Dai Mubai's eyes widened as he watched the absurd scene before him, his mind almost grinding to a halt.
The man who had casually slapped him so badly that he suffered serious injuries and coughed up blood, leaving him utterly unable to fight back;
The old man whose bearing, in his eyes, was full of a powerful expert's majesty, who had to be an expert hiding his strength;
Was actually bowing and scraping before an ordinary jailer, showing him the utmost respect?
What on earth was going on?
Could that jailer be an even more terrifying existence?
Or... was this old man merely putting on an act?
For a moment, Dai Mubai's worldview suffered a violent blow. He couldn't understand...
At the same time, on the Douluo Continent.
The people before the Heavenly Screen also saw this dramatic scene, and every one of them froze.
"Wh... what's going on?"
Ma Hongjun muttered in confusion, "That old man made Boss Dai cough up blood with one slap. He's so strong, so why is he bowing and scraping before a jailer?"
Oscar was equally bewildered. "Exactly. Boss Dai couldn't fight back against him at all. He should at least be a Soul King, right? But... would a Soul King treat a jailer so respectfully?"
"Could that jailer be more than he seems, too?"
At that moment, Flender adjusted his glasses, narrowing his eyes behind the lenses. "Do you think the standards of strength in the Shrouding the Heavens World might be completely different from ours?"
"What do you mean, Dean?" Tang San looked at Flender.
Flender said gravely, "Perhaps in that so-called 'Shrouding the Heavens World,' even a jailer on the lowest rung possesses power beyond our imagination."
"And that old man might really be just an... ordinary prisoner."
"An ordinary prisoner?"
Yu Xiaogang scoffed. "Flender, could an ordinary prisoner beat Mubai into that state with two slaps?"
"I think you're overthinking things. My guess is that old man is very powerful, but he's being so respectful to avoid exposing himself, all for a chance to escape."
Flender looked at the confident Yu Xiaogang, as well as Tang San, Oscar, Ma Hongjun, Ning Rongrong, and Xiao Wu beside him, all nodding in agreement.
He felt a little unsure of himself. "Ahem, I was only guessing, just guessing..."
"When it comes to theory, Xiaogang is certainly more of an expert."
Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang nodded with slight satisfaction and patted Flender on the shoulder. "You still have plenty to learn!"
In the heavenly prison of the Shrouding the Heavens World.
The old man had already returned to his corner and lay down again.
Enduring the intense pain, Dai Mubai struggled to sit up and leaned against the cold metal bars.
He took a deep breath, suppressed his humiliation and confusion, and asked as respectfully as he could:
"S-Senior, that soldier just now..."
Without even opening his eyes, the old man waved impatiently.
"What soldier? That was a lord guard of the heavenly prison. Remember this, brat: don't make trouble here, and especially don't provoke those men in black armor."
"Otherwise, you won't even know how you died."
Dai Mubai's heart jolted, and he pressed, "Lord guard? Are they... very strong?"
"Strong?"
The old man finally opened one eye, glanced at Dai Mubai, and scoffed. "To a mortal like you who hasn't even opened his Bitter Sea, of course they're strong."
"But in the Heavenly Court, they're only guards on the lowest rung."
The Heavenly Court!
Dai Mubai's pupils instantly contracted.
Although he had already suspected it, hearing the name himself still made his heart sink.
"This... is the Heavenly Court's prison?" Dai Mubai's voice was dry.
"What else?" The old man rolled over, turning his back to him. "I don't know whether you're lucky or unlucky, brat."
"You offended someone important and were sent straight here. You'll have plenty to suffer in the future. But the lucky part is that, apart from that important person, no one else dares kill you."
At this point, he spoke to Dai Mubai with his back still turned. "However, just because we can't kill you doesn't mean we can't beat you."
"So you'd better behave yourself, or watch out-my fists don't have eyes."
Dai Mubai didn't answer, his expression shifting, now dark, now uncertain.
The Heavenly Court's prison...
After coming to the Shrouding the Heavens World, I'd actually landed straight in prison?
And it was the Heavenly Court's prison-the very faction under that 'Heavenly Emperor Hao,' Lin Hao.
For a moment, Dai Mubai felt utterly stifled and furious.
Lin Hao... Lin Hao again!
My fiancée was going to serve him, and now he'd even locked me in prison!
What the hell was this? Fuck!!!
"I'm talking to you! Are you deaf?"
Seeing Dai Mubai remain silent, the old man spoke harshly again.
Dai Mubai instantly shuddered in fright and hurriedly came to his senses. He nodded vigorously. "Senior, I... I understand."
"I promise I'll behave myself."
"That's more like it..." The old man nodded in satisfaction.
Dai Mubai took a deep breath, feeling utterly humiliated, but still forced himself to calm down.
The most important thing now was to survive, figure out this world's rules, and then... grow stronger.
Stronger than Lin Hao!
"Senior..."
Dai Mubai spoke again, his tone even more respectful. "May I ask how strong you are, Senior? Those two slaps just now..."
The old man fell silent for a moment before answering lazily:
"How strong could I be? I'm just a Bitter Sea Realm cultivator. In my earlier years, the Heavenly Court locked me in this prison for indiscriminate killing. I've been here for thirty years. Where would I find the time or place to cultivate?"
The Bitter Sea Realm?
Dai Mubai froze. Was that a cultivation realm in this world?
How powerful was it? It should be a middle-tier or top-tier realm, right?
After all, anyone who could defeat me with one palm strike definitely couldn't be too weak!
"Senior..."
Dai Mubai wanted to ask more, but the old man had already rolled over. "Enough. Stop asking questions and go to sleep."
"We have to get up early tomorrow for reform through labor!"
"Oh... oh, right~"
Dai Mubai was somewhat unwilling to leave it at that. After all, this was his first time learning about this world's cultivation realms. But looking at that powerful old man, he ultimately shrank back and dared not say anything more...
Forget it. There would be plenty of time.
At Shrek Academy on the Douluo Continent.
"The Bitter Sea Realm..."
Yu Xiaogang slowly repeated the name, his fingers habitually rubbing his chin as he assumed a deeply contemplative air.
"Grandmaster, do you know this realm?"
Tang San immediately noticed his teacher's reaction and hurriedly asked.
The others also turned their gazes toward Yu Xiaogang, looking forward to this "authority on theory" offering his interpretation.
Yu Xiaogang straightened his back, his usual confidence returning to his face, tinged with a hint of reserve.
He cleared his throat and spoke with the assured tone of someone imparting knowledge to students:
"The Bitter Sea Realm... it sounds impressive just from the name."
He surveyed everyone and, seeing that he had their attention, continued his analysis. "Bitter Sea, Bitter Sea-how vast is a sea? Naming a cultivation realm after a 'sea' makes its significance self-evident."
"Teacher, do you mean...?" Tang San seemed to grasp something.
"What I mean is," Yu Xiaogang raised his voice slightly, his certainty allowing no doubt.
"This must be an extremely profound realm! Those who can cultivate to this realm must be as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns-the foremost experts of that world!"