Most people, offered an olive branch by Taotie Douluo, would probably have dropped to their knees at the mere mention of Shrek.
Chu Qing, however, was not particularly interested.
A level 98 Super Douluo was certainly powerful, but leaving aside whether the man was reliable, Chu Qing was doing perfectly well in Dou Ling. His resources were as good as they could be, so there was no need to run off to Shrek and start over.
Besides, Grandma Wu Feng had given Xuan Zi the cold shoulder, which gave him the confidence to refuse. He bowed slightly and said:
"Honored Taotie Douluo, as president of the Soul Fighting Society, I intend to develop my own chess and card club. I have no plans to join Shrek Academy."
At the blunt, decisive refusal, delivered without even a few seconds of hesitation, Xuan Zi's expression froze. He could hardly believe that anyone would refuse Shrek Academy, or the position of Sea God Pavilion Master.
"Have you thought this through? That's the Sea God Pavilion. Do you really know what you're turning down?"
Xue Zhan straightened his back. To be honest, he had initially thought Chu Qing would accept. After all, becoming the deputy Sea God Pavilion Master's disciple meant a boundless future.
Grandma Wu Feng smiled broadly at the sight of Xuan Zi being rebuffed.
"Hmph, he's refused you. Are you really so unwilling to give up that you have to ask again?"
"Do you actually think your Shrek Academy stands above everything in existence?"
She mocked him, and Xuan Zi's face darkened. Just then, an even more unrestrained laugh rang out around them.
"Xuan Zi, I'd say you've lost every last shred of that old face of yours today. Why don't you just bash your head in and be done with it?"
"He's already turned you down outright, yet you still shamelessly insist on asking again. You don't have a shred of self-awareness."
"You've lived all those years only to feed them to a dog."
The laughter was immensely resonant, echoing through the surrounding space.
Chu Qing felt his mind tremble along with it. Clearly, this was another powerful being.
Xuan Zi cursed:
"Du Busi, who gave you the right to run your mouth?"
"Quit hiding and come out and fight me if you've got the guts."
Du Busi laughed even more merrily.
"Oh, struck a nerve, did I?"
"Yes! It really is embarrassing. A level 98 Super Douluo tried to take a disciple and was rejected."
"Hahaha."
"Kid, I have to say, you've got a good eye."
"Just look at him, all scruffy like a beggar. Could he possibly be a good, responsible master?"
"I've heard that this old fellow took their Inner Court disciples to hunt for Soul Rings and neglected his duty, getting eight of the twelve Inner Court disciples killed in battle."
"It's outrageous. I even suspect he did it on purpose."
"Is that something a level 98 powerhouse should be capable of?"
"If you were really blind enough to follow him, you might end up as Soul Beast fodder or die at the hands of an Evil Soul Master one day without even knowing how."
Chu Qing struggled not to laugh as he listened, while Xue Zhan and Grandma Wu Feng gave Xuan Zi puzzled looks. They knew that the Shrek Inner Court took it for granted that geniuses would lose their lives every year, but until today, they had never imagined it could be so casual about it.
Chu Qing and the others said nothing, but after Xuan Zi glanced at them, his face rapidly flushed red. His breathing grew unbearably heavy, and he charged straight toward the source of the voice.
"Du Busi!"
His furious roar shook heaven and earth. He wished he could tear Du Busi's foul mouth off that very instant.
The academy had clearly suppressed the matter, and it had been years. How did Du Busi know?
The two powerhouses soon clashed, fighting in the air amid a succession of explosive blasts.
Xue Zhan said with relief:
"Xiao Qing, it's a good thing you refused."
He would not have felt at ease leaving Chu Qing in Xuan Zi's hands.
Grandma Wu Feng nodded emphatically and cursed:
"Even a pig's brain stuck on a Super Douluo couldn't do something like that."
"It seems some of the rumors about Shrek aren't groundless after all."
Xuan Zi and Du Busi fought fiercely in the air, but countless black dots began to appear high above.
The two Super Douluo were startled and stopped fighting for the moment.
They looked up, and their pupils shook. The densely packed black dots falling from the sky were corpses.
High above, a massive Dark Holy Dragon emerged from the clouds.
A powerhouse with a terrifying presence stood on the dragon's head. He stretched out one hand and tossed countless corpses down from the sky.
"That presence!"
"A level 99 Limit Douluo!"
Xuan Zi and Du Busi were both shocked. As level 98 powerhouses who stood proudly above the world, they could undoubtedly roam the continent unhindered. Yet facing this absolute level 99 powerhouse, the rare trace of apprehension they felt immediately turned to panic on their faces.
They immediately pulled back, not daring to touch the corpses.
The corpses fell like rain. Xue Zhan and the others were even more wary, and in the blink of an eye, many people had gathered around Chu Qing.
Heavenly Sun Douluo, the strongest in the Dou Ling Empire, shielded him from the front. He waved a hand upward, and his Soul Power erupted.
Facing that level 99 Limit Douluo, he did not dare be careless in the slightest.
Raging flames surged forth and formed a shield, burning every falling corpse to ash.
Even after sensing that they were only ordinary corpses, Heavenly Sun Douluo did not relax in the slightest.
The powerhouse atop the dragon's head spoke, his voice commanding without anger.
"There's no need to be nervous."
"These corpses belonged to Evil Soul Masters and Soul Engineers from the Sun Moon Empire."
Only then did Chu Qing and the others notice that some of the falling corpses gave off black vapor, while a few broken Soul Tools fell from others.
Heavenly Sun Douluo stopped as well.
Before long, fallen corpses lay scattered throughout the Lerna Swamp.
Heavenly Sun Douluo, Du Busi, and Xuan Zi could not help feeling surprised as they looked at the Dark Holy Dragon in the sky.
"That's a Dark Holy Dragon."
"Dragon Emperor Douluo."
They had lived through the era of the Black and White Twin Holy Dragons themselves. What surprised them was that, after so long, Long Xiaoyao was still alive.
"I didn't expect anyone in the world to still recognize me."
Long Xiaoyao sighed with emotion.
"Now that I'm here, there's no need for you two to keep fighting."
"Chu Qing's talents would be wasted if he became either of your disciples. Leave him to me."
Though Xuan Zi and Du Busi were angry at his words, they did not dare talk back.
"Chu Qing, are you willing to inherit my mantle?"
Huh?
Chu Qing felt a headache coming on.
He had only just turned down Xuan Zi, and now an even bigger figure had appeared.
If it were just Long Xiaoyao, having a level 99 Limit Douluo backing him would be as good as it got.
Even Heavenly Sun Douluo seemed to be encouraging him with his eyes to accept quickly.
The problem was that they did not know, but Chu Qing understood perfectly well: Long Xiaoyao was the Holy Spirit Cult's chief worshipper!
Being the Holy Spirit Cult's chief worshipper was not much of a problem. If he were simply an evil man, Chu Qing could still become his disciple. After all, there were only a handful of level 99 fighters on the entire continent.
But the biggest problem was that Long Xiaoyao was completely lovestruck. Chu Qing did not think he could ever compare to Ye Xishui in Long Xiaoyao's heart.
As for Ye Xishui, the true head of the Evil Soul Masters and the Holy Spirit Cult's grand elder, Chu Qing was genuinely afraid of her. It was far too dangerous.
If he had to go to the Holy Spirit Cult now, he might as well go to Shrek.
But this was an absolute level 99 powerhouse, and he seriously doubted he could refuse him.
As he worried, another powerful presence arrived. It, too, belonged to a Limit Douluo, drawing everyone's attention.
Not far away, a middle-aged man had entered the swamp with a young woman without anyone noticing.
The middle-aged man wore his long cyan hair loose, much like Chu Qing's. Whenever his cyan eyes opened and closed, an immensely powerful presence radiated from him.
The girl following beside him was exceptionally beautiful, with large pink-and-blue eyes, long curling eyelashes, and a slender, graceful figure. Her long pink-and-blue hair fell loose down her back, and her white dress set off her flawless face, making her look like a goddess descended to earth.
Seeing the two of them, Chu Qing had an even worse premonition. No matter how he looked at it, the situation seemed bad.
Niu Tian spoke:
"If we're talking about taking a disciple, my Martial Soul and Chu Qing's share the same origin. I'm the one better suited to teach him."
He showed no fear of Long Xiaoyao in the sky, not even sparing him a glance as he asked Chu Qing directly:
"My Martial Soul is the Azure Divine Dragon, which also evolved from the Sky Azure Bull Python. Are you willing to become my personal disciple? My cultivation experience would be the most useful for you to learn from."
"And whatever resources the others can give you, our Clear Sky Sect can give you more."
Xuan Zi and the others were astonished. They had not expected the secluded Clear Sky Sect to have produced a Limit Douluo of such terrifying strength without their knowing when. Could he really be that patient, waiting until he became a Limit Douluo before coming down from the mountain?
Chu Qing was dumbfounded. The newcomer really was Niu Tian, so wasn't the person beside him Wang Dong? Why wasn't his hair short?
His heart pounded, and he grew intensely nervous.
Had Tang San come so soon?
Long Xiaoyao gave an angry snort and brought pressure to bear:
"Since ancient times, there's never been a rule that master and disciple must have the same Martial Soul. Chu Qing, think carefully. Will you choose me, a Limit Douluo who truly fought his way to the top on the continent, or someone who cultivated behind closed doors on a mountain?"
Chu Qing cursed his rotten luck inwardly. Neither of the two was easy to deal with.