"The time has been pushed back?"
When Chen Junting finished his cultivation and walked out of his room, he learned from Ning Tian the news from Shrek Academy—the Sea God Pavilion meeting would be postponed to half a month later.
"Is it confirmed?"
"Confirmed."
Ning Tian nodded slightly. "And we also learned another piece of news, which is that Dean Yan proposed forming an alliance specifically to combat evil soul masters, preparing to invite major factions to join."
Hearing this, Chen Junting's hand movements paused slightly.
"Alliance?"
"Alliance."
"Good idea."
A smile suddenly curled up at the corner of Chen Junting's mouth. "It seems our Dean Yan is exactly as Elder Mu described."
"His utilitarian motives are quite heavy."
This wasn't sarcastic mockery, nor was it agreement. It was just stating the facts.
"He's doing this to enhance Shrek Academy's voice." Obviously, Yan Shaozhe's purpose couldn't be hidden from any smart person, and Ning Tian easily perceived his plan as well.
"But can Shrek grasp the dominance?"
Ning Tian's gaze focused on Chen Junting, asking:
"They aren't quite up to it now."
"If there really is such an alliance, Shrek Academy indeed has an advantage. After all, this is almost a transformation of the Shrek Supervision Team, just lacking some rather special powers."
"Do you think they will eventually cross the line?"
This question from Ning Tian made Chen Junting silent for a long while.
"That depends on their ambition. But if they really cross the line..." Chen Junting put down the towel he used to wipe his hands, his tone devoid of any ripples, "Shrek will march toward its own demise."
"Cough, cough—"
Ning Tian feigned a cough. "Brother Junting, it's an alliance."
This made Chen Junting seem as if he just realized something, blinking his eyes, his tone abruptly turning a bit playful. "Right, it's an alliance, and not an alliance that would be deeply influenced by Shrek Academy."
"Pfft—"
Ning Tian couldn't help but laugh, but the smile deep in her eyes quietly vanished. If she cast aside the label of a Shrek Academy student, and purely looked at the problem from the perspective of the Sect Master of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect...
Shrek Academy's influence was too great!
For those who entered the academy, the influence goes without saying. For those who didn't, spiritually it was worship, worship, and more worship.
In a sense, it had already formed a monopoly!
Perhaps...
The unsteady light in Ning Tian's eyes flickered, and finally she silently leaned against Chen Junting's arm, saying nothing else.
Seeing Ning Tian lost in thought, Chen Junting didn't say anything more, as if he wasn't the one who had just planted the seed in her mind.
Actually, in Chen Junting's view, some things couldn't be said directly; he had to let Xiao Tian judge for herself. And if it weren't for Dean Yan Shaozhe suddenly proposing the idea of forming an alliance, he wouldn't have taken this extra step. He did this now because he could see from Yan Shaozhe's proposal and Shrek Academy's agreement that the vast majority of Shrek Academy still wanted to control the voice.
It seemed they only paid lip service to Elder Mu's dying instructions, while the core remained the same; it could basically be said that they were beyond saving.
Since that's the case, then let's cut ties.
Lest in a thousand or ten thousand years, they were still deeply entangled with Shrek Academy, dragging the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect into it.
But just as Ning Tian was still deep in thought, "Huh?"
A sudden light exclamation awakened Ning Tian.
"Brother Junting, what's wrong?"
Chen Junting tapped his glabella. "Connect."
So he immediately calmed his mind, and the majestic voice of the God of Destruction echoed in Chen Junting's mind, "Kid."
"Senior, I've been waiting for your news for a long time."
Facing Chen Junting's words that attempted to close the distance, the God of Destruction answered strictly by the book: "One day in the Divine Realm is one year in the mortal realm. I came to tell you the situation after I finished my inspection."
Seeing this, Chen Junting also got straight to the point.
"Then did Senior find anything?"
"No."
This answer almost left Chen Junting dumbfounded.
No? How could there be nothing?
"Does Senior mean... did I guess wrong?"
However, the God of Destruction's next sentence pulled back Chen Junting's speculation, which had almost started to waver.
"That's not it."
The God of Destruction's tone remained plain and unmoved. "What I mean is that around the Douluo Planet, there are no other planes bordering it, and the same goes for the star system it is in."
"If your guess is correct, then they used methods like teleportation to invade the Douluo plane, just like the possession method you mentioned, which can also be counted as one of them. If they use this kind of method, then it will be hard for the Divine Realm to find the mastermind."
Hearing this, Chen Junting also felt surprised in his heart.
"Even the Divine Realm can't find it easily?"
The God of Destruction was first silent for a while. Just as Chen Junting was wondering if the Divine Realm had other methods, he opened his mouth and said:
"Actually, regarding the invasion of another plane, the plane itself has the strongest awareness and perception. If even the plane itself cannot detect it, it means the method of invading the plane is very concealed. In this regard, the Divine Realm is actually inferior to the plane itself."
"So in this situation, it is very difficult for the Divine Realm to have a way. After all, searching for this kind of invading plane is like looking for a needle in a haystack; there are simply too many similar planes in the entire universe."
I see, then it's not strange.
After hearing the explanation, Chen Junting clicked his tongue inwardly.
"Then if we want to solve this problem, what should we do?"
"Simple." This time, a trace of killing intent was added to the God of Destruction's indifferent tone. "Just trick them in and kill them."
"To invade a plane, no matter how it is in the early stage, later on they must make the plane achieve a certain degree of bordering. Once this connection is established, then our Divine Realm can follow this connection directly to find them, and then destroy them!"
Tracing the connection back to the source, and then going to fight them in person. Mmm—quite nice.
But...
"Is there only this one method?"
Chen Junting asked again, and the God of Destruction answered again:
"Only this one."
Chen Junting nodded slightly; this time it was his turn to be silent.
If that's the case, according to the God of Destruction's meaning, they must allow that plane to attack their Douluo Planet.
Moreover, this matter of plane invasion couldn't be dragged out. They couldn't just leave the problem to future generations, choosing to believe in the wisdom of their descendants and handing it over to them to solve, right?! If it really came to that...
That would be utterly despicable!
"Alright, I understand."
"Mm."
Knowing that this kid Chen Junting had a mind of his own, the God of Destruction didn't try to persuade him further. But just as he wanted to sever the connection between the two and continue his work of patrolling the subordinate planes, Chen Junting spoke up again to stop him. "Senior, wait."
The God of Destruction paused in severing the connection and asked coldly:
"What else is there?"
Unexpectedly, Chen Junting didn't say a word, only tapped the spider Rakshasa God mark on his glabella with his index finger.
Indicating: Don't forget the Divine Trial for this Rakshasa God position.
This time, the silence lasted much longer than before.
"I will prepare it, wait for news."
Saying this, he completely cut off the connection.
The abruptly ended communication made Chen Junting's expression turn weird for a moment, and he couldn't stop complaining in his heart: The God of Destruction definitely forgot about the Divine Test.
Secretly sighing, he pulled his consciousness back.
After opening his eyes and seeing Ning Tian again, facing her concerned gaze, he also faced a question, "How did it go?"
Chen Junting didn't say explicitly, just said:
"Prepare for a world war."
...
Meanwhile, Shrek Academy.
By the shores of the Sea God Lake in the inner courtyard, the lake water was crystal clear. Under the sunlight, it sparkled, and a gentle breeze brushed past, creating layers of ripples. A golden-haired man could be seen walking aimlessly along the shore. And this person was none other than Dai Huabin.
Ever since Xu Jiujiu's arrival, he had been like this.
Just then, the slender Zhu Lu quietly appeared not far away. Seeing Dai Huabin's back, a pang of sorrow struck her heart; she could feel the torment in Dai Huabin's heart.
Because these days, not only Dai Huabin, but even Zhu Lu herself was enduring immense pain, perhaps even far exceeding Dai Huabin's. Because the Zhu family mansion was located in Star Luo City, and without a doubt, the Zhu family was ruthlessly destroyed by the evil soul masters.
As for Zhu Lu's relatives, they all perished in that disaster. Perhaps there were some distant relatives in the army, but ultimately, she had become all alone, with only herself left. However, she obviously wasn't defeated, but had pulled herself together, otherwise she wouldn't have come to the Sea God Lake to care for her fiancé.
Or perhaps, to her...
Zhu Lu only had Dai Huabin left.
Zhu Lu walked up gently, her steps light and slow, yet seeming humble, as if afraid of disturbing Dai Huabin.
"Huabin."
She called softly, her voice gentle but carrying a trace of concern, as if she had completely suppressed the grief in her heart.
"Lulu."
Dai Huabin paused slightly, and slowly turned around.
Just then Zhu Lu stepped forward and held his hand.
Just as she wanted to comfort him, she raised her head, but saw an unusual light in Dai Huabin's evil eyes, and even a faintly burning flame, which couldn't help but make her heart panic. The flame was hot and intense, and it also hid something elusive, making her feel that the Dai Huabin in front of her was somewhat unfamiliar.
Zhu Lu felt that her Huabin had changed.
Actually, the moment he learned that the White Tiger Duke's mansion had been destroyed, Dai Huabin's heart did experience a brief moment of confusion.
The family mansion that once carried his glory and pride was instantly reduced to nothing, which made him feel at a loss.
However, when he learned that his father and older brother, because they were guarding the Star Luo frontier and stationed at the Northwest Army Corps, did not perish in this disaster, the pain in his heart was slightly alleviated.
And when the pain was gone, other emotions would surge into his heart.
When Dai Huabin further learned that Star Luo City was destroyed, the Star Luo Imperial Palace was destroyed, and the royal relatives of the Xu family now only had Xu Jiujiu, a mere woman, left, the long-hidden arrogance and ambition deep within Dai Huabin's heart were quietly ignited.
Dai Huabin knew very well that the throne of the Star Luo Empire should have belonged to their Dai family. It was only because of that failure thousands of years ago that they were forced to give up the throne and inherit the title of White Tiger Duke.
But now, with this excellent opportunity right in front of him, how could he easily miss it? Let me ask, what man doesn't want to become the supreme emperor, controlling the absolute power of the empire?
These past few days, he had been struggling, thinking... At this moment, Dai Huabin finally figured it out; he decided to seize this opportunity and take back the glory and power that belonged to their Dai family!
His gaze was aggressive, staring directly at Zhu Lu.
Under Zhu Lu's concerned yet panicked gaze, this ambition to retake the throne was suppressed by him.
It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but he was worried that the walls have ears.
He had to wait until everything was settled!
At this moment, Zhu Lu tightly held Dai Huabin's hand, felt the temperature of his palm, and noticed his abnormality.
"Huabin, what's wrong? Do you have something on your mind?"
She asked with concern, her eyes full of worry.
Dai Huabin barely squeezed out a smile, revealing a trace of sorrow. "It's nothing, just thinking about the family matters."
His eyes flickered, deliberately avoiding her gaze.
However, this scene was seen by Zhu Lu, but she didn't ask more, just leaned on Dai Huabin's shoulder, and continued to comfort him: "I know you feel bad, and so do I. But your uncle and the others are fine, everything will get better."
Dai Huabin nodded silently, but in his heart, he was thinking about his plan. After a while, he gently pushed Zhu Lu away, looked into her eyes and said: "Lulu, I want to go home for a trip."
Zhu Lu froze slightly and asked:
"Go home? Why?"
Facing her question, Dai Huabin had already prepared his answer.
He took a deep breath and said: "Such a big thing happened to the family, I must go back and see. My father and brother are guarding the frontier and cannot move lightly, lest the Sun Moon Empire causes trouble again. As the only remaining..." Saying this, Dai Huabin obviously hesitated for a moment, a flash of indignation and resentment flashed in his eyes, but then continued: "As the only remaining descendant of the Dai family, the responsibility falls on me."
"I'll go with you."
Zhu Lu had no hesitation and said decisively.
"No!"
Dai Huabin rejected her without even thinking.
At this moment, his tone was unquestionable, almost like an order. "You must stay here and handle things on my behalf."
This time, Zhu Lu hesitated.
"But if it's just you alone, without our martial soul fusion skill, if you go back now like this, will you encounter danger?"
She was worried about Dai Huabin's safety; after all, the situation outside was still turbulent, and the threat of evil soul masters still existed.
Who knew if there were evil soul masters ambushing in Star Luo City?
Dai Huabin didn't care; it wasn't like he was going to Star Luo City anyway.
But he only thought this in his heart, and didn't show it on the surface. Instead, he said: "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'm just going back to see the situation and fulfill my responsibility."
Seeing that his mind was made up, Zhu Lu no longer stopped him: "Then alright, you must be careful. I'll be right here waiting for you to come back."
"Okay."
Dai Huabin showed no reluctance, turned around and walked towards the Martial Soul Department teaching building in the inner courtyard, leaving only Zhu Lu staring at his back.
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