On an open space within the Inner Court of the Counterfeit Shrek Academy.
The leading youth, along with the other six students, stumbled through the gates of the Inner Court while supporting the unconscious Dai Yueheng.
Dai Yueheng's appearance was quite miserable; his face was covered in bruises, dried blood hung from the corner of his mouth, and his school uniform was in tatters. He was slumped over his companion's shoulder like a puddle of mud, completely unconscious.
The other six were also injured, appearing to be in a wretched state.
"What is going on?!"
A shocked voice came from deep within the corridor.
Yan Shaozhe strode over quickly. His eyes swept over Dai Yueheng, and his pupils suddenly constricted.
Dai Yueheng, a Level 64 Spirit Emperor, the eldest son of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion, and one of the Shrek Seven Devils, had actually been beaten into such a state?!
"How did Yueheng get so badly injured?!"
Yan Shaozhe's voice carried a hint of disbelief as his gaze swept over the other six, his brow furrowing deeply.
"You... how are you all injured as well?"
He took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in his heart, and asked in a low voice.
"Could it be that the roving Evil Soul Master's strength has already reached such a level? A Five-Ring Soul King could beat you all like this?"
Yan Shaozhe's eyes were full of disbelief. One must know that these were the academy's elites; could a single Soul King on the other side be this strong?
Wouldn't that make it seem like the Spirit Masters they trained were highly overrated?
Hearing this, the leading youth gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
"Dean Yan, we... didn't encounter an Evil Soul Master at all."
Yan Shaozhe was stunned.
"You didn't encounter one? Then you all are..."
"We encountered another group of people."
The youth gritted his teeth, his voice carrying a hint of humiliation and anger.
"People from another Shrek Academy."
Yan Shaozhe's pupils shrank suddenly, and he froze on the spot.
Another... Shrek Academy?
In an instant, the image of that massive island floating thousands of meters in the sky surfaced in his mind, along with the monsters on that island and the one who had easily defeated him, Zhuo Shi who fought Yan Shaozhe.
"You... encountered people from that Sky Shrek Academy?"
Yan Shaozhe's voice was somewhat dry.
The youth nodded and recounted the entire sequence of events in detail.
From their encounter with Luo Chen, Tang Wulin, and the others in the wilderness, to Dai Yueheng being controlled by a youth named Yuhao using illusions, madly attacking his own people, and finally being sent flying by a punch and knocked unconscious...
He told everything without missing a single word.
"Luo Chen... joined them?"
Yan Shaozhe's brow furrowed even deeper.
"Yes."
The youth gave a bitter smile.
"She said it herself; she won't come back with us. Moreover... she was wearing the uniform of that academy, so she has clearly defected."
Yan Shaozhe fell silent. He couldn't tell if Luo Chen had truly defected or if it was a ruse, because her mission was to go undercover at that Sky Shrek Academy and obtain the technology for spirit ring upgrading. From the current perspective, Luo Chen had undoubtedly succeeded in entering that Shrek Academy.
But... if Luo Chen still had Shrek Academy in her heart, why hadn't there been any contact for so long? Was the surveillance too strict, or something else?
Yan Shaozhe knew how inhuman that Sky Shrek Academy could be, having made him, Qian Duoduo, and Xuan Zi suffer greatly.
A deep sense of powerlessness welled up in Yan Shaozhe's heart.
The teachers couldn't compare, and neither could the students.
Was their Shrek Academy, which had existed for over ten thousand years, really going to be surpassed by that "pirated" version?
"Hmph!"
An aged, angry voice suddenly came from the other end of the corridor.
Everyone looked towards the sound and saw Xuan Zi striding over with a grim expression.
His gaze fell upon the unconscious Dai Yueheng and then swept over the six injured students, his eyes full of rage.
"That fellow Luo Chen has indeed betrayed us!"
Xuan Zi gritted his teeth, his voice carrying a hint of gnashing hatred.
"I said it before, she already betrayed Shrek Academy, and traitors cannot be trusted! The decision to re-select the Shrek Seven Devils was correct! This position should never have been left for such an ungrateful wolf!"
He paused, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.
"However... since Luo Chen has already joined that academy, she must know a lot of inside information about it and have come into contact with those technologies."
"Find a way to get her back, no matter the means, and make her hand over those technologies! We will study them as well and master that technology ourselves!"
Yan Shaozhe's brow furrowed even deeper. One should know that Xuan Zi was one of the people involved and knew Luo Chen was an undercover agent, yet his current behavior made it seem like he was completely unaware.
But it was also normal; having received no reply for so long, perhaps Xuan Zi had already become disappointed.
"Elder Xuan, Luo Chen is now a member of that academy, and she has teachers and classmates from that academy by her side..."
"So what?!"
Xuan Zi interrupted him, his face full of disdain.
"Could the people from that academy possibly reach their hands all the way here? Our Shrek Academy has stood tall on the continent for ten thousand years; what kind of storms have we not weathered?"
Before he could finish speaking...
Buzz— Buzz—
The soul tool communicators worn at the waists of Xuan Zi and Yan Shaozhe vibrated simultaneously.
The two glanced at each other, picked up their respective communicators, and opened the message.
It was from Bei Bei; the message was very brief.
"Elder Xuan, Dean Yan, people from that Sky Shrek Academy are about to arrive at Shrek City! The one coming is a Limit Douluo with terrifying strength! Please, whatever you do, do not provoke them; try to resolve this peacefully! Remember this! Remember this!"
Bei Bei sent the message, directly reporting Zang Xin's strength, hoping that Yan Shaozhe and Xuan Zi would be able to stay calm when they saw it.
As Xuan Zi looked at this message, the expression on his face instantly became quite colorful.
First he was stunned, then came disbelief, and finally, absolute fury.
"Bullshit!"
Xuan Zi slammed the communicator onto the ground, fragments flying everywhere.
"That kid Bei Bei is simply boosting others' morale while undermining our own!"
"Being so cowardly, how does he have even a hint of Elder Mu's style from back then?! If Elder Mu were still awake and saw his great-grandson acting like this, he would probably be infuriated to death!"
Yan Shaozhe looked at the line of text on his communicator, a strong sense of unease welling up in his heart.
After being ransomed from that Sky Shrek Academy, Mu En had once told him that although Bei Bei was young, he was always steady in his actions and advised him to follow Bei Bei's lead as much as possible.
Moreover, the other side had a Limit Douluo. Currently, in the entire Shrek Academy, only Mu En was a Limit Douluo, and he was currently unconscious. The strongest combat power was Xuan Zi, but... could Xuan Zi handle it?
"Elder Xuan..."
Yan Shaozhe opened his mouth, wanting to say something.
"Shut up!"
Xuan Zi sharply interrupted him.
At that moment, a voice rang out through the entire Shrek Academy. The voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears.
"Everyone of the Counterfeit Shrek Academy, I am Zang Xin of Shrek Academy. I have come today to seek justice."
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.