Douluo Continent: Little Huo Niang Taken Away by Di Tian

A giant toad with bronze-colored skin and a sturdy body slowly turned around.

He seemed disturbed while eating, swallowing the digesting silver in his mouth with some dissatisfaction, making a harsh metallic scraping sound.

The Bronze Toad possesses both metal and earth attributes, feeds on metal, and has skin as hard as bronze.

Xiao Hongchen stepped forward, standing tall and straight, his expression extremely serious, as if performing some kind of solemn ceremony: "Hello, Senior Bronze Toad. I am Xiao Hongchen, a level 60 Power Attack-type Battle Soul Emperor, and also a level 6 Soul Master. Your abilities are crucial to me, and in our future journey, we will be each other's strongest support."

"Croak! Croak!" The bronze toad croaked twice and spat out a piece of undigested silver ingot.

"He said he finds you quite pleasing to the eye, especially those soul tools you're wearing; the smell of them is just what I like," Zi Ji translated with a smile. "Alright, the official fusion will take place in a couple of days. You can take advantage of the free time these next few days to visit Shrek City."

"Thank you for your guidance, senior!" the brother and sister replied in unison, their hearts filled with excitement.

……

Since we've come all this way, how can we not go to Shrek City?

The Hongchen siblings simply greeted the delegation and then slipped away to visit Shrek City.

Because they had met with the future spirit earlier, which delayed their journey, it was already dawn when they arrived outside Shrek City.

Just then, both of them felt a sudden twitch in their eyes, wondering if they were hallucinating.

Outside the city gate, several afterimages whizzed past, the air currents they created causing the clothes of the two people to flutter.

One, two... then another, followed by a panting figure.

"Stop...stop..." Beibei, hands on her knees, bent over, her forehead steaming, finally managed to stop in front of the Hongchen siblings. "Phew...hello...you're here to obtain soul spirits from the Spirit Pagoda, and just stopping by Shrek City, right?"

"I am Beibei."

"I am Xiao Hongchen."

"I am Meng Hongchen."

The two sides naturally recognized each other, after all, they were destined to meet two and a half years later at the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament held by the Sun Moon Empire.

"Our Tang Clan has officially joined the Spirit Pagoda. In the next competition, we will participate under the name of the Spirit Pagoda," Bei Bei added casually.

The Sun Moon Empire reformed the competition system, allowing sects to participate.

"So, you, Tang Ya, He Caitou, Huo Yutong, and Xiao Xiao from this generation of Shrek Seven Devils are all in the Spirit Pagoda?" Meng Hongchen keenly caught the information.

"That's right. As for Ning Tian and Wu Feng, they are from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School and will continue to fight for Shrek Academy in the next competition," Bei Bei said.

"That's normal; after all, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile School is a support-type sect." Xiao Hongchen nodded, then his gaze fell on Bei Bei's still slightly trembling legs. He couldn't help but ask curiously, "So, why were you running around Shrek City like crazy so early in the morning?"

Beibei's expression immediately became indescribable, as if she had been forced to swallow a whole sour lemon. Her lips twitched as she pointed to the few afterimages about to disappear into the horizon in the distance: "What else could it be? It's all my ancestor's fault."

"You mean... Dragon God Douluo?" Meng Hongchen's beautiful eyes widened in surprise.

"Exactly." Beibei sighed, as if recounting a long and tearful history, "Ancestor Xuanzu said that as one gets older, one must take care of one's health."

Especially seeing that Sister Lexuan was still unmarried, he felt that as an elder, he had to lead by example, maintain his exercise routine, and strive to live long enough to help us take care of our children.

"Pfft—" The Hongchen siblings almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Therefore, in order to implement this 'longevity plan,' the Ancestor set devilish KPIs for the entire Sea God Pavilion."

Bei Bei pointed helplessly ahead, "That is—every morning, he personally escorts them, with Taotie Douluo Xuanlao leading the way, running three laps around the city."

Before the words were finished, a shrill, desperate roar, carried on the wind, came from afar:

"Moun! You old bastard! I am the Gluttonous Douluo! I am the Elder of the Shrek Academy's Sea God Pavilion! Can't I just stop running laps?! This is an insult to the dignity of a Title Douluo!"

"Enough nonsense! Xuanzi, look at those three layers of fat on your belly! If you're not running now, speed up! Unleash the pressure of the Holy Dragon of Light!"

On the horizon, an old man with white hair and beard flew with his hands behind his back, his steps as steady as a mountain. He exuded an awe-inspiring aura of a holy dragon, which he used to cover the rear of the person in front of him.

The Xuanzi in front of him was trembling violently as he ran, each step like a tap dance. His originally wide robe was now stretched tightly to his body, and you could even hear the fabric groaning.

As he ran, he tried to play dead. One moment he pretended to have a leg cramp and fell headfirst into the bushes, only to be grabbed by the collar and thrown back onto the track by Moon like a radish. Another moment he tried to use a substitution technique to leave an afterimage and escape, but Moon anticipated this and slapped his fat buttocks with his cane, sending him flying thirty meters forward like a shooting star.

"As for me," Beibei said with a wry smile, looking at the two people's jaws dropping in surprise, "Xuanzu said that children need to be trained even more, and all I need to do is run for the required time."

Furthermore, he specifically invited Dean Yan Shaozhe and Vice Dean Qian Duoduo. Those afterimages you just saw, aside from Xuan Zu and Xuan Lao, were basically all forcibly conscripted and ran away together.

Beibei paused, then added, "Sister Lexuan volunteered to run alongside him, after all, he's her godfather. As for Xuanzu's original words, they were: 'Yan Shaozhe, as the head of the hospital, you need to maintain a dignified physique! Qian Duoduo, your name contains the character 'duo,' that's all you can have! You young people need to exercise more.'"

At that moment, Xuanzi's pitiful cries of agony echoed from afar: "Help! If you've got the guts, fight me one-on-one! What kind of hero chases me with the Holy Dragon of Light?!"

"Stop nagging! If you don't run three laps today, your meal is canceled! And no alcohol!" Moon's loud and unquestionable voice echoed through the sky.

Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen stood there, watching this most "harmonious" scene in Shrek City in the early morning, and fell into a long silence.

Is this the legendary Shrek Academy's heritage?

Indeed... it's unique.

Beibei expertly introduced the sights and sounds of Shrek City. He spoke with great enthusiasm about which restaurant had the crispy outside and tender inside grilled fish, and which street had the most lively night market. The Hongchen siblings beside him listened with great interest.

As they were talking, an old yet swift figure swept past in the distance; it was Xuanzi, who had just finished running the lap.

Now that Xuanzi had finished running, Beibei was naturally free. He had followed Xuanzi for as long as he had run, and this "running accompaniment" job was finally over.

At this moment, Mu En's gentle gaze fell upon Hong Chen and his sister, and he asked in a mild tone, "You must be Jing Hong Chen's grandsons? Have you come here to obtain a soul spirit, or to see what Shrek Academy has to offer?"

Faced with the inquiry from the Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion, the Hongchen siblings dared not be negligent and quickly agreed.

Having received permission, the group did not linger and, amidst laughter and conversation, headed straight for the depths of Shrek Academy's inner courtyard.