Douluo Continent: Huo Yuhao obtains the Flame Emperor template

Chapter 154 Moon: Xuanzi can split Shrek Academy in two.

The elders saw that Elder Xuan's face was filled with grief and despair as he gathered a terrifying, blinding yellowish-brown light in his large hand and struck it towards his own heart.

"Hmm? When did Elder Xuan's proposed Sea God Pavilion meeting add a segment where participants perform acts of atonement by dying?"

The elders were greatly alarmed, and at the same time somewhat bewildered.

Just now, after cooperating with Elder Xuan to perform the segment of "voluntarily resigning from the Sea God's position," declining three times and ultimately staying in the Sea God's Pavilion to continue serving as an elder, what's going on now? Why is there another segment where Elder Xuan "is willing to atone with his death"?

Should they continue to cooperate with Master Xuan and finish the performance?

If it's required, how will it be performed? There was no prior notice...

The elders exchanged bewildered glances, each seeing the surprise and uncertainty in the other's eyes. They were all stunned by this sudden turn of events and were momentarily at a loss for what to do in the face of Elder Xuan's self-inflicted punishment.

"Elder Mu, this, this..." Yan Shaozhe was very anxious. Seeing Elder Xuan's resolute act of severing his own heart meridian, all the elders looked at Elder Mu.

Has the Sea God Pavilion meeting proposed by Elder Xuan evolved into a more sophisticated scheme?

In the past, it was always Elder Xuan who led the team to make a huge mess, then came back looking like he was guilty, quickly convened a meeting of the Sea God Pavilion, admitted his mistakes, and decisively proposed that he voluntarily withdraw from the Sea God Pavilion.

The elders took turns trying to persuade him, and the sorrowful Xuanzi lived up to their expectations and continued to serve as an elder of the Sea God Pavilion, thus completing the entire process.

But this time, Elder Xuan started by committing suicide to atone for his sins, catching all the elders off guard.

wow——

Mu En's aged pupils suddenly emitted a golden light, releasing the pressure unique to the Holy Dragon of Light. The dazzling light was so bright that the elders couldn't open their eyes. Xuanzi trembled under this pressure, as if he had been slapped.

"Fool! Do you think your death will bring the children back to life? If you feel so guilty, then go and atone for your sins at Shrek Academy!"

Elder Mu angrily rebuked Xuanzi's foolish behavior, and his powerful aura slapped Xuanzi hard across the face.

The old man was slapped so hard that his entire body was thrown off the seat and flew several meters away.

It spun half a circle in the air, then landed headfirst on the ground with a thud.

Yan Shaozhe and Elder Lin were the first to react. The two of them attacked together, releasing their respective martial spirit powers to suppress Elder Xuan to the ground.

"Old Master Mu, why... why won't you let me die!"

Xuanzi looked grief-stricken and sobbed uncontrollably: "Gongyang Mo, Chen Zifeng, Yao Haoxuan, they should have had bright futures, but I ruined them. How can I still have the face to live on in this world..."

The other elders also understood. Judging from Elder Mu's slapping motion, he seemed genuinely angry. It turned out that the part about apologizing with death was something Xuanzi added on the spot.

Most of the elders could only remain silent. Xuanzi's suicide was not a cause and effect that could be easily tainted. It was up to Elder Mu and the leading elders of the two departments to handle it.

After a moment's thought, Xian Lin'er, the dean of the Soul Guidance Department, stood up and said, "Elder Xuan, our Shrek Academy's Soul Guidance Department was established many years ago after the Holy War between Douluo Continent and Sun Moon Continent."

"In war, it is common for one side's army to be ambushed by the other side and suffer a complete annihilation."

Xian Lin'er's eyes narrowed slightly: "Then Elder Xuan, think about it, how many leaders would commit suicide because of a few small-scale setbacks? What they should do is take responsibility for their failures, learn from their mistakes, and make up for all their previous failures with a greater victory in the end."

Xian Lin'er has attended several of the Sea God Pavilion meetings proposed by Xuanzi.

She felt that Master Xuan was quite proactive in admitting and acknowledging his mistakes, but the biggest problem was that Master Xuan never corrected his mistakes.

Xuanzi shook his head blankly after hearing Xianlin'er's words.

"No, it's different. That Death Messenger was only a five-ring Soul King, while I..."

"Shut up!"

Enraged, Elder Mu once again exerted his pressure on Xuanzi, his disappointment and frustration intensifying: "You coward who made a grave mistake and only wanted to die! As my junior disciple, when will you ever show any backbone?!"

Qian Duoduo, in keeping with the dean of his Soul Guidance Department, spoke with a touch of emotion.

"Elder Xuan, we can't be so reckless. The loss of three disciples from the Martial Soul Department's inner court is already a huge loss for our academy."

He sighed slowly and earnestly advised, "If Elder Xuan were to commit suicide to atone for this mission of eliminating evil soul masters, that would be the greatest loss for our academy. It must not be done!"

Mu En looked at Xuan Zi, who was lying paralyzed on the ground under his control, and snorted angrily. The aura emanating from his rage silenced the entire Sea God Pavilion.

"Xuanzi, if you continue to act so foolishly and cowardly, I will cripple you myself without you even lifting a finger."

Mu En thought of the Holy Spirit Cult and some of its members, and even had a sinister thought that he should not have: if Xuanzi remained so useless before he passed away.

He even considered turning Xuanzi into a puppet who only had the power to protect the school, but the bond of kinship between his junior brother and disciple forced Mu En to suppress this idea.

"Shao Zhe, Hui Qun, let him go."

Mu En withdrew the oppressive aura he had exerted on Xuanzi, the golden light in his aged pupils receding, but his anger remained: "Xuanzi, get back here and sit down properly."

Xuanzi ultimately failed to commit suicide. Upon hearing the words of Elder Mu, who was like a master to him, he could only wipe his eyes, stand up dejectedly, and return to his seat with his hair drooping and disheveled.

Elder Mu's face held an indescribable sternness: "You're over two hundred years old, how can you still be so impulsive? If every elder were like you, deserting after making a mistake, would our Sea God Pavilion still have any reason to exist?"

Immediately afterwards, Elder Mu solemnly stated:

Xuanzi can die if he wants, but if he has the ability, he should pass on his lineage and inherit his Taotie Divine Ox Martial Soul through his bloodline. Then Xuanzi can commit suicide as he pleases, and Mu En will not stop him. Otherwise, forget it.

As everyone knows, the relationships at Shrek Academy are a mess.

In one respect, Xuanzi has a great advantage: although he is slovenly in appearance, he is clean-living enough... well, he is a little impotent due to his limited abilities.

Xuanzi's face flushed red. Upon hearing Elder Mu's statement, the other elders who participated in the Sea God Pavilion meeting all showed strange expressions. At this moment, they felt that Xuanzi was also quite unfortunate. The powerful Taotie Divine Ox had many flaws, simply because this aspect was too weak.

"Alright." Elder Mu tapped the table lightly with his finger, and the elders quieted down.

Elder Mu's expression returned to its usual calm, and he said sternly, "Xuanzi, I know your Gluttonous Divine Ox Martial Soul has a gluttonous nature, but you must never make such a mistake again."

"Your habit of keeping your disciples constantly aware of danger isn't entirely wrong, but you must ensure that you can rescue them from danger."

Mu En sighed deeply. The fact that a Soul King could kill three people at the hands of a Super Douluo was unprecedented in history.

"Lin'er".

"Yes." Xian Lin'er quickly stood up and answered respectfully.

Moon's tone left no room for argument: "I've made the decision today. After the Sea God Pavilion meeting, allocate some resources to the Soul Guidance Department to tailor-make at least one flying soul tool and one defensive soul tool for every inner court disciple. Anyone who objects, don't tell me, just ask them to leave the academy."

"yes!"

A hint of joy appeared on Xian Lin'er's face, and Qian Duoduo next to her couldn't help but laugh a few times.

Seeing Qian Duoduo's smug and irritating demeanor, Yan Shaozhe couldn't wait to go out and exchange blows with him.

The Martial Soul system and the Soul Guidance system have always been in a competitive, even somewhat antagonistic, relationship, with the Martial Soul system holding an absolute advantage.

The students in the inner academy are all proud of their powerful martial souls, believing that truly powerful soul masters do not need external objects like soul tools to compensate for their strength.

Yan Shaozhe looked at Elder Mu and tentatively asked, "Teacher, shouldn't we reconsider? This could easily shake the beliefs that Shrek Academy has always held."

Elder Mu glared at him sternly: "Do we have to lose a few more inner court disciples before we're willing to change? Times are progressing, and soul tools are a product of that progress."

"Even with a top-tier martial soul and formidable personal strength, equipping yourself with a high-level soul tool will further enhance your abilities. Can't you understand such a simple principle?"

Master Mu also shared the lessons he had learned in his later years, his tone filled with earnest teachings.

"Shao Zhe, the biggest difference between humans and monkeys is that humans use tools. Soul tools are powerful tools for enhancing one's strength. If you resist them, are you a monkey?"

Yan Shaozhe felt a little ashamed after being scolded and quickly said, "No, no, our ancestor Tang San used a storage soul tool, and I use one myself... I don't object."

In fact, there are quite a few elders who support Yan Shaozhe (his grandmother was extraordinary), and the Martial Soul system is already deeply rooted in Shrek Academy.

But now that Elder Mu has made his position clear, it would be truly short-sighted for him to object.

The elders then continued to discuss supporting the participating teams.

Qian Duoduo snorted: "If we hadn't realized the importance of soul tools in this matter, I'm afraid that in this year's Soul Master Competition, after Xiao Tao squeezed out our spot, our Soul Tool Department wouldn't have had a single regular member."

Yan Shaozhe glared at him, but didn't argue with Qian Duoduo. Instead, he looked at Elder Mu and made a suggestion.

"Elder Mu, I just looked at the list of other students in the inner courtyard who are no more than twenty years old."

"Including the Soul Guidance Department disciple whose spot was taken by Xiao Tao, I selected two more disciples from among them. They are quite capable and have good talent."

"We can send these three over together. Although it's a last-minute arrangement and not our academy's best lineup, as long as Xiao Tao is there, our overall strength will still far surpass most other academies."

The Shrek Academy's inner court disciples in each cohort are not limited to the Shrek Seven Devils.

Although some students were not selected as one of the Seven Devils, their cultivation talent and martial spirit aptitude are still outstanding among those from other academies.

Seeing that Elder Mu had been deep in thought for a long time without giving a clear answer, Yan Shaozhe said urgently, "Elder Mu, this year's Soul Master Competition is about to begin, and time is running out."

"Sending out these three inner court disciples that I selected, even if they are put together with the reserve team to form an uncoordinated team, their combat strength will still be considerable. At least they can maintain their victories in the early stages of the competition and drag it out until Xiao Tao and Luo Chen's injuries improve."

"Once Xiao Tao recovers from her injury, it won't be difficult for us to reach the semifinals under her leadership, and we even have a good chance of making it to the finals. Please make your decision as soon as possible, Mr. Mu."

After pondering for a long time, Elder Mu decided that since the eternal crown was both an honor and a shackle, he would leave it to fate whether it could be maintained or not, otherwise the ancestral laws would never be broken.

There has to be a point in time to break the shackles of Shrek's eternal glory.

Elder Mu sighed, "Send the Soul Guidance Department disciple who was squeezed out by Xiao Tao over there. He was originally a regular member of this competition and should represent the academy."

"Let's forget about the two disciples who were re-selected by the inner court."

Old Master Mu wanted to take this opportunity to break free of the shackles, so he waved his hand and said with a smile, "No need for reinforcements. Since Heaven has given them this painful experience, let them be tempered."

The elders were all taken aback.

"Elder Mu, this concerns the academy's eternal honor. Even if it's difficult to maintain, it shouldn't end so hastily."

Old Master Mu smiled calmly: "Yes, honor. Don't you think that over the years, we have long been bound by this honor?"

"Losing is not terrible; what is terrible is that we are unwilling to give up our honor and try every means to protect it, which makes us look like people who are just trying to gain fame and fortune."

The elder said with some concern, "But Elder Mu..."

"If we don't provide assistance, those young guys in the reserve team will go up and play a couple of matches and then go home. That won't do any good in terms of training them."

"On the contrary, they will have to bear the stigma and pressure of failure, and may even suffer psychological trauma due to excessive self-blame."

Old Master Mu sighed and shook his head. Although it sounded reasonable, in the end, he was trying to find a way to maintain the glory of ten thousand years.

This way, you'll never break free from your shackles.

Old Master Mu waved his hand: "Alright, my mind is made up."

"Xuanzi, after the meeting, send that disciple from the Soul Guidance Department there. As for the academy's eternal honor, I believe they will uphold it."

Elder Xuan was too ashamed to speak throughout the entire process. As he listened to the elders discussing matters closely related to the participating disciples, he was overwhelmed with shame because of his childish act of atonement with his death earlier, and the shame lingered for a long time.

After finalizing the matter of sending disciples, Mu En finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Xuanzi failed to capture the evil spirit master in time this time, partly because the other party used Xu Sanshi's life as a bargaining chip, and Xuanzi wasted time trying to save him."

"But this also shows that the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology is far ahead of ours... I'm preparing for an exchange student program."

In fact, this was what Elder Mu was most worried about: after he passed away, who would support the development of the Soul Guidance Department?

After Xuanzi ascended to the throne, he proved to be of little use. He was fine as a top-notch enforcer to protect the school, but asking him to balance the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Guidance Department and prevent conflict between the two factions was asking too much of him. Xuanzi clearly did not have the ability to do so.

It could easily cause Shrek Academy to split up.

(End of this chapter)