```
"What's that sound? Is it thunder?"
"My God, the brightness on the horizon is from soul cannons; it's an enemy attack!"
In Xingluo City, numerous citizens were stirred. When they discerned the abnormality in the sky, their faces revealed a look of panic.
"What a ruthless multiple-choice question."
"On one side are the people of Xingluo City, on the other, the students of Shrek Academy. There are thousands and thousands of citizens, but only one student. I really want to see how Shrek, which prides itself on justice and maintaining peace on Soul Land, will choose."
Jing Hongchen sneered inwardly.
Qin Xiao also quietly watched as the situation unfolded.
In Mu En's eyes, the conflict was evident.
However.
When the conflict in Mu En's eyes turned into a look of heartache, Qin Xiao knew what decision he had made.
The next moment, a dragon's roar sounded, and Mu En turned into a beam of golden light that vanished from the spot.
His target wasn't the Feng Ling standing not far from him in confrontation but the soul cannons to the north of Xingluo City.
"Hahaha, truly worthy of Shrek, holding it upon themselves to maintain the peace of Soul Land. I'm impressed."
Seeing this, Feng Ling laughed and left Xingluo City. Immediately after, Xingluo City was enveloped in a series of violent explosions.
Just as Feng Ling said, under Mu En's protection, not a single fixed soul cannonball hit Xingluo City, as Mu En intercepted them all.
"Who dares wreak havoc in Xingluo City!"
At that moment, several powerful Titled Douluos also appeared in the skies above Xingluo City.
In reality, one can't say they arrived late, only that everything happened too fast.
From Ma Xiaotao dashing out of the hotel to the firing of the soul cannons, it was just a matter of seconds.
Had Qin Xiao and Jing Hongchen not been close by, they surely would've missed this spectacle.
Suddenly.
The golden dragon shadow that Mu En had transformed into reappeared not far from Qin Xiao and Jing Hongchen, and Mu En's body became visible once more.
From the outside, neither Qin Xiao nor Jing Hongchen could discern anything unusual about Mu En.
But Qin Xiao sensed a fleeting breath of death from Mu En.
"Mu En has been seriously injured for many years and has been recuperating in the Sea God's Pavilion. He avoids taking action unless necessary, just to hold onto that breath of life and live a few more days."
"Today, he desperately made his move, which seems to have aggravated his old injuries, making his already severe condition even worse. It looks like he won't live much longer."
Qin Xiao had roughly guessed Mu En's condition.
And at this moment.
Mu En also looked over.
Of course, he wasn't mainly looking at Qin Xiao but Jing Hongchen, "Hall Master Hongchen, your Mingde Hall's soul tools sure are widespread. Not only does the Sun-Moon Empire have them, but the Evil Soul Master Organization possesses them too?"
You could tell that Mu En was very angry.
If it hadn't been for so many fixed soul cannons today, how could Feng Ling have managed to take Ma Xiaotao away?
Upon hearing this, Jing Hongchen, feeling helpless, spread out his hands, "My Mingde Hall's soul tools are not only found in the Sun-Moon Empire but are spread across the entirety of Soul Land; as for this matter, I too am quite helpless."
Mu En, angry as he was, didn't bother to deal with Jing Hongchen and his rogue-like behavior. He snorted and returned to the hotel.
Qin Xiao, under the guidance of Jing Hongchen, also left the place.
The excitement was over.
Of course, it was time to go back to sleep.
...
Elsewhere, after Mu En returned to the hotel, Wang Yan and many students had already been waiting for some time.
Naturally, with such a major disturbance, no one could sleep peacefully.
"Elder, are you ok?"
Beibei hurried over to Mu En, concerned.
Seeing no sign of relief on Mu En's face, Wang Yan and the others' expressions turned grim.
"I'm fine." Mu En said, waving his hand slightly, "Unfortunately, I was unable to prevent Xiao Tao's departure. Those damn evil Soul Masters, to think they would dare to abduct someone so brazenly; things have reached a point I hadn't anticipated."
Xiao Tao... Upon hearing Mu En's words, everyone present was momentarily dazed.
They all felt incredibly heavy-hearted.
The scene just now, which they saw from the hotel, showed that the evil Soul Masters were too dominant. They had forced Elder Mu into a position of helplessness.
"Is everyone here now?" Mu En continued, "We must return to Shrek Academy immediately to devise a plan against the evil Soul Masters."
Wang Yan responded immediately, "Dai Huabin and Wang Dong have not arrived yet."
"Where did they go?" Mu En was taken aback.
"Dai Huabin wanted to go home to check on things before leaving. As for that kid Wang Dong, it was strange. He said there was something very important to him at the Soul Master competition that he must find. I asked him what it was, so we could all help look for it, but he couldn't say."
Wang Yan finished speaking and sighed helplessly.
Who knew what was with this year's Soul Master competition.
Whether it was the students or the experiences they went through, everything was so strange.
Mu En said sternly, "Go find them and bring them back immediately."
"Yes."
Everyone nodded in unison.
However.
Before the group could leave, hotel staff hurriedly approached them.
"What's the matter?" Wang Yan asked with a frown.
"A letter has arrived from Duke White Tiger's Mansion." The staff quickly took out a letter and handed it to Wang Yan before hurrying off.
```
Subconsciously opening the letter, Wang Yan felt as if struck by lightning after reading its contents.
The hand holding the letter trembled.
"What's wrong?"
Mu En frowned as he took the letter from Wang Yan's hand to read carefully, his expression changing drastically.
"Elder Xuan, did something happen to Dai Huabin?"
Beibei asked tentatively.
Mu En let out a sigh, "Dai Huabin is dead."
"What!"
"How is that possible!"
"He was fine when he left."
After hearing Mu En's words, Beibei, Jiang Nannan, and Xu Sanshi all looked incredulous.
Mu En said, "He was assassinated on the main street in front of the Duchy Residence; the Duchy Residence would not lie to us about this."
"So, you're saying it's true?"
Xu Sanshi had a hint of confusion in his eyes.
Dai Huabin was alive and well when he departed, and now he had suddenly become a corpse—how could one accept this?
"Who would be so bold as to commit murder right in front of the Duchy Residence?" Jiang Nannan asked, frowning.
Beibei shook his head slightly, "The letter doesn't contain any related information."
Mu En said, "Everyone disperse, go back and rest well, we'll set off at dawn when Wang Dong returns."
After speaking, he calmly walked away.
"Elder Xuan, are you really okay?" Beibei asked softly, watching his retreating figure.
Mu En didn't answer and walked into his room.
Clang.
The door closed, and Mu En could no longer hold back.
He vomited a mouthful of pitch-black blood and leaned heavily against the door.
Then.
He slid down the door slowly and sat on the ground.
Huffing and puffing.
His chest heaved like a bellows; his complexion was as pale as paper, and the scent of decay, no longer suppressible, burst forth.
Mu En gently lifted his sleeve, revealing shocking patches of mortification on his arm.
It was evident how far his body had deteriorated.
"My days are numbered, but Shrek…ah, how can I rest easy."
...
On the street.
Wang Dong walked aimlessly, muttering, "Can someone tell me, what exactly am I searching for? It's too difficult; I can't find it at all!"
There was no helping it.
This trip to Shrek didn't result in the slightest connection with Qin Xiao; how could he establish a bond with Qin Xiao then?
...
The next day.
The Soul Master competition proceeded as scheduled.
The chaos caused by the evil Soul Master the night before ultimately fell on Mu En's shoulders.
He gave up pursuing Ma Xiaotao, took on all the soul cannon attacks, and protected Xingluo City unharmed.
Besides a big hole smashed in a certain hotel in Xingluo City, there were hardly any losses.
Today's audience was several times larger than usual, taking up nearly half of the soul fighting arena.
The worry on Xu Jiawei's face had been present for days, but it had lessened considerably today.
"It seems that yesterday's words had an effect."
"Ah, if only the earlier matches could have drawn this many viewers."
"In the upcoming days of the competition, even if we have this many viewers every day, it will only serve to recoup some costs."
Xu Jiawei felt helpless.
A well-planned Soul Master competition was meant to make him tens of millions of golden soul coins.
Now, breaking even had become a luxury.
What a mess.
Other countries hold Soul Master competitions to make money, but he's struggling just to break even.
In comparison.
Damn it, it would have been better not to hold the competition at all; at least that would have saved a lot of headaches.
...
The following three days saw another round of contests.
The results were almost without suspense.
The Imperial Sun Moon Soul Academy advanced from the top sixteen without any surprises, making it to the final four.
Besides them, the Star Luo Royal Team, the Dou Ling Royal Battle Team, and a team from the Heavenly Soul Empire called the Spirit Dragon Team also advanced.
Soon.
The lineup for the final four emerged.
The Xingluo Empire unsurprisingly kept the weakest Spirit Dragon Team for themselves.
Letting the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Academy and the Fighting Spirit Royal Academy fight a life-and-death battle.
...
"The Fighting Spirit Royal Advanced Soul Master Academy is the number one academy of the Douling Empire. Their battle team is also quite strong, with five Soul Kings. Don't take them lightly during the competition."
In the hotel, Elder Ma spoke earnestly to everyone about the Dou Ling Battle Team's information.
"Ha, with that lineup, shouldn't we be able to easily defeat them?"
Ma Rulong waved his hand dismissively.
They had one Soul Emperor and six Soul Kings, facing off against five Soul Kings and two Soul Ancestors, it would be hard for them to lose.
It must be said, without the pressure created by Shrek Academy, they all became a bit complacent.
"Hmph, you're the one who talks too much." Elder Ma snorted coldly and gave Ma Rulong a big knock on the head, causing him to cry out in pain, holding his head.
"Qin Xiao, for tomorrow's match, you, Xiao, and Meng will replace Chen Fei, Chen An, and Lin Xi. It's not often we come here, so you must take the opportunity to gain experience."
Elder Ma said to the team at the front.
No doubt, he had also received Jing Hongchen's suggestions.
Qin Xiao had no objections to this.
Warming up and moving his muscles didn't seem like a bad thing to him.
Jing Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen were also eagerly rubbing their hands together in anticipation.
...
Elsewhere.
After several days of travel, Mu En finally led everyone back to Shrek Academy.
"We're finally back..."
Wang Yan looked at the familiar grounds of Shrek, his eyes somewhat dazed, his voice filled with emotion.
The short one or two months felt longer than his entire life to him.
And more difficult to endure.
"It feels so good to be alive and back at Shrek."
Xu Sanshi also expressed his feelings with a sigh.
He felt like he had survived a catastrophe.
In fact.
It wasn't only Xu Sanshi who had such thoughts; Jiang Nannan, Beibei, Xiao Xiao, and others shared similar sentiments.
Being alive to return was truly not easy.
Without saying anything else, just looking at the main force team would show you.
They had left with a full roster, but there was no one left when they returned.
Compared to everyone else's contemplative expressions, Wang Dong seemed out of place.
Even, he appeared somewhat despondent.
He always felt he had missed something very important, and the sadness was that he didn't know what it was.
In any case, he was just very depressed...
"Eh, why are there so few people in front of Shrek Academy today?"
Xu Sanshi asked curiously.
You should know that at this time, it should be break time and the entrance to Shrek should be bustling with people.
"I had already notified them to clear the crowd. After you guys go back, just return to your classes and continue your normal classes and studies," said Mu En as he walked into the academy.
"Eh?"
The group was surprised that Mu En had made such arrangements.
"Let's go, Elder Mu did this for your own good," Wang Yan sighed and followed.
He also knew that the incident in Xingluo City had probably been conveyed to the academy, causing quite a stir in public opinion.
Even if Xu Jiawei had cleared the names of the Shrek people, did they not know what scent they carried on themselves?
The black cannot be turned white, and the white cannot be turned black.
Shrek did cheat, and Xuan Zi did deal harshly with Yun Luo Academy, these are undeniable facts.
...
Upon returning to the Sea God's Pavilion, Mu En immediately lay on the rocking chair.
His eyes were slightly closed, and his face couldn't hide the weariness showing on it.
Surrounding him in the Sea God's Pavilion were various Elders as well as Qian Duoduo, Yan Shaozhe, and many other deputy heads, all with anxious expressions.
"Elder Mu, you shouldn't have fought with them," Elder Zhuang said with a stern expression.
His Martial Soul had a strong life attribute and was extremely sensitive to the aura of death.
He could feel that Mu En had truly reached the brink this time and didn't have much time left.
Mu En didn't respond to Elder Zhuang's words, but with eyes half-closed, he looked at Yan Shaozhe and said weakly, "Shaozhe, this time, I've let you down. I couldn't bring Xiao Tao back."
"Teacher, don't say that, I know all about it," said Yan Shaozhe, his eyes already moist.
Before Mu En and the others returned, he had already received the news. Mu En had taken the hit from the Eight-Gate Fixed Soul Guiding Cannon to save the people of Xingluo City, but as a result, missed the opportunity to save Ma Xiaotao.
Even if he wanted to blame someone, there was no place for resentment.
"These damnable evil Soul Masters, I will destroy them all! To avenge the teacher!" exclaimed a beautiful woman suddenly.
She was around 1.7 meters tall, with fair skin, her black hair neatly coiled up, and she wore a white outfit with golden edges that looked sleek and efficient. Her whole body exuded a murderous intent!
She was Xian Lin'er, one of Mu En's disciples.
The head of the Soul Guidance Department at Shrek Academy, a Title Douluo (Martial God)!
...
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