"Old Li! Old Li!" Elder Song rushed forward at top speed, catching Elder Li as he fell to the ground.
Seeing Elder Li's lifeless, pale body with no heartbeat, Song's eyes filled with bloodshot veins. Trembling, he was overcome with grief.
He let the unconscious Tang Wulin fall to the ground, his attention entirely on Elder Li. He had no thought for Tang Wulin at all.
Yun Ming hurriedly retracted his martial soul and went to Elder Song's side. Staring at Elder Li's lifeless body, he was at a loss, guilt flooding his heart.
"Elder Li… I'm sorry…" Yun Ming, usually composed, was tongue-tied, unsure of what to say.
"He's already dead. What use are your apologies now?" Song glared at Yun Ming, almost shouting.
Yun Ming's body shook, powerless to reply. Weakly, he said, "I know it's useless, but I must apologize for my unintentional action. I failed Elder Li."
"Unintentional? Do you think a simple 'unintentional' can cover this up?" Song's anger flared.
"I don't mean to cover it up," Yun Ming explained. "I just want to sincerely apologize to Elder Li. My attack was meant for those four, not Elder Li. I didn't expect they'd have such a strange spatial technique to redirect it, which led to Elder Li's accidental death."
"This truly was unintentional. Elder Li is my senior and a veteran of the Sea God Pavilion — do you really think I would ever deliberately harm him?" Yun Ming said earnestly.
Song stared coldly at Yun Ming, suppressing his anger, forcing himself to remain calm. It was the Sky-Piercing Spear that killed Elder Li. Blaming Yun Ming entirely would be unreasonable.
But the truth was, Yun Ming's attack had been exploited. The real culprits were those four intruders.
Song exhaled deeply, holding Elder Li's body, his gaze turning toward the dissipating energies in the distance, eyes burning with boundless hatred.
"Elder Li's death is on you. I will report this matter in full to the other Sea God Pavilion elders and let them decide your punishment."
"I have no objection," Yun Ming said immediately. He did not shy away from responsibility. Since he bore part of it, he would accept the consequences.
Although he was the Pavilion Master, the Sea God Pavilion was not his personal fief. Mistakes carried punishment. If grave enough, the other members could even collectively remove him as Pavilion Master.
"As for those four…" Song's energy surged violently, revealing his emotional turbulence. "I want them dead!"
Yun Ming's expression darkened. His aura made the air oppressive, thick with tension.
"We go to Mingdu!" Yun Ming said, his voice grim. His anger and hatred matched Song's, with thoughts of annihilating the Dragon Phoenix Hall.
…
At Dragon Phoenix Hall, Yun Ze, Gu Yue Na, Di Tian, and Bear Lord appeared in the tenth-floor studio. The moment they arrived, Gu Yue Na and the others looked toward Yun Ze.
"How did you do that just now?" Gu Yue Na asked, curiosity getting the better of her.
Yun Ze calmly walked to the water cooler, poured himself a cup, drank two sips, and set it down. He joined his thumb and forefinger into a circle with his right hand, threading his left index finger through it as he explained:
"I used a formation to create a special channel. The entrance and exit appear to be in different spatial locations, but they're actually connected — like this circle. Attacks go in one side and emerge from the other."
"The energy or object passes through unchanged. What goes in comes out as it is. Only the effectiveness may be slightly reduced because the constructed pocket space is not perfectly aligned with actual space."
"Like just now, Yun Ming's Sky-Piercing Spear appeared a moment later — that delay is due to the difference between the pocket space and real space."
"I see…" Gu Yue Na nodded, half understanding. The principle wasn't complicated, but the practical execution was another matter.
Di Tian looked amazed, deep in thought. If he could grasp this technique fully, it might even become a divine skill.
"If the attack were strong enough, could it destroy the spatial channel?" Gu Yue Na asked.
Yun Ze nodded. "If the force is sufficient, nothing is indestructible. My channel has a limit for energy absorption and transfer — Yun Ming's attack simply didn't reach that threshold."
"It's unlikely he ever will. This formation is the strongest I can currently set, both offensive and defensive. It should be enough to transfer a single divine-level attack, and Yun Ming does not yet possess divine-level power, so there's no risk of the channel being destroyed."
He paused, pointing at Di Tian. "Half of this formation's strength comes from him. His infusion of spatial energy was the core. Without it, the formation wouldn't have reached this level."
Gu Yue Na and Bear Lord glanced at Di Tian, slightly embarrassed. Di Tian shrugged, saying,
"I didn't do much — just infused a bit of energy. The real credit goes to the Young Master's incredible formation."
Yun Ze shook his head. "No need to flatter me. Saying half the credit goes to you is not a joke." He then changed the subject.
"Next, I'll explain how to deal with the trouble that's coming."
Gu Yue Na and Di Tian immediately understood. Their expressions grew serious. Bear Lord, slower to react, still looked puzzled.
"Shrek Academy has lost a Title Douluo. They won't let it go. They'll come seeking retribution.
"But facing their anger, we don't confront them directly. We simply deny involvement.
"The abduction of Tang Wulin and extraction of his bloodline? We never did that. From morning until now, we never left Dragon Phoenix Hall. Remember that.
"No matter what they claim, we must insist the events have nothing to do with us. If they insist, it's slander — retaliation by Shrek Academy for losing previous competitions."
Gu Yue Na, Di Tian, and Bear Lord were surprised. They had expected a direct, forceful countermeasure, not this strategy of denial.