Xu Sanshi, who was likely the strongest in the Reserve Team and definitely had the highest Soul Power, chose not to enter the Inner Courtyard at a crucial moment.
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This was undoubtedly a significant blow to Shrek's expedition.
It wasn't quite "the master died before the battle began," but it was certainly a bad start, like the battle flag falling before the fight.
Wang Yan, the team leader, immediately felt a heavy burden on his shoulders, suffocating him.
At this critical juncture, Xiao Xiao, a second-year student, asked another innocent and ignorant question. In the little girl's eyes, Xu Sanshi had simply chosen not to train in the Inner Courtyard due to family orders, which seemed perfectly normal.
Clearly, Old Xuan's speech had largely been undone by Xu Sanshi's withdrawal and explanation.
The naive little girl, who had been tricked into a den of thieves by a pyramid scheme old man's verbal manipulation, realized something was wrong and wanted to escape!
Wang Yan, who was contemplating who Shrek would send to replace Xu Sanshi five years from now, suddenly shivered.
When it rains, it pours. Xiao Xiao's words caused an even bigger commotion. This time, the question came from Zhu Lu.
"Teacher Wang, I also have a question. If we spend most of our time in the Inner Courtyard performing various Supervision Group tasks and have little time to stay in the Inner Courtyard, then what's the point of the Inner Courtyard's teaching for us?"
Wang Yan's scalp tingled. He forced himself to answer, "You can't say that. Inner Courtyard disciples also have regular teaching time. The knowledge taught will be more profound and comprehensive."
Dai Huabin asked, puzzled, "But aren't the teachers for Inner Courtyard disciples still advanced teachers like you, Teacher Wang? We can access them in the Outer Courtyard. Is there anything unique about the Inner Courtyard?"
Wang Yan swallowed and replied, "Our academy has passed down its legacy for ten thousand years, so of course, it has some unique secret techniques. As long as you make enough contributions to the academy, you'll have the opportunity to learn special secret methods or combat techniques from the Elders."
Zhu Lu blurted out, "Doesn't that mean if we don't work ourselves to death for the academy, we won't learn anything truly meaningful in the Inner Courtyard? Isn't that just a waste of time?"
As a successor of the Netherworld Zhu Family, she didn't need Shrek to teach her about Martial Soul cultivation; her family had already compiled rooms full of various experiences. In her opinion, Shrek's appeal lay in the powerful methods of the mysterious Inner Courtyard.
Wang Yan was speechless. "—"
Beside him, Dai Yueheng's forehead was unknowingly covered in black lines. He wanted to say that even if you worked as hard as him, you wouldn't learn anything truly meaningful. Only direct descendants like Ma Xiaotao could receive great gifts like Soul Bones.
His Soul Power was three levels lower than Ma Xiaotao's. If he had Ma Xiaotao's Soul Bone configuration and resources, why would he lag behind her in Soul Power?
This was also why he resented Ma Xiaotao. They were both geniuses, so who would submit to someone with similar talent who relied on connections? Dai Yueheng was confident that he far surpassed Ma Xiaotao, that crazy woman, in terms of social skills, leadership presence, and popularity.
If Dean Yan wasn't backing you, Ma Xiaotao, could you have ever gotten ahead of me, Dai Yueheng? I'm not afraid of you in a one-on-one fight, and I'm better than you at strategy! Everyone obeys me, not you!
If the Sixth Ring Dai Yueheng had even one secret technique from Shrek, he wouldn't have had to exhaust himself to take down the Five Rings Meng Hongchen in the Grand Competition's one-on-one battle. And that was when Meng Hongchen wasn't at full strength, having already defeated the Four Rings Bei Bei and the Five Rings Ling Luochen.
However, the responsibility of being the main team captain ultimately reminded Dai Yueheng to help his teacher out of a difficult situation.
He grabbed Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu, one in each hand, and forced a smile, saying, "Second brother, sister-in-law, of course, the Inner Courtyard has many good things. Teacher Wang doesn't stay in the Inner Courtyard often, so he's not clear on it. I'll tell you all about it later."
"We still need to go to the Ming Dou Mountain Range to deal with the Grim Reaper Assassin Group. Everyone, let's hurry up and depart."
Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu still wanted to speak, but they finally knew to give Dai Yueheng face and swallowed their question about "what exactly are the unique benefits of entering the Inner Courtyard."
Xiao Xiao, who had muttered quietly and hadn't received an answer from Wang Yan, silently pulled her head back and went to Ling Luochen, an upperclassman she had just met, hoping to get an answer from her.
Ling Luochen knew this was a topic that couldn't be touched. She simply spoke vaguely and laughed, changing the subject.
The team finally set off in a strange atmosphere. All six members of the main team recalled their experiences of working themselves to death without much benefit during this farce, and a surge of indignation burned within them.
Once we finish the competition and leave here with our gilded Inner Courtyard graduation resumes, it'll be soon, very soon.
Let's start with that Grim Reaper Assassin Group. After we eliminate them, we'll sweep through all the academies in Star Luo City. Then we can go home, back to our country, having completed our studies. A beautiful life awaits us.
On the forced march, Wang Yan took out his Soul Guided Communicator and notified Du Weilun, the Dean of Education of the Martial Soul Department and leader of the second-year Core Disciple sightseeing group, to quickly take the second-year Core Disciples to Star Luo City to handle unexpected situations.
"Tian Xi, the proposal you jointly submitted is very meaningful. We've conducted in-depth research and consideration, refined it, and submitted it to the Imperial Family and Old Man Kong."
Jing Hongchen, his face glistening with oil, took a bite of beef and a swig of ale, saying, "Old Man Kong's meaning is for you to go ahead and do it. You control the scale yourselves. It's perfectly fine to do some GG promotions before and after the competition. Occasionally, wanting to do something big isn't out of the question either."
"The general populace of the Original Three Kingdoms has misunderstood us too deeply over the years. In truth, many of us have no interest in war at all. If we truly wanted to be warmongers, how could White Tiger Duke Dai Hao have repeatedly achieved military merits in the Ming Dou Mountain Range and earned the title of God of War? Ridiculous!"
As the Mingde Hall Master, Jing Hongchen generally knew the Sun Moon Empire's military reserves. Not to mention other giant destructive weapons, just the Level 9 Fixed Soul Cannon Shells stored deep underground in Mingde Hall—just a few of them could level White Tiger Duke's defensive lines and main camp.
If Mingde Hall wanted to profit from the arms trade, the Hongchen Family would have already made a fortune. However, many academy Soul Engineers like Jing Hongchen and Xuan Ziwen were indifferent. As long as the Original Three Kingdoms didn't attack their homes, they had no interest in supporting the military to trouble the Three Great Empires; they just wanted to be undisturbed in their research of the wonderful Soul Guided world.
But indifference aside, if they could attract more talent from the Original Three Kingdoms, bringing in more "little Xuan Ziwens" and "little Xu Tianxis," Jing Hongchen would of course be delighted.
Although he knew this was not much different from a pipe dream, a man always had to have dreams.
Xu Tianxi took a sip of juice to digest the roast lamb he had just eaten, smacking his lips. "Although I did suggest you do something big, isn't this a bit too big?"
As he spoke, Xu Tianxi's gaze fell on the remaining four members of the Reserve Team, his expression a little complex.
He only had an impression of one of these four: Li SanShui, whose skin was unusually fair.
This person was rumored to be the academy's gossipmonger. His parents were from the Heavenly Soul Empire, and he possessed the auxiliary tool Martial Soul, Eight Trigrams Compass. Like Xuan Ziwen, he was a second-generation rich kid and had been seen in the Ming Dou Mountain Range back then.
The remaining three also came from extraordinary backgrounds, with ancestors from the Star Luo Empire, the Dou Ling Empire, and Shrek City, respectively.
What's even more outrageous is that one Soul Engineer, whose ancestors hailed from the Star Luo Empire, had a Martial Soul resembling a White Tiger. Another, whose Martial Soul was like a swan, came from the Dou Ling Empire. And then there was the person from Shrek City whose Martial Soul was a horned owl, exactly like Flander, the Dean of Shrek Academy from ten thousand years ago!
It was like Dean Hongchen was running some kind of professional stamp collection here!
If Jing Hongchen hadn't dug them up, Xu Tianxi would never have known that the vast Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy harbored such hidden talents.
More importantly, this group only had Martial Souls but no real strength—two Soul Elders, two Great Soul Masters, and not a single Soul Ancestor.
Xu Tianxi even wondered if the Dean was getting a bit ahead of himself.
"~It's only because I have you three to back me up that I dare to do this, right? Anyway, we're definitely going to win this time."
Jing Hongchen leaned back casually, signaling a waiter for a few more flagons of ale.
The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy had been the runner-up for a thousand years. Ma Rulong's team was at champion-level, and with Xu Tianxi and the other two sweeping them, they could be considered Soul Emperors.
To put it another way, the Sun Moon Battle Team this time had four Soul Emperors overseeing it. What's wrong with being a little overconfident? Shrek had never even fielded a team with four Soul Emperors.
Some of Xu Tianxi's methods were too powerful to display, but Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen's Martial Soul Fusion Technique was no problem. As long as they unleashed their Martial Soul Fusion Technique, even a Soul Sage would be wiped out.
This time, victory was firmly in their grasp!
"Yes, we're going to Star Luo City to make a name for ourselves! I really hope there are strong enough geniuses in Shrek Academy so that our greatness isn't overshadowed!"
Xiao Hongchen, flushed, spoke grandly, clearly having had too much to drink.
Meng Hongchen covered her face slightly, not wanting to look at her embarrassing brother.
Ever since regaining some face from Lin Xi and the other main team seniors, Xiao Hongchen had been full of swagger again.
Xu Tianxi ignored him, pulling out fireproof armor and Detection Glasses from his storage belt and handing them to Ma Rulong and the others.
"Seniors, these are the competition gear that Teacher Xuan and I designed together. You can divide them up."
Ma Rulong examined the words "This Soul Guided Device is from the hands of Level 8 Master Xuan Ziwen" on the chest plate, his eyebrow twitching slightly:
"Junior Kong, this armored Soul Guided Device doesn't have any other special features, does it?"
Xu Tianxi said, "Yes, it does. Fireproof, high-temperature resistant, specifically for saving lives.
"Ah?" Ma Rulong, Lin Xi, and the others looked confused.
"I heard there's a fire-wielding psychopath in Shrek Academy this generation, just in case," Xu Tianxi explained with a smile.
Seeing that the seven seemed to have no concept of a "psychopath," Xu Tianxi coughed twice lightly and slowly said, "According to competition data, Shrek Academy's casualty rate is by far the highest among all top academies, firmly holding the number one spot."
"In their tactics, the best strategy is to beat opponents to death or cripple them, to reduce the opponent's effective strength, especially—when facing us!"
Hiss~ The seven main team members collectively gasped, their faces filled with horror.
"Alright, alright, you don't need to worry too much. We've made ample preparations this time and will definitely bring back a championship safely; everyone, continue eating. We'll set off once we're done."
Jing Hongchen spoke up to soothe everyone, telling the students not to shout loudly and behave improperly in the barbecue restaurant.
This was a farewell meal before the Grand Competition. After this meal, Jing Hongchen would personally lead them to the Star Luo Empire to participate. To avoid causing fear among allied nations, Jing Hongchen would only accompany them for a part of the journey, then hide in the shadows for protection once they reached the border.
The official team leaders would be Old Ma, Ma Rulong's grandfather, and Dean of Education Lin Jiayi, both Level 8 Soul Engineers.
As for how many helpers Jing Hongchen had found this time, Xu Tianxi didn't know; but with Jing Hongchen around, there was no need to fear a certain Level 98 Chicken Leg Douluo who was about to lead Shrek's main team to glory.
If the situation became uncontrollable, they could always unleash a Level 9 Fixed Soul Cannon Shell in Star Luo City and take a gamble together, seeing who would ascend first.
It was unclear who would lose their patience first, Jing Hongchen or Chicken Leg Douluo, but Xu Jiawei would have to prevent the situation from escalating if he didn't want Star Luo City to turn into ruins.
"What's going on?"
Suddenly, Xu Tianxi felt an inexplicable pain in his chest, his face turning pale, and a dizzying sensation rushed to his head.
He quickly reached out to support his head.
"What's wrong, Tianxi? Are you alright?" Jing Hongchen asked with concern.
Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen placed their hands on Xu Tianxi's forehead, one on each side.
"I'm fine, it's just... I don't know why, but I feel a bit uneasy—"
Xu Tianxi shook his head, took a deep breath to calm himself, his pupils gradually refocused, then suddenly brightened.
"Nothing should happen to the others, so could it be Xu Sanshi—"
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Translation by: randomtranslator.com
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