Zhu Zhuqing didn't reply.
She slowly turned her head, then her body, and walked toward Lili. The distance between them closed until there was barely a foot separating them.
Then Zhu Zhuqing asked, quietly,
"Why did you help me?"
"Help?" Lili replied. Then he remembered—this was the woman who had broken down in front of him earlier.
His voice was cold and detached as always.
"Because you're pitiful. And that's the thing I hate the most."
He said it flatly, without caring about her feelings at all.
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes widened, then she lowered her head.
She didn't know what to say. She didn't know what to feel. She didn't know what to do.
Her turmoil was cut short when Lili spoke again.
"It's not a big deal. It's just some grass you can pick or sell."
Zhu Zhuqing stopped thinking. She was about to look up—
Banggggggg—
A punch slammed into her stomach. It felt like being hit by a train slamming its brakes.
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes widened. Unlike the others, her body didn't fly back. With the force of that punch, she should have been sent flying—but she wasn't.
Lili's fist was coated in webbing. His fist and Zhu Zhuqing's belly were glued together.
Pain exploded inside her, agonizing, as if her internal organs had been violently shaken. Her knees gave out.
Zhu Zhuqing's body fell forward into Lili. He caught her with his free arm, holding her upright.
He retracted the web from his fist and pulled it out of her stomach. Then Lili said calmly,
"It's the second time you've fallen into my arms. Are you really into me… catty?"
He lowered her, preparing to place her on the ground.
But before he could—
Swish—
Another needle shot toward him. This time, he didn't dodge. Lili was still holding Zhu Zhuqing.
Tang San roared,
"You'll pay for what you did to Xiao Wu!"
Tang San fired the Dragon Beard Needle (Long Xu Zhen).
He didn't care anymore what would happen to Lili. He knew that once this needle pierced the skin, it would drain spirit power and curl back into its original "grain" shape inside the victim's muscles—causing intense, agonizing pain and bypassing any defense.
Tang San was confident. He even infused more soul power into the attack.
Lili didn't dodge. If he wanted to, he could've thrown Zhu Zhuqing into the needle—but somehow, he didn't.
Slowly, Lili's body began to morph. Dark purple energy shrouded him. Dark purple fur spread across his skin. Sharp claws and teeth grew out, and his body became more massive.
Then—
ROOOOOOOOAR—
A deafening roar echoed throughout the entire Shrek Academy. Gusts of wind and dust exploded outward from the sheer force of it.
The field was covered in dirt and dust. When it finally settled, they all saw it.
Standing before them was an 11-foot-tall dark purple beast. It had tiger features—claws, tail, and powerful limbs. The oni mask was gone, replaced by massive fangs protruding from the dark purple fur.
Then—
BOOOOOOM—
A crushing pressure fell on everyone.
The predatory, ancient aura they had felt earlier was now fully unleashed. This wasn't just a top-tier martial soul—it was something higher.
Everyone gulped.
Tang San stared in disbelief as the Dragon Beard Needle he was so proud of flattened instantly under the immense pressure the moment it touched Lili's hybrid skin.
"T-this is impossible… It didn't bypass his defense… W-what kind of martial soul is this?" Tang San muttered, his mind freezing at the sight.
Dai Mubai, Zhao Wuji, and Flender all gulped, sweat dripping down their foreheads. Their intuition was screaming at them now—clear and undeniable.
Their martial souls were weaker than the beast before them.
This monster stood at the top of the food chain.
An ancient predator.
A saber-toothed beast.
Zhu Zhuqing was on the verge of losing consciousness, but the heat inside her only grew stronger. She looked at the massive hand holding her—it felt warm.
Now she was sure.
One hundred percent.
Martial soul resonance.
And not a simple one.
Zhu Zhuqing wanted to devour Lili right now. She really wanted to—but she was barely holding onto consciousness.
♤
Dai Mubai felt the chill.
His White Tiger—an existence with a long history and an unyielding pride—faltered when facing this beast.
He couldn't believe it. He was feeling fear.
His martial soul was lowering its proud head.
That was impossible.
Impossible! Dai Mubai screamed inside his mind.
"F-fuck… there's no way…"
Lili looked at everyone, towering over them. From his perspective, they all looked like fish flopping around beneath him.
He muttered, bored,
"Boring… I came here for a fight. For something exciting."
His voice grew heavier.
"And this is it?"
"More…"
"I want more…"
"More—"
ROOOOOOOOAR—!
Lili roared toward the sky.
After venting his frustration, he deactivated his transformation. His kimono, his mask—his entire attire returned to normal like magic, just like how Zoans in One Piece reverted after transforming.
Lili looked down at Zhu Zhuqing, who was asleep in his arms.
"Lucky you," he said coldly. "I don't want to ravage you."
He slowly laid Zhu Zhuqing on the ground.
Using his webs, he retrieved the sword and its sheath. He slowly sheathed the soul-solid blade, the same way Brook did.
He muttered,
"First day… check."
Then, as if nothing had happened, he turned and walked out of the field—out of Shrek Academy—and headed back to the hotel.
Lili was a sloth.
Really. A lazy piece of shit.
Someone who wouldn't lift a finger unless he wanted to. Personality never changed, even after reincarnation.
You were right.
He was lazy as fuck.
He didn't give a fuck about anything.
He was uninterested in everything.
But when it came to fighting—
He was a hedonistic thrill-seeker.
Someone who lived for adrenaline, for chaos, for the raw pleasure of battle. Where a lazy fighter treated combat like a chore they happened to be good at, Lili treated it like a high-stakes playground.
He had a battle sexuality.
Something he carried over from his previous world. To this new madafucking world.
♤
So the devil fruit he had eaten wasn't the cause of the inner pain trying to break free.
It was his instincts it was him all along.
Screaming for battle.
For a fight.
For blood.
For more…
More…
More…
For fucking more—that intense, unhinged shit.
He knew exactly what kind of person he was, but he kept ignoring it, the same way he ignored other people—ignored everything.
He couldn't explain what he was really feeling.
Or maybe he didn't know.
Or maybe he just didn't give a fuck.
All he wanted was a thrilling fight—something violent enough to make him feel alive.
But his expression said otherwise.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Saber-toothed hyrib-form of Lili. Originally it was colored yellow. But I've change it to dark purple.
The image is an AI generated.if the image won't load then an error happened.( 👉🏻)