"You girls probably didn't know this, but Xue Beng is the fourth son of Emperor Xue Ye," Wulin stated.
"The second and third Princes died of unknown causes when they were young."
The brows of all the girls raised and scrunched up in surprise. They only knew of Xue Qinghe and Xue Beng, not of the other two male scions.
"Xue Qinghe and his two younger brothers were talents that showed promise as future rulers of the Heaven Dou Empire,"
"However, the two princes, which were the definition of good health, suddenly died of mysterious causes,"
"On the other hand, the eldest prince Xue Qinghe is perfectly fine. Can you guess why this is so?" Wulin inquired, stimulating the investigative brains of the girls.
Naturally, the girls were not silly and immediately understood what Wulin was alluding to, "You mean Prince Xue Qinghe killed them to solidify his place as the crown prince?"
Well, it was not wholly right since it was no longer Xue Qinghe, but Qian Renxue was killing them.
However, Wulin wouldn't tell them about Qian Renxue because he only wanted the girls to be suspicious of her.
"Right, now let's look at it from prince Xue Beng's point of view." Wulin nodded his head in agreement.
"Your two brothers die one by one by mysterious causes, but they are no accidents."
"You know that they were targeted, and you are probably going to be next. What can you do to save yourself?" Wulin asked them.
The girls went quiet as they put themselves in Xue Beng's shoes. What could they have done to save themselves if they knew they would be killed?
Assuming Xue Beng was able to figure out it was his eldest brother killing his other brothers, he then had to figure out the reasoning behind the killing.
The girls had no experience with royal matters, so they helplessly shook their heads.
"He made himself look as little a threat as possible to his brother. He achieved this by becoming a wastrel and playing the pompous noble."
"As for his reasoning in warning me, well, who knows. He could do it because he is cautious of his brother, or because he wants an ally, there could be many reasons."
The girls silently mulled on this information, thinking back to their times when they interacted with Xue Beng.
All they could remember was Xue Beng disdaining to talk to them, or when he did, he was disrespectful and curt.
It was hard for them to think kindly of him as they didn't seem to have any good memories of him.
However, one thing they did realise was, like Xue Qinghe, Xue Beng never seemed to look at them with a lustful gaze.
The girls knew how beautiful they were, so a spoilt and lecherous prince like Xue Beng should have no resistance against them.
They wondered if Wulin was speaking the truth about Xue Beng and he might secretly be a righteous person.
"Well, there is no reason to think too deeply about it. Just keep in mind that people might not always be as they seem." Wulin said.
He already knew Xue Qinghe was Qian Renxue, so he didn't care much for Xue Beng's warning.
He also didn't think Qian Renxue would take any action against him since Ning Fengzhi introduced Wulin as his son-in-law.
Unless Qian Renxue utilised the Titled Douluo's of Spirit Hall to attack Wulin, she would have no way of dealing with him.
The girls nodded their heads in agreement and laid their heads on their pillows, giving it a little more thought before drifting off.
…
"Father, you wanted to see me?" Xue Qinghe stood before the imperial throne where Xue Ye sat.
Xue Ye nodded his head, "What do you think about the children from Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan?"
Xue Qinghe thought for a second before answering, "I think they are all very incredible and talented people, and the women's beauty is enviable."
Emperor Xue Ye nodded his head, but added, "Don't get any ideas about the women. As you heard from Ning Fengzhi, they are already with someone."
Xue Qinghe quickly nodded his head with a small smile, "Of course. Father, you know what I am like, I am more interested in becoming a suitable ruler than searching for pleasure."
"I know. It is good that you are getting along with the children. If you can keep their favour, then in the future you will have Titled Douluo's protecting your back." Emperor Xue Ye said.
Xue Qinghe nodded his head in understanding, before thinking about his other two siblings.
"Father, what plans do you have for Little Ke and Xue Beng?" He asked.
"Little Ke gets along well with the girls, so I will allow her to go and play with them often to further their friendship."
"If she can get the attention of one of those two boys, I wouldn't mind marrying her to one of them." Emperor Xue Ye said.
Perhaps it sounded a little heartless, but it was a natural occurrence in higher society, and it was likely that Xue Ke already knew such thinking.
"As for Xue Beng… He is not suitable for politics, and I already have you as my heir, so I only wish for him to live a happy life and not cause trouble."
Xue Ye had a distant look as he thought about his fourth son, he was utterly different from his previous three.
"It's alright, father. As you said, he is not suited for politics. I will take good care of him in the future, so you needn't worry." Xue Qinghe said reassuringly.
…
"Preselection Competition Seventeenth round, first match, Seven Treasure School versus Shrek Academy!"
Today was a day that everyone had been waiting for.
The undefeated Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan versus the undefeated dark horse, Shrek Academy.
The crowds roared out in cheers, favouring both the famous Seven Treasure Team and the dark horse Shrek Academy Team.
"It's finally time for us to fight, huh?" Mu Bai stood at the front of the Shrek Academy Team and smiled.
"So it is. Do you guys have a plan on how to defeat me?" Wulin walked up to Mu Bai and the two clasped hands.
Mu Bai laughed, "You will just have to wait and see, but we have not been slacking in this half a month."
Wulin smiled lightly, thinking they were too naïve to believe that they could defeat him.
Wulin could defeat a Spirit Saint on his own. But now, he is accompanied by Rong Rong and Xue Mei, who could increase all his powers by almost double.
Like usual, the teams were given one minute before the fight started, where they would showcase their Spirit Rings.
Unlike they had ever done before, the Shrek Academy Team decided to roster their best team for this battle.
Six Spirit Ancestors and one Spirit Elder, a total of 27 Spirit Rings, all with the optimal configuration.
On the Seven Treasure Team's side, Six Spirit Ancestors and one Spirit King, totalling 29 Spirit Rings.
In terms of Spirit Rings, the Seven Treasure Team was ahead, but the quality was the same across both teams.
In these lower levels of cultivation, Spirit Power has lesser importance in battles.
The most crucial aspect was individual combat skills and teamwork. With the correct cooperation and synergy, they could surpass the Spirit Power difference.
"Preselection Competition Seventeenth round, first match, begin!" The officiant announced loudly.
The instant the battle began, all three Auxiliary System Spirit Masters began buffing their teammates.
"Haha! I, your father, have a pink sausage!" Oscar chanted lewdly, summoning a couple of pink sausages before throwing them to his team.
"Oscar, stop with your stupidly lewd chants!" Xiao Wu yelled as she caught the sausage and ate it.
Instantly, everyone from the Shrek Academy Team had all their attributes increased by 20%, an enormous increase compared to the original Oscar.
Wulin had tested it before with Oscar since he knew the pink sausage was only meant to increase all attributes by 10%.
He assumed the increase in his Spirit Ability was because of his Secondary Awakening brought by Wulin's Spirit Gourd.
The only thing Wulin didn't know was if the all attribute increase was fixed to 20% or if it would grow with Oscar's increase in Spirit Power.
If he were able to increase the power of his Spirit Ability by 1% every second level in Spirit Power, when he becomes a God, he would be able to enhance all attributes by 50%.
On the Seven Treasure Team's side, they had two magnificent Auxiliary Type Spirit Masters with unbelievable talents.
Rong Rong and Xue Mei summoned their Spirits as they quickly began buffing their teammates.
Unlike Oscar's pink sausage Spirit Ability, Rong Rong and Xue Mei could only buff their physical abilities, while Rong Rong could also amplify Spirit Power.
However, this was precisely the most useful Spirit Ability for Wulin, who was a physical strength monster.
Mu Bai let out a ferocious roar as he integrated with his Spirit, becoming a size larger with tiger-like patterns appearing on his body.
His two evil eyes fixated on Wulin as he charged at him using his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.
At the back, Jiang Zhu, the final competitor on the Shrek Academy Team, was preparing a Spirit Ability.
Xiao Wu and Qing'er both utilised their comprehension of the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and dashed forward to clash with Ning Yuzi and Feng Feng.
Feng Feng met Qing'er with her own Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.
Thanks to Rong Rong and Xue Mei amplifying her speed and agility, Feng Feng was able to keep up with the Light Attack System Qing'er.
Ning Yuzi, on the other hand, had a lot more troubles even when facing the lower Spirit Rank Xiao Wu.
Although he was fast enough to catch Xiao Wu, she would change directions as if she was defying the law of inertia.
Like a ghost, Xiao Wu was able to run circles around Ning Yuzi and let out a flurry of small attacks.
Wulin looked at the two clashes and decided to leave them to their battles. He thought it would be a pleasant experience for both of them to surpass.
Ning Yuzi needed to be able to overcome his disadvantage in speed and technique if he was to become a pillar of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan.
Next, his gaze turned to Mu Bai, who was cautiously watching him. Wulin knew Mu Bai was waiting for him to make a move before he would move.
Mu Bai's best scenario would be if Wulin didn't move at all, allowing them to fight the others first and deal with him later.
However, Wulin wasn't lazy enough to sit around and do nothing, and he also wanted to fight them and push them to the limits.
Ash grey fur grew from Wulin's body, covering his chest and arms as his entire frame became broader and more intimidating.
Wulin smiled towards Mu Bai, and both of them dashed at each other, clashing in a test of pure physical prowess.
Naturally, Mu Bai didn't stand a chance against the monstrous Wulin and was sent flying in their first clash.
"Boss Mu Bai!" Jiang Zhu yelled out and released her Spirit Ability on Mu Bai.
Immediately, Mu Bai got up as if he wasn't just thrown a couple of metres back and charged at Wulin again.
Wulin smiled as he knew Mu Bai's job was to distract him for as long as he could since he was the strongest of the Shrek Academy Team.
…
Feng Feng and Qing'er chased each other in confusing circles as they employed their Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track as much as they could.
However, this could only last for a little while before Feng Feng decided to go even further.
A purple Spirit Ring glowed from behind her body as tens of arrows made of fire began to form all around her.
Her Fourth Spirit Ability, Fire Arrows, has a low Spirit Power consumption compared to her other Spirit Abilities but also had little attack power.
However, it was a useful ability in dealing with quick opponents by drowning them in an abundance of small attacks.
After perhaps more than a hundred Fire Arrows formed, Feng Feng launched them all at the speedily circling Qing'er.
I'm actually so sorry about last weeks chapter.
Omega has pointed out a couple of spelling mistakes which made me feel worthless as spelling was the only thing I was good at.
Anyway, here is the beginning of the battle between Seven Treasure Clan and Shrek Academy.
Hope you like it! :)