Chapter 212: Dean Yan, Please Step onto the Stage for the Execution
"It's about time..."
Under the watchful eyes of the massive crowd, Liu Yuan glanced at the position of the sun. Seeing that the appointed hour had finally arrived, he stopped holding back. He reached out, his fingers gripping the coarse fabric of the black hood covering Ma Xiaotao's head, and yanked it upward.
The air in the center of the square seemed to vanish, sucked dry by the collective gasp of thousands.
As the heavy black cloth fell from Liu Yuan's grasp, a pale, haggard, yet unmistakably familiar face was exposed to the harsh midday sunlight. Striking crimson hair framed a rounded face, her dull red eyes blinking against the sudden glare.
It was Ma Xiaotao.
For a fleeting second, the previously boisterous square plunged into a dead vacuum of silence. Then, a clamor erupted, ten times more intense than before. The citizens pressing against the iron fences abandoned their hushed whispers, breaking into loud, chaotic exclamations. The Soul Masters scattered throughout the crowd who recognized the fiery-haired prodigy exchanged bewildered glances, their initial skepticism shattering into absolute shock.
"It... it really is her... That's Ma Xiaotao from Shrek Academy!" A middle-aged Soul Master rubbed his eyes vigorously, staring at the execution platform as if trying to dispel a hallucination.
"The rumors were true. She actually degenerated into an Evil Soul Master, and the Body Sect captured her alive."
"Heh, things are getting incredibly interesting now."
"No kidding... I came here expecting a standard execution, not a world-shaking drama."
The tidal wave of gossip surged through the plaza. The sharper minds in the audience quickly grasped the underlying reality: this was no simple execution. It was a blatant, open gambit aimed directly at the throat of Shrek Academy.
If the Heavenly Soul Empire truly dared to execute Ma Xiaotao in broad daylight, the fragile peace between the imperial family and the continent's number one academy would shatter into irreparable pieces. Even for a sovereign colossus like the Heavenly Soul Empire, could they truly stomach the catastrophic fallout of declaring war on Shrek?
Meanwhile, tucked away in an inconspicuous corner of the sprawling crowd, a small group stood shrouded in heavy, unassuming cloaks.
The moment Ma Xiaotao's haggard face was revealed on the high platform, the man at the front of the group—Yan Shaozhe—visibly stiffened. Beneath the shadows of their hoods, the several Sea God Pavilion Elders standing behind him wore thoroughly darkened expressions, their eyes burning with poorly concealed fury.
"It's Xiaotao. It really is her," Xian Lin'er hissed, her low voice vibrating with acute urgency. "Shaozhe, we cannot wait any longer. If she actually dies on that stage today, the Academy will lose all remaining face. We won't be able to stand tall on this continent ever again."
Yan Shaozhe kept his hands buried deep within his wide sleeves, his fingers curling into fists so tight his knuckles turned bone-white. He stared fixedly at the miserable figure kneeling on the stage, a violent storm of conflicting emotions raging within his chest. As the leader of this rescue operation, he was obligated to make the most rational, calculated judgment based on the tactical situation. He could not afford to let blind impulse dictate his actions.
"Hold your ground," Yan Shaozhe commanded in a strained whisper. "Let's wait and see. I want to know exactly what Liu Yuan and the Body Sect are plotting. If we rush in blindly, we surrender the initiative entirely."
Up on the towering execution platform, Liu Yuan took a slow, deliberate step forward.
He completely ignored the deafening roar of the commoners below and the calculating stares of the various sect representatives seated in the VIP viewing areas. Instead, he swept his sharp gaze over the sea of heads, locking onto a very specific, unassuming corner of the plaza.
It was the exact spot where the Shrek Academy delegation was currently hiding.
Liu Yuan's eyes glinted with a piercing, mocking light, cutting through the dense crowd to lock directly onto Yan Shaozhe's cloaked figure.
"Friends from Shrek Academy," Liu Yuan called out, his tone conversational yet laced with icy amusement. "Since you have already graced us with your presence, why bother hiding like rats in the shadows?"
His voice was not overly loud, but infused with dense soul power, it echoed clearly into every corner of the massive square.
That single, casual greeting acted like a physical blow, instantly choking the boisterous plaza into a suffocating, extreme silence. Tens of thousands of heads snapped around, following Liu Yuan's line of sight toward the corner of the crowd.
Yan Shaozhe inhaled a long, ragged breath. The illusion of stealth was shattered; there was no longer any point in hiding.
He slowly raised a hand, gripping the edge of his heavy cloak, and threw it back. The dark fabric fluttered to the ground, revealing the immaculate, prestigious robes belonging to the Dean of Shrek Academy's Martial Soul Department. Following his lead, Elder Song, Xian Lin'er, and the other Sea God Pavilion Elders cast aside their disguises, standing tall in their official attire.
Shrek Academy had officially stepped into the light.
A fresh wave of deep shock rippled through the surrounding citizens. Frantic murmurs broke out as the crowd instinctively parted like the red sea, scrambling over each other to clear a wide, unobstructed path leading straight to the execution platform for the Shrek delegation.
Yan Shaozhe strode forward, eventually ascending the stone steps of the execution platform. His gait appeared steady and measured, but any competent Soul Master in the vicinity could sense the terrifying, erratic soul power fluctuations radiating from his body. The air around him practically warped, a clear indication of a powerhouse pushing himself to the absolute limit to suppress his boiling rage.
As he crested the final step and stopped a few paces away from Liu Yuan, their gazes collided in mid-air, sparking with invisible, lethal tension.
Liu Yuan maintained a perfectly relaxed posture. He felt zero apprehension toward the furious Dean. After all, the towering figure of Du Busi, the Body Sect Master, stood just a short distance away, watching the exchange with a predatory smirk. If Yan Shaozhe dared to try anything foolish, Du Busi would gladly teach him the true definition of cruelty.
Utterly indifferent to the killing intent washing over him, Liu Yuan tilted his head slightly, gesturing toward the kneeling Ma Xiaotao.
"Dean Yan, since you are here, I am sure your eyes work well enough to see the unmatched genius your esteemed Shrek Academy has produced," Liu Yuan said, a faint, razor-sharp smile playing on his lips. "If my memory serves me right, as the self-proclaimed righteous leader of the continent's Soul Master world, Shrek Academy's stance on Evil Soul Masters has always been absolute zero tolerance. Kill on sight, no exceptions."
Liu Yuan paused, letting the words hang in the air as his gaze slowly swept across Yan Shaozhe's rigid features.
"Since this is the ironclad tenet of your glorious academy, we have prepared a special arrangement. Today, facing this core disciple of your Inner Court who has degenerated into a bloodthirsty Evil Soul Master, we formally invite Shrek Academy to dispatch a representative to personally carry out her execution."
His smile widened into something truly venomous. "Consider this an act of the highest respect, bestowed upon Shrek by the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Body Sect."
The moment those words left his mouth, it was as if a deafening thunderclap had detonated directly inside the square.
Have Shrek Academy execute their own prized disciple? Such a demand wasn't just a slap in the face; it was ripping Shrek Academy's centuries-old dignity from its pedestal, throwing it into the mud, and repeatedly stomping on it for the entire world to see.
Every single spectator, from the lowly commoners to the elite representatives of the various sects, collectively held their breath. They stared fixedly at Yan Shaozhe, desperate to see how the mighty Dean would react to such a humiliating ultimatum.
What could he possibly do? In broad daylight, under the scrutiny of the entire empire, Liu Yuan was ruthlessly forcing Shrek Academy into a corner. They had to choose between their hypocritical facade of absolute 'justice' and the life of their own disciple.
Would Yan Shaozhe actually compromise?
Opposite the calm youth, Yan Shaozhe's face had darkened to the color of a thunderhead. His fists were clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms, and the vast reserves of soul power within his meridians began to circulate with frantic, explosive violence. The ambient air surrounding the execution platform visibly warped and distorted, groaning under the sheer pressure of his leaking aura.
He could feel the heavy, suffocating weight of the gazes pressing in from all directions—gazes brimming with doubt, morbid expectation, and the malicious desire to watch Shrek fall from grace. He knew with absolute certainty that under Liu Yuan's masterful manipulation, Shrek had been pushed to the edge of a cliff.
A suffocating, venomous killing intent toward the young man flooded his heart.
It was always him. Every single time.
Ever since Liu Yuan had defected from Shrek Academy, the boy had acted like a rabid dog, targeting Shrek at every possible turn, constantly setting traps and making things impossibly difficult for them. It had been like this during the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament. It had been like this during the disastrous incident with Fan Yu. And now, it was happening again on this execution platform.
Yan Shaozhe truly wished he could lunge forward, skin this arrogant brat alive, and rip out his tendons one by one.
But the cold, rational part of his brain anchored him to reality. They were under intense public scrutiny, and the monstrous Du Busi was standing mere meters away, waiting for an excuse to slaughter them.
Swallowing the bile in his throat, Yan Shaozhe forcefully suppressed the volcanic anger threatening to consume him. He glared daggers at Liu Yuan, his voice dripping with absolute frost.
"You are quite mistaken!"
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