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...Liu Erlong was so infuriated by Xuan Ming's "refreshingly unorthodox" counsel that she felt smoke rising from her seven orifices, yet it miraculously dispelled the Death Qi that had lingered in her heart for days.
That familiar urge to grab Xuan Ming's ear and call him a "little bastard" made her once again feel the tangible reality of being alive.
She followed the choice Xuan Ming offered and decided to leave this place that bore too many painful memories.
She first had a simple meal with Xuan Ming as a farewell to the past. Afterwards, she sought out Flender.
Flender was fretting over a stack of academy documents when Liu Erlong entered. Especially upon seeing the renewed, though complex, spark in her eyes that was no longer hollow, he was momentarily stunned, then a flash of relief—and a deeper melancholy—crossed his gaze.
"Erlong, you…" Flender stood up, a bit at a loss.
Liu Erlong looked at the man who had loved her for most of his life yet never received a response, feeling a flood of emotions. She calmly said, "Flender, I'm leaving."
Flender's body stiffened slightly, and a bitter smile forced its way onto his face: "Leave? Where to? …with him?"
He didn't say it outright, but they both understood.
Xiao Wu and the others had just arrived and hadn't affected Liu Erlong, so who else in this World could cause such a change in her?
Liu Erlong neither denied nor affirmed, simply said lightly, "I'll go out, leave this suffocating place. Perhaps… I won't return."
Flender fell silent. He had long known such a day would come, but hadn't expected it so soon. Looking at Liu Erlong, countless words lodged in his throat, finally turning into a sigh: "…Take care."
Liu Erlong nodded, her eyes showing a hint of apology and gratitude: "Flender, thank you… all these years. You're my best friend, my best brother."
Those words drew a clear line between them.
Flender felt a sting in his heart but could only accept it. He forced a smile: "You take care too. If… if you're unhappy out there, you can always come back; Shrek Academy will always be your home."
Liu Erlong smiled faintly, said nothing more, and turned to leave the office.
Some paths, once chosen, never look back… News of Liu Erlong's planned departure quickly reached Yu Xiaogang's ears.
Now, as a revered Grand Master, he paid it no mind.
In his mind, ever since returning from Spirit City, the moment Liu Erlong chose to "turn away" from him and even exonerate a "enemy," they had become strangers.
Now he holds a lofty position, trusted by the emperor, and with a Genius Disciple like Tang San, he has finally attained the status and respect he once dreamed of.
The past illicit, unbearable feelings have long been buried deep in his heart, regarded as a stain that must be cut away.
What does Liu Erlong's stay or departure have to do with him?
However, when Tang San learned the news, he immediately sought out Yu Xiaogang.
"Master," Tang San furrowed his brows, "Teacher Liu Erlong is leaving Heaven Dou City. Won't you try to persuade her? She's waited for you half her life, after all…"
In Tang San's view, regardless of right or wrong, the master still owes Liu Erlong something.
Now the continent's situation is ever‑changing, and Liu Erlong's solo departure makes her safety uncertain.
Yu Xiaogang set down his brush, lifted his head, and looked at Tang San with calm, unmistakable coolness: "Little San, I have long had nothing more to say with her. Our paths differ, we cannot scheme together. She has already made her choice; whether she stays or leaves, it's her freedom. If I intervene, it would only add awkwardness and damage the Grand Master's reputation."
He shifted his tone, his eyes sharp as he looked at Tang San: "What about you, Little San? I heard you've been getting close to that Sun Moon Empire's Master Xu these past few days. Could it be… his words have shaken you?"
Tang San was taken aback by the question and fell silent.
The spirit tool World described by Xu Hong, along with the Spirit Empire's push to break the Spirit Master privilege class and establish a fairer order, truly stirred massive waves in his heart.
How similar that is to his past life in the Tang Sect? Back then, he possessed astonishing talent, yet because he was from the outer gate, he was forever excluded from the core and never given a chance to showcase himself.
In the end, he secretly learned an inner‑gate technique, forged Buddha's Fury Tang Lotus, but still failed to earn recognition, only plunging into a bottomless abyss.
Upon arriving in this World, before learning he possessed a Clear Sky Sect Bloodline, he had also suffered discrimination because of the worthless Spirit Blue Silver Grass, feeling injustice and anger toward the noble Spirit Masters' monopoly on resources and the perpetual hopelessness of common Spirit Masters.
"There are no useless Spirits, only useless Spirit Masters" — in a way, that sentence is his rebellion against such injustice.
Now, the Spirit Empire's actions seem aimed at breaking this injustice.
Ideologically, he agrees.
But… Tang San lifted his head, meeting Yu Xiaogang's scrutinizing gaze, his voice low yet firm: "Master, I understand my stance."
Yes, stance.
He is now King Lan Hao of the Heaven Dou Empire, a scion of the Clear Sky Sect, and a Disciple of Yu Xiaogang.
He bears too many responsibilities and ties.
Often, personal ideals and preferences appear trivial before grand stances and interests, sometimes forced to be suppressed and sacrificed.
Justice and rightness often have to yield before a stance.
Yu Xiaogang watched the struggle in Tang San's eyes give way to resolve, and nodded approvingly: "It's good you understand. Remember, between us and the Spirit Empire lies a clash of principles, a battle for survival, with no room for compromise."
He paused, then shifted tone, his voice becoming solemn and deep: "However, Little San, regarding that Master Xu… I heard he intends to take you as a Disciple?"
Tang San felt a chill in his heart, surprised that the master even knew about this. He promptly replied respectfully: "Yes, Master. Senior Xu has indeed mentioned it many times, but I have already declined clearly. I already have a master and would never dare to seek another."
Yu Xiaogang heard this, then slowly shook his head, a hint of inscrutable expression on his face: "Little San, you're mistaken. At a moment when the Empire's survival hangs in the balance, personal titles and convictions sometimes must yield to the greater picture."
Tang San was stunned, looking at Yu Xiaogang with disbelief: "Master, you mean that…"
Yu Xiaogang stood, clasped his hands behind his back, walked to the window, gazed at the view of Heaven Dou City, and said gravely: "I'm not opposed to you taking another master. But this moment is not the same as that moment."
Now the Spirit Empire is powerful, and its spirit tool technology far exceeds our imagination. If the Heaven Dou Empire wishes to contend with it, it must wield equal or greater power.