Thunderclap emerged from seclusion, Lexuan never returned, Mu En roared

"Shrek, Yan Shaozhe, you've gone too far!"

At the Heavenly Dragon Sect in Dragon City, Yu Yuanjue emerged from seclusion feeling refreshed and invigorated. Newly advanced to a Level 97 Super Douluo, he now possessed the beginnings of the power to command awe across a region.

Stepping outside, he found Long Xiaoyao living like a lord in his home. A crowd of juniors waited on him as he drank, ate meat, bathed, and enjoyed the sauna. He was having the time of his life.

Yu Yuanjue was delighted to see the senior too. Let him live like a lord—this was a Limit Douluo, after all.

He went over to greet him, only for Long Xiaoyao's expression to change. He stammered:

"Your son and grandson ran into some trouble in Death Canyon..."

Yu Yuanjue's mind went blank. He followed Long Xiaoyao to see Yu Xiaoying, who was recuperating, and found him missing a leg and an arm.

The old man nearly had his soul frightened out of him. His heart ached so badly that he could barely breathe.

"You're hurt this badly? What about Tianjun? How is Tianjun?"

Yu Yuanjue repeatedly asked about Yu Tianjun. An awkward expression crossed Yu Xiaoying's face. "He's fine, it's just..."

"Just what? Tell me!"

If Yu Tianjun was gone, Yu Yuanjue felt he would have to make an appearance in Shrek City and show them just how brilliant the fireworks from a Level 97 Super Douluo's self-destruction could be.

"He went to Mingdu."

Long Xiaoyao, who frequently traveled between Dragon City and the Barbecue Restaurant in Mingdu at night to make sure Yu Tianjun had no contact with Evil Soul Masters, could not bear to watch Yu Yuanjue suffer. He quietly offered the answer.

"Mingdu?"

Learning that his precious grandson was unharmed, Yu Yuanjue breathed a sigh of relief, but melancholy soon followed.

They were people of the Heaven Dou Empire. With Yu Tianjun gone to Mingdu, wouldn't the Heaven Dou Empire eventually follow Shrek straight to heaven?

But he had no reason whatsoever to blame Yu Tianjun. Yan Shaozhe had bullied him to such an extent that, if Yu Tianjun did not seek revenge, inner demons would haunt him for the rest of his life. One day, they might even kill him.

Then Shrek can damn well die! We won't rest until one side is dead!

"Calm down first. You don't have the strength to take revenge on Shrek right now."

Seeing Yu Yuanjue's fury rise enough to lift his hair, Long Xiaoyao pinned him down with one hand.

"I don't have the strength, but Tianjun will! They're digging their own graves!"

Yu Yuanjue barely managed to calm himself. He drew several deep breaths, and as his soul power spilled outward, thunder cracked through Dragon City's clear skies.

"I know. That's why your first priority now is to soothe Yu Tianjun. Whatever happens, you cannot let him fall into the Holy Spirit Cult."

"What's this Holy Spirit Cult?"

"The sect those Evil Soul Masters who injured you back then belong to."

"Understood."

Yu Yuanjue calmed down completely. Concern appeared on his face as he asked, "Then should I go to Mingdu now?"

Long Xiaoyao shook his head. "He's enrolled at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. They're on break lately, so he might come back on his own. Let's wait."

"There are plenty of formidable figures among Mingdu's Level 9 Soul Engineers. You're no weakling, but you can't force your way in."

"You've only just broken through. I'll spar with you. First, get used to your Level 97 cultivation."

Yu Yuanjue looked at this former student of his great-grandfather and sighed. "We'll do as you say, Elder Long."

On the third night.

The Mingdu Four-Person Group dropped into the Heavenly Dragon Sect, drawing Long Xiaoyao and Yu Yuanjue's attention. The black dragon and thunder dragon both turned their gazes on them.

Liao Mengkai, who had been riding high, froze all over, his hair standing on end.

With these two old geezers in the Heavenly Dragon Sect, how had Shrek dared lay a hand on Yu Tianjun?

Yan Shaozhe had to be an undercover agent from the Holy Spirit Cult!

Yu Tianjun lowered Zhang Lexuan, who was sleeping soundly in his arms, and removed the Sun Moon Formless mask to reveal his true face. "Grandpa, Elder Long, it's me."

"Tianjun... as long as you're all right. As long as you're all right..."

Yu Yuanjue looked dazed for a moment, then smiled and nodded, tears glimmering in his eyes.

Long Xiaoyao was constantly on guard against Yu Tianjun straying down the wrong path. Seeing him return with a stunning woman in her twenties in his arms, he frowned.

"You're so handsome that you've never lacked girls who like you. There are already two living with you day and night at the Mingdu villa. Why are you abducting innocent women now?"

"Don't tell me you're so good-looking that you went out once and hooked another girl, then knocked her unconscious. That doesn't seem right."

"Where's the trust between people, Elder Long?"

Yu Tianjun immediately defended his innocence. He gently laid Zhang Lexuan on the sofa and said:

"This maiden's tale is no common thread; the Inner Court's finest martial soul earns praise. She seems a royal daughter left astray, with nine parts destined bonds entwined."

"Young people these days like showing off their literary talents too? No wonder the girls like you."

Long Xiaoyao mulled over Yu Tianjun's doggerel, then suddenly sat bolt upright, his eyes widening.

"Eight rings, first in the Inner Court—you stormed the Shrek Inner Court and abducted its chief disciple?"

"She is the Shrek Inner Court's chief disciple, but we didn't storm Shrek. It's a long story."

Yu Tianjun invited everyone to sit wherever they liked, then summarized what had happened.

They had gone soul hunting in Star Dou and, through a series of accidents, ended up "inciting a soul beast riot, clashing with the Inner Court, and rescuing Lexuan."

The corners of both old men's eyes twitched as they listened.

Once Yu Yuanjue had heard the story, he raised a question about something that made no sense. "The Inner Court went soul hunting as a team, and Shrek didn't send a Titled Douluo with them?"

"Apparently not."

Yu Tianjun looked at Liao Mengkai, who flashed a proud smile. "Before we left, we didn't detect the slightest trace of a Titled Douluo's aura."

"I don't know what the Martial Soul Department Dean and those Grand Elders were thinking. Since they didn't care, we had no reason to stand on ceremony!"

"Allow me to formally introduce the future Princess Consort of our nation. Master Kong will be delighted. He might even make her a Princess outright."

The corners of Long Xiaoyao's eyes twitched. What had he told Mu En before? Beware of Xuan Zi and Yan Shaozhe getting him killed.

Once word of this reached him, hopefully his old bones wouldn't suffer from the fury.

"Good! Well done! Doesn't Shrek think nothing of geniuses? You've snatched their Inner Court chief disciple this time. Let's see if they can still smile!"

Yu Yuanjue slapped the table in delight. He released a long breath of pent-up frustration and laughed.

"Tianjun, tell me more. What did you mean by 'nine parts destined bonds entwined'? Do you like girls like her?"

Yu Tianjun's expression shifted. He took Zhang Lexuan's delicate hand and injected a thread of ultimate darkness soul power.

Everyone clearly saw the soul power enter Zhang Lexuan's body. A wisp of silver moon soul power flowed from her fingertip, merging with it and circulating through a full cycle.

"Soul power fusion? A Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"

The two old men spoke in unison.

"Almost certainly."

Yu Tianjun nodded. He had not expected this development himself.

"Good, good, good! Shrek has lost big this time! Haha, I'd love to see Yan Shaozhe's face!"

Yu Yuanjue's eyes sparkled.

Throughout history, whenever a man and a woman possessed a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, ninety-nine percent of them went on to unite in body and heart on the foundation of their martial soul fusion.

Long Xiaoyao's gaze grew even more complicated. The chances of Zhang Lexuan returning to Shrek had now fallen to virtually zero.

Once the two young people spent enough time together and love came into play, Zhang Lexuan would very likely give her heart to him. All Mu En's painstaking efforts would go down the drain.

But looking at it another way, this girl had faced mortal danger twice. Mu En and Shrek did not seem to have invested much effort in her, did they?

Hmm, then Mu En should be fine. Zhang Lexuan has survived this long purely through her own stubborn vitality. Shrek doesn't care about her at all, so they must have plenty of geniuses.

Long Xiaoyao stopped worrying about Mu En. Zhang Lexuan ought to thank the Mingdu Four-Person Group for being alive.

"Grandpa, we're tired after traveling all this way. Please arrange rooms for my friends. It's been so long since we saw each other. Let's talk alone."

Having proved his innocence, Yu Tianjun moved on to the next subject, his expression growing slightly grave.

Yu Yuanjue realized something too and nodded. "All right."

Meanwhile, ten thousand miles away, the lights blazed inside Sea God's Pavilion on Shrek's Sea God Island.

The Six Grand Elders and three deans sat in their places. Yan Shaozhe, who had previously been expelled from Sea God's Pavilion, had returned as well.

Mu En occupied the seat of honor. Overwhelming cold radiated from his grief-stricken face, and the atmosphere was terrifyingly oppressive.

Everyone kept their heads lowered without a word.

The students had brought bad news the night before. For some reason, Inner Court disciple Wu Ming had charged into the Core Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest. The soul-hunting team had been forced to follow, encountering a small beast tide along the way.

Zhang Lexuan, the Senior Sister of the Inner Court, had fought her way through the beast tide alone to find Wu Ming, while the others withdrew under Han Ruoruo's leadership.

That morning, Shrek Academy had sent Cai Mei'er, the Martial Soul Department's Vice Dean, to retrieve Zhang Lexuan and Wu Ming.

Cai Mei'er had hummed a tune as she set out, thinking that the Inner Court disciples lacked experience and would need more supervision after they returned.

An hour later, she and Han Ruoruo tracked the two women's auras to the last place they had appeared. She was dumbfounded—

All that remained was a heap of mutilated metal-attribute soul beast corpses and rotten flesh. They looked as though they had been dead for some time. A flock of vultures was feasting, enjoying themselves immensely.

Cai Mei'er was so frightened that her features contorted: w(ﾟДﾟ)w

Where's Zhang Lexuan? Where's Wu Ming? Where did my two full-grown Inner Court disciples go? They couldn't have been eaten, could they?

"No—Senior Sister! Ming'er!"

Han Ruoruo, a friend of both women, was frightened to tears as the worst possibility crossed her mind.

Especially when she found strands of Zhang Lexuan's hair and scraps of Wu Ming's clothing beneath a chunk of some unidentifiable soul beast's corpse. Her heart skipped a beat.

Her legs lost their strength, and she dropped to her knees with a thud. Regretting that she had not followed them, Han Ruoruo shed tears like rain onto the bloodstained earth.

"Senior Sister, Ming'er, I shouldn't have left last night... sob..."

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Lexuan was invincible among eight-ring soul masters! How could she die at the hands of a pack of vermin?"

Cai Mei'er loudly declared it impossible. Only she knew how much she believed those words.

After driving away the vultures and examining the scene, she discovered five deep claw marks in the ground. Once she identified the aura, her heart turned cold to its depths.

The claw marks came from a dark gold terrorclaw bear—a hundred-thousand-year-level one!

Before fleeing, the Mingdu Four-Person Group had left behind a Simulation soul tool and turned it to maximum power, successfully attracting a hundred-thousand-year overlord.

Awakened by the commotion among the youngsters, the old bear had swaggered over to seek treasure. Only upon arriving had he discovered the deception. Flying into a rage, he killed several soul beasts with a swipe of his claw and took them home as stored provisions.

Cai Mei'er had no way of knowing what had happened. She knew Zhang Lexuan was powerful, but she was certainly no match for a hundred-thousand-year dark gold terrorclaw bear.

The Inner Court's greatest genius had escaped the tragedy caused by Xuan Zi's negligence, only to fail to escape slaughter by a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. How sorrowful. How lamentable.

"Return to the academy and ask Mu En to come!"

Cai Mei'er dared not delay. Whether Zhang Lexuan had perished or disappeared in Star Dou, this was beyond her ability to handle. Their only option now was to bring Mu En out.

"Idiots! A pack of idiots with their brains stuffed into their heels!"

Upon hearing the news, Mu En nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. He carried his wheelchair into Star Dou, his old arms and legs remarkably nimble.

But it was useless. The scene was already so devastated that reconstructing events was impossible. Mu En released his spiritual power to search for traces of the moon martial soul, then faintly sensed that the silver moon martial soul had shattered here, torn apart by the Dark Gold Dreadclaw...

Mu En's expression immediately turned dazed.

"Lexuan is gone? No! We can still look. We can still look..."

Refusing to give up, the Dragon God Douluo clung to a sliver of hope and risked entering the Great Ferocious Land to speak with the ferocious beasts.

"Beast God, is my disciple still alive? If she is, I'm willing to pay a price to bring her back."

"How tiresome."

With a cold expression, Di Tian made it clear that he had no idea what Mu En was talking about. A human soul master entered the Star Dou Great Forest and vanished, and he came running to ask him?

Soul beasts die in my Star Dou Great Forest every day. Shall I pay your Shrek City a visit to ask after them sometime?

"Xiong Jun, was my disciple injured by one of your clansmen?"

Unwilling to give up, Mu En questioned Xiong Jun next.

Xiong Jun had always despised humans most of all. He inspected the scene, then gathered the bear pack and counted them. Finding two missing, he roared furiously:

"Injured, my ass! My descendants killed her long ago! She's dead as dead can be, and two of my descendants went to the grave with her. She deserved it!"

"My only regret is that I didn't tear her apart alive with my own hands!"

"Mu En, you old bastard, want to test whether This King's Sky-Rending Claw is sharp?"

Mu En went cold all over. He could barely remember how he had returned from the Star Dou Great Forest. The moment he reached Sea God Island, blood surged from his chest and out of his mouth, and he fainted.

"Mu En! Mu En..."

The Grand Elders of Sea God's Pavilion were frightened out of their wits. Amid a babble of voices, they brought Zhuang Yusheng over to treat him.

After a struggle that lasted until evening, Mu En regained consciousness. The old Pavilion Master stared blankly toward Star Dou for two hours, then convened a Sea God Pavilion Meeting.

Now, Mu En remained silent for a long time, and no one dared speak.

After an indeterminate stretch of time, Mu En's calm voice rang through the air.

"You've all sat here with this old man for so long. Why hasn't anyone said anything? Someone has to get a meeting started."

Xuan Zi summoned the courage to glance at Mu En and picked up the conversation. "Mu En, everyone knows what happened. The responsibility lies entirely with Wu Ming. She charged into the Core Circle after a soul beast attacked her and dragged Lexuan into trouble."

"If we look for anyone else responsible, then Lexuan was too conscientious. Wu Ming went in alone—so let her go. Why did Lexuan insist on following..."

Smack!

A lightning-fast slap struck Xuan Zi's face, knocking him to the floor. He covered his cheek and looked up into Mu En's utterly icy eyes.

"You will not insult an Inner Court student who died heroically saving her junior sister with such words again!"

"Yes, yes, yes... Mu En, I was wrong." Xuan Zi rubbed his face and climbed to his feet, his back drenched in cold sweat.

Perhaps it was his imagination, but the instant Mu En had looked at him, he thought he had seen killing intent in his eyes.

Impossible, impossible. I must have drunk too much during the day and seen things. Mu En's killing intent would only ever be directed at soul beasts.

Yan Shaozhe looked grief-stricken. "Teacher, our Martial Soul Department bears responsibility for this incident. We failed to assign a powerful protector because Lexuan's cultivation was so advanced."

"I believe we must learn from this. We need to send Titled Douluos to safeguard the Inner Court disciples from the shadows. I'm willing to accompany them forever and never repeat our past mistakes."

Those words eased Mu En's heart a little. Ultimately, Yan Shaozhe still cared about the Martial Soul Department's students.

"This tragedy pains me deeply. We must take it as a warning..."

Mu En looked across those old faces, each at least a hundred years old. Suddenly, even speaking felt exhausting. Still, he drew a breath and finished what he wanted to say.

"When Inner Court disciples go soul hunting, the academy must send a Titled Douluo. Even when Outer Court Core Disciples go soul hunting, the academy must assign teachers as circumstances require."

"Lexuan was such an unfortunate child. Her life was bitter as wild grass beneath a cartwheel, bitter as goldthread growing in a crack between stones. Shrek failed her. We must record her deeds on the Sea God Stele, so that those who come after will remember her name."

Having expressed his grief, Mu En's anger subsided somewhat, and he delivered his final decision.

"Yan Shaozhe will resume his position as Martial Soul Department Dean. If another tragedy occurs, I will make those responsible accompany the students who died so miserably to the grave! Teachers may die in the Star Dou Great Forest, but not another student!"

"Yes."

The Six Grand Elders and Four Deans answered in unison. At that moment, no one had any objections.

Seeing this, Mu En calmed his emotions and turned his gaze beyond Sea God Lake.

Bei Bei, from now on, I can only rely on you. Don't blame your Great Ancestor for being cruel. Your romance will have to wait.