MTLNOVEL Chapter 225: Plane Consciousness
The situation after Ma Hongjun's improvement was already precarious; if he had made no changes, what kind of dark path would he have walked?
As everyone knows, evil spirit masters are not all born inherently malevolent. Some become evil due to external forces, hatred, or traumatic events.
Tang Ya, thousands of years later, awakened her Dark Blue Silver Grass (King) precisely because of her deep-seated hatred, using it to exact her revenge.
Both Tang Ya and Ma Xiaotao had committed countless sins, yet they were unconditionally forgiven by Shrek Academy without so much as facing death.
Shrek Academy, which claimed to be mortal enemies with evil, ultimately judged people based on their affiliations rather than their actual deeds or essence.
Seeing Ma Hongjun in his current state, Liu Erlong chose to remain silent. She was struggling to cope herself—how could she console someone else?
It all depended on how this chubby kid decided to handle things on his own.
If not for the fact that he was Flender's disciple...
---
Time passed as one intense match after another concluded. Finally, the long-anticipated match between Blazing Academy and Shrek Academy began.
When it came to Shrek Academy, the audience and the other teams felt a mixture of pity and disdain.
It wasn't that they lacked strength—their power was evident, ranking among the top in the competition.
However, on a moral level, Shrek Academy had become an easy target for criticism.
"Brothers, do we have the confidence to take down Tang San and his team?"
Huo Wushuang's bold voice rang out, and his teammates quickly responded in unison:
"Victory is ours!"
If they couldn't defeat a "broken and battered" Shrek Academy, they might as well quit being spirit masters and go home to farm sweet potatoes!
Of course, they weren't underestimating Shrek Academy.
Shrek was undeniably peculiar.
Time and again, they seemed on the brink of defeat, only for Tang San to stand up and turn the tide.
If not Tang San, then it would be Dai Mubai or Ma Hongjun. One way or another, they always pulled through.
Except for their match against Heaven Dou Imperial Academy's second team, Shrek hadn't lost yet—just like Blazing Academy.
Blazing Academy had only lost to the Heaven Dou second team.
The gap between them and the Heaven Dou second team was massive.
All the second team's members were above the Spirit Ancestor rank, with even a Spirit King, Dugu Yan, among their ranks. It was no contest.
Moreover, even their substitutes included Spirit Ancestors...
Truly, Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was absurdly overpowered.
As for the first team, they were undoubtedly even more monstrous since all its members hailed from the Body Sect.
"We all counter Tang San. I can't see how they could win or even how they would try."
"Exactly. Even if Tang San has twin martial souls, so what? His second martial soul doesn't even have spirit rings. Can he defy the heavens?"
Blazing Academy's conversations were unguarded, and Tang San and his team could hear them clearly.
Hearing these words, Tang San and his teammates scowled but refrained from arguing.
They were pondering the same question: How could they win?
In this timeline, Tang San didn't possess immunity to extreme cold or heat. Even if he did, facing Shui Bing'er in the original timeline still left him questioning himself.
Now, without those advantages, the odds were even worse.
Compared to Shui Bing'er, Huo Wu and her team were even greater counters to him. His Blue Silver Grass martial soul was nearly useless.
---
In the VIP section, Zhongli stroked his chin thoughtfully, his gaze lingering on Tang San and his teammates.
He, too, was curious about how they would win.
The Douluo Will sought to strengthen the Douluo Continent by selecting a "Child of Destiny" and ensuring they grew stronger.
Its goal was achieved—Tang San made the Douluo Continent stronger.
But in doing so, it lost itself.
Even its very essence was taken over by Tang Hao, turning the Douluo Continent into the Tang Family Continent.
Suddenly, Zhongli's expression tightened as a faint, ethereal plea for help echoed in his mind.
For an ordinary person, or even an average deity, this voice would be incomprehensible.
But Zhongli was no ordinary being—he wasn't even human. As an Archon, he could understand the message.
"You made choices, and now you wish to change them, yet cannot?"
"..."
"Was there someone intentionally guiding you, preventing you from making the correct decisions?"
"..."
Hearing this, Zhongli instantly recognized who was "speaking" with him. Even for someone like him, it took a moment to adjust.
The entity communicating with him seemed pitiful—or at least, that was the impression it gave.
Before being manipulated, its choices, though not perfect, wouldn't have caused it any harm.
Nowadays, however, it seems he has little control over his actions.
"The consciousness of the Douluo Planet... interesting."
Indeed, the one "conversing" with Zhongli was none other than the consciousness of the Douluo planet!
This consciousness, at its current stage, was at best equivalent to a second-tier deity—a consciousness without much independent thought, merely capable of instinctively deducing and choosing the optimal course of action for execution.
If guided by a deity like the God of Shura, it could only follow orders, with no autonomy.
Had Zhongli not appeared, Huo Yuhao would have been its last desperate attempt. Unfortunately, he failed.
It was precisely because of Huo Yuhao's failure that Tang Hao replaced him!
"Zhongli, what are you talking about?"
Paimon looked at Zhongli curiously and said, "You're mumbling to yourself again."
"Nothing, just sharing my thoughts," Zhongli replied, his expression unchanged.
Even he hadn't expected that the consciousness of the Douluo Planet would seek the help of an outsider like him to deal with its so-called chosen one of destiny.
It was truly absurd.
The chosen one of destiny was its own selection—possibly influenced by external guidance—but for it to seek an outsider instead...
Wait a moment!
Zhongli's eyes twitched as a realization dawned on him.
On Teyvat, similar things happened. They were fully capable of handling the issues themselves, albeit with some added difficulty, yet they always left the task to the traveller.
The traveler's greatest role was to document these events.
In Mondstadt, even without the traveler, Barbatos could have resolved the dragon crisis without needing the Holy Lyre or anyone else's help.
In Liyue, Morax had things under control. Dealing with Osial would have been effortless.
In Inazuma, even without the traveler, Yae Miko had already gathered enough ambition. She could easily have found a "champion" to "defeat" the Raiden Shogun.
In...
"Ah..."
The situations in Teyvat and Douluo Continent were not entirely the same. Douluo's consciousness truly had no way out, forcing it to seek external help.
If not for Zhongli's presence, it might have continued down its misguided path.
But Zhongli's arrival gave it a glimpse of a different kind of hope.
His power was beyond its comprehension.
Though naive, the consciousness of Douluo was not foolish. It did not want to waste its already scarce resources on someone with no chance of reaching the summit, potentially receiving an undesirable outcome in return.
"Please... I'm begging you..."
Zhongli: "..."
He fell silent—a rare silence.
"I need to think this over."
After a long pause, Zhongli finally responded.
Just a few words, and it expected him to help an unfamiliar consciousness?
How could that be possible?
Yet the naive consciousness didn't understand Zhongli's tactful words. It rejoiced slightly and chose not to disturb him further, sinking back into silence.