Douluo; Zhongli Adventures in Mortal World with Paimon

"Guest Elder, Xue Ye suspects me!"

"Xue Qinghe" spoke with a heavy heart to Zhongli.

Zhongli, who was sipping his morning tea, was slightly taken aback and looked at "Xue Qinghe" with some confusion.

What's going on?

"Xue Qinghe" neither poisoned anyone nor made any mistakes, and with Douluo's intelligence network sharing updates, Emperor Xue Ye had no reason to doubt her.

"Qinghe, what happened exactly?"

Zhongli set down his teacup and asked in confusion.

Paimon, who was sitting nearby, was eating buns bought from the west side of the city. Her cheeks puffed out, but her wide eyes were fixed on "Xue Qinghe."

It wasn't until "Xue Qinghe" reached Zhongli's side that she felt a strong sense of security. She began recounting the events of the previous night.

After listening to the story, Zhongli's eye twitched slightly. Emperor Xue Ye's plan was surprisingly clever.

Rubbing his chin, Zhongli pondered for a moment before saying, "For now, follow his instructions. He probably isn't suspicious of you."

Xue Ye had no reason to doubt "Xue Qinghe." More likely, he simply wanted Xue Qinghe and Chi Yu to form a relationship.

Zhongli couldn't help but laugh at the situation.

If this were the real Xue Qinghe, he might not even need Xue Ye's arrangements—he would have pursued Chi Yu directly.

But this "Xue Qinghe" was actually Qian Renxue in disguise!

"Sigh~ I'm supposed to pursue Chi Yu?"

"Sigh~ Xue'er is supposed to pursue Chi Yu?"

"Xue Qinghe" and Paimon spoke one after the other, almost simultaneously.

Would this really work?

"Qinghe, your acting is quite remarkable."

When it came to acting, Qian Renxue had great talent and deserved recognition.

Zhongli firmly agreed on this point.

Of course, the act must remain just that—acting. No turning this drama into real life; such reversals of the heavens were not permissible.

After a while, "Xue Qinghe" left Zhongli's residence with a bright smile, as if a significant issue had been resolved, leaving the spies nearby puzzled.

After adjusting his attire slightly, he headed toward the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena.

The preliminary rounds of the All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament weren't over yet.

As for Chi Yu, there was no rush to address that matter.

"Zhongli, letting Xue'er—no, letting Qinghe pursue Chi Yu, this…"

Paimon hesitated, as if recalling something terrifying.

"Don't worry. Chi Yu knows what's going on with Qinghe."

Zhongli shook his head and replied.

Chi Yu possessed a unique ability. The first time she met "Xue Qinghe," she realized something was off about him.

Over the years, Chi Yu had come to fully understand the true situation regarding "Xue Qinghe."

In the Heaven Dou Palace, Emperor Xue Ye was overjoyed after hearing from his spies.

"The Martial God didn't stop Qinghe."

As long as the Martial God didn't intervene, the deal with the Body Sect was essentially settled.

Whether the arrangement succeeded would depend on their efforts.

As time passed, around ten in the morning, everyone gathered at the Heaven Dou Great Spirit Arena.

Speaking of the Spirit Arena, it was established by eight hidden families on the Douluo Continent.

Each family had a Soul Doulou-level expert and refrained from involving themselves in any of the continent's disputes, maintaining absolute neutrality.

This neutrality was why, even after Bibi Dong had attacked nearly all major forces, the Spirit Arena remained untouched.

In the VIP section, Emperor Xue Ye wore a rare smile, appearing quite relaxed.

Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin, however, had somber expressions.

"Hello!"

Salas glanced at Ning Fengzhi and said, "Sect Master Ning, you don't look so well. Has something major happened?"

As a rival, Salas was more than happy to kick someone when they were down.

Hearing this, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin turned to glare at Salas but said nothing.

Seeing their expressions, Salas felt a bit dazed.

He had the feeling that, were this outside the arena, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin would have attacked him on the spot!

Could it be that something really had happened to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect? Salas wondered but couldn't figure it out.

The spies planted within the sect hadn't reported anything unusual.

After a while, the two withdrew their gaze, and Ning Fengzhi spoke, "Bishop Salas, you should focus on your Spirit Hall."

"Think of a way to win this year's championship."

"This matter doesn't require Sect Master Ning's concern," Salas replied without a change in expression, his face perfectly composed.

"To lose to young talents like Xiao Feilian and Du Siji is an honor for our Golden Generation!"

Even the Spirit Hall's heir, Qian Renxue, couldn't help but twitch at the corners of her eyes.

Salas, as expected of you! You've lived up to Spirit Hall's training!

Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin's eyelids twitched. They had seen shameless people before, but never to this extent.

Impressive, truly impressive!

Losing was an honor, huh?

Since further conversation was pointless, Ning Fengzhi stopped engaging with Salas and instead began thinking about Ning Rongrong's situation.

That matter could be delayed for a while but not indefinitely.

If he directly destroyed Ning Rongrong's spirit power and spirit, turning her into an ordinary person who could live a peaceful life, it might be a good thing.

But if he did that, he would be failing his duty to the sect.

Caught between two hard choices, Ning Fengzhi felt mentally and physically drained.

"If I'm not mistaken, there's another innate full-spirit-power auxiliary master in Shrek Academy."

"And he's a food-type spirit master."

In terms of talent alone, Oscar's was enough to outshine many on the Douluo Continent.

If such a person could be recruited...

"He's always had feelings for Rongrong, and Rongrong seems to feel the same way about him."

After some time, Ning Fengzhi made a decision.

Before the competition began, Ning Fengzhi exchanged a glance with Chen Xin and then walked out of the Spirit Arena.

As the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he didn't need to report his actions to anyone.

Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin's sudden departure puzzled the crowd, but no one thought too much about it.

Moments later, in the Shrek Academy rest area, Oscar was informed that someone wanted to meet him outside. After checking the competition's progress, he nodded and agreed.

Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the others were puzzled. Could it be that some noble had taken a liking to Oscar's talent and was preparing to invest in him?

But with Shrek Academy's current situation, would any noble truly dare to invest?

When Oscar saw Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin, he froze on the spot.

"Ning... Sect Master Ning, Sword Douluo."

He initially wanted to address Ning Fengzhi as Uncle Ning, but remembering how Ning Rongrong had been taken away and recalling the humiliating words of others, Oscar clenched his fists and changed his tone to something more formal.

"Oscar, I know you're angry with us."

"But if you were in our position, you might not have done any better."