Zhu Ziyang wandered alone in the Bi Lin Flower field outside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Every time he stopped, a large patch of Bi Lin Flowers would wither and decay, turning into fertile fertilizer, nourishing the land that had sustained their growth.
After Xian Lin'er, Cai Meier, and Ma Xiaotao left, Zhu Ziyang began the process of increasing his spirit ring's age. This was an extremely tedious and time-consuming endeavor. He was like an ascetic monk, trudging through the flower field. However, with Electrolux and Xue Bing霜, his three Soul Spirits, accompanying him, he didn't feel bored.
Days passed one by one, and Zhu Ziyang's spirit rings changed day by day.
—
One day, at Shrek Academy, in the Sea God Pavilion.
Mu En lay on his rocking chair in the Sea God Pavilion hall as usual. Outside the Sea God Pavilion, Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao were practicing Reign Over The World.
Since Zhu Ziyang had left the academy for his God Position assessment, Mu En had no choice but to personally teach them. Fortunately, before Zhu Ziyang left, he had already taught all the key points to the three of them. Now, Mu En only needed to supervise their diligent practice and occasionally correct minor details.
Oh, it's worth mentioning that Shrek Academy and Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy had reached an exchange agreement. Both sides planned to send their respective students and teachers to each other's academies for two years of exchange and study.
The exchange personnel from Shrek Academy were undoubtedly Soul Engineers: Soul Tool Department Director Fan Yu, along with Huo Yuhao, He Caitou, and two other Soul Tool Department students. After all, the only aspect of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy that Shrek Academy found worth learning from was spirit tools.
The exchange personnel from Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy were mainly the Hong Chen siblings. The intention of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy was very clear: they wanted to leverage Shrek Academy's advantages in Spirit Master cultivation to help these two siblings make up for their deficiencies and grow stronger.
However, this had little to do with Zhu Ziyang, as he would rarely be in the academy for the next few years.
Mu En on the rocking chair appeared very leisurely. In recent days, Mu En had been in a very good mood, often with a smile and a benevolent expression on his face, making everyone who saw him feel a grandfatherly affection.
"Hmm?" Mu En's body suddenly tensed, then he let out a muffled groan before relaxing again. However, no one noticed that his soul had already left his body.
"This is..." Mu En's soul appeared in a mysterious blue space. A look of solemnity and shock appeared on his face, and a sense of panic, which he hadn't felt in many years, rose from deep within him. But he was, after all, an old fox who had lived for over two hundred years, and he quickly regained his composure, his gaze surveying the surroundings.
This was a blue space, and everything in sight was enveloped in a blue glow. The glow was soft, like tiny waves when a gentle breeze swept across the sea, making people feel an involuntary joy.
"Mu En!" A voice, indistinguishable between male and female, appeared, calling Mu En's name.
"Who dares to play tricks in front of this old man?" Mu En's body trembled, and he immediately tensed his mind, questioning.
In fact, upon entering this blue space, Mu En had realized that he might have encountered an existence beyond his comprehension. The ability to silently detain his soul—such a method was beyond even a Limit Douluo like him. However, his many years of experience as the head of the Sea God Pavilion still made him stubbornly question.
"Hehe! Who I am is not important," the voice said, without joy or anger, very indifferent. "What's important is that you, Mu En, as the helmsman of Shrek Academy, actually provided shelter to an Evil God's successor. You deserve to die!"
"Hmph!" Mu En snorted upon hearing the other party's words. "This old man has lived a life of integrity and never done what you call sheltering an Evil God's successor. Rather, it is you, a hidden and secretive individual, whose actions are more akin to an Evil God!"
"Heh!" The voice, rebuffed by Mu En, was not annoyed. Instead, it chuckled and said, "I am the Sea God. If I am an Evil God, then what are you people of Shrek Academy?"
"What? You are the Sea God? Sea God Tang San?" Mu En's mind was shaken once again, his eyes filled with disbelief, and he exclaimed in surprise.
"That's right, I am Sea God Tang San, one of the Original Shrek Seven Devils of Shrek Academy!" The voice said, now devoid of any emotion. "The reason I appear before you is because an Evil God's successor has appeared in Shrek Academy. To prevent Shrek Academy's ten-thousand-year foundation from being destroyed, I had no choice but to send down a wisp of divine consciousness to awaken you!"
"This..." Mu En remained skeptical. He could be said to be the Spirit Master closest to the divine level on the Douluo Continent, and he had heard of some divine secrets. Therefore, he already believed seventy percent of what this unfamiliar voice, claiming to be the Sea God, said. He said, "Then I ask Sea God to enlighten the later generations and tell us who the Evil God's successor is, so that the later generations can clean up the academy."
"Naturally." A hint of smugness appeared in the Sea God's voice, though Mu En did not detect it. He said, "This Evil God's successor is your disciple, the one named Zhu Ziyang."
"What?!" Mu En was first stunned by the words, then immediately sneered, saying, "You say my disciple Zhu Ziyang is an Evil God's successor? Do you know he possesses the Ultimate Light Spirit? What kind of Evil God would choose an Ultimate Light wielder as a successor?"
"This... The divine realm involves many secrets that mortals like you cannot comprehend. In short, if I say he is an Evil God's successor, then he is an Evil God's successor, absolutely no mistake!" The Sea God hadn't expected Mu En to say such a thing. In his prediction, as long as he revealed his identity as the Sea God, Mu En would trust him implicitly. How could this old man not act as he expected?
Although the Sea God was very displeased, he had no intention of explaining to Mu En. Although he wasn't sure what specific god had chosen Zhu Ziyang, if it wasn't under his control, Tang, what else could it be but an Evil God? So he spoke domineeringly.
"Heh!" Mu En, hearing such overbearing words, snorted coldly again. "Your Excellency is a bit too arbitrary. Even if you are truly the Sea God, you have no right to demand me to do things, let alone demand me to kill my own disciple!"
"So, you still don't believe I am the Sea God, do you?" A hint of coldness appeared in the Sea God's voice. "Forget it, I shouldn't have wasted my time! I originally wanted to talk to you properly, but since you won't listen, I can only resort to force!"
As his voice fell, before Mu En could react, the surrounding light surged towards him like seawater, instantly fixing him firmly in the air. Immediately after, countless blue chains rushed out from the void, coiling around Mu En's exposed head. They tightly bound Mu En's eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, and finally, directly coiled around his forehead.
Mu En's five senses were blocked. He felt himself falling into endless darkness, where there was only a faint light. His last shred of consciousness was drawn by this light, slowly approaching it. This light seemed to be conveying a message to him, a message that Mu En disliked, but the instinct to survive compelled him to accept it.
"Hmph! Although it's only a wisp of divine consciousness, it's more than enough to deal with a mere Titled Douluo!" The Sea God's voice echoed in the blue space, filled with triumph. "Anyone who obstructs my grand plan deserves to die!"
"...!" Just as the Sea God's voice was triumphant, a sudden, inexplicably difficult-to-describe tremor triggered a strange ripple. This ripple, following the endless void, accurately collided into the blue space, instantly freeing Mu En, who had been bound by the blue chains.
"Damn it! You've ruined my plans again!" This sudden ripple filled the Sea God's voice with vexation. He roared, "I don't have time for you right now!"
He wanted to continue what he had not finished, but in the blue space, where was Mu En's figure? It turned out that the ripple not only rescued Mu En from his bondage but also created a crack in the blue space, allowing the freed Mu En to escape through it.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" The Sea God immediately let out an incredibly furious and unwilling roar, but as merely a wisp of divine consciousness, he could only rage impotently. "I was so close to succeeding! So close to succeeding! Ah~ You dare to come back!"
Several more ripples intruded into the blue space, directly causing the blue space to become precarious. The Sea God's voice was instantly filled with anger, and an unseen struggle unfolded in the boundless void.
Regardless of the outcome of this struggle, Mu En's soul, having escaped the blue space, returned to his body. He immediately opened his eyes, a trace of pallor flashing across his face, and a trickle of black blood oozed from the corner of his mouth. He opened his mouth, revealing a grim, bitter smile, and murmured, "Well, now I really don't have long to live!"
"Heh~ Sea God..." Mu En wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes filled with a sharp, yet bewildered and despairing look. "Ziyang, the future will be difficult!"