The golden-haired girl appeared about a year younger than Lu Jingming, but neither her exquisite, doll-like face nor her already well-developed, curvaceous figure allowed anyone to simply view her as an ordinary little girl. She exuded confidence and stubbornness, as if nothing in the world could stop her pursuit of power.
"Sister Guyi, you can't even beat Sister Gu Yue, how could you be older brother Jingming's opponent?" Beside them, the twin sisters Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo had grown into graceful young women, like flowers blooming in spring, radiating youthful vitality.
They were quite popular at St. Freya Academy, with cheerful personalities that allowed them to get along with anyone. In a short time, they had become good friends with the newly enrolled Ye Guyi. At this moment, their faces were filled with anxiety, earnestly trying to persuade Ye Guyi, not wanting her to suffer a setback against Lu Jingming.
"I know, but that's no reason for me to give up challenging him." Ye Guyi's eyes showed a stubborn glint. She was naturally competitive, with an innate refusal to admit defeat. She had always been bothered by only being rated as an A-rank student.
However, after losing to Gu Yue and the others, she began to reflect, realizing that her cultivation was still far from enough. In her view, challenging strong individuals was like climbing a peak; each challenge was a form of cultivation, an opportunity to break through herself.
And in St. Freya Academy, besides the powerful teachers, only the S-rank students were stronger than her. Therefore, whenever she felt she had made new progress in her cultivation, she would eagerly come to challenge an S-rank student, verifying her improvements through actual combat and continuously motivating herself to become stronger.
"Alright, I accept your challenge. Log into the simulated universe. Don't cry if you lose!" Lu Jingming sighed helplessly, raising a hand to rub his brow.
This girl, Ye Guyi, was sent by Shangguan Weier, the leader of the Plain Alliance. The Plain Alliance and Hǎiyuān City had always maintained a covert connection. Of course, this wasn't considered betrayal of the Star Luo Empire. After all, even the Star Luo imperial family had ties with some factions in the Sun-Moon Empire; otherwise, where would they get those soul tools produced by Ming De Hall?
Normally, the soul tool metals needed for Black Pagoda's research, and the various soul tool materials required for Hǎiyuān City's construction, were mostly acquired through the Plain Alliance's smuggling channels. In return, the Plain Alliance obtained some soul tools crafted by Black Pagoda, and even the latest soul tool technical data, through Hǎiyuān City. This cooperation between the two sides had been going on for years, always with each taking what they needed and not interfering with each other, getting along quite harmoniously.
The Plain Alliance primarily developed its influence within the Sun-Moon Empire, while Hǎiyuān City was rooted in the Star Luo Empire; there were no conflicts of interest between the two. Moreover, the Plain Alliance also needed the help of the Wúcháng Division (Impervious Division) to deal with their old rival, the Audu Chamber of Commerce, and the recently emerged, rapidly rising Sunset Water Alliance.
The Plain Alliance's strength was not weak. Its leader, Shangguan Weier, was also a Titled Douluo, widely connected and well-established within the Sun-Moon Empire's noble circles. However, the Audu Chamber of Commerce had military backing, making its hard power stronger, and the Sunset Water Alliance's background was even more intimidating, not only inextricably linked to the imperial family but also supported by more mysterious and terrifying forces behind it.
Recently, Shangguan Weier had clearly sensed a crisis. The Plain Alliance's various industries were constantly being impacted, and even the highly profitable smuggling business was being coveted by others.
To protect itself and to contend with the other two underground forces, the Plain Alliance hired the Wúcháng Division as help. After much deliberation, Lu Jingming dispatched Ji Yingying to oversee the Plain Alliance. After all, they had cooperated for so many years; he couldn't just stand by and watch this old friend fall apart.
To further strengthen their relationship, Shangguan Weier selected several talented young girls from the Plain Alliance and sent them to St. Freya Academy for study. Ye Guyi was one of them.
According to Shangguan Weier, Ye Guyi was originally a wanderer who encountered trouble when drifting to the Sun-Moon Empire, and the Plain Alliance rescued her. To repay this kindness, Ye Guyi temporarily joined the Plain Alliance.
Although it was only temporary, Shangguan Weier genuinely liked this child and valued her greatly, simply because Ye Guyi possessed the legendary Holy Angel Martial Soul, which was the bane of Evil Soul Masters.
As the head of an underground force and backed by the Sun-Moon Empire's noble circle, Shangguan Weier had long sensed the undercurrents swirling in the Sun-Moon Empire, with terrifying forces hidden in the shadows.
The actions of the Holy Spirit Cult in Ming Capital might fool ordinary citizens, but for those who had struggled in the underworld for years, they were hard to conceal. However, because the Holy Spirit Cult had close ties with the imperial family, everyone could only turn a blind eye, allowing the Holy Spirit Cult to take root and grow stronger in Ming Capital.
Shangguan Weier knew in her heart that the newly emerged Sunset Water Alliance was highly likely linked to the Holy Spirit Cult. Ye Guyi, possessing the Holy Angel Martial Soul, was truly too dangerous to remain in Ming Capital. Initially, Shangguan Weier thought of hiding her, waiting until Ye Guyi gained enough strength to protect herself before letting her confront Evil Soul Masters. However, she underestimated the Holy Spirit Cult's power and overestimated the Plain Alliance's capabilities, thinking she could protect Ye Guyi.
But during a conflict with the Sunset Water Alliance, the Sunset Water Alliance suddenly dispatched several Titled Douluo-level Evil Soul Masters, catching the Plain Alliance off guard.
The Plain Alliance suffered heavy losses. In the end, it was Ji Yingying herself who personally intervened, severely wounding those Evil Soul Master Titled Douluo and helping the Plain Alliance overcome this crisis.
After this battle, Shangguan Weier felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head, sobering her completely. She deeply realized the power of the force behind the Sunset Water Alliance and no longer dared to harbor any illusions of safety. She decisively arranged for personnel to swiftly send Ye Guyi and several other exceptionally talented girls to Hǎiyuān City.
In the lands of the Sun-Moon Empire, the imperial family secretly colluded with Evil Soul Masters, creating a complex web of relationships. If Ye Guyi remained in Ming Capital, once the secret of her Holy Angel Martial Soul was exposed, she would undoubtedly die; no one in the entire Sun-Moon Empire would be able to protect her life. But once she left the Sun-Moon Empire, the situation would be entirely different.
Evil Soul Masters usually acted furtively, not daring to easily reveal their identities, fearing being targeted by the Shrek Investigation Group.
The members of the Shrek Investigation Group were all inner court disciples of Shrek Academy; they were young, hot-blooded, and fearlessly ruthless individuals. Both the existence of Evil Soul Masters, who were reviled by gods and men, and nobles who committed evil deeds in the world, were all within their targets for討伐 (punishment/extermination).
For many years, the number of Shrek inner court disciples had consistently been maintained at no more than two hundred. The reason behind this was precisely their frequent execution of highly dangerous investigative missions. In battles with Evil Soul Masters, countless inner court disciples died, their death toll simply incalculable.
Yet, even with their desperate efforts and great sacrifices, most of the Evil Soul Masters they eliminated were merely insignificant small fry. The truly powerful Evil Soul Masters mostly joined the Holy Spirit Cult, hiding in the darkness, waiting for an opportunity to stir up greater waves.
Lu Jingming also highly valued Ye Guyi. Her Holy Angel Martial Soul, to some extent, was no less inferior to those ultimate martial souls. Moreover, this martial soul had a unique feature: when Ye Guyi killed Evil Soul Masters, she could gain soul power feedback. Her cultivation speed was directly proportional to the number of Evil Soul Masters she killed.
The glory of the Angelic Clan had to be traced back ten thousand years ago, when the Angel God Qian Renxue shone brilliantly. However, she was ultimately defeated, and since then, the Angelic Clan seemed to have evaporated from the world, disappearing without a trace.
After all, the various liquidations they faced after their defeat were enough to severely cripple this once glorious family, making their survival difficult. Others might not be clear about the many secrets of that period of history, but Lu Jingming knew them intimately.
Ten thousand years ago, there was no such thing as Evil Soul Masters. The first Angel God successfully ascended to godhood by purifying the evil in the world and gathering the faith of all beings.
At that time, Spirit Hall, controlled by the Angelic Clan, also served to suppress all evil in the world. However, ten thousand years later, the power of Evil Soul Masters had become extraordinarily strong, arguably the largest force on the Douluo Continent. There were various complex reasons behind this.
First, the Slaughter City, which once served as a natural prison for Evil Soul Masters, was destroyed by Sea God Tang San.
Second, the Angelic Clan gradually declined, and the Angel Martial Soul, which once restrained Evil Soul Masters, disappeared. Evil Soul Masters naturally had fewer inhibitions, acting more recklessly.
Just as Evil Soul Masters often fought above their rank against ordinary Soul Masters, Soul Masters with the Angel Martial Soul also possessed the ability to fight above their rank against Evil Soul Masters. Crossing a major rank to kill an Evil Soul Master was not difficult for them.
Therefore, once Ye Guyi's existence was known to Evil Soul Masters, relentless pursuit until death would surely await her.
However, Lu Jingming was completely unconcerned by this. The Plain Alliance might not be able to protect Ye Guyi, but this didn't mean he was powerless. He had enough confidence and strength to protect Ye Guyi. Facing Shrek Academy, due to the presence of Sea God Tang San and Shrek Academy's consistently positive image, Lu Jingming didn't want to directly engage in frontal conflict.
Therefore, the last time he faced Gourmand Douluo Xuan Zi, he chose to let him off. But for the Holy Spirit Cult, he had no such considerations or worries. If the Holy Spirit Cult dared to come knocking, his response was one word: fight.
Because of this, he planned to arrange for Ye Guyi to go out and hunt Evil Soul Masters for training and cultivation, allowing her to grow as quickly as possible.
Although the Angel God's divine position was now shattered, it should be noted that the Angel God was once one of the thirty-two main gods of the God Realm. If Ye Guyi was lucky enough and worked hard enough, it was not impossible for her to re-condense the Angelic divine position and directly ascend to the rank of a First-Class God.