Anping was surprised to see Ling Hongchen at the door. "Dai Tianling wants to see us? Why? We have nothing to do with the Star Luo royal family."
Ling Hongchen explained, "He seems to want you to have a match with their Monster Academy. He didn't get an answer from me, so he decided to meet you in person."
Anping didn't answer right away. He asked, "What do you think, Dean? Do you want us to fight them on behalf of Sun Moon Academy?"
Hongchen was tempted by the idea of Anping representing them. It would be a good thing for both the Academy and the federation to make a name for themselves in the Star Luo Empire.
But he also knew that Anping didn't owe the college anything. He had studied at Sun Moon Academy for several years, but he had also helped them a lot with the development of soul guidance technology.
Besides, when Shrek Academy had provoked them before, it was Anping and Gu Yuena who had saved the face of Sun Moon Academy. They had also recruited two talented students for them, Xu Xiaoyan and Le Zhengyu.
So Hongchen couldn't ask too much of him. He waved his hand and said, "It's up to you. I have a feeling that Dai Tianling has ulterior motives."
Hongchen was not very interested in politics, but he could tell that Dai Tianling's invitation was not just a simple exchange of ideas. He was the emperor of a country, after all, and he had personally invited the students of another country.
"Ulterior motives?" Anping thought for a moment and said, "Maybe he heard about what happened on the ship, and he wants to win us over. The situation in the Star Luo Empire is not good, after all."
Anping was right. The Star Luo Empire was in a bad shape. The Sun Moon Federation had allowed them to move here because of the lingering influence of Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao.
But that was tens of thousands of years ago, and the Sun Moon Federation had grown stronger and stronger since then. They wanted to unify the continent, and the Star Luo Empire was in their way. If the Star Luo Empire didn't have anyone who could change the course of the war, they would be doomed sooner or later.
Hongchen nodded and said, "That's possible. Whatever you decide, I'll respect your choice."
As a member of the Sun Moon Federation, Hongchen couldn't support Anping and Gu Yuena staying in the Star Luo Empire. But as the dean of a academy, he didn't want to interfere with their choices.
Anping shook his head slightly and said, "We can't join the Star Luo Empire. It's not a good choice for us, no matter how you look at it."
"As for Dai Tianling's invitation, please reject it for us, Dean. We'll leave Star Luo City soon."
Hongchen nodded and said, "All right. I'll refuse Emperor Xingluo's invitation for you."
He was about to stand up and leave when Gu Yuena said, "Wait a minute, Dean Hongchen. Please accept Dai Tianling's invitation for us. I want to see what he's up to."
Anping and Gu Yuena had different opinions, and Hongchen didn't know who to listen to. He looked at Anping and said, "Anping, what do you say?"
Anping was surprised by Gu Yuena's sudden desire to meet Emperor Star Luo, but he thought it was no big deal. He said, "If Nana wants to meet him, then let's go, Dean."
After Ling Hongchen left, Anping looked at Gu Yuena and asked doubtfully, "Nana, you've never been interested in this kind of thing. Why now?"
Gu Yuena rolled her eyes at him and said, "Since they want us to fight their Monster Academy, why not? It could be fun."
Anping was confused and Gu Yuena explained, "Of course, we won't fight for nothing. Don't you need rare materials? He's the emperor of an empire. He should have plenty of them."
Anping shook his head slightly and said, "Why would he agree to pay us just for a fight?"
Gu Yuena said angrily, "He wouldn't in a normal situation, but you said yourself that he has ulterior motives. If we make some demands, he might agree."
"And we can't just ask for rare materials. We can gamble. They have the so-called eight heavenly kings in their Monster Academy, right? We'll challenge all eight of them in a betting match. I bet Dai Tianling won't refuse. And I have an offer he can't resist."
Anping asked curiously, "What's the offer?"
Gu Yuena said matter-of-factly, "A soul bone, of course. Humans love soul bones, don't they? I'll bet a hundred thousand-year-old soul bone. I don't think he can say no to that."
Anping shook his head slightly and said, "Aren't you afraid we'll lose to them?"
He didn't think Gu Yuena was joking. She could get a whole set of hundred thousand-year-old soul bones if she wanted to. Not to mention the countless soul bones collected by Di Tian.
Gu Yuena rolled her eyes at him and said, "As long as you don't betray us, we can't lose. That's settled. We'll bring Mr. Xiong and Biji with us when we go."
Anping nodded and agreed. He couldn't object to Gu Yuena's plan. After all, he needed those rare materials.
Even though Anping and Gu Yuena had agreed, Dai Tianling didn't arrange to meet them right away. He was the emperor of a country, and he had many things to deal with.
Wooing Anping and Gu Yuena was important, but he couldn't neglect other matters for something uncertain.
In the following days, the youth soul master competition across the continent became more and more exciting. The most thrilling match was between Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Academy.
Le Zhengyu and Xu Xiaoyan didn't participate, but Shrek Academy's victory was still hard-won. Except for Tang Wulin, the other five Shrek students were seriously injured.
The power of the Golden Dragon King's bloodline had increased Tang Wulin's strength tremendously, even after he lost the Golden Dragon Spear.
In the team match between Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Academy, it was almost as if Tang Wulin had single-handedly turned the tide.