Douluo Continent: A Thousand Miles of Cultivation

"Elder Gui, I might need to return to Wuhun City..."

Hu Liena held the invitations in her hand somewhat anxiously, because she had two, not one!

Ghost Douluo narrowed his eyes slightly, probably understanding something. "Let's go, Nana."

……

The invitation Hu Liena received was not for anyone else, but for Bibi Dong. The title read "Respectfully Inviting Mother" and "Presented to His Holiness Pope Bibi Dong".

Although Hu Liena did not know that Qian Renxue was Bibi Dong's daughter, she knew that Qian Shui was definitely not Bibi Dong's son. Realizing the crux of the matter, she knew she had to make a trip.

The Papal Palace was eerily silent. The moment Bibi Dong saw the invitation, her surging soul power shattered it.

Faced with such immense pressure, Hu Liena and Ghost Douluo, kneeling beneath him, could not lift their heads.

After an unknown amount of time, Bibi Dong sighed softly, "Go if you wish..."

"Ghost, pass on the order to lift the alert and return to normal."

"Yes!"

Ghost Douluo is gone, leaving only Hu Liena behind.

The little fox raised its head and looked at Bibi Dong, who was holding her forehead with some worry, "Teacher...aren't you going?"

She was met with silence in response. When Bibi Dong waved, she bowed and left. Her teacher's family affairs were not her business.

But then she was surprised to find that her unkempt senior brother, who had been missing for many years, was getting married. She couldn't help but feel a little sad. It was supposed to be a happy occasion, so why couldn't she feel happy?

As she walked out of the newly completed Papal Palace and looked back, Hu Liena felt extremely conflicted. Her usually formidable teacher was actually wearing such a pained expression.

What kind of person is that beautiful blonde girl who could provoke her like this and also win the heart of her senior brother?

...

At almost the same time, in the Hall of Offerings, Grand Elder Qian Daoliu also received an invitation from the Porcupine Douluo.

Qian Daoliu sighed again upon seeing this. He had not received any notification, and Qian Shui should have returned half a month ago. He was only now being sent an invitation.

He was already a hundred years old. Although he had reached the pinnacle of life, he was still human. How could a human not want his children and grandchildren by his side?

But his only granddaughter started to ignore him, which made him feel lonely.

"The child is grown up, capable, and should have their own ideas..."

The seven offerings were identical, except that Qian Daoliu's was more special, as it bore the soul imprints of Qian Renxue and Qian Shui.

"That Qian Shui kid is really daring! How come I never saw this in him when he was a kid?!"

How do you know who's the boldest?

"Surely not?! Hmm~ But thinking about it, it's not impossible!"

The Porcupine Douluo standing to the side was at a loss for words. Should he say something or not?

He wasn't as foolish as his brother; he roughly understood that if he spoke up, he couldn't escape the blame for delaying, nor could he escape Qian Shui's wrath. If he evaded the issue for a while, the big shots might be in a good mood, and he might be able to get away with it.

……

"Xiaoxue, when did you do this behind my back?"

'Hmm...pretty early!'

'Huh? How is that possible? How did you hide it? How could I not have detected it with my mental power?!'

"Your spatial soul tool is such a mess, there's even a bunch of carrots?! You wouldn't even see them if you just put them anywhere!"

'Uh……'

Qian Shui suddenly realized that this could be a surprise from Qian Renxue, and then he completely ignored it!

……

Oscar was overjoyed after absorbing the spirit ring, but he didn't receive any surprised looks from his teammates, since some of them had predicted that his new sausage would be 'flying'.

Ning Huahua, who had returned to the team, didn't say anything and simply led the team back to Shrek Academy.

In the short time it took to get there and back, Shrek Academy had changed a bit. When the group of nine returned the next day, they found seven people dressed in fine clothes, doing nothing in the square.

These seven people included both men and women, and were mostly around 20 years old.

"Rongrong? Two of them?"

The girl in the lead seemed to know Ning Rongrong, but didn't know who Ning Huahua was.

Ning Rongrong seemed to know them well too, "Why are you here?"

"Stop watching the commotion and go back to rest." With a slight smile, Ning Huahua said to the others, knowing that acquaintances had arrived.

"Yes!"

Shrek and his group seemed to listen to Ning Huahua very well now. Although they were curious, they dared not disobey Ning Huahua's orders and soon scattered like birds and beasts.

Ignoring Ning Rongrong and the other seven people's pleasantries, he greeted Zhao Wuji and headed towards Flander's office.

"Teacher Ning, who are they? Do you know them?"

"I don't know them yet, but I'll find out soon enough, and we'll get to know each other."

...

Flanders was overjoyed today. This time, he saw both his proud disciple and his long-lost friend. The two joys overlapped, and this double joy brought even more joy. They should have had a truly exhilarating reunion! But why? Why did it turn out this way?

The person sitting opposite Flander paid no heed to his joy. A tired-looking young man with dark circles under his eyes impatiently crossed his legs and tapped Flander's desk with his finger, making a 'tap tap tap' sound, which further intensified the unpleasant atmosphere.

Fortunately, the awkwardness didn't last long. The door to Flander's office opened, and he seemed to see a savior, standing up to greet them. "Teacher Ning! You and Teacher Zhao are back?! How are the children?"

"They've all gone to rest."

"Oh oh oh!"

"Miss Ning Rongrong? No, you're not her!"

The young man sitting opposite Flander also stood up, but his eyes were full of confusion.

"One-on-one chat?"

Seeing that Ning Huahua wanted to talk about something privately, the young man didn't think much of it and followed Ning Huahua out.

Only after they left did the three remaining people in the office feel relieved.

"Qin Ming? Good lad! So it was you!"

The other young man in the office was Qin Ming, a former student of Shrek Academy.

The identities of the seven people outside and the ethereal-looking young man are now obvious!

"Teacher Zhao! It's been a long time! Hope you've been well!"

"Who is this?"

This middle-aged man had a stiff face, but his back was ramrod straight, and he looked somewhat dull at first glance.

"Come here, Wuji, you've never met him before! Let me introduce you, this is my old buddy from back then. You can just call him Master, almost everyone in the Soul Master world calls him that."

……

"Who exactly are you...?"

In a secluded spot, the young man, who had an ethereal air about him, finally couldn't help but speak up, but he was stunned before he could even finish his question.

"Miss Qian... Miss Qian??? It's you?"

"Who is the Crown Prince of Tiandou City?"

Qian Renxue, revealing her true form, did not answer him. Instead, she took out another invitation and handed it to him with a hint of mockery.

When the young man opened it with a puzzled look, he froze, as if petrified.

After a long while, she was overcome with grief and plopped down on the ground. "I knew it! I knew it! It must be him! Only him! Only he would torment people like this! Only he would have the brains to think so much!"

"My goodness! Brother Shui! You've finally shown up!!!"

"Don't cry, he asked me to give you a message."

Wiping away his tears, our Heavenly Dou Empire's Minister of Education, the leader of the Royal Fighting Team, Brother Yin Jin, straightened his expression, stood up, and said with a serious face, "Please speak!"

Qian Renxue, standing before him, seemed like a completely different person. She patted his shoulder with a mocking expression and said, "Not bad, young man! Teacher-student relationship! Awesome! Have you been enjoying yourself all these years?!"

Upon hearing this, Yin Jin was stunned for a moment, then tears welled up in her eyes again. "I was wrong! I will never again act impulsively without considering the consequences!"

Chapter 190 Negotiation

Life and death are unpredictable; this is probably what Yin Jin has felt over the years.

The impulsiveness of those years has long since vanished amidst the endless overtime work, leaving only regret.

He never imagined that these arrangements for him came from Qian Shui.

Whenever he worked overtime to the point of feeling like he was about to die, even the thought of kissing someone would become devoid of desire. A teacher-student relationship? This decision, which was full of pleasure, had long since become synonymous with utter stupidity after Chen Sha beat him up in Xingluo City, and the person behind it all finally appeared.

When he received the invitation, there was no blessing or joy, only relief! The only tour leader he trusted didn't blame him; in fact, he invited him to his own wedding!

For years, he has lived in the shadow of being cleaved in two. He feels guilty for his family's decline because of him and wishes he could be cleaved in two, but he is also afraid of being cleaved in two because he feels stupid and speechless.

Caught between two conflicting emotions and waiting in vain, and with so many years having passed and the world having changed dramatically, he, though the so-called 'Minister of Education,' felt utterly lost, walking on thin ice and forever forced to passively accept endless surprises.

Whenever he thinks about it, he longs for that boy, just like he did back then, to reappear before everyone as a boy who calmly observes him no matter what.

It was as if as long as he was there, everything could be resolved, nothing was a problem, and everything could be solved with a laugh.

Looking back at Tiandou City, Yin Jin seemed to have found his backbone. He wiped away his tears, and his eyes returned to those of the serious Minister of Education, only now with more determination.

……

"Dean Flander, have you made up your mind?"

Back in Flander's office, Silver Gold seemed much calmer.

"Minister Yin, this..."

Flander seemed to become anxious again because of these words.

Suddenly, a stiff face appeared, and a hoarse voice said calmly, "We hope that the two academies can communicate with each other, rather than directly merging into the Heaven Dou Royal Academy."

"Minister Yin, Teacher Qin, I think this shouldn't be a big problem, right? If you can't make the decision, I can contact the Spirit Hall."