Lu Jingming's gaze swept over Jiang Nannan and the other three, finally settling on Songque and Qingque. The corner of his mouth lifted in an almost imperceptible smile—of course he recognized them at a glance.
After all, these were beings summoned based on his own memories.
"You're alright? Why are there only a few of you?" Lu Jingming asked, puzzled.
Shrek Academy came well prepared this time. Not only were Titled Douluo like Xuan Zi anchoring the lineup, there were also many powerful Servants. By all rights, students like Jiang Nannan and Xiao Xiao shouldn't have ended up separated.
"Phew—so you're one of us. Scared the life outta me!"
Songque patted her chest with theatrical relief, her golden hair swishing wildly with the motion.
"You suddenly speaking up like that—totally scared me!"
She truly had been spooked. The nuke-like shockwave hadn't fully dispersed, and with danger everywhere, even the slightest movement could keep her heart pounding.
"Ah—my bad, then!"
Lu Jingming's mouth twitched. As expected of Granny Songque—immediately chummy.
Jiang Nannan stepped forward and concisely explained what had happened—how the shockwave scattered them, how they regrouped under Qingque and Songque's protection, how they witnessed Siegfried unleashing his Noble Phantasm, and how that suggested Dai Huabin's group had run into trouble.
She spoke clearly and calmly, slipping in Shrek Academy's current intel on known Servants, and also informing Lu Jingming about Hoolay and the Antimatter Legion.
"I see."
Lu Jingming nodded, though ripples stirred in his heart.
Shrek Academy's luck wasn't bad at all—to have summoned someone like Jing Yuan, a Hunt Arbiter-General. A general of the Luofu—someone who could sit at the same table as the Lord Ravager, Celenova.
As for Hoolay and the Borisin, he didn't care much.
If even a Lord Ravager like Celenova had been summoned, an extra Borisin warhead would just make the brawl that much livelier.
Moreover, when he looked off into the distance earlier, he clearly saw a silver-white meteor streak across the sky, and even caught a glimpse of that general. Her combat prowess surpassed even that of Jing Yuan.
And thinking that Jingliu was also in Mingdu at the moment—and remembering that Hoolay had once been defeated by the former Sword Champion of the Luofu—Lu Jingming couldn't help the playful curve at his lips.
Jingliu had once captured Hoolay alive and imprisoned him in the Luofu's prison. Now that these old rivals had met again in another world, who knew what kind of storm they would stir up.
While he pondered, heavy footsteps sounded at the mouth of the alley.
Lu Jingming's eyes narrowed. He slowly raised his right hand, aiming into the distance.
A mass of black mist surged out of thin air, spreading in an instant to engulf three Borisins and over a hundred voidrangers just turning the corner.
Those monsters, who should have been charging with roars, didn't even manage a single howl within the fog.
As Lu Jingming clenched his fist, the black mist abruptly contracted—then detonated.
A blinding black flash flickered and vanished. Only faint wisps of smoke drifted where they'd stood—the Borisins' hard shells and the voidrangers' energy cores had all been reduced to primal particles by that all-dissolving power, leaving not a trace behind.
Qingque subconsciously tightened her grip on the jade token in her hand, and Songque even edged back to hide behind Xiao Xiao.
That effortless, all-disintegrating technique just now was more terrifying than Siegfried's Noble Phantasm—no apocalyptic spectacle, yet it carried an absolute, irresistible authority, as if a mere wave of the hand could decide life or death.
"Come on, I'll take you someplace safe."
Lu Jingming lowered his hand as if dusting off his fingertips and turned toward the end of the alley.
The setting sun spilled through the clouds, drawing out a long silhouette behind him. His voice was as calm as if discussing the weather: "My people are over there. They can escort you safely out of Mingdu."
Jiang Nannan and Xiao Xiao exchanged a look, each seeing an indescribable sense of relief in the other's eyes.
Lu Jingming's steady presence was too reliable. With him around, it felt like even the worst disaster could be resolved.
Jiang Nannan patted the back of Xiao Xiao's hand, signaling her to relax, then quickened her pace to follow Lu Jingming's back.
Qingque watched his retreating figure, quietly rolling the jade token between her fingers. Inwardly, she mused, "So this is the auspicious sign the hexagrams just showed…"
Xiao Xiao trailed along, step for step. Lu Jingming had no reason to harm them—and with his power, if he'd wanted to ambush them, Songque and Qingque wouldn't have reacted in time. If a Master dies, their Servants won't last long either.
Songque, delighted to relax, skipped to the middle of the group, sneaking glances around for danger while whispering to Qingque, "Having a big shot backing us really is different. My legs were jelly just now…"
She truly feared running into that nuke-level battlefield again. With Lu Jingming clearing the way, she could finally catch her breath.
They crunched over broken brick, brittle cracks sounding underfoot.
Behind them, Mingdu still burned. Pillars of flame stained half the sky red, explosions and roars overlapping like a vision of hell on earth.
Yet under Lu Jingming's lead, the path forward seemed to grow clearer. Even the coppery tang of blood in the air seemed to fade.
"Hahaha, exhilarating!"
Childe's wild laughter echoed among the ruins. The azure water-blades in his hands spun deftly, sometimes a keen dagger, sometimes extending into a spear.
He moved like a fish through the antimatter legion's voidrangers. Each slash shrieked through the air; any voidranger touched dissolved into a storm of negative particles.
High-pressure water constantly changed form in his palms—sometimes condensing into a dense rain of water arrows to riddle incoming Reavers, sometimes whirling into vortices to grind nearby Distorters to shreds.
The Master of Many Arms carved seven in, seven out through the antimatter legion with transcendent skill, and couldn't hide the excitement and fighting spirit in his eyes.
Elsewhere, Hoshimi Miyabi stood atop a broken wall, her demon blade glinting with icy light.
Her movements were far simpler than Childe's. When her blade flashed, time itself seemed to halt. Reavers that could rend steel, Distorters, even Borisins that could match Titled Douluo or hundred-thousand-year soul beasts—none could withstand her weightless cut.
Where the blade passed, ripples of frigid energy spread. The antimatter legion's bodies froze, then were severed by keen light and dissipated into negative particles.
Two top-tier Servants rampaged like tigers among sheep, routing the antimatter legion wherever their eyes fell.
Without top-tier opponents to stop them, those endlessly spawning kill-machines were merely time-consuming nuisances.
"Grandfather, what do we do? We can't just keep grinding like this."
Meng Hongchen stood within a makeshift soul tool fortification, brows knit, worry clouding her pretty face.
Her gaze drifted toward the distance again and again, heart tied to Lu Jingming and the others. She knew he was powerful, and had strong Servants at his side, but the chaos was beyond imagination—she couldn't help worrying.
Jing Hongchen's eyes were locked on the palace, a complex light flickering within.
Of course he knew that Kong Deming had gone to the palace to find Xu Tiannan.
What he couldn't fathom was why Xu Tiannan chose to abandon Mingdu—especially when the regent had previously built underground defensive facilities large enough to shelter a million civilians, personally inspecting every detail to ensure that, after the tournament, the Holy Grail War's aftershocks wouldn't reach the populace.
The antimatter legion's strike was sudden, but with the Sun Moon Empire's foundation, as long as Xu Tiannan gave the order—if the mecha corps and the Five Hands of the Nation sallied forth, coordinating with city soul cannons and soul arrays—they could at least hold thirty percent of Mingdu and save many more civilians.
But in reality, the regent chose to sit on his hands, letting the antimatter legion run rampant, abandoning even the pre-built shelters.
What truly chilled Jing Hongchen was that the four beast-king-level soul engineer regiments stationed outside the city—Terrorclaw, Evil Lord, Royal Dragon, Fire Phoenix—remained motionless. Even the strongest Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Regiment turtled inside the palace, making no move.
Kong Deming had once commanded that very regiment. It seemed he'd lost control, and Xu Tiannan had seized it by some unknown means.
The antimatter legion also avoided the palace area, never attacking it. The two sides seemed to share a tacit understanding—even if one had already broken the pact, neither had torn the mask off entirely.
"Wait a bit longer."
Jing Hongchen's voice was low. "You and Xiao organize the civilians. Move everyone into the underground facilities. Quickly!"
He was waiting for a result—Kong Deming and Xu Tiannan's final choice.
If they broke completely, he would have to withdraw the Hongchen clan from Mingdu. If there was room to maneuver… His words cut off as a silver ripple surfaced in the air, spreading like waves across water.
Kong Deming stepped out, with a girl at his side—the Sun Moon Empire's princess, Xu Tianzhen.
With the power of a rank-10 soul tool, the Silvermoon Divine Light Barrier, the Super Douluo had achieved what only Limit Douluo could normally do—spatial transference, playing space itself in his palm.
"Teacher!"
Joy lit Jing Hongchen's face, and the boulder in his heart finally dropped.
Truth be told, he didn't want to tear things with Xu Tiannan at this moment—the upheaval was too sudden, and the Hongchen clan's roots were all in the Sun Moon Empire. A hasty retreat would be ruinous. He needed time.
Kong Deming gently set Xu Tianzhen down. The little princess had none of her usual lively air, head bowed in silence.
Even the innocent could understand harsh reality amid Mingdu's calamity.
"Take Tianzhen and your grandchildren and leave Mingdu."
Kong Deming's voice was hoarse and weary. "When it's all over—if Mingdu still stands—come back."
In the end, he hadn't laid hands on Xu Tiannan. He chose instead to take away the last untainted bloodline of the royal family.
Jing Hongchen's heart clenched—he understood at once.
Between the royal bloodline and millions of civilians, this lifelong guardian of the Sun Moon Empire had chosen the former.
Where you sit decides how you think. From the start, his stance dictated this outcome—even if he was furious at Xu Tiannan's cold-bloodedness, even if he pitied the dead civilians, he had still made the most rational choice.
"Then you, Teacher…"
Jing Hongchen faltered, voice trembling.
Kong Deming's expression turned cold, a flash of grim resolve in his eyes. "For the future of the Sun Moon Empire, these old bones ought to move."
Having chosen to indulge Xu Tiannan, he would see it through—he would help Xu Tiannan clear away all obstacles, keeping the old Douluo Three Kingdoms and Shrek Academy in Mingdu, burying them with the millions.
After this battle, no one on the Douluo Continent would be able to resist the Sun Moon Empire's iron tread.
As for the pact with Haiyuan City—he viewed it as a fallback.
If Xu Tiannan won, the pact would be void. If Xu Tiannan lost, the royal line could persist in Haiyuan City thanks to Zhang Lexuan's status.
Kong Deming never put all his eggs in one basket. Now he could gamble without scruples.
As long as the royal bloodline continued, there was hope.
Kong Deming turned toward the battlefield. Silver radiance rose around him—the Silvermoon Divine Light Barrier gleamed, a miniature silver-moon space faintly visible within.
Jing Hongchen fell silent. Kong Deming couldn't let go of the royal family or the Sun Moon Empire. Even though he had clashed with Xu Tiannan and had once wanted to kill him, his long-held convictions won out.
Jing Hongchen was different.
He was loyal too, but with a sober bottom line—the family's survival always came before the empire.
It wasn't ingratitude—just the truth that without skin, where would hair cling? If the Hongchen clan fell, what would a mighty empire mean to him?
Compared to the now unhinged Xu Tiannan, he preferred Haiyuan City's prospects. On that, he and Kong Deming could never see eye to eye.
"Since Teacher has decided…"
Jing Hongchen drew a deep breath, turning to his grandson and granddaughter. "Meng, Xiao—have your Servants assist your teacher. In the end, this is a war between Servants."
It was the last contribution he could make to the empire. The power of two top-tier Servants could give Kong Deming better odds—a final gesture to honor their teacher-student bond.
At his word, Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen looked to their Servants simultaneously, eyes asking.
Masters had no absolute control over Servants. They were equals; respect was required.