Xuan Zi Arrives Late, First Arrival at Shrek Academy

After all, it was a white Pokeball and simply not built to last. With a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast going all out, this Pokeball could not possibly hold him. Lasting a minute at most would already be impressive.

But Su Wen had never expected it to keep the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast trapped for long. He only wanted to buy a little time. As for whether the Pokeball could be restored after it shattered... at a moment of life and death, who had the spare thought for that?

The Pokeball began to shake violently.

As though something utterly terrifying had been sealed inside.

Fine cracks spread across the Pokeball like a spiderweb.

"Hiss..."

Su Wen clutched his head and curled up on the ground, his face turning purple from the pain.

It was the first time he had experienced pain as if his brain were being torn apart alive. It also felt as though someone had stabbed a small knife into his brain and viciously stirred it around. The agony was so intense that he could barely breathe, nearly sending him into shock. He did not even have the strength to cry out.

"Xiao Wen, are you alright? Don't scare me..."

Ma Xiaotao sprinted over and pulled Su Wen into her arms. Her pretty face was filled with panic, and the Evil Fire around her body showed faint signs of losing control.

Supported by an Inner Courtyard female disciple, Zhang Lexuan hurried over as well, her beautiful eyes fixed anxiously on Su Wen. Only she knew of Su Wen's Martial Soul, though she did not know the details.

But for a level-twelve boy to seal a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast—regardless of what method he had used, the price was easy to imagine.

About a minute later.

Bang~

A crisp cracking sound rang out.

The white ball clenched tightly in Su Wen's hand quietly shattered. A bloody gleam shot from within—it was the Blood-Eroding Demon Tiger, enraged from humiliation. It let out a roar and prepared to charge at everyone again.

But in the next instant, that incomparably sharp aura suddenly stalled, then plummeted wildly like a punctured balloon.

"Whew..."

Zhang Lexuan let out a breath of relief.

A cold glint filled her beautiful eyes.

"Kill!!!"

I hope I'm not too late. I hope...

Xuan Zi's expression was ugly to the extreme.

Though he muttered hopes under his breath, he knew full well that at least ten minutes had passed since the fan issued its warning. Given the enemy's strength, if he was lucky, he might still come across the freshly produced droppings of the Shrek Academy group after they had been devoured by that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

Even if Shrek's side had survived by sheer luck, they had probably suffered devastating casualties.

Rustle~

Just as he leaped over another ancient tree—

He finally came to a stop.

What entered his sight was a massive figure, making his pupils contract. But he quickly realized that this Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was already dead. Its body was covered in wounds, with several fatal injuries to its neck and abdomen that were deep enough to expose the bottom.

Those injuries did not look like the result of a normal kill. They looked more like... venting anger.

Nearby, the Shrek Inner Courtyard disciples had set up a temporary camp.

There were wounded people wrapped in white bandages and disciples serving as scouts, but Zhang Lexuan, Su Wen, and the others were nowhere to be seen.

Xuan Zi's heart lurched.

Could it be...

He quickly headed into the camp.

Xuan Zi knew that everyone had noticed him. Gaze after gaze fell upon him, yet they did not look at him as though he were their savior. Instead, there was restrained disappointment and silent resignation. That sense of lost trust weighed on him so heavily that he could barely breathe.

"Lexuan?"

At last, he saw Zhang Lexuan inside a tent.

And Su Wen, lying in Ma Xiaotao's arms, without a trace of color in his face.

"Elder Xuan, you're here?"

Zhang Lexuan sighed softly.

"..."

Xuan Zi took a deep breath. "How is the child?"

"He bought a crucial minute for all of us, at the cost of shattering his own Martial Soul. He held back that Blood-Eroding Demon Tiger, but whether his Martial Soul can condense again..." Zhang Lexuan shook her head.

Xuan Zi opened his mouth, his face filled with shock.

A six-year-old child who had only just become a Soul Master had actually influenced the outcome of a Titled Douluo-level battle.

"Roar~!"

A low growl sounded.

A snow-white baboon slipped into the tent from outside and growled a few words at Xuan Zi.

It seemed he was blaming himself for dereliction of duty.

"Sigh. Once we return, I'll ask Mu En to let me resign as Vice Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion. The responsibility for this mission's mishap lies entirely with me. I've let everyone down..." Xuan Zi slowly closed his eyes.

"That is your business. You needn't tell me about it," Zhang Lexuan said softly.

Xuan Zi opened his mouth, his face full of regret.

He naturally understood that although Le Xuan didn't say it aloud, a thorn had still been planted in her heart.

Ma Xiaotao bit her lip.

She dearly wanted to snap at Xuan Zi, but Sister Le Xuan stopped her with a look.

Even her teacher, Yan Shaozhe, could only treat Elder Xuan with utmost respect. This incident could not possibly make Elder Xuan resign; the academy's upper ranks would never agree to it.

But as the team leader, everyone could accept him usually being careless and absentminded—it was no great matter. Yet in such a dangerous place as the Core Region of the Star Dou Great Forest, he had run off to prepare food as though they were on a sightseeing trip...

"Xiaotao, are you all right?" Xuan Zi asked hesitantly.

"Hmph!" Ma Xiaotao snorted and ignored him.

Su Wen felt himself falling into the pool again.

He could only watch helplessly as he plunged into an endless abyss.

Suddenly.

A flash of light appeared before his eyes.

A hand reached toward him. Su Wen grabbed it with all his strength and struggled desperately upward.

"Gasp..."

The world shattered.

Su Wen sat bolt upright, gasping for breath as though he had escaped death. He was in a quiet bedroom. Its decorations were not especially luxurious, yet they carried a simple, unadorned charm—all the furniture was wooden, a faint scent of wood lingered in the air, and sunlight streamed through the window.

It warmed the entire bedroom.

When he turned his gaze to one side.

A fair, jade-like hand was interlocked with his fingers. Each slender finger was pale and delicate, its nails painted with crimson polish, making for a rather alluring sight.

And the owner of that hand...

Was Ma Xiaotao, sleeping soundly beside his bed.

He was lying on a soft wooden bed. The instant he sat up, only his head felt dizzy; his body, on the other hand, seemed to be perfectly fine.

Wait, my Martial Soul!

Su Wen's pupils suddenly contracted as he immediately checked his condition.

His meridians were functioning normally—there was no cliché scenario of blocked meridians. As for the Pokeball that had previously floated quietly in his Sea of Consciousness... it was still there.

Had it repaired itself?

Su Wen was bewildered.

But he also breathed a sigh of relief.

This world required strength. Without strength, one could not take a single step forward.

If he had truly been crippled, that would have been quite a joke.

The Pokeball was empty, and Hurricane was not inside. However, Su Wen was not worried. Though the pain had knocked him unconscious at the time, he had still retained a vague awareness. The greatly weakened Blood-Eroding Demon Tiger had been slaughtered by Shrek's Inner Courtyard Disciples.

Hurricane had most likely returned with the group.

As for where he was, Su Wen trusted that Senior Disciple Sister would have arranged everything properly.

He then examined his Soul Power.

"Huh? Level fourteen?!"

Su Wen cried out in surprise.

Not only had his cultivation not fallen, it had actually risen!