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At this moment, a glimmer of wisdom flashed in Xuan Zi's eyes.
"Hmph, still putting on an act, huh? You're clearly looking for an excuse to wipe us out. I won't give you the chance!" Xuan Zi thought, convinced that Ye Wen was inherently evil—this Tian Xing Douluo!
Xuan Zi obligingly pulled out a chicken leg from his storage soul-guiding device and began devouring it with great enthusiasm.
However, his sharp gaze remained fixed on Ye Wen, and his True Body Armor was still fully activated, revealing his obvious wariness.
Fortunately, at this moment, Ma Xiaotao broke the deadlock.
"Esteemed senior, I'm not sure what your intentions are, but if it's not urgent, I'd like to quickly take my classmates back for treatment. Their injuries cannot be delayed any longer."
Ma Xiaotao spoke urgently, her tone reflecting her concern. At this moment, she cared far more about her companions than about this stranger.
Xuan Zi was startled. After painstakingly maintaining the situation, how could his own "little cotton-padded jacket" (a term of endearment) betray him?
Ye Wen chuckled lightly. Finally, someone had brought the conversation back on track, so he continued where he left off:
"Even if you take them back to Shrek now, they won't be fully cured. I'm well aware of the capabilities of your healing-oriented Titled Douluo at Shrek.
Moreover, after wasting so much time and being deeply poisoned, it's likely that a few of them might still die upon returning."
In reality, without Ye Wen's interference, though their recovery would have taken a long time, there wouldn't have been any further casualties. This was Ye Wen deliberately exaggerating to strengthen his bargaining position.
But Xuan Zi, ever the overthinker, speculated even further. If Ye Wen already knew the level of Shrek's Titled Douluo so well, how could he claim to have no ill intentions toward Shrek?
At this moment, Xuan Zi's gaze toward Ye Wen grew even heavier with suspicion.
No wonder he's considered Shrek's greatest enemy!
But Xuan Zi was caught in a dilemma—he couldn't win in a fight, nor could he outwit Ye Wen. He was deeply troubled.
Dai Yueheng, however, displayed sharp intelligence by picking up on Ye Wen's underlying meaning. He quickly interjected:
"Senior, do you mean that you can help us treat them? If so, please act quickly! Afterward, whether it's Shrek or my White Tiger Duke family, we will surely offer you satisfactory compensation."
After saying this, Dai Yueheng's mind raced with thoughts.
The majority of the compensation would naturally come from Shrek, as these individuals were the future backbone of the academy and couldn't be sacrificed lightly. Moreover, using this opportunity, he could mitigate the fallout from his foolish younger brother's recent blunder, ensuring that Shrek Academy wouldn't continue to distance itself from their family.
Thinking about how these few words showcased his talent, Dai Yueheng felt a surge of pride, confident that his father would value him even more in the future.
But at this moment, Xuan Zi instinctively blurted out, "No!"
Instantly, all eyes in the room turned to Xuan Zi.
Ye Wen's gaze was one of resignation—he didn't know what strange thought process was running through this guy's head. As for the inner court students, they were incredulous. They were severely injured, and here was someone capable of treating them—why refuse?
While Xuan Zi could ignore Ye Wen's gaze, he found it difficult to justify himself to these precious students. After all, information about Ye Wen and the threat he posed to Shrek wasn't something typically shared with the inner court students.
The honor of Shrek must not be tarnished.
At this moment, Ma Xiaotao seemed to recall something.
"Tian Xing Douluo… Tian Xing sounds familiar…"
The theoretical classes in the inner court weren't overly burdensome; most of the focus was on various forms of cultivation. However, due to the defect in her martial soul, Ma Xiaotao had to deal with both training and managing her demonic flames, leaving little time to keep up with news from across the continent. Even when she did hear something, it was usually just a passing mention, so her memory of it wasn't strong.
But hearing Ma Xiaotao's muttering, Ling Luochen instantly recalled Ye Wen's profile.
After all, this was information about a Supreme Douluo who was also disturbingly close to Shrek Academy.
Ling Luochen immediately gained immense confidence in Ye Wen's abilities due to his status as a Supreme Douluo. Looking at her suffering companions, injured and poisoned, she decided to take on the responsibility of negotiating at this critical moment.
"Master Xuan, we can't delay any longer. If this senior has a way to help, please let him assist us. Regardless of the conditions, afterward, both Shrek and our families will surely express our gratitude!"
Ling Luochen's words hit Xuan Zi like a sledgehammer, causing him to tremble. But he simply couldn't bring himself to say, "You can't let Ye Wen save you."
Seeing that the timing was ripe, Ye Wen stepped forward and softly said:
"Don't worry, Xuan Zi. My intention in coming to heal them does indeed have ulterior motives, but don't overthink it. If I truly wanted to harm Shrek, I would've gone to the Sun Moon Empire long ago."
As he spoke, Ye Wen casually walked past Xuan Zi, giving his shoulder a light pat.
Watching Ye Wen's composed figure, Xuan Zi's eyes flickered with complexity. For a moment, he couldn't figure out what this man was planning.
Ye Wen looked at the three lightly injured, three severely injured, and one deceased student, and said:
"All injured, line up side by side. Oh, and bring the one who's stopped breathing too. My soul skill happens to have resurrection properties—I'll revive him while I'm at it."
Ye Wen's calm and matter-of-fact words sent shockwaves through everyone present.
The pinnacle of auxiliary-type soul skills was resurrection, but such abilities rarely appeared in this world. The only recorded instance was the fusion skill of the Nine-Treasured Douluo and the Food God Douluo from the first generation of Shrek's Seven Monsters, which revived Tang San, the Sea God.
But Ye Wen didn't care whether they were shocked or not—he wasn't interested in whether they believed him or not.
This was also another layer of protection Ye Wen had wrapped around himself.
Though it was unclear whether Xuan Zi understood his earlier words, Ye Wen subtly hinted that Shrek's true enemy lay within the Sun Moon Empire. Let Shrek and the Holy Spirit Sect clash first. Once they were exhausted, it would be Huo Yu'er's time to shine.
With the seven lined up—well, one lying down—
Under Xuan Zi's complex and astonished gaze, Ye Wen simulated nine 100,000-year soul rings and condensed a bead-like illusion in his hand.
Instantly, seven soul rings lit up, and seven streams of nine-colored light descended onto Ma Xiaotao and the others.
Time seemed to rewind as their wounds gradually disappeared. The greenish pallor caused by the corpse poison faded, replaced by healthy, rosy complexions.
Finally, as the chest of the deceased inner court student began to rise and fall again, Ye Wen's resurrection performance came to an end.
At this moment, Xuan Zi finally lowered his guard.
Perhaps Ye Wen really doesn't harbor ill intentions toward Shrek…
Xuan Zi silently reflected.
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