Cool mist from Sea God Lake washed over them. The water surged tirelessly onto the soft sand, then slipped back with a gentle hiss.
After flying the three of them across the mist-shrouded lake, Yan Shaozhe set them down and said:
"Sea God Island is vast and sparsely populated, but it's the true heart of Shrek Academy. I need to suppress the Evil Fire inside Xiaotao first. After that, I'll have an Inner Court disciple show you around. As for the rest... we'll discuss it when Senior Ling Huan arrives."
With that, Yan Shaozhe drifted away with Ma Xiaotao.
Once he had vanished from sight, Wu Feng viciously kicked a stone on the ground and snapped:
"Shrek Academy sure changes its tune depending on who it's dealing with. When they didn't know our backgrounds, they were arrogant and unreasonable. The moment they found out, suddenly it was all a misunderstanding. It's disgusting."
Ning Tian gazed toward the depths of Sea God Island. She said nothing, but her expression made her disappointment and anger at Shrek Academy's conduct plain.
Could an academy with such bizarre rules, such double standards, and such overbearing ways really deserve to be called sacred ground by Soul Masters across the world?
Jiang Yu said nothing.
He had never expected anything from Shrek Academy, so there was no disappointment when it failed to meet his expectations.
As he saw it, once Shrek Academy had broken away from the Heaven Dou Empire and established Shrek City, it had ceased to be an academy devoted to teaching. It had become an organization that claimed to stand above the fray while constantly overstepping its bounds—even meddling in other nations' affairs.
And that was Shrek Academy before Huo Yuhao's era. After Huo Yuhao's time and the founding of the Spirit Pagoda, its power and prestige soared further. By the time of the third original novel, calling Shrek Academy the center of the world would hardly have been an exaggeration.
With Shrek Academy like that, it wasn't just the Holy Spirit Cult that wanted it gone. Even the Federation had no wish to see it continue to exist.
So the godslayer-class soul cannon shell that fell later was nothing more than Shrek Academy reaping what it had sown.
I'd have bombed it too.
As he thought this, a woman's voice, warm as a spring breeze, drifted out of the thick mist along Sea God Island's shore.
"Sorry to keep you three waiting. I'm Zhang Lexuan. I'll be your guide from here on."
A young woman who looked no more than twenty-four or twenty-five emerged from the mist.
Long black hair fell to her waist, and her bright black eyes held a quiet intelligence. Her delicate face was fair and flawless, her curved brows framing a breathtaking smile that seemed to dim the world around her.
Most striking of all was her serene, gentle bearing. It inspired an almost inexplicable sense of confidence and closeness.
Surprise flashed in Jiang Yu's eyes when he heard her name.
He had liked this senior sister of the Inner Court when reading the original story in his previous life. Seeing her in person now, he found her every bit as stunning as Ning Yunxiu had been when he first met her years ago.
No wonder she was the woman of countless Inner Court disciples' dreams.
"Greetings, senior sister."
That was a separate matter. Jiang Yu had no goodwill toward Yan Shaozhe, but Zhang Lexuan was still someone worth getting to know.
And no, I'm not just taken with her looks.
As he spoke, Jiang Yu used a secret technique to send Ning Tian and Wu Feng a message.
It was brief, but packed with important details.
The strongest disciple in the Inner Court, an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo, a hundred-thousand-year eighth ring—all of it was there.
Hearing this, Ning Tian and Wu Feng dared not be careless. They quickly bowed as well and greeted Zhang Lexuan as their senior sister.
With her cultivation, Zhang Lexuan naturally noticed Jiang Yu's little trick. She merely smiled and asked with curiosity:
"Young junior, do you know me?"
Jiang Yu smiled. "Your reputation as the Inner Court's senior sister precedes you. My elders mentioned you before I enrolled. I'd never met you, but you have such a lovely name that it stayed with me."
"What a sweet talker you are. That mouth of yours is bound to make you popular with girls."
Zhang Lexuan answered with a charming smile, then took a jade bottle from her Storage Soul Tool and handed it to Jiang Yu.
"These are Clear Spirit Pills, Healing Pills refined around the essence of a ten-thousand-year Plant-type Soul Beast. Take one, and your internal injuries should heal in about a week."
Jiang Yu accepted the bottle, his fingertips brushing against Zhang Lexuan's fingers.
Her touch was warm and soft, with the smooth delicacy of fine jade.
Behind him, Ning Tian saw the whole thing and abruptly clenched her hand. Wu Feng noticed the movement beside her. Though she tried her best to restrain herself, a bitter feeling still rose uncontrollably in her heart.
Zhang Lexuan withdrew her hand and looked at their different expressions, a trace of puzzlement and surprise in her eyes.
Something about these three juniors' relationship doesn't seem quite right...
She put the thought aside. Once Jiang Yu had taken a Clear Spirit Pill, she led the three deeper into Sea God Island. As they walked, she asked what had really happened earlier.
Yan Shaozhe had told her only fragments. Judging by the three juniors' reactions, she suspected the matter was far from simple—and might even shake Shrek Academy to its foundations.
After Jiang Yu and the others took turns telling her everything that had happened, Zhang Lexuan fell silent.
Then she gave a helpless, rueful smile.
She offered no further defense of Yan Shaozhe and said nothing more about the incident. Instead, she patiently and gently showed the three around Sea God Island.
The day passed in a blink.
The next afternoon, as Jiang Yu concentrated on refining the medicinal power of the Clear Spirit Pill, a voice like muffled thunder suddenly exploded over all of Sea God Island:
"Yan Shaozhe, you shameless bastard, get out here! I'm not dead yet, and you already dare bully disciples of our Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect! Once I am dead, are you planning to swallow the entire Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect sooner or later!?"
Across Sea God Island, every Soul Master below the rank of Titled Douluo felt the world spin at the sound of her voice.
This was no shockwave of Soul Power. It was Spiritual Power—an immense sea of it, strong enough to engulf the entire island.
The three of them were startled as well. Once they recovered, delight flashed in their eyes.
Our people are finally here!
After Illusion Douluo's voice rang out, a streak of golden light shot up from the center of Sea God Island. It stopped in midair and became Yan Shaozhe, dressed in white.
"Senior Ling Huan, there are so many people watching. Could you at least leave me a little dignity?"
High above him, Illusion Douluo slowly appeared. Indignation filled her youthful face, seemingly untouched by time, and the murderous look in her eyes sent a chill down Yan Shaozhe's spine.
Others might not know, but he knew all too well how terrifying Illusion Douluo was.
The Nine Absolutes Illusion Tower wielded by this spiritual-type Super Douluo was unquestionably a top-tier tool Martial Soul, its quality even slightly surpassing the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
A powerful Martial Soul meant fearsome strength. Illusion Douluo was renowned for two specialties: her terrifying mastery of mental illusions, and her nearly unstoppable Spiritual Power attacks aimed directly at a Soul Master's soul and Sea of Consciousness.
She was, indeed, a rare spiritual-type Super Douluo who excelled in both offense and control. For the unpredictability of her methods and the sheer difficulty of fighting her, she ranked among the foremost Super Douluo above level ninety-five on the continent.
More importantly, Yan Shaozhe had known Illusion Douluo since his youth. Certain events had even given him firsthand experience of just how terrifying she could be.
Before you continue