When Niu Tian said those words, Jiang Shengyu immediately understood why the two of them had come.
At the same time, he couldn't help but admire Tang San's scheming.
To keep Wang Dong'er close to him, he had even gone so far as to forcibly alter the "script" of fate itself.
What nonsense about Ultimate Ice and Ultimate Fire soul masters being needed to stabilize her condition! Pure fabrication!
He really had turned his own daughter into a pawn.
Jiang Shengyu didn't speak. Beside him, Jiang Qingtong frowned and asked coldly,
"So what exactly are you proposing?"
Niu Tian softened his tone.
"We're hoping that Dong'er can stay by your side. With your dual Ultimate attributes, little brother, you can help her stabilize her situation. Don't worry — she won't be a burden. Once we find another way, we'll take her back."
Hearing that, Jiang Qingtong turned her gaze toward Wang Dong'er, who stood with her head lowered, clearly embarrassed.
Jiang Shengyu swept his eyes between Niu Tian and Titan, studying them for a long moment before finally nodding.
"I didn't expect that Wang Dong'er's body had such a condition. In that case, we have no objections."
Like to send your daughter to others, do you?
Then don't blame me — we'll take her… and we won't be returning her.
When Jiang Shengyu agreed, both Niu Tian and Titan visibly relaxed.
They soon found an excuse to send Wang Dong'er and Jiang Qingtong away, leaving them alone with Jiang Shengyu.
Titan clapped Jiang Shengyu on the shoulder.
"Good lad! A fine young man — I knew I hadn't misjudged you! Dong'er's situation is special, but don't worry, you won't lose out. In fact… this may turn out to be a great blessing for you."
Niu Tian followed up,
"By the way, how's your research on those non–soul-beast-derived soul rings coming along? Do you need our help?"
Though the two of them had stayed on the Douluo Continent under Tang San's direction, they still saw themselves as soul beasts at heart. When it came to matters that could benefit soul beasts, they were deeply invested.
Jiang Shengyu didn't hold back — he made several requests directly.
Titan looked at him in surprise, his expression as if to say, You're certainly not shy, are you?
Niu Tian nodded after a pause.
"Hmm… in terms of resources, we can help. As for locating some of the rarer soul beast species, we'll do our best to find them. But gathering large numbers of human soul masters for your experiments… that's beyond our ability."
Jiang Shengyu nodded in understanding. He hadn't really expected them to gather human test subjects anyway — the Soul Hall had already been quietly supplying that need.
Once this Soul Master Tournament was over, he planned to return to the Sun Moon Empire and continue advancing his research there.
After a few more words of advice to Wang Dong'er, Niu Tian and Titan departed from Shrek City without lingering.
Before long, the day of departure arrived. Xuedi and Elder Song served as the team's escorts.
This wasn't Xuedi's own request — rather, Elder Xuan had felt that traveling deep into the Sun Moon Empire would be extremely dangerous. Having Xuedi along meant there would at least be someone capable of handling emergencies.
The Shrek Academy delegation rendezvoused with other teams at Yuming Pass —
some from other academies, others from secluded sects. Even the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had sent a team to compete in Mingdu.
Since the construction of Yuming Pass by the Star Luo Empire, it had never been this lively.
Watching so many young prodigies pass through toward the Sun Moon capital, Dai Hao couldn't shake a faint sense of unease. Still, he reasoned that the Sun Moon Empire wouldn't dare commit some act of madness that would incur the wrath of the entire continent — and so he said nothing.
Perhaps he was just overthinking things.
Once the teams had entered Sun Moon territory, the great gates of the pass closed behind them.
A Rank 9 Soul Engineer from Mingdu stood before the assembled delegations, smiling broadly as he declared,
"Welcome, everyone — to the greatest nation on the continent, the Sun Moon Empire!"
His words drew scoffs and derisive laughter from many.
But the Rank 9 Soul Engineer didn't seem the least bit embarrassed. He simply waved his hand.
"Please, follow me — we'll take the soul train to Mingdu."
"Soul train?"
Most people looked blank at the unfamiliar term. Only those who had been to the Sun Moon Empire before — like Xiaoxiao and a few others — understood what that meant.
At the border station, five soul trains were waiting.
They were a generation older than the ones used in the Sun Moon heartlands, equipped with a slightly lower-grade core array but achieving comparable speed and superior soul power efficiency.
"So this is what you call a soul train?"
Elder Song and Yan Shaozhe stared in astonishment at the massive steel serpents before them, turning toward Jiang Shengyu and the others.
"That's right," Jiang Shengyu nodded.
"All of these are produced by the Mingde Hall."
At present, all civilian-grade soul tools in the Sun Moon Empire were developed and licensed by Mingde Hall. Jiang Shengyu was already planning, for the future, to spin off Mingde Hall's various civilian departments into specialized production divisions.
In the crowd, Beibei caught sight of Tang Ya. As the current master of the Tang Sect, she too had brought a Tang Sect representative team to Mingdu for the tournament.
When Beibei saw her, he instinctively wanted to approach and speak —
but something in him hesitated. In the end, he stayed where he was.
Elder Song noticed.
"Enough," she said coolly.
"She's just someone who betrayed the academy. Don't let it trouble you. Beibei, you carry the hopes of Shrek Academy and Elder Mu. You are the future master of the Sea God Pavilion."
She hadn't bothered to lower her voice. The surrounding delegations all heard her clearly.
Those who knew the story exchanged glances, whispering quietly.
Jiang Qingtong looked at Elder Song, half-exasperated.
Whose bright idea was it to make her and Yan Shaozhe the delegation leaders? Neither of them can talk to save their lives.
All the teams boarded the soul trains. The convoy departed from the border station, racing toward Mingdu.
As they passed through the long tunnel beneath the mountains, the full expanse of the Sun Moon Empire unfolded before them —
An endless plain stretched to the horizon. Highways crisscrossed the land, and soul-powered automobiles sped by in glittering streams.
Far off in the distance, the silhouettes of towering skyscrapers rose against the skyline.
This was a world entirely different from the three traditional nations of the Douluo Continent!
Those who had never before left their native lands — sect disciples who had spent their whole lives within the borders of their own empires — pressed their faces to the train windows, staring wide-eyed at the breathtaking modern vista outside.
Yan Shaozhe, however, still wore his usual expression of superiority.
No matter how these soul tools evolve, they could never compare to my own flying speed.
At the train's current pace, he could have flown between Mingdu and the border several times over.
But having lived so long within Shrek's sheltered world, Yan Shaozhe had overlooked one critical fact:
Personal flight was a privilege of high-level soul masters.
These soul trains and vehicles, however, were accessible to everyone.
They erased privilege — giving ordinary people the means to explore a vast world once closed to them.
When the train finally pulled into Mingdu Station, the sight that greeted them — towering skyscrapers packed together in a sprawling urban skyline — left everyone aboard utterly stunned.
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