If his life and death were unknown, then he was considered dead. Now that there's a lead, Shrek Academy will naturally go all out to investigate."

"Sigh, no matter what, things like Evil Soul Masters and the continent's safety can be handled by the higher-ups and powerhouses crushing them with strength. But us lowly small merchants have much more to think about."

"Diao Province is one of the Heaven Dou Empire's three major grain-producing regions. Now that it's been sealed off by Shrek and the Heaven Dou Empire, the empire's grain market will probably take quite a hit."

"I've spoken with some other merchants. In a few days, there'll be a merchants' gala in Xilu City. All the influential people will be there."

The merchant raised his brows. "Holding a gathering at a time like this... don't tell me it's what I think? You're going after grain prices?!"

His companion smiled faintly. "That's right. Such a perfect opportunity—how could we let it pass?"

"Several major merchant guilds will short grain together and raise food prices a little higher. Even small merchant firms like ours can take a bite of the meat."

The merchant was clearly tempted, but he was also worried. "We'll get cursed out badly for this. It might even alert the Heaven Dou authorities."

His companion said with a smile, "So what? The Nine Treasures Merchant Association is backing this. They're the ones truly pulling the strings."

"Besides, the Heaven Dou authorities themselves are secretly driving up grain prices. What they're doing is far more ruthless than us, and those commoners have no ability to resist.

"So what if they get angry? Can they block a Soul Master's soul skills? In this world, whoever has the bigger fist gets the right to speak."

Without the slightest hesitation, the merchant slapped the table. "Count me in!"

Conversations like this could be heard everywhere in the tavern. These people's discussions formed a vast information network. This was a high-end tavern, so the information was also somewhat more reliable.

Lin En sat in a corner, silently gathering this information with Little Sage. He had no interest whatsoever in the merchants' schemes, but one piece of information caught his attention.

The Yun family, a marquis family of the Heaven Dou Empire, had annexed the former Zhang family, including all of its estates and land. It had now become the largest family in Northern Province, basking in unparalleled glory.

"The Yun family..."

Lin En memorized this family. It was this family that had hired Evil Soul Masters to wipe out the Zhang family. Yet Shrek Academy had not acted against them. What were they afraid of?

Was colluding with Evil Soul Masters not a grave crime? Could it be that those higher-ups were still arguing among themselves? Was Yan Shaozhe exerting influence, or were the Supreme Elders making their move?

If Shrek Academy would not act, then he intended to do so himself. His capture back then was also inseparably connected to this family. Of those who had joined forces with Evil Soul Masters, killing nine out of ten would still leave one unpunished.

Lin En was kindhearted and unwilling to watch humanity fall into depravity. He would personally send everyone connected to that Evil Soul Master base to Tang Buddha.

"Waiter, the bill!"

"Ah, yes, honored guest! Just sit there, don't tire yourself out."

"One hundred Gold Soul Coins in total."

Lin En raised his brows. He glanced at the peanuts and plain boiled water on his table, then at the smiling waiter, and suddenly felt an urge to curse.

The waiter maintained his smile. "No credit, sir."

Lin En tapped the table with a finger. "Is there a way to eat for free?"

The waiter smiled and shook his head. "That would earn you quite a beating, sir."

Lin En: "..."

On Shrek City's streets at night, Lin En could not help baring his teeth. The prices at that high-end tavern were absurdly expensive! How was this any different from robbery? A plate of peanuts cost eighty Gold Soul Coins, and even plain water cost twenty.

What, were those peanuts fried by Scarlet King? Or was that water the Silver Dragon King's bathwater?

Fortunately, public security in Shrek City was decent enough that they would not actually beat Lin En up. Not that he was afraid of them. A bunch of nobodies—if Uncle Lin En stood still, they would not even be able to break through his defenses.

Uncle Lin En's debut battle had been against the Black Room Bureau. Ordinary fights no longer interested Uncle Lin En.

In the end, he spent the entire afternoon washing dishes at that tavern. He could also listen to more news while doing so. He had done similar work in his previous world, so he was used to it.

Because he washed the dishes until they shone and was quite handsome besides, the tavern owner even asked whether Lin En wanted to work there long-term in a front-facing position. The monthly wage was ten Gold Soul Coins, an exceptionally high salary.

Unfortunately, Lin En's ambitions lay far away. He had never deigned to make a living off his face. His next stop was not Shrek.

In truth, there was quite a bit of money in the Inspector's Ring Yu Mu'en had left behind, but most of it was stored on a black gold card, and Lin En had no way to withdraw it from a bank.

Other than money, there really were quite a few resources inside. There were many rare materials and even thirty Soul Ascension Pills, all of them extremely precious sources of energy.

Shrek City at night was like a city that never slept. Soul Tool lamps illuminated the place in a riot of colors, and entertainment venues were everywhere, filled with extravagance and indulgence.

Classical architecture blended with Soul Tools. It was said that Mingdu, the capital of the Sun Moon Empire, was the true super metropolis.

Lin En had come to Shrek partly to check on Zhang Lexuan and the other three Soul Saints.

They were probably doing fairly well, certainly receiving better treatment than in the original story. After all, Zhang Lexuan and Lin En could both be considered Yu Mu'en's disciples. The distinctive radiant Soul Power of Sovereign Over All Under Heaven and the Light Holy Dragon was the best proof.

Zhang Lexuan also carried the pure Light Holy Dragon will Yu Mu'en had left inside her, used to suppress the corruption of her Blood Moon Martial Soul.

Zhang Lexuan's Blood Moon Martial Soul was of an extremely high grade, only a step away from becoming an evil Martial Soul, much like Ma Xiaotao's future Evil Fire Phoenix.

With Yu Mu'en's connection, Mu En should not treat her poorly. After all, she was effectively his direct disciple from the next generation.

His recent contact with the cocoon had also confirmed this guess. Through the bone graft, he sensed that Zhang Lexuan was living inside the Golden Tree, where an old man in a wheelchair seemed to be guiding her.

That allowed Lin En to breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Mu En was still alive. If Yan Shaozhe and the others had been in power, Zhang Lexuan probably would not have received such good treatment.

His other purpose was to travel from Shrek City to the Star Dou Great Forest.

That was the continent's largest gathering place for Soul Beasts. Lin En planned to complete his bloodline Memory repository there!

And there was also his third Soul Ring. Lin En was currently level twenty-six, and it would not be long before he broke through to level thirty.

For his third Soul Ring, he needed to find a Soul Beast that could strengthen his own vitality. The Immune System Martial Soul required extremely powerful life force as support; otherwise, rapid cell differentiation would consume too much vitality.

For the Dragon Clan to fully awaken its life force, it needed to hatch a dragon body.

A human-bodied Next-Generation Species did not possess much vitality, not even as much as a true Dragon King. A single high-yield thermal weapon could kill one outright.