"Hey, hey, hey, Wulin, your parents are just ordinary people. They can't handle you using so much strength."
At the heartwarming moment of the family of three reuniting, Lin Yuhan, who had followed along, saw that Tang Ziran and his wife were turning pale. She quickly reminded the ecstatic Tang Wulin to mind his strength.
"Oh, right!" Tang Wulin hurriedly released his arms, stepped back several paces, and scratched his head sheepishly.
"I'm sorry, Mom and Dad, I got a bit too excited—"
He spoke carefully, fearing he might scare his foster parents whom he hadn't seen in years.
"It's fine, it's fine. We're more than happy just to see you."
Tang Ziran took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and began to recount the pain of their long separation.
"Lin Lin, how have you been these past few years? Tell Mom and Dad about it."
"Yes, Lin Lin, how have you been? Are this young lady and this young man your friends?"
Lang Yue was already moved to tears, yet she was also rubbing her aching shoulders; she couldn't let their first meeting turn from a comedy into a tragedy.
She looked at Xie Xie and Lin Yuhan behind Tang Wulin, her gaze lingering particularly on Lin Yuhan.
"Yes, they're friends."
Tang Wulin gave the answer before the two could speak, then introduced them to his foster parents with an eager expression.
Lin Yuhan gracefully extended her hand and took the initiative to offer to be their tour guide. Tang Ziran and his wife immediately shot Tang Wulin a meaningful look.
To meet such a beautiful girl in a foreign land like the Star Luo Empire—their boy had certainly grown up!
Xie Xie was the most active, saying with a smile, "Uncle, Auntie, you've come at just the right time. The Star Luo Empire has just finished its operation to wipe out rebel forces and terrorists. Everything is peaceful and stable now, unlike when we first arrived."
Tang Ziran said in surprise, "You encountered an attack from the Star Luo Empire's rebels when you arrived?"
"We did, but fortunately, it was more a scare than a danger." Xie Xie recalled the group's experiences since coming to the Star Luo Empire—being attacked, going to jail, and their superiors repeatedly risking their lives. It had been quite colorful.
Qiangu Qingfeng and his wife had already taken the crippled Qiangu Zhangting back to the Douluo Continent. This former admissions director who had recruited the two of them into the Spirit Pagoda Academy would likely spend the rest of his life in a daze, dedicating his life to the cause of breeding.
Thinking about it brought a sense of melancholy.
Tang Wulin wiped his face and smiled. "Everything is fine. We are now Spirit Pagoda Disciples, so our future lives are secure."
"That's good, that's good then." Tang Ziran had already heard a brief summary of Tang Wulin's current situation from the staff, and seeing with his own eyes that his son was doing well brought great relief to his heart.
Lin Yuhan smiled and said, "His greatest achievement is as a blacksmith. I'm already the most outstanding Genius in the Star Luo Empire's blacksmithing world, but his potential is even greater than mine."
Upon hearing this, Lang Yue hurried forward to take Lin Yuhan's hand, chatting with a smile. Any normal mother would be overjoyed to hear of her son's achievements.
Amidst this vibrant, harmonious, and warm atmosphere, a figure descended with the hum of a sword, revealing a middle-aged man in ancient robes with a melancholy expression.
"Have you really made your decision? We are about to return to a precious land in the Federation to seek an Opportunity. I believe that if you go, you will definitely obtain that Opportunity."
Zang Xin looked at Tang Wulin enjoying family happiness with his foster parents, feeling utterly helpless. In his heart, he had cursed Feng Zaixing countless times.
You damn Feng Zaixing. I thought you weren't going to step forward to stop us, but instead, you used a special high-speed boat to bring Tang Wulin's parents from the Federation just to spite us.
Seeing the sincerity in Zang Xin's eyes, Tang Wulin bowed with cupped hands, then looked up and said in a low voice, "Thank you for your kindness, Pavilion Master, but as I said, we can never return to the Tang Sect. I cannot bear such a noble status either. Just act as if you don't know me."
"You— Sigh!"
Zang Xin glanced at Tang Ziran and his wife, whom Tang Wulin was holding onto. He gave a long sigh and shook his head. "Fine, fine! I won't force you anymore. May your life be smooth and prosperous."
With that, he didn't wait for Tang Wulin's response and flashed onto a high-speed boat prepared by the Tang Sect. The other members of the Monster Academy's Seven Heavenly Kings, minus Dai Yuner, were already waiting there.
However, at this moment, they were all wearing the iconic poop-green uniforms of Shrek Academy, signifying that they had advanced from the branch school to the main campus and were about to follow the Tang Sect, an external organization of Shrek Academy, into the legendary Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Undoubtedly, they now had a new identity: the Shrek Seven Devils, inheritors of Shrek Academy's twenty thousand years of glory.
As the boat sped away, Tang Ziran saw the ancient character for 'Tang' on the vessel and looked at Tang Wulin with concern. "Lin Lin, do you also have a connection with the Tang Sect?"
"That's all in the past. There's no connection now." Tang Wulin smiled calmly, as if nothing had happened.
His fate with the Tang Sect was like a grand dream. He had entered the sect with longing under the guidance of Wu Changkong, only to be driven away by the unreasonable Cai Yueer. Now, he had somehow learned he might be the son of Sea God Tang San and was being invited back by the Tang Sect. It was simply surreal.
However, he was very clear about the extent of his talent and potential. Although his Golden Dragon Bloodline had somehow grown much stronger after that night, the end of his path in this life would likely be becoming a Super Douluo. Returning to the Tang Sect served no purpose.
What Zang Xin and the others valued was not correcting the mistake of Cai Yueer's tyrannical behavior; they simply wanted to bring back this person who was suspected of being the'Son of the Ancestral Master' to serve as a statue. It was realistic, but chilling.
Sea God Tang San was a Divinity he had admired since childhood, but the current face of this Divinity was that of an Evil God harming the continent. This made him unable and unwilling to even think about it.
He would let everything follow its natural course. He couldn't bear the title of the Son of the Sea God; it was better to cherish the parents by his side.
Lang Yue said, "Lin Lin, don't think too much. No matter what, we will always be with you from now on."
"Mhm!"
Tang Wulin gave a heavy nod. His wandering gaze caught sight of an outdoor soul-tool light screen in the city, which was broadcasting a special report on the joint operation between the Star Luo Empire and the Sun Moon Federation to wipe out the Green Skeleton rebels. He smiled and introduced, "Mom, Dad, look. The Green Skeleton Organization is actually a branch of the Holy Spirit Cult, an Evil Soul Master organization. They've been pestering the Star Luo Continent for years. This time, our Federation experts joined forces with the Star Luo Empire and finally wiped them out in one fell swoop."
Tang Ziran watched the report for a while and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "They actually captured three god-level mechas and a massive number of black and purple mechas. The scale of this Green Skeleton Organization is truly enormous."
On the soul-tool light screen, there was a report on the new head of the Star Luo Empire's Spirit Pagoda branch, Phantom Brain Douluo Han Tianyi, flying in a red mecha. His aged eyes were exceptionally bright, filled with a longing for Divine Rank metal.
Xie Xie chuckled. "No matter how strong they were, we still destroyed them. Another of the Holy Spirit Cult's Four Heavenly Kings has been taken down. Our Federation is flourishing day by day."
The screen shifted, and faces in the prime of their youth appeared one by one: Feng Zaixing, Gu Yue, Yu Xin, Naer, Yuanen Yehui—all bursting with youthful vitality.
Feng Zaixing fiddled with the Dark Bell, pointing a single finger to the sky as he addressed the Holy Spirit Cult. "Ghost Emperor, Dark Bell has been slain by my own hand! Dark Hummingbird was captured long ago, and Halossa's soul and form have been extinguished. You lot should submit to execution early to avoid the suffering of a few years of flight!"
"Feng Zaixing has made his move, and another of the Four Heavenly Kings has been taken down. We only have the Douling Continent left as our final sanctuary."
On a floating island in the ocean, the Ghost Emperor, whose entire body was shrouded in a black robe and whose physical form was tattered, spoke in a voice that had almost left the realm of human language, sounding ten times worse than the croaking of an old crow.
He looked around at his subordinates. The familiar faces were all gone. Halossa was gone, and Dark Blood Demon, Dark Hummingbird, Dark Bell, and Dark Blood Eye were all gone. And all of this was thanks to Feng Zaixing!
Relying on Feng Zaixing's relentless purging, Leng Yulai, who had soared from the last of the Four Heavenly Kings to the head of the Four Heavenly Kings, was now the third highest-ranking member of the Holy Spirit Cult. She flickered her Dark Phoenix eyes and said in a low voice, "What do we do now? Completely surrender to the Federation? Or hide for a few hundred years?"
The Ghost Emperor glanced at Leng Yulai and gave a low snort. "Are we only capable of running away?"
Leng Yulai crossed her arms, her cold and elegant temperament combined with her devilish figure exuding a soul-chilling aura. She asked in return, "Otherwise, what do you want to do? The cult's losses grow larger every time. We no longer have enough power to organize a counterattack."
"Perhaps we could have done something when Feng Zaixing was weak, but it's too late now. We can only try to outlive him."
The Ghost Emperor said gloomily, "Have you forgotten the Abyss Plane? There exist powerful beings there who can truly bring destruction to this plane."
Leng Yulai rolled her eyes and said, "Of course I know. The cult's nine great powerhouses, including the Dark Angel, have already been completely wiped out."
The Ghost Emperor said hatefully, "Feng Zaixing can't find us, so sooner or later he will go to the Blood God Legion and face the Abyss Plane. When that happens, we will have a chance to breathe! Doesn't he pride himself on being an unrivaled Prodigy? Let him go and witness the infinite combat power of the Abyssal Holy Monarch!"
Leng Yulai said hesitantly, "But will he go alone?"
The Ghost Emperor paused, the ghostly fire in his eyes dimming for a moment before suddenly flaring up again. He said decisively, "No matter what, we cannot give up hope!"
Lan Fozi changed back into her Deep Sea Demon Whale form and swam around the ocean, shouting from afar, "Ghost Emperor, Dark Phoenix, where are you? Where is my mother—?"
The Ghost Emperor vanished from the spot instantly, leaving a sentence for Leng Yulai: "From now on, you will handle all cult affairs with full authority. This Emperor is going into seclusion to heal."
After several setbacks, the Ghost Emperor instinctively suspected that someone in his own team was leaking information. Both Leng Yulai and Lan Fozi were suspects, and he now dared not let his location be easily exposed.