The inner court disciples of Shrek Academy typically numbered no more than a hundred. This time, however, they had lost twelve in one go. Even for the continent's top academy, this was undoubtedly a heavy blow, a pain too difficult to bear.
However, Lu Jingming knew clearly that even if Xuan Zi had made such a grave mistake, Shrek Academy wouldn't punish him.
After all, within the entire Shrek Academy, besides Dragon God Douluo Mu En, whose status could be higher than Xuan Zi's?
To punish the second-in-command of the Sea God Pavilion, and its future leader, was simply a pipe dream.
Dragon God Douluo Mu En might be furious, but for the future of Shrek Academy, he couldn't heavily punish Xuan Zi.
Because his time was running out, and Xuan Zi was the only one who could truly carry the banner of Shrek Academy after him.
"Your team leader, he's here."
Seeing the atmosphere turn heavy, Jing Liu, who had been leaning against a large tree with her arms crossed, suddenly spoke.
Upon hearing this, Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming's bodies trembled, their eyes showing complex emotions.
In an instant, a yellowish-brown light mass streaked across the sky like a meteor, accompanied by a sharp whooshing sound, and instantly stopped in front of Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming.
The intense light made the two instinctively squint their eyes.
"Ruoruo, Wu Ming, I finally found you, where are the others!?"
An old voice, clearly filled with anxiety, suddenly rang out.
As the yellow light gradually dissipated, an old man with intertwined black and white hair appeared before everyone.
His hair was messy, and his clothes were slovenly and wrinkled.
At this moment, he tightly clutched a wine gourd in his left hand, and his right hand still held a greasy chicken leg, with oil slowly dripping from his fingers.
The person who had arrived was none other than Gluttonous Douluo Xuan Zi.
It was clear that upon returning to the camp, he had noticed the abnormality. He hadn't even had time to take a bite of his favorite chicken leg before rushing here in a panic, following Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming's aura.
"Elder Xuan, you're finally back!" Han Ruoruo's tone was exceptionally calm, almost unnaturally so.
She respectfully used the honorific, but for some reason, Xuan Zi felt a bone-chilling coldness from her seemingly calm words, making him shiver.
"Ruoruo, what exactly happened? Where are Yu Xin, Feng Mo, Li Qing, and the others?" A sudden ominous premonition arose in Xuan Zi's heart.
He suppressed his inner unease and questioned, simultaneously turning his gaze towards Lu Jingming, Zhang Lexuan, and Jing Liu.
He had never seen Lu Jingming, but he knew Jing Liu and Zhang Lexuan.
Zhang Lexuan had once gone to Shrek Academy's Golden Tree to cultivate, and Xuan Zi had seen her a few times.
As for Jing Liu, although Xuan Zi had never met her, he had heard of her existence from Yan Shaozhe and had even seen a soul tool image of her.
However, at this moment, he had no time to pay attention to Jing Liu, this suspected Ultimate Douluo.
His gaze was drawn to the enormous frozen behemoth, and a terrible hypothesis gradually formed in his mind.
He had just returned to Shrek Academy's temporary camp, where it was a mess, with broken walls and ruins permeated by the aura of death.
Along the way, he had also seen various traces of fierce battles, and combining the residual aura at the scene with the frozen Silver Moon Flood Dragon Emperor, Xuan Zi already had a guess.
But he couldn't believe it, unwilling to accept this cruel reality, still holding onto a glimmer of hope.
"Elder Xuan, where did you go? We were attacked by a 100,000-year soul beast, and our junior brothers and sisters were all killed! If it weren't for Senior Snow Moon's timely help, Sister Ruoruo and I would also be in dire straits. You...!" Han Ruoruo could still suppress her emotions, but Wu Ming could no longer hold back.
Her eyes were red, her voice choked with sobs, and her tone was full of strong complaints and dissatisfaction as she questioned Xuan Zi.
If Han Ruoruo hadn't reacted quickly and pulled her back, she probably would have said even more aggressive things.
"How is that possible?" Xuan Zi's face instantly turned ashen, as if all his strength had been drained.
The chicken leg and wine gourd in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud," spilling wine everywhere.
He staggered back two steps, his eyes filled with horror and disbelief.
"No, where are their bodies? I didn't see a single body along the way!" Suddenly, Xuan Zi seemed to grasp at a last straw, his eyes lighting up as he fiercely looked up at Wu Ming and Han Ruoruo, a flicker of mad hope in his eyes.
Upon hearing the word "bodies," Han Ruoruo could no longer suppress her inner emotions.
Her eyes instantly turned red, tears welling up, and she angrily roared, "Elder Xuan, do you think they could have left complete corpses under the attack of the 100,000-year Silver Moon Flood Dragon Emperor?"
Han Ruoruo's suddenly raised voice, filled with endless disappointment and anger, was like a sharp blade, directly piercing Xuan Zi's heart.
Xuan Zi was speechless, his lips trembling slightly, but he couldn't utter a single word.
He just didn't want to accept this cruel reality; after all, he knew the Silver Moon Flood Dragon Emperor's abilities all too well.
This soul beast, which possessed both moon and spatial attributes, released incredibly eerie moonlight that could assimilate enemies, turning them into pure moonlight that dissipated between heaven and earth.
Recalling the extensive battle traces along the way, many of which were caused by the soul skills of his familiar students, yet not a single corpse remained.
Originally, he had held a glimmer of hope, but the moment he saw the Silver Moon Flood Dragon Emperor, he already understood that everything was irreversible.
His self-deception was mercilessly exposed by Han Ruoruo, and Xuan Zi felt as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer, his mind in a daze.
The dignified ninety-eighth-level Super Douluo, at this moment, was like a helpless ordinary person, his legs giving out, falling to the ground, his face filled with despair and dejection.
Seeing this scene, Lu Jingming secretly shook his head.
Xuan Zi might not have had malicious intent towards his students, but his excessive confidence, coupled with the flaws of his martial soul, ultimately led to this tragedy.
If it had been another Super Douluo, even if confident, they wouldn't have gone too far while leading a team. Once an accident occurred, they would be able to return for support at the fastest speed.
But Xuan Zi was different; his martial soul had a special side effect that made him almost obsessively fond of delicious food. Once he started eating, it was difficult for him to stop.
Coupled with the numbing effect of alcohol, his perception became dull, and he failed to detect the Silver Moon Flood Dragon Emperor's attack on the temporary camp at the first opportunity.
It must be said that Shrek Academy was too overconfident in letting such a Super Douluo with obvious flaws lead a team into the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest.
They probably never imagined that a dignified ninety-eighth-level Super Douluo, a powerhouse standing at the peak of combat strength on the Douluo Continent, couldn't even protect a dozen students and almost had them all annihilated.
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