Dai Yueheng had only been back for two days, and in that short time, the name he heard the most was Zhou Sicheng. Or rather, the titles others used to refer to him: Teacher Zhou, Instructor Zhou, Coach Zhou…
But the most outrageous title came from Ma Xiaotao—"Little Martial Uncle."
And who was Ma Xiaotao? That didn't even need to be said. She was Shrek Academy's strongest transfer student and the personal disciple of Dean Yan Shaozhe.
If Ma Xiaotao hadn't suddenly joined, the position of captain for this generation's Shrek battle team would have gone to Dai Yueheng.
Though he didn't like the idea of Ma Xiaotao leading the team, he couldn't deny that her strength was truly overwhelming.
Now that he had returned with his sixth spirit ring, Dai Yueheng fully intended to challenge her. Both were now Spirit Emperors, and their spirit power differed by only three levels.
But captaincy wasn't just about strength—it also required intelligence.
In his mind, Ma Xiaotao was just a well-endowed musclehead.
He had originally been determined to challenge her… only to suddenly hear about a new name—Zhou Sicheng.
Who the hell was Zhou Sicheng?
Dai Yueheng had no memory of such a person. It wasn't until Chen Zifeng and the others explained that he learned Zhou had only just enrolled this year.
He'd thought Ma Xiaotao was the most monstrous transfer student yet. But the way everyone described Zhou Sicheng… Dai Yueheng wasn't sure he was even human anymore—he sounded like a literal monster.
Beating Ma Xiaotao—who had six spirit rings—with just three? Defeating the Soul-Chasing Sword Chen Zifeng in a single move?
Was the world going crazy, or was Dai Yueheng the one falling behind the times?
Since when did Shrek start producing monsters like this?
He'd already thought Ye Guyi was an anomaly—now Zhou Sicheng showed up?
And on top of it all, he was Ma Xiaotao's "Little Martial Uncle." That title alone carried weight—it meant he was Elder Mu's disciple.
And Elder Mu? He was the pillar of Shrek—the very sky that held the academy together.
But based on what Dai Yueheng was hearing, and Zhou Sicheng's ridiculous all-millennium spirit ring setup, a strange thought crept into his mind:
If Zhou Sicheng was really this powerful… did Elder Mu even qualify to be his teacher?
Dai Yueheng was a descendant of the legendary Battle God Dai Mubai. His instincts weren't wrong. If Zhou Sicheng was everything they claimed, then only a true god descending to the mortal world could explain it.
Not even the ancestors from ten thousand years ago could compare to this level of monstrous talent.
And it wasn't just one or two people hyping him up—it was the entire inner court.
Still, information was scarce. No one could even ask about Zhou Sicheng's true capabilities. He had effectively become the highest-level secret in Shrek. To even mention what wasn't public knowledge was to commit a crime.
With so many people practically worshipping Zhou Sicheng, even if Dai Yueheng had a thousand doubts, he wasn't stupid enough to speak them aloud.
He wasn't an idiot. In terms of intelligence and emotional awareness, he was easily one of the top few among the inner court students.
So naturally, Dai Yueheng was extremely curious to see Zhou Sicheng in person—to witness for himself what kind of monster was worthy of such hype.
As he was chatting with Chen Zifeng, he saw Ma Xiaotao approaching with three others. One of them—a stunningly handsome young man—stood out immediately.
The three girls didn't even need to be described. Their looks spoke for themselves. But this guy? He looked better than any of them.
With refined features and radiant presence, just a glance was enough to tell that this person was anything but ordinary.
Dai Yueheng's interest deepened. "That's Zhou Sicheng?"
Zhou Sicheng and his group walked toward the pavilion where Elder Xuan was feasting, wine gourd in hand.
"Elder Xuan," Zhou greeted respectfully with a slight bow.
Elder Xuan smiled, putting away his chicken leg and standing up. "Alright, now that everyone's here, let's begin."
The rest quickly gathered around.
As he looked at the assembled students, a beaming smile stretched across Elder Xuan's face.
"The reason I've called you all here today is simple: to determine the official members of the Shrek battle team. There's less than a year left before the tournament. Over the next six months, I'll be selecting seven official members from among you. This is your final chance to compete for a spot."
Despite his cheerful demeanor, Elder Xuan's voice turned stern: "You'll be representing Shrek in the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament. The academy's ten thousand years of glory rests on your shoulders. Whether you become the next generation of Shrek's Seven Devils will depend entirely on your strength."
He went on at length, but the message was clear—only seven of them would become official team members. The rest would simply be support.
Eventually, Elder Xuan finished his speech and raised a finger to point at Zhou Sicheng.
"Zhou Sicheng won't be participating in your internal competition. He has already been designated as the captain of the next Shrek battle team."
"During this time, if any of you can defeat him, you will immediately qualify as an official team member."
There were no objections—everyone knew exactly how strong Zhou Sicheng was.
Even though Dai Yueheng hadn't seen Zhou's strength firsthand, the stories alone were shocking enough. There was no need to question them.
No one in the inner court would invent such an absurd tale just to fool him.
Even Ma Xiaotao, as proud as she was, didn't object. That said everything.
The group responded in unison, "Yes, Elder!"
Elder Xuan turned to Zhou Sicheng, grinning. "Sicheng, during this period, you'll serve as their referee and instructor. You'll help train and select your future teammates. You get to decide who stays and who goes."
That statement made even Dai Yueheng raise an eyebrow. Elder Xuan was practically handing Zhou Sicheng life-and-death authority over the team. Was Zhou really more important than all of them combined?
But then he recalled what Chen Zifeng had told him—and any shock quickly vanished.
A ten-thousand-year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear? Yeah, Zhou Sicheng definitely had the credentials.
Zhou Sicheng cupped his hands. "Understood."
Elder Xuan continued, "Your talent and strength are exceptional. Elder Mu believes there's no need for you to reveal all your abilities so soon. To protect your advantages without impacting Shrek's chances, your teammates will be essential."
"Choose wisely. They should complement you without forcing you to reveal too much. Do you understand?"
Zhou Sicheng nodded calmly. "Understood."
This was exactly what he wanted.
Even though his strength was formidable now, he had no intention of making himself a target. Revealing everything would only invite danger—especially for someone like him, a budding super-genius.
Elder Mu's intentions aligned perfectly with Zhou Sicheng's own.
Elder Xuan wasn't surprised at how easily Zhou accepted it. Most young people liked to show off, but Zhou was different. He was more composed than anyone his age.
Even Dai Yueheng, the one he admired most in this generation, couldn't compare.
If not for Zhou Sicheng's verifiable bone age, Elder Xuan would've doubted he was only twelve years old.
He went on to lavish praise on Zhou, reviewing the team selection conditions in detail.
When he got to Dugu Xianmeng, Elder Xuan hesitated. "Xianmeng, although you've reached the Spirit King realm, your poison…"
Before he could finish, Zhou Sicheng spoke up, "Elder Xuan, there's no need to worry. I've found a way to neutralize Xianmeng's poison. It will no longer distinguish friend from foe."
Dugu Xianmeng gave Zhou a grateful look. Elder Xuan paused, then nodded. He had no reason to doubt Zhou.
"If Zhou says it can be done, then I trust it will be."
Dai Yueheng blinked in surprise. "Dugu Xianmeng's already reached Rank 50? Last I checked, she was only at Rank 47…"
He had just returned and didn't know much of what had happened. Even Chen Zifeng and the others were somewhat in the dark.
Everyone was surprised by Dugu Xianmeng's breakthrough. But the bigger shock was that Zhou Sicheng could help her neutralize her poison, making it safe for team use.
In that case, her value might surpass Ling Luocheng's.
Ling Luocheng's ice element and control skills were strong, but compared to the Five-Poison Variant, it wasn't even close.
In team battles, if the enemy had no Spirit Emperor-level powerhouses, Dugu Xianmeng's poison alone could secure victory.
Hearing that her poison could now be controlled, Ling Luocheng felt a jolt of anxiety.
With only two control-type spirit masters on the team, if Dugu's issue was resolved, Ling's spot was in serious jeopardy.
Before the others could recover from their shock, Ye Guyi stepped forward.
"My spirit power has broken through to Rank 60. I only need one more spirit ring to become a Spirit Emperor."
Everyone—including the girls—stared at her with dropped jaws. Only Elder Xuan and Zhou Sicheng remained calm.
Ye Guyi had been back at the academy for a week. During that time, Ling Luocheng, Ma Xiaotao, and Dugu Xianmeng had all sparred with her at the Soul Arena.
Back then, she had only been Rank 55. That was just a few days ago. Even yesterday evening, she was still Rank 55.
Did that mean she had jumped five levels overnight?
How was that even possible?
Not even Zhou Sicheng had advanced that quickly.
Everyone already knew the two were siblings—Zhou, the prodigy who crushed six-ringed opponents with only three rings.
Now his sister had also turned into a monster? Five levels in one night?
It sounded completely absurd—utterly unrealistic.
Unless…
Unless she was an evil soul master. They were infamous for their strange and terrifying techniques.
But that was impossible. Ye Guyi's martial soul was the Holy Angel—public enemy number one of all evil soul masters.
If evil soul masters saw her, their first instinct would be to kill her.
Dugu Xianmeng glanced at Ye Guyi, then at Zhou Sicheng, her expression turning strange.
The two of them had spent the night together. Could it be…?
No, that didn't make sense. Douluo Dalu's people matured early, sure, and Zhou was twelve… but weren't they siblings?
Incest?
Even if they did "that," there's no way doing it once would give someone five levels of spirit power…
If that were true, wouldn't Zhou Sicheng become a walking cultivation tool?
Dugu Xianmeng shook her head, trying to erase the absurd thought. No—Zhou must have brought back some sort of treasure.
That made more sense.
The truth wasn't far off. Even Elder Xuan, who had heard about the Red Spider Lily sub-body, couldn't help but feel awed upon seeing Ye Guyi's solid, refined spirit power with his own eyes.
Zhou smiled and explained, "My sister's improvement came from a treasure I found during a dangerous expedition."
Just that one sentence made everyone go crazy. What kind of treasure could give someone five levels overnight?
That was nearly two years of cultivation saved in an instant!
Zhou didn't elaborate further, and no one dared press him.
But they had no idea—
This was just the beginning.
****
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