Peerless Douluo: Blood of the Black King Nidhogg!

Chapter 140 Right and wrong, merit and demerit, shall be judged by posterity (4K)

Shrek City, outside the East Gate.

Looking at the huge city he hadn't seen for two years, Mo Yuan felt a little emotional. It had been a week since he left the Star Dou Great Forest.

It wasn't that the End Dragon was too slow, but rather that, to prevent Shrek Academy from investigating his whereabouts, Mo Yuan spent over a week traveling slowly from the eastern part of the continent, truly exploring while leaving some traces before returning to Shrek Academy.

After straightening his clothes, Mo Yuan stepped into Shrek City. The scene was much the same as two years ago. The city was still bustling with people and vehicles, and full of students wearing the uniforms of the outer school.

Looking at those young men and women brimming with youthful energy, Mo Yuan couldn't help but shake his head and sigh: "It's so good to be young, before you've been beaten down by society..."

Just as Mo Yuan was about to step into the gates of Shrek Academy, a voice filled with obvious surprise and delight rang out behind him, calling out his name.

"Mo Yuan?"

Mo Yuan turned his head upon hearing the sound and saw a group of people walking towards him from not far away. Most of them were former disciples of the inner court, including senior female students and junior male students who had joined later. The only difference was that there was a little boy who was being protected in the crowd and curiously observing him.

The little boy looked to be only about six years old. He was dressed in slightly worn clothes and looked timid, which seemed out of place with his surroundings.

The person leading this group was Ling Luochen, who had a look of surprise on his face.

"Wow, Mo Yuan, it really is you."

Upon seeing that it was indeed Mo Yuan, Ling Luochen's expression lit up with joy, and he quickly stepped forward. The inner court disciples behind him also brought the little boy forward to greet Mo Yuan.

"Long time no see, Senior Mo!"

"Hello, Senior Mo!"

Mo Yuan didn't put on airs and responded to each of the enthusiastic greetings from the senior and junior students of the inner academy.

"So, what have you all been doing? Why do you all look so disheveled? On an inspection mission?" Mo Yuan asked curiously, noticing that everyone, including Ling Luochen, looked exhausted.

Ling Luochen was puzzled at first, but after thinking about it, he suddenly realized and began to explain, "Oh, I almost forgot, didn't the academy set up an adjudication team two years ago to search for children who have awakened evil martial souls on the continent and bring them back to the academy for education?"

However, due to the large number of people needed, and the frequent attacks by evil spirit masters, some of our inner court disciples thought it was clearly beneficial to the stability of the entire continent and could prevent innocent children from going astray or being misunderstood. Therefore, they spontaneously joined the Judgment Team to contribute their efforts.

Speaking of this, Ling Luochen and the inner court disciples behind him clearly showed pride on their faces. Indeed, the Judgment Team was a good thing from any perspective.

This is much better than the old, one-size-fits-all approach to critical hits.

Ling Luochen seemed to have opened a floodgate of words and began to talk endlessly about the adjudication team.

"Mo Yuan, you don't know, before joining the Judgment Team, I always thought that a Soul Master with an Evil Martial Soul was definitely an Evil Soul Master. Even if he wasn't now, he definitely would be in the future. But after I joined the Judgment Team and found a few children who had just awakened their Evil Martial Souls, I realized I was wrong."

Ling Luochen said in a heavy tone, "When we awaken our martial souls, we are usually overjoyed and full of expectations for the future. But those children who were originally just like us are completely different after they awaken evil martial souls."

"They are almost always met with hostility and alienation from their neighbors, and some are even persecuted. But let's think about it, what have these six-year-old children done wrong? What wrong could they possibly do? Just because of an evil martial spirit, should a child be forever labeled as 'evil'?"

"If it weren't for the existence of the Judgment Team, even if these children were kind-hearted, it would be a miracle if they didn't become evil spirit masters after experiencing such suffering. Unfortunately, the Judgment Team was ultimately too late. After witnessing so many ugly things, I can't even imagine how many children have been persecuted and driven down a path of no return over the past few thousand years..."

At this point, the pride on the faces of the inner court disciples behind him vanished, replaced by a somber and sorrowful expression.

Clearly, after witnessing and experiencing those events firsthand, they all realized that their previous ideas were wrong.

Mo Yuan patted Ling Luochen's shoulder with a look of satisfaction, and sincerely admired and appreciated Elder Mu's decision. Perhaps the scale of the Judgment Team is still small, and most people's definition of evil soul masters is still stuck in the old way.

But there's a saying that goes something like this, isn't there?

Once you've made up your mind and taken the first step, you're only 1% away from success.

A single spark can start a prairie fire.

"Everything is difficult at the beginning, but once you achieve the leap from zero to one, success is just a matter of time."

Mo Yuan spoke gently to Ling Luochen and the inner court disciples behind him, "As for whether our previous methods, and even our current actions, are right or wrong, let future generations judge. History will tell the whole story."

"Senior Mo is right. Regardless of whether what we are doing now benefits the mainland or not, as long as I see innocent children getting on the right path with our help, I will continue!"

"Seconded!"

"..."

Ling Luochen raised her head and stared intently at Mo Yuan in front of her, her eyes flashing with a different kind of light. Although she spoke in a question, her tone was very certain.

"Mo Yuan, you've actually figured all this out a long time ago, haven't you?"

“That’s right,” Mo Yuan said. “Actually, it’s not difficult to understand this principle. Sometimes, don’t stand too high. Go down and walk around more, and you’ll naturally understand.”

"Okay, then I'll travel around the mainland during my next holiday."

After saying that, Mo Yuan looked at the little boy hiding behind the inner courtyard disciple, looking at him timidly, "Is this the child you brought back on this trip?"

"Yes."

Ling Luochen nodded and then smiled and waved to the little boy. Perhaps realizing that Mo Yuan did not have the same malice towards him as the others, the little boy hesitated for a moment before cautiously approaching Ling Luochen's side.

Ling Luochen patted the little boy's head and then introduced him to Mo Yuan, "His name is Meng He. We found him in a small village on the western border of the Tianhun Empire. Unfortunately, this child's fate was not good. His parents died early."

He could have managed to survive with the help of his neighbors, but fate played a cruel trick on him. A few months ago, during his martial soul awakening, he unexpectedly awakened an evil martial soul. And you can probably guess what happened next. If we hadn't arrived in time, he might have starved to death.

After hearing this, Mo Yuan sighed inwardly. Looking at the child who was hiding behind Ling Luochen and only peeking out with half his head, he then squatted down to be at eye level with Meng He.

"What is your martial spirit?"

"he……"

Ling Luochen was about to reply when Mo Yuan stopped her with a gesture.

"Let him speak for himself."

When Mo Yuan stared at him like that, Meng He instinctively wanted to run away, but Mo Yuan's next move made him stop in his tracks.

Mo Yuan held up a jade bottle and shook it. "The Mysterious Water Pill can unconditionally increase your soul power by one level when you reach level 30. Answer a few questions for me, and it will be yours."

Along the way, Ling Luochen and several other inner court disciples introduced him to knowledge about martial spirits to varying degrees.

Therefore, although he was not clear about the status of the Xuan Shui Dan on the continent, he could still understand its value to some extent.

“I…I’ll say,” Meng He said timidly, “My martial soul is called the Book of the Abyss.” “Huh? What did you say? The Book of the Abyss?” Mo Yuan was stunned. Holy crap, is the name of this martial soul that awesome?

"Then show me your martial spirit, and how much innate soul power you have?"

Meng He hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Wisps of purplish-black smoke suddenly rose from beneath his feet. The smoke was thick and heavy, as dark as ink, and could not be dispersed by the wind. It also exuded a strong evil aura.

As the smoke billowed, a book with a black cover and two blood-red, ferocious claw patterns flew out and landed in his hand.

"I heard from Sister Ling and the others that my innate soul power is level nine..."

Mo Yuan watched everything in silence. Could it be that Shrek Academy really did open the box and find a treasure? A martial soul of considerable quality and innate level nine soul power—isn't this a genius?

"That's enough, put your martial spirit away."

After Meng He had completely put away his martial spirit, Mo Yuan smiled and asked again.

"Then let me ask you again, what was the biggest mistake you made in the past few years of your life?"

Meng He was clearly stunned for a moment, then his expression became awkward and he looked very conflicted. But when he saw Mo Yuan make a move to take back the Xuan Shui Pill, he immediately closed his eyes, blushed and whispered.

"I... I called her 'Mom' when I was playing games with the little girl next door..."

Upon hearing this, Mo Yuan, Ling Luochen, and all the inner court disciples were first stunned, and then their expressions were extremely interesting.

Okay, okay, I thought you only had talent in martial spirits, but I didn't expect you to have it in games too!
At such a young age, he has already grasped the essence of the art of tile making; his future is truly limitless!
Mo Yuan was secretly amazed. After asking no further questions, he stuffed the bottle of Xuan Shui Pills into Meng He's hand.

Seeing the little boy visibly happy, Mo Yuan suddenly stopped smiling and became serious. This rapid change made Meng He feel uneasy.

Then he saw Mo Yuan completely change his previous gentle and refined demeanor, speaking to him with a calm gaze and indifferent tone.

"Although I have high hopes for you and believe that you can grow under the constraints of your martial soul, after all, with your talent you can indeed be called a genius."

"But I hope you understand one thing: your martial spirit doesn't represent everything. You should be the master of your power, not its slave. If you don't do evil, I can protect you even if your martial spirit has problems."

"But if one day you succumb to power and fall into becoming a true evil soul master, no matter how strong you are then, I will kill you."

"Remember?"

Meng He was stunned by Mo Yuan's words and, without even pausing to be dumbfounded, nodded vigorously and promised that he would never become an evil soul master.

"Mo Yuan, what are you doing? Don't worry, with the academy here, Meng He won't have any problems," Ling Luochen said.

Then you'd better not let Yan Shaozhe get involved in this kind of thing... Mo Yuan muttered to himself, and just as he was about to say something more, he suddenly put his ear to the ground to listen.

After a few breaths, Mo Yuan stood up and looked at the gifted child with an evil martial soul again, and finally gave him a word.

"Remember to stay true to yourself and don't go astray."

After saying this, Mo Yuan greeted Ling Luochen and several other inner court disciples he knew, saying that he had something to take care of and would talk to them later. Then he soared into the sky and flew towards the depths of Shrek Academy.

Watching the figure vanish from sight in an instant, Ling Luochen's eyes gleamed with a strange light, and he couldn't help but whisper,
"He's definitely gotten a lot stronger in the two years I haven't seen him. I just don't know the exact age of his sixth spirit ring. It's probably already 100,000 years old..."

Beside Ling Luochen, Meng He, like her, was also staring intently into the depths of Shrek Academy, clutching the bottle of Xuan Shui Pill tightly in his hand.

His mind was filled with the words Mo Yuan had just spoken—the promises he had made, and the threats of death. After a long while, he exhaled a deep breath, and the confusion in his eyes vanished without a trace, replaced by unwavering determination.

He thought he would die of hunger and cold in that dilapidated house, but a group of people, disregarding his martial spirit, brought him here.

His future is shrouded in gloom, with no clear path ahead, but one sentence will guarantee that he will never go astray.

— Stay true to yourself and don't go astray.

……

Shrek Academy's inner courtyard, deep within Poseidon Island.

A flash of black light appeared, and Mo Yuan descended from the sky to this spot. He then straightened his clothes and headed straight for the Sea God Pavilion not far away.

His reason for coming here was simple: Elder Mu had sent him, most likely to check on his improved strength over the past two years and the age of his sixth spirit ring.

As for what he said to Meng He earlier, it was simply because Mo Yuan thought the child had good talent and could be nurtured. In fact, if you think about it carefully, you'll find that the whole "Judgment Team" thing is incredibly profitable, except that it's time-consuming, labor-intensive, and manpower-intensive.

He not only corrected his mistakes, but also enhanced his reputation and won over the hearts of the people, and gained a large group of disciples who could be described as extremely loyal.

After all, if someone bestows three great favors—saving one's life, revitalizing one's life, and promoting one's career—as long as one is still human, one would not have the thought of betrayal.

Mo Yuan thought about this matter again and suddenly had a sense of déjà vu about 'raising assassins', but this was just a side benefit.

The Sea God Pavilion was soon arrived. Pushing open the old door, Mo Yuan stepped into the conference room once again.

The conference table was empty except for a kind old man with a hunched back and a somber air, who lay on a deck chair by the sunlit window.

"You're back, child." Mu En opened his cloudy eyes, looked at Mo Yuan standing at the door, and waved with a smile, "Come and sit down."

"Mr. Mu."

After bowing, Mo Yuan pulled up a chair and sat down next to Mu En. Two years had passed, and although the two hadn't seen each other much, they were no longer as awkward as when they first met.

"Well, what have you learned from traveling on the mainland for two years? If not, tell me some interesting anecdotes."

Mu En said in a gentle voice. He neither asked how much Mo Yuan's strength had increased nor about the age of his sixth soul ring. He simply wanted to chat with his junior who had not returned for a long time, just like an ordinary old man.

After a brief moment of surprise, Mo Yuan smiled again, then pulled his chair in a little closer to bask in the warm sunlight with Mu En.

"If you're talking about interesting anecdotes, I don't really remember many, but if you're talking about insights, I do have a few."

"Oh?" Moon was clearly intrigued and said with a smile, "Tell me about it."

Mo Yuan gazed at the shimmering waters of Lake Seagod outside the window, pondered for a moment, and then calmly spoke.
"bitter."

Mu En didn't speak, but just quietly looked out the window. Soon, Mo Yuan gave his follow-up words.

"When prosperity comes, the people suffer; when decline comes, the people suffer."

(End of this chapter)