The sun sank in the west, the golden crow fell, and the jade hare rose in the east.
As dusk settled over the Douluo Continent, Xu Xiaoyun and Xu Fu rose together with weary expressions. After settling the Xu brothers into bed and giving a few quiet instructions to Elder Yue and Chen Wu, they ascended to the top level of the tower with steady steps.
Night had descended, and the Xu Clan's grand estate—nestled between mountain and river—was ablaze with lights, like stars mirroring the heavens. Distant peaks loomed like shadows wrapped in mist, casting the entire sect in a dreamlike serenity.
Xu Xiaoyun and Xu Fu—two of the Xuanming Sect's most influential figures—stood in quiet contemplation, taking in the majestic view while regulating their inner breath.
After a long silence, Xu Fu's hesitant voice broke the stillness.
"Great-Grandfather… Tianxi's talent far exceeds our expectations. Do we still need to send him to the Sun-Moon Empire?"
Xu Xiaoyun gave a small shake of his head—then, curiously, a nod—and finally opened his calm, unfathomable eyes. His voice remained placid.
"Of course we're sending him. We agreed on this long ago. Scattering the clan's seeds across the continent has always been key to our family's survival."
Xu Fu frowned, unconvinced.
"But Great-Grandfather… Tianxi has a twin martial soul, and one of them is an Ultimate Martial Soul. His potential is… unprecedented.
If we nurture him for a few decades, he may reach your level—or even ascend to Limit Douluo. He could safeguard the sect's dominance for three hundred years!
Maybe… we could even emulate Shrek's legendary path—let him rise up in a time of chaos, unite the Three Kingdoms against the Sun-Moon Empire… and elevate Xuanming Sect to be the number one sect in the world!"
His eyes were alight with fervor, ambition blazing in his voice.
After all, the once-glorious Shrek Academy had been led to greatness by a wielder of the Ultimate Fire. Xu Tianxi's gifts, in comparison, were arguably superior. Why couldn't he become the second legend?
Xu Xiaoyun glanced at him with a faint sigh.
"The path of the Ultimate Element is riddled with peril. From rank 30 to 70, his cultivation speed will be agonizingly slow. Even with our full support, reaching Titled Douluo would take at least thirty years."
"And during that thirty-year window, if his true talent is exposed while he still stands with the Three Kingdoms, the Sun-Moon Empire will not sit idle. They will strike with full force to eliminate him before he matures."
"Even if I throw my life away to protect him, there's no guarantee I could succeed. Worse, it might drag the entire sect into ruin."
Xu Fu's enthusiasm stalled. He lowered his gaze, frustrated.
"But Great-Grandfather… didn't you say you and Long Xiaoyao were on good terms? He's a senior, a legendary figure. Surely he wouldn't stoop to kill a child?
Plus, couldn't we form an alliance with Shrek or the Body Sect? Surely they wouldn't ignore us…"
Xu Xiaoyun chuckled bitterly.
"When did I ever say Long Xiaoyao was the only Limit Douluo in the Sun-Moon Empire?"
"He might show me some face. But that madwoman certainly won't."
"As for allies… that old poisoner from the Body Sect is reliable. But even if he and I fought together, we'd at best die alongside one Limit Douluo. If both of us fall—who's left to protect Tianxi?"
He looked toward Xu Fu, voice heavy with scorn.
"You want to rely on Xuanzi of Shrek? That doddering fool who can't even protect a disciple? The same bastard who got your wife killed?"
Xu Fu's blood ran cold at the mention of his wife's death. He shivered uncontrollably.
Right. How could they trust Xuanzi to protect anything—let alone Tianxi?
And if there are two Limit Douluo on the enemy's side…
Wait—what?
Xu Fu blinked, then blurted out:
"Wait, there's another one? Another Limit Douluo joined the Sun-Moon Empire? Are we losing people by the busload now?!"
Xu Xiaoyun's face darkened.
"Don't ask. I've never met that madwoman, nor do I care to. But Long Xiaoyao told me personally when he stopped me from investigating the Evil Soul Masters. The intel is accurate."
"Beyond those two, I also sensed a terrifying presence within the Sun-Moon Empire's Offering Hall. And then there's the stockpile of ninth-grade fixed soul ammunition—each one powerful enough to rival a Limit Douluo's full strike."
He turned to gaze over the glowing sect grounds below, and his solemn expression betrayed deep unease.
He, too, had dreamed of replicating Shrek's rise.
But with Limit Douluo like Long Xiaoyao and Ye Xishui in the Sun-Moon Empire…
With artillery that could wipe Xuanming Sect off the map in a single volley…
That dream was crushed under the weight of reality.
Long Xiaoyao might show mercy. But soul cannon shells? Not so much.
Even a Titled Douluo couldn't survive one of those blasts. How could he gamble the lives of his descendants for a pipe dream?
And then there was Ye Xishui…
Xu Xiaoyun shuddered—not from fear of her strength, but her mind.
She had once stood as an equal to the Twin Holy Dragons, before her fall to evil. She had bested the Sun-Moon Empire in her youth, defeating even their elite.
During the fateful All-Continent Soul Master Tournament over two hundred years ago, Mu En, Long Xiaoyao, and Ye Xishui had all risen as peerless prodigies. All three captained teams that crushed the elite institutions of their time.
And now?
All three were Limit Douluo. All three stood at the pinnacle of the world.
One crippled.
Two… defected.
In the end, the "losers" of the tournament—the Sun-Moon Empire—turned out to be the biggest winners.
Back in his prime, Xu Xiaoyun feared none of them. His twice-awakened Xuanwu Shield had stood unmatched among defensive martial souls. But time had passed. The other three reached rank 99, and he…
He remained stuck.
Long Xiaoyao was once a friend.
Ye Xishui? An acquaintance at best.
And you couldn't bargain with Evil Soul Masters.
"Too much happened after Mu En and Long Xiaoyao both fell for Ye Xishui…" he muttered.
Even Mu En's teacher—the former Sea God Pavilion Master—had perished soon after a battle with Evil Soul Masters. The two Holy Dragons had become estranged, and Long Xiaoyao, who once despised evil… had joined them.
Only one woman could've made that happen.
Ye Xishui, the love of his life.
Now, she too had become a Limit Douluo. A Limit Douluo Evil Soul Master.
As Xu Xiaoyun pieced together the past, a cold sweat broke across his back. He couldn't help but feel relieved—relieved that his own path had taken him early into marriage, away from that tangled mess of passion, betrayal, and madness.
"In short," he sighed, "Tianxi's talent is simply too high. Not even our alliance with the Body Sect could keep him safe. Sending him to the Sun-Moon Empire is our only option."
"Long Xiaoyao once told me—there is someone in their Offering Hall so powerful, even he isn't certain of victory."
"I investigated. That man is Kong Deming—the imperial guardian of the Sun-Moon Royal Family. A ninth-tier soul engineer. Former Head of Mingde Hall. Widely hailed as the Father of Ninth-Tier Soul Engineers."
Xu Xiaoyun clenched his fists.
"We used to laugh at soul engineers. Now look at us—scared witless by their might."
Douluo's traditionalists always assumed soul engineers couldn't become true threats. That once a Titled Douluo reached their rank, they could crush even top-tier engineers.
Fools.
Now it turned out—the strongest living man was not a soul master, but a soul engineer from the Sun-Moon Empire.
Xu Fu caught onto something.
"Kong? Is he related to Yue'er?"
Xu Xiaoyun nodded.
"Distantly. Three or four generations removed. He's likely the only one alive who can protect Tianxi…"
He trailed off with a long, bitter sigh.
If Mu En weren't on his deathbed…
If Xuanzi weren't a complete failure…
Maybe, just maybe, he would've stayed and fought.
But with three Limit Douluo on the enemy side—and his only allies being a poison master and a washed-up fool?
He couldn't see a victory.
"Forget it," he muttered.
Xu Fu stayed silent for a while, then asked softly:
"Then Great-Grandfather… what about Tianxi's eye martial soul? We don't even know how to train a body martial soul."
Indeed. They could manage the Xuanming Turtle just fine. But this Illusory Moon Mystic Eye?
They were in the dark.
Xu Xiaoyun closed his eyes in thought, then answered slowly.
"It's not urgent. I've dealt with the Body Sect before. I may not know how to guide a second awakening, but I've read enough to try. If needed, I'll research it myself."
"For now… I'm going to the Sun-Moon Empire. You stay here and watch over Tianxi and Sanshi. Also, send word to your senior brother—have him gather nourishing materials from the coast. We will spare no expense in raising the continent's future number one."
Xu Fu nodded immediately, then blinked.
"You're going to the Sun-Moon Empire? For what?"
"To capture an Evil-Eyed Beast."
"That will be Tianxi's first soul ring."
With that, Xu Xiaoyun stepped off the tower—and then paused, waving his sleeve with a stern warning.
"Tianxi's awakening must remain absolutely secret. Officially, say his martial soul mutated and failed to awaken the Xuanming Turtle. Claim his innate soul power is level seven—lower than that, no one would believe it."
"This way, his departure from the sect won't raise suspicion."
"From this moment forward, no one is to leak anything about Tianxi. Not even pillow talk with your wife! If I find out—you'll spend the next few decades in solitary confinement."
"Y-Yes, sir. Understood completely."
Xu Fu bowed with absolute deference, watching Xu Xiaoyun disappear into the starry horizon.
Above the clouds, the moonlight spilled across the land.
And the silhouette of the old man—Xu Xiaoyun, once the world's greatest shield—vanished into the western night.