"Ma Hongjun, you and Oscar take Little San back to Shrek Academy," Yu Xiaogang said. "No private fights allowed."
"Is it 'not allowed' or 'don't dare'?" Jiang Mian heard Yu Xiaogang's voice and immediately cursed, "Do you, this hypocritical scoundrel, even deserve to speak?"
"What are you, to be worthy of rebuking me?" Yu Xiaogang waved his sleeve and said indifferently.
"Stealing Spirit Hall's information, compiling it as your own, and then disguising yourself as a scholar—it's utterly ridiculous, like a monkey in a crown!" Jiang Mian mercilessly exposed Yu Xiaogang's true colors.
"You!" Yu Xiaogang's face flushed red, but he didn't know what to say to refute Jiang Mian, only able to rage ineffectually.
As Jiang Mian left, he didn't forget to mock, "A useless teacher leading trash students, with such strength, they even dare to meddle in the Soul Master Competition. Haha, what a joke."
"That was truly satisfying," Yan said, hands clasped behind his head, humming a tune as he walked beside Jiang Mian. "Brother Mian, I never realized your strength was so great, and your ideas so plentiful."
"Their teacher once betrayed the Supreme Pontiff, and those students aren't good people either," Jiang Mian chuckled. "That's why I humiliated them so."
"You don't need to explain to us," Hu Liena smiled slightly. She leaned close to Jiang Mian and said, "Whatever you do, we will support you. From now on, we are good teammates, sharing life and death."
Saying that, Hu Liena also took Zhu Zhuqing and the Auspicious Beast's small hands, and the three beautiful women, each with their own charms, exchanged smiles, appearing to get along quite harmoniously.
As the sun set, night fell.
Jiang Mian and his companions found an inn and haphazardly ordered some delicious food.
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone was knocking on the inn room door. Jiang Mian opened it, but no one was there, only a lingering afterimage at the corner.
Could someone be trying to lure him out? Jiang Mian, half-believing, half-doubting, immediately commanded, "You all eat first. Bear Lord, you come with me. Red King, you protect them."
"Alright."
Bear Lord followed behind Jiang Mian. The two were very fast, reaching the corner in almost the blink of an eye. However, what was strange was that Jiang Mian still only saw a faint afterimage this time, unable to clearly see whether the newcomer was human or ghost.
"Bear Lord, can you sense who the newcomer is?" Jiang Mian asked in a low voice.
"It's a Titled Douluo, not weak in strength, but with a serious hidden ailment," Bear Lord said indifferently.
"I see," Jiang Mian suddenly understood. "They hit the young one, and now the old one has come."
"Then let's beat the old one too," Bear Lord sneered. "With such meager strength, they dare to stick their neck out like a turtle?"
"Don't people usually say 'tuck your head in like a turtle'? What's 'stick your neck out like a turtle'?" Jiang Mian's earlier tension vanished. He joked, "It seems I'm short on knowledge."
"Let's have a fight, just to stretch our muscles and bones," Bear Lord said somewhat helplessly. "Just don't be like that Titled Douluo we met in the Star Dou Great Forest last time—too weak to fight, no fun at all."
"Who told you you're too strong?" Jiang Mian patted Bear Lord's belly and said, "Let's go, don't keep them waiting."
Bear Lord rolled his eyes at Jiang Mian. Beating someone up and speaking so politely, this kid is truly like a snail's butt, full of twists and turns.
Outside the city, in a forest, a middle-aged man in a black cloak quietly awaited Jiang Mian's arrival.
As expected, Jiang Mian and Bear Lord quickly caught up to him, and Jiang Mian immediately recognized the newcomer's identity: Tang San's father, Tang Hao!
"I wondered who it was, turns out it's that good-for-nothing's old man from today," Jiang Mian chuckled.
"You knew and still dared to attack Little San like that?" Tang Hao was furious, his voice cold as he questioned.
"Just an old thing, what's there to fear?" Jiang Mian couldn't help but mock, "Nothing but a good-for-nothing who couldn't even protect his own wife."
"If you wanted to provoke me," Tang Hao raised his hand and summoned the legendary Clear Sky Hammer, the number one Tool Spirit under heaven, into his grip. "Then, you succeeded."
Two yellow, two purple, four black, one red.
spirit rings descended from the sky, dyeing the originally dim sky red.
"I've killed a few Clear Sky Hammer Spirit Masters," Bear Lord scratched his head and chuckled. "But I haven't killed a Titled Douluo yet."
Saying that, Bear Lord suddenly revealed his true form, a giant, mountain-like bear blocking Jiang Mian. He stood like a city wall, an unmoving king.
"Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear?" Tang Hao chuckled. "I didn't expect beasts to dare come to the human World."
"Little thing, you're very arrogant," Bear Lord slapped out a paw. Tang Hao gripped the hammer handle with both hands, using the force to swing it.
Clang!
The two collided, producing a piercing, grinding sound of metal. Fortunately, Jiang Mian was already a Spirit King; if a lower-level Spirit Master were here and heard such a sound, their eardrums would have long been shattered.
"Very strong," Tang Hao chuckled, quickly swinging the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand. Bear Lord remained unmoving, easily blocking the massive hammer with just his bare hands.
"This is the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Method?" Jiang Mian recognized that Tang Hao was using the Clear Sky Sect's secret ultimate technique, the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Method. It was said that each strike of this hammer method was stronger than the last, and when stacked to eighty-one strikes, its power could destroy a city!
"Just a parlor trick," Bear Lord swung out a Tearing Sky Claw, its momentum unstoppable.
Tang Hao hurriedly swung his hammer to meet Bear Lord head-on, barely managing to block Bear Lord's Tearing Sky Claw with the might of the Clear Sky Hammer.
One human and one bear clashed, and the entire World continuously echoed with the noisy metallic sounds.
Jiang Mian covered his ears. Even though he had reached the Spirit King realm, under such high-intensity energy fluctuations, he still found it a bit overwhelming.
"Haha, I'll hold you here, but what about your companions at the inn?" Tang Hao laughed heartily. "How could you possibly have two such powerful experts?"
"Oh, how did you know?" Jiang Mian feigned surprise. "Actually, there aren't just two, but five!"
"What?!" Tang Hao's eyes widened. He hadn't expected the other side to have such powerful top experts. Originally, he had secretly discussed with Yu Xiaogang today that he would lure away Jiang Mian's leading teacher, and Flender and the others would handle the rest.
After all, no matter how strong these kids' leading teacher was, it couldn't possibly be two Titled Douluos, could it?
But then you tell Tang Hao that Jiang Mian has four more such experts?
Tang Hao took a deep breath, and the yellow spirit ring under his feet suddenly burst, turning into specks of light that merged into Tang Hao's body.
"Ring Explosion?" Jiang Mian's expression was normal as he said, "Bear Lord, be careful, this move is very powerful."
"Is that so?" Bear Lord unleashed the Tearing Sky Claw, which was rumored to be able to tear space, intending to forcefully interrupt Tang Hao's Ring Explosion.
"Great Sumeru Hammer!"
Tang Hao roared, activating his Tool Spirit True Body. A gigantic, illusory red Tang Hao slowly emerged from behind him, holding a Clear Sky Hammer of similar size to Bear Lord. With one strike, the World changed color.
Bear Lord snorted coldly, actually taking the blow head-on with his head!
Clang!
A dull sound like a massive bell echoed through the World. Bear Lord sat down on the ground with a thud, his forehead fur disheveled, but with no obvious injuries, only feeling dizzy and disoriented.
Having landed a blow, Tang Hao dared not linger and quickly fled the scene. If he stayed any longer, once Bear Lord recovered, he would surely lose his life here.
How could he win against a Spirit Beast that could withstand a Ring Explosion Great Sumeru Hammer without injury?
"Damn it, he got away," Bear Lord transformed back into human form, a large red bump already on his head. He grimaced, rubbing his head, and angrily said, "This guy really can't be underestimated; he made me dizzy."
"He ran really fast," Jiang Mian comforted Bear Lord with a smile. "Otherwise, we could have taken him down today."
Bear Lord chuckled. He was still very supportive of Jiang Mian; the ruthlessness in this kid suited his taste perfectly.
"What did that guy just say? He sent people to deal with the Auspicious Beast and them?" Bear Lord asked in surprise. "How many dishes did he have to drink like that? Although Red King is useless, he's more than enough to deal with those few weaklings, isn't he?"
"Our opponent thought only you, a top expert, were with us, but this kind of behavior, resorting to underhanded tactics when they can't win, is truly disgusting," Jiang Mian said with disdain. "It seems those few brats still need some disciplining."
Inside the inn...
Red King looked at Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, who were lying on the ground, barely alive. He walked over and patted their cheeks, signaling Yan to get some fire.
Earlier, Flender appeared at the inn and lured Red King and Xie Yue out. When Zhao Wuji arrived later, he was sent flying by the Auspicious Beast and Yan.
At that time, Xie Yue and Yan wanted to train themselves, so they suggested to Red King that they would fight these two Spirit Saints. Even if they couldn't win, Red King and the Auspicious Beast would be there to back them up.
After all, such an opportunity was once in a lifetime.
Flender and Zhao Wuji were originally no match for the Auspicious Beast and Red King in a single bout. If Red King hadn't agreed to let Xie Yue and Yan gain experience, these two wouldn't have lasted this long.
Because these two arrived late, Red King and the Auspicious Beast didn't make a move, which allowed them to hold on until Tang Hao arrived.
Tang Hao shattered all his remaining spirit rings and unleashed a full-power Great Sumeru Hammer strike at Xie Yue and Yan, forcing Red King and the Auspicious Beast to jointly block it.
He then took the opportunity to retreat with Flender and Zhao Wuji.
However, this also brought hardship to Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, who had accompanied the two. Seeing that everyone else had been lured away, only Hu Liena and Zhu Zhuqing remained in the room.
They looked at the two beautiful girls, thinking they were weak women with no abilities.
But who would have thought that these two were also incredibly powerful: one a forty-sixth-level Spirit Ancestor, and the other a thirty-ninth-level Spirit Elder.
Zhu Zhuqing showed Dai Mubai no mercy. She didn't even acknowledge him, and after dealing with the two, she returned to her room to cultivate alone.
"Zhuqing," Jiang Mian and Bear Lord rushed back. He looked at the two playing dead on the ground with a look of disgust. "Red King, throw them out. They're truly repulsive."
"Jiang Mian," Hu Liena quietly leaned close to Jiang Mian. She smiled and said, "These two didn't know what was good for them and tried to ambush Zhuqing sister and me. Fortunately, they're quite useless."
"Where's Zhuqing?" Jiang Mian patted Hu Liena's hand and chuckled. "I'm going to see Zhuqing."
"Zhuqing sister went to her room, it's the one at the very end of the corridor," Hu Liena's expression was clearly a bit jealous, but she still smiled and told Jiang Mian Zhu Zhuqing's location.
"Alright, you two handle these two, just remember not to kill them," Jiang Mian said. "We still need to send them back to humiliate the people of Shrek. Of course, crushing one or two of their 'things' is still fine."
"Oh!" Xie Yue and Yan subconsciously covered their crotches. This statement was indeed a bit terrifying.
"I'm going to see Zhuqing," Jiang Mian said after giving his instructions, then walked towards Zhu Zhuqing's room.
He knew Zhu Zhuqing knew Dai Mubai and was afraid she might recall old memories from the Spirit King days, so Jiang Mian wanted to quickly go check on Zhu Zhuqing.
"Zhuqing," Jiang Mian reached the door, gently knocked, and whispered, "It's Jiang Mian."
"The door's unlocked," Zhu Zhuqing's cold voice came from inside the room. Jiang Mian heard that something was off; Zhuqing usually didn't speak to him like this.
Jiang Mian tiptoed open the door and entered the room, finding Zhu Zhuqing sitting cross-legged on the bed, cultivating. Jiang Mian didn't dare to disturb her too much and simply sat quietly beside Zhu Zhuqing.
"Jiang Mian, I..." Zhu Zhuqing slowly opened her eyes. Her eyes were tearful, and her eyebrows trembled slightly, as if she had a myriad of grievances but couldn't speak them.
"I'm here for you," Jiang Mian gently embraced Zhu Zhuqing, holding her in his arms. Zhu Zhuqing leaned against Jiang Mian, seemingly feeling very secure. "I don't want to lose."
"You won't," Jiang Mian gently patted Zhu Zhuqing's back and chuckled. "With me here, you will never lose."
"Jiang Mian, will you always stay with me?" Zhu Zhuqing suddenly hugged Jiang Mian, asking tremblingly, "You won't abandon me, will you?"
Years of royal life had left Zhu Zhuqing severely lacking in a sense of security and trust. Now, both of these feelings were given to her by Jiang Mian.
So she was afraid of losing Jiang Mian, especially after seeing Dai Mubai today, which brought up her old memories, making her even more afraid.
"I won't," Jiang Mian's voice was not loud, but he said with great certainty, "I will absolutely never leave you."
"Mm-hmm," Hearing the answer, Zhu Zhuqing lay in Jiang Mian's arms, her voice growing softer and softer, until she slowly fell asleep.
She hadn't had a truly peaceful sleep in many years. From birth, she had to surpass her older sister, living under high-intensity pressure for so many years. No one could endure it, let alone Zhuqing, who was only a twelve-year-old girl.
Jiang Mian let Zhu Zhuqing rest her head on his leg. He stroked Zhu Zhuqing's beautiful hair, his face full of doting affection.
Even if the Auspicious Beast's transformed appearance was his first love, even if Hu Liena's beauty was more enchanting, even if they had a place in Jiang Mian's heart, Jiang Mian knew his own heart: Zhu Zhuqing always held an irreplaceable position within it.
The night passed without a word. At dawn the next day.
Zhu Zhuqing's small mouth was slightly open. She hadn't expected to sleep so soundly, causing her to drool.
Jiang Mian hadn't moved at all. He maintained one position all night because he was afraid that if he moved, Zhu Zhuqing would wake up.
"Hmm?" Zhu Zhuqing slowly woke up. She felt her face was a bit cold, and looking down, she saw that the clothes on Jiang Mian's leg were soaked.
Zhu Zhuqing's small face immediately turned red, and she quickly wiped away the drool from the corner of her mouth, looking at Jiang Mian apologetically.
"It's fine," Jiang Mian was just about to get up and stretch his muscles and bones, but he accidentally stumbled and directly fell to his knees with a thud, landing perfectly in front of Zhu Zhuqing.
"Jiang Mian," Xie Yue pushed open the door. He looked at the scene inside the room, an expression of sudden realization on his face. He chuckled and then slammed the door shut again. "I apologize for disturbing you. Please continue."
"You, come back quickly, what's going on?"
"Supreme Pontiff has ordered us to meet her in Sunset Forest. She's going there to hunt Spirit Beasts."