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--- Chapter 486 ---
Back at the Blacksmith Association headquarters, Han Yuan sat quietly at the dining table, his eyes fixed on a buzzing television screen with an odd, fascinated expression.
He slowly munched on the highly nutritious meal Mu Ye had prepared, his voice barely above a murmur as he watched the chaotic replays. "Brother Xu... he really works hard the second he comes back, doesn't he?"
"To be honest, I'm impressed."
"I am pretty lazy here."
Han Yuan had watched the footage of Xu Deming battling Yun Ming and effortlessly tearing down the other Title Douluo experts.
The federal authorities didn't censor it. Well, it's not like they can.
It really showed the raw, brutal reality of the peak powerhouse in its most destructive stage. Not only that, but Xu Deming had also thrown heavy, uncompromising shade at Shrek Academy and the legacy of Tang Hao, deliberately inciting chaos across the continent.
Unfortunately for the world, it wasn't simply shade. It was the undeniable truth that many had hidden and tried to uncover for ten thousand years.
Presently, no matter how desperately Shrek Academy tried to salvage and recover from this disaster, their name had been utterly smeared. Ultimately, no amount of public relations or centuries of institutionalized Shrek Glory brainwashing could save them now. The seeds of doubt had been planted in the minds of nearly every living soul on the planet.
After all, Shrek had been living far too well for the past twenty thousand years. They had bathed in absolute glory, reaping unmatched resources while the rest of the continent watched in silent misery.
They operated under the guise of righteousness, positioning themselves entirely above the laws of the mortal Federation. They always acted as if they were the sole, flawless heroes of the world, incapable of doing any wrong, truly selfless and pure, perfectly mirroring the clean image of a certain Godking.
But they were wrong. The moment a giant entity like Shrek makes one fatal, undeniable mistake, the illusion shatters.
And they had made mistakes, several massive, fatal blunders throughout their long history, hidden away only because 'history' is always written by the victors.
Shrek had been the victor for millennia.
But they wouldn't remain the victors forever.
The Federation would make sure that Shrek lost this time. The senate of the Hawk Faction had been hunting for even a sliver of an opportunity to drag Shrek Academy, the Tang Sect, and their various allies straight into the ditch, stripping away their untouchable status.
And it wasn't just the government. The Spirit Pagoda would eagerly utilize this chaos to reap the vast majority of the political benefits left in the wake of Shrek's downfall.
Qianggu Donfeng, the current Pagoda Master of Spirit Pagoda, who has such strong hatred toward Shrek, would definitely do it.
Mu Ye walked out of the kitchen, looking rather awestruck as he wiped his hands on a towel. He glanced up at the television monitor and froze, his jaw dropping. "Holy shit... What the fuck happened out there?! Yun Ming actually lost to a mechanical demon?!"
"And that thing... that thing openly declared that the Tang Clan has been actively suppressing the plane's natural growth?!" Mu Ye's voice shook, a realization washing over him. "T-This... everything makes sense now."
As the current Sect Master of the Body Sect, Mu Ye knew his lineage had been bathed in its own glory ten thousand years ago. Yet, everything had changed the moment they entered into conflict with Shrek Academy. Suddenly, their resources withered, their influence waned, and even their ancestral lineage was nearly cut off completely. They barely made public appearances in the current era, largely because the Body Sect no longer possessed a Limit Douluo expert to back them up. If they did, the Body Sect would have shown its fangs long ago.
Realizing that young Han Yuan was still watching the violent broadcast, Mu Ye snapped out of his daze and instantly shut the screen off, fearing the boy would be traumatized by the bloody scene. "Hey, kid! Don't watch things like that randomly!"
Mu Ye softened his tone, looking down at the boy with deep worry. "...But are you okay, seriously?"
Han Yuan blinked innocently at Mu Ye, tilting his head in confusion. "I'm perfectly fine, Granduncle. Was I not supposed to be?"
"Also... The TV just switched to that when I was eating."
"Uh... that's not what I meant. It's just... the television was a bit too violent," Mu Ye stammered, waving his hand casually to dismiss the tension.
"Oh... Then you don't have to worry about me, Granduncle," The silver-haired boy replied calmly, his expression thoughtful. "I was actually just wondering... is the legendary Title Douluo realm really that weak? They got beaten so easily."
'I don't think 'beaten' is the right word, kid,' Mu Ye grumbled inwardly, recalling the image of Title Douluo experts being turned into pulverized meat within seconds. 'Rather than being beaten, they were completely erased from existence.'
Mu Ye let out a heavy, weathered sigh. "It's not that those Title Douluos are weak, Xiao Yuan. It's that the mechanical demon thing is too freaking strong."
"Even I wouldn't necessarily be able to fight it off the rip. Maybe I could manage to escape using my mecha, but even that is a massive 'maybe' of a scenario..."
"Is that so?" Han Yuan looked down at his small hands, asking a naive yet incredibly heavy question. "Then... Can I get stronger than all of them?"
"This..." Mu Ye fell into a deep, silent contemplation.
Because Han Yuan had awakened twin Martial Souls that were favorably God-level spirits, reaching the Title Douluo realm was guaranteed.
Even the Limit Douluo realm wouldn't be difficult for the boy, provided he put in the necessary effort and training.
This child truly possessed boundless potential.
However, to reach a height like the Quasi-God realm required something far beyond mere potential.
Mu Ye himself had suffered from this problem. He possessed the potential to become a Limit Douluo, yet he had found himself trapped in the Super Douluo realm for years, unable to break through.
"Of course my grandson can grow stronger than all of them!" Han Tianyi's booming, bold voice suddenly echoed through the dining room.
He walked through the doorway casually. His posture was confident, with Divine Craftsman Zhen Hua walking calmly by his side.
"Grandpa Han!" Han Yuan called out excitedly, instantly waving his hand at the silver-haired elder.
Han Tianyi smiled faintly, the stern lines of his face softening as he looked at the boy. "Xiao Yuan... if you truly wish to grow stronger than the peak of this world, your Grandpa will do everything in his power to help you achieve it."
"But you need to grow up first..."
"Mhm!" Han Yuan nodded gently, a spark of determination lighting up his young eyes.
Han Tianyi then gestured toward the tough-looking man standing beside him. "Also, let me introduce you to this gentleman."
"This is the Divine Craftsman, Zhen Hua. You can also consider him a God-Grandfather of sorts."
"He will be personally taking care of you alongside Junior Brother Mu Ye for the next few weeks until I finish preparing a few arrangements for your living quarters and cultivation."
"Oh! It's nice to meet you, Divine Craftsman Granpa!" Han Yuan greeted, bowing slightly with a touch of childish awkwardness.
Zhen Hua chuckled, stepping forward to pat the boy's silver head. "Hehe, you can just call me Grandpa Zhen, little one. I actually saw you a couple of times when you were just a baby, so there's no need to be so formal with me."
"Then, Grandpa Zhen!" Han Yuan laughed back cheerfully, his earlier awkwardness melting away.
Zhen Hua gazed intently at Han Yuan's innocent, bright face, letting out a quiet, internal sigh. The boy looked so remarkably like his grandfather and his late father, yet he perfectly carried his mother's radiant, cheerful personality.
It was a bittersweet sight in a world that was currently turning upside down.
Mu Ye cleared his throat loudly to steer the conversation away from the heavy atmosphere of the continent. "Alright, let's have lunch while everything is hot."
"I cooked more than enough food for everyone."
"That sounds good. Let's eat!" Zhen Hua followed smoothly, well aware that the situation outside these walls was on the verge of a total meltdown.
"Mhm," Han Tianyi sat down directly next to Han Yuan, putting more food on his grandson's plate. "Xiao Yuan, eat up. Eat as much as you can, so you can grow bigger and stronger than the sky itself."
"Okay!" Han Yuan merrily wolfed down his food.