Douluo Continent II: The Dragon King Suppresses the World!

Cai Meier, the vice dean of the Martial Soul Department, naturally became the commander-in-chief of this operation. After the application was approved, Ye Qi'an also obtained the list of personnel for this operation. The team leaders were Cai Meier, Ye Qi'an, Zhang Lexuan, and Han Ruoruo. None of them needed spirit rings and their main purpose was to protect the other inner court team members.

With a Title Douluo, two Soul Douluos, and a Soul Saint of immeasurable strength leading the students to hunt soul beasts, perhaps only Shrek Academy could do it so easily and comfortably.

Among the inner court students who are seeking to acquire spirit rings are Huo Yuhao, Li Yong, and Mo Xuan, totaling three inner court students who need spirit rings. In addition, with Wang Dong'er as their follower, the entire action team consists of eight people.

"Na'er, I'm leaving now. Take good care of Xi Yao and be careful of the people upstairs." Ye Qi'an gently stroked Gu Yue Na's hair and said softly.

"I understand." Gu Yuena nodded slightly.

"Wait for me to come back."

After speaking, Ye Qi'an turned and walked towards the academy gate. His figure gradually disappeared from Gu Yuena's sight. Gu Yuena looked in the direction Ye Qi'an left, then turned and walked towards the inner courtyard. Although there were restrictions placed on Ye Xiyao by two people, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Ye Qi'an arrived at the academy gate to wait not long after. Soon, all the inner court students who had come to the Star Dou Great Forest arrived. After Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong'er arrived, everyone's attention was immediately drawn to them. However, Ye Qi'an's gaze was fixed on Wang Dong'er.

Wang Dong'er darted behind Huo Yuhao and said coquettishly, "Brother Ye, what are you looking at? Haven't you seen this before?"

Ye Qi'an laughed and said, "I have seen her before, but the one I know is Wang Dong, not Wang Dong'er. Where did this beauty come from?"

Wang Dong'er peeked out from behind Huo Yuhao, her pretty face slightly flushed, "Brother Ye just loves to tease people."

Huo Yuhao smiled helplessly and said to Ye Qi'an, "Brother Ye, Dong'er, she..."

Before Huo Yuhao could finish speaking, Ye Qian waved his hand, "Alright, alright, I know."

Cai Meier was the last to arrive, dressed in a simple gray cloth dress. She was actually over ninety years old. Seeing that everyone had arrived, Vice Dean Cai Meier clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention to her.

Cai Meier smiled slightly and said, "You are all inner court students, and this must be your first time entering the Star Dou Great Forest. We have new members joining us this time, so let's introduce ourselves briefly, including our names, martial spirits, and cultivation levels, so that we can cooperate with each other in the Star Dou Great Forest."

As she spoke, she nodded to Zhang Lexuan, who understood and said first, "My name is Zhang Lexuan, an assistant instructor and student in the inner academy. My martial soul is the moon. I am a power-attack type battle soul master. This time, I will be responsible for leading and commanding the team, and I do not need any soul rings. My soul power is level 86."

The students were all somewhat shocked when she mentioned the words "Class of '86".

Han Ruoruo spoke immediately after her, saying, "Han Ruoruo, Inner Academy student and teaching assistant, Martial Soul: Golden Rope, Control-type Battle Soul Master, in charge of this operation. No Soul Ring required, Soul Power level 82."

After the two finished introducing themselves, Ye Qi'an said in a deep voice, "Ye Qi'an, an inner court student, the planner of this Soul Ring acquisition operation, with the Martial Soul Golden Dragon and a Power Attack type Battle Soul Saint. No Soul Ring required, level 73 Soul Power."

After Ye Qi'an and the other two finished their introductions, Cai Mei'er interjected, "I'm only accompanying them on this mission. Qi'an, Le Xuan, and Ruoruo will be in charge of the actual command. Everyone must obey orders and not act on their own. Our destination will be the border between the mixed zone and the core zone of the Star Dou Great Forest. There, we may encounter powerful soul beasts at any time. Okay, let's continue. Yuhao, it's your turn."

Upon hearing Cai Meier mention him, Huo Yuhao quickly responded, "My name is Huo Yuhao, an inner court student, specializing in control and power attacks, with twin martial souls: Spirit Eye and Ice Jade Scorpion. I am a level 52 Soul King, and I require the fifth soul ring of my Spirit Eye martial soul, a mental-type martial soul."

Wang Dong'er, standing beside him, continued, "Wang Dong'er, an inner court student, a power-attack type, her martial soul is the Goddess of Light Butterfly. A level 61 Soul Emperor. No soul ring requirements. She can use the martial soul fusion skill with Huo Yuhao to cooperate with him in this operation."

A male student said, "Li Yongyue, an inner court student, a speed-attack type Battle Soul King, level 60, needs her sixth Soul Ring. Martial Soul: Moon Blade. Senior Sister, do you remember me? I will naturally receive a boost when you use your Martial Soul."

Zhang Lexuan smiled and nodded at him, but didn't say anything more, instead gesturing for another male student to introduce himself.

"My name is Mo Xuan, a ranged, all-around support-type Battle Soul King, level 60, and I need my sixth Soul Ring. My Martial Soul is an Aura. My melee abilities are relatively weak, so I'm counting on you all this time."

A ranged, all-around support-type Soul Master?

Seeing the puzzled looks on everyone's faces, Vice Dean Cai Meier explained, "I guess none of you have ever met Mo Xuan. He's a special talent cultivated by our inner academy. His combat abilities are relatively weak, so Le Xuan, you need to be especially careful to protect him. In both individual and team battles, Mo Xuan's support abilities aren't outstanding. However, he is the only ranged, all-around support-type Soul Master in our academy in nearly a thousand years. His support role on the battlefield is unmatched by any other support-type Soul Master. You'll understand once you reach the Star Dou Realm."

Zhang Lexuan said, "Alright, everyone has finished introducing themselves. I'll briefly outline our formation after entering the Star Dou Great Forest..."

"Dean Cai will follow behind us, but she won't intervene unless absolutely necessary. Alright, if everyone is okay, let's set off."

After leaving Shrek City, everyone spread out according to the formation arranged by Zhang Lexuan and headed straight for the Star Dou Great Forest. Along the way, no one deliberately showed off their speed, and under the leader's deliberate control, the formation was kept very well.

Shrek City is indeed very close to the Star Dou Great Forest, and they arrived smoothly before noon without using their full strength.

"Everyone, take a short break and have something to eat. Get yourself into top condition. We'll enter the Starry Sky in half an hour," Zhang Lexuan's instructions were very concise.

The group arrived at the roadside. Although they were far from feeling tired due to their cultivation levels, they still felt quite relaxed.

Zhang Lexuan smiled and said to Huo Yuhao, "Yuhao, I've heard your cooking skills are quite impressive! You used to sell grilled fish outside the academy, right? How about showing us your skills?"

Huo Yuhao's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "Senior Sister, there seems to be a small river nearby."

Zhang Lexuan smiled and said, "I know. We don't know how many days we'll be out of Star Dou this time, and we'll definitely be eating and sleeping outdoors. Let's have a good meal before we go in. How about this, Qi An, you and I will go catch some fish. Yu Hao, you can cook, okay?"

"Okay," Ye Qi'an and Huo Yuhao replied simultaneously.

Zhang Lexuan stood up and said, "The rest of you, help Yuhao prepare the firewood for grilling the fish. If we all work together, we can eat it faster."

Ye Qi'an and Zhang Lexuan walked side by side toward the river. Along the way, they maintained a moderate level of silence, occasionally exchanging glances and nodding slightly in acknowledgment.

Arriving at the riverbank, the water was crystal clear and flowing gently. Zhang Lexuan looked at the water and said softly, "There should be plenty of fish in this river. Let's go down and catch some."

Ye Qi'an nodded slightly, "I have some experience in catching fish. Senior sister, you stay on the shore, I'll go into the water."

Zhang Lexuan was slightly taken aback, then smiled and nodded, saying, "Alright, then be careful."

Ye Qi'an removed his outer clothes, revealing clearly defined abdominal muscles that gleamed healthily in the sunlight.

Zhang Lexuan paused slightly, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes, before turning her head back to continue watching the movements on the river.

Ye Qi'an slowly walked into the river, the coolness of the water instantly enveloping him. With swift and decisive movements, he caught fish one after another and tossed them onto the shore.

Zhang Lexuan methodically caught the fish, strung them together with a vine, and set them aside. She looked at Ye Qi'an, who was busy in the river, and couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.

A short while later, Ye Qi'an came ashore, put on his coat, and said to Zhang Lexuan with a smile, "Senior Sister, this should be enough."

Zhang Lexuan nodded. "Thank you for your hard work, Qi An. Let's go back."

"Senior sister, you... I'm afraid you've never cooked before, right? Fish needs to be gutted and scaled." As he spoke, Ye Qi'an took the vine with the fish on it from Zhang Lexuan, found a relatively flat stone, and placed the fish on it.

He skillfully took out a small knife and began to carefully gut the fish. His movements were precise and efficient. In no time, the fish's internal organs were cleaned. Ye Qi'an then gently scraped off the fish scales with the knife. Every scale was completely removed without any residue.

After processing all the fish, Ye Qi'an stood up and said to Zhang Lexuan, "Senior Sister, let's go back."

Zhang Lexuan nodded, and the two of them returned to the place where everyone was resting with the cleaned fish.

Upon seeing the prepared fish, Huo Yuhao used whatever he was familiar with, picking a bunch of spices and herbs. He placed the fish and the cleaned herbs on some large, washed leaves and immediately turned the fire up high. Perhaps because of his difficult childhood, he always carried his kitchen utensils with him, including pots, pans, and various seasonings.

In no time, the aroma of grilled fish wafted out. Although the others had already taken out their dry rations and sat around, the smell of the grilled fish and the sight of their dry rations made it hard for them to swallow.

Soon, the first grilled fish was ready. Without a doubt, the elders were given priority, and Huo Yuhao presented the grilled fish to Cai Meier.

Cai Meier smiled as she took the grilled fish, sniffed it gently, and exclaimed, "It smells so good! Yuhao, your cooking skills are truly exceptional."

Huo Yuhao smiled modestly and said, "Dean Cai, you flatter me."

Then, Huo Yuhao grilled the other fish and distributed them to everyone.

Everyone enjoyed the delicious grilled fish, and their faces showed satisfaction.

While eating the grilled fish, Zhang Lexuan said, "We're really lucky to have Yuhao's cooking skills with us during our trip into the Star Dou Great Forest."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

The grilled fish had a rich aroma. Although the meal was far from lavish, it was full of rustic charm. Coupled with its excellent taste, everyone ate with smiles on their faces. The last few grilled fish even sparked a fight over them, of course, the way they fought over them was by playing the simplest game of rock-paper-scissors.

The half-hour rest period eventually turned into a full hour. After a delicious meal, everyone meditated under Dean Cai's supervision, restoring themselves to their peak condition.

After entering the outer area, led by Zhang Lexuan, they sped inward, heading deep into the Star Dou Great Forest without any intention of cautiously exploring; they simply moved forward at full speed.

A faint golden light shone from Ye Qi'an's body. Wherever he passed, the bushes on the ground cleared a path on their own. The dragon king's aura emanating from his body made low-level soul beasts dare not approach him even slightly.

As darkness fell, they had passed through the outer area and entered the mixed zone. Ye Qian'an's speed noticeably slowed down. The main targets they were about to face were thousand-year-old soul beasts, or even ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts, which were originally their target for this trip.

With Wang Dong'er's blessing, Huo Yuhao immediately released his mental detection and mental sharing abilities. With the existence of mental detection and sharing, Ye Qi'an once again led everyone to speed up, heading straight for the inner circle.

Not long after they started walking, a dangerous signal immediately appeared in everyone's mind. Ye Qi'an stopped and looked in one direction. About two hundred meters away from them, a soul beast was perched on a thick branch.

This spirit beast was entirely emerald green, and it would be difficult to spot in this lush, green forest unless one looked closely.

They had encountered quite a few spirit beasts before, but most of them kept their distance. Even those that were hostile only threatened them and didn't approach. But this one was different. When it spotted them, it didn't retreat but instead quickly approached. A strong killing intent immediately emanated from it.

"It seems to be a Azure Sea Spirit Ape, with a cultivation level of over ten thousand years." Huo Yuhao, as a user of mental detection, immediately reported the cultivation level of this soul beast.

"Who needs it?" Zhang Lexuan asked immediately.

After a slight hesitation, Mo Xuan said, "Senior Sister, I'll take it. I hope this Azure Sea Spirit Ape has a high cultivation level. It would be best if it could reach 20,000 years."

Zhang Lexuan smiled slightly and said, "You're lucky. You discovered the demand so quickly."

"I'll go. After all, I need someone alive to conduct the test." Ye Qi'an's body flashed with light, and the Golden Dragon Martial Soul instantly possessed him, radiating the pressure of the Golden Dragon King bloodline.

The emerald green figure leaped rapidly towards them, coming directly from the treetops. With each step it took on the treetops, the emerald green light emanating from its body intensified, covering the distance of over two hundred meters in the blink of an eye.

Now that he was closer, Ye Qi'an could see the appearance of this ten-thousand-year-old soul beast clearly. The Azure Sea Spirit Ape was about 1.5 meters tall and had an extremely robust body. Underneath its emerald green fur, one could see that its not-so-large body was full of power, and its dark green eyes revealed a fierce glint.

…(End of this chapter)