"Look for yourself!"
Zhu Zhuqing's voice was calm but cutting. Her slender white fingers flicked, sending a letter sailing through the air.
Dai Mubai caught it reflexively. The moment his eyes scanned the contents, his pupils shrank in disbelief.
It was the royal decree—an official Star Luo Empire marriage annulment between the third prince and the Zhu family's second daughter.
Stamped with the bright red imperial seal.
Authentic. Absolute. Irrefutable.
His head buzzed.
This…This can't be real.
But the seal could not be forged.
How had everything collapsed in a matter of days? Yesterday he had a fiancée and a rightful claim to power. Today he was standing here with nothing. His status, his throne, his future—all stripped away like a cruel joke.
Panic rose in his chest. Was he truly about to become the third pitiful, discarded prince in the entire history of the Star Luo Empire?
"You bastard!"
Lu Yuan's sharp voice cut through his despair. Standing between Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing like an immovable wall, his hand tightened protectively around Zhu Zhuqing's shoulder. His eyes blazed with cold anger.
"You've already lost everything. What right do you have to block the little cat's path? Do you want me to knock you flat again?"
He was in no mood for games. They needed to head to Heaven Dou Imperial Academy and register. He had no intention of wasting time on this drunk tiger crawling in the dirt.
The sneer on Dai Mubai's face cracked. His hands shook as fury boiled inside him. "You—!" he roared, body trembling violently. His humiliation, his ruined engagement, his lost future—everything crashed down in this moment. That divorce agreement was nothing less than his death sentence.
Once cast aside by Zhu Zhuqing, not only had he lost his fiancée, but he had lost his biggest backbone in the royal competition for the throne. Now, if he dared set foot back in Star Luo, he would surely be crushed alive by his competitors.
Hatred churned inside him like a storm.
Biting down so hard blood nearly welled in his mouth, Dai Mubai growled, "I can't take this!"
"Boss Dai, what's wrong now?!"
The shout came from above. Tang San, standing on a nearby rooftop, had noticed the growing crowd. Using his Purple Demon Eye, he caught sight of Lu Yuan and Dai Mubai facing off. His pupils narrowed.
So it's him again…
Without hesitation, Tang San leapt down, Ma Hongjun and Oscar following clumsily behind, and Xiao Wu springing forward like a lean rabbit.
"Little San, are we still brothers or not?!" Dai Mubai's chest was heaving like a blacksmith's bellows, every ragged breath reeking of alcohol and rage. Even while trembling with fear, he refused to back down. This time… even if Lu Yuan's strength eclipsed him, so what? He refused to swallow this humiliation!
"Boss Dai, don't ever ask that again." Tang San stepped forward, the glint in his eyes sharp. He had seen enough of Lu Yuan's arrogance. Again and again, this so-called prodigy had trampled them, never showing the Shrek Seven any respect. His pride would not allow it to go this way forever.
In his past life, the Tang Clan's ancestral rules had been burned into his bones. The fifth law of the Xuantian Record: Tang Clan disciples may not seek trouble lightly. But… anyone who dares provoke us will pay in blood.
This was provocation. Repeated, deliberate provocation.
"Brothers, back Boss Dai!" he barked.
"Boss Dai, we're with you!" Ma Hongjun and Oscar bellowed together, emboldened by Tang San's declaration. Xiao Wu shifted into position without a word. Five became one, standing shoulder-to-shoulder.
From the sidelines, the crowd of Shrek students watching nearly choked.
"Are these guys… brain dead?"
"Embarrassing themselves again?"
"Even after Zhu Zhuqing cut ties herself, Dai Mubai's still clinging like a dog?"
"Did they forget what happened last time Lu Yuan thrashed them? Isn't Tyrone's tragic state warning enough?"
Murmurs and snickers rippled outward. Onlookers shook their heads one after another, muttering as though watching fools line up for execution. To them it wasn't bravery they were witnessing, but stupidity in its purest form.
"…So."
Lu Yuan finally moved. His hand reached for the hilt slung across his back. With a slow, deliberate sound, his long sword slipped free, its faint glow sharp enough to make onlookers' hair stand on end.
"You're telling me… you all want to fight?"
The cold edge in his question sent a shudder through the gathering.
Dai Mubai roared, eyes flashing with unyielding defiance.
"White Tiger, possess!"
"Phoenix, possess!"
"Daddy's got a big sausage!!!" Oscar jingled out his incantation proudly, hot dogs instantly materializing around him.
"…."
"….???"
Several bystanders clamped down laughter, while others groaned aloud.
But already the five had each released their Martial Souls, igniting spirit rings one after another. Their positioning shifted almost instinctively—the well-practiced battle formation of the Shrek Seven.
Blue Silver Grass wrapped around waist after waist, linking them all together like one body. Tang San pulled the strings, and the entire squad moved as a single unit.
"Boss Dai! Fatty, now!" Tang San cried.
With goosebump-inducing synchronicity, the two unleashed their prepared attacks.
"Third spirit ability—Phoenix Wing Sky Strike!"
A piercing phoenix cry ripped through the courtyard as crimson wings erupted from Ma Hongjun's back. Fire soared skyward, the entire air heating under the infernal release of the Evil Fire Phoenix.
"First spirit ability, White Tiger Barrier!"
"Third ability, White Tiger Vajra Transformation!"
Dai Mubai's muscles tore his coat apart as his body swelled with bestial power. White aura flared around him, protective light forming into a dense barrier across his skin. His fangs lengthened as he howled mightily.
Then he struck.
"White Tiger Light Wave!"
At the same time, Ma Hongjun ignited, roaring: "Phoenix Fire Line!"
A beam of glaring white light and a jet stream of burning red fire streaked forth, weaving across each other as they blasted directly toward Lu Yuan.
The sky hissed and seared. The courtyard trembled.
A combined attack. Direct, powerful, passionate.
Onlookers gasped, some holding their breath in awe.
In the distance, several Shrek students whispered amongst themselves.
"Wait… Did he just say… twin Martial Souls?"
"It looks like it. But… why doesn't he have spirit rings?"
No one had an answer.
But all their eyes fixed on Lu Yuan, whose glowing long sword hummed faintly in anticipation. His gaze, cold and unyielding, promised only one thing—this was not going to end well for the Shrek Seven.
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