Chapter 128: Attempting Rescue

Chapter 128: Attempting Rescue

"Everyone, please sit down and let's discuss how we can overcome this crisis," Mu En said, nodding gently as his voice reached everyone's ears distinctly. The group promptly sat, their gazes turning toward this figure who seemed like a candle flickering in the wind. Despite Mu En's visibly waning strength, in their eyes, as long as he was present, Shrek Academy would not collapse. He was truly the pillar of Shrek Lake.

"Little Song's approach is good. Although this tournament's loss has dealt us a heavy blow, the fault does not lie with those children," Mu En said softly. "I've been following this tournament, and I am familiar with that soul saint-level youngster. Even if it were me in my prime, I wouldn't be confident in defeating him at the same level."

The elders looked at each other, but only Elder Song spoke up. "Mu, who exactly is this child? I heard he's from the Body Sect?"

"Yes, he is indeed from the ontology Sect and he's also Du Busi great-grandson," Mu En replied with a reluctant smile. His battle with Du Busi wasn't a secret, at least not to these elders, and his injury was well known.

"He's Du Busi descendant? I thought he might be Du Busi ," Yan Shaozhe couldn't help but interject. " Du Busi really values him. I wanted to observe this youngster called Du Qianjue myself, but with Du Busi in Star Luo City, I was worried about misunderstandings, so I never went to see him."

"Shaozhe, you went to Star Luo City?" Elder Song asked unconsciously.

Yan Shaozhe glanced at Mu En and nodded reluctantly. "Yes, I went to handle some matters for the teacher."

Elder Song nodded in understanding. She was aware of the Xuan Zi incident, as the fact that Xuan Zi had been maimed—losing a hand—couldn't be concealed. It was surely because he had offended someone.

Mu En didn't demand vengeance for Xuan Zi, likely deducing it was Xuan Zi's own fault. It seemed Yan Shaozhe had gone to offer an apology on behalf of Mu En. The only entity Mu En would treat with such caution was probably the Body Sect.

"I'll have a chance to meet that youngster myself in the future. Let's not dwell on him for now and continue with our earlier discussion," Mu En gestured dismissively.

With Mu En presiding, the meeting proceeded in an orderly fashion. Nearly a whole day passed before it concluded, and decisions were reached:

Firstly, despite the loss at the tournament, the promised rewards would still be distributed. The main team, despite the mishaps during the mission due to Xuan Zi's mistakes which led to all members being injured, was noted for a significant error. Although this reprimand wasn't recorded officially, it served as a warning, and they were subsequently given ample cultivation resources as rewards.

The reserve team received a similar distribution of resources. However, the fortunate distribution of a spirit bone to almost everyone, as in the original story, did not happen. Neither Huo Yuhao nor Wang Dong were taken as disciples by Mu En. Without an ultimate spirit, Huo Yuhao simply didn't catch Mu En's interest enough to consider apprenticeship, despite his potential.

These rewards and Yan Shaozhe's encouraging words somewhat alleviated the immense pressure and suffering the participants had been enduring, strengthening their identification with Shrek significantly.

As for the various detrimental rumors circulating on the continent about Shrek Lake, counteractions were taken. A direct rebuttal would have been ineffective.

Shrek employed a roundabout method. They gathered all available information on Du Qianjue, compiling everything they could find about him. Initially, when this information was presented to the Sea God Hall's elders, they were met with silence as they processed the shocking details:

Name: Du Qianjue Age: Thirteen (suspected, no older than fifteen) Spirit: Body (possibly awakened twice) Spirit Power Level: Soul Saint (exact level unknown) Spirit Rings: Yellow, Purple, Purple, Black, Black, Black, Red Spirit Attributes: Ice (possibly ultimate), Fire (possibly ultimate), Lightning (possibly ultimate), Earth, Wind

Such data had never appeared in the thousand-year history of Shrek Academy; not even geniuses qualified to be compared with Du Qianjue existed. Even historical figures who possessed ultimate spirits could not match up.

A Soul Saint under fifteen years old... Could someone genuinely achieve such a rate of cultivation? If it meant burning potential and life in exchange for rapid advancement of spirit power, Shrek could also artificially create a Soul Saint under twenty, and they had many methods to do so. But thirteen years old...

This age fiercely challenged the worldview that these elders had built over centuries.

All eyes turned to the only elder among them who had achieved the rank of Soul Saint solely through his profound theoretical knowledge of spirits.

"Little Zhang, based on your theoretical knowledge, do you believe a Soul Saint of this age could exist?" Elder Song couldn't help but ask.

Elder Zhang's face turned pale. "My theoretical knowledge is based on extending existing knowledge through continuous exploration and validated by countless experiments. But how am I supposed to find experimental data for something nearly fantastical like this? How can I argue its feasibility?"

Elder Zhang felt as if his lifetime of research in spirit theory was all for naught. "Actually... it's still somewhat plausible," he speculated after a moment, recalling the vast amount of spirit knowledge in his mind and attempting to deduce the reasons behind Du Qianjue's cultivation level.

"I remember, in the top-secret archives of the library, there is a record of a legendary treasure that can elevate a spirit master to great heights in a single step."

"Are you talking about... celestial herbs?" Elder Zhuang, who had the Tree of Life as his spirit and had studied various extraordinary plant treasures of Douluo Continent, was the first to respond.

Yes, that's the only explanation that could account for Du Qianjue's cultivation level," Elder Zhang affirmed.