The Unrivaled Tang Sect

Another group of formidable individuals was standing on the other side. One of them was the leader of the six Class 9 soul engineers who had met with Ju Zi previously. In total, there were more than twenty Titled Douluo and Class 9 soul engineers within the Commander's tent. 

Other than these individuals, the higher-ups from the armies were all present as they lined themselves up according to their ranks. They were the commanders of the Hand that Protects the Nation—the four most powerful soul engineer legions in the Sun Moon Empire, the commanders of the normal soul engineer legions, and the other relevant commanders respectively.

All of these people constituted the military leadership class within the Sun Moon Empire.

Ju Zi nodded at the group of people before her and said, “After much rest, our army’s morale is sky-high. Now is definitely the best time for us to strike our enemies. Listen up! The first, third, and fifth legions are to make their way towards Shrek City and beseige our enemies. The Evileye Soul Engineer Legion and the Terrorclaw Soul Engineer Legion are to cooperate with their movements and set up camp fifty kilometers away from Shrek City. After establishing your soul tool deployment areas, get ready to attack the city.”

“After the camps have been established by our legions, the rest of you will proceed according to our planned movement lineup and wait for further orders.”

After hearing Ju Zi’s words, Zhongli Wu was startled. Previously, he had actually requested to use the troops on Shrek City after setting up camp here. However, Ju Zi had rejected his request. He did not expect the War God Empress to finally decide on attacking Shrek City. This was good news for the Holy Ghost Church.  They had always viewed Shrek City as a thorn in their side.

Even though he was a little surprised by her orders, Zhongli Wu was not against them.

Hence, the army collapsed their tents and marched towards Shrek City with morale high. If the aura they were exuding were material, it would probably have crushed the city walls. By evening, the entire Sun Moon Empire army had set up camp fifty kilometers from Shrek City. They were able to surround half of the city.

However, there was no reaction from Shrek City. Their doors remained firmly shut.

As nightfall descended, a series of explosion awakened Shrek City.

Lines of brilliant flames illuminated the dark sky as they formed a series of characters which were visible from any corner in Shrek City. “Give us Huo Yuhao within ten days, or we will kill everyone within the city!”

As he floated peacefully in the night sky, Huo Yuhao gazed at the bright characters in the sky and frowned.

He was just about to reach the Shrek Academy after his long flight. It was not the kind of greeting he was expecting.

To hand me over in ten days’ time?

Does the Sun Moon Empire actually want to trap Shrek City?

Tang Wutong was also surprised by the sight before them. She turned around and shot a puzzled look at Huo Yuhao. “Isn’t Ju Zi the Commander of the Three Armies? What is she planning to do?”

Huo Yuhao shook his head. “Let’s go. Let’s discuss it after we return to the Academy.” As he spoke, he held onto Tang Wutong and the Bluesilver Emperor before speeding off in the direction of Shrek Academy. With his Imitation soul skill and Spiritual Interference Domain, he was able to return to Shrek City without alarming anyone.

Before he returned to the Academy, he first headed back to the Tang Sect. After stepping into the gates, he gathered all the higher-ups.

“This is…” When Bei Bei saw the Bluesilver Emperor which was standing by Huo Yuhao’s side, his jaw dropped.

Even though he was not a hundred percent sure that it was the Bluesilver Emperor that could save Tang Ya’s life, he was pretty confident that Huo Yuhao had managed to bring it back.

Huo Yuhao said, “Eldest senior brother, the Sun Moon Empire has surrounded Shrek City. We should head over to the Academy immediately. This is the Bluesilver Emperor. I managed to find it in the Sun Moon Empire. Third senior brother, can I trouble you to prepare accommodations for him? Eldest senior brother, let’s head over to the Academy. After we have confirmed the situation at the Academy, I will come back to treat Teacher Xiao Ya.”

Bei Bei’s excitement was apparent as his breathing became rapid. However, as the big brother within Tang Sect, he was able to control his emotions and stay composed. He nodded and said, “Alright. Let’s head over to the Academy.”

After leaving for such a long time, they were still not able to rest, even though they had just returned. Huo Yuhao, Bei Bei, and Tang Wutong ran towards the Academy. The rest of them continued with the work which had been left undone during the period of time when they had left the Tang Sect.

Very soon, Huo Yuhao, Tang Wutong and Bei Bei reached the Academy.

When they arrived at the gate, they were stopped by two figures which leapt in front of them.

“Who are you?” The two youths were wearing the Shrek Academy uniform. They were only able to recognize the faces of Huo Yuhao and the rest after challenging them.

Their eyes widened in disbelief as one of them exclaimed, “Senior Huo?”

Huo Yuhao nodded and said, “We are going to enter the inner courtyard. This night sentry duty thing has only been added recently, right?” It was important to note that the old Shrek Academy never closed their doors, even at night. They had never employed any defensive measures.

That student nodded and replied, “That’s right. Ever since the Heavenly Soul Empire fell, the Academy has been stepping up our security measures. We are going through very difficult times indeed.”

“What?” The three of them exclaimed in unison. None of them had known that the Heavenly Soul Empire had been conquered. After hearing the news from this student, they were all utterly shocked.

No wonder the Sun Moon Empire could push their troops to Shrek City… The Heavenly Soul Empire has really fallen…

Even though Huo Yuhao was not a citizen of the Heavenly Soul Empire, Bei Bei was. Suddenly, a heavy silence fell across the group.

Tang Wutong broke the silence and asked, “Is there any procedure we need to undergo before entering the Academy?”

The two students did not dare to look straight at Tang Wutong’s beautiful face. They shook their heads frantically. “No. No. Please proceed.”

The three of them entered the Academy and arrived at Sea God’s Lake. All of the leapt up at the same time and flew directly to Sea God’s Island.

The news of the Heavenly Soul Empire’s fall was simply too shocking. Huo Yuhao could still remember the Heavenly Soul Empire’s setup at the frontlines when he personally visited that area previously. Even though they could not be compared to the Sun Moon Empire’s powerful soul engineer legions, they should not have been able to be destroyed so quickly. Its demise meant that there was no longer a buffer between Shrek City and the Sun Moon Empire’s troops. At the same time, it also meant that the Sun Moon Empire was one step closer towards their dream of conquering the entire continent. Next, they could target the Star Luo or Dou Ling Empire as they wished. Things were truly looking bad for the other empires on the continent.

Huo Yuhao and the others had thought that their efforts in the Sun Moon Empire could influence the battle at the front line. However, they did not expect the Heavenly Soul Empire to crumble so easily. This made their attempts to induce fear and panic within the Sun Moon Empire less effective than they could have been.

Even though Huo Yuhao was frowning, he stopped at the Golden Tree and kneeled before it along with Tang Wutong. Bei Bei kneeled down as he joined them to pay their respects.

“Teacher, we have returned. I hope we are not too late.” Huo Yuhao kowtowed to the Golden Tree thrice as he greeted it respectfully.

The Sea God’s Pavilion was well-illuminated. When Huo Yuhao, Tang Wutong and Bei Bei walked into the hall, all of the Elders were already there. There was also another familiar face present in the hall. She was none other than Princess Wei Na from the Heavenly Soul Empire.

After seeing the three people walked in, Princess Wei Na could not help but stand up. Compared to the previous time they met had her, she seemed to have aged quite a bit. Her skin had lost its original youthful radiance, and her face had grown a lot paler. One could see the sadness and sorrow in her eyes.

“Yuhao.” Wei Na greeted softly as tears welled up in her eyes.

After seeing that Princess Wei Na was present in the hall, Huo Yuhao felt an inexplicable sense of sadness in his heart. This meant that the Heavenly Soul Empire had really fallen to the Sun Moon Empire. If not, she would never have been able to break Shrek Academy’s tradition and enter the hall as someone who was not a member of the Sea God’s Pavilion.

Elder Xuan waved his hand at the three of them and said, “The three of you are just in time. Please sit.”

“Yes.” Huo Yuhao answered politely as the three of them sat down.

All the Elders had very worried and solemn looks on their face. This was going to be one of the biggest challenges the academy had ever faced. It was probably more difficult than the beast wave which started in the Great Star Dou Forest previously.

During the beast wave, Shrek Academy was at most involved in traditional combat. However, this time around, they were going up against some of the top soul tool technologies in the entire Douluo Continent. No one would dare to say they were confident of winning this battle.

Elder Xuan looked at Huo Yuhao and asked, “Did you all see the fireworks outside?”

Huo Yuhao nodded. To his surprise, Elder Xuan actually revealed a gentle smile.

Elder Xuan said calmly, “You should be able to tell from the fireworks that your team has achieved a fair bit of success. Even though your operations in the Sun Moon Empire were not enough to get them to retreat, at the very least, they caused them some panic. If not, they would not have sent their troops to surround Shrek City. So why don’t you share what all of you have done with us.”

Ever since he had become an Ultimate Douluo, Elder Xuan had become a lot more composed and steady. In fact, Huo Yuhao felt that he was starting to resemble Elder Mu.

Even though the current situation was extremely pressing, Elder Xuan did not ask them for their opinions on how to handle their enemies. Instead, he asked them how their trip was, and whether they bumped into any significant problems. His wisdom was exemplified in his decision to change the topic so as to improve the tense atmosphere.

Huo Yuhao said, "After leaving the Academy, I headed directly to the Ming Dou Mountain Range. Following which, I entered the Sun Moon Empire…" 

As they listened to his story, the Elders nodded along. They were particularly moved when he got to the part about their attack on the Radiant City, and how they had bombed the Palace with a Class 9 stationary soul cannon shell. After hearing what Huo Yuhao said, the Princess was so excited that she grabbed the edge of the table by her side. 

However, Huo Yuhao omitted the parts about the spectral demiplane during his report. After all, this was his greatest secret. No matter what, the Princess was still an outsider. 

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Translated by: Samuel
Edited by: GNE and RED

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