Declining Li Zhilong's invitation to stay, Gu La and his group left Tian Ding Starry Sky Soul Academy.
"Impossible!"
In the afternoon, after their sightseeing was over, they sat aboard the train heading to the next city.
Na'er's startled cry rang out in the carriage. Her delicate fingers tightly covered her lips, her amethyst-like eyes reflecting the glaring headline on the communicator.
The rapidly retreating scenery outside cast flickering shadows on her pale face.
Gu La quickly opened his own communicator. The homepage of the Soul Net displayed a holographic video prominently.
In the footage, Tang Wulin's Blue Silver Grass tangled with a golden dragon shadow. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, yet he still stood stubbornly.
The video title was marked in glaring red letters: "Breaking News! Shrek's Thousand-Year Myth of Invincibility Shattered!"
Others opened their communicators to see the news and videos promoted across the entire Soul Net. The video featured six familiar figures:
Tang Wulin, Ye Xinglan, Xu Lizhi, Xie Xie, Luo Guixing, Zheng Yiran.
Then came the bold red headline:
Clicking on the video, an excited reporter delivered a rapid report: "According to our station, six students from Shrek Academy challenged the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. Captain Tang Wulin suppressed the Holy Dragon martial soul with his variant Blue Silver Grass and gained the upper hand—no, wait! The Sun Moon team used their trump card: two Spirit Fusion Techniques!"
"Shrek Academy conceded defeat. The winner is Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy!"
The match was broadcast by multiple TV stations, shocking the entire soul master community. It was as if Tang Wulin and his five first-year teammates represented Shrek Academy in its loss to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
Na'er gazed at the screen, where Tang Wulin lay bleeding on the arena floor, and a flicker of pain crossed her eyes. "Big Brother."
The comments section exploded with heated discussions. Shrek Academy had stood at the pinnacle of the continent for ten thousand years, never conceding defeat in any soul master tournament. Yet today, under Tang Wulin's leadership, they bowed to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy!
"Shrek's thousand years of glory… destroyed by a bunch of teenagers?"
"This just proves that Shrek Academy isn't all that great!"
…
If there was anyone who harbored the most hostility toward Shrek Academy, it would undoubtedly be the people of Mingdu City—the capital of the Sun Moon Federation and the site of the infamous Mingdu Explosion.
Ordinary people might not remember, but the high-ranking soul masters of the Sun Moon Empire knew well that the Mingdu Explosion was caused by Lingbing Douluo Huo Yuhao, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of people in Mingdu, including many prominent soul master families. The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy suffered heavy losses, leading to a millennium-long animosity between the two institutions.
This also meant that the news spread across the Soul Net at lightning speed, reaching every corner of the continent.
"How could this happen?"
Wu Sido's voice trembled slightly as her slender fingers swiped through the projection, pulling up detailed reports. "How could Tang Wulin and the others lose to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy?"
An eerie silence fell over the carriage, broken only by the excited voice of the commentator echoing: "…Shrek Academy concedes defeat! The victor is the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy! This is a historic moment!"
Na'er now sat quietly in the corner, her silver hair falling to conceal her expression. But Gu La noticed that her knuckles gripping the communicator had turned white.
"Get off!"
Shen Yi suddenly stood up, her usually gentle face now as cold as ice. Without waiting for anyone to react, she shattered the reinforced glass window of the soul-guided train with a single punch, and the howling wind rushed into the carriage.
"Teacher, we're on a moving train!" Xu Xiaoyan exclaimed, grabbing the armrest of her seat in panic.
Shen Yi offered no explanation, grabbing Xu Xiaoyan by the collar and leaping out the window.
Gu La exchanged glances with the others before following suit. Na'er was the last to leave. She glanced back at the still-playing news footage, her eyes flashing with a complex emotion.
---
After landing, Shen Yi immediately dialed her communicator: "Master… the news has already spread. My senior brother… alright, we're heading back to the academy."
A muffled response came from the other end of the line, and Shen Yi's expression grew even more somber.
The group hastily boarded the fastest soul-guided aircraft to return to Shrek Academy. By then, the uproar on the Soul Net had reached a fever pitch.
"Shrek's thousand years of glory, destroyed!"
"Tang Wulin doesn't deserve to be a Shrek student!"
"The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy has finally avenged their past humiliation! They may become the number one academy on the continent!"
Na'er bit her lip, replaying the footage of Tang Wulin's injuries over and over again, tears welling up in her eyes. "Big Brother… he worked so hard…"
"It's not their fault," Gu La suddenly spoke up. "The Sun Moon Academy was well-prepared this time. With two Spirit Fusion Techniques, it would have been difficult to win even against opponents of the same level."
Gu Yue glanced at Gu La and gave an almost imperceptible nod.
When they arrived at Shrek City, the atmosphere of the academy had completely changed. Protesters gathered at the entrance, some holding signs reading "Disgrace," while others burned the Shrek Academy flag. The once solemn campus was now shrouded in gloom.
Countless people were feeding off Shrek Academy's failure.
"Look, those are Shrek Academy students!" someone recognized them. "How dare you show your faces? You've ruined Shrek's reputation!"
An egg suddenly flew toward them. Gu La swiftly raised a soul power barrier to block it. Shen Yi's face darkened, but she didn't stop, leading the group quickly through the crowd and straight to the Sea God Pavilion.
Gu La's expression turned odd as he spotted several Spirit Pagoda officials. Qiangu Dongfeng truly spared no effort in seeking revenge against Yun Ming, though this was indeed his style—if he did nothing, it would have aroused suspicion.
Inside the meeting hall of the Sea God Pavilion, the oppressive atmosphere was almost tangible. Over a dozen elder members sat around the long table, each with an expression darker than the last.
"Humiliation! This is the greatest disgrace in Shrek's thousand-year history!" A red-faced elder slammed the table, causing the teacup to jump. "We must expel Tang Wulin and Wu Zhangkong! Who gave them the audacity to represent the academy in battle?"
Zhuo Shi's face darkened as he wanted to defend his two disciples but couldn't find any excuse to justify their actions. A win is a win, and a loss is a loss—the result couldn't be changed.
"This is not the time to assign blame," Yun Ming calmly spoke from the head of the table, but his gaze was sharper than ever. "Our priority now is to restore Shrek's reputation."
"Restore? How do we restore it?" another elder sneered. "The entire continent knows we lost to the Sun Moon Academy!"
"We must restore Shrek's honor."
A frail yet powerful female voice came from the doorway. Everyone turned to see Long Yeyue slowly enter. The presence of this ninety-nine-level demigod caused the soul power fluctuations in the meeting hall to momentarily freeze.
Yun Ming stood up and bowed respectfully. "Master's Wife."
Long Yeyue waved her hand dismissively and took a seat next to Yun Ming. "I've already heard about what happened. While Tang Wulin made a mistake, it's not a mortal sin. What's most important now is to prove to the entire continent that Shrek is still Shrek."
"What do you mean?" Yun Ming frowned slightly.
"Send out a proper representative team to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy for a public friendly match."
Long Yeyue's gaze swept across everyone in the room. "And we must win convincingly."
A brief silence fell over the meeting hall.
------------------------------------------------------
40+ Chapters Ahead: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)