Douluo Continent: Tonight, a Fairy Tale Descends

After glancing at them, Cindy looked away and turned her gaze back to Pinocchio and Levin.

She didn't beat around the bush and directly asked the question that had been bothering her: "After the Soul Master Competition, why did Davis let you go so easily? With your talent, he shouldn't have let you go."

Upon hearing this, Pinocchio rolled his eyes, his expression as if he had just recalled something unpleasant.

"Tsk tsk tsk, don't even mention it." He put his hands on his hips, his tone carrying a hint of exaggerated resentment.

"That guy came to find us as soon as the Soul Master Competition was over, and he was so enthusiastic. He said a lot of nice things, like the future pillar of the empire, the pillar of Xingluo... It gave me goosebumps."

He mimicked Davis's tone, lowering his voice and deliberately dragging out the last syllable, perfectly imitating that condescending, condescending manner.

"As long as you are willing to pledge allegiance to me, in the future, the Star Luo Empire will be second only to me, with abundant resources, fiefdoms, and status."

Tsk tsk tsk, as if we care about it.

Hearing his tone, Cinderella couldn't help but slightly curl the corners of her lips. "So you didn't agree?"

"Of course I didn't agree," Pinocchio said, patting his chest confidently.

"I hate being tied up more than anything in my life. If he brings this up in a secluded place, I'll run away on the spot."

What he said was certainly tempting, but that stuff is for ambitious people. Look at me and Levin, are we those kinds of people?

He turned to look at Levin. "Right?"

Levin stood to the side, arms crossed, composed. Hearing this, he nodded slightly and added in a steady tone:

“We moved quickly, and Davis probably didn’t expect that we would abandon Xingluo’s resources and leave without saying goodbye.”

He probably thought we'd at least consider it for a few days, but Pinocchio dragged me into packing that very night, and we left Xingluo City in the early hours of the next morning.

“Besides,” Pinocchio chimed in, shrugging. “Not long after we left, Xue Qinghe surrendered his kingdom, Tiandou was merged into the Spirit Hall, and the Spirit Empire was established. The entire continent was in chaos. Davis was busy dealing with the war then; how could he have had the time to look for two geniuses who had already run away?”

He spoke lightly, but Cinderella could tell that their decision to leave Xingluo was not a spur-of-the-moment decision, but something they had planned countless times in their hearts.

She nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

Everyone has their own choices, and she, like them, chose to leave her original path and embark on a freer, but also more uncertain, path.

"So where are you planning to go next?" Cinderella changed the subject, her tone as casual as if she were talking about what to have for dinner.

Pinocchio spread his hands and said in a lighthearted tone, "Traveling, I guess. Wherever I end up, that's it. Anyway, the world is so big, there are always new things to do. I was always being watched in Xingluo, but after coming out here, I realized how interesting the outside world is."

Levin didn't reply immediately. His gaze swept over Cinderella, then glanced at the students who were dealing with the soul beast corpses not far away, before he spoke: "And you? What are your plans after you've helped these students?"

Cinderella thought for a moment and said, "Let's continue our travels. We don't have any particular destination; we'll just go wherever the road takes us."

Upon hearing this, Pinocchio's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands, his tone warm and matter-of-fact:

"That's perfect! Since you don't have any specific goals, why don't we travel together? It's much more interesting for the three of us to travel together than for you to travel alone. If anything happens, we can discuss it together, which is much better than running around aimlessly by yourself."

Cinderella raised an eyebrow slightly, glanced at him, then at Levin, her mind racing.

Pinocchio has always loved being around people and enjoys having someone to talk to, so this suggestion certainly seems like something he would come up with.

Levin did not object; he simply stood quietly to the side, his expression calm, clearly acquiescing to the suggestion.

She didn't hesitate for long and nodded: "Okay. Let's go together after I've settled these students."

Pinocchio immediately laughed, his smile filled with undisguised joy: "Then it's settled! We're not in a hurry anyway, we'll stay with you until you've dealt with these little guys, and we can lend a hand while we're at it."

Levin nodded slightly, his tone remaining calm: "That's perfect, there's nothing too urgent going on anytime soon."

Cinderella turned and walked towards the headmaster. The headmaster was squatting next to a student, instructing him on how to use a dagger to cut open the chest and abdomen of the Bluewing Bird and extract the useful materials inside.

Hearing footsteps, the dean looked up and saw Cinderella walking over. He stood up and dusted off his hands.

"Cindy, those two young men... are they your friends?" the Dean asked in a low voice, glancing at Pinocchio and Levin with a hint of cautious curiosity in his voice.

Cinderella nodded: "Yes, a friend I met at the Soul Master Competition. We happened to be traveling around this area and ran into each other."

She paused, then added, "They are also Soul Emperors, and their strength is quite good. They can help with the upcoming Soul Ring hunt."

The dean's eyes suddenly lit up.

Two Soul Emperors! Add Cinderella, and that makes three Soul Emperors. This lineup, in a small place like Notting City, was something he'd never even dared to dream of before.

He wanted to say something, but found his throat tighten. In the end, he just nodded vigorously, patted his chest, and assured them, "That's great! That's great! Don't worry, the students will definitely behave and won't cause you any trouble!"

Pinocchio and Levin quickly integrated into the small team.

Pinocchio's mouth never stops, and before long he was chatting with a few bolder students, boasting about how he dominated the Soul Master Competition and how he could take on three opponents at once without anyone being able to defeat him.

He spoke with great enthusiasm, and the students listened with great interest. Even a few children who were initially a little timid couldn't help but come closer, tilting their heads and asking, "And then what?"

Levin, on the other hand, was much quieter. He walked on the side of the group, his gaze steadily scanning the surroundings. Occasionally, when Cinderella pointed in a certain direction, he would nod slightly to indicate that he had noticed the commotion there.

With the addition of Pinocchio and Levin, the efficiency of hunting spirit rings has significantly improved.

Cinderella is responsible for sensing and selecting targets, Levin is responsible for controlling the situation, and Pinocchio uses his elusive soul threads to provide control or restraint at crucial moments.

While the three of them working together weren't exactly a perfect match, they were more than capable of dealing with some hundred-year-old soul beasts.

In the afternoon, six more students successfully obtained their respective century-old soul rings.

Including the seven from the morning, a total of thirteen students successfully obtained their first spirit ring.

The remaining students either weren't old enough or hadn't found a suitable soul beast for their martial soul attributes yet, so they needed to wait another day.

As dusk fell, the team set up camp beside a clear stream.

As the campfire blazed, the students sat around it, their faces still tinged with the excitement of hunting spirit beasts during the day, chattering excitedly about the effects of their respective spirit skills.

The dean and several teachers were busy distributing dry food and hot water, while Pinocchio squatted by the fire, skewering a few pieces of jerky on a twig and roasting them until they sizzled and dripped with oil, the aroma wafting far and wide.

Cinderella sat on a flat rock at the edge of the camp, holding a cup of hot tea, watching the lively scene around the campfire with a calm gaze.

Levin sat down on a rock not far from her, a few steps apart. Neither of them spoke, but the silence was not awkward.

After a while, Levin spoke, his voice low, as if asking casually, "You know the current situation on the mainland, so what are your plans for the future?"

Cinderella's hand holding the teacup remained still, her gaze fixed on the campfire, her voice calm: "Let's take it one step at a time. The continent is vast, and I haven't finished exploring it yet."

Levin nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

He gazed at the distant mountain range silhouetted against the twilight, his golden eyes reflecting the last rays of the sunset. After a moment of silence, he murmured as if to himself, "It is indeed very large. So large that we still have a long way to go."

From the campfire came Pinocchio's exaggerated laughter, followed by a student's joyful shout, probably because his jerky was finally cooked.

Cinderella put down her teacup, a slight smile playing on her lips, stood up, and walked toward the campfire.

"Let's go, let's go have dinner."

……

Wuhun City.

The dome of the Papal Palace still soars into the clouds, and the six wings of the angels on the stained glass windows cast dappled light and shadow in the afternoon sun, falling onto the smooth, mirror-like white marble floor and shattering into a pile of cold, crystalline glass.

Bibi Dong sat on the throne that symbolized supreme power, with several battle reports that had just been delivered spread out beside her.

It's not the North.

She had already read the battle reports from the Northern Frontier. Those cold numbers, the annihilation of 100,000 troops, and the capture of three Title Douluo were already etched into her mind, so she didn't need to read them a second time.

What she held in her hand at that moment was a summary of intelligence from the three battlefields on the eastern, southern, and western fronts.

After news of Chrysanthemum Douluo's capture spread, an offensive originally planned on the eastern front was abruptly halted.

Several legions that had already advanced to their designated positions were forced to switch to defense, and the commanders held a meeting overnight to discuss the next steps.

The situation on the southern route is slightly better, but not by much.

The annihilation of Ghost Leopard Douluo dampened the morale of the garrison on the southern front, and several kingdoms that had originally cooperated with the Spirit Empire began to reconsider their stance, resulting in a significant increase in the frequency of envoy exchanges.

The western section was the quietest, unusually so.

Bibi Dong's gaze slowly swept over the battle reports, her face expressionless.

She gently put down the battle report in her hand, leaned back in her chair, and looked at the huge six-winged angel mural on the ceiling.

There was a gentle knock on the door.

"Come in."

The door was pushed open, and a slender figure entered against the light.

Hu Liena wore a dark purple outfit today, with her long hair neatly tied back, revealing her slender and fair neck.

Her steps were light, and her boots made almost no sound on the white marble floor, yet they were exceptionally clear in the empty hall.

She stopped three steps below the throne and bowed slightly.

"teacher."

Bibi Dong didn't look up, her gaze still fixed on the mural of the six-winged angel. Her voice was as calm as if she were talking about something unimportant: "Tell me about the situation in various places."

Hu Liena straightened up, placed her hands together in front of her, and began to speak at a moderate pace, her words clear and organized, as if she were reciting a well-prepared report.

"On the Eastern Front, the offensive originally scheduled to begin in half a month has been halted. Several legions have retreated to their original defensive lines, and commanders are reassessing the situation on the front."

Several lieutenants advocated continuing the offensive, arguing that the defeat in the north was merely an accident and should not affect the overall strategy on the eastern front.

But Commander Liu Zhenwu suppressed these voices, his intention being to observe for a month and wait for clear instructions from the Papal Palace before taking action.

Bibi Dong tapped her fingers lightly on the armrest, producing a very soft thud. She didn't speak, gesturing for Hu Liena to continue.

“The situation on the southern front is a bit more complicated.” Hu Liena’s voice remained steady, but there was a hint of seriousness in her tone.

"After the Kingdom of Barak split, Princess Aurora's faction joined the Anti-Martial Soul Alliance. Although she only controlled half of the territory and army, her influence was much greater than the numbers on paper."

She gained considerable influence within the alliance on behalf of the Kingdom of Barak, and she consistently used her status as a princess to win over neutral forces that were still observing the situation.

She paused, as if organizing her thoughts.

"According to reports from the southern front, at least four small principalities that were previously wavering in their stance have recently begun to reduce their interactions with the Martial Soul Empire. Their envoys are no longer visiting the southern garrison's camps as frequently as before, and their orders for supplies have also decreased significantly."

Bibi Dong slightly raised her eyelids, a faint, cold glint flashing in her purple eyes. But she remained silent.

“The western front…” Hu Liena lowered her voice slightly.

"The situation on the western front is the most unusual. It's too quiet. It's abnormally quiet. There's been no unusual movement from the garrison there. There's been no reinforcement or withdrawal, and even the frequency of routine patrols hasn't changed. But that's precisely why it's so alarming."

Hu Liena raised her head and looked at Bibi Dong: "The Anti-Martial Soul Alliance doesn't have many troops on the western front to begin with. Logically speaking, they should take this opportunity to launch some probing attacks on the western front."

But they didn't. It was like... they weren't in a hurry at all.

Bibi Dong finally spoke. Her voice wasn't loud, but it echoed clearly in the empty hall: "Not in a hurry? No, they don't want to alert the enemy."