manynovel Chapter 138 Being the sun is a lonely thing
Chapter 138 Being the sun is a lonely thing
Chapter 138 Being the sun is a lonely thing
Inside the Sea God Pavilion.
Dressed in an elegant white dress, Zhang Lexuan respectfully addressed the elderly man reclining in a chaise lounge, "Elder Mu, is there something you need from me?"
Moon's dim, yellowish eyes narrowed slightly as he asked meaningfully:
"Le Xuan, you're setting off tomorrow to participate in this year's Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament, right? Do you know why I specifically chose you to be our team leader this time?"
Zhang Lexuan paused for a moment, her mind racing, but in the end she shook her head and honestly replied, "I don't know."
Moon let out a soft sigh.
"Both Shao Zhe and Lin'er have too obvious flaws in their personalities. I'm worried that they might not be able to make the best choices for the academy in the events that will unfold in this Soul Master Competition."
"What's the best fit?" Zhang Lexuan murmured softly.
It is neither correct nor wrong.
"Yes, that's the most suitable. Of course, if what I'm guessing doesn't happen, then that would be even better."
Mu En chuckled, unwilling to elaborate further, and continued, "Let's not talk about that. I'd like to ask, Le Xuan, what's your opinion of Yu Hao?"
Zhang Lexuan paused for a moment.
He subconsciously avoided Old Mu's gaze, but the image of that boy involuntarily surfaced in his mind.
"Elder Mu, you shouldn't be asking me this question. Xiao Tao or Luo Chen would be more suitable to answer it than I am."
Hearing Zhang Lexuan's obviously evasive answer, Mu En was not angry. Instead, he nodded in agreement.
"Yes, they have a deeper connection with Yuhao and can certainly understand the child's thoughts better. But because of this closeness, their answers can become distorted and fail to see the essence of the matter."
Zhang Lexuan remained silent for a longer period.
Uncontrollably, memories of what happened in the Starry Sky Forest began to flood his mind.
When I learned that he was safe and sound, I was overwhelmed with emotion and hugged him tightly.
Later on, I consciously avoided the other person.
Didn't she know that Han Ruoruo and the others often stayed overnight in Huo Yuhao's attic every few days?
After a long while, Zhang Lexuan seemed to have made up her mind and slowly opened her mouth, her voice carrying a hint of complexity.
"He...maybe he's a very protective person."
"A protective instinct?" Moon smiled. "Yes, you and that child have many similarities, but he is perhaps much luckier than you, after all, he doesn't have any thoughts of becoming the sun."
As he spoke, Mu En raised his hand, interrupting Zhang Lexuan before she could finish her sentence, and continued:
"Le Xuan, when I heard what you said in the Star Dou Great Forest, I was actually very gratified."
This means you're finally no longer living solely for the academy, no longer living for the promise I made on a whim years ago.
"Being the sun is a very lonely thing, burning yourself day after day, and in the end all that's left is ashes." As he said this, Moon's tone became more and more somber, as if he were lost in a distant memory.
"Old man, I just hope you won't end up like me, only realizing now that you're this old what you missed out on and what you regretted when you were young."
Hearing Mu En's words, Zhang Lexuan's cheeks flushed slightly.
Was my previous behavior really that obvious?
But unlike Ruoruo, she couldn't just give herself away to any cute boy she liked.
"Elder Mu, I..."
"Alright," Moon waved his hand, "Just take what I said earlier as my own opinion as an old man, and don't take it too seriously."
Ultimately, the decision rests with you. As long as you can face your conscience without regrets when the time comes, that's enough.
……
The next morning.
The sky was just beginning to lighten, the morning mist had not yet dissipated, and there was a slight chill in the air.
At the main entrance of Shrek Academy, a number of people were already standing in the open space.
When Huo Yuhao arrived late, carrying the half-asleep Gu Yuena, he immediately attracted everyone's attention.
Ma Xiaotao, who had arrived early, couldn't help but raise an eyebrow when she saw Gu Yuena, who was leaning almost half her body against Huo Yuhao and looking sleepy.
"Good morning, Ms. Gu Yuena. You look so listless; did you not sleep at all last night?"
Like before, these girls from the inner courtyard could still have the opportunity to spend Huo Yuhao's evenings alone.
But everything changed after the holiday.
Even when she and Ling Luochen were not cultivating, Huo Yuhao's time was almost entirely occupied by Gu Yuena.
The only thing worth celebrating is that Huo Yuhao's attic now has an extra empty room, allowing them to have one more person stay overnight. It's not exactly something to celebrate, but it is.
That's because Gu Yuena moved directly into Huo Yuhao's room.
Although no strange noises were heard at night, everyone present was an adult.
Who would really believe that a man and a woman alone in a room could have a purely platonic friendship?
Gu Yuena ignored Ma Xiaotao, instead resting her head on Huo Yuhao's shoulder and complaining in a languid voice with a thick nasal tone, "Yuhao, as the team leader, why can't I set the departure time for the afternoon?"
Huo Yuhao's eyelids twitched. Having spent a long time with Gu Yuena, he naturally understood the meaning behind her words.
If you dare to take advantage of your status as a teacher and decide to leave this afternoon, then when the competition comes, won't you also want to show your authority as the team leader?
Huo Yuhao raised his hand in an annoyed tone and gently patted Gu Yuena's head, stopping the somewhat dangerous thoughts in her mind.
"If you really wanted to leave this afternoon, you should have come with me to the Soul Arena yesterday to discuss it with Senior Sister."
Upon hearing Huo Yuhao mention her, Zhang Lexuan, who was standing at the front of the group, had a slight glint in her eyes. She seemed to recall what Mu En had said to her yesterday, and a blush rose on her fair face.
Standing next to Chen Zifeng, Dai Yueheng, who was detached from the group, naturally noticed this scene as well, and his fists clenched unconsciously.
Zhang Lexuan has always been a goddess in the hearts of all the students in the inner academy. Not only is she powerful, but she also has a gentle personality and never hesitates to help other students in the inner academy.
All the male students in the inner courtyard had had feelings for her to varying degrees, and he was no exception. In fact, it was one of the motivations for his hard work in cultivation.
But now, seeing his dream girl looking at someone else with different eyes, and remembering how he was knocked to the ground by a punch yesterday, he felt a pang of embarrassment.
Dai Yueheng should have been burning with rage, but when he actually faced Huo Yuhao, his body trembled uncontrollably. The fear that came from his very soul made it difficult for him to even muster the courage.
"Looks like everyone's here?"
A gentle voice rang out, and Yan Shaozhe appeared in the open space.
"Teacher, it's you again?" Ma Xiaotao asked with some surprise when she saw Yan Shaozhe appear. "I remember you always saying you were very busy?"
Although the teachers who remain in Shrek Academy's inner court are theoretically all members of the inspection team, Yan Shaozhe, currently serving as the dean of the Martial Soul Department, has probably not personally led an inspection mission for many years.
When Yan Shaozhe heard his disciple say this, the smile on his face almost disappeared.
"Of course I'm very busy, but the academy's monitoring team has always been short-handed. Not to mention, there have been reports of evil spirit masters appearing all over the mainland recently, and most of the teachers who stayed at the academy have been sent out, so I came here to fill in."
He cleared his throat and continued, "Besides, the place where you're going to carry out your mission is more than three thousand miles away from Shrek Academy. If I don't come and give you a ride, how will you make it to the competition?"
Upon hearing Yan Shaozhe's words, Ma Xiaotao looked at him suspiciously for a few moments, but ultimately refrained from continuing to undermine her teacher.
Seeing that Ma Xiaotao had quieted down, Yan Shaozhe glanced around and his gaze fell on Zhang Lexuan. He said, "Lexuan, since I'm leading the team, let's have the reserve team members participate this time too."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Lexuan frowned, wanting to speak up in rebuttal.
Such surveillance missions are inherently dangerous, and even she was somewhat uneasy about Huo Yuhao's participation given his strength, let alone the fact that he was accompanied by seven junior students from the outer academy.
Yan Shaozhe seemed to see Zhang Lexuan's worries and continued, "Lexuan, don't worry, they will all stay by my side and won't really participate in the battle. It's a good opportunity for them to experience the atmosphere of the inner court's surveillance mission in advance."
After pausing, Yan Shaozhe looked at the group in the outer courtyard and smiled slightly:
"I know you guys from the Foreign Languages Department might be wondering what missions your seniors will be undertaking next, and what the inspection team means."
"Since you are all preparing for the next generation of Shrek Seven Devils, I'll briefly tell you a few things..."
As Yan Shaozhe began to recount the origins and glorious history of the Shrek Academy's Supervisory Group, the inner court students present all wore solemn and proud expressions.
"...However, you are not formal students of the inner academy yet, so you can just stand by my side and watch your seniors carry out their missions."
But you must remember that once you actually choose to join the Inner Academy and accept this responsibility, each of you will need to complete thirty inspection tasks before you can graduate from the Inner Academy.
Just like your senior Chen, although he missed out on this Soul Master Competition, he still chose to participate in this monitoring mission.
Although he knew that Yan Shaozhe had unintentionally pointed out his flaws, Chen Zifeng's expression still turned extremely ugly.
Seeing that the time was almost up, Yan Shaozhe clapped his hands and said:
"Enough of the small talk. The location of this mission is far away, situated on the western border of the Star Luo Empire. It's practically the opposite of Star Luo City, which is south of Shrek City. Plus, the Soul Master Competition is less than ten days away, so I'll take you there directly."
As he spoke, he took out more than a dozen flying soul tools from his storage soul tool.
"Any of you who don't know how to use a flying soul tool can ask the senior students in the inner courtyard for help. We'll set off in half an hour."
……
The western border of the Star Luo Empire.
As the sun set, it dyed the entire sky a rich orange-red color.
A platinum-gold streak flashed across the sky, accompanied by a series of whooshing sounds, leaving a dazzling trail of flames in the heavens before finally landing on a relatively flat open ground.
As the light faded, Yan Shaozhe and the inner court students were revealed.
Although they weren't quite vomiting yet, the faces of the inner court students were extremely pale, clearly not yet fully recovered.
The flight, which covered nearly seven or eight hundred miles in an hour, was still too thrilling for them, even with the rest stops and the protective shield erected by Yan Shaozhe's soul power.
"How was it, Xiaotao? I told you, my skills are still a bit stronger than Teacher Gu Yuena's."
Yan Shaozhe stood with his hands behind his back, a smug smile on his face.
Ma Xiaotao glanced at the scene not far away and replied helplessly, "Teacher, you'd better take a look over there yourself first."
Yan Shaozhe's expression froze instantly.
Not far away, several tents had already been set up, and Zhang Lexuan was beckoning the inner court students over.
Yan Shaozhe coughed lightly to cover his embarrassment and called out to Dai Yueheng:
"Yueheng, the Western Army Group should be arriving soon. Go and handle things there, and while you're at it, bring over the latest intelligence on the Death Hand bandit group. We won't bother the Army Group's base any further."
The relationship between the academy and the White Tiger Duke's Mansion is currently strained, and as the dean of the academy's Martial Soul Department, he naturally needs to take the initiative to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.
Dai Yueheng's eyes flickered slightly. He had been worried about Huo Yuhao meeting with his father, but now it seemed that this arrangement had given him a lot of room to maneuver.
He lowered his head slightly and replied, "Yes, Dean Yan." At the same time, he gave Chen Zifeng, who was standing next to him, a look.
Chen Zifeng understood immediately and said, "Dean Yan, may I go with Yue Heng to the Western Army Group to experience it for myself?"
Yan Shaozhe's gaze swept across his face, paused for a moment, and then he nodded slightly. "As long as the army group agrees, then I naturally won't object."
Before long, a group of figures dressed in black tight-fitting leather armor flew in from the distant sky, their movements were uniform and synchronized, clearly indicating that they were well-trained elites.
Seeing this, Dai Yueheng also raised his hand and threw a punch into the air. A white light exploded in mid-air, transforming into a huge white tiger phantom.
After obtaining the exact location, the team of black-armored soldiers quickly descended from the sky and landed steadily not far in front of Dai Yueheng.
The elderly man at the head of the group had seven spirit rings floating behind him. Although they weren't the best configuration, they were still quite good.
(End of this chapter)