The moment Liu Erlong stepped back into her quarters, she found Flander and Tang San standing together, their expressions grim, deep in what looked like a serious discussion. Ning Rongrong was sprawled listlessly across the table, occasionally letting slip a faint smile, clearly somewhere else in her thoughts. Xiao Wu sat admiring an unfamiliar flower. Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar, meanwhile, each stood apart, pointedly ignoring one another—the tension between them obvious to anyone paying attention.
"Erlong, you're back." Flander forced a smile. "How'd it go? Did you find that person?"
"I did. Found her." Liu Erlong nodded, smiling. The outcome hadn't been what she'd hoped for, but at least Xiao Huohuo wasn't a woman after all—and she wasn't dead, either. Alive and well, even if she didn't remember Liu Erlong at all.
"Really? That's wonderful." A tangle of emotions crossed Flander's face—happiness that Liu Erlong might finally find some measure of joy, and quiet grief that it meant he'd never have a chance with her himself.
"Teacher Erlong, who exactly are you looking for?" Ning Rongrong drifted closer, curiosity written all over her face.
"You'll find out eventually." Liu Erlong just smiled.
"Teacher Erlong…" Ning Rongrong rose onto her toes and whispered close to her ear. "It can't be Xiao Huohuo, can it? The one you're always thinking about?"
Liu Erlong flushed. "How did you—"
"You talk in your sleep every night, and eight times out of ten it's Xiao Huohuo's name. Honestly, I wish I didn't know." Ning Rongrong threw up her hands, exasperated, then immediately leaned in again, eyes gleaming. "Tell me everything! Is he handsome? And how's he connected to Xiao Se—uncle? Father?"
"Uh…" Liu Erlong's lips twitched. This girl's appetite for gossip really knew no bounds. "I'm sorry, Rongrong. I gave someone my word I wouldn't say. Not yet, anyway."
"Ohh, why not?" Ning Rongrong pouted.
Liu Erlong smoothly changed the subject, turning to Flander instead. "You still haven't told me what all this serious talk was about."
Flander's expression turned heavy. "Erlong. Xiaogang's gone missing."
"That spineless little man?" A flicker of surprise crossed Liu Erlong's eyes. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't laid eyes on Yu Xiaogang in nearly a month—hadn't he even skipped joining them for the trip from Tiandou City to Wuhun City in the first place?
"Teacher Erlong, a little respect, please. He's my master," Tang San said, a note of anger creeping into his voice.
Liu Erlong glanced at him, unbothered, and pressed on with Flander. "So what happened? How did he disappear?"
Flander gave Tang San a complicated look before answering. "Before the preliminaries wrapped up, he set out ahead of us for Wuhun City—said he wanted to track down the Pope of Spirit Hall, see if there was some fix for the backlash from twin martial souls. We were supposed to meet up with him here. I've checked every hotel in the city. No sign of him."
"Master, you know the Pope of Spirit Hall?" Ning Rongrong asked, surprised.
"Back when I was young, I worked as a librarian at Spirit Hall for a stretch," Liu Erlong explained. "I met the Pope—she was the Holy Maiden at the time. I fell for her, one-sided. Confessed. Got turned down."
Something clicked into place in Ning Rongrong's head—Yu Xiaogang had a history like that too, which meant she now had material for two entries in her private collection of scandalous gossip, not just one. It all lined up now: after leaving Spirit Hall, Yu Xiaogang had crossed paths with Flander and Liu Erlong, confessed his feelings, been rejected all over again, and fled the group entirely—which was, presumably, how the Golden Iron Triangle had fallen apart.
"Have you confirmed he actually made it into Spirit City?" Liu Erlong asked.
Flander shook his head. "This is Spirit Hall's own territory. Nobody's going to pay any mind to outsiders like us asking around. I can't be sure either way."
"He's obviously been taken by Spirit Hall," Tang San cut in, a cold glint in his eye. "Spirit master theory is supposed to be shared for the good of all spirit masters everywhere. But they're afraid I'll master the twin martial soul path and become a threat to them—so they've gone after my teacher again."
Liu Erlong arched a delicate eyebrow. "Tang San. I've got no particular love for Spirit Hall myself, but let's not be hypocrites here."
"The method for resolving twin martial soul backlash is a closely guarded secret no matter who holds it. And if you're so certain everyone should share their spirit master theories for the greater good—then shouldn't that apply to you too? Your strange hidden weapons, your self-invented soul skills, those unorthodox techniques, the Chaotic Cloak Hammer Technique your father taught you—why not share those selflessly with the world as well?"
"That alone would give support-type Soul Masters like Rongrong and Oscar a fighting chance to actually defend themselves. It'd make the whole Shrek team stronger, too—might even be the difference between winning the championship or not."
"And as for whether Yu Xiaogang's really been captured by Spirit Hall—there's no way to confirm that right now. What if he's simply been held up by something else entirely?"
Deep down, Liu Erlong had never had much patience for either Yu Xiaogang or his disciple—their thinking grew more extreme by the day, in her eyes. The former was a man both deeply insecure and impossibly arrogant, someone who threw tantrums at his own people while turning meek and spineless the moment an outsider was involved. It was only for Flander's sake that she tolerated him at all; otherwise she'd have slapped that smug look off his face ages ago.
The latter, meanwhile, was nothing short of unsettling—an old man's soul wearing a child's body. If it weren't for Tang Ritian, she'd have thrown him out long before now.
Tang San fell silent at her words, caught momentarily off guard.
Not that he thought himself wrong—he simply believed Liu Erlong was being unfair, favoring outsiders over her own.
Of course, he could hardly explain that his abilities were Tang Sect secret techniques, passed down only to Tang Sect disciples. That secret was his single greatest advantage, and he had no intention of giving it up.
Standing off to the side, Ning Rongrong felt a spark of interest flare briefly at the idea—then extinguished it almost as fast. Knowing Tang San's temperament, that was never going to happen.
"All right, enough. Erlong, the important thing right now is finding Xiaogang." Flander shot Liu Erlong a quick look, a silent signal not to push the argument any further.
Flander had always trod carefully around Tang San—not just out of deference to Tang Ritian, but out of a lingering unease about whatever ancient soul might be lurking inside the boy. After two years of watching him closely, he'd come to understand one thing clearly: Tang San was not a person who let grudges go. Better, then, to keep Liu Erlong from clashing with him directly.
"It's already dark out—no point rushing to search tonight. I know someone who knows this city well. I'll ask her for help in the morning." Liu Erlong glanced toward the night sky pressing black against the window, sighed quietly, and turned back toward her room. By this hour, she thought, Xiao Se and Dong'er were probably already fast asleep.
(End of Chapter)
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