Qian Renxue, in danger! (Double-length chapter, please keep reading)

"Teacher, your health will..."

"Elder Mu..."

Xuan Zi, Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and the others all looked at Mu En with concern.

They knew very well how powerful Elder Mu was, but they also knew his health was nowhere near what it had once been. His battle against Du Bisou, the previous master of the Body Sect, had damaged his vital essence. Ever since, he had been confined to a reclining chair, unable to straighten his back.

Now he was nearing the end of his life, and his vitality was far less abundant than at his peak. If he fought and killed Du Busi now, he would inevitably expend what little vitality he had left. He might even die after the battle.

Mu En naturally saw their concern, but all he wanted to say was that they were overestimating the brothers Du Busi and Du Bisou.

Back then, although he had been injured after fighting and killing Du Bisou, his vital essence had been nowhere near damaged.

The reason he had ended up paralyzed in a reclining chair was simply that he had tried to refine the Dragon Core to advance even further.

Who could have imagined that the vicious energy hidden deep within the Dragon Core would exploit an opening and damage his vital essence? That was the true cause of his paralysis.

However, that explanation was simply too ridiculous and would tarnish his dignity as the Dragon God Douluo. After all, for a mighty Limit Douluo to end up bedridden from refining a treasure was far too embarrassing.

Thus, Mu En told everyone that his paralysis had resulted from his battle with Du Bisou. He never mentioned the real reason. (The original work gives inconsistent explanations for Mu En's paralysis; this book patches that inconsistency.)

What Mu En had not expected was that his public explanation would lead everyone to overestimate the strength of the brothers Du Busi and Du Bisou.

They even believed his body would fail him after he killed Du Busi.

Mu En felt rather helpless about this. The gulf between a Limit Douluo and someone below that rank was enormous.

One had dual soul cores, while the other had a single soul core. Whether in the quality or quantity of soul power, or in their control over spatial power, they were no longer on the same plane.

No matter how formidable the second awakening of a body martial soul was, it could not bridge that gulf in cultivation.

Still, he truly did have little vitality remaining. If killing Du Busi consumed too much of it, he might indeed die ahead of his time.

But fighting on Shrek Academy's home ground, with the support of the demigod Golden Tree, would make things entirely different.

With the Golden Tree's support, his strength would rise even further. Even if Di Tian, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King, the continent's strongest being known as the Beast God, came here, he would have nothing to fear.

A mere Du Busi at Peak Level 98 could forget about stirring up any waves. The power of the demigod Golden Tree would be enough to suppress him.

Moreover, even if using the Golden Tree depleted some of his vitality, the loss would not be too severe.

The Golden Tree had accumulated energy over an immensely long time, and every wisp of that energy was precious. Under ordinary circumstances, unless something major happened, Mu En would never draw on the energy within it.

But for an unparalleled genius like Chen An, who had a chance of becoming a Limit Douluo, Mu En considered even using the Golden Tree's power worthwhile.

Once Chen An was raised to the Limit Douluo realm, he would be able to shelter Shrek Academy for three hundred years, perhaps even longer.

That was unquestionably a worthwhile bargain.

Mu En looked around and declared, "I am merely old, not incapable of moving. As long as Du Busi has not become a Limit Douluo, he will never pose a threat in my eyes."

Although Mu En lay in his reclining chair, his golden eyes were now filled with majesty, and a will that seemed to reign over all beneath heaven radiated from him.

For a moment, they seemed to see a great white dragon spreading its wings and soaring high, looking down upon all living beings.

That will instantly swept over the Sea God Pavilion Elders present. Yan Shaozhe, Cai Mei'er, and the others nodded, expressing their trust in Elder Mu.

Mu En had governed Shrek Academy for two hundred years. His prestige had long since reached an unimaginable height. Whatever he said, the people of Shrek Academy would believe and carry out.

Hearing Elder Mu's words, Xuan Zi, who sat to his right, had an inkling of what he intended. Elder Mu would probably use the Golden Tree's power.

As Shrek Academy's second-in-command, Mu En's martial nephew, and the grand-disciple of the previous Sea God Pavilion Master, Xuan Zi knew many of the academy's secrets. Naturally, he also understood the Golden Tree's power.

Guilt welled up in Xuan Zi's heart. He felt that if he had not let that Body Sect disciple escape, Elder Mu would not need to use the Golden Tree's power to clean up his mess.

Xuan Zi thought, Once that old monster Du Busi arrives, I'll have to go up and give him a vicious fight to wear him down.

Then Elder Mu will have an easier time suppressing him with the Golden Tree, and it will consume less of the tree's energy.

Mu En said, "All right, let us set the matter of the Body Sect aside for now."

"Next, let us discuss how we should nurture that child, Chen An."

At this point, Elder Lin, Lin Huiqun, frowned slightly. "This is my first time seeing such an unparalleled genius. For the moment, I truly do not know how we should nurture him."

Lin Huiqun's hair was white as snow, yet her face had relatively few wrinkles. Her gaze was very gentle, like that of a kindly grandmother.

Lin Huiqun looked at Yan Shaozhe. "Shaozhe, as Shrek Academy's dean, you are primarily responsible for managing and educating the young students. You must have plenty of ideas about educating them. Let us hear your thoughts."

"Yes, Elder Lin."

Yan Shaozhe did not demur. He immediately began speaking with easy confidence.

"In my opinion, Chen An is still very young. Natural treasures and all manner of miraculous medicines are unsuitable for him."

"First, consuming too many treasures and pills will inevitably make his soul power unstable. We might even end up pulling on a seedling to help it grow, leaving his foundation shallow and robbing him of the chance to reach higher realms in the future."

"Therefore, I believe that at this stage, we should focus on his roots and fundamentals. We should strengthen his body and refine his soul power and Spiritual Power until they are condensed, preparing him to reach higher realms in the future."

"At the same time, we should strengthen Chen An's ideological education, so that he genuinely identifies with Shrek Academy. We should also arrange several companions for him."

"That will allow the children to form emotional bonds as they spend time together, while also creating healthy competition that benefits their cultivation."

After hearing Yan Shaozhe's words, the Sea God Pavilion Elders present all nodded, clearly approving of his suggestions.

For any organization, the loyalty of its students and disciples was extremely important.

If students or disciples were insufficiently loyal, then the more powerful and talented they became, the greater the harm they would cause if they turned against their benefactors.

Soon, Chen An's training plan was finalized.

First, he would receive specially tailored, highly nutritious meals every day to reinforce his foundation, temper his physique, and nourish his Spiritual Power.

Second, a Monster Class would be established on Sea God Island. Its students would all be Chen An's age, allowing them to form bonds and friendships with him.

Meanwhile, every teacher assigned to the Monster Class would be a Titled Douluo. Even the Sea God Pavilion Elders would teach them when they had time.

Third, his ideological education would be strengthened, and personnel would be assigned to guard him closely, preventing members of outside organizations from misleading him as he grew.

After further discussion, the Sea God Pavilion Meeting came to an end, and the elders dispersed.

Soon, Mu En was the only person left in the room.

Lying in his reclining chair, Mu En tapped his fingers against its armrest, producing a series of light clinks.

Mu En sighed, reflecting inwardly, Truly, flowers planted with care refuse to bloom, while a willow branch planted without thought grows into shade.

All these years, I have been searching for and nurturing an unparalleled genius who could inherit my position and protect Shrek Academy.

But whether it was Lexuan, Xiaotao, or the others, they always fell a little short. Their talent was not dazzling enough.

They should have no trouble becoming Super Douluos in the future, but their chances of becoming Limit Douluos are simply too low.

Who would have thought that Xuan Zi would bring back an unparalleled genius at a time like this?

Had I not seen it with my own eyes, I would find it hard to believe that such a powerful, perfect body martial soul truly existed. Once a body martial soul of this caliber undergoes its second awakening, it will certainly reach the gold rank.

And it possesses both physical and spiritual attributes. What terrifying talent.

At the same level, even an ultimate martial soul might not measure up to a body martial soul of this caliber.

Moreover, unlike an ultimate martial soul, a body martial soul's cultivation speed does not slow drastically after level 30. It is simply perfect. Calling him heaven's favored would be no exaggeration.

After reflecting for a while, Mu En closed the golden eyes set in his deeply wrinkled old face, once again becoming an ordinary, gentle old man.

"Xiao Tao."

"Elder Mu!"

A black-robed middle-aged man with a sharp gaze appeared before the reclining chair and dropped to one knee.

With his eyes closed, Mu En asked casually, "How is the investigation coming along?"

The black-robed middle-aged man, Wang Tao, took a stack of papers from his Storage Soul Tool and handed them to Mu En.

After accepting the papers, Mu En swept his vast Spiritual Power over them and read all their contents.

Mu En thought, Chen An's background is clean. He truly is an ordinary village boy.

And he has done nothing reprehensible throughout his childhood. He also understands gratitude. When he parted with the villagers...

He even asked Zhang Lexuan to awaken their martial souls, and arranged for the kind neighbor who had helped him to move into the city... yes, he is a good child.

As Shrek Academy's leader, Mu En naturally had to conduct a background check on the unparalleled genius he was about to nurture with such care.

If there were problems with his background, or flaws in his character such as a bloodthirsty disposition, Mu En could address them and intervene promptly.

That would prevent him from sewing a wedding dress for some other faction, or failing to discover a problem in time and allowing it to bring disaster in the future.

Wang Tao said, "Elder Mu, after my investigation, every experience Chen An has had from birth until now is recorded here. We investigated all one hundred and thirty-eight people in Qinghe Village."

"There was nothing unusual. It is just..."

Hearing this, Mu En asked curiously, "Just what?"

"It is just that we could find no clues whatsoever about the girl beside Chen An, the one named Ren Xue. It is as though she sprang out of a crack in a rock."

"According to the villagers' recollections, that girl is not from Qinghe Village."

"Elder Mu, I have failed you. Please give me a little more time. Even if I must dig three feet into the earth and comb through every record in the Heaven Dou Empire, I will uncover Ren Xue's identity and background."

Mu En lay in his reclining chair, his eyelids drooping. Between those half-open lids, a majestic golden gleam emerged.

"In that case, stop investigating. Use your martial soul to examine that girl's memories and check her identity and background."

"Yes. I will see to it immediately."

Wang Tao's figure flickered, and he vanished from the spot.

Only Mu En remained, lying in his reclining chair and gazing through the window at the setting sun on the horizon, silent for a long time.

That night, the moon shone bright and the stars were sparse. Cool moonlight bathed all of Shrek Academy, draping the continent's foremost academy in a pure white veil.

In the guest bedroom of the faculty quarters occupied by Mu Jin, a teacher in Shrek Academy's outer court.

Qian Renxue sat cross-legged, steadily practicing Shrek Academy's version of meditation.

Because Qian Renxue had disguised her Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul as a holy swan, Shrek Academy's senior leadership did not consider her valuable enough to cultivate on Sea God Island alongside Chen An.

Instead, she had been placed in the care of an unmarried outer court teacher.

As an outer court teacher, Mu Jin had attractive features and a full figure, and his Soul Emperor cultivation was far from weak. Looking after a little girl was naturally well within his capabilities.

Under Mu Jin's arrangement, the guest bedroom where Qian Renxue stayed was simple but extremely cozy.

The room had a simple layout: a bed, a desk, a wardrobe, and a private bathroom.

Several adorable rag dolls sat on the bed. Clearly, seeing how young Qian Renxue was, Mu Jin had bought them to cheer her up.

However, although Qian Renxue looked only six years old, she was already an adult mentally. Naturally, she had no interest in rag dolls.

The only things that interested Qian Renxue were cultivation, greater strength, recruiting subordinates, and rebuilding Spirit Hall.

As Heaven and Earth Origin Energy steadily flowed into her body, the energy within Qian Renxue's dantian grew increasingly condensed.

Qian Renxue thought, Because I haven't absorbed my second soul ring, my soul power still can't advance beyond level 20. I need to find an opportunity to leave Shrek Academy and absorb it.

Otherwise, cultivating at the Soul Master rank is simply too inefficient. It will seriously slow my progress.

Just as Qian Renxue was pondering this, a shadow silently appeared behind her.

Eight soul rings rose and circled him: two yellow, two purple, and four black.

Wang Tao, a Soul Douluo whose martial soul was called Nightmare, immediately activated a soul skill, intending to retrieve Qian Renxue's memories.

Looking at Qian Renxue's tiny figure, Wang Tao thought of his own daughter and sighed inwardly. I'm sorry, but let me look at your memories. If there is nothing wrong, I believe Elder Mu will compensate you.

At that critical instant, a gray pearl within Qian Renxue's Sea of Consciousness erupted with a deep, mysterious light.