Both Made a Run for It

Qian Renxue cupped her soft cheeks in both hands and began doubting the plan she had drawn up earlier.

Join Shrek Academy, eat its food, drink its drinks, poach its talent, then run off with those recruits and rebuild Spirit Hall.

Previously, she had felt there was nothing wrong with that plan. It had looked pretty good.

But why, after Elder Yi had finished explaining things to her, did it suddenly seem rather unreliable...?

During her days at Shrek Academy, Qian Renxue had indeed felt constrained in many ways. There were plenty of things she could not readily reveal.

Above all, she had no opportunity to absorb her second soul ring, which prevented her from increasing her strength any further.

She could only meditate and cultivate at a Soul Master's sluggish pace, or listen to Elder Yi talk about his magic when she had nothing else to do.

Magic sounded all right. It just made her sleepy.

She had learned two basic magic spells and tried them out in secret. Though their power was nothing special, their effects were quite good. If used properly in combat, they might produce surprising results.

Just as Qian Renxue began turning things over in her head, Electrolux asked, "Xiao Xue, have you made up your mind?"

Qian Renxue replied, "Elder Yi, I've thought it over. Staying at Shrek Academy really does make it difficult for me to improve my strength. Besides, its students are either rich or noble, and their interests naturally conflict with Spirit Hall's.

"But a major reason I came to Shrek Academy was Chen An. His peerless talent, his ideas, his approval of Spirit Hall... I can't let Shrek Academy change his original convictions.

"Otherwise, once he grows stronger in the future, he'll inevitably become a formidable enemy to my efforts to rebuild Spirit Hall."

Electrolux: () A formidable enemy? I can't even be bothered to call you out...

Electrolux sighed inwardly. Young people were so easily swayed by their emotions, unable to tell what truly mattered. They would only learn regret after suffering a bitter loss.

Electrolux said, "You don't need to worry about Chen An. Earlier, I sensed that the big worm inside him seemed to have done something. He's no longer at Shrek Academy."

Qian Renxue was startled. "Chen An isn't at Shrek Academy anymore? Then where is he now?"

Electrolux could not help finding it funny. He was merely a wisp of divine consciousness now. This girl truly overestimated his abilities.

Being able to gain a rough understanding of events on Sea God Island through Qian Renxue's eyes was already his limit. Anything beyond that was genuinely beyond him.

In fact, the only reason he had noticed Chen An's departure from Shrek Academy was that he had encountered that big worm's aura before.

Combined with the extremely high level of his wisp of divine consciousness and his knowledge of spatial power, that had allowed him to detect the fluctuations of the spatial teleportation.

Electrolux said, "I don't know where Chen An is, but I can say for certain that he's no longer at Shrek Academy."

Then Electrolux began explaining things to Qian Renxue.

After hearing his explanation, Qian Renxue immediately filled in the gaps herself, assuming that the big worm inside Chen An had teleported him away to escape the terrifying self-detonation on Sea God Island.

Qian Renxue asked, "Will Chen An return to Shrek Academy later?"

As a wisp of divine consciousness, Electrolux naturally hoped Qian Renxue would grow stronger. Only then would he have a chance to recover someday. Staying at Shrek Academy was undoubtedly irresponsible toward both her safety and her growth.

Electrolux said, "I think Chen An is more likely to head to the Body Sect in the future. That child may look young, but his thoughts run deep. The Body Sect is clearly better suited to his development.

"So, Xiao Xue, are you planning to stay at Shrek Academy or leave?"

Since Chen An was already gone, Qian Renxue immediately resolved to leave.

Qian Renxue thought to herself, Shrek Academy has weathered several upheavals in just a few days. First the Body Sect invaded, then a mysterious expert blew himself up.

It looks strong on the outside but hollow within. There may well be even more crises to come.

If I stay here, I might get caught in them too. I'd better take Elder Yi's advice and leave while I can.

Having made up her mind, Qian Renxue immediately used the inherited soul bone within her to alter her aura, soul power, and figure. Along with the little invisibility spell Electrolux had taught her, she quietly slipped out of Shrek Academy.

Amid all this chaos, no one would pay attention to a mere One-Ring Soul Master.

Thus, Qian Renxue's departure went extremely smoothly.

Outside Shrek City, Chen An stood atop a small hill several hundred meters high.

At that moment, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was rolling around in Chen An's Sea of Consciousness, aching over his loss.

"My last reserves of power! Oh, it hurts! I burned through a tenth of them in one go! Good thing I was clever and only teleported thirty kilometers. If I'd gone several hundred kilometers, I wouldn't have enough strength left to get you your second martial soul, little Chen An."

Chen An did not respond. He merely gathered soul power in his eyes and quietly watched the battle in the sky above Shrek Academy.

Only after Yun Chen died in his self-detonation did he withdraw his gaze.

Chen An thought to himself, With Yun Chen dead, there's no living witness left to verify anything about me.

Shrek Academy's higher-ups will only assume Yun Chen spirited me away through some unknown means. That way, I won't have to worry about the people connected to me getting dragged into this.

Through Chen An's eyes, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm also saw the dazzling, dangerous aurora over Sea God Island and cried out in alarm.

"Heavens, that scared me to death! What a powerful self-detonation! With that kind of force, killing a few Titled Douluos would probably be no problem.

"If I hadn't been clever enough to take you and run fast, little Chen An, those skinny arms and legs of yours would probably have been done for.

"Speaking of which, little Chen An, you spent a week at Shrek Academy and barely gained anything, but two major battles broke out one after the other.

"And both came for you. I think Shrek Academy is your jinx. Better leave sooner rather than later. Who knows what other dangers might come if you stay?

"Hurry up and raise your soul power to rank twenty. Then I'll take you to the Far North, get you your second martial soul, and send you soaring into the heavens!"

Chen An had his own plans for his second martial soul. In any case, he absolutely would not merge with an ultimate shackle like the Ice Empress before rank seventy. Otherwise, his cultivation speed would be halved, and that would be unbearably frustrating.

Chen An did not dampen the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's enthusiasm. Instead, he thanked him sincerely. "Thank you, Brother Sky Dream. Without you, that Super Douluo would probably have captured me already."

Hearing Chen An's thanks inside his Sea of Consciousness, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm happily lay sprawled across ten great balls of

light and chuckled. "Hey, what are you thanking me for? I told you, I've got your back."

After exchanging a few more words with the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm through their consciousnesses, Chen An immediately prepared to leave Shrek City's sphere of influence.

He headed toward Heaven Dou City, the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire!

Because the Body Sect kept itself hidden from the world, few people knew its location, and Chen An was no exception.

But he knew that, given the ties between the Body Sect and the Heaven Dou Empire, he would certainly find clues about it once he reached Heaven Dou City.

He might not even need to search. Perhaps he would hear something relevant simply by going there.

Chen An took the map of the Douluo Continent he had prepared in advance out of his Storage Soul Tool.

Then he marked up the map, plotting a route from the Lima Plain, where Shrek City stood, to Heaven Dou City, the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.

A route with the best security, the most travelers, the easiest access to supplies, and protection from soldiers and imperial Soul Masters along the way.

Chen An did not lack the courage to fight for what he wanted, but he was never careless either.

Even if it meant taking a longer detour and spending a few extra days, he had no intention of using those shorter, dangerous trails.

As the saying went, if you did not court death, you would not die.

Four nations stood upon the Douluo Continent, with major sects occupying their own territories. There were also Evil Soul Masters and all sorts of bandits hiding in gloomy mountains and dense forests, specifically killing travelers who lacked strength yet insisted on courting death.

Chen An would not gamble his life on luck merely to save a little time. If he really ran into such rotten trouble, he might end up wasting the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's precious power, every bit of which was gone forever once used.

After settling on his itinerary, Chen An used the control over his body granted by his true self martial soul.

He altered his facial muscles, making his formerly delicate, adorable face look ordinary, then increased his height by a few centimeters and made his build thinner.

With that, the original Chen An disappeared, replaced by an older boy with unremarkable features and a lean figure.

Once that was done, Chen An took a set of coarse cloth clothes and cloth shoes worn by ordinary commoners out of his Storage Soul Tool.

These clothes and shoes could not remotely compare to the clothes made from thousand-year silkworm silk and the leather boots made from thousand-year Golden-Footed Deer hide that he currently wore.

Their comfort and defensive qualities fell far short. After all, his current outfit had been prepared by the academy's higher-ups, so it naturally would not be poor quality.

But dressing plainly was the only way to avoid attracting attention. Clothes made from thousand-year silkworm silk were worth over a thousand Gold Soul Coins. Only the rich and powerful could wear them, and not just any ordinary rich and powerful person, either.

Walking down the road in such extravagant clothes without attracting attention would have been downright unnatural.

Dressing more ordinarily and looking more ordinary would definitely draw far less danger.

Anyone with a little strength would disdain the paltry scraps ordinary people carried. With Chen An's formidable ability to defeat a Soul Elder, dealing with the scum who robbed commoners would be more than easy enough.

After changing his figure, appearance, and clothing, Chen An removed the Storage Soul Tool bracelet from his wrist and tucked it into a hidden cloth pouch inside his clothes.

He also gathered some dirt from the ground to grime himself up, vigorously rubbed his clothes until they were wrinkled and torn, and scuffed his shoes against a rock.

With all the details polished, the transformed Chen An immediately followed the route on his map and headed northwest.

Three hours later.

On a main road outside Willow Leaf City, the first city on the Heaven Dou Empire's border adjoining Shrek Academy's Lima Plain.

Chen An and a black-haired girl stared into each other's eyes.

Her appearance altered, Qian Renxue looked at the plainly dressed boy with unremarkable features before her and thought, Am I imagining things? Why does he feel so familiar?