Douluo Dalu II: The Peerless Tang Sect

Chapter 117 Moon's Teachings!

"Shao Zhe, let Zi Yang and Le Xuan come down." After deciding on Xuan Zi's punishment, Mu En said to Yan Shao Zhe.

"Yes, teacher," Yan Shaozhe replied, then went upstairs and brought Zhu Ziyang and his group down.

When everyone learned of the academy's punishment of Elder Xuan, they all fell silent; they had actually guessed this outcome.

After all, no power would willingly punish a Super Douluo, especially a level 98 Super Douluo with the potential to reach the Limit Douluo realm, just for the sake of a group of disciples. Even if these disciples were all geniuses, it wouldn't be possible. Because the value of a genius lies in their future, while the power of a strong individual is present now. If current interests cannot be guaranteed, then who can guarantee the future?

The fact that the academy could punish Xuanzi, even if it was only a symbolic punishment, was enough to show how much the academy valued them. Moreover, compared to punishing Xuanzi, what they needed more was compensation, whether for themselves or for their fallen comrades.

Ultimately, the principle governing this incident lies in the interests at stake. The punishment for Xuanzi cannot be too severe, otherwise it will harm the interests of the elders; the compensation for the disciples cannot be too meager, otherwise it will cause dissatisfaction and anger among the students and their backers.

Zhu Ziyang lowered his head, roughly realizing what was about to happen.

"Children, the responsibility for this accident lies with the academy and the Sea God Pavilion. After discussion among the elders, it has been decided that each of you will be compensated with a soul bone of quality over 30,000 years or other resources of equivalent value," Xian Lin'er announced on behalf of the elders. "Each of you will receive a recommended admission spot. As for the compensation for Cheng Hui and Wan Wan, in addition to Elder Xuan's share, the academy will also compensate their parents with resources of equivalent value, as well as a free admission qualification."

Everyone was astonished; they hadn't expected the academy to offer such generous compensation. Each person received a soul bone over 30,000 years old—eleven soul bones in total! In addition, each person received a recommendation for admission. A recommendation for admission—this was a privilege the academy offered to the city lords of the three major empires. This meant that each of them could directly send their family members to Shrek Academy.

Such a generous compensation could either be Mu En's decision or Xianlin'er's suggestion.

The incident was resolved perfectly, but near the end, something happened that greatly displeased the disciples, or rather, Zhu Ziyang.

Senior Sister Zhang Lexuan actually knelt down and tearfully pleaded for Xuanzi, begging Elder Mu not to strip Xuanzi of his positions as Vice Pavilion Master and Vice Leader. This gesture prompted other elders to speak up, seemingly saying that Xuanzi deserved his punishment, but in reality, they were all pleading for him. Mu En seemed moved by Zhang Lexuan's words and hesitated for a long time before deciding to retain Xuanzi's position as Vice Leader but postpone his position as Vice Pavilion Master.

In the end, everyone was truly happy.

-

"Hehe, do you think what just happened was hypocritical?" After everything was over, Zhu Ziyang was taken to the third floor of the Sea God Pavilion by Mu En. Mu En lay on a wooden chair with an intriguing expression, looked at Zhu Ziyang, and chuckled dryly.

"Mmm!" Zhu Ziyang nodded readily. He was truly disgusted and didn't even want to pretend anymore.

"Haha, this is the hypocrisy of power struggles and self-interest. You have to learn to tolerate it." Mu En laughed in the face of Zhu Ziyang's undisguised words. "Teacher, I'll take this opportunity to teach you a lesson today."

"?" Zhu Ziyang tilted his head in confusion.

"Once you become the Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion, the first thing you need to do is to clarify your own interests," Mu En said with a smile, a hint of something sinister in his expression. "The Sea God Pavilion isn't large, but it's rife with conflicting interests. As the Pavilion Master, your job is to balance these interests and, incidentally, eliminate those who oppose you. Of course, this is on the premise that your strength and influence are sufficient to fill the gaps in your interests and resolve any barriers you may have created for others."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ziyang fell into deep thought.

"Take this incident for example. Xuanzi was wrong, but we can't really punish him because he represents the collective interests of the elders. If we punish him, the elders will be dissatisfied, which involves the dignity and face of the powerful," Mu En said. "Just like Le Xuan, she clearly harbored resentment but had to ask me to withdraw the punishment for Xuanzi. She's a good child; it's truly unfair to her!"

"..." Zhu Ziyang remained silent.

"Teacher, I no longer have the energy to dwell on these things," Mu En sighed, "If you aspire to reform Shrek Academy, then what you need to do now is cultivate. Only when your strength reaches the level of a Title Douluo and you become a Pavilion Master can you achieve the first step. If you have a group of like-minded and obedient companions behind you, then you can achieve the second step. If your strength is enough to defeat all opponents and suppress the world single-handedly, then you can achieve the third step, thus completing the true reform!"

"Teacher, I..." Zhu Ziyang was startled by Mu En's words.

"No need to explain, there are quite a few people in the Sea God Pavilion who are dissatisfied with the current state of the academy and the situation on the continent. Elder Song is just one of them." Mu En waved his hand with a smile and said, "You can believe her words, but you can't believe them entirely. If you don't want to end up like Cloud Sky Douluo, then you need to have your own judgment and ideas."

"I understand, teacher!" Zhu Ziyang said after a long period of contemplation.

"Haha, alright, let's not talk about that anymore. How many more years can this old man live? I can still protect you." Moon laughed with satisfaction. "Come, tell your teacher about your experiences in detail."

"Okay, teacher." Zhu Ziyang nodded and began to tell Mu En about the Great Star Radiance Unicorn and his fourth spirit ring, while also mentioning the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, an auspicious beast of the Star Dou Great Forest.

"...Such a thing actually happened!" Moon exclaimed, his eyes wide with amazement, his face filled with relief and excitement. "Truly worthy of being called Ultimate Light! It actually managed to attract a soul beast to willingly sacrifice itself to become your soul ring! This old man has truly broadened his horizons."

"The Three-Eyed Golden Lion you mentioned, some elders in the academy have seen it before, and it's not as terrifying as you described, so don't worry." This was Mu En's attitude towards the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. This wasn't his fault, because the entire Soul Master world had very little research on auspicious beasts and destiny, and very few people believed in the concept of the Child of Destiny, let alone the Child of Destiny among Soul Beasts.

Helpless, Zhu Ziyang put the matter out of his mind.

"You can keep that little Starry Unicorn on Seagod Island. With the Golden Ancient Tree there, it might be an opportunity for it," Mu En said. "There are still some soul beasts in Seagod Lake and on Seagod Island, all left behind by our ancestors. We won't miss yours."

"Yes, thank you, teacher!" Zhu Ziyang was very happy because with Mu En's words, those who wanted to send Xingcai to the outer court's arena had nothing more to say.

"Hehe, go ahead, go and get a good night's rest," Moon said with a smile.

"Okay, goodbye, teacher," Zhu Ziyang replied, and then left the Sea God Pavilion.

-

Outside the Sea God Pavilion, Zhu Ziyang saw Qian Duoduo and Xian Lin'er, as well as Xingcai, who was being observed by them and dared not move. When the little girl saw Zhu Ziyang appear, she immediately ran behind him as if she had seen a savior and hid.

"Hehehe, what an interesting little fellow!" Xianlin'er was amused by Xingcai's actions and covered her face with a light laugh.

"Senior Sister, Third Senior Brother," Zhu Ziyang greeted them as he walked up to them.

"Junior brother, you've suffered," Xian Lin'er said, then patted Qian Duoduo beside her. Qian Duoduo immediately understood and took out a wooden box from his soul storage device. "This is compensation from the academy."

"Junior brother, this box contains a 50,000-year-old torso bone. All the details are inside. Take it back and look at it yourself," Qian Duoduo said with a smile, handing the wooden box containing the soul bone to Zhu Ziyang.

Zhu Ziyang accepted the gift with a surprised expression, completely bewildered. He hadn't expected the academy to provide compensation so quickly; their efficiency was truly impressive. He said, "Thank you, Third Senior Brother."

"Hehe, you're welcome, you deserve it," Qian Duoduo said with a smile.

"The goods have been delivered. We still have things to do, so we'll be leaving now," Xian Lin'er said. "Goodbye, Junior Brother."

"Goodbye, Senior Sister, Third Senior Brother!" Zhu Ziyang said as well.

After the two left, Zhu Ziyang did not linger and took Xingcai to the inner courtyard dormitory.

"Sigh! Sure enough, no matter how strong you are, you can't escape the dirty tricks of intrigue and backstabbing!" Electrox said with great emotion.

"..." Zhu Ziyang remained silent. Where there are people, there will be struggle. He finally understood.

(End of this chapter)