"What are you trying to do?"
Inside the grand hall.
A trace of panic finally appeared in Qian Renxue's eyes. Her entire body was restrained, and her cultivation as a Soul Sage was completely suppressed.
"Heh, insubordination. If it weren't for you... you would have been thrown in prison long ago, awaiting interrogation by Ghost Douluo." Bibi Dong finally revealed a calmness that comes from holding all the cards.
"Since you're unwilling to return to the imperial family of Heaven Dou, then stay at the Spirit Hall."
"When you become a god, then you can go find him..."
"You!" Qian Renxue's pretty face was full of anger. Before coming here, she hadn't told Uncle Su, meaning, apart from the two Titled Douluo who followed her, no one knew of her 'disappearance'.
But the road to godhood is a far-off dream.
Grandfather had hoped all his life, but still never crossed that threshold. Though her own prospects weren't slim, it would take at least several decades of training...
By then, things would've changed beyond recognition.
"What a vicious method!" Qian Renxue glared coldly at her.
"Vicious?" Bibi Dong snorted softly.
"I'm just worried some ill-intentioned people will take advantage of you, that's all."
"I'm more than willing! Mind your own business!" Qian Renxue spat.
"..."
The hall fell into silence.
Yet Bibi Dong was dazed for a moment, for this scene was so very much like her own youth, desperately devoting herself to Yu Xiaogang under her teacher's coercion.
"Heh, talk to me about these things again only after your strength surpasses mine..."
Bibi Dong said flatly.
With a wave of her hand.
Ghost, clad in a gold-stitched black robe, slowly materialized. After being beaten up by Su Wen, he was gradually recovering and now remained in Spirit Hall to handle assorted affairs.
"Your Highness... please come with me," Ghost bowed.
"Hmph!"
Qian Renxue strode out toward the corridor outside. Becoming a god? What a joke! By the time she advanced to Titled Douluo and surpassed Bibi Dong, she'd force her way out.
She couldn't possibly wait that long...
"Seal off all information. If she escapes, you know what the consequences will be," Bibi Dong blandly instructed from the hall.
"Understood!" Ghost replied.
He looked fine but his legs were trembling wildly. Defying the Pope's order wasn't an option, so he pressed on, teeth gritted.
Both understood: if Su Wen truly took revenge, the entire Spirit Hall might be razed to the ground.
Meanwhile.
Atop a canyon.
An old man in white robes sighed softly, shook his head, hesitated a long time, then finally beckoned, summoning a spirit sparrow. His fingers traced golden light in the air as if writing something. Once done, he wrapped the golden strands around the sparrow's leg.
"Big brother, you really want to lure that guy over here?" Beside him, Golden Crocodile Douluo raised an eyebrow. "What if he…"
"If he holds no ill-will toward Xue'er, he won't kill Bibi Dong, and Spirit Hall won't suffer. At most, a few people pay the price," Qian Daoliu replied serenely.
"You're bold. Weren't we flattened last time? Isn't that Spirit Hall getting dragged in too?"
"Anyone die?"
"Well... seems not. No casualties actually." Golden Crocodile Douluo came back to himself, a little dazed.
"When did Xun Ji befriend people like this? Really... hard to understand," muttered Qian Daoliu, declining to answer more.
…
The tournament arrived right on schedule.
Heaven Dou City.
People everywhere, a real sea of humanity.
At the registration desk.
"Did you bring your qualification documents? Shrek Academy? Another chicken-scratch school from who knows where... Aren't you Blue Tyrant Academy?" An old man with glasses at the office raised his eyebrow suspiciously, sweeping a sharp glance at everyone from Shrek.
"Are you here under false names?"
"What did you just say, you old dog?!!" Ma Hongjun pointed at the clerk's nose, furious.
"Who's here under false names?"
"That's right! Blue Tyrant Academy changed its name, didn't you know?" Oscar hurriedly chimed in.
Not daring to cause trouble is the mark of a coward.
They weren't scared of anyone.
"Tch, I've seen your type plenty of times." The old man curled his lip contemptuously. "Every time before the tournament, some country bumpkin school tries to sneak in with fake credentials, trying to pass off as legit."
"But with me, dream on!"
He raised his voice.
People lining up started glancing over.
They pointed and whispered at the Shrek team in their dark green jackets covered with advertisements.
"You old dog—ow!" Ma Hongjun continued cursing but received a whack on the head. Turning, he saw Flender glaring fiercely at him.
"Don't mind them, sir. Here, a token of our sincerity, cough." Flender handed over a bag of gold spirit coins with a smile.
"Heh." The old man sneered, "A few hundred coins? You think I'm a beggar?"
"My credentials are real!" Flender protested anxiously.
"How do you prove they're real?" The clerk looked down his nose at them.
With a contemptuous glance, he added: "Half a day left before registration closes. Make a scene if you want, I'm in the right. But this spot in the tournament—hmmph..."
"How much do you want?" Flender suppressed his anger.
"Your student called me 'old dog' twice, so two thousand gold coins, then." The old man grinned.
"You—" Ma Hongjun tried to curse again, but Flender slapped him hard. "Enough trouble!"
"..."
The Shrek team all froze.
Ma Hongjun was especially aggrieved, muttering, "Didn't you say not daring to cause trouble is cowardice?"
"That's twenty thousand gold coins..."
With a frosty face, Flender handed over a storage soul device.
His heart bled.
Such blatant extortion—he'd get this back with interest someday!
Twenty thousand gold spirit coins! For a miser who valued money more than students' lives, this was like cutting flesh off his own body.
"All right, move along!" The clerk snorted, stamping their papers with a wave.
"Dean, you're just taking that lying down?" Dai Mubai asked, unwilling.
"With the contest about to start, focus on ranking, not trouble," Grandmaster said quietly.
"We'll sort it out after the tournament!" Flender grit his teeth and swallowed his anger.
They registered.
Then found a nearby hotel to stay in.
The mood was heavy.
Nothing seemed to go smoothly...
Xiao Wu had left too, so the main force was down to five. Luckily, Yu Tianheng, Tai Long, Jing Ling, Jiang Zhu, and other former reserves were now filling the gaps.
But their plan to crush the Heaven Dou Royal Team and exact revenge seemed farther and farther away.
Grandmaster's overemphasis on body training was leaving the main members stuck at Rank 32 or 33, unable to advance.
Their faith in Grandmaster was faltering.
"Keep your spirits up!" Grandmaster urged.
"Even if you can't defeat the Royal Team, after my training, you'll still show the world what Shrek is!"
"And with Yu Tianheng on board, we might repeat last time's comeback victory over the Heaven Dou team!"
"San, is the realgar wine ready?"
"All set, teacher!" Tang San nodded solemnly.
"Everything's ready—we just need a favorable wind!" Grandmaster slammed the table, face full of excitement.