Watching the scenes replay of Tang San repeatedly attacking Xu Zihuang, Mu Lao and the others from Shrek Academy fell into silence.
Xu Zihuang looked straight into Mu Lao's eyes and said calmly, "From this day forward, Shrek Academy will be renamed Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. The Sea God Pavilion is hereby dissolved. Those who are willing to stay are naturally welcome to become members of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. Those who are unwilling may leave on their own."
He was not discussing anything with the people of Shrek Academy; he was stating a fact. His decision allowed no one to question it.
Most of the Sea God Pavilion elders were already advanced in age. They all furrowed their brows with melancholy but did not make any extreme moves. The ones who felt the most unwilling were Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and others like them.
Ma Xiaotao looked at Xu Zihuang with a complicated expression. According to her usual personality, she would definitely have said something in anger, but today she only pressed her lips tightly together and remained unusually silent.
The expressions of Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Tang Ya, and He Caitou were similarly filled with emotion as they gazed at Xu Zihuang.
From everyone's reactions, it was clear that Mu Lao had already told them something beforehand.
Mu Lao let out a soft sigh. His profound eyes held both melancholy and relief.
"Everyone, leave."
"Mu Lao!"
"Teacher!"
Everyone cried out in sorrow. Mu Lao had devoted his entire life to Shrek Academy, yet in the end, it had come to this.
Mu Lao saw things clearly enough. He knew that under a unified empire, Shrek Academy could no longer maintain the lofty status it once had. Perhaps Xu Zihuang did not care about these things, but if the remaining elders of the Sea God Pavilion stayed, they would instead become hidden dangers.
The Sun Moon Empire could not erase the history of Shrek Academy's existence. In a certain sense, Shrek Academy's legacy would never be severed.
"Go on," Mu Lao's expression became much more serious as he urged them again.
Elder Song sighed and shook her head. Following Mu Lao's wishes, she led the Sea God Pavilion elders away. Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, Qian Duoduo, and Cai Meier wanted to say something more, but they were forcefully stopped by Mu Lao's stern gaze.
In the end, among the Sea God Pavilion elders, only Zhang Lexuan and Xuan Lao, who had lost their minds and fallen into madness, remained in place.
Mu Lao looked at Xu Zihuang and spoke again, "Xuan Zi's cultivation has already been sealed by you. Let him stay on Sea God Island with me for the rest of my days. As for Lexuan, I believe you already know her situation. She carries half the imperial bloodline of the Sun Moon Empire. From the root of her bloodline, she shares the same origin as you. Making Lexuan the dean of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy will, I believe, eliminate the resistance of the original Douluo Continent's people toward the Sun Moon Empire to the greatest extent."
Xu Zihuang nodded silently and shifted his gaze to Zhang Lexuan, who was lightly biting her lower lip. He naturally understood Mu Lao's intentions, but he had to admit that what Mu Lao said was indeed beneficial to their Sun Moon Empire. This was an open and aboveboard stratagem.
Mu Lao's heart finally received a trace of comfort. He then disbanded all the inner court disciples of Shrek Academy.
Those inner court disciples all respectfully bowed to Mu Lao before suppressing their emotions and leaving one after another. Before long, among the inner court disciples, only Ma Xiaotao, Bei Bei, Tang Ya, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou, the ones who had once had close interactions with Xu Zihuang, remained standing in place.
A loud, clear phoenix cry suddenly resounded through the sky. Ma Xiaotao's eyes were slightly red as she released her martial soul and floated into the air. She stared blankly at Sea God Island below for a long time before finally turning resolutely into a brilliant gold-red light and disappearing into the distance.
Her extremely enchanting pink eyes were filled with determination and obsession. With her talent, she might not be unable to touch that level in the future.
Ma Xiaotao actually knew that she might never be able to catch up to Xu Zihuang's footsteps. She was doing this more out of stubbornness to cover up the regret in her heart. She had asked herself more than once in the quiet of the night: if she had not chosen to leave Shrek Academy back then, would the outcome have been different?
Looking at the now desolate Sea God Island, Xu Sanshi forced a smile onto his face and asked Bei Bei and the others, "Now that Shrek Academy no longer exists, what are your plans?"
"Xiaoya and I will probably stay in Shrek City and continue to develop and expand the Tang Sect." Bei Bei held Tang Ya's hand tightly, helping to ease her low spirits a little.
"What about you, Sanshi?"
"I plan to travel across the continent for a while," Xu Sanshi said with a carefree smile, seemingly returning to his usual carefree self.
"To be honest, the fact that the Dou Ling Empire chose to surrender to the Sun Moon Empire actually makes me feel much more relaxed. I no longer have to be bound by those matters. The sect also has Big Brother supporting it, so I can say I am now completely unburdened."
At this point, everyone unconsciously turned their gazes toward Xu Zihuang. Although they had spent nearly ten years with him, the change in Xu Zihuang's identity and the massive upheaval in just a few short months made them feel incredibly distant from him.
Xu Sanshi and Bei Bei habitually opened their mouths to say something but didn't know where to begin. They also didn't ask He Caitou, because before Xu Zihuang arrived at Shrek Academy, He Caitou had already taken the initiative to reveal his identity to them.
Xu Zihuang walked slowly to He Caitou. The two brothers met again under these circumstances.
"Royal Brother, what do you plan to do in the future? If you have no plans, come back to Mingdu with me. The bloodline of Uncle's branch also needs you to carry it on."
However, He Caitou's next answer surprised everyone present.
He Caitou smiled and rubbed his big bald head. His smile no longer carried the honest simplicity of before; instead, it had an unusually steady and wise quality.
"Zihuang, the only obsession that kept me struggling to survive back then after escaping from Xu Tianran was to take revenge on him to honor Father Emperor. But now that Xu Tianran has been executed, my obsession has naturally been resolved. I won't be returning to Mingdu. In the future, I just want to live the rest of my life freely like Sanshi, without any constraints."
"Then I respect your wishes," Xu Zihuang said seriously with a nod.
Xu Sanshi laughed and wrapped his arm around He Caitou's neck, no longer showing any previous awkwardness.
"Nice one, Caitou. You're really carefree. With your identity, if you returned to Mingdu, you'd at least get a prince's title, right?"
As he spoke, Xu Sanshi seemed to remember something.
"Oh right, I almost forgot. Your real name is Xu Helai, and we share the same surname."
"Just keep calling me Caitou like before." He Caitou's face was also full of smiles.
"A name is just a form of address to me."
Bei Bei nodded slightly to Xu Zihuang, then left together with Xu Sanshi, He Caitou, and Tang Ya. Xu Zihuang could clearly feel an invisible barrier between himself and Bei Bei and the others. Even He Caitou was no exception.
Only the pure-natured Tang Ya hesitated several times, wanting to say something to Xu Zihuang.
Xu Zihuang looked up at the clear, azure-blue sky and gradually collected the emotions in his heart.
Everything was over.
Ye Guyi, Wang Qiu'er, Ju Zi, Ning Tian, and Wei Na silently stayed by Xu Zihuang's side. Xu Xiyan and Xu Ningqing also leaned against their mothers' embraces, seeming to sense Xu Zihuang's mood as they remained quiet.
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Here are the chapters for today (づ￣3￣)づ╭～
"Don't forget there are chapters available on Patreon."
"Douluo: Sword of Judgment and Eternal Ice 30 Advance chapters"
"From Douluo to Godhood by Defying the Heavens 30 Advance chapters."
"Douluo: Far North Invincibledo 30 Advance chapters."
"Douluo Dalu 2:Peerless Tang Sect Dawn of Sun and Moon the novel is already finished on Patreon."
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