The next day, Heaven Dou City, Moonlight Pavilion.
Tang Feng and Tang Lie, disguised, arrived at the pavilion. After listening to Tang Feng's detailed account, Tang Yuehua's gentle eyes welled up with tears, her voice filled with relief. "The four clans have finally returned. Feng'er, you have more courage and responsibility than the sect leader did back then."
Tang Feng handed over a prepared letter, which recorded the agreement reached with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, the selection of the site for Cloud Mist Mountain, and the submission of the four clans.
Tang Yuehua immediately took the letter. Finally, she looked at Tang Feng and said softly, "I will personally go to the sect and deliver this good news. Go out and train with peace of mind; the sect is your strongest support."
Tang Feng bowed respectfully. "Thank you for your trouble, Aunt."
Tang Feng did not leave immediately, but instead took out a specially sealed letter from his storage ring.
Tang Feng lowered his voice, his expression so solemn that Tang Yuehua's heart skipped a beat. "Aunt, this letter must be delivered to the Sect Master personally when no one is around. It must not pass through a third party, must not be mentioned publicly in the sect's main hall, and no one else can know about it."
Tang Yuehua took the letter, her silver eyes narrowing slightly. Though filled with doubt, she nodded without hesitation. "Alright, Aunt understands. This matter is between heaven, earth, you, and me."
Tang Feng gave her a deep look, offered no further explanation, and simply bowed again before quietly disappearing into the night with Tang Lie at the Moonlight Pavilion.
Tang Yuehua dared not delay and set off that very night to return to the Clear Sky Sect.
On the evening of the third day, Tang Yuehua finally returned to the Clear Sky Sect, her white dress dusty from days of travel, but the joy in her eyes was undeniable.
Inside the sect, the elders and sect leader Tang Xiao saw her return. Tang Xiao frowned slightly and spoke first, " Yuehua, you look so travel-worn. Is there news from Feng'er?"
Tang Yuehua didn't sit down, but took out Tang Feng's letter from her bosom and handed it to Tang Xiao: "Brother, this is Little Feng's reply. He has lived up to his mission; all four clans have returned!"
Tang Xiao unfolded the letter, read it, his frown relaxed, and he laughed loudly, "Good! Good! Good!"
Tang Xiao exclaimed "Good!" three times, then handed the letter to the elders for them to read. "Take a look, everyone! Our Clear Sky Sect has finally waited for this day!"
The Second Elder took the letter and said with satisfaction, " Tai Tan, that stubborn fellow, has been won over by Feng'er? Good, very good! I never imagined that Feng'er would resolve this matter in just over half a month. This is a truly remarkable achievement."
The other elders were also excited and overjoyed.
Tang Xiao raised his hand to suppress the crowd's excitement and said in a deep voice, " Feng'er has already made detailed arrangements in his letter. Although the four clans are loyal, the construction of the new sect must be carried out in secret, without alerting the enemy."
Tang Xiao's gaze swept across the entire room as he began issuing orders. "Third Elder, you are in charge of managing the sect's reserves. You can allocate ten million Gold Soul Coin initially. You will depart for the Strength Clan at the beginning of next month to assist the four clans in planning the sect's defenses. Everything will be decided by Clan Chief Niu Gao; you only need to coordinate from the center."
The Third Elder solemnly accepted the order.
Late at night, Sect Leader Tang Xiao, in a secret room, faced Tang Yuehua and unraveled the secret letter.
Unfolding the letter, Tang Xiao's pupils widened in shock at its contents. The letter read:
"During my travels in Heaven Dou City, I discovered that Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was behaving strangely. On the surface, Xue Qinghe is benevolent, but in secret he has close ties with the Spirit Hall and his whereabouts are suspicious after several secret meetings."
My nephew dares to speculate that this person may have been secretly controlled by the Spirit Hall, or even... was a pawn planted by the Spirit Hall.
If our sect wishes to unite with the Heaven Dou Empire, firstly, we must not let Xue Qinghe discover our sect's intentions, and secondly, we must not reveal our strength in front of him;
Secondly, any contact with the Heaven Dou Empire should bypass the Crown Prince's residence and directly meet with Xue Ye. The meeting must be private and conducted in private, without any members of the Crown Prince's residence present.
Third, there is no conclusive evidence for this speculation. Revealing it now would only alert the enemy and put our sect in a passive position.
In addition, Ning Fengzhi, the sect leader of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, is now Xue Qinghe's teacher. The sect leader may intentionally or unintentionally spread this news to Ning Fengzhi through others.
There's no need to say anything definitive; just let Ning Fengzhi become suspicious and investigate on his own. Ning Fengzhi suspicious and cunning; once he becomes suspicious, he will become the sharpest blade in our sect.
The letter trembled slightly in Tang Xiao's hand.
Tang Xiao suddenly looked up at Tang Yuehua, his voice hoarse. " Yuehua, this letter... who else has read it?"
"No one's here." Tang Yuehua said solemnly. " Feng'er instructed us that this is top secret."
Tang Xiao closed his eyes, and after a long while, he sighed. He then showed the letter to Tang Yuehua, turned it to ashes with a burst of Soul Power, and slowly said:
" Feng'er is indeed brave and resourceful. If this plan succeeds, the Heaven Dou Empire and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will surely become staunch allies of our Clear Sky Sect."
Tang Xiao stood up and looked at Tang Yuehua: " Yuehua, all our future contacts with the Heaven Dou Empire will bypass the Crown Prince's residence. You will personally contact Xue Ye. Also, send your most astute spies to keep a close eye on Xue Qinghe."
"Furthermore, according to Feng'er's instructions, this information should be leaked to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's spies without leaving a trace."
Tang Yuehua's heart skipped a beat, and she replied in a low voice, "Yes, elder brother."
Meanwhile, after returning to the Strength Clan's residence, Tang Feng spent three consecutive days immersed in rare warmth and enthusiasm, holding gatherings at the residence to deepen his relationships with the core members of the four clans.
At this moment, inside the foundry, the furnace fire had been extinguished, leaving only wisps of smoke.
Tai Tan emerged carrying a long staff that was entirely silver-gray with dark gold ends, its body Entanglement nine dragon patterns.
"Young Sect Master, this staff weighs 3,600 jin, is nine feet long, and three inches thick! I've also added gold alloy to both ends to increase its hardness." Tai Tan's voice was hoarse, but full of pride.
Tang Feng's eyes lit up, and he reached out to take the Golden Cudgel. His palm felt heavy, and the weight was much heavier than he had imagined. The original old cudgel only weighed a little over three hundred jin, and its weight and material were no longer usable, so it could not unleash its full power.
Tang Feng casually swung his staff, and the wind swept through, producing a series of booming sounds like dragon roars, tearing the air into visible ripples! Tang Feng then twirled the staff, the shadows of the staff layered upon each other, like overlapping mountains, dense and impenetrable.
"Good!" Tang Feng laughed. "It's much more comfortable to use than the old staff. Although it's a bit heavy, it's still usable. Once my strength increases, I'll be able to use it even more skillfully!"
Tang Feng looked at Tai Tan and solemnly clasped his hands in a fist and palm salute. "Senior Tai Tan's forging skills are indeed well-deserved. Thank you very much!"
Tai Tan grinned, all his fatigue gone. "Hahaha, I'm glad the young sect leader likes it!"
Two days later, the gathering of the four tribes finally came to an end.
After seeing off his maternal grandfather and the other two clans, Tang Feng returned to the Dugu Manor that evening to bid farewell to Dugu Bo and the others.
Dugu Bo looked at Tang Feng and Tang Lie, a rare hint of reluctance flashing in his eyes. " Little Monster, Brother Tang Lie, take care on your journey!"
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling also sent their blessings.
Tang Feng thanked them one by one, and finally clasped his hands in a fist salute to Dugu Bo, saying, " Old Monster, we hope you will take good care of the Four Single-Attribute Clans on our journey, and be extremely careful of the Spirit Hall!"
Dugu Bo nodded and said, "Don't worry!"
Tang Feng and Tang Lie exchanged a glance, and their two figures swept into the night, flying north towards the Slaughter City.
Just one day after Tang Feng left Heaven Dou City, a dozen or so people of various appearances and backgrounds arrived at the majestic gates of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
They were the Shrek Academy group who had traveled for more than ten days, traversing half of the Heaven Dou Empire.
The Heaven Dou Royal Academy is located thirty miles north of Heaven Dou City, covering an extremely vast area, almost equivalent to a small city.
The academy is built against the mountain, backed by a forest, and surrounded by a small river. The mountain and water are intertwined, and the spiritual energy is shrouded in mist, which reflects a seven-colored halo under the morning light.
Looking into the distance, thousands of buildings stand tall, their eaves and brackets gleaming in the sunlight; closer by, ancient trees reach for the sky, and exotic flowers and rare herbs abound. Several natural treasures emanate rich Soul Power fluctuations, making one feel refreshed and invigorated with just one breath, and even smoothing out Soul Power flow.
At this moment, the Shrek academy students stood under the gate, which was more than ten meters high, looking up at the six golden characters " Heaven Dou Royal Academy " written in a flamboyant style. Their expressions were varied, like a portrait of all kinds of people.
Dean Flender pushed up his glasses, his eyes filled with both anticipation and trepidation. This Soul Saint, who had been stingy for half his life, was stepping into such a magnificent place for the first time, and he even unconsciously softened his breathing, afraid that his heavy aura would taint this sacred land.
Flender thought to himself: If Shrek could be incorporated into this place, even if it were just nominally affiliated, at least the children would have a proper background and would no longer be considered a "fake school" that everyone looked down upon.