"Your Majesty…"
General Dai Hao looked at Emperor Xu Jiawei. The latter's eyes narrowed slightly as he sized up this farcical tournament, but he shook his head. There was no need to get involved. Shrek Academy was still an important ally of the Star Luo Empire; they could not be easily offended to the point of enmity.
Although he had a favorable impression of the youth…spirited and full of life, just as he had imagined himself in his youth, and with a promising future…he was, after all, an emperor. He had to be responsible for the interests of the entire empire.
However, he would not favor Shrek either.
After all, while outsiders thought Lu Cheng was alone, he had almost "confirmed" that Lu Cheng had joined the Body Sect.
The latter's foundation was in no way inferior to Shrek Academy's.
The Star Luo Empire could not afford to provoke them either.
Therefore, even though these two parties were "causing trouble" on his turf, he chose to play the coward, helping neither, watching from the sidelines, and waiting for the situation to calm down before stepping in to end this farce.
The Sun Moon Empire was in a similar state of shock.
Captain Ma Rulong, Xiao Hongchen, and the others looked on in astonishment, their pupils flickering with a strange and excited luster. If only Lu Cheng had spoken, they would mostly not believe it. But now that Yan Shaozhe, the person in charge of Shrek Academy, was so anxious that he had jumped out to draw a line with Lu Cheng, it meant that this guy was genuinely planning to defect.
Regardless of anything else, just for this point… everyone had to call him "Daddy." It was truly righteous; he was just giving away the championship of the finals.
Never mind how he won it.
As long as they got it, they would break the myth of Shrek Academy's invincibility. They would be the glory of the Sun Moon Empire for the next few thousand years, the only team to have "defeated" Shrek.
History is written by the victors and is easily forgotten.
People will only remember that they eventually won the match.
And looking at it, this youth was definitely not of one mind with Shrek Academy. It was clear that Yan Shaozhe's attitude of watching from the sidelines some days ago had chilled the youth's heart. And this monster-level genius… perhaps the Sun Moon Empire could also recruit him…
There was no academy that wasn't tempted by the near-perverted dominance he showed in this tournament. He had carried the heavy burden of Shrek Academy on his own shoulders until now, standing like an unreachable mountain in front of countless geniuses. Those who could come to compete were all geniuses, but among geniuses, he could still run rampant.
Ma Lao arrived at the edge of the arena and locked eyes with Captain Ma Rulong. Both grandfather and grandson saw the agitation in the other's eyes.
Recruit him!
What a pity it would be to lose such a fat piece of meat.
Unlike the others whose thoughts were racing, Yan Shaozhe was truly steaming with anger.
He had finally managed to pluck the fruit, but that little beast Lu Cheng wanted to smash it completely; he didn't want anyone to have it.
In the past, when Ma Xiaotao and the others were still recuperating, he had to swallow his anger and look at Lu Cheng's face. But now… he could confidently tell Lu Cheng to get lost.
"Referee, Shrek requests a rematch!" Yan Shaozhe took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his anger, and sneered as he looked at Lu Cheng. Heh, no matter how you struggle, I don't need you to hold up the facade anymore. Ma Xiaotao is my true team captain.
Thinking of this, he felt rather relaxed.
After all, he had ruined that brat's mischievous plan, making him look bad in the tournament. In the process, he could also let all the spectators see clearly that without him, Lu Cheng, my Shrek Academy could still crush the opponent. By then, the spectators who were infatuated with Lu Cheng because of Shrek would surely see the true face of this little beast.
"Rematch… Hiss…"
Tiansha Douluo Huang Jinxu frowned slightly.
Shrek wasn't the only one competing; there was also the Sun Moon Empire Royal Team. Now it was the most critical final; you can't just say "rematch" whenever you want, right?
Under the gaze of hundreds of thousands, where would the dignity of the Star Luo Empire be?
After hesitating for a moment, he looked at Lu Cheng and said in a deep voice, "Student Lu Cheng, today's controversy was caused by you. It was you who took the initiative to surrender, so now it is time for you to explain the reason."
Lu Cheng nodded slightly.
He spoke in a loud, clear voice.
"Since the finals have reached this point, you all must be very curious why the Shrek Academy main team only has a mere three people and why almost the entire tournament was played by the reserve team, right?"
The scene fell into sudden silence.
Except for Emperor Xu Jiawei and others who knew the inside story, the other academy factions all had expressions of gossip, pricking up their ears, full of confusion.
They were also puzzled. After all, Shrek cared more about the tournament than any other academy. Sending only three main players was really… inexcusable.
"Lu Cheng, you dare to reveal even a bit of academy secrets!!"
Yan Shaozhe roared from off the stage.
His Ninety-Fifth Rank Super Douluo battle power soared, and a Bright Phoenix was about to forcibly suppress Lu Cheng.
Such matters could be big or small.
If they waited for Shrek to win the championship and Teacher Wang Yan went up to give an acceptance speech, bringing this up with some flowery language, simply brushing over that they sacrificed on the way to hunting Evil Soul Masters without describing other details, it could praise the traditional virtues and unyielding martial soul of Shrek Academy while creating momentum for Shrek.
But now, the outcome of the finals was unpredictable, and since Lu Cheng brought it up, he felt that something was wrong.
After all, when it came down to it, this matter was unbelievable.
A ninety-eighth-rank Super Douluo personally led the team, yet it caused four people to be seriously injured, almost losing limbs, and three others to be slightly injured… all of them were Shrek's most elite disciples. And the unanimous decision of Elder Xuan and the other Sea God Pavilion elders after the meeting was to minimize the impact of this incident and let it rot within the top management of Shrek Academy.
Otherwise, once it spread, the entire continent would know.
Heavily consuming "geniuses," letting those young people with full passion die in a foreign land… this system itself was abnormal. As the dean, holding the data, he naturally knew it best.
But this matter could not be exposed; otherwise, it would shake the foundation of Shrek Academy.
If other forces knew that the casualty rate of Shrek Academy's Inner Academy Disciples was so terrifying and that Elder Xuan, as the next Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion, treated the safety of the most elite disciples of his own family as a joke.
The consequences were unimaginable.
Moreover, with even Elder Xuan acting, the team's casualty rate was so terrifying. Did the many elders of Shrek Academy's inner court really treat those inner academy disciples as human beings? Or were they just consumables that could be discarded at will?
He knew these things, which was why he was all the more worried and terrified.
"Dean Yan, if you want to make a move, you can go back to your Shrek Academy. But since you have raised objections and do not want to surrender, yet you will not allow him to explain, then do not blame my Star Luo Empire for being impolite." Tiansha Douluo Huang Jinxu frowned slightly and pointed his finger lightly.
The image of the Seven Stars in a Row appeared in the air, protecting the entire arena: "Or you can agree to let Shrek Academy admit defeat; I won't stop you. You can resolve your Shrek Academy's matters privately."
Tiansha Douluo Huang Jinxu said indifferently.
Although he was only ninety-second rank, his battle power was comparable to a ninety-fifth rank Super Douluo due to the special nature of his martial soul. He really didn't fear Yan Shaozhe in terms of battle power, so he became tough.
"You…"
Yan Shaozhe's face was angry, and he stared coldly at Lu Cheng.
His fingers rubbed together.
"You should know what should be said and what should not."
"I have had some friction with you before, but Lu Cheng, you must also understand: you are now a person of my Shrek Academy, branded with the label of Shrek. We flourish together and suffer together. Think clearly before you speak."
After saying this, he sheepishly withdrew his aura and snorted angrily, saying no more.
Tiansha Douluo Huang Jinxu looked straight ahead and said indifferently, "Student Lu Cheng, speak."
"Before the tournament, Shrek Academy led a team to the Mingdou Mountain Range to wipe out Evil Soul Masters. Inside the Mingdou Mountain Range, we encountered an evil soul master at the Soul King realm. His soul skill was quite special… it was corpse explosion. As a result, among the fourteen team members, four main players were blown up and seriously injured on the spot, while the other three were slightly injured. " Lu Cheng exhaled a turbid breath and said leisurely.
"So that's it. I was wondering why Lu Cheng was the only one holding the line in the early stages. It turns out there was no support from the back; he had to rely on himself alone…"
"What tremendous pressure. If it were me, I'm afraid I would have been crushed long ago."
"Is this how Shrek treats meritorious students? This is too insane, right?"
As the words fell, everyone finally understood the ins and outs of the matter.
They realized.
It wasn't that they didn't want to play, but there was no one who could.
Ma Xiaotao and the others were also fighting while nursing their injuries.
But an evil soul master at the Soul King realm had severely injured more than half of the Shrek team. This still made many people frown. The Shrek Academy main team was elite in the true sense, yet they suffered such casualties in an operation to wipe out Evil Soul Masters.
Honestly, Shrek Academy really should give an explanation for this.
Yan Shaozhe suppressed his anger and the uneasiness in his heart and urged, "If you have something to say, say it quickly. This old man is still waiting for the rematch."
"After this incident, I had a fierce dispute with Elder Xuan, who led the team. What exactly is Shrek Academy doing? Why do you want a group of young disciples in their growth period to do such dangerous things as wiping out Evil Soul Masters, while many elders of the Sea God Pavilion sit steadily on high platforms, unwilling to move their noble feet?" Lu Cheng was not flustered by Yan Shaozhe's urging. His tone remained calm, and his expression was full of emotion.
He wanted to shake the foundation of Shrek this time.
A garbage academy that didn't take the lives of its own elite disciples seriously, and he even suspected that Shrek deliberately "wore down" these geniuses to keep them at a certain number… a garbage academy that wore a shell of honor but was actually extremely rotten… did not deserve this reputation.
"For any force, I'm afraid they would not be willing to send their own elites on a 'suicide' mission, let alone the so-called Inner Academy Disciples. Each one has to perform dozens of such dangerous missions. Honestly, I think those who survive do so entirely because their fate is tough enough. After all, the data speaks for itself. According to Elder Xuan himself, the casualty rate of our Inner Academy Disciples has always been fifty percent, and the number of permanent Inner Academy Disciples has not exceeded fifty people…"
Hearing this, the many forces that were originally stunned gradually changed their expressions.
The many forces present were spread almost all over the continent.
They came from various sects and factions.
Although they studied at other academies, it did not prevent the talented and monster-level disciples in the same sect from joining Shrek Academy to study and making it into the inner court.
And from time to time, news of Shrek Inner Academy disciples sacrificing themselves would come out. They were saddened, but after all, it was Shrek Academy. Its ten thousand years of accumulated foundation and reputation were terrifying; no one would think in that direction.
But today, this youth uncovered a heavy, rotten scene.
The monster-level disciples whom their sects had high hopes for, who were enough to revitalize the sect in the future, never returned after going to Shrek Academy.
Casualties were normal; there was fighting and bloodshed everywhere on this continent.
But they could not accept that the geniuses of their own sects were ruined and wasted by Shrek Academy! And even died in an unclear way!
For more than ten thousand years, Shrek Academy had established the so-called Supervisory Group to wipe out evil soul masters. Morally, they stood on high ground, but in reality?
Did those rotten old things really have even a trace of concern for the Bloodline descendants they cherished so carefully?
Sending disciples to various places to wipe out Evil Soul Masters and participate in missions… then why do you old undead, the so-called leaders and deputy leaders of the Supervisory Group, shrink back in Shrek, eating and drinking and enjoying blessings?!
It was like the treasure they cherished, yet Shrek stood up and kicked it hard.
It was simply…
"Lu Cheng!!!"
Yan Shaozhe glared: "You are presumptuous! Is Elder Xuan someone a junior like you is qualified to criticize? He worked conscientiously to protect you along the way. Your words will make his old heart cold…"
"Heh, a ninety-eighth-rank Super Douluo, right outside the cave, watching the many main team disciples being severely injured and in critical condition, yet failing to save them in time… that is what you call 'conscientiously'?" Lu Cheng chuckled, interrupting Yan Shaozhe, and said indifferently.
"Elder Xuan is just a Ninety-Eighth Rank piece of trash. He even let an Evil Soul Master at the Soul King level go, letting him leave right under his nose… Of course, when it comes to food, he might be an old glutton. Even on the way to the Mingdou Mountain Range, he didn't forget to take time out of his busy schedule to dig for bird eggs.
By the way, I remember… this isn't the first time Elder Xuan has done this, right? "Lu Cheng raised his eyebrows and said.
Ten years ago, more than a dozen Inner Academy Disciples went to the Star Dou Great Forest to obtain a soul ring under his leadership. But what was the result? Because Elder Xuan was greedy, he abandoned many Inner Academy Disciples in the core area and went to another place to look for ingredients…"
"Shut up!!!" Yan Shaozhe roared furiously.
"That time, many Inner Academy disciples happened to encounter a hundred thousand-year soul beast, a hundred thousand-year one!!" Lu Cheng did not give in at all, staring coldly at Yan Shaozhe: "And the more than a dozen Inner Academy Disciples, the elites among the elites of many large families, were ruined, leaving only four.
Because of their trust in that old thing, I'm afraid that until the second before they were killed by that Hundred Thousand Year Soul Beast, many Inner Academy disciples still thought this was just an assessment."
As this matter surfaced, one big secret after another exploded.
Everyone finally understood what Lu Cheng really wanted to do.
The surrounding air was dead silent.
Which so-called Inner Academy disciple wasn't piled up with resources by a large family, spending time and effort to smash them out? To put it bluntly, Shrek was just a fruit picker. If it really relied on their training… heh, who would care about the meager benefits of the Outer Academy?
And it was such an academy that picked fruits; just one accident killed more than a dozen elite disciples.
Notes:
For all readers.
Please, mind your health. Don't hesitate to consult doctors or hospital if you feel unwell. My cousin just paid for his negligence and now the family are in bad condition (No, he is not dead)