93: Chapter 91 Cleaning the House (Part 2)

As soon as her injuries recovered, Ma Xiaotao chose to challenge Yao Haoxuan without the slightest hesitation.

The outcome held no suspense; she naturally won with ease.

Defeated, Yao Haoxuan's face turned pale and blue, and he immediately chose to issue another challenge.

And the opponent he chose was none other than Chen Zifeng, his best friend in private, whose Spirit was the Soul Chasing Sword.

When the two stood in the center of the martial arena and looked at each other's faces, both fell into silence in unison.

Because at this point, the situation was as plain as day—blatantly obvious.

Among the eight people present, the strongest, Lin Yan, along with the two Spirit Emperors, Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng, had absolutely no chance of being eliminated.

Meanwhile, Ling Luochen belonged to the control system, Gongyang Mo to the support system, and Xi Xi to the agility-attack system; each had their distinct role, making them essentially set in stone.

Only the two of them—one half power-attack and half agility-attack, the other half control and half power-attack—were not irreplaceable.

This meant that the unlucky person destined to be eliminated would almost certainly be one of the two of them.

And ten to one, the outcome of this next battle would decide who stayed and who left.

At the same time, for them, this opportunity was in all likelihood their only chance in life to represent Shrek at the Continental Spirit Master Tournament.

If they missed this edition, they would likely never get another chance in their lifetime.

Yet, ironically, the two were closest of friends in everyday life. Now that they had to face each other with blades and personally send the other away, they naturally looked at each other in quiet resignation.

With Principal Yan Shaozhe's command, the battle began nonetheless.

Both being Spirit Kings with virtually identical Soul Power levels and comparable Spirit qualities, the fight was naturally neck and neck.

However, as time dragged on, Chen Zifeng, whose Soul Power was two ranks higher, gradually gained the upper hand after all.

As the battle continued, seeing that Chen Zifeng was almost about to secure victory—

In the next instant, Yao Haoxuan's eyes turned blood-red, and his offensive abruptly turned wild and fierce!

Every move was a stance of mutual destruction, a desperate fighting style clearly aimed at exchanging wounds for wounds and lives for lives!

Forced to parry with all his strength, Chen Zifeng shouted with a look of astonishment, "Haoxuan! This is just a spar!"

"I'm sorry, Zifeng!"

"I know! But I can't lose!"

"I must win!!"

"I want to represent the academy in the Spirit Master Tournament!!!"

"I'm sorry!!!"

Opposite him, hearing Yao Haoxuan's roar, all expression froze on Chen Zifeng's face before completely fading away bit by bit.

He stared intently at Yao Haoxuan's crazed face, as if seeing this person clearly for the very first time.

He desperately wanted to rush over right away, grab Yao Haoxuan by the collar, and ask fiercely—is a single chance to compete really that fucking important?!

So important that you would fight me with your very life?!

So important that you would trample all our years of friendship underfoot?!

Yet, when he saw Yao Haoxuan cough up another mouthful of blood while recklessly draining his own potential at the cost of his future—

Chen Zifeng suddenly felt weary.

Taking the opportunity to widen the distance once more, the Battle Intent in his heart ebbed away like a receding tide.

Gazing at Yao Haoxuan charging forward heedlessly again, he actually dissipated his Spirit directly, turned around, and called out loudly to Principal Yan Shaozhe in the distance, "Principal, I admit defeat."

"I won't participate in this Spirit Master Tournament."

Having said that, he turned to look at the bewildered Yao Haoxuan nearby and said in a deep voice, "Yao Haoxuan, I'm giving this opportunity to you."

"Consider it... putting an end to our years of friendship."

Ignoring Yao Haoxuan's hesitant, evasive gaze,

Chen Zifeng gave a free-spirited smile, bowed respectfully to Principal Yan Shaozhe, and upon receiving tacit approval, lingered no longer, striding straight out of the martial arena.

Having watched this "splendid" battle, Lin Yan glanced at Yao Haoxuan, who was covered in blood and gasping for breath on his own.

Well, then.

Another fanatic brainwashed by Shrek's glory.

...

Ever since the selection ended, Lin Yan's life returned to tranquility once more.

And as his spirit ring research topic was temporarily wrapped up, apart from his daily cultivation in mind, energy, and Spirit, his main focus shifted toward the two Domains of Formations and Spirit cores.

Formations went without saying.

As for putting the method of Spirit cores on his agenda, he naturally wanted to see if he could make some improvements and optimizations to it.

The ordinary method of condensing a Spirit core presented no difficulty to him; he had easily mastered it long ago.

After reviewing a vast amount of materials on Spirit cores in the Inner Court Library, Lin Yan increasingly felt that the traditional way of condensing a Spirit core was far too primitive and far too crude.

Combining the concepts of inner dantian and Golden Core from his past life, along with the principles of cosmic circulation Qi Sea and the eight extraordinary meridians,

as well as the Spirit aperture and Spirit Pill system from Electrolux's World, endless inspirations and ideas instantly burst forth in Lin Yan's mind.

However, for these ideas to be truly brought to fruition, they still required time to catalyze.

...

After settling on the official team members, logically speaking, they should have conducted pre-tournament teamwork training.

However, Lin Yan clearly had no intention of wasting his time on that.

And considering his current real combat strength, Elder Xuan, who was responsible for leading the training, let him be.

In truth, regarding the training of this batch of official team members, Elder Xuan and Principal Yan Shaozhe hadn't cared much in the first place.

In their eyes, with one Lin Yan plus two Spirit Emperors, such a luxurious lineup—training? Teamwork? None of it mattered!

With a flying dragon riding over their faces, how could they lose?!

Precisely because of this, Elder Xuan, who was already accustomed to slacking off, naturally slacked off even more this time.

Every day he would gorge himself on food and drink, getting dead drunk and completely losing himself, indulging in wild game without restraint.

Thus, time flowed like water, and in the blink of an eye, the day arrived to set off for the Star Luo Empire.

During this period, apart from taking time to visit the Treasure Appreciation Fair to experience the joy of snagging a bargain and pocketing that Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Gel,

Lin Yan paid no mind whatsoever to other trivial matters, such as the reserve team selection or the meeting between both teams.

...

The next morning, at the main gate of Shrek Academy.

Apart from the main team, the reserve team, and Elder Xuan leading the group, there was another person going along this time: Lin Yan's homeroom teacher, Teacher Wang Yan.

Teacher Wang Yan setting out with the team meant his duties were quite heavy.

Not only did he have to act as the tactical commander on the spot for the main team during the tournament, but he also had to handle all logistical support for every student, including but not limited to gathering intelligence, formulating tactics, and even overseeing their food, clothing, shelter, and travel.

Strictly speaking, Teacher Wang Yan was the actual person-in-charge of this tournament trip.

As for Elder Xuan, he was more like an accompanying bodyguard and enforcer.

However, at this moment, this "enforcer" was surprisingly being somewhat serious for once.

Elder Xuan walked up to everyone, cleared his throat, and began explaining the Shrek Inspector Squad in a deep voice.

"Our Shrek Academy has a history of over ten thousand years."

"Generally speaking, a powerful Spirit Master can live for at least two hundred years, or even longer, and almost every year students from the academy pass the assessment to enter the Inner Court."

"Yet currently, excluding those who have already graduated, there are fewer than one hundred Inner Court Disciples remaining in the academy."

"Do you know why that is?"

"Because they all sacrificed themselves gloriously, dying in battle for the ideals of the academy..."

"Not all Spirit Masters are good-natured. Many swell with arrogance due to their own power and harbor evil thoughts... and some are naturally evil degenerates known as Evil Spirit Masters..."

"In order to eradicate them and maintain peace on the continent, numerous Inner Court Disciples lay down their precious lives every year for this cause..."

"...The Inspector Squad often suffers casualties... We are both inspectors and enforcers... and the Inspector Squad receives no compensation whatsoever."

"Alright, now I need you to give me an answer: will you join the Inspector Squad?"

After listening to Elder Xuan's impassioned speech and seeing the proud expressions on the faces of Ma Xiaotao and the other five, Lin Yan shook his head inwardly.

The original intention of the Inspector Squad to fight Evil Spirit Masters was indeed correct, and Evil Spirit Masters truly deserved to die.

However, its organizational structure, rules and regulations, and safety guarantees were an absolute disaster.

Without any transitional adaptation, without relevant training, and without a comprehensive intelligence system, relying solely on hot-blooded passion was simply treating the students' lives like child's play.

It was purely a laissez-faire, survival-of-the-fittest Gu-breeding system, so it was no wonder the sacrifice rate was terrifyingly high.

At the same time, having problems wasn't terrifying.

What was terrifying was that instead of attempting to solve problems when faced with them, they treated such senseless sacrifice as glory and took pride in it.

A group of old fools living in luxury on past laurels, already rotten to the core, took the achievements that young students exchanged with their blood and lives, used them as their own medals, and bragged ostentatiously.

In fact, as long as a portion of the top powerhouses in Shrek actually took responsibility,

offering a bit of guidance and protection so that these Inner Court Geniuses could gradually adapt, the Inspector Squad's death rate would drastically drop.

And if those students who would otherwise die foolish and wrongful deaths could survive, given their long future lives, the value they could create and the impact they could have would be far, far greater!

Unfortunately, though he understood this, Lin Yan knew now was not the time to act.

To truly change all of this, he still had to wait a little longer.

Only when his strength became formidable enough that his word was absolute law in Shrek and no one dared object could he cut through the Gordian knot and sweep away all corruption and evils!

Only after cleaning up the house could he rebuild a Shrek that completely belonged to him and could serve as his support!

When that time came, the raging Eternal Emperor Flame would surely burn away all stubborn corruption and all filth!

As for right now, it was better to stall for time.

Since he temporarily lacked the power to change the bigger picture, there was no need to get involved and waste time.

After all, what he lacked most was time!

...

In the brief moment while Lin Yan's thoughts whirred, Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Huo Yuhao, and He Caitou had already agreed in unison.

Meanwhile, the remaining Jiang Nannan, Wang Donger, and Xiao Xiao turned their eyes to Lin Yan in unison, waiting for his answer.

Seeing this, Lin Yan's face showed no waves as he calmly shook his head and said softly, "Elder Xuan, I only believe what I see with my own eyes."

"As for whether to join or not, let's talk about it after I've seen it for myself."

As Lin Yan's voice fell, Jiang Nannan and the other two, who had been watching him, quickly nodded along as well.

Hearing this, Elder Xuan's face darkened slightly; he hadn't expected Lin Yan not to agree directly.

Among everyone present, the one he valued most was Lin Yan.

Yet looking at Lin Yan's unshakeable gaze, he ultimately didn't say anything more.

If he wanted to see for himself, so be it.

For a Genius Prodigy like Lin Yan, it wouldn't do to push him too hard either.

At the same time, he possessed confidence—once they personally witnessed the Inspector Squad's heroic demeanor while executing missions and felt that glory and sense of mission, they would definitely choose to join willingly.

After all, there had been plenty of students with doubts like theirs in the past, and didn't they all end up joining obediently in the end?

This was the baffling confidence belonging to Shrek, as well as to Elder Xuan.

Of course, as for how many of those joined out of sheer necessity just to get their Inner Court graduation certificates, only Heaven knew.

...

Then, at Elder Xuan's signal, Ma Xiaotao began distributing the soul tool rings containing the Inspector Squad's gear to everyone.

When she walked up to Lin Yan, her movements noticeably stiffened, and a deeply hidden trace of fear instantly welled up in the depths of her pink eyes.

Her change was, naturally, Lin Yan's handiwork.

In their previous fight, to prevent her from causing any further trouble in the future, Lin Yan had conveniently added a little extra something to the final strike of "Emperor Descends Upon the World."

The seed of fear had been planted.

In the future, as long as Ma Xiaotao failed to see her true nature and cleanse her mind, her fear of Lin Yan would grow deeper and deeper until she could never break free!

"Our mission on this trip is to head to the Mingdou Mountain Range at the border between the Star Luo Empire and the Sun Moon Empire to eradicate a band of bandits numbering no more than three hundred."

"This band of bandits commits every imaginable evil and goes by the name 'Hand of Death'."

"Their leader is an Evil Spirit Master who calls himself the 'Death God Envoy'. There are many caves there for these people to hide in, and they even caused a small-scale war between Sun Moon and Star Luo."

"Not a single person among these bandits is good-natured, and every one of them has hands stained with blood, so the mission requires leaving none alive!"

After handing out the gear, as everyone walked along, Ma Xiaotao introduced the brief intelligence regarding their mission.

Here it comes.

Elder Xuan's lifelong arch-nemesis—the mysterious Five-Ringed Death God—was ultimately going to make his appearance after all.

Although he knew what would happen next, Lin Yan had not the slightest intention of speaking up to warn them.

Abandon the urge to help others, respect the destiny of others.

Besides, for individuals like Ma Xiaotao and Yao Haoxuan whose bones were deeply poisoned by Shrek, getting blown up a bit might be a good thing.

To see if it could blow their deeply poisoned brains slightly sober.

Even if it couldn't blow them sober, at least it would make them quiet down.

As for the remaining ones whose minds were relatively normal, like Ling Luochen, Gongyang Mo, and Jiang Nannan, if Lin Yan let that Five-Ringed Death God harm anyone while they were prepared, he might as well go sit at the same table as Elder Xuan.

Besides, without this 'Death God Envoy', how could it highlight the incompetence of a certain Chicken Leg Douluo?

And how could it give him a perfectly legitimate reason to feel "disillusioned" and naturally refuse to join that bullshit Inspector Squad?

...

Hurrying along the way, the group didn't stop to rest until noon.

After running for the whole morning, the several Inner Court students looked normal enough, at most breathing a bit faster.

However, Bei Bei and the others, who had been measuring the ground with their legs the whole time, were already drenched in sweat despite being carried along by the Inner Court Disciples.

Because of this, the few of them couldn't help but cast envious glances at Lin Yan, who was dispelling his Thunder-Fire Wings, and Jiang Nannan in his arms.

Especially Wang Donger; she pursed her dry lips and looked at Jiang Nannan, whose hair wasn't even ruffled in the slightest, feeling an even more complex mix of emotions in her heart.

This was truly—miserable, tragic, and bleak.

Your journey~ my journey~ are completely different~

"Brother, is the Inspector Squad's gear... really this crude?"

During the rest, Jiang Nannan took out the gear stored in her Inspector Squad ring and looked at it.

She discovered that apart from the Inspector Squad's exclusive clothes, mask, cloak, and a few distress signal flares, there was actually nothing else inside!

In her heart, a massive question mark instantly popped up.

Having stayed by Lin Yan's side for so many years and influenced by him, Jiang Nannan had long since developed a set of scientific and logical thinking.

Looking at this shockingly crude equipment, then recalling the extremely high-risk mission Elder Xuan spoke of, a strong sense of absurdity spontaneously welled up inside her.

The reason behind the Inspector Squad's persistently high death rate—she seemed to have found part of it...

Meeting Jiang Nannan's astonished gaze, Lin Yan shrugged and gave her an affirming look.

Receiving this silent affirmation, and thinking back to those Inner Court Disciples who had sacrificed themselves in the past, Jiang Nannan felt utterly speechless in her heart.

This was truly... so not worth it!