In the months that followed, under the leadership of Elder Song and Cai Meier, the six members of Shrek Academy's official team launched several strikes, wiping out multiple evil soul master teams. As they fought together, they gradually became more familiar with each other, and their teamwork grew increasingly seamless.
Watching her teammates grow more united with each battle, Ma Xiaotao—who had been ordered to rest and recover in the inner courtyard—finally lost her patience. Ignoring Yan Shaozhe's repeated advice, she forcibly returned to the team. Her return made the Shrek team complete once more and significantly boosted their overall combat power. However, it also placed a great deal more pressure on Zhu Ziyang.
Because each time Ma Xiaotao activated her martial soul, the evil fire within her would flare up uncontrollably, accumulating at an alarming rate. As long as her battle lasted longer than half an hour, she would inevitably slip into an unstable state. At that point, Zhu Ziyang had to do everything in his power to help her suppress the fire. In those moments, Ma Xiaotao was always mentally lost, acting purely on instinct, which often led to situations that left Zhu Ziyang utterly flustered—constantly teetering on the edge of something inappropriate. And when she finally regained her senses, she would unknowingly display her charm again, leaving Zhu Ziyang perpetually on edge.
At the same time, Jiang Nannan gradually began to feel dissatisfied with Ma Xiaotao. After all, she wasn't stupid or blind—she could clearly see that Ma Xiaotao was trying to seduce her Brother Ziyang.
Zhu Ziyang had no idea how to deal with it all. Perhaps the only good news was that his mastery of Ultimate Ice had nearly caught up to his control over Ultimate Light. After all, Ma Xiaotao's evil fire wasn't far from an Ultimate Fire—every suppression session was a tempering trial for his Ultimate Ice. And after so many repetitions, his long-neglected Ultimate Ice had finally reached its current level of proficiency.
A blessing in disguise, perhaps.
——
Time passed quickly, and another scorching summer arrived.
In the heart of Shrek Academy, a golden beam of light suddenly shot out from the Sea God Pavilion, streaking straight toward the Star Dou Forest. This startling sight was noticed by several elder teachers, whose expressions turned to surprise. They were all too familiar with the owner of that golden light.
Dragon God Douluo, Mu En!
They couldn't help but wonder what could have happened to warrant Mu En's personal intervention. Was it another crisis like the one two years ago? But no—there hadn't been any major soul hunting operations recently.
So what was the reason?
The answer was simple. His disciple, Zhu Ziyang, had once again broken one of Shrek Academy's records.
Fourteen years old. Soul King!
That's right—Zhu Ziyang's soul power had reached Rank 50. Just like two years ago, he broke through within one or two months after his birthday. Mu En was deeply gratified. When he heard the news, he even laughed out loud—something that rarely happened. A fourteen-year-old Soul King had indeed appeared in history, and Mu En knew of one example: a member of the Sun Moon Empire's royal family. But that royal achieved the breakthrough through the use of countless heavenly treasures and soul-enhancing pills.
Zhu Ziyang, on the other hand, had reached Soul King entirely through his own talent and cultivation.
That made all the difference.
If Mu En had previously been hesitant about naming Zhu Ziyang as his successor, that hesitation vanished completely today. With Zhu Ziyang's current pace, Mu En might even live to see him reach Soul Sage.
So, upon learning of the breakthrough, Mu En didn't hesitate at all. He immediately took Zhu Ziyang to the Star Dou Forest to seek out his fifth soul ring. For a soul master, the fifth ring was almost as critical as the seventh and ninth. Mu En wouldn't entrust it to anyone else.
"Ziyang, have you decided what kind of soul beast you want for your fifth ring?" The two of them landed near the core region of the Star Dou Forest. Mu En smiled kindly, his aged voice full of warmth.
"Yes." Zhu Ziyang nodded and said, "Teacher, for my fifth soul ring, I want to absorb one with a death attribute."
"Oh? Why is that?" Mu En's eyebrows twitched slightly in surprise. He didn't immediately reject the idea, instead asking curiously.
"Teacher, as you know, my Stillness Fate Ending Scythe possesses both Ultimate Light and death attributes. Among my first four soul rings, only the first one has a death attribute. The other three are all light-type. If the fifth is also light, the balance between the two will be lost," Zhu Ziyang explained calmly. "To maintain harmony between the two forces, I need a death-attributed ring."
What he said was true, but not the full story. He did need to balance his dual-attribute martial soul, but more importantly, he wanted to fuse Ultimate Light and death into one — a suggestion given to him by Electrolux.
"I see. Then we'll go with your plan." Mu En thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. "If you wanted a light-type soul beast, we might have had to search quite a bit. But since it's death-type, that's much easier. I happen to know of one in the Star Dou Forest."
"Really? That's perfect!" Zhu Ziyang's eyes lit up.
"Come. Let me take you there." Mu En smiled, grabbing Zhu Ziyang's arm and speeding into the forest's depths with astonishing agility. His movement was steady and unshaken, a true sign of a Ultimate Douluo's power.
As the scenery whizzed by, Zhu Ziyang got lost in thought. What kind of beast would Mu En bring him to? He tried to recall every known death-type beast in the Star Dou Forest. Just then, Mu En suddenly stopped.
They stood on a massive tree branch, staring at a creature walking leisurely ahead.
It was a huge canine beast, two meters tall and five meters long. Its body was covered in black fur, while pale bone armor protected its chest, shoulders, and neck. Its head was fierce and terrifying, topped with two curved white horns. Its eyes burned like ghostly flames, and its four fangs exuded a bloodstained aura. Its tail ended in skeletal fur shaped like a skull.
Mu En didn't recognize the species, but he could clearly feel the thick death aura emanating from it — and a cultivation of seventy thousand years.
"Ziyang, do you recognize this beast? Do you want it?" Mu En asked.
Zhu Ziyang had no idea what it was — but Electrolux did. The old man's voice rang in his mind, urging him to take it immediately and revealing its origins.
"It's a Hellhound," Zhu Ziyang said aloud. "Said to live in the underworld and guard its gates, it possesses pure death energy. It's a true super beast. Legends say an adult Hellhound can devour an entire city."
Mu En was surprised. He hadn't expected such a rare beast. His belief that Zhu Ziyang was destined to be the protagonist of the coming turbulent era only grew stronger.
"In that case," Mu En said, eyes sharpening, "I definitely can't let this one go. It'll make a perfect stepping stone for my disciple."
He told Zhu Ziyang to stay put, then disappeared with a flicker. In a blink, he reappeared behind the Hellhound. His withered hand transformed into a massive dragon claw, slamming down as the Hellhound turned its head. The strike crushed it into the dirt. Its horns shattered, and its skull was stained with blood.
One strike. That was the power of a Ultimate Douluo.
Mu En dragged the half-dead Hellhound back and said, "Let's go. We'll head to the outer region to absorb the ring."
"Yes, Teacher!" Zhu Ziyang nodded excitedly.
Moments later, the two figures vanished from the forest depths.
(End of Chapter)
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