On his way back to his floor, Furina happened to run into people from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, and as luck would have it, it was none other than the siblings Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.
Almost every tournament, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy ended up as the eternal runner-up, so they received treatment in the Star Emperor Hotel comparable to Shrek Academy, making it no surprise to run into them. It was just unexpected to bump into the siblings right away.
Xiao Hongchen's gaze fell upon Furina, and he tentatively spoke: "Are you a student of Shrek..."
Before he could finish, he felt the aura fluctuations of a Spirit Saint emanating from Furina, and the words on the tip of his tongue were abruptly stifled. He decisively dismissed his initial thought.
"No... A teacher?" He frowned, then shook his head. "That's not right either, how could there be such a young teacher?"
He looked at Furina, filled with doubt.
If one were to call him a student, Furina's age certainly fit, but this cultivation level was too absurd. The Spirit Saint Realm was already considered graduation material even in the Shrek Inner Court. But if one were to call him a teacher... he was truly too young.
Could it be that Shrek was going to field a monster of this level this time?
Xiao Hongchen's heart tightened, and a chill crept up his spine. That would be too terrifying... If that were the case, the first place would likely belong to Shrek again. Was Shrek truly invincible? Even if the other three teams in the final four banded together, they probably could only just rival Shrek.
Furina likely guessed what he was thinking, smiled politely, and spoke in a gentle tone: "I am both a student and a teacher. But please rest assured, I am not a contestant, just one of the team's leading teachers, responsible for offering strategies."
"You two are from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, right?"
"That is correct." Xiao Hongchen steadied his mind, straightened his back, and spoke with a tone that was neither servile nor overbearing: "My name is Xiao Hongchen, and this is my sister, Meng Hongchen. We two siblings are the reserve team members representing the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy in this tournament."
Under normal circumstances, he would have added something like "the once-in-a-thousand-years Genius of the Sun Moon Empire."
But today, those words just wouldn't come out. That pride and complacency seemed so ridiculous in front of the Damselette before him.
Meng Hongchen also slightly nodded, her voice clear: "Hello, I am Meng Hongchen."
She naturally understood why her brother had suddenly become so reserved. In the past, he was as full of Divine Qi as a peacock spreading its tail, needing to shake his feathers wherever he went. Now, this appearance was clearly a blow dealt by the Damselette before them.
After all, the other party was so young yet possessed Spirit Saint-level cultivation, and was from Shrek—to her brother, wasn't this a loud slap to the face?
Furina slowly introduced himself, his tone carrying a sense of casualness: "Hello, I am Furina, the Supreme Pontiff of the Axis Cult and the Water God himself."
He sized up the two siblings, a flash of appreciation in his eyes: "It's truly impressive that you two have Spirit King-level cultivation at such a young age."
The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, his tone carrying a hint of temptation: "Are you interested in joining our Axis Cult? If you join now, I am willing to give you an Immortal Herb, something rarely seen in ten thousand years."
Xiao Hongchen, however, narrowed his eyes vigilantly, his face full of disbelief: "Isn't that too good to be true? Just for an initiation ceremony, you'd give away something like that?"
Furina placed his hands on his hips, chin slightly raised, looking perfectly justified: "Of course, that's because I am wealthy and powerful. My Axis Cult possesses a foundation and wealth that does not lose to Shrek."
Meng Hongchen, however, was piqued by another question, tilting her head as she asked: "You are the Supreme Pontiff of a Sect at such a young age? And you claim to be the Water God himself... Aren't you afraid that the real Water God will find out and descend a divine punishment? Although the gods might not descend to the Mortal World, what if they do?"
Furina was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Hahaha, punishment? I am the Water God; why would I punish myself?"
He spread his hands, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the siblings: "And look at me, I am already at the Spirit Saint Realm at such a young age. If I were not a god, why would I be able to Cultivate so quickly and reach such a high Realm?"
This question completely stumped both Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.
Both of them had the same thought at the same time: That's true, it does seem to make sense... How could an ordinary person reach this point? Unless one constantly consumed Medicinal Pills, overdrawing their Talents and potential, they could barely catch up.
But they could feel that Furina's aura was very stable, his Soul Power thick, and there was an indescribable charm to it; it was definitely not something built up by frantically popping pills.
Furina struck while the iron was hot, continuing to cast out bait: "How about it? Are you interested? In my eyes, you two are also rare Geniuses. As long as you keep a level head and Cultivate properly, reaching the Titled Douluo or Super Douluo Realm will be within your grasp."
He paused, his tone deepening: "If you have the help of my Axis Cult, even reaching the Limit Douluo Realm is not impossible. My Axis Cult has Cultivation Techniques that can accelerate Cultivation and improve mental force, and we also have Spirit Bones. These are things the Sun Moon Empire cannot give you, and even Shrek might not be able to provide them as generously as I can."
These words were extremely tempting; someone else might have been moved.
But Xiao Hongchen still had his own pride. Plus, Furina was from Shrek, and he had only heard of the Axis Cult a few times on the way here and didn't really know it. After struggling internally for a moment, he resolutely shook his head.
"Although what you said is very tempting, someone else might have agreed." His voice was very soft, yet very firm: "However, I must refuse."
Furina spread his hands, a helpless and dejected expression on his face, and sighed: "I didn't expect that I would one day be rejected by someone."
However, he quickly put away that dejected look and put on a smile again: "Alright, since we just met, I should indeed give you more time to consider."
He took a step back, his tone becoming serious: "The doors of my Axis Cult are always open to you. By the way, tell your grandfather, Mirror Hongchen, that I am also willing to open them for him. The things the Sun Moon Empire cannot give, I can. When the day comes that he has nowhere else to turn, come to me, and I can save a spot for him to spend his later years."
He added: "Also, tell yourselves or your leading teacher that my Axis Cult would also like to have exchange students with your academy to properly interact."
After saying this, his tone suddenly shifted, his gaze falling on Xiao Hongchen's face, his tone carrying a bit of experience: "And another thing, do not be overly ambitious. Do not think that just because you are a Genius, you are amazing, and no one can defeat you. Also, do not casually set people as your targets."
"You must know, there is always someone better, and there is always a heaven beyond heaven. If you set others as targets to prove you are the strongest, it is fine if you win, but if you lose, wouldn't you develop a Heart Demon, losing all hope of ever reaching the Titled Douluo Realm for the rest of your life?"
He dropped this long speech, not caring about the siblings' reaction, and turned to walk away on his own.
His light footsteps echoed in the corridor.
Xiao Hongchen stood in place, stunned for a long while.
He tried hard to digest everything Furina had said...
After a moment, he suddenly shouted at the back that had already walked far away: "Although I don't know why you wanted to tell me these things, thank you for your guidance!"
After shouting, he let out a long breath, feeling as if something in his heart had been broken, and something else was quietly growing.
Before witnessing Furina, he had always held onto his own pride. But now, those pride and arrogance had been crushed by that powerful cultivation. It didn't matter whether Furina was a real Water God or a fake one.
What mattered was that he wanted to become stronger. Strong enough to make a Breakthrough, surpass his current self, surpass his grandfather Mirror Hongchen, and become the strongest in the Sun Moon Empire.
He clenched his fists, his gaze becoming firm.
"Let's go, sister."
"Alright, brother."
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