The Phoenix Begged Forgiveness, the Dragon God Raged, Red Dust Protection Sought Red Dust

"That was what happened. I am truly sorry. I failed in my duty and am willing to accept any punishment from the Sea God's Pavilion."

Shrek Inner Court, Sea God's Pavilion.

Yan Shaozhe slid into the room in a textbook prostration, landing on both knees to beg forgiveness from the elders of the Sea God's Pavilion.

"I am terribly sorry!"

Zhang Lexuan listened to the account from a corner and nearly lost her footing as her vision went dark.

Dean Yan had taken a group out soul hunting. Three Inner Court graduates had noticed something strange about the Heavenly Dragon Sect's young master's aura and demanded that he cooperate with an investigation. In truth, two of them coveted his external soul bone and dark attribute. Only Shi Xing was relatively innocent: he genuinely wanted to enforce justice on Shrek's behalf.

The Heavenly Dragon Sect's young master had presented personal tokens belonging to members of the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empire royal families to prove his identity. The three had withdrawn out of apprehension, but remained unwilling to let it go.

Then...

Dean Yan had taken his students into battle. The students under Dean Yan had died. Yan Shaozhe had returned with his students after a costly victory, only to be attacked by a hundred-thousand-year soul beast on the journey back.

Now, Dean Yan was kneeling in the Sea God's Pavilion, begging forgiveness.

The scene felt terribly familiar. Zhang Lexuan's face went pale, and she felt an urge to retch.

Most importantly, only after the fighting began had they discovered that the Heavenly Dragon Sect's young master's sinister aura was a side effect of absorbing a Dark Demon Evil God Tiger. His martial soul was the Ultimate Dark Qilin, combining a divine beast's bloodline with an ultimate attribute. He was the fourth soul master with an ultimate attribute in ten thousand years.

Bi Yangde had been devoured by the Dark Qilin, Shi Xing had been gravely wounded, and the Dark Qilin uncle and nephew had been killed by Dean Yan.

On the return journey, a swarm of Blood Bats had ambushed them, and Yan Shaozhe had escaped with injuries.

Shi Xing had been wounded a second time and lost an arm.

Mo Yun had exhausted her soul power, and bat claws had slashed her face. Now she wore a mask, too afraid to show herself.

Not even Bi Yangde's bones remained.

Yan Shaozhe himself had also been injured, but not fatally.

"Come on, Old Yan, you've committed a monstrous mistake this time. At most, he was a suspect. How could you lead people in hunting him down?"

The first to challenge him was his longtime rival, Qian Duoduo, the Soul Tool Department's deputy dean.

Having spent years under Yan Shaozhe's thumb, he was now half grieving their losses and half settling a private score under the banner of public duty. He spoke with bitter anguish:

"You're a dean of Shrek. Outside these walls, you represent the academy. Even if he was suspicious, you should have shown the bearing of an elder!"

"Now look what you've done. You personally killed the hope that could have taken Shrek to greater heights, and cost us two of the Shrek Seven Monsters in the bargain. The academy has suffered a tremendous loss."

"If I'd been the dean taking people out, I'd have coaxed him safely back to the academy first. Everything else could have been discussed afterward."

Yan Shaozhe lowered his head. "I won't deny my other mistakes, but Shi Xing can still fight normally despite losing an arm. His martial soul's abilities don't depend on his body."

Zhuang Yusheng, the healing elder, shook his head. "I've examined Shi Xing. He can indeed still fight normally, but I can do nothing about the erosion from Ultimate Darkness."

"He lost an arm, his vitality suffered greatly, and his origin continues to deteriorate. He's already fallen to Soul Saint. Ultimate Darkness cannot be removed, and it will torment him for the rest of his life."

"That Dark Qilin's technique was exceptionally insidious. It struck straight through his martial soul origin. From now on, Shi Xing... may be unable to use his Martial Soul Avatar."

With the medical expert's verdict delivered, the Sea God's Pavilion fell utterly silent. Everyone wore a grim expression.

A Soul Saint unable to use his Martial Soul Avatar was essentially an enhanced Soul Emperor. An exceedingly rare genius of space and time, a future Sea God's Pavilion Elder, had fallen forever.

Xian Lin'er spoke softly. "What do we do about this now? Once the Heavenly Dragon Sect finds out, they certainly won't let it rest."

Xuan Zi's eyes shifted for a moment before he waved a hand and spoke. "If you ask me, this is no great matter. However precious the Ultimate Dark Qilin was, he's dead. There's no reason for us to punish the living for the dead."

"Yan Shaozhe is our Martial Soul Department Dean, and he's already shown sincere remorse. What more could the Heavenly Dragon Sect want?"

"Speaking of which, does the Heavenly Dragon Sect know? If not, we can simply act as though nothing happened."

Zhuang Yusheng hesitated. "Wouldn't that weigh too heavily on our consciences? Those were two human lives."

Xuan Zi glared. "Little Zhuang, how can you speak for outsiders? They were clearly the ones at fault! If that Heavenly Dragon uncle and nephew hadn't fought back so fiercely when Shi Xing's group ambushed them, or had agreed to come to the academy for an investigation, would Yan Shaozhe have had to chase them down and kill them?"

"If we're comparing losses, Bi Yangde, the Death Spider Emperor we painstakingly trained, is gone, and Shi Xing sacrificed his future because of them. They should count themselves lucky we aren't demanding an accounting."

"And look at Yan Shaozhe. He's in such pain right now. The Inspection Corps suffered such terrible losses while carrying out its duties. Do you think we feel any better?"

Everyone looked over. Yan Shaozhe's expression was anguished, and his wailing abruptly grew louder. "I've failed them! I've failed Shi Xing! Bi Yangde died so horribly..."

Zhang Lexuan's face visibly twitched twice. She had seen this very scene before.

More people had died that time, and the one crying had been Xuan Zi.

So they had only lost their lives, while our Sea God's Pavilion Elder had lost his good mood?

Elder Song coughed softly and asked, "Then what punishment does everyone think Yan Shaozhe should receive?"

"I have committed a grave mistake. I willingly resign as Martial Soul Department Dean. Please choose someone more capable."

The moment Song Yunzhi finished, Yan Shaozhe took up the thread, requesting his own exile.

His words threw the Sea God's Pavilion into uproar.

Xuan Zi slapped the table and shouted, "Absolutely not!" Lin Huiqun repeatedly said, "You mustn't give in to such despair," while the other elders urged Yan Shaozhe to "think it over carefully."

Xian Lin'er and Qian Duoduo said nothing. Cai Mei'er's tears fell like rain.

"Please, everyone, say no more. I no longer have the face to serve as Martial Soul Department Dean..."

As Yan Shaozhe spoke, his voice choked with emotion.

As though already accustomed to it all, Zhang Lexuan turned her beautiful eyes toward the entrance of the Sea God's Pavilion.

If nothing unexpected happened, the heavyweight persuaders were about to make their entrance.

"Dean, you can't give up! The academy and all our junior students are waiting for your leadership..."

Shi Xing's voice rang out from outside the Sea God's Pavilion, his impassioned appeal deeply moving.

Yan Shaozhe looked visibly touched.

Seeing this, Xuan Zi grew anxious. "Shi Xing is begging you like this, Yan Shaozhe. Can't you pull yourself out of your guilt?"

Yan Shaozhe bit his dry lips. "I still can't let it go..."

"Dean, you can't give up! We're all waiting for you to return..."

Mo Yun's voice rang out from outside as well, accompanied by a thud. She had presumably dropped to her knees.

At the sound, Yan Shaozhe's knees stirred as though he wanted to move. He wept. "My conscience is burdened!"

"Dean, if you won't pull yourself together, we'll kneel until you get up."

Shi Xing knelt outside as well.

A trace of mockery appeared on Zhang Lexuan's face.

Yan Shaozhe looked back toward the entrance of the Sea God's Pavilion and said softly, "Let me think it over. Let me think it over."

"That's more like it!"

Xuan Zi smiled in satisfaction. "Once you've thought it through..."

"Once you've thought it through, choose the next Martial Soul Department Dean!"

An aged, furious voice drowned out Xuan Zi and the commotion inside and outside the Sea God's Pavilion. Warm light filled the building and spilled outside, lifting the two kneeling students and pushing them away.

Instantly, the Sea God's Pavilion became so quiet that a falling pin could have been heard. Astonished eyes turned toward the weathered face rising from the reclining chair in the seat of honor, including Yan Shaozhe's and Zhang Lexuan's.

"Did you not understand? I said to choose the next Martial Soul Department Dean!"

Mu En raised his voice a fraction. That fraction alone bore down like Mount Tai, frightening Yan Shaozhe until his face turned ashen and he resumed his proper, submissive prostration.

"Yan Shaozhe has committed an irreparable mistake and has volunteered to resign. Then let him step down! From now on, he will cultivate in seclusion and may not emerge without my command. Strip him of his eligibility to inherit the Sea God's Pavilion!"

"I must have been blind to let you serve as Martial Soul Department Dean for so long. You led the Shrek Inspection Corps out to kill people before even understanding the situation. What magnificent authority you wield!"

"As dean, you already dare to mistakenly kill an Ultimate Dark Qilin. If you become Sea God Pavilion Master someday, will you restore Spirit Hall?"

Mu En opened eyes blazing with wildfire. The icy gaze with which he judged Yan Shaozhe made everyone in the Sea God's Pavilion feel as though they had plunged into an ice cavern.

After several decades, the Radiant Sacred Dragon once again displayed the unquestionable authority of the Sea God Pavilion Master.

Mu En could tacitly permit Yan Shaozhe to use underhanded methods on ordinary geniuses, but the Ultimate Dark Qilin was a rarity across the ages, precisely the successor he had dreamed of.

Yan Shaozhe had killed him, and had done so with astounding stupidity. Profoundly disappointed in both his methods and his intelligence, Mu En exposed his little tricks without mercy.

"You committed a grave mistake, then tried to evade responsibility by having two children kneel outside and beg you. Who is this performance for? Me, or yourself?"

"My back may no longer straighten, but my brain hasn't rotted!"

"All of you, tell this old man: who else wants to speak up for this disgrace?"

Everyone lowered their heads. Yan Shaozhe looked blankly at the seat of honor, then at himself, and let out a long sigh.

Mistakenly killing someone with an ultimate martial soul did indeed warrant punishment.

The voice from the seat of honor continued, "With Yan Shaozhe stepping down, Little Zhuang will serve as acting Dean. What do you think?"

Zhuang Yusheng was astonished. "Mu En, how could I..."

"You have a steady temperament and won't make Yan Shaozhe's mistakes. That's enough."

Mu En looked at him, then said in a tone that brooked no argument, "Let everyone vote."

The Sea God's Pavilion passed the resolution unanimously. Mu En had placed a healing-type Super Douluo in the Dean's seat.

In Mu En's view, anyone with a functioning brain could serve as Martial Soul Department Dean. Shrek had the finest students, so producing results was easy. Avoiding mistakes mattered more than anything.

Besides, he had another idea.

"What do you think about vigorously developing soul tools?"

"Mu En, please reconsider," Xuan Zi said, leading the opposition.

"Mu En, that would be neglecting the roots to chase the branches." Lin Huiqun and several other elders spoke up in succession.

"I support it! I'm in favor!"

Qian Duoduo raised both hands, but nobody paid him any attention.

"Mu En, our Soul Tool Department needs support." Xian Lin'er stood up.

Cai Mei'er glanced at Xian Lin'er with a less than friendly gaze. "I oppose it."

Song Yunzhi looked at her daughter, Xian Lin'er, and smiled bitterly. "I abstain."

Zhuang Yusheng looked left and right. "I abstain as well."

The vote came in: four elders and Cai Mei'er opposed it, two abstained, and two supported it.

The result was overwhelmingly one-sided. Mu En sighed.

"The proposal fails. We will discuss it again another day. Yan Shaozhe and Lexuan, stay a moment. Everyone else may leave."

"Yes."

Everyone filed out in order. The Sea God's Pavilion abruptly felt empty, and even the air seemed to congeal.

"Teacher, I..."

Yan Shaozhe was the first to break the silence, his tone deferential.

Boom!

A brilliant ray of light shot out too quickly for Zhang Lexuan to see clearly. As though struck head-on by a Class 8 Fixed Soul Cannon Shell, Yan Shaozhe flew backward, spewing blood amid the sound of breaking bones.

"You enjoy making your students kneel outside and beg you? Then kneel outside the Sea God's Pavilion for seven days and seven nights! Let the Inner Court's students and teachers all see how vile their former Dean was!"

A fleeting glint of killing intent crossed Mu En's eyes as he coldly announced Yan Shaozhe's punishment.

"Yes, Teacher..."

Rolling like a watermelon across Sea God Island, Yan Shaozhe tumbled several times before obediently kneeling outside the pavilion. His long hair fell loose, and blood dripped from his collar, making him look for all the world like a forest savage.

Zhang Lexuan watched with her mouth open, feeling inexplicably refreshed.

"Well, Lexuan? I didn't disappoint you this time, did I?"

Mu En's suddenly kindly voice reached her ears. Zhang Lexuan hurried over and spoke softly. "Mu En?"

"Last time, Xuan Zi's cultivation was too high. I couldn't touch him. This time, you see, Yan Shaozhe's cultivation isn't that high, so I did my best to uphold justice."

A gentle smile rested on Mu En's face as he beckoned lightly. "Don't be so reserved. Relax. You aren't the one who made a mistake. What are you afraid of? Did you remember something unpleasant?"

Part of the reason he had punished Yan Shaozhe so harshly was to soothe Zhang Lexuan. She had already begun to question Shrek's fairness, and he had to dispel her doubts.

Mu En understood perfectly which mattered more: a Bright Phoenix who could hardly advance further, or a future Level 98 Moon Douluo.

If this could untie the knot in Zhang Lexuan's heart, Yan Shaozhe would still have some use.

Zhang Lexuan relaxed. "Mu En, I'm fine. I was just thinking that if he hadn't acted so high-handedly, this surely wouldn't have happened."

Mu En nodded, a bitter smile touching his lips. "The people he attacked had powerful connections. If the two royal families discover that the Dark Qilin was killed by Yan Shaozhe, they will surely harbor deep hatred toward Shrek."

"Xuan Zi's words were despicable, but he wasn't wrong. It would be best for Shrek not to admit to this. The Ultimate Dark Qilin was far too valuable. Once grown, he could have led the three nations in a counterattack against the Sun Moon Empire."

"He died at Yan Shaozhe's hands. Whatever explanation we offer, they will believe Shrek envied and resented his talent. Even if I personally visit to apologize, they will only see it as a threat."

"The Dark Qilin was close to the princesses of both nations. I don't know whether the two royal families hoped to make him a prince consort, but those two princesses investigating in the future would be troublesome as well."

Zhang Lexuan said softly, "I've experienced that. When I visited the families of those eight junior students and apologized on the academy's behalf, most of them reacted not with grief, but with fear."

"Such is the influence of the continent's foremost academy. The heights are bitterly cold. You've already done very well."

While comforting Zhang Lexuan, Mu En suddenly asked, "Ling Luochеn, who is about to leave for the tournament, was also close to the Dark Qilin?"

Zhang Lexuan's face instantly went white. "Mu En, you..."

"I'm not that despicable."

Mu En rubbed his chest and pondered for a while before asking, "Are there any other students suitable for the tournament? If Ling Luochеn discovers even a thread of evidence, she may well leave."

"Of course, I hope she can compete as usual."

Zhang Lexuan considered it. "The strongest of this generation is Xiaotao, but she has the evil fire problem. The Soul Tool Department has only one Soul King suitable for competing, Mei Diwei. He was also a Reserve Team member in the last tournament."

"In the Martial Soul Department, Bi Yangde's younger brother, Bi Yangyi, whose martial soul is the Soul-Eating Spider Emperor, has a soul power level second only to the members already selected. There is also a plant-type Soul King."

"Have them prepare. Xiaotao is too dangerous. The evil fire problem cannot be resolved, so we can't let her go. If Ling Luochеn doesn't return, let them fill in."

Mu En settled the matter with a final word. He would use weaker Martial Soul Department students rather than Ma Xiaotao with her unstable evil fire.

Zhang Lexuan pursed her lips, regret in her gentle voice. "If the Dark Qilin hadn't been mistakenly killed, perhaps he could have helped Xiaotao."

"Don't bring up something that's already impossible."

Mu En turned his head toward the north, his voice gradually regaining its calm. "As for the Heavenly Dragon Sect, I must still pay them a visit. If they already know, I will do my best to resolve this enmity."

"This matter ends here. Cultivate diligently. In the future, you will be the Martial Soul Department Dean."

As his words faded, light surged within the Sea God's Pavilion, and Mu En vanished without a sound.

Zhang Lexuan stood there for a long time before leaving the Sea God's Pavilion with light steps.

She felt much better.

Below the pavilion, Yan Shaozhe knelt on the ground, the sunlight drawing out his long shadow. Deep red threads of blood occasionally surfaced in his eyes, whose light had dimmed.

Mingdu, Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.

Wearing a mask, Yu Tianjun arrived at the entrance and took out the Red Dust Protection. He said to the gatekeeper, "Please notify your Dean that an old acquaintance has come to visit. Red Dust Protection seeks Red Dust."

The gatekeeper glanced at the words "Produced by Radiant Virtue Hall" on the Red Dust Protection. Confirming that it was genuine, he dared not neglect the visitor.

"Please wait a moment. I'll notify the Dean right away."