Holy Spirit Cult vs. Shrek?! A Crushing Mismatch!

Xiao Wu gently swayed her scorpion braid.

"They might have been hiding somewhere on the continent all along."

"Just like the Snow Empress and the Evil-Eyed Tyrant."

"Before the Golden Rankings appeared, we had never even heard those names."

Liu Erlong nodded.

"The continent is far bigger than what we've seen."

"The Far North, the Endless Sea, and those gathering places of Soul Beasts that humans can't venture deep into."

"Powerful people could be hiding in any of those places."

Zhu Zhuqing had remained silent.

She raised her head and gazed at the Heaven Rankings.

The nine Soul Rings behind Qian Daoliu slowly revolved within the golden image.

The Angel Holy Sword hovered high in the air.

Even through the image shown by the Golden Rankings, Zhu Zhuqing could feel the vast gulf between them.

"A Level 99 Limit Douluo is already a goal I may spend my whole life chasing without ever reaching."

Zhu Zhuqing slowly clenched her fists.

"Yet Qian Daoliu only ranks sixth."

"I really want to know what kind of powerhouses the top five are."

Ning Rongrong turned toward her.

Zhu Zhuqing did not look away.

"And the one in first place."

"That person surpassed every powerhouse on the Douluo Continent to claim the top spot on the Strength Rankings."

"Tang Chen, Bo Saixi, and Qian Daoliu can only rank behind him."

As she spoke, Zhu Zhuqing's breathing quickened.

Her body trembled slightly.

It was not fear.

It was longing for supreme power.

"Just knowing someone like that truly exists makes it impossible for me to stay calm."

"I want to know who he is."

"And I want to know just how powerful he is."

Xiao Wu followed her gaze.

"The Golden Rankings will announce the next name soon."

"There are only five people left."

Ning Rongrong nodded lightly.

"Judging by the pattern so far, each new person revealed is stronger than the last."

"Fifth place might show us just how great the gap is between the top five and everyone below them."

Liu Erlong looked away.

She glanced around but saw no sign of Yu Xiaogang or the others.

"Where are Xiaogang and the others?"

"Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun aren't here either."

"I went to the training ground just now. There wasn't anyone there."

Xiao Wu immediately said, "Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun provoked three women in Heaven Dou City."

"They tried to take the women away by force, but one of them taught the two a lesson."

"Ma Hongjun was burned black from head to toe. He didn't even have any hair left."

Liu Erlong froze.

"They caused trouble outside again?"

Ning Rongrong curled her lip.

"Ma Hongjun can't tear his eyes away whenever he sees a beautiful woman."

"He said plenty of outrageous things this time, too."

"She didn't put up with him. She turned him straight into a roast suckling pig."

Liu Erlong looked at Ning Rongrong.

"Then what did Xiaogang and the others go to do?"

Xiao Wu answered, "Teacher Zhao Wuji is going to look for those three women."

"Grandmaster, Zhao Wuji, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar all went."

Liu Erlong glanced around again.

"What about Flender and Tang San?"

"Headmaster Flender took Third Brother to the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena."

Xiao Wu said, "The academy is short on funds."

"Headmaster Flender plans to have Third Brother take part in a few Soul Fighting matches and earn some Gold Soul Coins while they're at it."

Liu Erlong frowned slightly.

"I can understand Zhao Wuji going after them."

"But why did Xiaogang go along?"

"He's not good at fighting."

Ning Rongrong looked at Liu Erlong.

"Because the woman who injured Ma Hongjun is extraordinary."

"After Grandmaster heard Dai Mubai's description, he wanted to meet her."

Liu Erlong asked, "What makes her extraordinary?"

"Her name is Ma Xiaotao."

Ning Rongrong said, "She's only nineteen, yet she's already a Soul Emperor."

Liu Erlong's expression changed at once.

"A nineteen-year-old Soul Emperor?"

Xiao Wu nodded earnestly.

"Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun saw her six Soul Rings with their own eyes."

"Her Martial Soul is a phoenix, too."

"Ma Hongjun said her flames are very likely Ultimate Fire."

Liu Erlong looked at the three of them.

"Nineteen years old."

"Soul Power above level sixty."

"A phoenix with Ultimate Fire."

"Since when has a genius like that existed on the continent?"

Zhu Zhuqing said slowly, "That's not all."

"Ma Xiaotao's Soul Ring Configuration is different from an ordinary Soul Master's."

"She has two purple Soul Rings and four black Soul Rings."

Liu Erlong whipped her head around.

"Two purple and four black?"

Zhu Zhuqing nodded.

"Dai Mubai saw them clearly."

"Ma Hongjun confirmed it, too."

"Ma Xiaotao's First Soul Ring and Second Soul Ring are both at the thousand-year level."

"Starting with her third Soul Ring, every one of them has reached the ten-thousand-year level."

Liu Erlong fell silent.

She knew exactly what such a Soul Ring Configuration meant.

A Soul Master's First Soul Ring could normally bear only a few hundred years.

The Second Soul Ring should not be able to reach a thousand years, either.

As for the third Soul Ring, it certainly should not leap straight to the ten-thousand-year level.

Every one of Ma Xiaotao's Soul Rings exceeded what an ordinary Soul Master could withstand.

"How did she do it?"

Liu Erlong looked at Zhu Zhuqing.

"She absorbed a Thousand-Year Soul Ring as her First Soul Ring. Could her body really withstand it?"

Zhu Zhuqing shook her head.

"We don't know either."

"Shrek Academy is called Monster Academy because it only admits exceptionally talented students."

"Dai Mubai is close to Ma Xiaotao's age, but he has only just passed level forty."

"Ma Xiaotao has already become a Soul Emperor."

"They're a full two major realms apart."

She lowered her gaze to her hands.

"I always thought Dai Mubai had remarkable talent for cultivation."

"He reached level twenty-five at twelve, became a Soul Elder at fifteen, and has now become a Soul Ancestor."

"That pace already surpasses most Soul Masters."

"But compared to Ma Xiaotao, Dai Mubai's talent can hardly be called exceptional."

Xiao Wu added, "She completely suppressed Ma Hongjun's Evil Fire Phoenix, too."

"He didn't even get a chance to fight back."

"All Ma Xiaotao needed was one ball of fire to burn him into that state."

Liu Erlong considered this for a moment and quickly understood Yu Xiaogang's intentions.

"Xiaogang wants to take her as his disciple?"

Ning Rongrong nodded.

"Grandmaster believes that if Ma Xiaotao became a Soul Emperor at nineteen, she must have a special cultivation method in addition to her natural talent."

"And she has a phoenix Martial Soul with Ultimate Fire."

"Grandmaster wants to take her as his disciple and personally guide her cultivation."

Liu Erlong's frown deepened.

"She's already a Soul Emperor."

"Xiaogang's Soul Power hasn't even passed level thirty."

"She might not be willing to take him as her teacher."

Ning Rongrong did not reply.

The same thought had occurred to her.

Yu Xiaogang could teach Soul Elders and Soul Ancestors and earn some recognition through his theories.

But Ma Xiaotao was already a Soul Emperor.

Her Soul Ring Configuration had overturned everything the Soul Master World took for granted.

How could a genius like her not have a powerhouse guiding her?

Zhu Zhuqing looked back up at the sky.

"I want to know how Ma Xiaotao cultivated, too."

"A nineteen-year-old Soul Emperor."

"Two purple rings and four black."

"The title of 'monster' that Shrek Academy takes such pride in means nothing beside her."