Although Wu Ming and the others had already grasped the worst possible premonition from City Lord Shi Xing's final instruction, the shockwave from this utterly cruel reality, nakedly presented before them, was still enough to shatter their mental defenses.
After Time Douluo Shi Xing had used his life as a sacrifice to execute the spatial transfer, allowing them to narrowly escape the dead end, their hearts had already turned to ashes. They had only intended to obey the City Lord's final command: to seek out Elder Xuan and the other veteran members of the Sea God Pavilion.
But en route, they encountered the Star Luo Empire's Third Soul Master Legion, rushing at full speed to provide aid.
Upon realizing they were reinforcements, a faint spark of hope rekindled within their despairing hearts. They immediately decided to follow the legion back to Shrek City.
They fantasized that perhaps there was still a turning point, perhaps their teachers were still fighting tooth and nail, perhaps...
However, all their "perhapses" were, at this moment, utterly smashed to pieces by the endless abyss of nothingness before their eyes.
"Miss Wu Ming, please accept my condolences."
Sky Kunpeng Douluo's figure subtly shifted, silently appearing before Wu Ming, who was kneeling on the ground, her expression scattered as if she had lost her soul.
He did not rush to reach out and help her, but spoke in a deep voice, carrying a trace of imperceptible solemnity and comfort.
A powerful soul power subtly fluctuated, forming a gentle force field that temporarily woke Wu Ming from the grief that was almost tearing her soul apart, preventing this favored daughter of Shrek from completely collapsing due to the excessive mental shock.
The other Titled Douluos from the three great empires also quickly and silently gathered, their eyes complexly sweeping over the group of young survivors.
Wu Ming, Chu Qingtian, Hua Yao, Mo Xuan, Ye Liu... their faces pale as paper, their torn and bloodied academy uniforms, and the powerful, chaotic energy remnants they couldn't completely contain—all spoke volumes about the brutal and desperate battle they had just endured.
"Senior Sister Wu Ming, pull yourself together."
Chu Qingtian forcibly suppressed the catch in his throat and the surging grief in his chest. He took a step forward, his voice hoarse but filled with determination.
"City Lord Shi Xing... and Dean Yan, Elder Lin, Dean Xian, they... used everything they had to send us out. They didn't do it for us to break down and despair here. We still bear their expectations and... the mission to rebuild Shrek."
Hua Yao, Mo Xuan, Ye Liu, and the others gritted their teeth, forcing back the tears that were threatening to spill, and tried hard to straighten their spines, gathering around Wu Ming.
Though their eyes burned with flames of sorrow and indignation, a deeper belief, ignited by their elders' sacrifice, was struggling to overcome the pure sadness in their hearts.
They could not fall. Since Yan Shaozhe and the others chose to sacrifice themselves rather than escape, they could not fail their teachers' sacrifice.
Seeing this, Heaven Sun Douluo immediately stepped forward, asking in a sharp, serious tone, "Wu Ming, you are the last eyewitnesses. Tell us quickly, what exactly happened to Shrek City? What kind of power caused such... such a scene? Where are Yan Shaozhe, Elder Lin, Xian Lin'er, and the others?"
His questions were the truth that all the Titled Douluos present most urgently needed to know.
Wu Ming suddenly lifted her head, tears streaming down her face, but she bit her lower lip hard until she tasted blood, using the intense pain to force herself awake from the grief.
She looked around. The Titled Douluos from Star Luo, Heaven Soul, and Dou Ling were all holding their breath, their gazes fiercely fixed on her, awaiting her answer.
She took a deep breath of the cold air, thick with the dust of destruction, and began to recount that brief but seemingly eternal nightmare of an experience. Her voice carried a distinct sob but was unusually clear, every word seemingly soaked in blood and tears.
She spoke of the Star Dou Great Forest beast tide's sudden, unprovoked, full-scale eruption, and the frantic, unprecedented assault with almost all Ten Great Fierce Beasts mobilized.
She spoke of how City Lord Shi Xing calmly commanded the city defense forces and soul master legions to construct the defensive line, and how the various Deans and Elders personally led the charge, fighting the fierce beasts to the death.
She spoke of the terrifying arrow that froze everything, suddenly descending and instantly turning the arrogant Beast God Di Tian into an ice sculpture.
She spoke of the sudden upheaval of the Golden Tree, where two terrifying energy conflicts erupted from within, causing the world to lose color, with mere residual waves powerful enough to scatter their soul power.
She spoke of Dean Yan Shaozhe, Vice Dean Cai Mei'er, Elder Lin, Elder Zhuang, Dean Xian Lin'er, and Senior Gong Changlong.
To slow down the black star descending from the sky—as if intent on destroying the world—they one by one decisively and resolutely ignited their Soul Cores, exploding in the most dazzling and tragic way, using their lives to buy them meager time to escape.
Finally, she spoke of Time Douluo Shi Xing, who burned his entire life and soul, driving the Temporal Silver Disk to barely send them, the Inner Court disciples, out of that absolute place of death.
Her narration was fragmented, frequently interrupted by violent sobs and uncontrollable sorrow.
Chu Qingtian, Hua Yao, and others supplemented the details with red eyes, confirming the heartbreaking facts one by one.
Yet, this scattered narrative, drenched in blood and tears, was like a paintbrush dipped in fresh blood, sketching incredibly brutal, shocking, and utterly despairing scenes in the minds of all the Titled Douluos from the three great empires.
As she spoke, the expressions of Sky Kunpeng Douluo, Heaven Sun Douluo, and the others gradually shifted from initial solemnity to extreme shock, and finally, even to a near-absurd incredulity.
Self-detonate the Soul Core?!
Almost all of Shrek Academy's top powerhouses, several Hyper Douluos, and multiple Titled Douluos, detonated themselves consecutively just to slow down a single attack?!
Freezing Di Tian? What kind of being could achieve that?
An unknown god-level battle inside the Golden Tree?
And that... the Star of Annihilation, deliberately summoned and controlled by a being?!
All of it sounded like sheer fantasy.
Had it not been for the genuine existence of the bottomless, deathly silent giant crater before them, and had the narrators not been the core Inner Court disciples of Shrek Academy, with multiple people cross-verifying the facts, they would have certainly dismissed it as a collective hallucination by a group of over-stimulated maniacs.
"You... you are saying that the cause of Shrek City's demise and the fall of the Titled Douluos was a... a mysterious entity capable of summoning a meteor out of thin air, controlling it, and ultimately annihilating the entire city?"
Heaven Sun Douluo's voice trembled uncontrollably. He felt his nearly century-old understanding was being subjected to unprecedented assault, shattering his entire worldview.
"Yes... yes."
Wu Ming closed her eyes in agony, tears still falling. She nodded forcefully, as if to engrave the terrifying scene into her very bones.
"Although we were teleported away, in that final moment, we all clearly saw that demonic figure. It was she who summoned the star of destruction; it was she who destroyed everything we held dear."
Wu Ming's tone was filled with bone-deep hatred, yet she couldn't name the demon—was it human or beast? Where did it come from? What was its purpose? All were mysteries.
However, combined with the raging beast tide, almost all Shrek survivors subconsciously placed this colossal blood debt upon the heads of the soul beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Hiss—!
This time, all the Titled Douluos present, including the experienced Heaven Eagle and Heaven Sun, simultaneously drew another sharp breath. An indescribable chill shot up from their feet to the top of their heads, leaving them feeling as if they had fallen into an ice cellar.
Manipulating an extra-terrestrial meteor, annihilating a mighty city in a single thought.
This completely transcended their comprehension of power.
This was simply... a god-like means, existing only in myths and legends.
"How could a powerhouse of this level possibly be born among soul beasts? Who exactly is she?!"
Heaven Sun Douluo shook his head in disbelief. Logically, he couldn't accept this inference, but the beast tide was a fact, and the destruction of Shrek was a fact, leaving him no choice but to partially believe it.
"It is too early to draw conclusions now."
Sky Kunpeng Douluo, being mature and steady, suppressed the inner turmoil, striving to maintain a calm analysis.
"Look around. How many soul beasts have died here? The brutality of the scene might even surpass the casualties of the defenders. There are too many dubious and illogical points behind this incident."
Though he said this, his brow furrowed even deeper.
Disbelief notwithstanding, the fact that the Star Dou Great Forest launched a beast tide was undeniable.
Therefore, regardless of the ultimate truth, given the result of Shrek City's annihilation, the human side must launch a strong counter-attack against the soul beasts. This was a political and public opinion choice that was absolutely imperative.
If this truly was the conspiracy of some unknown entity, then it was an incredibly vicious and precise open plot.
The enemy was banking on the fact that after Shrek City's demise, the fragile peace between humanity and soul beasts would be irrevocably shattered, and hatred would blind everyone. Even if there were numerous questionable points, the wheels of vengeance could not be stopped.
Regardless, the fall of Shrek City was far more than the disappearance of one city.
It meant that a crucial linchpin that had maintained the continental power balance for ten thousand years had been utterly pulverized by an incomprehensibly terrifying force.
A being capable of effortlessly destroying Shrek Academy had appeared in the world. Its stance was unknown, its purpose was unknown, yet the power it displayed was enough to make every powerhouse on the continent tremble.
The skies of the Douluo Continent... were about to change completely.
"Immediately, categorize everything that has happened here as the highest priority, and transmit a confidential report back to the homeland at the fastest speed."
Sky Kunpeng Douluo was the first to recover from the extreme shock, issuing a stern command to the general of the Star Luo Soul Master Legion behind him, his tone unprecedentedly serious and urgent.
"Inform His Majesty, and advise the Empire to instantly activate the highest state of combat readiness. Simultaneously, mobilize all reconnaissance forces to closely monitor all movements in the Star Dou Great Forest. Report any anomaly immediately."
"Heaven Soul Empire forces, listen up! Transmit the intelligence immediately! Advise the homeland to enter Level One combat readiness alert."
"Dou Ling Empire forces, listen up! Likewise, transmit the intelligence with the highest priority! The entire nation is to enter a state of emergency."
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