Chapter 189: 208. Xiao Wu Has Disappeared
After informing Dai Mubai, Tang San headed to the girls' dorm to call for Xiao Wu. Her fair, porcelain-like face carried a delicate blush when she appeared.
Tang San suddenly realized that the Xiao Wu before him looked even more alluring than usual.
"Brother San, why are you waking me up so early?" Xiao Wu muttered in mild irritation, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
"Xiao Wu, Dean Flender summoned us to gather. We're going out to help Oscar hunt for his next spirit ring," Tang San explained.
Xiao Wu nodded without protest and followed Tang San to the plaza, where the rest of the Shrek Six were already waiting.
Flender said, "Tang San, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong—this will be your first spirit beast hunt. Zhao Wuji will lead the expedition, but the actual hunting must be done by you. This is to sharpen your combat skills. Zhao Wuji will intervene only when your lives are in danger."
Then Flender pulled Zhao Wuji aside, glaring and warning sternly, "Zhao Wuji, I won't revisit your past mistakes, but listen to me carefully. No eating too much, no drinking on the job. Watch these monsters closely—they're the future of Shrek Academy. If anything happens to them under your watch, I'll personally peel that bear hide off your body. Got it?"
Seeing that Flender wasn't joking in the least, Zhao Wuji straightened his posture and promised, "Rest assured, Dean. I'll keep these little monsters safe."
He turned to the group and shouted, "Alright, little monsters, let's move out!"
Reborn into new lives, the Shrek team's journey to hunt spirits unfolded almost identically to before. They ran into Canghui Academy, provoked a fight, and Zhao Wuji ended up beating Ye Zhichou senseless. That much went unchanged.
Later, during the hunt, they encountered a thousand-year Flame Tail Crest Serpent, which led to their meeting with the Snake Woman, Chao Tianxiang, and her granddaughter, Meng Yiran. Through a bet between Tang San and Meng Yiran, the serpent eventually became Oscar's third spirit ring.
Everything seemed to be following the course of their past lives perfectly.
"If I'm not mistaken," Dai Mubai said confidently, "that big ape should be showing up any moment now."
"Oscar," Tang San called, "you have that flying sausage ready?"
"Already made, San. Here." Oscar handed him one of the sausages.
"Thanks," Tang San said, taking it.
The Shrek reincarnators all waited—the moment when the Titan Giant Ape would appear to disrupt events should have been coming. But unexpectedly—
It never came.
"Xiao Wu—she's gone! Xiao Wu's missing!"
Dai Mubai was the first to realize it, panic flashing across his face.
Tang San froze, then his eyes burned scarlet and his breath came heavy and sharp. Another variable! Xiao Wu was gone—but not taken by the Titan Giant Ape. That damned ape had failed its duty! If Xiao Wu suffers any harm because of this, I'll shatter your soul myself and erase your existence forever!
Fueled by fury, Tang San swallowed Oscar's flying sausage and rocketed into the forest canopy.
"Spread out and search!" Ma Hongjun barked. "Oscar, give me a sausage!"
Oscar quickly handed flying sausages to both Fatty and Dai Mubai, while he stayed behind, pacing anxiously.
Watching their frantic reactions, no one could tell the difference between the panic of Xiao Wu's secret lovers and that of her supposed boyfriend—because all three were searching with equal desperation.
But Xiao Wu's "disappearance" wasn't an accident at all—it was deliberate.
Deep in the forest, she stood facing a towering, muscular young man with dark skin and broad shoulders—stronger even than Dai Mubai. His presence made the trees tremble slightly.
"Er Ming," Xiao Wu sighed, rubbing her temples, "didn't I tell you to stay in the forest and wait for me to finish my revenge? Why follow me now?"
The burly youth scratched his chin sheepishly. "But Xiao Wu-jie, I missed you."
It was Er Ming—the Titan Giant Ape himself. After Xiao Wu had taken human form and left, he'd been consumed with longing for her. Before long, he too transformed into human form and ventured into the human world. But unable to find her, and fearful of being hunted as a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, he lingered along the border between the human realm and Star Dou Forest, cultivating by day and quietly waiting for her.
Until now—he had finally caught her scent and rushed to reunite.
But Xiao Wu was far from pleased by his transformation.
Both Er Ming and his brother Da Ming were irreplaceable weapons in her future revenge plan. Her enemy was a powerful Title Douluo, and her vengeance would require both brothers' strength. Yet Er Ming, driven by emotion, had taken human form—sacrificing his immense beast power. A soul beast who transformed lost much of its might, beginning anew from scratch.
"You missed me, sure," she scolded. "But acting this recklessly? You know that once you take human form, your power resets. You'll have to cultivate all over again!"
"Sorry, Xiao Wu-jie," Er Ming muttered, lowering his head in shame. Then his golden eyes flicked up curiously. "But… Xiao Wu-jie, have you noticed something strange between us?"
At those words, Xiao Wu froze. When she'd first sensed Er Ming's summons, she'd been too agitated to think. But now, prompted by his observation, realization dawned.
There really was something—some kind of connection between them. A resonance.
Could it be… a martial soul fusion technique? Impossible! They were both spirit beasts turned human. How could soul beasts generate a fusion technique like humans? Xiao Wu was bewildered.
She couldn't make sense of it—so she stopped trying. What mattered was that the connection existed, and that she was the dominant force within it. Er Ming was loyal, and his Titan Giant Ape bloodline was unrivaled in power. If the two of them could create a fusion skill, it would surely be monstrously strong. Once he regained his Title Douluo-level strength, he'd be a vital asset in her revenge.
In Xiao Wu's mind, the men around her now formed a hierarchy.
At the top was Er Ming—her most powerful and faithful ally.
Next came Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar—they shared martial soul fusion bonds with her, but none as deep as Er Ming's.
And at the very bottom… Tang San.
After years of slow manipulation, Tang San had been reduced to a docile pet. He was obedient, loyal, utterly devoted—but to Xiao Wu, that made him nothing more than a faithful dog. She cared for him the way one might care for a pet—but never as an equal, never as a lover.
"So," Xiao Wu said at last, "why don't we try cultivating together and see what happens?"
"Really? I can train with you, Xiao Wu-jie?" Er Ming stammered, his cheeks reddening.
"Stop dawdling," Xiao Wu commanded, smiling slightly. "Come here already."
(END CHAPTER)
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