The consequences of stripping away a Martial Soul; a man doomed to die

He put away Xuan Zi's and Long Xiaoyao's bodies.

Lu Cheng gently exhaled a breath of stale air.

He gazed into the distance, where waves of aftershocks from a battle between supreme powerhouses were spreading-the final afterglow before Mu En's death.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

He began coughing violently again. Opening his palm, he saw a trace of black staining the blood he had coughed up, like a deadly poison.

This was the consequence of cultivating that technique.

Its side effect, in other words.

Those whose Martial Souls were taken would die abruptly within an extremely short time. After all, a Martial Soul was the foundation of everyone on the Douluo Continent. Like a heart, it existed within the human body from birth. Even the most ordinary person could awaken a Trash Martial Soul such as Blue Silver Grass, a hoe, or a brick.

Thus, once their Martial Soul was stripped away, it meant their days were numbered...

And once someone cultivated the technique, all their vital essence would gather within their Martial Soul. At the same time, their Martial Soul would gradually become incompatible with their body, even rejecting it, making it easier for whoever took the Martial Soul to strip them bare. That was why Lu Cheng had grown weaker and weaker when he had activated his Martial Soul Avatar to fight earlier.

"I hope I can still make it in time."

Lu Cheng forcibly suppressed his injuries and gazed into the distance.

He pushed his thoughts down.

His figure once again became a crimson arc, flashing toward that place.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Mu En sat on the ground.

With a complicated look in his eyes, he watched the black-robed figure recede farther and farther into the distance and let out a long breath of stale air.

"I still couldn't keep her here?"

It turned out they had all guessed wrong.

Ye Xishui actually possessed a divine skill like Phoenix Nirvana as well. He had thought he could kill her and stop her from bringing further harm to Shrek, but she had escaped...

"..."

By now, the old man's hair had turned entirely snow-white. Overnight, he had aged and weakened by several more decades, his figure stooping once again.

"Things shouldn't have turned out like this..."

His eyes were bewildered.

Why had things developed this way?

Just where had...

"Wait!"

Mu En's pupils abruptly contracted. He seemed to have seized upon something crucial. The Holy Spirit Cult's sudden assault had interrupted matters surrounding Yan Shaozhe's death, leaving him no time to think them through.

But now...

He seemed to have grasped something crucial. Mu En froze, his face growing ever paler.

"It seems you've figured out the key as well, Elder Mu. Unfortunately... it's too late."

A figure emerged from beside the trees.

Lu Cheng looked Mu En over with a smile, but did not hurry to attack. Instead, he sat cross-legged to one side, looking somewhat languid.

He was merely a dying man.

Had he not unleashed that final strike, he might have lived another two or three years. But now, his Limit Douluo body had become a sieve, vast quantities of life force pouring ceaselessly out of it.

Even gold of life would struggle to reverse his decline.

At that very moment.

A Level 9 Fixed Soul Guidance Shell suddenly detonated in the distance, followed by an unending barrage of Soul Guidance Rays and the explosions of Soul Cannons. Clearly, the Sun Moon Empire's army had arrived...

"Heh..."

At the sight, Mu En's eyes held both complicated feelings and acceptance.

That... was precisely the direction in which Ye Xishui had fled.

No wonder. They had fallen into the young man's trap long ago. His quarry was far more than Xuan Zi alone. It included Mu En, as well as the Holy Spirit Cult's two Limit Douluos.

And even the entire Holy Spirit Cult.

Even in a desperate situation, he had managed to secure a thread of survival, and had even laid precise plans to turn the tables and kill his enemies... Mu En heaved a long sigh.

The boy truly was so cunning it bordered on the uncanny. He genuinely felt some regret now. He should not have used such methods to plunder back then. Shrek's arrogance had imperceptibly influenced his mind as well.

"I always thought you were born an evil seed, that joining the Holy Spirit Cult was like a fish taking to water for you. I never imagined... you had fooled us all."

"You were the one with the purest, kindest heart. Even in such circumstances, you never fell into becoming an Evil Soul Master. Instead, your heart remained with the righteous."

"The younger generation truly is formidable."

Mu En studied Lu Cheng, who still wore a smile, his eyes calm and utterly untroubled.

"May I ask you three questions? This wicked old man is about to enter the grave anyway. Consider it satisfying my curiosity before I die."

"Sure," Lu Cheng said with a light chuckle.

"When did you begin this plan?"

"That night, when you killed my entire family and Lexuan's." Lu Cheng's voice was even, without the slightest audible resentment.

"Second question. Xuan Zi and Long Xiaoyao have probably already died at your hands, haven't they?" Mu En cast Lu Cheng a meaningful glance.

"That's right." Lu Cheng nodded.

"Third, once all of us old fellows who knew every secret of what happened back then are dead, the other elders of Shrek Academy won't be on your death list, will they?" Mu En stared fixedly at Lu Cheng.

"They won't."

Lu Cheng's answer remained brief, and he shook his head.

"Then who will rule this continent in the future?"

"That's a fourth question." Lu Cheng's eyes held a smile. "Still... I can answer it. The Sun Moon Empire, or, more accurately, the Sun Moon Federation."

Unifying all the powers would benefit everyone.

Lu Cheng did not mind who ruled and brought about that unification.

"Whew. Thank you."

Mu En nodded gently, his breathing growing ever fainter.

"And I'm sorry, child..."

Elsewhere.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, Ye Xishui has been eliminated! We've found her body. We have also captured and executed all the Evil Soul Masters who escaped from the main battlefield at Shrek Academy."

On the deck of an airship.

A messenger came speeding over, landed before a young man seated in a wheelchair, and spoke respectfully.

"What about him?"

Xu Tianran's gaze was complicated as he glanced beneath the airship.

He knew that, from this moment onward, the Sun Moon Empire would welcome absolute splendor and glory.

But... all of it had been brought about by that man.

What he had told Xu Tianran before setting out had completely shattered his worldview. He had never imagined that someone so extraordinarily talented had infiltrated the Holy Spirit Cult solely to overthrow it.

He had won, yet his victory left him bewildered.

"Once the encirclement and extermination are complete, withdraw. Leave him alone..." Xu Tianran waved a hand.

"But with that fellow's talent..." An armored old man nearby furrowed his brow. "If we don't eliminate him, he's certain to become a great threat."

"He's going to die. There's no need to push him."

Xu Tianran shook his head.

"Yes..."

"Lu Cheng, what are you doing!"

When Zhang Lexuan saw him again, she found Mu En sitting dead where he was, every trace of his presence long since extinguished. That all-too-familiar figure stood beside him, looking her up and down with a mocking smile in his eyes.

"Two years apart, and you're a rank ninety-two Titled Douluo..."

"Not bad. It seems you haven't neglected your training these past few years."

"Did you kill Elder Mu?!" Zhang Lexuan gritted her teeth, her beautiful eyes filled with killing intent as she glared at Lu Cheng, who remained unperturbed opposite her.

"You could put it that way."

Lu Cheng stretched leisurely.

He continued stoking Zhang Lexuan's rage.

"So, make your move. Let me see just how much my whetstone has improved over these years."

"Whether you're worth killing."

Lu Cheng curled his lips into a teasing smile.

"..."