Chapter 214: Shrek Completely Suppressed, Yan Shaozhe Hovering Between Life and Death
The heavy metal lever groaned, the cold friction of iron against iron echoing sharply in Liu Yuan's grip. He stood over the execution block, his expression an unreadable mask of calm. Just as his muscles tensed to push the mechanism down and sever Ma Xiaotao's life from the world, the air behind him violently warped. A torrential surge of soul power tore through the atmosphere, carrying the oppressive weight of a hurricane.
"Stop!" A thunderous roar shattered the tension.
Several streaks of blinding light erupted from the perimeter of the square, tearing toward the elevated platform. Leading the charge was Yan Shaozhe. He moved like a golden thunderbolt, crossing dozens of meters in a fraction of a second. Xian Lin'er and Elder Song flanked him, their auras exploding outward as they manifested their Martial Souls mid-sprint.
A massive, radiant phantom of the Light Phoenix flared to life behind Shaozhe, its blinding golden plumage casting harsh shadows across the sea of spectators. He didn't care about the thousands of bewildered eyes staring up at him. His jaw was locked, his pupils contracted into pinpricks of desperate focus. He had to save Xiaotao. On his left, Lin'er summoned a gleaming azure longsword that hummed with lethal intent. On his right, Elder Song manifested a heavy, glowing shield of condensed soul power. Together, the three Sea God Pavilion Elders formed an unstoppable wedge, their killing intent locking entirely onto Liu Yuan.
"You forced our hand!" Shaozhe snarled, the veins in his neck bulging against his collar.
Facing the coordinated assault of three apex experts from Shrek Academy, Liu Yuan did not take a single step back. The hem of his robes whipped wildly in the gale generated by their approach. He merely shifted his gaze toward the incoming golden comet, a faint, icy sneer tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"So you finally broke," Liu Yuan said. His voice was perfectly level, yet it carried a piercing mockery that cut through the roaring winds. "To think that for the sake of a confirmed Evil Soul Master, the high and mighty pillars of Shrek would publicly abandon their precious glory and attack an executioner."
"Shut your mouth!" Shaozhe roared. He vaulted into the air, the golden light of his Soul Skill condensing in his palms until it resembled a miniature sun.
But just as the searing heat threatened to engulf the platform, the space behind Liu Yuan shattered. A terrifying, primordial pressure descended, heavy enough to make the stone tiles of the square violently crack and groan.
"Hmph. In front of this old master, do you children really think you have the right to act so brazenly?"
The low, majestic voice detonated like a shockwave. Without a single ripple in the air, Du Busi materialized directly in front of Liu Yuan.
The Body Sect Master let out a disdainful snort. He didn't bother summoning his Martial Soul. He simply raised a single, calloused hand and swiped it through the air. A tidal wave of emerald soul power erupted outward. The dense, suffocating green energy crashed into the Shrek trio, instantly extinguishing Shaozhe's golden sun, shattering Lin'er's sword aura, and crushing Elder Song's shield.
A deafening boom echoed across the city. The three mighty Elders were swatted out of the sky like insects. They tumbled backward like kites with severed strings, skidding violently across the rough stone before crashing in a miserable heap at the very edge of the platform.
Before the dust could even settle, the shadows surrounding the execution grounds began to warp. One by one, figures clad in the dark green robes of the Body Sect stepped into the light. Nine soul rings pulsed beneath each of their feet. These Titled Douluo exuded suffocating, mountain-like pressure, smoothly forming an ironclad perimeter around the stage. They sealed off every possible avenue of escape, ensuring not even a drop of water could slip through their net.
Shaozhe dug his fingers into the shattered wood of the stage, forcing himself to his knees. A thin trail of crimson leaked from the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away with a trembling thumb, his eyes darting toward the ring of apex predators boxing them in. The color drained from his face.
"The Body Sect..." Lin'er gasped, clutching her bruised chest as she struggled to stand. "You mobilized your entire force?"
Liu Yuan calmly brushed a speck of dust from his sleeve. He looked down at the bedraggled, panting Shrek Elders with eyes as cold as a frozen lake. "Did you honestly believe I would ever place my trust in the integrity of Shrek Academy?"
He stepped forward, his voice projecting clearly across the silent square. "I knew from the very beginning that your hypocritical faction would be driven to desperation. I knew you would discard your precious rules and stop at nothing to protect an Evil Soul Master."
Shaozhe spat a mouthful of metallic blood onto the planks. He scanned the predatory grins of the Body Sect experts, then looked at his battered companions. The reality of their situation crashed down on him. If they didn't burn their very life force today, saving Xiaotao would be a pipe dream. Worse, the three of them would be buried here.
They had crossed the point of no return. The trap had snapped shut.
"Burn your blood!" Shaozhe roared, his voice cracking with sheer desperation. "Give it everything!"
He ignited his soul core, forcing his Martial Soul to manifest with blinding intensity. His entire body transformed into a searing golden meteor as he launched himself directly at Du Busi. Elder Song and Lin'er didn't hesitate. Pushing their bodies past their limits, they surged forward in a synchronized, suicidal assault. All reservations were abandoned. The Shrek Elders were fighting like cornered beasts.
Yet, raw desperation could not bridge the chasm of absolute power.
As a Rank 98 Super Douluo possessing the ultimate physical body, Du Busi stood like an immovable mountain peak. He exuded the terrifying momentum of a warlord holding a narrow pass against an army of ten thousand. Every frantic, explosive strike Shaozhe threw was casually swatted aside.
The Sect Master barely shifted his stance. Relying on nothing but his bare palms, he dismantled the desperate three-pronged offensive with insulting ease. A flick of his wrist deflected a lethal sword thrust; a casual backhand shattered a golden phoenix projection.
Below the platform, the remaining Body Sect experts sprang into action. The moment Shrek's Inner Courtyard teachers attempted to rush the stage to assist their Dean, the green-robed Titled Douluo descended upon them, violently suppressing the reinforcements and pinning them to the ground.
The battle on the execution platform was a one-sided slaughter.
Even with the combined might of Shaozhe, Lin'er, and Elder Song attacking a single target, they couldn't force Du Busi to take a single step backward. It was a brutal repetition of a lesson they had already learned in the past: numbers meant nothing against absolute physical supremacy.
Exploiting a momentary opening created by Lin'er's sweeping blade and Elder Song's heavy shield bash, Shaozhe managed to slip past the old monster's guard. His glowing fists slammed directly into Du Busi's chest.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Punch after punch connected, exploding with golden light. Yet, Shaozhe's eyes widened in horror. It felt as though he were bare-knuckle punching a mountain of divine steel. The violent kinetic recoil traveled straight up his arms, tearing at his muscles and causing his internal organs to violently churn.
Before he could retreat, Du Busi's eyes flashed with cold amusement. The old man's massive palm lashed out, striking Shaozhe squarely in the center of his chest.
The sickening crunch of ribs echoed over the square. Shaozhe vomited a thick spray of blood. He was launched downward like a fired cannonball, slamming so hard into the execution platform that the thick wooden floorboards instantly exploded into a shower of jagged splinters.
Coughing violently, he planted his hands into the debris, trying to force his broken body upright. But the agonizing pain radiating from his shattered sternum caused his gathered soul power to scatter into the wind. He collapsed back into the crater of broken wood, his vision swimming. Despair clawed at his throat.
Through blurred eyes, he saw Liu Yuan standing nearby, his posture relaxed, his expression utterly indifferent to the carnage. Then, his gaze shifted to Du Busi, whose heavy boots crunched against the splintered wood as he approached, step by agonizing step.
An unmatched, suffocating wave of desolation washed over the proud Dean of Shrek Academy.
He had lost.
He hadn't just lost a physical brawl against the Body Sect Master. He had walked blindly into a flawless, inescapable death trap orchestrated by a mere youth.
Du Busi halted at the edge of the crater. He looked down at the bleeding, broken Dean, his ancient eyes completely devoid of pity or hesitation.
"Shaozhe!" Lin'er screamed, her voice tearing at the seams.
Seeing their leader at death's door, she and Elder Song abandoned all defense. They burned their soul blood, transforming into two streaks of desperate light as they lunged at Du Busi's exposed back.
It was a futile gesture.
"Get lost, insects!" Du Busi barked.
The nine soul rings beneath his feet suddenly flared with a blinding, terrifying radiance. Without even turning around, his hands shot out with viper-like speed. He caught Lin'er and Elder Song by their ankles mid-flight. With a brutal twist of his waist, he swung them like ragdolls and hurled them off the platform, sending them crashing into the stone pillars below.
The Sect Master didn't spare them a second glance. His heavy gaze returned to the crippled man at his feet. Slowly, he raised his right index finger. A condensed bead of emerald light formed at the tip, vibrating with enough concentrated destructive force to instantly obliterate Shaozhe's heart.
"Heh heh heh. Look at you now, Yan Shaozhe," Du Busi chuckled, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper. "This time, no one is coming to save you."
He thrust his finger downward.
Shaozhe closed his eyes. His muscles went slack. He had no soul power left to summon, no strength left to dodge. He could only listen to the whistling of the wind as death descended upon him.
The emerald light was mere inches from piercing his chest.
Suddenly, the fabric of reality tore open.
Without a single warning ripple, a deep, abyssal black light erupted from a jagged spatial rift. The darkness pulsed with an ancient, deeply malevolent aura that chilled the blood of everyone present. It materialized precisely in the microscopic gap between Du Busi's fingertip and Shaozhe's chest.
The moment the emerald energy touched the black light, it was silently swallowed, neutralized into absolute nothingness.
Du Busi's brow twitched violently. His arm froze in mid-air, his instincts screaming at the sudden, overwhelming threat.
A suffocating silence slammed down over the entire square. The roaring winds died instantly. The chaotic sounds of battle vanished. It was so quiet that the ragged breathing of the fallen Shrek teachers echoed clearly across the stones.
Every single gaze in the plaza was locked onto that eerie, pulsating rift of black light.
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