Chapter 184: Want to Leave? Not a Chance
On the shadowed, tree-lined path, the Imperial Guards led by Princess Wei Na had already sealed off every possible avenue of escape.
Thousands of heavily armored soldiers stood in perfect, unyielding formation. The cold, metallic gleam of their armor reflected the moonlight, but it was the chilling hum of thousands of Soul Ray Guns aiming directly at the center of the street that truly suffocated the night air. Dozens of imperial retainers summoned their Martial Souls in unison. A dazzling array of Soul Rings illuminated the darkness, their collective glow pulsing in a synchronized, deadly rhythm.
While these guards were far inferior in individual cultivation to Shrek Academy's three esteemed elders, the sheer, death-defying military killing intent they projected merged into an oppressive physical weight. It pressed down on the street, making the very air thick and hard to breathe.
Yan Shaozhe's extended right hand hovered awkwardly in mid-air. The blazing white light that had been gathering in his palm flickered and slowly receded back into his flesh.
He stared dead ahead at Wei Na, who stood resolutely blocking his path. In her hand rested a pure gold token—the personal medallion of the Heavenly Soul Emperor himself. Seeing that piece of gold, Yan Shaozhe's expression twisted into an ugly, darkened scowl.
"Princess Wei Na." Yan Shaozhe took a slow, deep breath, the muscles in his jaw clenching as he forcibly suppressed the boiling anger in his chest. His voice came out low, tight, and dangerously measured. "I will say this one more time. Fan Yu belongs to Shrek Academy. He possesses our academy's absolute core secrets."
He took a half-step forward, his tone shifting into one of condescending diplomacy. "We came here today solely to bring him back to investigate certain facts. This is strictly an internal academy matter. We have absolutely no intention of offending the Heavenly Soul Empire. I ask Your Highness to focus on the greater picture. Do not let the departure of a single man ruin the ten-thousand-year friendship between Shrek and the Empire."
Beside him, Elder Song also reined in the terrifying Soul Power fluctuations rippling around her hunched frame. A severe, uncompromising look hardened her withered face. "Your Highness, Shrek's reputation cannot be trampled upon by anyone. Fan Yu's recent actions have severely crossed our bottom line. We are taking him away to uphold the established rules of the continent's Soul Master world. Please, step aside."
Wei Na did not flinch. Instead, she let out a cold, sharp scoff and took a deliberate step forward. The gold token in her grasp shimmered with an icy luster under the pale moonlight.
"Rules? Dean Yan, Elder Song, in your eyes, Shrek's rules are absolute. Does that mean the laws of my Heavenly Soul Empire are nothing but empty words to you?" Wei Na's voice rang out crisp and decisive, echoing sharply across the silent, heavily armed street.
"Count Fan Yu has already resigned from Shrek through all the proper, formal procedures. He is now a first-class Count, personally appointed by my Imperial Father. He is an important minister of the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Chief Soul Tool Consultant recognized by the Imperial Family!"
Her gaze sharpened into a glare. "His every word and action now represents the dignity of this Empire. You attempt to forcibly abduct a high-ranking imperial minister right in the middle of the capital, and you dare call that 'having no intention to offend'?"
Wei Na swept her cold gaze over Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and Elder Song, taking in their livid, ashen faces. Her tone brooked no argument. "My Imperial Father has decreed that tonight, whoever dares to touch a single hair on Count Fan Yu's head will be openly declaring war on the Heavenly Soul Empire!"
She raised her chin, her voice echoing with absolute authority. "Dean Yan, you are more than welcome to try. Let us see if you can take Count Fan Yu and walk out of this Imperial City alive while surrounded by tens of thousands of our elite troops!"
The faces of Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and Elder Song turned completely gloomy.
Never in their wildest dreams did they imagine that the Heavenly Soul Imperial Family—a faction that had always shown the utmost deference and respect to Shrek Academy—would take such an ironclad, militant stance over a single man.
Yan Shaozhe stared fixedly at Fan Yu, who stood quietly protected behind Wei Na's slender figure. He then shifted his gaze to the surrounding ranks of soldiers. The Soul Ray Guns had already entered their charging state, emitting a faint, high-pitched whine that signaled imminent, lethal destruction. A bitter wave of unwillingness and frustration gnawed at Yan Shaozhe's pride.
He knew the grim reality. With the Empire bringing their actual army to the table, forcing a fight here would brand Shrek Academy as the instigator of a continental war. That was a catastrophic reputation he absolutely could not bear.
"Good. Very good, Heavenly Soul Empire." Yan Shaozhe ground his teeth together, the words hissing through his lips like venom. "Since you insist on taking this path, Shrek has taken note of tonight's events."
He shot one last, venomous glare at the defector. "Fan Yu, I sincerely hope you will not regret your choice in the future. Let's go!"
Yan Shaozhe flicked his sleeve violently, the sheer force of his movement tearing a harsh, whistling sound through the air. He spun on his heel, signaling for Elder Song and Xian Lin'er to fall in line.
In his mind, since a forceful seizure was no longer viable, their only option was to retreat to the academy and formulate a long-term plan. Even in retreat, they had to maintain the lofty dignity expected of a Holy Land.
However, just as the three Super Douluos circulated their Soul Power, preparing to tear through the void and vanish, a burst of wild, deafening laughter exploded from the sky directly above the Imperial City. It was a laugh dripping with raw violence and naked mockery.
"Hahahaha! Yan Shaozhe, you hypocritical old rascal! What do you think my Heavenly Soul Empire is? You come when you please and leave when you please? Do you really think this is your family's damn backyard?!"
A beam of suffocating emerald green light plummeted from the heavens like a falling meteorite, slamming violently into the exit of the tree-lined path.
BOOM!
A massive shockwave erupted upon impact, instantly shattering the blue paving bricks and sending debris flying in all directions. As the thick dust settled, a towering, fiercely muscular figure stood firmly in the center of the crater. Du Busi's sturdy body radiated a terrifying, emerald green light that seemed to choke the very air out of the street.
Beside the giant stood Liu Yuan. The young man's expression was perfectly calm, his posture relaxed. A deep purple-gold light flowed smoothly within his Double Pupils as he stared coldly at the three Shrek elders, his gaze calculating and utterly devoid of fear.
The movements of Yan Shaozhe and his companions halted abruptly. As they touched back down on the cracked street, their expressions darkened into something truly hideous.
"Du Busi!" Yan Shaozhe roared, his voice dropping to a dangerous, guttural pitch as the anger he had just suppressed flared back to life. "What is the meaning of this? We have already agreed to leave. Do you intend to forcibly keep us here?"
Du Busi let out a rough snort. His emerald green eyes flashed with an arrogant, feral light. Without breaking eye contact, he casually raised his right hand and dug his pinky into his ear—a gesture of absolute, unvarnished disrespect.
"Forcibly keep you?" Du Busi flicked his finger dismissively. "I'm not just going to forcibly keep you today. I'm going to beat the living daylights out of you and settle the score."
He took a heavy step forward. The ground beneath his feet groaned and cracked inch by inch under the sheer density of his physical pressure. "You three old fogies break into the capital of my Heavenly Soul Empire in the dead of night, publicly threaten a Count of my Empire, and even try to kidnap him by force."
A cruel smirk stretched across Du Busi's scarred face. "And now that you realize you can't take him, you just want to dust off your hands and walk away? Shaozhe, your little abacus is clicking way too loudly. I could hear your cowardly calculations all the way from the Clear Wind Pavilion!"
"Du Busi, do not push us too far!" Xian Lin'er snapped. A blazing blue-fire spear instantly condensed in her grasp. She leveled the weapon directly at the giant, the sharp, azure flames flickering hungrily at the tip. "We are leaving. Do you really think you can stop us?"
"Push you too far?" Du Busi threw his head back, acting as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world. He let out a harsh, grating laugh that rattled the nearby windows. "I am bullying you today, so what? On my turf, it is not Shrek's turn to run wild!"
His laughter vanished in an instant, replaced by a gaze so cold it could freeze blood. He enunciated every word with crushing weight. "You want to leave? Fine. Yan Shaozhe, the three of you come at me together. If you can beat me, I will let you walk."
He cracked his knuckles, the sound echoing like thunder. "Otherwise, today, every single one of you three will have to be carried back to Shrek horizontally!"
The declaration struck like a heavy war hammer, smashing fiercely against the fragile pride of Yan Shaozhe and his companions.
"Du Busi, do you honestly believe you are invincible in this world?!" Yan Shaozhe was completely enraged. As the esteemed Dean of the Martial Soul Department, when had anyone ever dared to subject him to such naked, public humiliation?
"Whether I am invincible or not, you'll only know after you try!" Du Busi roared. He suddenly threw his arms wide open.
A terrifying, mountain-toppling wave of Soul Power erupted from his core, generating a physical gale that directly shoved the thousands of surrounding soldiers back by dozens of meters. The emerald green light shot straight into the heavens, so intensely bright it seemed intent on dyeing the entire night sky green.
"Shaozhe, since this brute wants a fight, then let's practice with him!" Elder Song's face twisted into a mask of fury. Her hunched back instantly snapped straight. A massive, suffocating aura—not a single fraction weaker than Yan Shaozhe's—exploded from her frail-looking body.
"Since you are so eager to court death, we will gladly fulfill your wish!" Xian Lin'er shouted. The phantom of the Blue Fire Dragon instantly materialized behind her, throwing its head back to unleash a deafening, earth-shaking dragon roar.
The three Super Douluos activated their Martial Souls simultaneously. The originally dim, shadowed path was instantly bathed in a blinding array of colors. The oppressive, overlapping domains of extreme power caused the very foundations of the Imperial City to tremble.
Behind Yan Shaozhe, the colossal, majestic phantom of the Radiant Phoenix spread its wings. Nine brilliant Soul Rings circled rhythmically around his body. The sacred, blazing heat radiating from his form forcibly tore a searing gap through Du Busi's emerald green domain.
"Well come!" Du Busi let out a hearty, blood-pumping howl. His already massive figure instantly swelled, heightening to over three meters tall. A thick, indestructible layer of dark green cutin rapidly spread across his skin—the absolute hallmark of his Body Martial Soul achieving ultimate Awakening.
The standoff was over. A catastrophic battle of Super Douluos was on the verge of tearing the night apart.
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