"Completely defeated..."
These four words echoed within the spacious hall of the Sea Gods Pavilion like a curse.
Immediately following was a heart-stopping silence.
But this silence lasted for less than three seconds before it was completely shattered by a volcanic eruption of exclamations and questions!
"This is impossible!"
A hot-tempered Sea Gods Pavilion Elder slammed his hand on the table and rose abruptly, causing the hard Golden Wood table to groan under the weight of the strike.
"Lost? How could she have lost! And to be crushed head-on?"
"That's Ma Xiaotao! A Spirit Saint under twenty years old with the Evil Fire Phoenix Spirit! Forget her peers, even among the experts of the middle-aged generation, how many would dare claim they could definitely beat her?"
"That Liu Yuan is only a Spirit King! There's a full twenty-Rank difference between them! What does twenty Ranks mean? It's a chasm! An insurmountable gap! How could he possibly win against Ma Xiaotao?"
"Is the intelligence incorrect? Or did the Sun Moon Team use some despicable, illegal tactics?"
The Sea Gods Pavilion Elders, who usually remained unfazed even if Mount Tai collapsed before them, had completely lost their composure.
Their pride and their understanding of the world were being challenged as never before.
Shrek Academy, the number one academy on the continent, a synonym for glory.
They were used to winning, used to crushing others, and used to looking down on their opponents from a position of superiority.
But now, someone was telling them that their strongest student had been defeated by a youth twenty Ranks lower than her.
This sense of absurdity was something they could neither accept nor understand.
Even the usually calm Yan Shaozhe's face was now ashen, his eyes filled with shock and confusion.
He looked at the trembling intelligence officer, his lips twitching as if he wanted to ask something, but anything he could say felt hollow and powerless.
Just as the chaotic clamor was about to blow the roof off the Sea Gods Pavilion, a gentle yet supremely majestic voice slowly rang out.
"Quiet, everyone."
The voice wasn't loud, yet it seemed to possess a strange magic, instantly calming the agitated spirit power fluctuations in the air and causing all the Elders on the verge of fury to shudder and shut their mouths.
In the main seat of the hall, the old man who had been reclining on a lounge chair as if asleep—the Dragon God Douluo, Mu En—slowly opened eyes that seemed to encompass all creation.
"Noise cannot solve problems, and anger cannot hide the facts."
Mu En spoke flatly, turning his gaze toward the intelligence officer still kneeling on the floor:
"Since Shaozhe arranged for a recording, then play it."
"Hearing is hollow, but seeing is believing. Let us see exactly how this unprecedented defeat of Shrek in ten thousand years occurred."
"Yes... Yes! Elder Mu!"
The intelligence officer hurriedly pulled a spirit tool with an extremely complex Core Formation from his robes and tremblingly placed it in the center of the long table.
As spirit power was injected, a clear light screen instantly unfolded above the Sea Gods Pavilion.
On the screen was the world-renowned duel at Star Luo Plaza.
The Sea Gods Pavilion fell silent once more as over a dozen pairs of eyes, representing the peak combat power of the current Douluo Continent, stared intently at every detail on the light screen.
The footage soon came to an end.
But this time, the Sea Gods Pavilion was plunged into a total, deathly silence.
Everyone felt a deep sense of shock; they looked at one another, their eyes filled with disbelief.
After a long while, Xian Liner took a deep breath and broke the silence, her tone tinged with bitterness:
"This... was not Ma Xiaotao's fault."
"Indeed."
Another Elder sighed, his previously straight back seeming to slouch a bit more:
"Ma Xiaotao, that child, performed very well."
"Facing a powerful enemy, she didn't underestimate her opponent or charge in recklessly; she used her full strength from the start and even made the most correct judgments during the battle, attempting to force a breakthrough with the explosive power of the Phoenix Evil Fire."
"But... who could have imagined that Liu Yuan would be so Heaven-Defying?"
Yan Shaozhe looked at the youthful figure in the frozen frame, his eyes full of complexity:
"Fire Immunity... it's been so many years since I last heard of such a thing. To him, Ma Xiaotao's Phoenix Evil Fire was as if it didn't exist. How can anyone fight that?"
"But that's not even the most ridiculous part."
"The most ridiculous part is that Spirit Ability called Dragon Dance."
Yan Shaozhe swallowed hard, his voice somewhat dry:
"It was this Spirit Ability that directly helped him bridge the entire spirit power gap between him and Ma Xiaotao!"
An Elder slumped back into his chair and muttered to himself:
"Losing to such a monster... Ma Xiaotao has nothing to be ashamed of."
As the words 'nothing to be ashamed of' were spoken, the atmosphere in the Sea Gods Pavilion became even heavier.
Because they realized a much more serious problem.
This was only the Round-robin Tournament.
Ahead lay a long schedule and the crucial team matches.
"Trouble. This time, we're in real trouble."
Xian Liner's brow furrowed as she spoke with deep concern:
"With Liu Yuan on the Sun Moon Royal Team, we might not even have a chance of winning the upcoming team matches."
"Although in terms of overall strength, our average spirit power Rank is still much higher than theirs. But don't forget, in today's 1v1 duel, our spirit power advantage was even greater, and didn't we still lose?"
"As long as Liu Yuan is on the field, he can pin down Ma Xiaotao, or even... defeat her again."
"Once Ma Xiaotao, our strongest point, collapses, it's over. Even if the others are stronger than the rest of the Sun Moon Team, what about Liu Yuan? No one can deal with him."
A sense of crisis, an unprecedented sense of crisis, loomed over the heart of every Elder.
Was Shrek Academy's invincible streak really going to be broken in this tournament?
"Teacher!"
Yan Shaozhe suddenly turned to look at Mu En, a flash of determination in his eyes:
"The current situation is extremely unfavorable for us. The subsequent matches are full of variables."
"Since conventional means are no longer reliable, should we... send some 'reinforcements'?"
Mu En glanced sideways. "Reinforcements?"
"Yes!"
Yan Shaozhe said urgently:
"The academy's inner treasury still holds many good things. There are Medicinal Pills that can significantly boost spirit power cultivation in a short time, as well as several high-quality Spirit Bones suitable for Dai Yueheng, Ling Luochen, and the others."
"If we send someone to deliver them immediately and have them absorb and refine them overnight. Although time is tight, even a one or two Rank increase in spirit power would add to our chances of victory!"
"For the glory of Shrek, we cannot lose! Even if we have to pay a price, it will be worth it!"
The other Elders were also somewhat swayed upon hearing this.
After all, Shrek's glory stood above all else. If they truly lost this tournament, the blow to the academy's reputation would be too great.
However, facing Yan Shaozhe's proposal, Mu En merely shook his head gently.
"No need."
"Teacher?!" Yan Shaozhe was anxious. "But..."
"Shaozhe, you are too caught up in appearances."
Mu En's voice was calm and profound, like a morning bell or an evening drum, striking the hearts of everyone present:
"Glory is indeed important. But if we become so afraid of losing it that we resort to desperate measures like 'pulling up seedlings to help them grow,' then that glory becomes a shackle."
"Losing this time might not necessarily be a bad thing for those children."
"And for our Shrek Academy, it might not be a bad thing either."
Mu En looked around at everyone present and said earnestly:
"For these past ten thousand years, we have been winning for far too long. So long that all of us have come to take victory for granted. So long that we have forgotten the taste of failure and forgotten to stay vigilant in times of peace."
"This arrogance has permeated every corner of the academy, and even the hearts of every one of us sitting here."
"This failure is a wake-up call for us."
"Let the children fight. Let them fight with their own strength. If they win, it's their own skill; if they lose, it's a valuable lesson in their lives. Only by knowing shame can one find the courage to improve and go further."
After saying this, Mu En waved his hand tiredly:
"Alright, everyone dismiss. Leave me to my thoughts."
"...Yes, Elder Mu."
Although Yan Shaozhe was still somewhat unwilling, he did not dare to defy Mu En's will.
The Elders rose and bowed one after another, leaving the Sea Gods Pavilion with heavy hearts.
Soon, Mu En was the only one left in the vast Sea Gods Pavilion.
The light was dim, with only the spirit tool screen suspended in mid-air still emitting a faint glow.
Mu En flicked his finger, and the footage began to play again.
But he didn't look at Ma Xiaotao, nor did he look at anyone from Shrek.
His cloudy old eyes were fixed intently on the high-spirited youth in the footage—Liu Yuan.
The more he watched, the brighter the light in Mu En's eyes became;
The more he watched, the deeper the regret in his heart grew.
"What a fine talent..."
Mu En sighed softly, his withered finger tracing Liu Yuan's figure in the air:
"If only he were still at Shrek, if only he could have received my guidance..."
"Within ten years, my Shrek Academy would surely produce another Limit Douluo! The position of Pavilion Master of the Sea Gods Pavilion would have a successor!"
"A pity... such a pity..."
The admiration in Mu En's eyes gradually turned into a profound sense of helplessness and regret.
Such a peerless piece of unpolished jade had been driven to the opposing side, becoming a sharp blade pointed at Shrek.
Just then, the scene shifted.
The camera panned over the Shrek waiting area.
A familiar fat face appeared in the corner of the screen.
It was Xuan Zi.
At this moment, Xuan Zi was pouring wine from a gourd into his mouth. Although his face showed shock, his slovenly and casual appearance looked particularly jarring in the face of such a serious defeat.
Mu En, who had been sighing with regret, saw this face and his expression instantly darkened.
A nameless fury rose within the highly cultured old man.
If it hadn't been for Xuan Zi's initial recklessness and prejudice, if it hadn't been for his irresponsible handling of the matter, how could Liu Yuan have left? How could Shrek have suffered today's humiliation?
Mu En stared fixedly at Xuan Zi on the screen, his teeth grinding as he spat out a curse of frustration at someone who failed to live up to expectations:
"Xuan Zi, oh Xuan Zi..."
"You old bastard, you're useless at everything but great at making a mess of things!"
"Just wait until you get back... see how this old man deals with you!"
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