Douluo: My summoning cards can generate Title Douluo

Chapter 234 Return

"Er...Erlong...I..." Yu Xiaogang stammered, his words incoherent. His usual image as a clear-headed, logically rigorous theoretical master had vanished, leaving only the pitiful figure of someone who had been cowardly his entire life in the face of emotion. "I'm sorry...I'm not...I'm a beast...I shouldn't have come...I don't deserve it..."

He repeated these self-deprecating words over and over, as if only in this way could he alleviate even a little bit of the bone-deep guilt in his heart.

Liu Erlong looked at him quietly, at the pain and struggle in his eyes, at the white hair at his temples and the vicissitudes between his brows.

The resentment and hatred that had accumulated in her heart for more than twenty years did not, strangely, erupt at this moment. Instead, it transformed into a deeper sorrow and...pity.

She reached out, as if wanting to stroke his cheek like she did when she was young, but then slowly lowered her hand halfway down.

She knew that some chasms, once formed, could never be crossed. Whether it was the taboo of blood ties or the changes brought about by more than twenty years of separation.

“Xiaogang,” Liu Erlong’s voice was still soft, but it carried an undeniable penetrating power, interrupting his endless self-blame, “Tell me, how have you been all these years…?”

"Why... are you only arriving now?"

She wondered if he, like her, had been suffering from pain and longing for the past twenty years.

Yu Xiaogang suddenly raised his head and met Liu Erlong's eyes, which were filled with too many emotions, and then quickly looked away as if he had been burned.

He opened his mouth, wanting to recount the years of wandering, the questioning of his theories, the ordinariness of Notting City, the rekindled hope after meeting Tang San, and the recent catastrophe.

But with so many things to say, it was impossible to know where to begin. In the end, all words turned into a long sigh filled with endless regret and despair.

"It's me...it's me who let you down...Erlong..." He could only repeat this most feeble and powerless phrase in the end, "It's all my fault...it's my cowardice...it's my uselessness...if it weren't for me...you wouldn't have..."

"Enough!" Liu Erlong suddenly raised her voice, interrupting him. A fierce glint flashed in her eyes, the true nature of a killer, but it quickly subsided.

She looked at Yu Xiaogang, her tone tinged with a weary sarcasm: "Yu Xiaogang, you're still the same as before!"

"When faced with problems, they only take the blame upon themselves, then bury their heads in the sand like ostriches and run away from everything!"

"Do you think you're so great by doing this? Do you think you can alleviate my pain by doing this?"

Her questioning was like a whip, striking Yu Xiaogang's heart, making him tremble and speechless.

Seeing him like this, Liu Erlong's heart softened again. Her anger came quickly and went quickly, leaving only deep disappointment and sorrow.

She turned her head, her gaze sweeping over Flander and the young people behind him who, though disheveled, had determined eyes. Finally, her gaze lingered on Tang San for a moment, as if she had noticed something.

She looked at Yu Xiaogang again, her tone calm but with an undeniable determination: "Boss Fu brought you all to see me, not just to catch up, right?"

"Tell me, what exactly happened? How... how did you get into this state?"

Her sharp gaze swept over Flander's still-healing bruises, then over the lingering dejection between Yu Xiaogang's brows, finally settling on Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the other young people.

Although these children were disheveled, their clothes torn, and they were covered in dust and exhaustion, their eyes burned with grief, indignation, defiance, the flames of revenge, and a last glimmer of hope in the face of utter desperation.

She was all too familiar with that look in her eyes; it was the look of someone driven to the brink of despair.

Flanders took a deep breath, knowing there was no going back. He adjusted his slightly askew crystal glasses, forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, and began to speak in a dry voice:
“Erlong… Now that things have come to this, there’s nothing left to hide.” Flander paused, organizing his thoughts, as if each word carried a heavy weight. “We… Shrek Academy, are finished.”

One sentence made Liu Erlong's pupils shrink slightly.

Flander glanced at Liu Erlong's reaction and continued, his voice low and slow, as he slowly recounted that unbearable nightmare: "Not long ago, we were hunted down by... a Title Douluo."

"A Titled Douluo?" Liu Erlong frowned. For Soul Masters like them, at the Soul Saint level, a Titled Douluo was practically an insurmountable mountain. How could Shrek Academy have offended such a being?
"It's...it's that guy who's known as the Poison King of the World, from the Holy Radiance Dragon Emperor Academy...Dugu Bo." Flander's voice trembled slightly as he said the name, clearly indicating that the experience had left a deep psychological scar on him.

"Dugu Bo?!" Liu Erlong exclaimed in a low voice. That was a renowned Title Douluo, known for his unpredictable use of poison and his eccentric and solitary nature. Her gaze towards Flander and the others became even more uncertain and suspicious.

“Yes, it was him.” Flander’s face showed lingering fear. “Our student was just playing a joke on his daughter, but he couldn’t take it and started targeting us, launching a relentless hunt for us on the outskirts of the forest.”

"His strength is terrifying... Zhao Wuji was seriously injured while protecting us and has not yet recovered... My fellow teachers and I are also...sigh..."

He sighed, his face filled with pain and self-reproach: "We fought desperately to escape, but against a Title Douluo, our resistance seemed so laughable... Just when we were about to be caught and wiped out..."

Flander's words paused here, as if he had returned to that moment of despair.

Yu Xiaogang also closed his eyes in pain, his body trembling slightly. Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the others clenched their fists, their eyes filled with humiliation and lingering fear of Dugu Bo.

"Just when we thought we were doomed..." Flander's voice took a strange turn, his gaze instinctively falling on Tang San, filled with an indescribable complex emotion, "...It's Xiao Wu...it's that child..."

"Xiao Wu?" Liu Erlong asked in confusion. She remembered that Flander had mentioned this name when he introduced her earlier; she was one of the students.

“She’s Xiao San’s…sister.” Flander explained with difficulty, avoiding certain more sensitive words. “Just as Dugu Bo was about to catch up with us and unleash his fatal blow…Xiao Wu…she seemed to have some kind of…exceptionally powerful soul power fluctuation…that aura…is extremely special…” Flander carefully chose his words. He couldn’t directly say the words “100,000-year-old soul beast”, as that was too shocking and related to Tang San and Xiao Wu’s biggest secret.

"In an instant, we attracted all of Dugu Bo's attention!" Flander's tone carried a sense of relief at surviving a disaster, as well as deep sorrow. "He abandoned his pursuit of us and instead... captured Xiao Wu!"

"What?!" Liu Erlong exclaimed in surprise. She had never expected things to develop this way.

How could a titled Douluo be attracted by the aura of a student at a crucial moment and abandon his original goal?

“We…we could only watch helplessly…” Flander’s voice choked with emotion, filled with utter powerlessness. “After capturing Xiao Wu, Dugu Bo merely glanced at us coldly and said…that he would offer her to the ‘Lord’…and then he took Xiao Wu and headed…towards the Beast God Pavilion…”

"Your Excellency? Beast God Pavilion?!" Upon hearing these two words, Liu Erlong trembled violently, and his face turned deathly pale!
The surprise and doubt in her eyes were instantly replaced by boundless fear, and her body even involuntarily took a half step back, as if she had heard some extremely terrifying word!

She finally understood! She understood why Dugu Bo had suddenly made his move, and why Xiao Wu had been captured! Everything pointed to that behemoth that now loomed over her like a nightmare—the Beast God Pavilion!

That terrifying force possessing unimaginable power, that force that forced her to lower her proud head, relinquish her life's work, Blue Tyrant Academy, and rename it Dragon Emperor Branch! That "Lord" who made her soul tremble with just a glance!
Seeing Liu Erlong's drastically changed expression and the undisguised fear in her eyes, Flander and Yu Xiaogang's hearts sank to the bottom.

They had initially held onto a sliver of hope, but now it seemed that Liu Erlong's fear of the Beast God Pavilion far exceeded their expectations.

"So...you lost that student named Xiaowu, the academy was forced to disband, and you fled all the way here..." Liu Erlong's voice trembled slightly, she forced herself to calm down and re-examined the group of old friends in front of her, "So, Boss Fu, Xiao Gang, what is the purpose of your visit to me today? Is it just to tell me this?"

Her gaze sharpened, as if she had already seen through their intentions.

Flander and Yu Xiaogang exchanged a glance, both seeing the difficulty in each other's eyes. In the end, Flander mustered his courage and spoke their last hope: "Erlong...we...we want to participate in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament."

"These children...they need this opportunity, they need a platform...We need to use this competition to improve our skills and build reputation...only then will we have a chance in the future..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was already clear—to become stronger, to save Xiao Wu, and to take revenge on the Beast God Pavilion!
“We heard… Blue Tyrant Academy… oh no, I mean Dragon Emperor Branch Academy, has a spot in the competition…” Flander’s voice trailed off, pleading, “Second Dragon, for the sake of our past relationship, could you… let these children compete under the name of Dragon Emperor Branch Academy? Give them a chance?”

"This is... our last hope."

Yu Xiaogang also raised his head, looking at Liu Erlong with bloodshot and pleading eyes. His lips moved, but he couldn't utter a single word. However, the humility and despair in his eyes pierced Liu Erlong's heart.

A deathly silence fell over the garden. Only the rustling of leaves in the wind and the tense breathing of the Shrek members could be heard.

Liu Erlong stood there, her back straight, but her hands, hanging at her sides, trembled slightly, her nails digging deeply into her palms. A fierce internal struggle was raging within her.

The pleas of her old friend, the hopes of the children, and the complicated feelings between her and Xiaogang... all of this was like a hand pulling at her heart, making her almost impulsively agree.

but…

The Beast God Pavilion! That mysterious and terrifying "Lord"! The teachers and students in the academy who have already been branded with the Beast God Pavilion's mark!
Once she takes in Flanders and the others, once they come into the sight of the Beast God Pavilion... she dares not imagine the consequences!

That was by no means a simple rejection or expulsion! Given that "Lord's" decisive, cold, and domineering personality, and the terrifying strength displayed by the Beast God Pavilion, Flander, Xiao Gang, and these talented children would definitely die! There was no chance of survival!
Moreover, her actions will be seen as a betrayal of the Beast God Pavilion!
At that time, not only will Liu Erlong personally suffer unimaginable wrath, but the entire Dragon Emperor Branch, and all the innocent teachers and students in the academy, will be implicated!

She couldn't let her momentary compassion drag the entire academy into an abyss of no return!
Reason ultimately prevailed over emotion, and fear triumphed over old feelings.

Liu Erlong slowly and with great difficulty closed his eyes, as if he had used up all his strength.

When she opened her eyes again, all the struggle, pain, and reluctance in her eyes had disappeared, leaving only an almost cold calm and resolute expression.

She looked at Flander, her gaze no longer evasive, and said in a clear, cold voice, enunciating each word distinctly:

"Boss, I cannot grant your request."

Flander's body trembled, and the last glimmer of light in his eyes dimmed.

Yu Xiaogang seemed to have all his strength drained away; he staggered and almost collapsed to the ground.

Ignoring their reactions, Liu Erlong continued in that emotionless tone, "You should have already seen that the Dragon Emperor Branch is no longer the Blue Tyrant Academy of the past."

“I, Liu Erlong, am no longer the dean who has the final say here.”

She raised her hand and pointed around, her tone carrying a hint of sarcasm, whether mocking the other party or herself, it was unclear: "Everything here, including myself, now belongs to the 'Beast God Pavilion'."

"The rules of the Beast God Pavilion are not to be challenged or violated. To take you in and allow you to use the branch's competition slots?" She shook her head, a cold smile curving her lips. "That's tantamount to openly betraying the 'Lord,' and putting the entire academy to death!"

Her gaze swept over Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the others, her eyes as cold as if she were looking at strangers: "I don't care what your reasons are, or what hatred you have. For the sake of our past acquaintance, I advise you to immediately abandon those unrealistic ideas."

"The Beast God Pavilion is not an existence you can contend with. Provoking them will only lead to your death."

(End of this chapter)