While sitting beside Xiao Wu and burying his head in eating steamed buns, Tang San raised his head. There was a trace of helplessness in his eyes as he said:
"Teacher suffered too great a blow two years ago. Although the Spirit Hall deliberately sealed off most of the news so the outside world wouldn't know exactly what happened, Teacher was still seriously injured. After returning to Notting City, he has been depressed and downcast all this time. Only after coming to the academy did he regain a little bit of confidence…"
Beside him, Xiao Wu, who wore her hair in scorpion braids, also spoke up:
"I feel like Grandmaster has changed a lot since then. Sometimes he isn't even willing to talk to Little San…"
Zhu Zhuqing, sitting nearby, took small bites of the still relatively soft steamed bun but did not speak.
Ning Rongrong let out a soft sigh and said:
"Forget it, continuing like this isn't a solution either. I feel like this young lady has lost a lot of weight already. Starting today, I'll write a letter home every day and ask my father to send some gold soul coins to support the academy's expenses…"
Everyone looked at each other, yet no one opened their mouth to refuse. They simply remained silent.
After a long while, Dai Mubai finally spoke again:
"Alright, everyone, stop being so down. These are only temporary. As long as we all work hard together, it won't take many years before Shrek Academy can make our own name resound across the continent…"
"Now let's all eat. Tomorrow, we still have to go to the Great Soul Arena to participate in spirit fights. If we don't eat more now, it might affect our stamina tomorrow. After all, whether we can even eat a full breakfast is still a problem…"
While eating steamed buns and drinking rice porridge, everyone nodded.
Before they could even eat a few more mouthfuls in peace, an elder rushed in from the doorway, panting heavily. A youth with deep peach-blossom eyes was gasping as he said intermittently:
"They… they're here! They've come!"
Ma Hongjun swallowed a mouthful of steamed bun and said somewhat discontentedly:
"Little Ao, what do you mean by 'they're here' or 'not here'? If you don't eat now, you'll only have your own sausage left to eat…"
Oscar held onto the table and took two rough breaths before speaking in an excited tone:
"Eat what? The dean just received news that the members of the Tianshui Team, who were out training for some unknown reason, have already arrived in our Soto City! And right now they are staying at the Great Soul Arena. For the next few days, they will accept challenges from nearby spirit master teams. If we can win, what steamed buns and salted vegetables would we still be eating? We'd ascend to heaven in a single step…"
As soon as these words came out, the steamed buns everyone had raised to their mouths didn't even have time to be swallowed before all their gazes turned toward Oscar in unison.
After a brief silence, Ma Hongjun directly slapped the table and stood up, excitedly saying:
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go right now! If we win, won't we be eating delicacies and drinking fine wine from now on…"
Excitement and eagerness to try also appeared in Dai Mubai's and the others' eyes, but immediately afterward, a cough interrupted their beautiful fantasies.
Following the sound of footsteps, a middle-aged man with very distinctive stubble appeared at the cafeteria entrance. A pair of sharp eyes stared at everyone through black-framed crystal glasses, giving off a very oppressive feeling.
"Little monsters, I suppose Little Ao has already told you about the Tianshui Team, right…"
Everyone nodded. Dai Mubai stood up, patted his chest, and said:
"Dean, you make the arrangements."
The corners of Flender's mouth curled into a slight smile as he said:
"Tomorrow we will go straight to the Great Soul Arena. However… I advise you not to hold any thoughts of being able to defeat the Tianshui Team. For your current selves, that is simply impossible…"
Everyone was stunned. Then Tang San, who was sitting to the side, slightly furrowed his brows and asked:
"Dean Flender, what do you mean by that?"
"If we judge by age, we shouldn't be much different in age from the members of the Tianshui Team…"
Flender was taken aback for a moment before asking:
"Your teacher never told you?"
Tang San looked at Flender in confusion and then said:
"Dean, what are you talking about?"
"Let me explain it to them…"
Suddenly, a somewhat hoarse voice came from the side. Yu Xiaogang, dressed in plain clothes with sunken cheeks, walked over.
Tang San hurriedly stepped forward to support him and said:
"Teacher…"
Yu Xiaogang lightly patted Tang San's shoulder. A trace of dejection appeared in his eyes as he said:
"It's fine, Little San. What I'm about to say, all of you must remember well…"
"The seven members of the Tianshui Team are all cultivation geniuses without exception. Among them, the one named Shen Liuyu has the most astonishing cultivation speed. Even back then, her cultivation had probably already reached the Soul King level…"
"And now two years have passed. It's even possible she is approaching Soul Emperor…"
"The true brain of the Tianshui Team is a genius ice-attribute spirit master whose martial soul is the Ice Phoenix. The other members are all geniuses who are no less outstanding than you, or even more so. But as for their exact strength now, no one can know the answer…"
Everyone was stunned, then their gazes turned toward Ma Hongjun.
Yu Xiaogang showed no sign of stopping and continued:
"Moreover, judging from the two most outstanding among them, starting from their second soul ring, they already had thousand-year soul rings. Their fourth soul ring will most likely be a ten-thousand-year ring without any surprise. In the entire continent, only Tianshui Academy has this capability…"
After listening, everyone looked at each other. After a long silence, Ning Rongrong, who was sitting to the side, suddenly spoke:
"I know that Shen Liuyu. She is the biological younger sister of the Cold Heaven Douluo and also the greatest genius in the history of Tianshui Academy. My father once said that two years ago, almost all news about this Cold Heaven Douluo and the people around him had been sealed off for unknown reasons. Even when I asked a few more questions, my father would scold me. In the end, he only told me never to provoke any genius from Tianshui Academy, no matter what—even if I myself suffer grievances…"
"Cold Heaven Douluo?"
Everyone made sounds of confusion, clearly completely unfamiliar with the name.
Ning Rongrong was not surprised at all and continued:
"After that speech incident back then, Emperor Feather Douluo gradually appeared on the continent's surface. But the Spirit Hall, the two great empires, and many other powers somehow managed to seal off ninety-nine percent of the information about this person, not just from back then, but even from earlier times. Now, even if many people know, because of the threats and pressure from so many powers, they don't dare speak openly… I only know that this person is suspected to… possess more than one hundred-thousand-year soul ring… and may have even touched upon existences above hundred-thousand-year spirit beasts, that is, the so-called ferocious beasts…"
Everyone's brows furrowed tightly. Although they usually didn't have much contact with such matters, they had still heard a little about something of this magnitude.
Just as everyone was deep in thought, Yu Xiaogang interrupted their thoughts:
"Alright, many things you will slowly understand as you grow up. When you fight against Tianshui Academy, you will also come to recognize how large the gap is between you and true geniuses…"
Hearing this, the Shrek members looked at each other. All of them saw blazing fighting spirit in each other's eyes. Tang San helped Yu Xiaogang sit down and said:
"Teacher, rest assured. Even if we cannot defeat the Tianshui Team, we will at least make the academy's name known…"
A trace of confidence flashed through Tang San's eyes, but he did not notice the thick bitterness and resentment that flashed through his respected teacher Yu Xiaogang's eyes, replaced instead by endless confusion…
…
The next day, inside the Great Soul Arena.
The seven people on the stage had already neatly and swiftly dealt with the seventh batch of overconfident spirit master teams who came to challenge them today. At this moment, they were gathered laughing and chatting on a high platform in the preparation area.
Beside them, several maids dressed in attendant uniforms respectfully served various desserts and drinks. Even soft sofas had been moved onto the viewing platform for them to rest on.
Qiu Ruoshui pinched Shen Liuyu's cheek and said somewhat emotionally:
"Liuyu's skin is still so good. Even after being exposed to wind and sun for so long, the texture is still unbelievably perfect…"
Shen Liuyu swatted away Qiu Ruoshui's naughty hand and said with a smile:
"Our Ah Shui is the one who is truly tender and watery. Everyone agrees, right…"
The people beside them seemed to recall something, and all burst into laughter. Only Qiu Ruoshui's pretty face turned slightly red as she simply buried her head in Xue Wu's embrace beside her…
And the Shrek group, led by the maid, saw exactly this relaxed and cheerful scene, and couldn't help but feel somewhat surprised.
It wasn't until the maid beside them gathered her courage and quietly reminded them that they noticed the group on the opposite side watching them.
Shen Hanyu and the Snow Empress were hidden in a separate space on one side, waiting to watch the show.
Shui Bing'er sized up the Shrek group, then turned her head and said somewhat boredly:
"Looks like another group trying their luck. One Soul Elder, six Great Soul Masters… but they are quite young. Which of you will come?"
Shen Liuyu flexed her wrists, directly pulled Shui Bing'er over, and said with a playful smile:
"Don't ah, Bing'er. Let's warm up a little, just consider it post-meal exercise…"
Shui Bing'er helplessly glanced at Shen Liuyu, then helplessly nodded.
…
On the other side, the Shrek group was also sizing up the Tianshui Team members on the high platform.
Ma Hongjun tugged on Dai Mubai's arm and showed a lewd expression:
"Boss Dai, so many beautiful girls, how about it, tempted yet?"
But Dai Mubai was unusually serious this time. He glanced at Ma Hongjun, then patted his shoulder and said:
"Fatty, this time it's not a joke. Don't just look at how pretty they are. I can sense that they all carry killing intent with them. That means they have likely experienced killing quite a few times. If you underestimate them now, you will pay the price…"
Ma Hongjun restrained his expression. Only then did he notice that two members of the Tianshui Team had already gracefully stepped onto the stage and were now looking at them with faint smiles, clearly waiting for them to prepare.
Tang San's expression became slightly grave. He turned back and said:
"I can't see through the cultivation of those two at all, but they are definitely far above us. Even though the opponent only sent two people, we cannot be careless. We must go all out. We cannot close the gap in soul power and soul skills, so we can only rely on coordination to win…"
"Do you still remember the tactics I told everyone this morning? This isn't our first team battle, but the dean and the others also said that arranging first place is secondary. Just do your best. If there is any danger to your life, immediately surrender or jump off the spirit fighting stage."
"Although doing this is somewhat humiliating, when facing opponents of this level, we have no other choice…"
Everyone nodded firmly. Dai Mubai slowly extended one hand, and the others placed their hands on top of one another…
"Shrek must win!"
…
On the other side of the spirit fighting stage, Shen Liuyu looked at the Shrek group and slightly furrowed her brows before saying:
"Bing'er, do you feel that the little girl with the scorpion braid has a somewhat strange aura…"
A blue light flashed through Shui Bing'er's eyes. She shook her head slightly and said:
"Can't see through her. It's like there is an invisible barrier around her. Even with my soul bone, I can't penetrate it."
Shen Liuyu frowned slightly, then slowly relaxed and said:
"Let's not worry about that for now. Later, remember to remind me to control my strength. Otherwise, I'm afraid I might accidentally injure them badly…"
Shui Bing'er nodded lightly, then slowly moved to stand behind Shen Liuyu's side…
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