Chapter 55: The Sea God Pavilion’s Cheating Conference

Tang San had once used the Wishful Hundred Treasure Pouch to store a type of snake called the Nine Segment Jadeite. Jing Hongchen smiled. "Of course, I've prepared some special storage type Soul Tools. These Soul Tools can store living creatures, much like the Wishful Hundred Treasure Pouch of Tang Sect's ancestor, Tang San. However, their internal space is very limited, and they're difficult to manufacture. So, I can only select small sized, weak Soul Beasts. These will be taken back and held for student use. At Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, most students are still below the Soul Ancestor level. They may need Soul Rings from Star Dou Forest's Soul Beasts. Ultimately, the problem remains Sun Moon lacks Soul Beast resources." He sighed and shook his head. "Alright, Yuhao, let's get your Soul Ring now!" "Understood, Dean." Huo Yuhao nodded. Since Soul Ring storage Soul Tools hadn't been invented yet, the only way Jing Hongchen could help was to injure a Silver Jade Snake to near death. Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy Xuan Zi stood beside Sea God Lake, drinking wine while letting the lake's breeze wash over him. For someone like him, alcohol used to be about enjoyment. But now, it was just a tool to numb his sorrow. His voice was choked with grief. "Sigh... I've let those children down. Chen Zifeng, Gongyang Mo, Yao Haoxuan, Dai Huabin, Xixi... you were all such good kids... and now, you're all gone." With every name he muttered, his eyes reddened further, and his anguish deepened. "Elder Xuan, the academy has already sent people to console the families of the deceased. Please, take care of yourself..." Beside him, Yan Shaozhe, the Martial Soul Department Dean, couldn't help but sigh. Elder Xuan truly seemed devastated this time. Ever since he had known Elder Xuan, the only other time he had seen him this heartbroken was when an entire batch of students, led by Zhang Lexuan, had been slaughtered by a 100,000 year old Soul Beast, leaving only four survivors. Xuan Zi wiped his tears, his voice trembling. "Shaozhe... I couldn't even kill that so called Death God Envoy. I failed to avenge my students, and I just ran back to check on Wang Yan and the others. Don't you think I'm a worthless 98th rank Super Douluo? I couldn't even kill a mere Soul King!" Yan Shaozhe immediately shook his head. "Elder Xuan, if I were in your shoes, I would have made the same choice. Yes, you probably could have caught up and killed him in seconds... But you had to prioritize the survivors inside the cave. Even a few seconds' delay could have been catastrophic. We didn't know if that Evil Soul Master had accomplices. If he had allies, then the wounded students inside the cave would have been completely doomed." He continued, his tone reassuring. "I believe this experience has made you more cautious than before. That's why you're not just any Elder, Elder Xuan. You are the mighty... Sea God Pavilion Elder!" Yan Shaozhe had originally wanted to call him 'Nemesis of Evil Soul Masters', but he quickly changed his words. After all, Elder Xuan had boasted before the mission that he was an Evil Soul Master's worst nightmare yet he had ultimately failed to protect his students. Bringing that up would only add salt to the wound. Instead, he called him a Sea God Pavilion Elder, giving him some dignity. Yan Shaozhe then changed the subject. "Alright, Elder Xuan, the others have arrived. You proposed this Sea God Pavilion meeting yourself. You're the one who called this gathering, so you have to be there." "...Fine. Let's go." Elder Xuan flew toward Sea God Pavilion. Inside the Sea God Pavilion Mu En, the Pavilion Master, lay in his reclining chair at the head of the table. Elder Xuan glanced at the gathered Elders and spoke "Because of my second failure as a leader, many outstanding students have died. I never wanted this to happen. But I can't escape my responsibility. So, I have decided to resign from both my position as Vice Captain of the Shrek Supervision Team and my Sea God Pavilion Elder status!" His words shocked everyone. Elder Xuan's status in the Sea God Pavilion was too special. He was Shrek Academy's second strongest only beneath Mu En. Once Mu En passed away, Elder Xuan was supposed to inherit the Pavilion Master position. Yan Shaozhe spoke immediately. "Elder Xuan, you can't do this! This mistake wasn't your fault it was because the Evil Soul Master was too cunning! If not for him, you wouldn't have lost so many students. I've decided! I will issue a bounty in Shrek Academy's name to hunt down this damned Death God Envoy!" Qian Duoduo added "Yes, Elder Xuan! The Sea God Pavilion needs you! Shrek Academy needs you! You are one of the pillars of the Sea God Pavilion you can't leave!" The other Elders also voiced their support, urging him to stay. But Elder Xuan shook his head and stood up. A tear rolled down his face. "My decision is final. From now on... I am nothing more than a retired man of Shrek Academy." At this moment, Mu En slowly opened his eyes. "Elder Xuan... sit down. You can't leave. They're right Shrek Academy still needs you. If you truly feel guilty, then figure out how to prevent this from happening a third time." Mu En was extremely displeased with Elder Xuan's second leadership failure. Raising a genius Soul Master was no easy task. He had indeed considered punishing Elder Xuan, but the thought quickly faded. Because Elder Xuan was too important. Mu En knew that his health was deteriorating. Sooner or later, he would pass away. Even if he could extend his life using the Golden Tree, his days were still numbered. When that time came, Shrek Academy would need Elder Xuan to take over. His Martial Soul, the Gluttonous Divine Bull, possessed the Gluttonous Bloodline. Against Di Tian, this bloodline gave him a unique advantage over most Soul Masters. Even though humans and Di Tian had a treaty, non human creatures could never be fully trusted. Who knew when Di Tian would break the treaty and lead another Beast Tide? If that happened, Shrek Academy would need Elder Xuan to fight. Moreover, Elder Xuan was the only 98th rank Super Douluo in Shrek. At any moment, he could break through to Rank 99 and become Shrek Academy's greatest powerhouse. For the sake of Shrek's survival, Elder Xuan simply could not leave. So, for the greater good, he had no choice but to endure. Xuan Zi forced a bitter smile. "But, Elder Mu, I no longer have the face to remain in the Sea God Pavilion!" "I said, SIT DOWN!" Mu En's voice suddenly rose. Xuan Zi had no choice but to sit back down. In terms of seniority, Mu En was technically his junior martial uncle, which still made him his elder. Mu En said calmly, "You did indeed make another grave mistake, but you must also consider the responsibilities you bear. From now on, you will stay in the Sea God Pavilion and continue serving the academy as a form of atonement. However, from now on, every student must be equipped with sufficiently powerful Soul Tools to prevent such tragedies from happening again! Now, let's move on to discussing the Soul Dueling Tournament." Hearing this, Xuan Zi said, "Elder Mu, with our current team in ruins, I specifically arranged for Wang Yan to meet with Xu Jiawei and request that he manipulate the matchups for Shrek Academy. But due to our team's condition, I also wish to select additional students from the academy to participate in the tournament." Mu En was stunned. "You asked Xu Jiawei to manipulate the matches?" "Yes!" Xuan Zi puffed out his chest proudly, feeling that he had finally done something to redeem himself. "Ridiculous! Shrek Academy has always dominated the Soul Dueling Tournament through sheer strength how could we secretly tamper with the competition? Such a thing is unheard of! Do you realize how much damage this will do to Shrek Academy's reputation if word gets out? Immediately tell Xu Jiawei to stop this manipulation!" Mu En scolded Xuan Zi with a dark expression. Xuan Zi was momentarily stunned but quickly defended himself. "Elder Mu, if I don't do this, Shrek Academy's millennium long glory could be lost! The participants are either too injured to fight or still recovering from minor wounds. If we lose in the first round of eliminations, the entire academy will be humiliated!" "Millennium long glory? Is that really so important? Losing is not the end of the world! Growth is what truly matters." Mu En sighed. Yan Shaozhe glanced at Mu En, then cautiously added, "Teacher, ever since the Seven Monsters of the First Generation defeated the Spirit Hall team, the academy's honor has steadily built up. If we are eliminated in the very first round, even the Seven Monsters who ascended to the God Realm might feel ashamed! I don't know what things are like in the God Realm, but I believe the honor established by the First Generation should not be abandoned! Elder Xuan may have acted rashly, but his actions were for the sake of the academy's glory. Please reconsider!" Yan Shaozhe simply couldn't imagine how the world would ridicule Shrek Academy if they failed in the first round. He took great pride in being a member of Shrek Academy and would never allow its reputation to be tarnished. Qian Duoduo also said, "Elder Mu, this concerns the academy's honor. Elder Xuan's actions may have been questionable, but his intentions were pure he was thinking of Shrek's glory. Of course, I have another idea. We could officially withdraw from the tournament, citing the loss of our team due to the Evil Soul Master attack. But that would only earn some sympathy and a whole lot of mockery after all, it would be a forfeit! So, I believe that if we participate, Shrek Academy must at least reach the Top 4! Once we secure that position, we can then explain that our losses were due to fighting Evil Soul Masters. At that point, even if we don't win, people will still see us as the rightful champions!" Other Elders joined in, voicing their opinions. Their consensus was clear Shrek's millennium long glory had to be upheld. After a moment of silence, Mu En sighed. "It seems you all place great importance on this so called millennium long glory. Honor has now become our burden. I still disapprove of match fixing. Call it off this kind of action is detrimental to the students' growth and will only lead them to develop bad habits while also disgracing the academy! Fine, select a few suitable students to supplement the team. Let's not speak of this again." The meeting concluded, and Mu En left the Sea God Pavilion. The other Elders also dispersed. However, Xuan Zi and Yan Shaozhe walked the same path. Xuan Zi, bracing himself, said, "Shaozhe, I've always listened to Elder Mu, but this time, I must oppose him! How can we just discard Shrek Academy's millennium long glory so easily? I will not order Xu Jiawei to stop manipulating the matches! In fact, here's what we'll do Not only will we select new students to complete the lineup, but we will also bring in Mo Xuan and a few Shrek Academy alumni with powerful spiritual attributes to assist from outside the arena! We may not win the championship, but we must at least secure a spot in the Top 4 to preserve our academy's reputation!" "Elder Xuan... this was Elder Mu's direct order. Also, using external aid isn't that outright cheating?" Yan Shaozhe hesitated. Xuan Zi took a deep breath. To him, Shrek's millennium long glory was everything. With so many team members dead, this year's Soul Dueling Tournament had taken on extraordinary significance. If Shrek lost too early, he would feel as if he had failed the memory of the fallen students. So, he said, "Shaozhe, do you really want Shrek Academy to become a laughingstock? Do it for the academy's honor, alright? If Elder Mu asks later, I'll take full responsibility!" Meanwhile, in the Spirit Sea Huo Yuhao slowly opened his eyes, and three Soul Rings gradually emerged around him. Moments ago, Jing Hongchen had injured a suitable Silver Jade Snake, and with the help of Electrolux's and Ice Emperor's aura, Huo Yuhao successfully turned it into his Soul Spirit. Inside the Spirit Sea, Ice Emperor was examining the small silver white snake with great interest. "So this is the Soul Spirit that Electrolux invented? It does seem quite lively. And since it can assist attacks, it's definitely superior to regular Soul Rings. Plus, for the Soul Beast, it retains its own consciousness truly a great invention!" Ice Emperor and Skydream Iceworm's situation was unique, but they didn't count as Soul Spirits yet. In the original story, the first Soul Spirit was Snow Empress. But now, the first Soul Spirit was this Silver Jade Snake. Ice Emperor extended her scorpion claw, lightly pinching the Silver Jade Snake. The little snake froze in fear, not daring to move. Seeing this, Ice Emperor chuckled. "Hmm, at least it knows how to behave." On the side, Skydream Iceworm wiggled closer and whined "Ice, you've never used your claw on me before... I'm starting to get jealous of it! Ice, pinch me too!" As he spoke, he extended his tail eagerly. (End of chapter.)Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon. Read 15 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Albino1