Half a month later, Shrek Academy.
Chen Junting led Ning Tian, Gu Tianchen, Huo Yuhao, and Wu Feng—four people in total—straight to the shores of the Sea God Lake without anyone stopping them. Ma Xiaotao had already been waiting for a long time.
She was currently dressed in red, as fiery as flames, and enthusiastically stepped forward to greet them. At the same time, she boldly slapped Chen Junting's shoulders a few times. "You're finally here! Look how long we've been waiting!"
Ma Xiaotao spoke with a smile while her gaze swept over everyone. Seeing that there were only the five of them, she asked curiously, "Is your sect leaving this matter entirely to you guys this time?"
"After all, it's about time for us to take over."
With a rather helpless look in his eyes, Chen Junting removed Ma Xiaotao's hand from his shoulder, shook it as a greeting, and then let go. "Besides, with the current situation on the continent, my master and the others need to guard the sect in case those evil soul masters come knocking to steal our base again."
"That's true."
Ma Xiaotao didn't mind at all and withdrew her hand, then put on a dignified and elegant posture. Apart from the disgusted look in her eyes when mentioning the "evil soul masters," which ruined the aesthetic a little, everything else genuinely surprised Chen Junting and the others.
Had this Flame Demoness changed her personality!?
Did "dignified" even suit her!?
"Sister Xiaotao, what's wrong with you?"
Seeing her like this, Ning Tian hesitated to speak.
It was this question that made Ma Xiaotao drop the act entirely.
"Ugh! It's all my teacher's fault!"
When this topic was brought up, Ma Xiaotao irritably scratched her head, almost turning her neatly styled hair into a mess. "My cultivation has now broken through to Titled Douluo, and then my teacher planned to have me take over his and my godmother's positions. I was originally willing, but he said that as the Head of the Martial Soul Department, I'm the public face of the department and need to be 'gentle and elegant'..."
"Good heavens! How am I that kind of material? Gentle and elegant... but this time, even my godmother doesn't plan to help me."
Ma Xiaotao was going crazy.
This scene made Chen Junting and the others look at each other in dismay.
To be honest, Dean Yan wasn't wrong.
But for Ma Xiaotao to achieve "dignity" or whatever...
Almost subconsciously, the four of them looked at Wu Feng, who was using her pinky to pick her ear, looking like she was enjoying the show. Noticing the four looking at her, Wu Feng was taken aback. "Why are you looking at me?"
Instantly, Chen Junting and the others shook their heads inwardly.
This was just like asking Wu Feng to change her personality.
Impossible!
So, Ning Tian changed the subject: "Sister Xiaotao, to get on the island next, do we have to fly over?"
"Ah, no."
Returning to the main topic, Ma Xiaotao quickly took over the conversation. "To ensure a sense of ceremony, we have to board a boat first to reach Sea God Island, and the meeting will be held in the Sea God Pavilion." As she spoke, she led the way in front, and the group followed behind her, walking toward the other side.
Once all six of them boarded the boat heading to Sea God Island, they felt the sea breeze brushing against their faces, bringing a hint of coolness. Chen Junting then asked, "Sister Xiaotao, which factions have arrived?"
Ma Xiaotao tilted her head slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "Basically, all the factions have arrived; you Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is the only one missing."
Chen Junting nodded slightly and politely said, "We are late then."
"Psh! Late my foot, they were just early."
At this time, Wu Feng's eyes darted around, and she asked with a bit of schadenfreude in her tone: "Since the Tian Hun Empire, Star Luo Empire, and Dou Ling Empire are all here, have they started fighting yet?"
Hearing this, Ma Xiaotao immediately became interested.
"Yes, how could they not!"
"The representatives of the Tian Hun Empire and the Star Luo Empire gave the people from the Dou Ling Empire a severe scolding. If my teacher and the others hadn't stopped them, the Tian Hun people would have slaughtered the Dou Ling Empire's representatives right then and there."
When mentioning the Dou Ling Empire, Ma Xiaotao's tone was similar to Wu Feng's, and her schadenfreude was even stronger.
Who told the Dou Ling Empire to carry out their actions after her teacher had personally visited them? This was clearly not taking their Shrek Academy seriously. As for the explanations—no, the excuses—given by the Dou Ling Empire, they were completely ignored by them. Anyone with eyes could see that it was all just ghost stories meant to fool them.
It turned out that within this half-month, taking advantage of the subtle changes in the continental situation, the Dou Ling Empire brazenly invaded the Tian Hun Empire and the Star Luo Empire. Among them, the Star Luo Empire, caught unprepared and lacking top-tier experts to guard it, was utterly defeated under the fierce attacks of the Dou Ling Empire. Vast expanses of their territory quickly fell; in an extremely short period, they lost more than half of their territory and population.
If Shrek Academy hadn't intervened in time, forcing the Dou Ling Empire to halt its offensive and spit out a portion of the territory and population, the losses suffered by the Star Luo Empire would likely have been even more severe.
Even so, they still lost nearly one-fifth of the original Star Luo Empire's land. It could be said that their vitality was severely damaged; the once strongest nation on the original Douluo Continent had now practically been reduced to the weakest country. It truly made one sigh with regret.
The situation on the Tian Hun Empire's side was somewhat better. Although they were also caught off guard in the early stages, they fortunately reacted quickly.
The Limit Douluo Du Busi took action personally, using his immense strength to block the Dou Ling Empire's offensive. Just as Du Busi was preparing to pursue the victory and wipe out the Dou Ling Empire's invading forces, a mysterious powerhouse suddenly emerged from the Dou Ling Empire's side. It was because of this person's intervention that the war was brought to an end.
"I heard..."
Ma Xiaotao's expression became a bit gossipy at this moment, instantly hooking the curiosity of everyone present. "During this time, an elder from the Body Sect represented the Tian Hun Empire at our Shrek. We roughly learned from him that the person who stopped Du Busi was extremely powerful. Although it's unclear if they're male or female, they are definitely a Super Douluo, and they relied on exquisitely controlling multiple soul tools to fight Du Busi to a standstill. So, in the end, with the support of that powerhouse, the Dou Ling Empire reached a compromise with the Tian Hun Empire and returned a portion of the territory, though they still swallowed up one-twentieth of the original Tian Hun Empire's territory."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk—"
Saying this, Ma Xiaotao couldn't stop shaking her head. "I have to say, they were lucky to run into such a powerhouse. Otherwise, with Du Busi's temper, he probably would have razed Ling Dou City to the ground."
At this moment, Chen Junting's heart couldn't help but skip a beat.
"Is the Dou Ling Empire's person a Limit Douluo?"
Ma Xiaotao shook her head and said:
"It's unclear whether that person is a Limit Douluo, but they are at least a Level 98 Super Douluo. And since that person could fight Du Busi, I reckon! It's mostly due to soul tools."
Regarding the sudden emergence of such a mysterious powerhouse, Ma Xiaotao didn't find it too strange. After all, the Douluo Continent was vast; who knew how many powerhouses had been hidden away in the past? Even if they chose to emerge now, it was normal.
After understanding Ma Xiaotao's thoughts, Chen Junting couldn't help but nod in agreement, acknowledging her point. After all, in the original timeline, Titan and Niu Tian from Hao Tian Castle were this type of hermit powerhouses, as well as the newly appeared Sea God Family. And then there were those powerful families that appeared in the era of 'Legend of the Dragon King' in the original timeline but had no trace now, like the Angel Family...
Thinking of this, Chen Junting felt it made more and more sense, so he temporarily cast his doubts to the back of his mind.
Also at this time, they finished the boat ride and set foot on the island.
However, as Chen Junting stepped on the stone path, he turned his head slightly and noticed Huo Yuhao's increasingly restless little movements, as well as the flush that occasionally appeared on his face.
His heart stirred, and he immediately guessed the reason.
So he stopped in his tracks and asked teasingly:
"Yuhao, what's wrong with you?"
As soon as these words came out, Ning Tian and the others also noticed Huo Yuhao's abnormality. They instantly understood and showed inexplicable smiles on their faces. Although they were all Soul Douluos now, Huo Yuhao still had thin skin. Being stared at by everyone, he actually blushed slightly.
Seeing this, Ma Xiaotao couldn't help but tease: "You're missing your 'little wifey,' right? What a coincidence, your 'little wifey' has been thinking about her lover too. How about I take you to her?"
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao quickly waved his hand. "No... no need. Let's hold the meeting first; we shouldn't keep the others waiting."
At this time, Chen Junting smiled slightly, seeing through the kid's heart. The corners of his mouth curled up as he looked at Ma Xiaotao and asked, "Sister Xiaotao, do you want to attend the meeting?"
"No need for that."
Meetings and such were very boring.
So Ma Xiaotao wasn't interested at all. She waved her hand and said, "With Senior Sister here, I don't need to go."
Clap—
A sudden clap rang out; it was Ning Tian who clapped her hands.
"That's perfect then."
With their minds connected, Ning Tian easily understood her Brother Junting's intention. So she said to Huo Yuhao: "How about this, let Sister Xiaotao take you to find Dong'er. Anyway, you're only attending this meeting as an observer; you don't have to be present."
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao was immediately tempted.
Almost subconsciously, he looked at Chen Junting.
Catching this glimpse, Chen Junting said nonchalantly, "It's up to you. Why are you looking at me?"
This time, Huo Yuhao did not hesitate at all and immediately nodded in agreement. At this very moment, his eyes shone with anticipation; thinking of seeing Wang Dong'er soon, his heart was filled with joy.
Seeing him like this, Chen Junting didn't force him to stay.
So he said to Ma Xiaotao: "Sister Xiaotao, we know the way to the Sea God Pavilion; we can walk there ourselves."
"Alright, take your time on the way."
Ma Xiaotao wasn't polite either.
This task was just too boring.
She was now impatient to hand Huo Yuhao over to Wang Dong'er and then go do what she wanted to do.
So... "We're off!"
After speaking, she took Huo Yuhao away. With a reach and a hook of her arms, moving swiftly, she grabbed Huo Yuhao and dashed off!
"Pfft—"
"Those two, why are they acting like kids."
After briefly teasing Huo Yuhao and the others behind their backs, Chen Junting and the rest restrained their emotions and continued leading Ning Tian, Gu Tianchen, and Wu Feng toward the Sea God Pavilion not far away.
Along the way, no one spoke; each was immersed in their own thoughts. It was Wu Feng who broke the silence first, saying to the remaining four: "I didn't expect the Dou Ling Empire to be so bold as to provoke both the Tian Hun and Star Luo Empires at the same time."
Even Gu Tianchen frowned slightly and chimed in:
"There must be something complicated behind this. Perhaps some faction is secretly supporting them. For example... that super powerhouse who recently appeared."
Ning Tian nodded gently: "No matter how all this came to be, at least for now, looking at this alliance meeting about to be held, it's mostly not going to be peaceful. The conflicts of interest and contradictions among the three great empires will all be exposed during the meeting."
"Exposed so be exposed, what can they do about it?"
Chen Junting looked calm; right now, he seemed the least surprised. "The only point of discussion for our meeting later is the evil soul masters, regardless of how the three great empires are faring."
"As for other matters, we don't need to take the lead."
While speaking, they had already arrived in front of the Sea God Pavilion.
At this moment, the Sea God Pavilion had already gathered representatives from various factions. In the spacious hall, a circle of tables and chairs was set up, and the representatives were talking in twos and threes, the atmosphere slightly tense.
Even Xu Jiujiu of the Star Luo Empire had stood up, her face full of grief and indignation as she accused: "Everyone, this invasion by the Dou Ling Empire has caused our Star Luo Empire heavy losses. More than half of our territory has fallen, and countless people are displaced. We will never let this go; the Dou Ling Empire must return all the land and pay the price!"
The representative of the Dou Ling Empire sneered and stood up.
"Hmph—We have already returned part of the territory under Shrek Academy's mediation, what more does your Star Luo Empire want?"
"You—"
Xu Jiujiu was instantly enraged.
How could they be so shameless!?
"That was all ours to begin with!"
At this time, the representative of the Tian Hun Empire also stood up and said angrily: "The Dou Ling Empire's ambitions are obvious to all. If it weren't for Lord Du Busi taking action, our Tian Hun Empire would probably have suffered even greater losses. You must give us an explanation today!"
However, the Dou Ling Empire was completely unafraid and simply said:
"Anyway, we have already given an explanation for this matter and turned the page. We will not respond to anything else."
For a moment, the atmosphere was fraught with tension. It wasn't until Chen Junting and the others entered that the atmosphere eased slightly.
Seeing this situation, Ning Tian's lips didn't move, but she transmitted her voice using soul power, "Brother Junting, it looks like it's not going to end well."
Chen Junting's face was calm, and he replied in the same manner. "Don't rush, let's see the situation first. Anyway, our Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect won't easily take a stance. Let them fight if they want to; after all, no matter what, the Dou Ling Empire's actions have indeed been considered a closed chapter, and they can't cause any major chaos. At most, the Tian Hun Empire and the Star Luo Empire are just unwilling to accept it. But so what?"
At this time, "You're here."
Elder Song saw Chen Junting and his four companions arrive and said at the same time:
"Since everyone is here, we will officially start the meeting. As for the dispute earlier, it has already been negotiated."
As soon as these words were spoken, it completely cut off the arguments.
The implication was that no matter how much you argued in private, the others didn't come to listen to this; the meeting needed to get down to business.
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