Chapter 91: Can't Hold It In Anymore
Having finished her instructions, Zhang Lexuan gave everyone a slight nod and quietly departed, leaving the space to these young people who had just experienced an intense confrontation.
With the teacher no longer present, the atmosphere in the arena immediately relaxed, but a moment later, everyone's gaze simultaneously turned toward that figure who had just won a one-on-four battle without sustaining a single scratch.
Chen Zifeng was the first to walk over, rubbing his still aching abdomen with a bitter smile and a helpless tone.
"Junior Lin Xuan, your strikes... were really ruthless. You should have at least saved some face for us seniors; being cleared out of the field so quickly is quite embarrassing."
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Hearing this, a gentle smile appeared on Lin Xuan's face, and his tone was sincere.
"It is precisely because Senior's strength is formidable and your soul chasing sword is incomparably sharp that I had to go all out and didn't dare to hold back. If I have offended you, please forgive me."
Upon hearing this, the smile on Chen Zifeng's face deepened, and the slight frustration in his heart dissipated. He laughed heartily and patted Lin Xuan on the shoulder.
"Good kid, you know how to talk! Strong and quick-witted—you have a bright future ahead of you!"
Yao Haoxuan also approached, clicking his tongue in admiration.
"Junior is truly a classy person, staying so polite even after winning."
"But Chen Zifeng, Ling Luochen, you two don't need to be discouraged. Winning and losing are normal. When the sun rises, forget about yesterday."
"Forget my foot! You weren't the one getting hit," Chen Zifeng said crossly.
Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei, He Caitou, and the others also gathered around, and the atmosphere became relaxed and harmonious for a time.
However, on the edge of this cheerful atmosphere, three figures remained notably silent, each with their own thoughts.
Xixi stood quietly not far away, her gaze lingering on Lin Xuan most of the time, her eyes filled with contemplation.
She specialized in speed and was particularly sensitive to the acceleration effects of the lightning attribute. Lin Xuan's lightning-like movement technique, which resembled Teleportation, had left a deep impression on her.
Should she... find an opportunity to ask him privately about some insights into combining the lightning attribute with speed?
Ling Luochen stood alone even further out, her back to the crowd.
At some point, a small and exquisite ice mirror had appeared in her hand. She was looking into it, her fingertips gently touching the five faint red fingerprints on her fair neck that had not yet fully faded.
The mirror reflected her face, which remained cold and beautiful but was slightly flushed.
Naturally, there was embarrassment and annoyance, as she had never been treated so roughly by a member of the opposite sex before.
But what unsettled her even more was the tremor and sense of submission her Martial Soul had transmitted at that moment.
Ling Luochen's mind was in a mess, but since she wasn't familiar with Lin Xuan, she couldn't very well go and ask. She could only put away the mirror and pull her collar up a bit higher.
As for Wang Dong, he was silently squatting at the edge of the Soul Fighting Platform, holding a small twig and aimlessly drawing circles on the ground, as if cursing the guy who had kicked him away.
...
In the early morning, the distant mountains were still soaked in un-dissipated mist. The light of dawn was faint, but Shrek City had already awakened from its slumber, with the sounds of voices and carriages gradually rising from the streets and alleys.
Outside the East City Gate, the fourteen members of the main and preparatory teams had already assembled. Accompanying them was Wang Yan, the teacher responsible for theoretical instruction, who would serve as the leading teacher and tactical commander for this tournament.
Time gradually passed, and as the appointed departure time approached, that gentle figure was still nowhere to be seen.
"Strange, why hasn't the Eldest Senior Sister arrived yet?" Ma Xiaotao looked around, her red hair fluttering slightly in the morning breeze, as she asked in confusion.
Yao Haoxuan suggested, "Gongyang Mo, why don't... you go to the Inner Court and check?"
Gongyang Mo was following closely beside Lin Xuan and He Caitou, asking various questions with great interest. Hearing this, he didn't even turn his head and said in a high-pitched, thin voice,
"Why don't you go?"
Yao Haoxuan was choked by the reply. Beside them, Ning Tian frowned slightly, her gaze warily sweeping over Gongyang Mo's figure, which was positioned far too close to Lin Xuan.
"Forget it, I'll go take a look."
Dai Yueheng sighed and was about to turn around.
"Go where?"
A slurred, aged voice accompanied by the smell of alcohol abruptly rang out from behind everyone.
Lin Xuan's eyelids couldn't help but twitch, and a bad premonition immediately rose in his heart.
Turning around, as expected, the slovenly Xuan Zi, with a chicken leg in one hand and a wine gourd in the other, was wobbling toward them.
"Elder Xuan? Why is it you? Where is Eldest Senior Sister?" Xu Sanshi, being blunt, blurted out the question.
"Do you know how to talk, kid?"
Xuan Zi's figure flashed, and he appeared beside Xu Sanshi in an instant. He raised his hand and gave him a solid flick on the forehead, making Xu Sanshi cry out "Ouch" as he clutched his head and squatted down.
He took a swig of wine, his cloudy old eyes scanning the stunned group, and said crossly,
"Lexuan is only a Soul Douluo. You think she can lead a bunch of little brats like you to the Star Luo Empire? You think this is just a sightseeing trip? If something goes wrong on the way, who's going to take responsibility?"
Hearing these words, Lin Xuan truly couldn't hold it in anymore.
Good grief. Before, joking that Xuan Zi was the Supreme Elder of the Holy Spirit Cult was purely a jest, but seeing the righteous way he had replaced Zhang Lexuan now, one really couldn't help but be suspicious.
"I had some private business yesterday, so I had Lexuan fill in temporarily. Now that the matter is resolved, naturally, I will be the one leading you."
Xuan Zi took another slurred sip of wine, clearly too lazy to explain further, and gave a broad wave of his hand.
"Don't just stand there! Depart for the Star Luo Empire!"
Before his voice had even faded, his figure blurred, and he appeared dozens of yards away. With a few more flashes, he vanished at the end of the road, leaving behind only the faint scent of alcohol in the air and a group of students looking at each other in bewilderment.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
After all, compared to the gentle, beautiful, and kind Zhang Lexuan, Xuan Zi was awkward no matter how one looked at him.
As for the issue of strength, to be honest, just looking at Xuan Zi's chicken-leg-and-wine-clutching appearance made it very difficult for anyone to truly feel at ease.
Seeing the somewhat somber atmosphere, Wang Yan immediately stepped forward to smooth things over.
"Elder Xuan has a point. After all, we will be in a foreign land, and you are the elite disciples of the academy. Safety must be the top priority. With Elder Xuan leading the team, even if we were in the hostile Sun Moon Empire, our safety would not be an issue."
These words indeed sounded reasonable to those who didn't know about Xuan Zi's 'illustrious' past deeds.
Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei, and the other Outer Academy students nodded in agreement upon hearing this.
However, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, Chen Zifeng, and the other seven Inner Court disciples simply looked impassive. They didn't even look Wang Yan in the eye, their reactions being extremely cold.
What a joke. At such an old age, he's still only a Soul King. Inside the academy, we give you face by calling you 'Teacher,' but outside the academy, who cares about you?
"Everyone, let's move out."
Dai Yueheng's steady voice rang out. As the former captain of the main team, he naturally took over command.
"Ma Xiaotao and I will lead the way. Chen Zifeng, Haoxuan, you two are responsible for the rear. Everyone else stay in the middle. Maintain formation and look out for one another. If anything happens on the way, signal immediately."
"Yes," the Inner Court members responded in unison, their actions swift.
The preparatory members also quickly followed suit, and the team soon took shape and began its march.
Wang Yan rubbed his nose awkwardly, though he had long anticipated this scenario.
There was no helping it; on the Douluo Continent, strength was respected above all else. Theoretical knowledge might be useful, but enemies wouldn't sit down and debate scriptures with you to decide the outcome.
This leg of the journey went smoothly. Starting at dawn and continuing until noon, after traveling for half a day, everyone finally stopped to rest in a forest adjacent to a stream and began preparing a meal together.
After a simple lunch, Xuan Zi casually wiped his greasy hands on his slovenly clothes—which were of an indistinguishable original color—cleared his throat, and summoned the scattered students before him.
He looked around at these two generations of Shrek elites—the seven main members and the seven preparatory members. The usual dazed and lazy look on his face gradually faded, his cloudy old eyes became clear, and even his voice turned serious.
"While we're still not far from the academy, there are some decisions you can still go back on. Especially you little ones in the preparatory team, listen closely. What I'm about to say concerns your future fate."
Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but listen intently, fearing they might miss a single detail.
"From the moment you entered the preparatory team, it meant you already had one foot in the Inner Court. But if you want to enter the Shrek Academy Inner Court, you must take on the responsibility unique to the Inner Court, which is to become a member of the Shrek Guardians..."
Next, Xuan Zi recounted the historical origins of the Inner Court and the Guardians. He spoke of how Shrek Academy had, for ten thousand years, used the Guardians as both sword and shield to navigate the dark side of the continent, hunting Evil Soul Masters, maintaining balance and order, and the blood and sacrifice involved in this long process.
As he spoke, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and the other Inner Court disciples all looked solemn with their backs straightened. Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, He Caitou, and most of the other preparatory members also felt their blood boiling with excitement, as if sharing in Shrek's ten thousand years of glory.
Lin Xuan, however, had extremely calm eyes, at most putting on a bit of a show whenever Xuan Zi looked over.
The reason Shrek Academy could possess the supreme glory and lofty status it had today from exterminating Evil Soul Masters lay in the generations of like-minded people who had stepped forward, one after another, with justice in their hearts.
It was those specific, living beings who had used their faith, courage, and even sacrifice to uphold this glory.
For these individuals, Lin Xuan felt respect.
That pure conviction and courage to face the darkness and shoulder heavy responsibilities was worthy of admiration regardless of the era or standpoint.
But what he admired were those people themselves, not the organization behind them called Shrek Academy, nor the symbol of the Guardians which had been imbued with special meaning.
Perhaps the former Lin Xuan would have been easily moved and hot-blooded like Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, but now—sorry, I don't buy into this.
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