FE—Chapter 154: You Don't Respect Ancestor Tang San!
When Elder Mu thought that Xuan Zi might become the source of the academy division, he felt an immense difficulty in his heart. He couldn't help but entertain the idea—fueled by memories of an old friend from the Holy Spirit Church—that Xuan Zi might be refined into an unconscious puppet, retaining only the power to protect the academy.
Elder Mu's deep gaze fixed on Xuan Zi, whose heart was pounding.
He naturally couldn't guess what Elder Mu was thinking. All he perceived was Elder Mu's calm gaze, which, although seemingly composed, concealed a sternness in his pupils that made Xuan Zi feel an overwhelming fear.
Xuan Zi shivered all over and quickly expressed his stance.
"Mr. Mu, whether it's the martial soul system or the soul guidance system, they are all parts of Shrek Academy. As elders, we must unite and work together for the development of the soul guidance system. Please rest assured, Mr. Mu."
Elder Mu's eyes moved slightly. Seeing Xuan Zi's willingness to dedicate himself to Shrek, he let out a sigh of relief.
He silently thought that Xuan Zi was his nephew...
He tried to use this familial bond to suppress the dark thoughts of refining Xuan Zi into a puppet.
Fortunately, Elder Mu succeeded. No matter how bad Xuan Zi might appear, Shrek Academy had always prioritized maintaining peace across the continent. Elder Mu, as the current master of the Sea God Pavilion, knew he must not indulge in such evil and unrighteous acts.
Well, Xuan Zi's superb acting had once again convinced Elder Mu to trust him, at least outwardly.
After listening to Xuan Zi's previous assurances, Elder Mu said earnestly:
"Xuan Zi, since you have this intention, I hope that whatever you do in the future, you will think more carefully. I don't ask you to promote the development of the Shrek soul guidance system or to lead the academy to greater strength. As long as you can stabilize the situation, I will be at ease."
Xuan Zi nodded repeatedly, listening very seriously. He raised his hand to signal Elder Mu not to worry and said solemnly:
"My Taotie Divine Bull Martial Soul has touched the threshold of the Ultimate Douluo. In the future, I will seek ways to devour more good things. It's not impossible to break through the bottleneck."
Elder Mu nodded slightly, a gleam of light crossing his old eyes as if contemplating some major decision.
Xuan Zi knew that Elder Mu was his uncle and elder, and would never truly harm him. As for what he needed to devour, Elder Mu would undoubtedly find a way to prepare the path in advance.
After a moment of thought, Elder Mu looked at the dean of the Soul Guidance Department, Xian Lin'er, with a calm but unwavering tone.
"Lin'er, taking advantage of this Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Fighting Competition, you should send a letter to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, applying for an academic exchange in the name of the Shrek Soul Guidance Department."
"If our Martial Soul Department and Soul Guidance Department students wish to go to the Sun Moon Empire to broaden their horizons, we can organize exchanges and studies there."
Xian Lin'er was stunned upon hearing this, unsure of Elder Mu's intention behind developing the soul guidance department in this way.
Let's not consider whether Shrek's disciples would reject this. As exchange students, they would inevitably face restrictions. With the proud and unyielding nature of Shrek disciples, conflicts with Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy students could easily arise.
And the Sun Moon Empire might be unwilling to accept the very culprit responsible for the failure of their empire's "Holy War."
Elder Mu waved his hand and smiled calmly: "Don't worry about that. Although the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy is far ahead in the field of soul guidance devices, they still have many shortcomings in martial soul cultivation."
"Our Shrek Academy is second to none in martial soul training. I believe they are also interested in our 'No.1 Academy in the continent' martial soul cultivation method. Cooperation shouldn't be too difficult."
Yan Shaozhe chuckled: "Yes, our martial soul department is very strong. I believe it's impossible for the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy not to be interested in our thousand-year-old martial soul cultivation techniques."
Qian Duoduo, with a slight smirk, muttered intentionally:
"What kind of training method is running all day? It's better to spend this time learning more rare metals and basic core arrays in my soul guidance department."
Although his voice was quiet, it was impossible for the elders not to hear.
Elder Mu and the other elders interested in developing the soul guidance system pretended not to notice. They knew their academy's martial souls training was strong, but they couldn't afford to be too arrogant for the sake of stability.
"Qian Duoduo! Disrespecting our ancestor Tang San by questioning this training method!"
Yan Shaozhe glared at him sharply.
"Hey! Yan Shaozhe, I didn't say that. That's not what I meant."
"The storage soul guidance belts of our ancestor Tang San's mentor are kept in the most important place of the soul guidance system, for disciples interested in learning how to engrave storage soul guidance arrays."
Qian Duoduo acted as if panicked, but his expression remained solemn, showing his respect for Tang San.
Yan Shaozhe clenched his teeth in anger, standing up to challenge him in a duel.
Elder Mu smiled and waved his hand: "Alright, you all discuss how to develop together. My request is simple: within five years, the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Guidance Department must be integrated."
"At least one soul engineer course per week for martial soul students."
Elder Mu looked at the deans and vice deans of both departments: "Shaozhe, Mei'er, Lin'er, Duo Duo, you must understand— the development of soul guidance devices cannot be reversed in this era."
Elder Mu believed that since their disciples' martial souls were strong, many of them also possessed genius-level talent for soul engineering.
"The rapid progress of Sun Moon Empire's soul guidance devices is almost changing daily. The future of soul masters must be a combination of martial souls and soul guidance devices."
Yan Shaozhe firmly believed that top martial souls should be powerful and asked with some confusion:
"Teacher, although soul guidance devices are a product of technological progress after martial soul cultivators reach the level of Soul Saint and possess martial soul true bodies, soul guidance devices still can't compare to our core strength."
Elder Mu shook his head slowly, teaching earnestly:
"Don't compare our soul guidance devices with those of the Sun Moon Empire. Can they be compared?"
"Young man, don't be so narrow-minded. There's also a difference between fixed-type and flexible-type soul guidance shells."
Elder Mu then recounted how he had personally visited the Sun Moon Empire and seen many astonishing things.
He was impressed by a massive soul guidance device that required multiple operators—such a device could threaten his life and influence the entire continent's war situation.
Seeing Yan Shaozhe's shocked expression, Elder Mu was satisfied. He knocked on the table and said: "Fan Yu from the Soul Guidance Department has performed well. I believe everyone has no objection to promoting him to deputy dean."
The elders responded: "Agreed!"
Elder Mu nodded with satisfaction: "Since Heaven has allowed them to experience these trials in advance, the children will face hardships. If we use this failure to temper them, then it's worth it. Let them grow."
After the Sea God Pavilion meeting, Xuan Zi took the disciples from the Soul Guidance Department who had been squeezed out by Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng, flying toward Star Luo City.
Of course, supporting the participating disciples was one reason; Dai Yueheng hoped the Immortal Doctor Douluo would treat his injuries to minimize potential loss of qualification. Qian Duoduo stood beneath the golden tree, smiling broadly, watching the khaki figure in the sky, and shouted:
"Elder Xuan, why not give Dai Yuheng a level 6 soul guidance shield to prevent accidents? I won't charge you."
"In the future, just support the development of our Shrek soul guidance system more."
The khaki light flickered violently after hearing Qian Duoduo's words, nearly causing another accident.
In Star Luo City, Star Crown Hotel. After the Xuan Zi's Sea God Pavilion meeting concluded and the decision was made to let the participating disciples face the challenges of the sky, Jing Hongchen had already led the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy students to settle in the suites on the top floor.
The champions, runners-up, and third-place winners of the last Soul Master Competition, along with other wealthy forces, stayed in the exclusive luxury suites.
Ma Rulong was explaining the upcoming Soul Master Competition.
With a hint of excitement, he said: "Our Sun Moon team is unprecedentedly strong. Even without our trump cards, we could easily defeat weaker teams early in the competition."
Xiao Hongchen nodded in agreement. He had been at Academy and Illustrious Virtue Hall before, with nothing to do. He liked to let Huo Yuhao help him fire cannons in the trial field, and he didn't have the airs of a young master.
Now, when he arrived in Star Luo City for the competition, Xiao Hongchen adopted the attitude of a noble young man.
He examined his hands carefully as if admiring exquisite artwork. From time to time, he condensed gold elements around his fingers and wiped them with a silk handkerchief. He was obsessed with his own hands, a narcissist.
Xiao Hongchen stared at his hands, then said softly: "Brother Ma, your main purpose in participating with the regular team is to deter and maintain a sense of mystery."
"A sense of mystery?"
Ma Rulong was puzzled: "Even if Meng Hongchen didn't wear battle armor in the early stages, Yuhao's strength alone is enough. Where does our regular team get the sense of mystery?"
He looked at Huo Yuhao with some doubt.
Huo Yuhao smiled faintly: "Brother Ma, our reserve team is in chaos on the field."
"In the eyes of outsiders, the reserve team is so strong, how terrifying should the strength of the regular team be? It must be even more unfathomable."
Ma Rulong suddenly nodded, as if convinced.
They knew that their reserve team was stronger than the regulars, but outsiders did not.
The audience would think the reserve team was just training, while the seven regulars were the real powerhouses of the Sun Moon team.
"When the regular team wins, opponents will believe that losing to us isn't shameful. After all, we were the runners-up last time. They will accept defeat calmly."
Xiao Hongchen gently blew on his fingers, smiling evilly: "But our reserve team is different."
"Opponents will feel humiliated, thinking we look down on them, and fight with anger."
"They will play fiercely, and I will attack with heavy artillery, crushing them mercilessly—giving both physical and mental pain."
Ma Rulong nodded approvingly. Meanwhile, the regulars would sit in the back with sunglasses, while the reserve team's display would make the regular team seem more mysterious.
It would create the illusion that the reserve team was strong, and the main players had yet to be unleashed.
Jing Hongchen waved his hand, telling everyone not to worry about who would play, just match them freely.
"The Soul Master Competition begins tomorrow. Early on, we'll play according to normal training methods."
"Meng's one-word battle armor is the trump card. When facing the Shrek team, we will give them a surprise."
Shrek Academy had just realized the importance of developing soul guidance technology. They never imagined that Sun Moon had already started researching battle armor.
Humanoid soul guidance devices were a thing of the past. Once well-developed, battle armor could integrate seamlessly with the user.
Jing Hongchen took out several soul guidance devices, placing them on the table, some round, some rectangular, cheerfully saying:
"These defensive soul guidance devices—the Invincible Shield and the Tough Wall—were all made in the past month by Illustrious Virtue Hall's soul engineers."
"To prevent accidents in the competition, each person is equipped with at least three Tough Walls. The Invincible Shield is disposable, but the number of shields is doubled—everyone should take more."
"Thank you, Hall Master."
The students responded politely. After thanking him, they took the shields and walls into their storage soul guidance devices.
Although Di Rachel and Ye Guyi were new students, Di Rachel was familiar with the principles of soul guidance devices through Huo Yuhao. Ye Guyi happily studied the Invincible Shield, eager to learn more about soul guidance devices in the future.
Lin Xi and Chen Fei, who had been burned by Ma Xiaotao's phoenix flames in the original story, also took many shields and walls.
"Not bad."
Seeing many defensive soul guidance devices being taken, Jing Hongchen nodded with satisfaction, indicating the students had a strong sense of self-protection.
"Besides me and Elder Ma, the royal family has also sent a priest to secretly accompany us."
"In the Soul Master Competition, you can perform freely as long as you abide by the rules. Don't hide your strength; treat the competition as your holy ground. We will handle any issues."
Jing Hongchen's gaze fell on a corner. A few bright stars shone, indicating the presence of hidden experts.
Ye Yulin's relieved voice echoed: "Master Hongchen, you can arrange the competition matters. The children are all talented. I believe they will perform well and restore the glory of our Sun Moon Empire!"
(End of this chapter)