Could It Be the Thunder God Sword?

Song Que patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder, glanced back toward Shrek Academy, and sighed softly.

"That's about enough. I've seen what Shrek is like. It's time for me to go."

"Huh?" Huo Yuhao froze, then hurriedly asked, "Brother Song Que, you're leaving Shrek?"

Song Que nodded.

"That's right. If Mu En were still healthy, perhaps I'd still have a chance at Shrek."

"But with Shrek in Yan Shaozhe and Xuan Zi's hands from now on, I could work as hard as I liked and still struggle to get anywhere."

"And judging by Shrek's attitude toward the White Tiger Duke, Dai Huabin, and Dai Yueheng, I'd have almost no chance to avenge my aunt."

"I want to see what else is out there. Maybe there's another way."

Huo Yuhao's gaze sharpened. "You're right, Brother Song Que."

"I'll go with you."

Song Que looked at him calmly. "Yuhao, you don't have to do that."

"I don't particularly like Shrek, but I have to admit it's a good place to train. It has plenty of resources and powerful people everywhere. Staying here for a few more years would be good for you."

"Your Soul Power is still low. You could use Shrek's resources to grow stronger first."

Huo Yuhao shook his head firmly.

"No, Brother Song Que. I don't want too many ties to Shrek. The longer I stay, the more I'll owe them—especially a Shrek like this."

Song Que glanced at him, nodded, and gave a soft laugh. He said no more.

By the following afternoon, the time had come.

Ring, ring, ring!

The dismissal bell rang. One after another, twenty-six core disciples from the second through fifth years arrived at the academy's soul battle arena.

Dai Huabin swept his gaze over the crowd. When it settled on Wang Dong, the corner of his mouth lifted.

"That brat Huo Yuhao didn't come? Lucky him. Otherwise, I'd have made him regret it today."

"He actually survived all that. He's got some nerve-wracking luck."

Zhu Lu followed his gaze and snorted. "Hmph. Huo Yuhao only acts so arrogant because he has a spiritual-type martial soul."

"If that last wager had been a one-on-one fight, he wouldn't have stood a chance against us."

Dai Huabin nodded, his expression turning icy.

Then his gaze shifted again, this time to Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, and Jiang Nannan.

"If my brother's information is right, today's the reserve team selection, isn't it?"

"Apart from those three fifth-years, I'm not worried about anyone here."

Zhu Lu looked over, her expression conflicted.

Dai Huabin's strength was beyond question. She believed that whatever form today's matches took, he would most likely advance.

But if the selection consisted of one-on-one fights and she couldn't partner with Dai Huabin, she would be in trouble.

She agreed, "I've heard those three seniors are all Soul Ancestors above level forty. They'll be hard to deal with."

"That senior from the Soul Tool Department seems to be a Soul Ancestor too."

"But none of the others should be a match for you."

Dai Huabin smiled arrogantly, brimming with confidence.

"We lost to Wang Dong and the others last time, but in a real one-on-one fight, none of them would even catch my eye."

As he spoke, he shot Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao another glance, his face full of contempt.

"That kind of small fry isn't worth mentioning. If there's another tournament, I'll break their legs myself."

Wang Dong happened to look over. She caught Dai Huabin's hostile stare and frowned.

"That bastard. The school didn't even punish him. What were they thinking?"

Hearing her, Xiao Xiao looked puzzled. "Wang Dong, what's wrong?"

"Oh, and why didn't Huo Yuhao come?"

Wang Dong shook her head, disappointment showing on her face.

"He wasn't named a core disciple last time, and he isn't here this time either. The school is so unfair."

Xiao Xiao agreed. "Exactly. He's clearly strong, but they keep overlooking him."

Elsewhere, Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi exchanged a look and shook their heads helplessly.

"That guy Song Que..." Xu Sanshi asked Bei Bei quietly, "He really wasn't selected?"

"What a shame..."

Bei Bei's expression grew complicated. He sighed. "I asked around too. Apparently, they didn't choose him because his martial soul didn't have enough potential."

"But in terms of strength, he's clearly the strongest..."

Song Que had Innate Full Soul Power, but his martial soul was an ordinary long blade. Even so, his Soul Power far surpassed his peers at Shrek, and his combat ability was astonishing. It wasn't hard to imagine how much effort he had put in.

Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, and the others their age had seen it all. They never said so aloud, but they admired him deeply.

They all felt sorry for Song Que and couldn't understand why he had been passed over.

"Whether it's the Soul Master Tournament or the selection for Shrek's Seven Monsters reserve team, strength should matter most."

"But instead of looking at strength, they look at so-called potential. How does that make sense? I don't get it."

Xu Sanshi muttered and curled his lip.

For once, Bei Bei didn't argue with him. He nodded silently.

Just then, an old man with disheveled hair, a wine gourd in his left hand, and a chicken leg in his right came staggering toward the students.

He peered at Wang Yan through bleary eyes.

"Little Wang, everyone here?"

Wang Yan hurried forward and bowed respectfully.

"Elder Xuan, everyone is here. Twenty-five core disciples from the Martial Soul Department, spanning the second through fifth years, and one from the Soul Tool Department."

Xuan Zi nodded with a grunt.

"Good. Let's begin."

Under the eyes of the students and their teachers, Xuan Zi walked straight to the center of the soul battle arena and stopped.

"Today's selection is simple. Fight one-on-one or two-on-two—it's up to you. Choose your own partners."

"We'll judge each of you by how you perform in battle and select who advances."

"All right. Begin."

With a whoosh, Xuan Zi vanished from where he stood.

The students in the arena looked at one another.

Then, with their teachers organizing them, the matches began.

Shrek Academy's dormitory area.

Song Que had packed his things and was waiting for Huo Yuhao in his room. He stared at the long blade in his hand, lost in thought.

Damn. I finally got transported to another world, but I didn't get any special advantage. I was born into an ordinary family and inherited an ordinary martial soul. This is way too hard.

Song Que sighed and gently ran his right hand along his martial soul's blade.

It looked utterly ordinary. The blade was about a finger wide, with no markings at all. Above the hilt was a hollow round opening. If anything, it looked a little like Iron Sword's Thunder God Sword from Dragon Ball, the cartoon he had watched back on Blue Star.

I wonder if the Wind God Pearl, Thunder God Pearl, or Dragon God Jade exists on Douluo Continent too?

Maybe if I set one into the hole, my blade would evolve.

The thought made Song Que chuckle to himself for a moment. Then he shook his head.

That's getting a little carried away.

Heavens, you really gave me nothing but good looks and extraordinary talent...