Zhang Lexuan: What did you say happened to my brother?!

Sea God Pavilion.

Top floor.

Zhang Lexuan wore a light blue dress, looking elegant and graceful. She had a delicate nose, glossy red lips, and light blue eyes that seemed to hold stars. She stood gracefully behind Mu En.

She frowned slightly, her eye twitched suddenly, and a strong sense of unease welled up in her heart.

His gaze swept forward to Mu En, who sat leisurely in a golden wheelchair, observing him below. "Mu En, for some reason my eyelids are twitching violently. I've heard that Xuan Zi doesn't particularly like Lu Cheng, and now he's facing off against Evil Soul Master; things are bound to go wrong..."

"Hehe, don't worry."

Mu En smiled and shook his head.

"Xuan Zi is aware of the stakes involved. Before they set off, I repeatedly reminded him not to be careless. This is an elite team from the Shrek Academy's inner court, participating in the competition. Its importance is self-evident. He certainly won't be negligent. Lexuan, you can rest assured..."

"Can..."

Zhang Lexuan frowned slightly, secretly pondering a way to escape.

And the next moment.

Yan Shaozhe appeared, a hint of anxiety in his eyes, "Teacher, Xuan Zi is back..."

"..."

A look of surprise flashed across Mu En's eyes. "Why aren't you with the team competing now? What are you doing back at the academy?"

"Hmm..." Yan Shaozhe hesitated, glanced at Zhang Lexuan beside him, and leaned close to Mu En's ear to whisper.

Zhang Lexuan frowned slightly, her unease growing stronger.

But Mu En dodged him, smiling as he said, "Lexuan isn't an outsider, why hide? Just say what you want to say, we're all family here..."

Yan Shaozhe looked embarrassed, paused, and then said, "There was an accident in the Ming Dou Mountain Range. That Evil Soul Master possessed skills like Corpse Explosion. The cave was small, and Xuan Zi was outside and couldn't protect him in time, so..."

The air suddenly became still.

"Go on!"

Mu En's eyes suddenly widened, his face turned cold, and he gave a low shout.

"All the inner court disciples... were injured, with Dai Yueheng, Xi Xi, Yao Haoxuan, and Chen Zifeng being the most severely wounded. Their bodies were all infected with corpse poison and were taken back by Xuan Zi. Xiaotao and..."

Before Yan Shaozhe could finish speaking, he was abruptly interrupted by a shout.

Where is Lu Cheng?!

Zhang Lexuan's beautiful eyes were red as she stared intently at Yan Shaozhe.

Her aura was already somewhat unstable, her pair of snow-white hands clenched tightly until they turned blue, and her beautiful eyes flashed with intense killing intent.

As for whether this killing intent is directed at the Evil Soul Master or Xuan Zi... that's uncertain.

"Lu Cheng is unharmed, and all the outer disciples are uninjured. Lexuan, don't worry." Yan Shaozhe narrowed his eyes, clearly also noticing this strange relationship, and quickly reassured her.

"How could I be alright!" Zhang Lexuan's eyes reddened.

Her breathing calmed down, and she was clearly regaining her senses. Lu Cheng had the Blood Pupils, making him an unparalleled expert in Spiritual Detection. If he sensed anything amiss, he would definitely protect everyone. Besides, the Lu Cheng in her memory had been in the Holy Spirit Cult for so long that he had even become a Holy Son. In terms of sheer evil, those brothers in her memory were nothing but greenhorns.

"Mu En, this is what you meant by... security."

Zhang Lexuan glanced at Mu En, who was concentrating with his eyes closed, then lightly touched the ground with her toes and leaped out, transforming into a pale blue shooting star, flying straight towards the outside of the Shrek Academy.

"Teacher, this..." Yan Shaozhe looked puzzled.

"Let her go," Mu En sighed softly.

Man proposes, God disposes.

Unexpected, yet perfectly logical.

Xuan Zi is such a scoundrel; he should have realized it sooner, shouldn't he?

I believe in Xuan Zi... hehe.

He felt incredibly mocked and ironic when he recalled his words of comfort to Zhang Lexuan. Once trust is broken, it is very difficult to rebuild, no matter how much time has passed.

Let's convene Sea God Pavilion Meeting.

Mu En's eyes were tightly closed, his face showing even more exhaustion, and even his gray hair had become noticeably more prominent. In this enormous Shrek Academy, who could he possibly rely on?

There was no one there.

In mid-air.

Zhang Lexuan leaned forward, her two transparent wings fluttering behind her, like a delicate and charming bluebird. Her long dress fluttered, exuding an ethereal aura.

But at this moment, the fairy's face was tinged with mortal annoyance, adding a touch of liveliness.

"Brother, I'll find a way to get out of here myself, there's no need for you to go through all this trouble!"

Zhang Lexuan gritted her teeth and said angrily.

"You're always like this, so self-righteous!"

In her eyes, Lu Cheng had only created this huge commotion to help her escape from the Shrek Academy. Others might not know Lu Cheng, but she knew him all too well.

Her childhood sweetheart was the kind of person who treated human lives like a game. Even if the inner disciples in the cave were all killed, she doubted that Lu Cheng would actually do it, let alone just severely injure them.

After all, in his memory, he had turned the whole world upside down for his own sake.

They don't even care about their own lives, let alone other people's.

"Faster, faster..."

She didn't blame Ma Xiaotao. After all, it was fine to joke around normally, but if that person really got serious, he could easily manipulate Ma Xiaotao, sell her off, and even have the latter help count the money.

Shrek Academy.

Sea God Pavilion.

Many respected elders gathered together.

The atmosphere in the meeting room was rather somber.

Xuan Zi, carrying a wine jug and dressed in his battle-worn attire, walked in with heavy steps. He glanced furtively at Mu En, who sat at the head of the table, and seeing that Mu En's expression was still warm, he breathed a sigh of relief and sat down without saying a word.

"Alright, today's events were caused by Xuan Zi... let him explain."

Mu En said with a smile.

"Mu En, this was my carelessness." Xuan Zi stood up slowly, his body heavy, glancing furtively at Mu En, and said in a deep voice, "I apologize... If I had reacted sooner, none of the inner courtyard disciples would have been seriously injured. Unfortunately, by the time I arrived, I could only save their lives. Alas..."

"Mu En, I am willing to accept the punishment, relinquishing my position as deputy head of the Inspection Corps and being relieved of all my posts in the academy..."

Xuan Zi's face was filled with grief, leaving everyone with a somber silhouette.

"Xuan Zi, we can't do without you!" Yan Shaozhe said anxiously first. "This is not your fault. Wang Yan, as the team leader, did nothing. And Xiaotao, Yueheng, Lu Cheng, as the captains of the regular and reserve teams, easily led the team in without surveying the terrain... which caused this level of casualties."

"You arrived in time and saved Xi Xi and Chen Zifeng's lives. You've done your best. What else can a team like this do?"

"Yes, Xuan Zi, I believe that Xi Xi and Chen Zifeng will thank you for your efforts after they wake up," Xian Lin'er said passionately.

Following this, many elders nodded slightly, echoing the sentiment.

In fact, none of the people present are fools; they all know the truth. However, Xuan Zi is the heir of the Sea God Pavilion, and they dare not and cannot offend him. The only person present who can keep him in check is Mu En. Mu En is about to pass away, and Xuan Zi will have to hold things together here.

"Mu En, please let me go..." Xuan Zi cried out in anguish. "Every time I think of those dead faces in the Star Dou Great Forest ten years ago, I feel ashamed before those children. I should have left long ago. I am a sinner of the Shrek Academy!"

After saying this, he was overcome with grief and tears streamed down his face.

Yan Shaozhe quickly stepped forward to help and comfort her, while Xian Lin'er handed her a tissue.

A scene of profound sorrow.

But Mu En was unusually calm at this moment, his eyes quietly observing the scene before him. He suddenly had an urge to give up. After so many years, he was truly tired and exhausted...

Seeing this, he was suddenly amused.

The anger that had been building up in his chest vanished with the laughter.

Hahahaha...

Mu En's laughter rang out, instantly dispelling the somber atmosphere in the room.

Xuan Zi looked at Mu En in astonishment and confusion.

The same applies to Yan Shaozhe and others.

The scene was extremely bizarre.

"I'm not dead yet." Mu En seemed to have finished laughing, calmly looking at Xuan Zi, and slowly spoke.

"Xuan Zi, back then, my senior brother entrusted you to me, and I truly believed I was teaching you. But now it seems... I was wrong, terribly wrong."

Mu En looked around. "They're a bunch of born fools, short-sighted, Greed, and arrogant. No matter how hard they try, they can't change that."

"Xuan Zi... I have no intention of saying another word to you. Go back to your residence and imprison yourself for three years. Before I die, if you dare to step out of the courtyard, believe me, I will risk my life to give you a good beating."

"Yes, yes!"

Xuan Zi's face turned pale, but seeing that Mu En was clearly angry, he gave Yan Shaozhe a troubled and conflicted look, asking him to put in a good word for him. "How can we survive for three years in this small courtyard with no wild game or delicacies?"

They left in a hurry.

"Teacher..."

Yan Shaozhe bowed slightly and moved closer to Mu En.

"So, this time, the main team..."

"The academy still has a few inner court disciples who are of the right age," Xian Lin'er said hesitantly.

"That kid will lead Shrek Academy to the championship. We've always underestimated him," Mu En said slowly, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Soul King with Twin Martial Souls, and a bizarre, Ultimate Ice attribute—these are just the obvious signs; there are still hidden trump cards...

Not to mention the main force, Ma Xiaotao, Ling Luochеn, Gongyang Mo, who are all at the Soul Saint realm, only suffered minor injuries.

It's possible to fight, but it will take a bit of effort.

not to mention...

Even if we lose, we can declare to the outside world that this is Shrek Academy's contribution to eradicating Evil Soul Master, resulting in such a devastated defeat. Other academies' victories are unjust, and Shrek Academy does not acknowledge it.

And we won, haha...

Then they'll really start showing their true colors.

You couldn't even defeat my defeated troops, aren't you a bunch of useless trash?

As for Lu Cheng...

He underestimated it.

Even though he valued Lu Cheng so much, he never expected that this kid would be so monstrous.

Since that's the case, we'll wait until they return to the Shrek Academy.

He then had no choice but to take some measures to curb its momentum.