Douluo Jueshi: Who let him join Shrek!

Shrek Academy, by the Seagod Lake.

As dusk fell, the last rays of the setting sun were gradually swallowed by the distant horizon, and orange light spilled onto Poseidon Lake, draping the tranquil lake in a golden cloak.

A gentle breeze, carrying a hint of moisture, was very refreshing.

"Jiang Ming, I've liked you for a long time."

In this soothing and beautiful atmosphere, Xu Jiujiu finally spoke the words that she had always wanted to say but had never dared to.

This sentence had been buried in her heart for many years. As the princess of the Star Luo Empire and the person in charge of the Star Luo Empire's intelligence department, she was seen by outsiders as a decisive and efficient person. But who would have thought that she had kept this simple confession in her heart for several years?

When she said those words, Xu Jiujiu could clearly feel her body relax a lot.

Some words, if kept in your heart for too long, can actually become an obsession, a burden.

After speaking, she looked at Jiang Ming for a long time, her gaze fixed on him.

This woman, who is absolutely outstanding in the Star Luo Empire and even the entire continent, is now clenching her hands tightly, so much so that her fingernails have left deep marks on her palms.

The words have been spoken; now, we await a response.

Across from her, Jiang Ming was also slightly taken aback after hearing Xu Jiujiu's confession.

He hadn't expected Xu Jiujiu to say this to him; he thought she wanted to talk about the Star Luo Empire.

Unfortunately, he really didn't have those kinds of feelings for Xu Jiujiu.

Or rather, from the moment he first met Xu Jiujiu, he always treated her as a business partner.

As for feelings
Xu Jiujiu is undoubtedly extremely outstanding.

Her identity is that of a princess of the Star Luo Empire, making her one of the most noble women on the Douluo Continent. Her beauty is also unparalleled; among the women Jiang Ming has ever seen, there are practically no ones who can surpass her in this aspect.

However, he genuinely had no romantic feelings for Xu Jiujiu.

Looking at his current wives, Zhang Lexuan goes without saying. Their relationship began when he was around fifteen years old, and after experiencing romance and various events, they finally came together.

Ma Xiaotao and Ling Luochen also have their own experiences. After all, Ling Luochen was the first girl he became close to after arriving at Shrek Academy, and the two participated in the freshman assessment together. As for Ma Xiaotao, many things happened to her after he entered the inner courtyard.

Liya and Wang Qiu'er.
His relationship with Liya was largely due to accidents; in a way, Liya was his savior.

Wang Qiu'er's relationship with her stemmed from a change in the master-disciple bond.

The last Snow Emperor, now a spirit, is someone you spend every day with, whose soul is intertwined with yours. In terms of closeness, she probably can't even compare to Zhang Lexuan.

In short, he and his wives had many experiences, or rather, many stories.

It is precisely because of these experiences and stories that feelings gradually develop.

But with Xu Jiujiu, it was truly just a casual acquaintance.

In this situation, what good is it if one's appearance is unparalleled even after a long time?
Although he's a bit of a scoundrel and has a harem, he's not that weak-willed to be lustful at the sight of beautiful women.

"I am deeply grateful for Princess Jiujiu's kindness."

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Jiang Ming looked at Xu Jiujiu and chuckled softly.

"However, I already have several wives."

This is a rather tactful way of refusing. After all, Xu Jiujiu is a princess of the Star Luo Empire and a business partner. The two of them were just discussing plans for the Sun Moon Empire, so they should at least give her some face.

Xu Jiujiu could naturally understand Jiang Ming's unspoken meaning. While he felt somewhat disappointed, it was also within his expectations.

With her shrewd mind, she could probably guess what the likely outcome would be after she confessed her feelings.

Speaking it out now is simply to put an end to a deep-seated obsession in my heart.

"It's clear that you love your wives very much."

After a long while, he shifted his gaze from Jiang Ming to the last rays of the setting sun on the horizon.

The setting sun, like the obsession in one's heart, is constantly descending and will soon be swallowed by the horizon.

Jiang Ming shook his head, also looking at the afterglow in the distance, and said with a hint of self-mockery.

"Actually, I think I'm pretty much a jerk, at least all the people around me only have one wife. But jerk, oh well."

Xu Jiujiu smiled gently: "You're still a scumbag? I think all your wives love you very much."

Jiang Ming nodded: "Yes, they love me very much, and I love them very much too."

As the two were talking, the last rays of sunlight on the horizon completely disappeared.

"Princess Jiu Jiu, if there's nothing else, shall I take you to Shrek City?"

Jiang Ming turned his head to look at Xu Jiujiu.

After a long while, she nodded, and in the dim light, the disappointment and slight sadness that she had been hiding were revealed.

As an imperial princess, she rarely fell in love with men.

Jiang Ming was undoubtedly the first man who had ever captured her heart.

Unfortunately, they were destined to be apart and could not be together in the end.

Xu Jiujiu now hopes that Jiang Ming is the kind of person who gets lustful at first sight, at least that way she will still be very confident in her appearance.

However, if that were the case, Jiang Ming probably wouldn't be the Jiang Ming she liked.

"it is good."

Xu Jiujiu nodded slightly.

Jiang Ming waved his hand at the Sea God Lake in front of him, and a huge shadow rose from the bottom of the lake. Meng Bing's enormous dragon head emerged from the water, its lantern-sized eyes blinking. It looked somewhat silly and cute, completely lacking the majesty of a dragon.

Soon, Mengbing carried Jiang Ming and Xu Jiujiu and swam towards the outer courtyard.

"By the way, where did Sister Lexuan and the others go? I haven't seen them."

Xu Jiujiu suddenly asked.

Normally, if anything happens at Shrek Academy, Jiang Ming's other wives might not be there, but Zhang Lexuan would definitely be.

We've been discussing things on Poseidon Island for so long today, but we haven't seen Zhang Lexuan at all.

Jiang Ming replied softly, "Sister Lexuan is in seclusion with the others. If Princess Jiujiu needs Sister Lexuan's help during this time, she can come to me." Zhang Lexuan and the others will need to remain in seclusion for some time.

Even with the rewards from the divine assessment, it would still take at least half a year to improve.

In particular, there is the crucial level 99 breakthrough, which is an extremely difficult threshold for any Soul Master to cross!
"In seclusion?"

He was stunned for a long time, then his expression changed slightly as if he had thought of something.

She remembered that Zhang Lexuan's previous cultivation level was level ninety-seven!
Is this seclusion meant to break through to level 98? Or even level 99?!
Thinking of this, Xu Jiujiu couldn't help but gasp.

There are very few level 98 Super Douluo on the Douluo Continent, and even now, there isn't a single level 98 Super Douluo among the royal family of the Star Luo Empire. But Shrek Academy is producing such powerful individuals one after another!

pressure!

Heavy pressure!
This pressure is almost impossible to catch up with!
Shrek Academy.

My mind was filled with countless thoughts, and after a long while, I could only sigh with this one sentence.

Shrek Academy has grown incredibly strong in recent years. Its development speed, whether in terms of Soul Masters or Soul Tools, is so fast that it is hard to understand and even catches people off guard.

"Shrek Academy is truly blessed to have you!"

She stared at Jiang Ming for a long time, her eyes filled with an unusual light.

As the head of the Star Luo Empire's intelligence department, she knew what Shrek Academy was like in the past.

While reviewing past information about Shrek Academy, she astutely noticed that the period of Shrek Academy's rapid development almost coincided with the time when Jiang Ming enrolled at Shrek Academy!
Before Jiang Ming enrolled in Shrek Academy, although Shrek Academy was still powerful, at least in terms of soul tool technology, it was not much different from the three great empires.

Even within Shrek Academy's inner courtyard, Soul Masters are still viewed with great disdain.

Xu Jiawei, the emperor of the Star Luo Empire who once studied at Shrek Academy, had personally experienced this. At least at his time, Shrek Academy really did not value the Soul Guidance Department.

However, with Jiang Ming's enrollment in Shrek Academy, the Soul Guidance Department of Shrek Academy underwent earth-shattering changes in less than ten years!
At first, there was nothing wrong, but as the Soul Guidance Department began to have the ability to systematically produce low-level Soul Guidance Devices on a large scale, the Soul Guidance Department began to develop rapidly!

The reason is also very simple.

Got money!
In order to cope with the pressure from the Sun Moon Empire regarding soul tools, the three great empires had no choice but to purchase them from Shrek Academy when they did not have enough capacity to mass-produce low-level soul tools themselves.

This is a military order from three major empires!
It can be said that the Soul Guidance Department, which was originally neglected, suddenly became Shrek Academy's cash cow!
With sufficient financial support, the research and development of soul tools has the foundation for rapid progress!

As a result, the Soul Guidance Department used this money to continuously purchase rare metals, hire high-level Soul Guidance Masters from across the continent, and even poach people from the Sun Moon Empire at great expense!
What? You're from the Sun Moon Empire? Shrek Academy doesn't have the environment for researching soul tools?
Is one million gold soul coins enough?

Not enough? Is ten million enough?!

Simply throw money at people – it's straightforward and brutal!
Of course, the massive wealth only provided the capital for rapid development. The real transformation of the Soul Guidance System occurred during the time when Jiang Ming was undercover in Mingde Hall.

Coincidentally, at that time, Shrek Academy also sent an exchange group to study at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.

With Jiang Ming operating in the shadows and the exchange group in the open, the two sides cooperated to remove the Soul Master training system and many other secrets from Mingde Hall.

With money and technology, why worry about not being able to cultivate talent?
It may be impossible to reach the level of Mingdetang in a short period of time, but it is still possible to surpass the three great empires and quickly approach the level of Mingdetang.

As time goes by, and as Soul Masters receive more and more attention in the three great empires, the environment becomes better and better, and Shrek Academy's Soul Guidance Department will be able to recruit more and more Soul Master geniuses.

This is a positive cycle!
In Xu Jiujiu's view, the starting point of all this was Jiang Ming!

"Hehe, Princess Jiujiu, you're too kind."

Jiang Ming smiled but didn't say anything more.

He only made a start in the development of the Academy's Soul Guidance Department, and promoted and developed it at a few key junctures. The rest was actually the result of a huge machine truly starting to operate.

"arrive."

As they spoke, the two had already arrived at the outer courtyard.

"Jiang Ming."

"Ok?"

"May I invite you to Star Luo City to have a chat with my imperial brother? I think you might be able to help the Star Luo Empire develop as rapidly as Shrek Academy."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ming raised an eyebrow slightly.

The Star Luo Empire is trying to make progress!
but
Jiang Ming shook his head and said, "Princess Jiu Jiu, I am just a Soul Master, and a Soul Supervisor. A person's energy is limited, and I really don't have much advice on the development of the country."

Despite his efforts in reforming the Soul Guidance Department and Martial Soul Department at Shrek Academy, and making both departments seem quite successful, Shrek Academy is ultimately just an academy!
It's nothing special, it's just that there's one Shrek City.

In addition to his own talent and the full support of the elders of the Sea God Pavilion, he faced almost no resistance when he took action.

But an empire is a completely different story!

Those nobles, those princes and ministers, their power structures are intricate and complex. Even if the emperor himself spoke, it might not be of any use, let alone his words.

Moreover, his relationship with the Star Luo Empire wasn't that close, so he had no obligation to do something so thankless.

"Oh, I see. That's such a shame."

He sighed softly after a long while, but he wasn't too disappointed.

She was just asking casually, and Jiang Ming's refusal was within his expectations.

Soon, the two left Shrek Academy and saw the newly built fighting arena on the way.

After the small world was restored, most of the soul beasts in the Beast Fighting Area were taken back into the small world by Jiang Ming, making the Beast Fighting Area somewhat empty.

However, as time goes by, this place will gradually be filled by other types of spirit beasts.

Shrek City was not far away. After nightfall, the entire city was brightly lit under the illumination of the soul guide lamps, and it looked very lively.

The streets were packed with people, and the shouts of vendors on both sides filled the air.

At the Star Luo Empire's Shrek City office, Xu Long watched Jiang Ming turn and leave, her beautiful eyes filled with complex emotions.

Unsurprisingly, her confession failed.

She was somewhat heartbroken and disappointed; as a princess, her first confession of love had been rejected.

But there's nothing we can do about it; not everyone in this world is destined to be together.

Watching Jiang Ming's figure disappear into the crowd, he walked into the office after a long while, and then wrote a letter by hand to tell his elder brother about what they had discussed that day.

To destabilize the Sun Moon Empire within a year and alienate Xu Tianran from all sides, we need to act quickly! (End of Chapter)