Chapter 155: Bei Bei's Suspicion! Could It Be That Elder Xuan Is Lining His Own Pockets?
Shrek Academy, just outside the Sea God Pavilion.
Bei Bei walked slowly along the quiet, winding path, his figure bathed in the soft, ethereal reflection of the Golden Tree. A heavy shadow of contemplation darkened his usually gentle features.
He had just stepped out of the cultivation room, having finally stabilized his soul power at Rank 50. Under normal circumstances, breaking through to the Soul King realm at his age would be a source of immense pride. A faint, residual crackle of blue lightning still danced across his knuckles, yet his thoughts were entirely disconnected from his own achievement.
The only reason he had braved the oppressive, lingering soul power fluctuations surrounding the Sea God Pavilion today was for a single item: the Radiant Dragon Pill.
No one currently residing in the academy understood the true significance of that pill better than Bei Bei.
Late one night, shortly before Elder Mu passed away, the old man had specifically summoned him to his bedside. Bei Bei could still vividly recall the heavy scent of decay in the room. Elder Mu's life force had been nothing more than a flickering candle in the wind. His withered, trembling fingers had clamped down on Bei Bei's wrist with surprising strength, his cloudy eyes fixing onto the young man as he asked a question that would determine the future of Shrek.
"Bei Bei... if I were to use this Radiant Dragon Pill to trade for a single sliver of survival for Shrek, to settle our debts with Liu Yuan... do you think it is worth it?"
Bei Bei's answer that night had carried no hesitation.
"Liu Yuan possesses a terrifyingly resilient heart and a ruthless nature. His talent is unmatched throughout history. If we allow ourselves to become his mortal enemies, Shrek will undoubtedly face a catastrophe. Although the Radiant Dragon Pill is a priceless treasure, if it can resolve this karma between us, it will serve as an absolute amulet for our ten-thousand-year foundation."
That was the solemn consensus he had reached with his great-grandfather.
Elder Mu had assured him with his dying breaths that he would entrust the Radiant Dragon Pill to Elder Xuan, with strict instructions to deliver it to the Body Sect as a peace offering.
Yet, a considerable amount of time had passed since Elder Mu's funeral.
Bei Bei had been quietly observing Elder Xuan's movements from the shadows. Day after day, he watched, waiting for the Taotie Douluo to depart. But he never found a single sign that Elder Xuan was preparing to set off for the Body Sect.
Initially, Bei Bei rationalized it. He assumed Elder Xuan was simply overwhelmed, forced to stay behind to manage the chaotic overall situation of the academy in the wake of their greatest loss. But as the days bled into weeks, an inexplicable, gnawing sense of incongruity took deep root in Bei Bei's chest.
'Why does Elder Xuan continue to delay his departure?'
Lost in these turbulent thoughts, Bei Bei's boots hit the wooden stairs leading up to the main hall of the pavilion.
Before he could even approach Elder Xuan's office, the heavy, ancient wooden doors groaned and pushed open from the inside. A wave of stifling, chaotic soul power rolled out into the corridor. Several senior figures filed out, their expressions painted with deep sorrow and grave exhaustion. Among them were Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and Elder Zhuang.
"Dean Yan. Respected elders." Bei Bei stopped in his tracks, immediately bowing at the waist to offer his greetings.
Yan Shaozhe slowly lifted his head. Seeing the young man standing there, the Dean forced a gentle, albeit strained, expression onto his weary face. He walked forward, letting out a long, ragged sigh, and placed a heavy hand on Bei Bei's shoulder.
"Bei Bei, you have come at a bad time. Elder Xuan is currently in an extremely fragile state. He needs absolute quiet to rest and recover. I am afraid he will not be able to see you for quite a while."
Bei Bei froze, his eyes widening slightly. His gaze drifted past Yan Shaozhe's broad shoulder, staring at the tightly closed doors of the office. He hesitated for a second before asking, "That intense soul power fluctuation just now... what exactly happened to Elder Xuan?"
"Sigh... speaking of it, we all feel deeply ashamed." Xian Lin'er took over the conversation, stepping forward. Her usually fiery eyes were red-rimmed, her tone thick with raw emotion.
"Elder Xuan has truly poured out his heart and drained his own blood for our Shrek." She shook her head, her voice trembling slightly. "Right after Elder Mu passed away, he was consumed by worry. He feared that the Body Sect and the Sun Moon Empire would take advantage of our vulnerability. So, disregarding the severe aging of his own meridians, he forcibly attempted to break through to the Rank 99 Limit Douluo realm."
"Forcibly attempting to break through to Rank 99?" Bei Bei's pupils contracted violently.
"Yes," Yan Shaozhe sighed again, his fingers tightening on Bei Bei's shoulder. "Although he ultimately failed, suffering a devastating backlash from the realm and sustaining severe internal injuries... Elder Xuan's fiercely loyal heart, his willingness to destroy his own foundation just to protect the academy, truly makes the rest of us feel ashamed of our own weakness."
Yan Shaozhe withdrew his hand, his posture sagging. "Right now, Elder Xuan needs absolute silence to recuperate. If you have any urgent academy matters, bring them to us first. Otherwise, come back in a few months when his injuries have finally stabilized."
Whenever the senior elders spoke Elder Xuan's name, their eyes shone with deep admiration and unwavering approval. In their minds, the man who had vomited blood in the ruins of his own cultivation room for the sake of the academy's future was Shrek's final, tragic backbone.
Listening to their emotional praises, Bei Bei felt as if an invisible, icy hand had suddenly gripped his heart, squeezing the breath from his lungs.
He had originally come here to ask if the Radiant Dragon Pill had finally been sent out. But looking at the reverent, emotional faces of the senior elders, the words turned to ash in his throat. He swallowed hard, forcing the question back down.
"Since Elder Xuan is recuperating, Bei Bei will not disturb him."
He lowered his head, carefully hiding the dark, turbulent flash of suspicion in his eyes, and turned to walk away.
The journey back down the small path toward the inner courtyard dormitories felt agonizingly long. Bei Bei's footsteps were heavy, dragging against the stone tiles.
He kept replaying the senior elders'words in his mind. Every single syllable made a sickening, indescribable sense of awkwardness churn in his stomach.'Elder Xuan doesn't attempt a breakthrough early. He doesn't attempt it late. He chooses this exact, critical moment to try and reach the Limit?'Bei Bei muttered to himself, his voice dropping to a barely audible whisper.'Although he has absolute seniority, his cultivation has been completely stagnant for years. His potential was spent. The Radiant Dragon Pill that great-grandfather entrusted to him... it contains the purest radiant dragon essence in the world. It is the absolute best, most flawless supplement for attempting a breakthrough to the Limit Douluo realm.'His breathing grew shallow. The pieces were snapping together in his mind, forming a picture so ugly he wanted to look away.'Elder Xuan has been making excuses to delay his trip to the Body Sect. And now, he is suddenly severely injured during closed-door cultivation... Could it be that he actually embezzled that life-saving Radiant Dragon Pill for himself?!'
The moment the thought fully materialized, Bei Bei felt a cold chill wash over his entire body.
If this deduction was true, then Elder Xuan had completely trampled over Elder Mu's dying will. He had chosen his own selfish desire for power over the safety of the very academy he swore to protect.
"It... it can't really be like this, right?"
The more Bei Bei analyzed the timeline, the closer he got to the terrifying truth. Fine beads of cold sweat seeped from his forehead, sliding down his pale cheeks.
Just as his logical mind was about to lock onto the final, damning conclusion, he stopped dead in his tracks.
A sharp, stinging crack echoed in the quiet air.
Bei Bei had slapped himself hard across the face. He used so much force that his cheek instantly flushed a bright, burning red, the shape of his handprint clearly visible against his skin.
"Bei Bei! What the hell are you thinking?!"
He clenched his fists tightly at his sides, his fingernails digging so deeply into his palms that they nearly drew blood. He roared in his mind, drowning out his own logic with fierce self-reproach.
'Elder Xuan is the sworn brother who accompanied great-grandfather his entire life! He is the ultimate stabilizer of our Shrek Academy!''Yes, he is a bit sloppy. Yes, he is unreliable on normal days. But his love for the academy cannot possibly be fake!''How could he ever do something so treacherous, so utterly underhanded?'Bei Bei took several deep, ragged breaths, forcing his racing heart to calm down. He closed his eyes, actively hypnotizing himself, desperately trying to scrub that terrifying, logical inference from his brain.'He must be under too much pressure. That is why he wanted to risk everything for a breakthrough. Yes. That makes sense. Perhaps the Radiant Dragon Pill has already been sent out through a secret courier, and I simply don't know about it.''I shouldn't suspect an elder who has shed blood and sweat for this academy for nearly a century. To think such things... it is a blasphemy against the very spirit of Shrek.'
He shook his head vigorously, throwing the lingering unease out of his mind, and forced his legs to carry him back toward his residence.
He did not realize it, but in that exact moment—when he chose to 'rationally' blind himself to the glaring truth—the actual reality brushed right past him. Shrek Academy's final, desperate lifeline was being severed, bit by bit, all buried beneath Elder Xuan's selfish lies.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away from Shrek Academy, deep within the territory of the Body Sect.
The golden afternoon sun beat down on the towering, rugged mountain gate of the sect. The usually solemn, fiercely militaristic atmosphere of the Body Sect was currently replaced by a rare, buzzing sense of joy and anticipation.
Several figures, completely covered in travel dust and grime, were sprinting up the steep mountain steps at breakneck speed.
These were the elite disciples Liu Yuan had dispatched months ago, tasked with a singular, vital mission: scour the continent for the Gold of Life and the legendary Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
At this moment, the leading disciple's chest was heaving like a bellows, his robes soaked in sweat. Yet, despite his sheer exhaustion, his eyes burned with wild excitement. The moment his boots hit the stone landing of the main gate, he waved his arms frantically at the guarding junior brothers who were rushing forward to meet them.
"Quick! Go notify Senior Brother Liu Yuan immediately!"
The disciple gasped for air, a massive grin splitting his dirt-streaked face.
"We have good news!"
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