Zhu Zhuqing Leaves Shrek

"Get lost. Three strikes and you're out. If there is a next time, I imagine you know the outcome without me having to tell you."

At his words, everyone from Shrek let out a great sigh of relief, their hearts filled with profound gratitude for their luck and lingering fear at having survived disaster.

"Thank you for showing mercy and sparing our lives, Your Excellency!"

With that, Frank hurried forward, helped Zhao Wuji up from where he had collapsed on the ground, drenched in cold sweat, and turned to chase after Yu Xiaogang, who had stormed off in anger.

As for the remaining Shrek Six Monsters-Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Ning Rongrong, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar-they each glanced at Zhu Zhuqing, who had stood silently to one side throughout, before following the others out of the little shop with their tails between their legs.

Quiet finally returned to the shop.

Lin Yue slowly shifted his gaze toward Zhu Zhuqing, who had silently watched the entire farce from the sidelines, and spoke in an even tone:

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to them?"

Zhu Zhuqing nodded lightly. "I am."

"But before that, I still have some questions I'd like to ask you, Shopkeeper Lin."

"Let's hear them."

Looking composed, Lin Yue gestured for her to speak.

"You previously said you'd heard a little about many of this continent's powers, Shopkeeper Lin. I didn't quite believe you. It wasn't until I heard your exchange with the people from Shrek just now that I realized you weren't lying. You were even holding something back."

"And after what just happened, I really want to know what exactly you think of Shrek."

Hearing this, Lin Yue could not help chuckling inwardly.

To be honest, he had forgotten most of the original story, but he had read at least a hundred fanfiction novels. Besides, he had a system at his beck and call,

so it was hard not to be familiar with Shrek's sordid affairs.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

Zhu Zhuqing nodded again, her expression solemn.

"All right, then I'll tell you what I think."

"First, Shrek is an academy that hasn't completed any official registration procedures. Second, the academy even has a teacher who's wanted by the authorities."

"And that so-called saying, 'A Soul Master who doesn't dare cause trouble isn't a good Soul Master'-to put it bluntly, that's bullying the weak with your strength, picking on the soft and fearing the hard."

"Usually, when the youngsters cause trouble and can't win, they bring in someone with bigger fists. They've thrown their weight around plenty of times. Running into me today simply meant they finally suffered the consequences they deserved."

Lin Yue's tone was calm, but every word cut straight to the heart of the matter. Noticing that Zhu Zhuqing seemed to frown in confusion when he mentioned bullying the weak, he added:

"Can't remember? When you first arrived at Shrek, didn't you see the tyrannical terms they imposed on prospective students?"

At this, he chuckled.

"As the saying goes, things of a kind gather together, and people divide into their own flocks."

"Perhaps you've always taken pride in being the Shrek Seven Devils, but in my eyes, you're the Shrek Seven Evils."

Zhu Zhuqing's expression shifted slightly, her gaze wavering. Those undisguised words had clearly stirred waves in her heart.

Lin Yue paid it no mind and continued:

"Leaving the other members aside for now, let's start with Ma Hongjun and Dai Mubai. Granted, the mutated martial soul, the Evil Fire Phoenix, forced him to frequent brothels."

"But that lecherous, lustful behavior of his is inevitably repulsive."

"And Dai Mubai-does he have some defect in his martial soul too, to make him such an incurable lecher?"

"As for you..."

"If I remember correctly, when he fled the Star Luo Empire back then, he never thought of taking you with him."

"Yet even after seeing that sort of scene, you still hoped to find someone to depend on in him, throwing yourself at a playboy."

"Tell me, if you were just an ordinary-looking girl, would he still have pestered you like that after you arrived at Shrek Academy?"

As he spoke, Lin Yue shook his head lightly. After glancing at Zhu Zhuqing, he said no more, leaving her time to think alone.

After a long silence, Zhu Zhuqing slowly exhaled a stale breath. When she opened her eyes, it was as though a knot long tangled in her heart had come undone; there was less confusion in them and a little more clarity.

"In that case, why did you keep me here, Shopkeeper Lin?"

Lin Yue picked up the teacup beside him and took a sip, then set it down and slowly said:

"Perhaps because you're still the most normal one among that group from Shrek."

Understanding dawned in Zhu Zhuqing's heart. She bowed, her voice soft but utterly solemn:

"Thank you, Shopkeeper Lin. I'll be back shortly."

With that, she turned and walked slowly out of the little shop, her movements light.

The instant she stepped outside, a dark glimmer flashed, and her Nether Civet martial soul possessed her body.

Two faint yellow soul rings slowly rose beneath her feet. She unleashed the full speed of a level-twenty-eight Agility Attack System Soul Grandmaster, becoming a dark afterimage as she swiftly and lightly raced in the direction the Shrek group had taken.

Up ahead on the road, the people from Shrek were striding along, their hearts full of frustration.

Zhao Wuji's face was livid, the cold sweat on his back still wet. The humiliation and fear of being forcibly suppressed onto his knees lingered in his heart, and he said nothing.

Yu Xiaogang's expression was utterly dark, his brows tightly knitted. He was clearly still immersed in the frustration and anger of having Lin Yue publicly refute him and expose the flaws in his life's theories.

As Flender tried to soothe Zhao Wuji, he said gravely:

"That young man was far too strange. His methods defied imagination. He's certainly not someone ordinary Soul Masters can fathom. For now, we can only swallow what happened today."

Dai Mubai ground his teeth, unwilling to accept it, and muttered resentfully:

"Damn it! That fellow was only relying on power from something external! If it came down to his actual cultivation, how could he possibly be Teacher Zhao's match?"

Ma Hongjun and Oscar both voiced their agreement, equally frustrated and unconvinced.

Tang San walked among the group in silence, but deep wariness lurked in his eyes. The terrifying sight of a Soul Saint being suppressed with a single sentence had long since branded itself deep into his heart.

Just as everyone was seething with frustration, a slender black shadow swept toward them and landed lightly at the rear of the group.

It was Zhu Zhuqing, who had caught up.

Everyone turned at the sound.

At the sight of Zhu Zhuqing, Dai Mubai's expression immediately darkened, his tone carrying displaced anger and dissatisfaction:

"Hmph. When all of us were being humiliated just now, you wouldn't even say a word to help. Now you finally show up. What a joke."

The others also turned their gazes toward Zhu Zhuqing, their differing, complicated looks mingling with doubt, confusion, and distance.

As those grating words fell, Zhu Zhuqing's delicate brows creased almost imperceptibly. The last lingering trace of hope and expectation she had held for Dai Mubai vanished completely.

A moment later, every ripple in her eyes subsided, and she returned to her usual cool indifference, directly ignoring the resentful Dai Mubai, who had lost his composure,

and looked toward Flender and Zhao Wuji beside him, saying:

"Headmaster Flender, Teacher Zhao Wuji."

"I'm sorry, but I've decided to leave Shrek Academy."

The moment she spoke, the entire group fell silent.

Everyone looked stunned.

Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong hurried forward:

"Zhu Zhuqing, what nonsense are you talking about? It's only a little matter. There's no need to leave the academy!"

"Exactly, Zhu Zhuqing. You know Dai Mubai. He's just foul-mouthed. Don't take it to heart."

Oscar and Ma Hongjun also spoke up to dissuade her, all urging her to think it over.

Amid the group, Yu Xiaogang, who had been brimming with righteous indignation until then, cleared his throat twice. His customary confidence returned to his face as he stepped forward and said:

"Zhu Zhuqing, have you truly thought this through?"

"You should understand that with me overseeing Shrek and Little San leading the team, the future cultivation paths and potential of you Shrek Seven Devils will all rank among the continent's finest. Your prospects are limitless."

"Giving up Shrek will be the most unwise choice of your life. Are you truly determined to leave?"

His tone was certain. Still immersed in his own theoretical framework, he believed his presence made Shrek an unrivaled place to cultivate.

But by now, Lin Yue had thoroughly opened Zhu Zhuqing's eyes.

Looking at the conceited, arrogant Yu Xiaogang, she no longer held the slightest trace of her former respect for him. Ignoring his words outright, she swept her gaze over everyone and said evenly:

"My mind is made up. There's no need to persuade me. Thank you all for looking after me during my time here."

"Heh. What an act."

Dai Mubai sneered from beside her, his tone viciously cutting. "Anyone can mouth words of thanks. What a hypocritical woman!"

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze remained cool and indifferent. She could not be bothered to engage in a pointless argument with him.

Still, Dai Mubai was not wrong. Anyone could easily offer empty words of thanks.

After giving it some thought, she hesitated no longer. With a thought, dazzling pure-white light rose around her.

Unlike the Nether Civet's dark chill, an overbearing, noble, and utterly ferocious surge of tiger-type soul power swept across the entire group!

White beast markings appeared on her shoulders, and an enormous white tiger phantom began to take solid form behind her, majestic and imposing.

A white tiger martial soul!

Everyone's pupils contracted sharply as they froze in utter shock!

Tang San's pupils trembled violently. Towering waves surged in his heart as he stared fixedly at the white tiger phantom.

Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong covered their mouths, disbelief written all over their faces.

Oscar and Ma Hongjun were completely dumbfounded, their minds blank.

No one was more shocked than Dai Mubai!

His entire body stiffened, his face instantly turning white as paper as he roared in disbelief:

"N-no! Impossible! How could you have a white tiger martial soul?! That's the hereditary martial soul exclusive to my Dai Family!"

The supreme white tiger martial soul he had cultivated for years and taken such pride in had actually appeared on Zhu Zhuqing!

Beside him, the self-assured Yu Xiaogang once again lost every shred of his confidence and composure, his face filled with shock and bewilderment.

At that moment, everyone from Shrek undoubtedly recalled those three people saying they had obtained twin martial souls in the mysterious little shop-something they had scoffed at back then.

But now, it seemed they had been the ones who were wrong...

Yet almost immediately, boundless greed and wild fantasies surged within them.

Tang San's heart trembled uncontrollably.

I already have twin martial souls. If I could obtain a third, my talent, potential, and foundations would utterly eclipse the entire continent!

Yu Xiaogang's breathing grew even more rapid, his heart pounding wildly.

He had been stuck at level twenty-nine his whole life, trapped for half his life by his trash martial soul, Luo Sanpao. If he could obtain a second martial soul too, he could simply abandon Luo Sanpao, break free of his shackles, and reach level thirty, then forty!

With the martial soul theories he had spent his life researching, supported by a brand-new, top-tier martial soul, he might even have a chance at becoming a Soul Saint, a Soul Douluo, or even a Titled Douluo! At that moment, years of conceit and resentment all transformed into frenzied, extravagant hopes.

Ma Hongjun, Flender, and Zhao Wuji's hearts burned.

If seasoned Soul Masters like them could gain another martial soul, their strength would surely soar, their shortcomings would be remedied, and their cultivation bottlenecks would unravel like bamboo before a blade!

Oscar's and Ning Rongrong's eyes flickered.

As support-type Soul Masters, if they could acquire a Power Attack System martial soul as well, they would no longer have any weaknesses!

And the fatal flaw of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would no longer be a problem either!

Only Dai Mubai remained pale, his heart cold as ice.

"Everyone, I now possess twin martial souls."

"You never believed it before. Now that I've shown you myself, consider this my repayment for Shrek's care during my time here."

As she spoke, Zhu Zhuqing slowly withdrew her martial soul into her body, her aura settling.

Only then did everyone seem to awaken from a dream. They stared blankly as she turned without the slightest reluctance and resolutely retraced her steps, heading in the opposite direction.

The people from Shrek remained where they stood, their gazes turning in unison toward the mysterious little shop.

They leaned forward slightly, yet no one actually took a step.

The fear of being suppressed by a single sentence from Lin Yue remained vivid. The cold sweat on Zhao Wuji's body had yet to dry completely, and recalling it now sent another chill down their spines.

Everyone exchanged looks, their expressions too complicated for words.

They wanted to go, but they had only just been humiliated and driven out. Where would they put their pride if they went back now?

Xiao Wu looked at Tang San. He pressed his lips together in silence, and though something stirred in his eyes, he expressed no opinion.

Ning Rongrong glanced at Oscar, who gave a light cough and turned his face away.

Ma Hongjun scratched the back of his head and looked toward Zhao Wuji, whose eyes shifted evasively elsewhere.

Their gazes traveled around the group, but in the end, no one could offer an answer.

Finally, after a long silence, Yu Xiaogang spoke first.

"I imagine it's nothing but some crooked trick. She must have relied on some external object or an illusion-type soul tool to create the false appearance of a white tiger martial soul."

"Twin martial souls are exceedingly rare. How could someone awaken them just like that? It's nothing but sleight of hand."

When he finished, no one voiced agreement, but the fever in their hearts cooled a little all the same.

Indeed, twin martial souls were one in ten thousand.

What if the white tiger phantom Zhu Zhuqing had just displayed really was an illusion fabricated by some high-grade soul tool?

And they already had a grudge with that shopkeeper. If they rushed back in the heat of the moment and fell into his trap, they might lose their lives...

The moment that thought surfaced, the remaining warmth in their hearts cooled completely.

Seeing this, Flender said gravely:

"All right. Go back and get some proper rest."

"Tomorrow morning, everyone will set out according to the original plan. Our priority is hunting Oscar's third soul ring. As for the Agility Attack System Soul Master missing from our team, we'll simply hire one in that town when the time comes."

Zhao Wuji nodded. The others offered no further objections and reined in their wandering thoughts.

The night was thick, and a bleak evening wind blew across the empty road.

The group walked silently toward the inn where they were staying. No one looked back again.