Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar sprinted through the streets of Soutuo City, their expressions dark and turbulent.
Their destination was clear, It was the residence of He Cai—the servant who had followed Dai Mubai for many years, the man responsible for managing his cultivation resources especially his pills.
After testing the pill on the puppy and witnessing its horrifying condition the next day, Dai Mubai had finally understood the truth.
He had been deceived, for years.
Those pills he had consumed so trustingly were never pure cultivation resources. They were substances designed to squeeze potential, forcefully extracting strength while silently destroying the foundation.
Every breakthrough he had celebrated—Every surge of power he had felt—
Had come at a hidden cost.
Behind them, Zhao Wuji and Flender followed closely, their usually relaxed demeanors replaced by grim seriousness.
This matter was far too severe.
Flender's gaze was sharp, his mind racing.
'If those pills truly damaged their foundations…Then my little monsters may easily cross Level 40…But Level 70… no, even Level 60 might become an insurmountable wall.'
That thought made his chest tighten painfully.
Behind them, Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu moved lightly as they followed, but Ning Rongrong's expression was anything but carefree.
Her eyes unconsciously drifted toward Oscar.
Worry flickered there, quiet, restrained, yet unmistakable.
Tang San followed at the rear, his face solemn.
'This means someone was already targeting them… Even before I arrived at Shrek. But who?
When they arrived at the small residence, Dai Mubai didn't hesitate.
He stepped forward and kicked the door open with brutal force.
The wooden door shattered inward.
"Bastard—come out! What did you mix into my pills?!.....I'll have you beheaded!"
His roar shook the cramped house.
Ma Hongjun clenched his fists, eyes blazing "First catch him—then beat him half to death!"
Oscar nodded grimly from the side.
But the moment they stepped inside— Their blood ran cold.
He Cai was already seated at the table. Foam seeped from the corner of his mouth, his body stiff and lifeless.
The pungent scent of poison lingered in the air, with which he had killed himself.
Yet what truly unsettled them was not his death—
But the smile frozen on his face.
It was twisted. As though he had already completed his task.
Then their gazes shifted upward.
Behind He Cai, on the wall, was a crude yet unmistakable drawing.
A hooded eye, Half-open , Half-closed.
Beneath it, large, jagged characters were scrawled as if carved into the wall itself:
"HER gaze is already on you."
A chill swept through the room.
Tang San's pupils contracted slightly as his heart thumped heavily.
'Is it an evil soul master organization?'
With Spirit Hall present, no such organization should have been able to grow unnoticed—
That day, the people of Shrek left with more questions than answers.
Yet one thing was certain. From that moment on—a faint, lingering palpitation settled deep within their hearts, which refused to fade.
----
Many days later—
Soutuo City, Spirit Arena.
The Spirit Arena was packed to the brim, its roaring crowd echoing like thunder beneath the towering domes. Today was no ordinary match.
A traveling elite team had arrived.
And they had issued a direct challenge to the invincible Shrek Devils—the undefeated monsters of Soutuo City.
For the audience, this was spectacle.
For the participants, it was pride.
At this moment, Shrek's lineup had already grown formidable:
Tang San — Level 39,Dai Mubai — Level 41, Oscar — Level 34, Xiao Wu — Level 34, Ning Rongrong — Level 31, Ma Hongjun — Level 32
Across the arena stood their challengers—
The Heaven Dou Imperial Academy Team.
Their leader was none other than Yu Tianheng, descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
However, unlike the original trajectory of fate, this version of the team was missing a critical pillar- Dugu Yan their control soul master was not present.
Without her poison-based control, Heaven Dou Imperial Academy lacked a true battlefield dominator. Their formation looked complete on the surface, yet its core was subtly hollow.
From the moment the battle began, that weakness was exposed.
Shrek's coordination was sharp, decisive and ruthless comparatively.
The match ended swiftly and just like the original outcome— Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was defeated.
At the climax, Tang San once again demonstrated his calm cruelty.
He subdued Ye Lingling, the team's healer, binding her completely before forcing her to heal Shrek's injured members.
Only after Shrek had fully recovered did he release her—Allowing her to heal her own teammates.
The crowd erupted., Shrek's reputation rose another step.
---
After the match, both the team went towards the stand where Flender was talking to a young man.
This man was Qin Ming—teacher of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy, and also an alumnus of Shrek Academy.
His gaze lingered on the departing Shrek students, filled with genuine admiration.
"Principal Flender,"
"The children of Shrek Academy are truly outstanding."
"With their talent… why not bring them to Heaven Dou Imperial Academy?"
"With proper resources, they will truly shine."
Behind him, several members of Heaven Dou Imperial Academy clenched their fists.
Yu Tianheng, Oslo, Yu Feng.
Their eyes burned with suppressed anger.
It was Qin Ming himself who had instructed them—'Don't to use your full strength. This match is training.'
Yu Tianheng slowly raised his hand, stopping Oslo and Yu Feng from speaking. His gaze narrowed, calm on the surface, but storming beneath.
Without Dugu Yan in this timeline, Ye Lingling had been pursued by him
And Yu Tianheng—was her boyfriend now
The humiliation after the battle just now was not forgotten by him.
And now Qin Ming's words, spoken so casually, as if their defeat had been a mere formality.
All of it piled together.
-----
Qian Renxue's pic