"Zhu Ziyang!" Long Xiaoyao looked at the young man who had suddenly appeared with great surprise, a look of astonishment on his face, and exclaimed, "I didn't expect you to have grown to this extent in just five years. You truly are a formidable young talent!"
"Ziyang (Senior Brother)!" Yan Shaozhe and Huo Yuhao exclaimed simultaneously, their expressions varied. Huo Yuhao naturally showed the joy and excitement of a long-awaited reunion, while Yan Shaozhe's solemnity dissipated, replaced by a hint of relief.
Although Yan Shaozhe was now a Level 98 Super Douluo, asking him to contend with Long Xiaoyao was still a bit too much. However, Zhu Ziyang's appearance completely put his mind at ease. As Zhu Ziyang's Senior Brother, others might not know Zhu Ziyang's current strength, but he knew it very well. Although Zhu Ziyang was only Level 92 now, a Level 92 with dual ultimate Spirits and all 100,000-year spirit rings could absolutely not be judged by the standards of an ordinary Level 92 Titled Douluo.
At least, in the current Shrek Academy, in terms of cultivation, Xuan Zi was first, but in terms of combat power, if Zhu Ziyang ranked second, no one would dare to rank first. In the half-year since Zhu Ziyang returned to the Academy, Zhu Ziyang had sparred with every elder, and apart from Xuan Zi and Yan Shaozhe, no one else could last more than five moves against him.
It was precisely because of his absolute strength that Zhu Ziyang was able to quickly establish an unchallengeable prestige within the Tian Yuan Pavilion.
"Senior Brother, you take Yu Hao back to the Academy first. I'll catch up with Martial Uncle Long," Zhu Ziyang turned his head and said with a smile to Yan Shaozhe.
"Alright, be careful!" Yan Shaozhe didn't refuse and immediately pulled Huo Yuhao, flying towards Shrek Academy. Long Xiaoyao also did not try to stop them.
At this moment, Long Xiaoyao's entire attention was on Zhu Ziyang. His vigilance and regard for Zhu Ziyang had reached their peak. Although he still spoke to him as a junior, he had already placed him on an equal footing in his heart.
"You should only be twenty this year, right?" Long Xiaoyao said with a sigh, "To have reached Level 92 at twenty, what a heaven-sent genius! Mu En truly took in a good disciple!"
"My twentieth birthday is still a few months away. Would Martial Uncle Long be willing to grace my birthday banquet?" Zhu Ziyang said with a smile upon hearing this.
"Haha, I appreciate the kind offer, but we are currently adversaries, so I won't impose," Long Xiaoyao said with a chuckle. "Alright, no more idle talk. Let this old man see the strength of you, the newly appointed Tian Yuan Pavilion Master!"
As Long Xiaoyao spoke, a black aura emanated from his body, and nine spirit rings flickered behind him. A colossal black dragon coiled behind him, then plunged directly into his body. Long Xiaoyao's body began to expand, and a set of black-gold armor appeared on him. Finally, he transformed into a giant nearly ten meters tall, clad in the Martial Soul True Body armor manifested from his Dark Sacred Dragon Spirit.
This was the second stage of the Martial Soul True Body, the Martial Soul True Body Armor, which could only be unlocked by a Level 95 Super Douluo. This stage not only retained the Spirit Master's human form but also doubled the amplification effect brought by the Martial Soul True Body, making it more conducive to battles between Spirit Masters.
Long Xiaoyao directly released his Martial Soul True Body Armor, showing his high regard for Zhu Ziyang.
"Martial Uncle Long, then I, your nephew, won't hold back!" Zhu Ziyang looked at the giant Long Xiaoyao and immediately unleashed his full power. This was his first direct confrontation with a Level 99 powerhouse, so caution was advisable.
The Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe was slung behind his back, pointing diagonally towards the ground. Nine red spirit rings suddenly appeared, their dazzling red light flickering between heaven and earth, causing even Zhang Peng, who was engaged in a fierce battle with Xian Lin'er nearby, to involuntarily show a look of shock, thus allowing Xian Lin'er to seize an opening and gain the upper hand.
"Truly astonishing!" Long Xiaoyao's eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a very surprised expression, but his body movements did not stop at all. His spirit rings flickered, and his hands instantly transformed into enormous dragon claws. The dragon claws tore through the void and descended forcefully from above Zhu Ziyang's head.
Zhu Ziyang held the Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe and gently raised it upwards. The scythe blade clashed with the dragon claws, immediately stopping the dragon claws' downward momentum. Zhu Ziyang then seized the opportunity to step forward, his figure flickering as he appeared close to Long Xiaoyao. The Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe glowed with supreme light, and its brilliance flickered as it descended towards Long Xiaoyao's chest.
Long Xiaoyao quickly retracted his arms and placed them in front of his chest. The dragon-scaled armor blocked the Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe. The collision of light and darkness immediately produced an intense reaction, but these reactions were merely minor skirmishes for the two of them.
Long Xiaoyao blocked the Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe and simultaneously launched a counterattack. He opened his mouth, and his head was instantly covered by a black dragon's head. A dragon's breath, imbued with dense darkness, spewed forth, attacking Zhu Ziyang.
Upon seeing this, Zhu Ziyang immediately responded, rapidly flipping in the air to dodge the first wave of the dark dragon's breath. At the same time, using the flip, he gathered all his strength onto the Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe. The scythe blade immediately broke through the dragon's breath and once again struck Long Xiaoyao's chest.
This time, the arm guard armor Long Xiaoyao used to block was broken by the scythe blade, and the light aura immediately scorched his flesh and blood.
His expression froze, and his spirit rings flickered behind him. Long Xiaoyao's massive body instantly transformed into a dark tornado. The unique erosive, pulling, and blinding effects of dark elements instantly swept across the entire world.
Upon seeing this, Zhu Ziyang immediately retreated a thousand meters. The Pacifying Life-Reaping Scythe transformed into a golden scepter, and a golden light shot into the sky. Immediately after, eighty-one golden meteorites of light broke through layers of dark clouds, carrying the majesty of light purifying the earth, and crashed down.
Hurricanes and meteorites raged between heaven and earth, light and darkness clashed. Hurricanes tore apart meteorites, and meteorites pierced through hurricanes. After several such repetitions, everything gradually returned to calm.
Zhu Ziyang and Long Xiaoyao once again confronted each other from a distance. Zhu Ziyang was fine; apart from some spirit power consumption, he suffered no significant losses. But Long Xiaoyao was different; at least, there was some dust on his body, and he no longer maintained his previous elegant demeanor. This was the difference between long-range and close-combat Spirit Abilities.
"Heh heh, good kid." Long Xiaoyao grinned. His figure rapidly shrank amidst Zhu Ziyang's confusion, and his Martial Soul True Body Armor slowly disappeared, finally returning to the size of a normal person. He said, "No more fighting. I can't deny that I'm getting old!"
"Thank you, Martial Uncle, for going easy on me!" Although Zhu Ziyang was very confused—the two had only exchanged one round, and neither side was truly injured—why was he stopping? Nevertheless, Zhu Ziyang still spoke very politely.
He couldn't quite figure out what this old fellow Long Xiaoyao was thinking.
"Haha, it's not a matter of going easy," Long Xiaoyao said with a wry smile. "If we were truly serious, this old man might not be a match for you young people. I truly envy Mu En."
"Martial Uncle is too modest," Zhu Ziyang said. "However, since Martial Uncle has no intention of fighting further, then perhaps we shall meet again."
"Alright, that works. I also need to go back and report," Long Xiaoyao said with a chuckle. "Oh, by the way, a reminder for you: Crown Prince Xu Tianran of the Sun Moon Empire is an ambitious fellow. You'd do well to be wary of him."
"Thank you for the reminder, Martial Uncle," Zhu Ziyang said, his expression odd, but still expressing gratitude.
"My words are done. Farewell!" As Long Xiaoyao's voice fell, his figure immediately vanished.
Scorpion Tiger Douluo Zhang Peng, seeing this, also immediately fled the area. Xian Lin'er still wanted to pursue, but Zhu Ziyang stopped her.
"Ziyang, why didn't you let me chase Zhang Peng?" Xian Lin'er was clearly in a fighting frenzy at this point, yelling at Zhu Ziyang in a huff.
"Senior Sister, there's no need," Zhu Ziyang said, calming her with a smile. "That Zhang Peng is likely from the Holy Spirit Church. We will inevitably clash with the Holy Spirit Church in the future. Dealing with him then will be the same; there's no need to tip them off now."
"Alright," Xian Lin'er calmed down considerably and retracted her Spirit before asking, "By the way, Ziyang, why did you suddenly appear?"
"I was a bit bored at the Academy, so I thought I'd come and take a look," Zhu Ziyang replied with a smile. "As it turned out, I ran into this situation. I guess it was just good timing."
"Indeed! It's a good thing you arrived, otherwise, just me and Yan Shaozhe really wouldn't have been a match for Long Xiaoyao," Xian Lin'er said, a look of lingering fear on her face. "I really didn't expect Long Xiaoyao to be working for the Sun Moon Empire. Isn't he from the Douling Empire?"
"In my opinion, he's not working for the Sun Moon Empire," Zhu Ziyang said thoughtfully. "Didn't the Sun Moon Royal Family collude with the Holy Spirit Church?"
"You mean Long Xiaoyao is actually from the Holy Spirit Church? But why?" Xian Lin'er asked, her face showing confusion.
"Well, that's a long story," Zhu Ziyang said, stroking his chin, pondering where to begin.
The two flew towards the Academy, discussing Long Xiaoyao's matters. After about four or five li, they met Xuan Zi and the other Tian Yuan Pavilion elders who had come to meet them.
"Ziyang, are you alright?" Xuan Zi immediately came forward, asking with concern.
"I'm fine," Zhu Ziyang said with a faint smile. "Elder Xuan, you've come at a great time. Please go to Maple Leaf City and bring Fan Yu and the others back."
"Alright," Xuan Zi nodded, then instructed Yan Shaozhe and Qian Duoduo to retrieve the Shrek Academy exchange group still in Maple Leaf City.
Zhu Ziyang and the other elders returned to the Academy.