...
Huo Yuhao looked at Princess Jiujiu on the sofa opposite him, who had hung up the voice transmission soul tool without hesitation, his expression turning odd.
Wait, lady, why does what you just said sound so strange?
"Where were we?"
Xu Jiujiu smiled and nodded. "Continue, I'm listening."
Even though there was no one else in the room and the two were sitting face-to-face, Xu Jiujiu still put on a very serious act, her large purple eyes even blinking a couple of times.
Speechless, Huo Yuhao grabbed the small foot in black stockings that was rubbing all over his leg. "...Then what is your foot doing?"
"...You don't seem to hate it, though." Xu Jiujiu looked innocent, and after speaking, her little foot playfully rubbed against his palm again.
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath, set Xu Jiujiu's stockinged foot down, and tried to maintain the last shred of safety distance.
"...The Empire wants to grant titles and official positions? Or is it just for me alone?"
Ten thousand years ago, the Heaven Dou Empire had granted many titles to win over competing teams; anyone at the level of a Soul Ancestor or above could receive a Viscountcy.
But that was because of the existence of the Martial Soul Hall. To compete for talented Soul Masters against the Martial Soul Hall, the two great empires had to promise heavy rewards to top geniuses.
After the Martial Soul Hall vanished, the various measures of granting titles to Soul Masters to win over geniuses and wild Soul Masters naturally disappeared as well.
Even the free awakening of a martial soul no longer existed. Those who could awaken a martial soul were all "insiders" within the noble system, so why bother putting in the effort to win over commoner geniuses?
Xu Jiujiu spread her hands. "You have performed such a great service for the Empire; the Empire naturally distinguishes between rewards and punishments."
A look of doubt flickered on Huo Yuhao's face. What kind of great service is this?
"This isn't right... After all, I didn't even participate in the matches, and what would the other team members think?"
Xu Jiujiu sat with her left hand supporting her right elbow and her right hand pressed against her mouth, looking at Huo Yuhao. "Use that clever little head of yours. How old are you? Even if you were given an official post, could you take office? As the saying goes, 'one radish, one hole.' Once you, the radish, are put into this hole, there are fewer people who can covet it."
...This is exactly why I don't want to deal with the Imperial Family.
Huo Yuhao relaxed his body, sinking into the sofa, and rolled his eyes somewhat gloomily. There were just too many twists and turns in this!
However, it must be said that what Xu Jiawei gave this time was truly extraordinary.
A hereditary Marquisate: the Marquis of Spirit Ice; appointment as General of the Agile Cavalry, acting as a Palace Attendant, managing the affairs of the Secretariat, granted the same honors as the Three Ducal Ministers, and Commander-in-Chief of all military affairs inside and outside the capital.
Carrying a sword and wearing shoes into the palace, not scurrying at court, and not being called by name during salutations.
[In a setting like Douluo with its mix of Eastern and Western elements, as long as you understand the general meaning, there's no need to overthink the specifics.]
The hierarchy of peerage is Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron. Because of the scandal exposed at the tournament and the discovery in the Mingdou Mountains that he had covered up the truth of his defeat, Xu Jiawei "had to" issue an imperial decree to demote Dai Hao and strip him of his rank. Now, Huo Yuhao directly surpassed Dai Hao in social status.
In other words, from now on, when Dai Hao meets Huo Yuhao, he must salute respectfully.
Anyone who has navigated officialdom knows that Xu Jiawei's move was to use Huo Yuhao to check and balance the Star Luo court. After all, for any dynasty, balance is always the monarch's most commonly used tactic.
The vacant rank of Marshal in the Western Army Group was filled by a veteran of the Imperial Family, and several of Mu En's confidants in the military were "sent" to the north to participate in the war against the Dou Ling Empire.
As for those eight "Usurpation Starter Pack" items mentioned earlier... I, Xu Jiawei, am a loyal minister of Star Luo and cannot ignore them.
Seeing Huo Yuhao's depressed face, Xu Jiujiu felt in a great mood. She clapped her hands and stood up. "I've brought your formal attire. Remember to change tonight and accompany this Princess to the banquet."
...
In an inconspicuous hotel in Star Luo City.
The members of the Shrek Academy team sat around an old man leaning on a cane. Next to him was another old man who looked like a beggar with a scruffy beard, tightening a rope around his belly.
Wang Yan asked curiously, "Elder Mu, are we still heading back to Shrek?"
The tournament was over—why stay in Star Luo City? Wouldn't that be inviting ridicule?
Mu En said calmly, "You guys go first. Wait a few more days."
After speaking, his gaze seemed to sweep—intentionally or not—over Ma Xiaotao and Zhang Lexuan.
He turned to look at the sky outside the window. "I am already a sinner of Shrek, so I certainly cannot leave Shrek with another enemy that it cannot resist in the future..."
He didn't want to destroy a genius, but for the future of Shrek, he had no choice.
Destiny is written in the stars, and as a Limit Douluo, Mu En naturally knew this.
Therefore, he planned to use the last of his old life to make a gamble, seeking only to "win by half a piece" against Heaven...
He would deal with or even severely wound Du Busi himself, and let Elder Xuan kill Xu Jiawei.
Even if it failed, it wouldn't matter if Elder Xuan died like that; it would be considered removing a hidden danger for Shrek. As long as Xu Jiawei could be severely wounded, it would buy time for Shrek to develop.
Actually, it wasn't strange for Mu En to be so dedicated to Shrek. Don't forget that the Shrek of the past was built on the foundation of the Blue Tyrant Academy. At most, it was just a change of leadership; at its root, it was still an enterprise of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
As a descendant of the Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang, it wasn't strange for Mu En to give his all for this "family business" that was Shrek.
Mu En knew things wouldn't go that smoothly, but for some reason, he had an indescribable sense of strangeness.
...
In a basement where people in black clothes gathered, a burst of raspy, excited laughter rang out.
"Jie jie jie! As expected of the Holy Maiden manifested by the Holy Emperor, a flame of darkness nearing the Ultimate—it's truly unimaginable!"
"Good, very good! Shrek is indeed the continent's number one academy, full of talent. It's much more convenient than our Holy Spirit Cult searching the whole continent for a Holy Maiden!"
"Indeed. Not only is there a Blue Silver Holy Maiden, but there can also be a Fire Phoenix Holy Maiden. Shrek truly has a destiny with our Holy Cult!"
"Enshrine White Feather is right. That Bright Phoenix Douluo, Yan Shaozhe, sent our cult an Evil Phoenix Vice-Leader, and now he's sending us an Evil Fire Phoenix Holy Maiden. He must be a disciple of our cult who strayed outside! Hahaha..."
The silver-haired middle-aged man sitting in the center spoke indifferently:
"Everyone listen up. We will set an ambush halfway at the Liming Plain. I, the Cult Leader, will personally stop Mu En. You take the opportunity to take the Holy Maiden away. That will be better than storming Sea God Island, which is guarded by the Golden Tree!"
"Remember, do not linger in battle. Our target is the Holy Maiden. Now is not the time to completely fall out and start a full-scale war with Shrek."
"Yes! We obey the Cult Leader's command!" the group of evil soul master Enshrines responded in unison.
Ma Xiaotao's "Dark Phoenix" mode had still drawn the attention of the evil soul masters. Combined with the tip-off from Tang Ya, who had already been discovered by the Holy Spirit Cult, this gave the Leader of the Holy Spirit Cult immense confidence.
PS: The original novel was pretty hard to take seriously, too. Xuan Zi took Old Huo and the others to the Star Dou Forest to hunt for Soul Rings, and then the Holy Spirit Cult raided Shrek Academy and abducted Ma Xiaotao—but why was the raiding party led by only a single Super Douluo? Were they really *that* overconfident? That's why I decided to give them a bit of a power boost here.