#56Invitation, Second BeatingAI Model: gemini-3.0-flash
Chapter 8: Invitation, A Second Thrashing
"Mubai, clean yourself up."
"Mm." Dai Mubai grunted in response, his face so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.
Losing was acceptable, but losing this miserably was not.
Not to mention his opponent's spirit power was eight ranks lower than his, and he had likely only recently become a Spirit Grandmaster... He never imagined he wouldn't even be able to withstand a single move before being taken down.
To be mocked by onlookers as well—it was utterly humiliating.
"Boss Dai..." Ma Hongjun had been defeated too quickly; he felt a surge of indignation, feeling as though he hadn't even had the chance to show his true strength.
But he also knew the whole situation started because of him, and Dai Mubai had been beaten like this because he stepped in to stand up for him.
Dai Mubai wiped away the blood and grime from his face, casually tossed the towel onto the ground, and said coldly, "It's fine."
How could it be fine?
Ma Hongjun wasn't oblivious to others' moods; his heart was in turmoil as he kept muttering to himself.
After a moment of hesitation, he lowered his voice and whispered a suggestion into Dai Mubai's ear:
"If you feel like you didn't give it your all, Boss, do you want to... fight him again in a bit..."
The two of them were whispering.
Flender ignored the questions regarding the student named "Wei Xiu."
Meng Yan didn't really intend to pry any further either.
If he wouldn't listen to advice and insisted on going to some no-name academy, then whatever happened would be his own fate.
It was just an investment; the Ye family had no obligation to pay for an outsider's choices, much less hold a Spirit Saint accountable for it.
"Since Senior Flender has apologized, let's leave it at that." Meng Yanheld her daughter.
"Liuyun, let's go."
"Please wait a moment," Flender called out to her.
"Is there something else, Senior?" Meng Yan turned back in confusion. "The situation has already been clarified. I respect your cultivation, Senior, but the Ye family is not afraid."
Flender's eyes burned as he looked at Zhao Liuyun, his words earnest:
"I see this young brother has extraordinary skills and is also at the Spirit Grandmaster realm. I wonder how old you are this year? Do you have a preferred Advanced Spirit Master Academy in mind?"
"If you haven't decided yet, why not consider our Shrek Academy?"
"We only accept the geniuses among geniuses—monsters, in other words. We don't take ordinary Spirit Masters."
Meng Yan's face fell.
It was bad enough you ruined one person's prospects, and now you're coming for another?
Zhao Liuyun looked at that shrewd, calculating, shoehorn-shaped face and spoke calmly, "Someone once recommended your name to me, and I too once looked forward to the so-called 'Monster Academy'."
A lie; he had never looked forward to it.
"Once" implied a turning point; Flender waited quietly for what came next.
"But after seeing you today, my impression of you is very poor!" Zhao Liuyun shook his head in refusal.
"'To not dare to cause trouble is to be a mediocre talent' sounds domineering, but it doesn't align with my heart for steady cultivation."
This also fit his persona.
How could someone dedicated to cultivation stir up trouble for no reason unless they were pushed to the limit?
"Furthermore..." Zhao Liuyun paused, "Hearing such arrogant words, I thought that some invincible Rank 99 expert had suddenly appeared in the Spirit Master's world..."
"Hahaha! What a great mockery!"
A vigorous and powerful voice echoed in everyone's ears.
Flender focused his gaze as an old man around sixty years old jumped down from a window.
"Well said! Hearing such arrogant words as 'To not dare to cause trouble is to be a mediocre talent,' I also thought it was some great master?" The newcomer looked disdainful, his gaze sweeping over Flender's face like a blade.
"Turns out it's just Flender, the Four-Eyed Eagle, who's only at the Spirit Saint realm."
"Shi Nian..." Flender frowned slightly; a difficult fellow had arrived.
Zhao Liuyun was startled.
He naturally knew of Shi Nian, an extremely rare pure Mental System Spirit Master.
But when did he get here?
Shi Nian looked at Zhao Liuyun, the pleasant surprise in his eyes exceptionally thick.
He turned his head, completely ignoring Flender:
"Flender, I see you're regressing as you age. After carving a piece of unpolished jade into such a state, you still have the face to continue recruiting students?"
"If I were you, I would slit my own throat on the spot to apologize to the heroes of the world."
"It's not your place to tell me what kind of students I should recruit." Flender's face turned ashen, but his anger was brief.
He knew how troublesome Shi Nian's Nightmare Spirit was, and he knew even better that this old monster was vengeful and difficult to deal with.
Shi Nian snorted disdainfully and looked at Zhao Liuyun with a burning gaze as he invited him:
"Shrek is just trash. Liuyun, why don't you join our Canghui Advanced Spirit Master Academy instead?"
"I will teach you personally!"
Zhao Liuyun was slightly tempted; considering the formation and his mastery of the mental Domain shown in the tournament, Shi Nian was indeed extraordinary.
He looked at Meng Yan.
Meng Yan couldn't make up her mind.
Shi Nian said, "Spirit Emperor of the Ye family, you should understand that in the entire Spirit Master's world, I am his best teacher!"
Unlike Shrek, Canghui was one of the well-known Advanced Spirit Master Academies in the neighboring provinces.
Shi Nian was indeed one of the rare high-level Mental System Spirit Masters in the world.
And Zhao Liuyun was bound to join an academy.
But because his past reputation was so poor, Meng Yan tried to find an excuse to refuse:
"Committee Member Meng Shenji of the Tiandou Royal Academy has the Black Fiend Spirit, and he is also a..."
"Mixed but not pure!" Shi Nian said with a look of arrogance.
"I am a pure Mental System Spirit Master. I have countless insights and thousands of ways to use mental force. Liuyun and I are truly walking the same path."
Intimidated by this aura, Meng Yan could only say, "This matter is not for me to decide... Please come with me so we can discuss it in detail."
"Wait!"
Dai Mubai suddenly called out to the group as they were about to leave.
Out of respect for the White Tiger Spirit, the group paused briefly.
"Zhao Liuyun, right? I was just careless a moment ago. Do you dare to fight me again!" He glared at Zhao Liuyun, his anger burning like fire.
After a brief discussion with the little Fatty, Dai Mubai decided to fight again, swearing to reclaim the face he had just lost.
But to anyone else, it just looked like he couldn't accept defeat.
Dai Mubai could only play dumb and act as if he didn't know.
"Hehe~" Shi Nian let out a cryptic laugh.
Flender said nothing; he had witnessed the entire process and also felt that it was due to Mubai's carelessness.
Even if this kid Zhao Liuyun was a Mental System Spirit Master like Shi Nian, an eight-rank difference in spirit power shouldn't have resulted in an instant kill before a Spirit Ability could even be used.
Zhao Liuyun said nothing.
As expected of Shrek's usual style—completely shameless.
"Hiding behind your senior, are you afraid?" Dai Mubai said with a contemptuous look, using a clumsy provocation.
He had originally wanted to say "woman," but fearing he might get hit, he could only change it to "senior."
Meng Yan frowned slightly, looking troubled.
support system families valued peace, and it was best not to provoke anyone from the Star Luo Dai family if possible.
But Zhao Liuyun was someone she had her eye on, and his initiative in protecting her daughter had already shown results.
If she didn't protect him now against this unreasonable provocation, wouldn't her efforts over the past two months go to waste?
Meng Yan asked softly, "Are you confident?"
"Yes," Zhao Liuyun nodded.
"Then let's fight!"
Ripples of spirit power suddenly spread out as both sides released their Spirits.
"I won't be careless this time." A ferocious curve tugged at the corner of Dai Mubai's mouth.
"Stirring up trouble for no reason, you're quite annoying, you know that?"
Zhao Liuyun's expression remained calm as he mocked, "Furthermore, for a loser to speak so arrogantly, you truly have no shame at all."
"White Tiger Barrier!"
Provoked by the word "loser," Dai Mubai's impression of Zhao Liuyunworsened as he used the standard First Spirit Ability of the Dai family.
A shield formed of spirit power flowed around his body, capable of blocking both energy and physical attacks.
When he said he wouldn't be careless, he meant it.
The problem was, it couldn't block mental attacks!
Even in the era of spirit tools ten thousand years later, specialized mental defense spirit tools would be required to guard against mental attacks.
Let alone now.
Dai Mubai didn't rashly approach again, instead intending to wear him down with White Tiger Light Waves.
But Zhao Liuyun wouldn't give him the chance to open up the distance!
With Extreme Reflexes activated, he moved forward while nimbly dodging the milky-white light spheres spat from Dai Mubai's mouth.
"Stop Conflict!"
Centered on the Spirit, purple light waves spread out and then suddenly converged toward the target.
A dense cluster of purple light ignored the white barrier as if it were invisible, sinking directly into Dai Mubai's body.
*Bang!*
Everything went black before Dai Mubai's eyes as he lost consciousness, his body falling backward uncontrollably.
Zhao Liuyun calmly withdrew his Spirit: "It's over. No different from before."
The battle ended, and they left the place.
Leaving behind a grim-faced Flender, who stood there reflecting on it over and over.
With such a powerful mental skill, was there really no room for resistance?
Sleeping... Ma Hongjun slapped Dai Mubai's face, waking him from his slumber.
"Damn it!" Dai Mubai gasped as he scrambled up.