Spirit Hall's main cathedral was silent.
Not the peaceful kind—but the kind that crushed the air.
Rows of golden spirit lamps burned without flicker, illuminating towering pillars engraved with angels, beasts, and ancient soul diagrams. At the highest seat, beneath a massive six-winged emblem, sat Bibi Dong.
Her eyes were closed.
Kneeling below were several black-robed elders, heads lowered, breath restrained.
"Report," she said softly.
The voice was gentle.
No one mistook it for kindness.
An elder stepped forward. "Information confirmed. Shrek Academy has accepted a student named Lin Chen. Same generation as Tang San. Age—twelve."
Bibi Dong's lashes fluttered.
"Twelve?" she repeated.
"Yes. First spirit awakening occurred in Holy Soul Village. Witnesses confirm… abnormalities."
Another elder swallowed and continued. "Triple martial spirits. First soul ring—black."
The temperature dropped.
"…How old?" Bibi Dong asked.
The elder hesitated.
"Estimated at… ninety-nine thousand years."
Silence.
A pressure descended upon the hall like a divine judgment.
Several elders felt their souls tremble.
"That is impossible," one muttered.
Bibi Dong opened her eyes.
They were beautiful.
They were terrifying.
"Nothing is impossible," she said calmly, "when the world begins to correct itself."
She rose from her throne, long robes trailing like shadows. As she descended the steps, her presence alone forced everyone lower.
"Did he hide it?" she asked.
"Yes," the first elder replied. "He suppresses his soul pressure perfectly. Most teachers believe he possesses only one visible ring."
Bibi Dong smiled faintly.
"A genius who knows how to conceal his fangs," she murmured. "Interesting."
Another elder spoke cautiously. "Should we… eliminate him early?"
The smile vanished.
Bibi Dong turned.
The elder froze, sweat soaking through his robes.
"Eliminate?" she echoed. "Do you know how many so-called 'chosen ones' Spirit Hall has crushed?"
No one answered.
She walked to the window, gazing toward the distant horizon.
"But this one," she continued softly, "is different."
Her fingers tightened slightly.
"A child who dares awaken such a ring… and live," she said. "He is either a miracle… or a calamity."
A third elder spoke, voice low. "What are your orders, Your Holiness?"
Bibi Dong was silent for a long moment.
Then—
"Observe," she said.
The word echoed like a decree.
"Send no assassins. No envoys," she continued. "Only eyes. I want to know who he speaks to. Who follows him. Who changes around him."
Her gaze sharpened.
"And if he enters Spirit Hall's sight willingly…"
A strange light passed through her eyes.
"…do not stop him."
Far away, at Shrek Academy, Lin Chen stood alone beneath the moon.
His eyes were closed.
The system interface shimmered faintly before him.
[Warning: High-Level Attention Detected][Source: Spirit Hall — Supreme Authority]
Lin Chen exhaled slowly.
"So it begins," he murmured.
He felt it—not hostility.
Interest.
A far more dangerous thing.
Behind him, soft footsteps approached.
Zhu Zhuqing stopped beside him, arms crossed, gaze steady.
"…You're smiling," she said quietly.
Lin Chen opened his eyes.
"Because," he replied, "the bell has rung."
"For what?" she asked.
"For monsters to wake up," he said calmly. "And gods to start watching."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't look afraid.
She looked… ready.
Above them, clouds shifted, revealing a cold, distant moon.
And beneath its light—
The game between fate, empire, and divinity had officially begun.