Though the aftershocks of Mu En's passing were still brewing across the Douluo Continent, Shrek Academy seemed to have already emerged from its grief—or at least, that was how it appeared on the surface.
Within just three days, Xuanzi took up the mantle of leadership over the newly established Tianyuan Pavilion and began executing the three major plans that Mu En had left behind.
The "Empress Descent" Plan, the Soul Tool Advancement Plan, and the Cloudsky Initiative.
Among these, only the preparatory steps for the "Empress Plan" had been completed. The other two still awaited the right moment to begin, so the Empress Plan was the first to officially launch.
But before that could happen, the executor of the plan—Zhang Lexuan—had one final task to complete for Shrek Academy: leading a team to hunt spirit rings.
Thanks to the gift Mu En left behind before his death, many inner court students experienced breakthroughs. Some even advanced to new cultivation ranks, such as Jiang Nannan reaching the Soul Emperor realm, and Beibei, Xu Sanshi, and even Huo Yuhao breaking through to Soul King and Soul Ancestor respectively.
All of them were closely connected to Zhu Ziyang, so naturally, he would also be joining the spirit ring hunt. But just as they were about to set out, Zhu Ziyang was stopped by Xian Lin'er.
"Senior Sister, what is it?" Zhu Ziyang asked with a puzzled look.
"We caught a girl who trespassed into the academy. She claims to be your friend, so we called you to identify her," said Xian Lin'er coldly, her expression unreadable. Mu En's death had weighed most heavily on her and Qian Duoduo. If Zhu Ziyang hadn't been the type to avoid gossip, he might have dug deeper into whatever had gone on between his senior brother and senior sister.
"Huh?" Zhu Ziyang blinked, then a name popped into his mind. His expression turned strange as he muttered, "Alright, let's go see who this foolish girl is."
Xian Lin'er brought Zhu Ziyang to a classroom in the outer court, where the so-called intruder was being held.
"It's really you!" Zhu Ziyang sighed helplessly, raising a hand to his forehead.
"Ah! Zhu Ziyang, you finally came!" The girl wasn't anyone else—it was Qian Lingyi. After sneaking into Shrek Academy and receiving Mu En's final blessing, she had fallen into a deep meditation. When she awoke and hadn't yet processed her gains, she found herself hauled off by a grim-faced Xian Lin'er.
Had she not mentioned Zhu Ziyang's name in time, Xian Lin'er, driven by fury, might have suppressed her on the spot.
"So she really is your friend, Ziyang?" Xian Lin'er's gaze softened at Zhu Ziyang's reaction, and the anger in her heart faded. She began to examine Qian Lingyi more closely.
She hadn't looked carefully before, but now she realized Qian Lingyi was an undeniable beauty, on par with Jiang Nannan and Xu Jiujiu. She couldn't help but sigh at how easily Zhu Ziyang attracted girls. That Nannan girl was going to have her hands full in the future!
"Yes, Senior Sister," Zhu Ziyang replied with a smile. "Her name is Qian Lingyi. She's sixteen, a fifty-seventh-ranked Soul King, and her martial soul is the Holy Angel."
"Qian Lingyi… Holy Angel?" A flicker of surprise passed over Xian Lin'er's face. As the dean of Shrek Academy, she understood what a Holy Angel martial soul paired with the surname Qian implied. It left her even more shocked.
Still, her reaction was merely surprise. The conflict between the Angel Clan and the Sea God was a matter of ten thousand years past—irrelevant to Shrek. Besides, Mu En's dying words still echoed in her mind.
"Correction! I'm already a fifty-ninth-ranked Soul King!" Qian Lingyi puffed her chest with pride and declared smugly.
"Fifty-nine?" Zhu Ziyang was momentarily stunned.
"This girl trespassed into the academy during the time of the teacher's passing and received his blessing," Xian Lin'er said with a wry smile.
Zhu Ziyang's face darkened. He hadn't expected her to be so bold—breaking into Shrek Academy during such a chaotic moment. He'd thought she was caught mid-break-in, not after succeeding and benefiting from it. No wonder Xian Lin'er had been so furious earlier.
"What do you plan to do with her, Senior Sister?" he asked.
"Huh? You're punishing me? Why? Aren't we friends, Zhu Ziyang?" Qian Lingyi panicked and shouted.
"Hush!" Xian Lin'er silenced her with a hand gesture. "This girl isn't a member of Shrek Academy, yet she's received the teacher's blessing. That leaves us with only two options—either abolish her spirit power or admit her into the academy."
Zhu Ziyang frowned but nodded in agreement. "Seems those are the only choices."
"I-I'll join Shrek Academy! Just don't destroy my spirit power!" Qian Lingyi shouted, her expression fearful, clearly worried that Xian Lin'er would really cripple her.
She had completely tossed aside her grandmother's warnings to stay away from Shrek Academy and let Ye Guyi handle that mess. Not only had Qian Lingyi approached Shrek—she now wanted to join. She was the embodiment of rebellion.
"Very well. Since you're about to become a Shrek student, I'll let you off the hook," Xian Lin'er smiled and continued, "Come. I'll take you to register. In a few days, you'll undergo an inner court assessment."
"Okay!" Qian Lingyi nodded obediently.
"Ziyang, I'm taking her with me. You should get ready for the spirit ring hunt." With that, Xian Lin'er left with Qian Lingyi in tow, and Zhu Ziyang simply smiled and returned to the inner court.
At that moment, in what used to be the Sea God Plaza—now renamed Tianyuan Plaza—the team for the spirit ring hunt had already assembled. Seeing Zhu Ziyang return, everyone straightened up.
There were seven in the group. Zhang Lexuan and Zhu Ziyang would lead and coordinate but didn't require spirit rings. The other five—Jiang Nannan, Xu Jiujiu, Beibei, Xu Sanshi, and Huo Yuhao—all needed new rings.
Jiang Nannan, who had reached the fifty-ninth rank long ago, broke through to the sixtieth after receiving Mu En's light baptism. Xu Jiujiu had a similar story. Having been at the academy for over a year, she witnessed the momentous event and also reached rank 60.
Beibei had already been at rank 48, but after receiving Mu En's bloodline enhancement, he advanced to rank 50. His martial soul fully evolved into the Light Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, granting him mastery over light without relying on the Light Holy Dragon bloodline. After inheriting Mu En's two Dragon Emperor skills, it was clear Beibei was destined to become the next Dragon God Douluo.
Xu Sanshi, previously at rank 49, was the strongest among the pre-selected team. After the baptism, he reached rank 50, staying just ahead of Beibei.
As for Huo Yuhao, he had just broken through to rank 30 at the end of the tournament. After more than a year of cultivation, he was at 35. Mu En's final blessing cleansed his meridians, pushing his spirit power directly to rank 40—a show of care for the boy who would soon represent Shrek at Sun Moon Academy. Low spirit power would have undermined Shrek's prestige.
A thirteen-year-old Soul Ancestor might not be rare at Shrek, but at Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, it was genius-level.
"Everyone, let's move out!" Zhang Lexuan announced.
The seven-member team departed for Star Dou Forest, escorted at a distance by Elder Song and Cai Meier. Each member of the hunt had special significance to the academy, so no risks could be taken.
Upon reaching the forest entrance, Zhang Lexuan called for a formation.
"Seven members, perfect for a standard combat team. I'll take the front, Ziyang the rear. Beibei guards the flanks, Yuhao handles control, Jiujiu provides support, Sanshi protects Yuhao and Jiujiu, and Nannan scouts and provides mobility. Understood?"
"Understood!" they responded in unison.
"Good. Let's go!" Zhang Lexuan commanded, and the seven formed their formation and charged into the Star Dou Forest.
(End of Chapter)
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