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Xu Jiawei had brought up the idea of developing soul tools more than once, but the pushback was just too strong. The nobles of the Star Luo Empire opposed it, the old soul master sects were against it, and even within his own Xingguan Sect, there were stubborn elders who resisted the idea.
You can imagine how frustrated Xu Jiawei felt. As a forward-thinking emperor, he'd even broken royal protocol in his youth to secretly attend Shrek Academy—definitely not something an ordinary crown prince would dare do.
He had a sharp eye and saw the potential of soul tools early on. He was determined to develop them to prepare for a future war that might break out. His younger sister, Xu Jiujui, under his influence, shared the same mindset.
But unfortunately, even after becoming Emperor of Star Luo, he couldn't sway the opinions of those powerful soul master clans. The soul tool development plan kept getting delayed again and again.
Xu Jiujui looked helpless too. She was only twelve this year, and although she was the empire's only princess, if her royal brother couldn't push things forward, there wasn't much she could do either.
I'm so tired! Sigh... Guess we'll just take it one step at a time. Hopefully the Sun Moon Empire gives us more breathing room."
Xu Jiawei narrowed his eyes slightly and said seriously, "With the current strength of the Sun Moon Empire, they're still no match for the combined forces of the original three Douluo nations. At least not within the next ten years—they won't dare make a move."
As for why they didn't just wipe out the Sun Moon Empire now with the help of the Heaven Soul and Dou Ling Empires—well, that was just unrealistic. Trying to take down the Sun Moon Empire would leave them battered too. If it were really that easy, then when the Sun Moon Empire was defeated thousands of years ago, it wouldn't have ended with just territory losses and reparations.
Besides, the three Douluo kingdoms weren't exactly best friends either. Their alliance was more of a temporary arrangement, held together only by the looming threat of the Sun Moon Empire.
Let's not forget, the Heaven Soul Empire and the Dou Ling Empire used to be one—both part of the old Heaven Dou Empire. They split due to internal issues, and their current relationship was... complicated.
The Star Luo Empire and the old Heaven Dou Empire were enemies too. So it made sense for them to team up to defend against the Sun Moon Empire, but expecting them to take the initiative and attack together? That was just wishful thinking.
Ironically, it was the existence of an external enemy like the Sun Moon Empire that had kept the continent at peace for a thousand years.
Back then, when the three empires managed to defeat the Sun Moon Empire, they had Shrek Academy to thank.
And if anyone tried to eliminate the Sun Moon Empire now, Shrek Academy wouldn't approve—because that would destroy the balance.
Likewise, Shrek wouldn't allow the Sun Moon Empire to wipe out the three empires either.
Only by maintaining this delicate standoff could Shrek Academy keep growing while claiming neutrality.
A lot of people understood this reality. Otherwise, why would the three empires be so cautious about Shrek Academy, even forbidding their royal heirs from attending Shrek for advanced studies?
After all, it was the top academy on the continent, with excellent education.
But still—they were afraid.
Not just the Star Luo Empire. Even the Heaven Soul and Dou Ling Empires had taken precautions. Shrek Academy had even called an emergency Sea God's Pavilion meeting.
With the recent change in leadership in the Sun Moon Empire, all eyes across the continent turned toward the borders between Sun Moon and Star Luo, Heaven Soul.
If anything went down at the borders, they'd know immediately.
Thankfully, things stayed quiet. The Sun Moon Empire didn't make any moves, didn't deploy troops to the border, and all the soul engineer corps stayed in place, business as usual.
The tense atmosphere across the continent gradually faded, and everything went back to normal.
Mingdu Elementary Soul Engineer Academy
On the battle platform, a figure moved like a comet—swift as the wind. His right hand was covered by a sleek, silver-white mecha arm, engulfed in red flames. His punches came down like a violent storm, slamming toward the silver-haired girl across from him.
Gu Yuena raised her Silver Dragon Spear to block his crushing blows, using her water-element control to summon streams of water that doused the flames.
But the sheer force of his punches still whipped across her face, making her silver hair flutter in the wind.
Biting her red lips in frustration, Gu Yuena fired a flurry of water arrows, forcing the boy—Meteor—back.
She was slightly out of breath as she stared at him. Despite only partially activating his martial soul, his strength was overwhelming. Her fingers, still gripping the spear tightly, had gone pale from how hard she was holding on.
"When the hell did you get your second soul ring?!"
Seeing the two purple soul rings around Meteor, Gu Yuena was furious. Up until now, she'd always relied on her superior battle experience to suppress him. She'd easily crushed Ye Guyi and Xu Tianzhen too—only ever losing to Liu Ying. But she never expected to get sneak-attacked by Meteor today.
It had never occurred to her that a kid like Meteor, barely seven and a half years old, had already hit level 20 and even gotten his second soul ring. Ye Guyi and Xu Tianzhen, who were also born with full innate soul power, were still stuck at levels 19 and 18.
They still needed at least a few more months to break through to level 20. Ye Guyi might get there sooner. And her? Gu Yuena was also technically at level 19... But these two sneaky guys—Meteor and Liu Ying—had clearly been grinding in secret, got their second soul rings, and now came back just to challenge her.
Before, even though Meteor had impressive physical strength and firepower that even she didn't dare tank head-on, his lack of combat experience made him easy to suppress.
But now? With a second soul ring, his fire control and power had jumped significantly. His body was also stronger than before. She got caught off guard from the moment the fight started and had been on the back foot ever since. It was humiliating.
Meteor didn't press his advantage. He stopped and chuckled, "Not that long ago—about a week or so."
Gu Yuena ground her teeth. A week? Seriously? So he'd been hiding it from her for a whole week—just to catch her off guard?
The more she thought about it, the more ticked off she got. No way was the Silver Dragon Princess gonna let this slide.
With a loud thump, Gu Yuena slammed her Silver Dragon Spear into the ground. In the next instant, her yellow soul ring lit up brightly. A low roar of flowing water echoed through the air.
With a powerful surge of soul power, a lifelike water dragon spiraled around her. Nearly ten meters long, it radiated a crushing dragon aura—anyone who didn't know better would think a Soul Elder had just activated a soul skill.
But Ye Guyi, Xu Tianzhen, Nana, and Liu Ying—who were watching—knew the truth. Gu Yuena only had one soul ring. She was just barely on the verge of hitting two.
Meteor felt the overwhelming pressure of the dragon aura and his expression changed. His face grew serious. "You've got that much soul power left? Wait, are you the one with two rings or am I?"
He didn't dare hold back. Flames flared all over his body as he fully activated his martial soul: Molten Knight.
Gu Yuena's purple eyes sparkled. No matter how many times she saw it, she still thought Meteor's and Liu Ying's martial soul forms looked insanely cool. That sleek silver armor... even she had to admit it made her heart skip a beat.
"....."