"..."
With Gu Yuena's sudden appearance, Cai Yue'er's pupils contracted—rainbow eyes, white hair, and a youth beside her, these two exactly matched Wu Zhangkong's descriptions.
The Super Douluo aura slowly condensed within her.
Cai Yue'er took a deep breath, brows still furrowed. "May I ask, have you come to challenge Shrek Academy?"
The scene left several exam teachers baffled. With Elder Cai's usual temper, these two would be buried down to their hips in metal…
How come…
Or perhaps this was a different kind of compromise?
But this was Shrek Academy!
The undisputed top power on the continent.
Even the likes of Spirit Pagoda wouldn't dare be so bold. Elder Cai, in her own stronghold, was being this… cautious?
"Gu Yue must not join Shrek!" Gu Yuena raised her chin, voice arrogant.
"No matter how strong you are, Shrek Academy isn't to be trifled with. Gu Yue entered by official means. If you try to take her by force, we'll fight to the bitter end," Cai Yue'er replied flatly.
At this, the examiners were even more lost.
Staring at Gu Yuena and Su Wen, question marks bloomed above their heads.
Like Elder Cai was talking to the air—if they were Spirit Pagoda, Body Sect, or Tang Sect powerhouses, fine…
But these were just young looking folks?
Shen Yi, meanwhile, was terrified. After retreating from view, she sprinted at full speed towards the Inner Court.
She had to alert the elders!
"You have no right to interfere with her freedom," Cai Yue'er said, her tone cool, turning to look at the bewildered Gu Yue—she thought the girl was frightened, so she gently patted her head. "Don't be afraid. Shrek will protect you! As long as you wish to stay, no one can take you away—not even a god!"
"..."
"Arrogant!"
Gu Yuena's gaze turned cold.
She looked at Gu Yue again. She was willing to give her "self" a chance, which was why she still hadn't acted. But once she did, the pain would be unimaginable.
"Gu Yue, tell me—did you decide this on your own?"
"No, Di Tian put me up to it."
Su Wen cut in nearby.
"Shut up!"
Gu Yuena glared at him, embarrassed.
Her multi-colored eyes watched her "future self," sighing deeply. "Really, was all this your choice?"
"Yes!"
Gu Yue stepped from behind Cai Yue'er, staring intently at Gu Yuena with stubborn eyes. "Only by integrating can I know their weaknesses; then I can totally—"
Before she finished, a clear slap echoed. A red handprint appeared on her cheek.
"..."
The hall froze.
Even Cai Yue'er's pupils shrank.
She hadn't even sensed when Gu Yuena appeared behind her!
Was this… spatial power?
And wielded so freely, as if it bent to her will.
She stood frozen, not daring to move.
Even if she brought out her Three-Word Battle Armor, she doubted she could withstand this mysterious woman's attack. At this range, had killing intent flared, she'd be dead before she could move…
How strong!
Cai Yue'er's throat moved.
This overwhelming pressure, that strength revealed in a gesture—all reminded her of Yun Ming.
To his enemies, Yun Ming must have felt just like this.
So—
A strange scene unfolded.
The white-haired girl, rainbow gaze cold, fixed a steely look on the silver-haired girl—a mix of anger, frustration, and disappointment in her eyes. The silver-haired girl wiped blood from her lips, turning to meet Gu Yuena's eyes with stubborn defiance.
It was as if they fell into a world where time stood still.
And the true culprit—Su Wen—folded his arms, coolly enjoying the "spectacle." (Time stop)
"What right do you have to hit me!"
Gu Yue shouted.
"Because you're unworthy of being the soul beast queen! You have power to destroy the humans outright, but you waste this hard-won chance on some infiltration plan! What are you hesitating for!" Gu Yuena grabbed Gu Yue's collar and scolded harshly.
"You're me. You should understand," Gu Yue said coldly.
"Only by understanding humans can I annihilate them completely."
"Ha…"
Gu Yuena's eyes filled with despair. How was her future self such a stubborn fool?
A deep sense of helplessness surged.
If not for Su Wen, would this really have been her future?
"So you keep saying it's 'for the soul beasts'—but what have you really done?"
Su Wen interjected cheerfully.
Exposing sore points was his specialty.
"You are…"
Gu Yue narrowed her eyes.
"Answer me!"
"I cut myself, risking my life to come to Shrek, to learn human ways so I could destroy humans," Gu Yue snapped back coldly.
"So dumb," Su Wen sighed.
"What right do you have to call me dumb! I inherited the Dragon God's wisdom! Who are you to judge?"
Sure enough, Gu Yue snapped—her usually calm eyes now like a furious little lion.
"So it's the Dragon God's wisdom, huh…" Su Wen feigned realization.
Gu Yuena's mouth twitched, looking away in exasperation.
Meanwhile, Gu Yue exploded.
She tried to release her Silver Dragon power to attack him but was stunned to realize…in this "domain," she couldn't draw on any power!
It was as if the other party had absolute control.
"As soul beast queen, did you know how many bled to heal your wounds?"
Su Wen stared down at Gu Yue, his gaze indifferent.
"The entire Star Dou Forest kept feeding you, anxiously hoping you'd heal and lead them out of misery, away from human slaughter. That's the only thing keeping Di Tian going after all these years—just you…"
"And what happened?"
"When you healed, your first step was to cut yourself, turn human, join humanity…from a human point of view, sure, we should thank the soul beast clan for having such a dumb leader. But from Di Tian's?"
"You're a failure."
"I…" Gu Yue's face filled with resentment, trying to argue, but Su Wen cut her off again.
"So, have you done anything significant? Even if you couldn't wipe out the humans, as long as you led the soul beasts, negotiated, reclaimed some of the Star Dou Forest, that'd be something."
"But did you?"
"You clearly have the power to bulldoze your way through, but you come up with this plan to cut yourself, infiltrate the humans—tsk tsk."
"That's the wisdom of the Dragon God?"
"How 'amazing'."
"I…"
"You sensed the Golden Dragon King's aura just now. Why not devour him?" Su Wen pressed, gaze amused.
"Don't tell me it'd disrupt your infiltration plans?"
"Then why didn't you sneak into the human world back when you were weak and wounded? What's the difference now?"
Gu Yue pursed her lips, looking more and more wronged.
But Su Wen didn't let up. He wanted her to face herself.
"Or did you just enjoy being cared for in Star Dou, sucking out the tribe's marrow, leaving them bruised and battered, then decide to have fun in the human world?!!!"
"Look me in the eye and answer!"
Su Wen made Gu Yue face him, holding her chin.
"All this, really, it's just that you haven't had your fill. And even now, you drag Zi Ji around, leaving her waiting in peril outside Shrek City…"
Gu Yue tried to look calm, but her heart was clearly breaking.
Su Wen slowed his voice, "Why didn't you bring Di Tian? Let me guess…"
"Maybe because he nags you to hurry, and you get annoyed. You just want to have fun among humans, since at least Zi Ji always listens to you unquestioningly…"
"Enough!!!"
Gu Yue screamed in tears.
Her silver hair stood on end, the beautiful violet in her eyes streaked with red.
"Tsk."
Su Wen smiled.
"You're only capable of powerless rage now."
"Waaah…"
Gu Yue couldn't hold back and started bawling.
Truth be told, Gu Yue was likely only as mature as her current human body. The Silver Dragon King, everyone's hope, but on the inside, just a child. She thought she could handle anything with ease, but her timeline was just as messy as before.
Many things weren't even true.
But the moment a thought had ever crossed her mind, Su Wen's logic pounced on it—not allowing denial, crushing her spirit.
At this point…
He'd guessed right.
Early on, Gu Yue probably thought she was unbeatable, planned to have some fun among humans, but then met Tang Wulin, slowly grew attached, and ended up all knotted inside.
To take revenge, she'd have to kill Tang Wulin.
In this 'romance-drenched' land, that was harder than killing one's blood relatives.
Di Tian, in the original, never stopped urging, but was always put off by Gu Yue…
Ah, the power of Love Gods.
So many years, and its aftershocks linger still…
"Maybe I was too harsh?" Gu Yuena poked Su Wen quietly.
It was satisfying, but after all, that was her future self.
Often, scolding Gu Yue felt like scolding herself.
"No, let her face her own heart," Su Wen shook his head, crouching down to meet Gu Yue's teary eyes.
The latter glared back, her face bitter, "Go away, I don't need your sympathy. Quit pretending to be nice…"
"No."
Su Wen shook his head.
"I just wanted to say—we're from ten thousand years ago, but we know exactly what your future holds. And in the future, you don't destroy the humans—instead, you fall in love with Tang Wulin. You kill yourself, he dies for you, and the soul beast race is doomed to suffer…"
Gu Yue: "…"
"Waaaah!!!"
She burst into louder sobs.
Su Wen, for his part, just smiled, mission accomplished.