FE—Chapter 155: Xu Jiawei: Is Xuan Zi helping the Dai family rise?
While the Sun Moon Team checked into the Star Crown Hotel.
Wang Yan led the Shrek team, which had barely passed the Xuan Zi trial. He had no time to feel sad. After separating from Xuan Zi at White Tiger Duke's barracks, he arrived in Star Luo City.
"Xiaotao, you have suffered a serious internal injury. Don't be stubborn anymore, okay?"
"You and Luochen must take good care of your injuries during the first half of the competition."
In Star Luo City, on the way to the Star Crown Hotel, Wang Yan persuaded Ma Xiaotao kindly.
The atmosphere of the whole team seemed a little strange. They remember it was fine when they just left the campus. Everyone even took a group photo happily... Now, three teammates are already reduced to black-and-white photos, so let's not talk about it.
Ling Luochen's thighs were wrapped in white gauze. She had used the Ice Cage to cover Chen Zifeng's Soul King-level corpse, which was about to explode. But she also suffered injuries due to a previous encounter. As expected, she sat in the wheelchair.
The Shrek team was already quite popular in Star Luo City.
But people were confused when they saw the bandages and wheelchair, and they looked at the Shrek team with strange eyes.
Wang Yan was already immune to these looks, and he continued persuading her: "Xiaotao, I'm not stopping you from playing."
"In the first half of this Soul Master Competition, let the reserve team take over until your and Luochen's injuries improve. Then you'll have a chance to perform."
Ma Xiaotao was annoyed by Wang Yan's nagging, so she took the initiative to push the wheelchair for Ling Luochen.
Ling Luochen felt the crowd's gazes and, thinking of her bandaged state and wheelchair, couldn't help but feel a strong sense of embarrassment. Her cheeks reddened slightly.
She could push the wheelchair herself with her soul power, but in this awkward situation, she didn't refuse Ma Xiaotao.
She covered her face with the hem of Ma Xiaohong's red dress, and a small darkness formed in front of her eyes as if others couldn't see her in this way. Ling Luochen felt a little relieved.
Ma Xiaotao pushed the wheelchair slowly, looking at the reserve team members behind her, and smiled bitterly.
"Xu Sanshi was seriously injured and sent back by Elder Xuan for treatment. He Caitou's several ribs broken and cannot participate in the competition for now. The Soul Masters who can compete are Beibei, Dai Huabin, and Zhu Lu."
"Teacher Wang, do you think a Soul Ancestor and two Soul Elders can survive the first half of the Soul Master Competition?"
Wang Yan was silent for a moment: "Xiaotao, you have to believe in your teammates and believe in Shrek. They will protect the glory of our academy."
Ma Xiaotao had a hint of sarcasm on her face: "Yes, our Shrek champion for ten thousand years—what a glorious honor. It's worth risking the students' lives. After all, three people have already died in battle."
At this moment, a yellowish-brown light flashed in space.
Xuan Zi brought Dai Yaoheng, who needed treatment from the Immortal Doctor Douluo, over. Wang Yan looked at Dai Yaoheng subconsciously.
Seeing that his left arm had been replaced with a metal artificial arm, Wang Yan was relieved. There were no new injuries elsewhere.
Xuan Zi did not encounter any accidents on the way this time and was safely delivered: "Xiao Wang, thank you for your hard work. What were you two discussing just now?"
Wang Yan sighed and briefly told Xuan Zi about his argument with Ma Xiaotao.
Xuan Zi was reliable for once and comforted him.
"Xiao Tao, Wang Yan is also for your good. You should rest your body during the early stages of the competition and perform later. What he said is the safest option right now."
"As for the lack of participants, you can select replacements from the spectators brought by Fan Yu."
Xuan Zi took a sip of wine: "Wang Yan, I'll leave this to you first. I'll go to the palace and take Dai Yuheng to visit the Immortal Doctor Douluo."
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Star Luo Empire, Star Luo City, Palace
In the hall, Xu Jiawei, dressed in a red imperial robe inlaid with star beads and gold patterns, sat on a high throne with a dignified look. A few days ago, he received good news from Dai Hao and the preliminary list of Shrek Academy contestants.
A minister in a red robe brought out a memorial.
"Your Majesty, the border defense report from White Tiger Duke indicated that the Death Hand Bandit Group, which was causing trouble and committing crimes in the Mingdu Mountains, has been completely eradicated by the Shrek Supervisory Group..."
As for the battle in which three Shrek disciples were killed and several seriously injured by the Death God Envoy, Xuan Zi asked Dai Hao to keep the news secret. He planned to visit the palace himself, so it was not reported to Xu Jiawei at this time.
After listening to the report, Xu Jiawei waved the minister away. His eyes slightly narrowed as he looked at the initial list of Shrek participants in his hand and muttered:
"Both sons of the Dai family are on the list of Shrek participants, both the regular team and the reserve team. Doesn't this mean the Dai family will produce two future geniuses—one of them has a chance to be selected as one of the Shrek Seven Devils?"
"In that case, could the next generation of the Dai family rise and prosper in the chaotic world of confrontation with the Sun Moon Empire..."
Xu Jiawei's eyes showed a hint of nostalgia. His family, the Xu family, was originally a hidden sect—the Star Crown Sect. During the chaos of multiple countries, the Heaven Dou Empire split into the Heavenly Soul Empire and the Dou Spirit Empire, with the Sun Moon Empire eyeing it covetously.
Gradually gaining power in the Star Luo Empire, they eventually replaced the Dai family as the ruling family.
Now, the two sons of the Dai family are virtually locked into the position of Shrek Seven Devils. This situation is not very favorable for his Xu family's royal ambitions.
The war between the two empires and the Spirit Hall ten thousand years ago was ultimately resolved by the first generation of the Shrek Seven Devils. The first generation even ascended to the realm of gods. Therefore, the name "Shrek Seven Devils" has always carried extraordinary significance.
"Jiujiu, how is the situation at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion these days?"
On one side of the hall, a purple-haired girl in a long dress with golden star patterns entered gracefully and bowed politely to Xu Jiawei.
After some thought, she said, "Brother, the Duchess is in a good mood after learning that both of her sons have been selected for the competition. She's been strolling around the palace courtyard more often than other noble ladies. She's planning to hold a banquet in the next two days to invite noble friends."
The Duchess had been ill for some time, mostly staying at the White Tiger Duke's mansion. Learning that both her sons were selected for the Shrek team seemed to lift her spirits.
The noble ladies increasingly visited her, mentioning her two sons during conversations, which greatly flattered her.
Xu Jiawei pondered and chuckled: "Jiujiu, our Star Crown Royal Family is on good terms with the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. It's a great honor that the two Dai brothers have been selected for the competition. We should send someone to congratulate them."
"Since the Duchess is hosting a banquet, Jiujiu, please go to the White Tiger Duke's Mansion. Be polite."
Xu Jiujiu smiled: "I understand, brother. I'll go now."
She slightly lifted the hem of her golden dress and turned to leave the hall.
"Your Majesty! There's a situation with Shrek..." The red-robed minister hurriedly entered again, visibly panicked, and spoke incoherently, as if with something urgent to report.
Xu Jiawei was confused. Shrek Academy was the foremost force on the continent—what major event could have happened? He looked at the minister and asked calmly: "Don't worry. What's the matter?"
The minister held up a list of Shrek's latest reports, his tone strained: "Your Majesty, White Tiger Duke sent the latest border battle report—you will see it after you look at this."
Xu Jiujiu blinked in confusion. Was she supposed to go to the Duke of White Tiger's mansion?
Seeing her confusion, Xu Jiawei smiled softly: "Jiujiu, wait in the hall until I finish reading this list."
"Yes, brother." Xu Jiujiu responded gracefully, folding her hands at the waist with a gentle smile, then taking a few steps back, avoiding looking directly at the list in Xu Jiawei's hand.
Xu Jiawei examined the latest list of Shrek contestants, his expression flickering with complexity, his eyes shifting.
He didn't want the Dai family to become too powerful, but the White Tiger Duke guarded the border and confronted the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Engineer Legion across the mountains. The young forces of the Dai family were already weakened—something he didn't want.
The ideal scenario was that the Dai family's strength remained within a range that wouldn't threaten the Xu royal family but could resist the Sun Moon Empire forces. That was the best situation.
Xu Jiawei sighed slowly. Undoubtedly, the Dai family was loyal to the country. Their weakening was not in their interest, nor was it beneficial to the Xu family's national fortune...
While he was lost in thought, his gaze fell on the latest border defense report written by White Tiger Duke below the list. His face suddenly changed.
"Huh?!"
"Dai Hao's eldest son lost his left arm and was seriously injured, but that's not the worst?"
Xu Jiawei's eyes widened in disbelief. He thought Dai Hao's eldest son was brave to destroy the evil soul master alone, venturing deep into enemy territory and being ambushed—causing such a serious injury.
Unexpectedly, there were still people who died in Shrek.
He had heard before that Shrek Academy's contestants followed the Supervisory Group to eliminate evil soul masters and conduct pre-match training.
Xu Jiawei believed that experienced members of the Supervisory Group led the group of novices in this task.
He murmured: "If the casualties were just ordinary members of the Supervisory Group... as long as they weren't participating students and it didn't affect the competition's layout, then it's not a big problem."
Although the Supervisory Group's purpose was to eliminate harm and uphold justice, from a practical standpoint, if a few elite Star Luo Empire's soldiers died, Xu Jiawei would feel some pain, but he wouldn't care much about the casualties among the Supervisory Group.
His eyes darkened as he read the latest list of Shrek participants, and his anger grew. He slammed the list onto the table.
"What the hell is the Shrek Supervisory Group doing? How come the latest list of participants, except for a few Soul Kings, are all students with three or four rings? Don't they want the honor of the ten thousand-year crown anymore!"
His eyes narrowed. How could such a lineup reach the finals?
He had deliberately controlled the matchups in advance to prevent Shrek Academy and the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy from clashing early, saving the finals for the king-to-king competition, attracting ticket sales, and maximizing benefits from the Soul Master Competition.
It was understandable to have a few Soul Elders and Soul Ancestors in the reserve team for experience.
But now, in the first half of the tournament, several Soul Elders and Soul Ancestors from the reserve team were replacing the main players.
He angrily asked: "Didn't Shrek tell us in advance that the main team for the Soul Master Competition was to be two Soul Emperors and five Soul Kings? How come three Soul Kings disappeared from the list?!"
He knew Dai Hao's eldest son, Dai Yaoheng, was originally a Soul Emperor. Now injured, he wouldn't participate for the time being. It was uncertain whether he could compete later.
How could Shrek compete in the finals with such a weakened lineup?
Losing to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy could cause panic and reduce cohesion. The damage to the empire was obvious.
He frowned. "Have you seen who sent this list?"
"Are you sure it was from someone in Shrek, and not a malicious forgery by hostile forces?"
The minister, aware of Xu Jiawei's reaction, sighed inwardly. He had prepared his words in advance.
He bowed respectfully: "Your Majesty, the old man who delivered the latest list showed me his Sea God Pavilion token. He was holding a chicken leg in one hand and a gourd in the other—he looked quite authoritative."
"It should be a respected elder from Shrek's Sea God Pavilion."
The minister's face was serious: "So, Your Majesty, this information is very reliable and unlikely to be false."
Xu Jiawei also knew that if the news was false, it wouldn't reach him so straightforwardly. But the information was so incredible that he couldn't help feeling suspicious.
The main team was the Shrek Seven Devils. Such an unusual event had never happened before in the Soul Master Competition. Three players had vanished just before the start.
Thinking of this, his face darkened. "Compared to the Sun Moon Team, which has one Soul Emperor and six Soul Kings, Shrek has sent such a fragile lineup. Are they mocking my Star Luo Empire and laughing at this Soul Master Competition?"
The minister's eyes flickered as he recalled the appearance of the old man.
"Your Majesty, calm down. I saw that the old man from Shrek was drunk. He simply explained the reason for the lineup change. It may sound absurd, but judging by his grief, it probably isn't nonsense after drinking."
He explained that the Shrek team must have suffered a significant blow this time. The old man had warned Dai Hao and Xu Jiawei to keep it secret—any leak could cause worse consequences than the competition itself.
Xu Jiawei sneered: "Haha, I was once the most outstanding genius of my family, and I also studied at Shrek Academy for a time. I know how formidable the Sea God Pavilion is."
"Never have I seen a force so arrogant and domineering, daring to kill the team led by elders of the Sea God Pavilion!"
He might not be aware of the Holy Spirit Church, but he knew well that even if such an evil soul master organization existed, it wouldn't dare offend Shrek Academy like this.
It made no sense. Even the Holy Spirit Church couldn't perform the feat of blowing up an entire team like this.
Xu Jiawei spoke mockingly: "The lineup of Shrek's main team has suddenly shrunk by three five-ring Soul Kings. Could there be an evil Titled Douluo-level soul master who blew up the entire team?"
"The old man from the Sea God Pavilion risked his life to save four members of the main team, but the other three died on the spot?"
The minister suddenly looked up at Xu Jiawei, a flicker of understanding in his eyes, and nodded repeatedly.
"Your Majesty, please understand! According to White Tiger Duke's information, it was indeed an evil soul master who caused the explosion, and it happened within our Star Luo Empire's territory."
"As for the evil soul master himself, neither the old man nor White Tiger Duke mentioned his cultivation level."
The minister looked thoughtful.
"But since he was able to force the elders of the Sea God Pavilion to pursue him personally, I believe the evil soul master must be of a very high cultivation level."
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End of Chapter