The Snow Empress appeared, ethereal and peerless, as if standing apart from the world.
In her hands, the power of Ultimate Ice was unleashed to its fullest. As her domain expanded, layered walls of ice formed from that ultimate cold rose one after another before Little Gold.
Though the ice walls shattered layer by layer, they still blocked nearly half of the encroaching dark energy.
"Roar!!!"
Little Gold bellowed. Its claws, impatient and fierce, tore open the final ice wall first, and it met the invading darkness with its flesh alone. That corruptive force, as if it could rot all things under heaven, met the superlatively tough hide of the Behemoth—and could do nothing…
"What… what kind of monster is this?!"
Wu Yun's face went pale.
And it wasn't just these two soul beasts.
There was also a white ape and an Ice Jade Scorpion, both at the ten-thousand-year level. Working together, they made even him feel his scalp prickle.
A hair's breadth from disaster.
"Splurt~"
Under the blood-exploding state, the Behemoth's claw struck again. Wu Yun's expression twisted with sudden terror. He had no way to dodge…
Blood poured uncontrollably from his mouth.
His entire body was hammered, every bone shattered, his frame going limp like pulp.
Little Gold grinned ferociously.
It could withstand countless moves from Wu Yun—but could the other side withstand a single claw from it?
The answer was obvious.
"Honored Worship!"
A strongman of the Holy Spirit Cult cried out.
But Wu Yun's consciousness had already collapsed. Agonizing pain spread through his body. Only a final strand of awareness remained in his mind, his bloodshot eyes staring ahead…
That youth still stood quietly with hands behind his back.
Around him clustered many massive soul beasts. Their bodies were out of all proportion to his. The youth among them seemed almost insignificant, and yet several overwhelmingly powerful soul beasts protected him at the center, treating him as their sovereign.
"Guh…" (Monster…)
He tried to speak, but the blood surging up his throat flooded back in, leaving him to emit helpless, rasping gasps.
Then a wave of extreme cold spread through his body. His consciousness dimmed.
In the final second, his gaze fixed on the youth's expression—everything-in-hand, tranquil and at ease.
Perhaps the Holy Spirit Cult had come out too early.
Perhaps he should never have provoked the youth back then.
Perhaps…
…
"The younger generation of Shrek Academy isn't bad, but the older generation… not so much."
Zhongli Wu cast a contemptuous glance at Xuan Zi and spoke faintly.
The outcome of their exchange had already been decided.
Xuan Zi was utterly crushed.
Zhongli Wu hadn't even used all his trump cards and had still handled Xuan Zi with ease. Even though a Worship had died, Zhongli Wu's mood was still good—because today, Xuan Zi was not yet his true opponent. Even if Mu En wanted to play dead, he would have to come out. When he did, Zhongli Wu would severely wound him. As for Su Wen…
He would have to deal with him personally.
"So strong…"
Xuan Zi's brows knit tight, his face grave.
He was a level-98 Super Douluo, and he had dwelled at this realm not just a day or two, even probing toward Limit Douluo. Even facing the Body Sect's Unrivaled Dragon Serpent's Du Bushi, while he might not win, the gap wasn't vast…
Yet this man, clearly not a Limit, was completely overwhelming him.
So this is the might of an evil soul master?
(In the original, when Mu En was ambushed, he himself said evil soul masters were tremendously powerful—ten times stronger when blackened. Mu En led the Elders against them; four Titled Douluo and seven Soul Douluo were enough to leave Mu En in that state. This implies that even above Super Douluo, evil soul masters still outstrip ordinary soul masters by more than a small margin. Later, for balance, it was stated that above Super Douluo the difference wasn't large.)
"Still not calling Mu En out?"
Zhongli Wu sneered.
"You…"
But the next instant, he stared in shock toward Shrek Academy.
From the Sea God Pavilion, a golden pillar of light shot into the heavens, lighting up the sky. Clouds churned above, and within that pillar there seemed to be the faint roar of a dragon.
Everyone present was at least a Soul Douluo, and they could clearly sense the terror of this power.
As if something dreadful was awakening.
"No!"
A chill like an awl shot up from Zhongli Wu's soles to his skull; he snapped fully awake. "This isn't the aura of a near-death Limit Douluo. This is—this is a full-power Limit Douluo!!!"
"Damn you, Jing Hongchen!"
"Just wait till I get back—I'll kill you!"
Zhongli Wu's voice trembled.
This aura was no weaker than Uncle Long's and his mother's—perhaps even stronger!
The light pillar slowly faded, revealing a man around forty. Golden-haired, with a smile that carried more dominance and decisiveness than the Mu En of yesteryear, and less of the soft benevolence.
In his features, one could faintly see the shadow of that white-haired elder, withered like a leaf about to fall.
But all in all, he was still Mu En.
The Mu En who had shouldered Shrek Academy's hard century of struggle.
And now the Mu En whose strength had returned to its peak, even surpassed it, one step closer to the divine—Mu En.
"Ang!"
Behind the golden-haired Mu En, a colossal Bright Holy Dragon appeared in crushing, sovereign majesty.
This Bright Holy Dragon, dormant for nearly a century, reentered the world's gaze.
"You've worked hard, Xuan Zi."
Mu En flickered and appeared at Xuan Zi's side.
"Elder Mu!!!"
Xuan Zi's eyes reddened. Tears ran down his cheeks, staining his collar. The instant he saw Mu En up close, memories surged like a tide. The Elder Mu of the past—the high-spirited Uncle Master—had been waylaid by that incident, and it had been the lifelong regret of every Elder and of the entire Academy.
He's back!
Everything is back!
That high-spirited, peerless Elder Mu has finally returned!
He had so much bitterness and so many tears he wanted to pour out.
No matter how strong he was now, back then he was just the tagalong behind Elder Mu. Reckless, but gifted; "Just be a good muscleman for your Uncle Master," the teacher had said. But later everything changed. After Elder Mu was gravely wounded, all burdens fell on Xuan Zi's shoulders—burdens he could never truly bear!
So he messed up many things.
Now, the one who could shield Shrek from wind and rain had returned…
"Enough—wipe your tears. You're a grown man. What sort of example is this…"
Mu En smiled.
He looked around.
His gaze fell on Su Wen, then the Elders, and he nodded slightly.
"From here on, leave it to me."
"I hear you were looking for me?"
Mu En tilted his head toward the trembling Zhongli Wu not far away, his voice calm and flat.
"I…"
Zhongli Wu's voice shook.
"Actually, I can explain. My mother is Ye—ah!!!"
A wretched howl tore through the sky.
The scene was brutally bloody.
Expressionless, Mu En began a slaughter.
Of the dozens of black-robed figures who came—ten Titled Douluo—only Zhongli Wu, dismembered of his limbs and barely clinging to life, and the Scorpion-Tiger Douluo, Zhang Peng, remained.
"Take him back."
Hands clasped behind his back, Mu En cast a cool golden gaze at Zhang Peng, whose body had gone rigid and throat bobbed spasmodically.
"Although you joined the Holy Spirit Cult, for the sake of your not having come out to harm others these years, I spare you."
"…"
Zhang Peng had long since been scared witless.
"Hm?"
Mu En raised a brow at him. "What, do you have an objection?"
"N-no!" Zhang Peng was on the verge of tears. He bowed respectfully, then fled like a streak of black light, carrying the cult master away.
…
"You've all worked hard."
Sea God Pavilion.
Mu En sat at the head—not in a wheelchair, but tall and straight, a golden-haired, golden-eyed middle-aged man. He looked around, voice gentle.
"Not hard at all…" Song Yunzhi's eyes were red.
Her voice choked.
Who besides Xuan Zi was moved? Every Elder of the Sea God Pavilion was from Mu En's era. How could they forget his high-spirited figure?
Compared to the Mu En of the past, he now carried a new air—tempered and cleansed of ornament.
"This time, I owe my recovery entirely to Xiao Wen."
Mu En's gentle gaze fell on Su Wen.
The Elders paused.
They all turned to look at Su Wen.
He was the one who disagreed with the Inner Court model of Shrek Academy, yet he had worked tirelessly to help Shrek.
"Merely my duty."
Su Wen said calmly.
"…"
The Elders looked a bit embarrassed—after all, they had argued with Su Wen just two days ago.