Dai Yuhao?

The commotion around Song Que was impossible to miss. Dazzling pink light instantly drew every eye in the arena.

"Song Que!" Huo Yuhao stared at the transformed Zanpakutō, his face full of surprise. "Your Zanpakutō... evolved again?"

On the platform, Long Aotian frowned at the long blade wreathed in pink light. "Evolved? What's going on?"

Song Que smiled faintly. In a flash, he teleported to the center of the platform.

"Perfect timing. I've just finished solidifying my third Soul Skill."

"And it's rare for Bei Bei to go all out."

"No time like the present. Let's make this a free-for-all."

Long Aotian didn't know the details, but his fighting spirit surged. He nodded at once. "Just what I wanted."

"Bei Bei's still young. Even with his Martial Soul Evolution, he's not quite strong enough. I was just thinking that fight ended too soon."

"Now that you're joining in, let's fight without holding back!"

"Is that so?" Song Que raised his blade with a faint smile, his gaze sharpening. "Then let's see."

"Scatter, Senbonzakura."

As the words fell, pink petals burst across the sky and enveloped the entire platform.

Bei Bei and Long Aotian stared at the tiny petal-blades swirling around them, shock plain on both their faces.

Meanwhile, inside the Sea God Pavilion at Shrek Academy.

"Shaozhe, has Mu En still not come out of seclusion?"

Yan Shaozhe shook his head. He looked at the downcast Xuan Zi with mixed feelings.

"Xuan Zi, let's postpone the Sea God Pavilion Meeting for now."

"What matters most is filling out the team for this tournament."

Xuan Zi sighed softly and nodded without a word.

Yan Shaozhe paced back and forth, thinking aloud.

"On the main team, Dai Yueheng and Xixi have the lightest injuries. With Elder Zhuang treating them, they should be fine."

"We'll have to replace everyone else."

"Fortunately, Ma Xiaotao has recovered and can compete. That restores a good chunk of our strength."

"As for Ling Luochеn... she should be all right. I'll speak with her myself later and put her mind at ease."

"If we have to, we can give some of the remaining three spots to the Soul Engineering Department."

"But the reserve team..."

Yan Shaozhe sighed again and rubbed his brow helplessly.

After a moment, he couldn't help muttering, "That brat Song Que just had to leave school."

"If he'd stayed at the academy, I could've given him a reserve-team spot now and let him see the world."

"And the little rascal dragged Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi away with him."

"I won't waste time carefully screening the reserve team. I'll pick a few core disciples to fill the gaps."

"We're running out of time."

With that, he turned to the silent Xuan Zi and patted his shoulder.

"Xuan Zi, don't keep this bottled up. Take the team to the Star Luo Empire for the tournament."

"I'll bring the others to join you afterward."

"With Ma Xiaotao holding the fort, we'll get through the first few matches."

Xuan Zi was silent for a long time before finally nodding.

A day later, in a small courtyard on the west side of Heaven Dou City.

Xu Sanshi, weary from the journey, pushed open the gate and started shouting the moment he entered.

"Song Que! Bei Bei! You've really gone too far!"

"You're messing with me on purpose, aren't you? First you had me arrange a school in Dou Ling, then you turned around and came straight to Heaven Dou City."

"If it were anyone else, I'd have gone straight back to Shrek!"

Hearing the commotion, everyone in the courtyard came out to greet him.

Song Que grinned. "It just happened! Really!"

Bei Bei laughed and teased him. "What's the big deal? Why so worked up, Young Master Xu?"

"Yuhao happened to become a disciple of the Body Sect, so of course we stayed."

"Yuhao joined the Body Sect?" Xu Sanshi froze for a moment, then grew serious. "Right, something happened on the road. It looks like some group is after Yuhao."

Everyone's expressions tightened.

Xu Sanshi continued, "Yesterday, Uncle Mo and I were ambushed near the border of the Heavenly Soul Empire..."

"..."

"They were clearly after Yuhao."

"Yuhao specifically?" Song Que glanced at Huo Yuhao, his brow furrowing. "Did Gao Qiang find any leads?"

Xu Sanshi nodded. "Gao Qiang thinks the leader most likely came from the White Tiger Duke's Mansion in the Star Luo Empire."

"But he was extremely cautious. Several Soul Emperors under him carried self-detonation devices and fought to the death to hold Gao Qiang back, giving him just enough time to escape."

"There's no hard evidence, so we can't confirm it yet."

Song Que and Huo Yuhao exchanged a look. Both had expected as much.

It most likely had to do with Dai Huabin again.

Song Que said gravely, "I understand. Let's stay put for now."

"Yuhao is Du Busi's disciple now, with the Body Sect behind him. No one will dare make a move openly."

"Get some proper rest. We'll report to the new academy this afternoon."

Xu Sanshi looked curious. "Right, which academy are we joining?"

"Just Sky Academy," Song Que said. "Vena arranged everything in advance, though I hear quite a few people there aren't happy about it."

At the same time, at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion in the Star Luo Empire.

In the rear garden, the burly Soul Sage who had ambushed Xu Sanshi at the border the day before strode up to a pavilion and bowed to the woman seated inside.

"Madam, the mission failed." He lowered his head and reported what had happened.

The woman frowned slightly. "How did that boy get mixed up with the Heavenly Soul Empire?"

"And was your identity exposed?"

"No." The Soul Sage answered quickly. "Every family guard activated a self-detonation device beforehand. I was the only one who escaped. The others all blew themselves up, leaving no trace."

"However... the one who stopped us in the end was Gao Qiang, a Soul Douluo of the Heavenly Soul Empire's Heavenly Spirit Army."

"I met him once at the border years ago. I don't know whether he remembers my face."

The woman considered this for a moment, then nodded slowly. "As long as you left no evidence."

The man breathed a sigh of relief. After hesitating repeatedly, he spoke. "Madam, we've failed twice in a row and suffered heavy losses."

"Even if this is about the second young master's grudge, the cost is too high..."

The woman raised a hand to cut him off. "Do you really think I'm merely indulging Huabin's recklessness?"

The Soul Sage froze, baffled.

The woman gave a soft laugh. "If it were only Huabin's personal grudge, I'd have let him gather his own men to settle it. I wouldn't have intervened myself, much less sent you."

"Then what do you mean, Madam? Do you have a grudge against Huo Yuhao too?"

A cold glint crossed the woman's eyes. "Huo Yuhao?"

"That boy should have borne the surname Dai all along. His name should be Dai Yuhao."

The Soul Sage shuddered, his face filling with shock. "Dai? You mean he's..."

"That's right." The woman gave a cold snort. "The illegitimate son Dai Hao had with that maid, Huo Yun'er."

"I see." Realization dawned on the Soul Sage, but then he frowned. "But I heard he only had a Trash Martial Soul. How could he..."

The woman's gaze turned icy. "Whatever he was before, he cannot be allowed to live now."

"If Dai Hao discovers he exists, the consequences will be endless."