"The matter in Mingdu—although it was the First Battle God of the Battle God Hall who detonated the underground weapons factory, not our Tang Sect, we still bear an undeniable responsibility. For this, the Tang Sect expresses its deepest apologies. However, everyone can rest assured that the Sun-Moon Federation has already entrusted the Blood God Legion's Blood God Battalion Commander, the First Blood God, as well as the Vice Pagoda Master of the Spirit Pagoda, Heavenly Phoenix Douluo Leng Yaozhu's husband, Grandmaster Xia Yi, to handle this matter. Please rest assured! We believe that Grandmaster Xia Yi will resolve this matter properly."
Cao Dezhi released another video. The moment the Sun-Moon Federation's high-ranking officials saw it, their fury erupted once more, their teeth gritting in anger.
"How does Cao Dezhi know the contents of the Parliament's discussion? Who leaked the information to him?" The Speaker of the Sun-Moon Federation roared in anger. Their parliamentary meeting wasn't even over yet—so how did Cao Dezhi already know what was discussed?
How could he not be furious?
Shua shua shua!
All eyes in the room turned to Yun Ming in unison.
Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect had always been closely aligned, and Yun Ming and Zang Xin were both successful members of the legendary Shrek Seven Monsters. His chances of being the informant were the highest.
"It wasn't me." Yun Ming shook his head calmly.
"I can vouch for him—it truly couldn't have been Brother Ming." Yali, sitting beside Yun Ming, spoke up as well.
She had been by his side the whole time. If Yun Ming had made any moves, it would have been impossible to escape her notice.
"It seems we have a Tang Sect spy among us." Xu Cangyu spoke coldly.
"But what does Cao Dezhi hope to achieve by releasing this video?" Yu Guanzhi couldn't help but ask.
"He wants to put Xia Yi on the spot." Yali sighed bitterly.
Faced with the thick, sky-darkening dust covering all of Mingdu, even an Ultimate Douluo was helpless.
Moreover, no one knew where the rest of the underground weapons factories of the Tang Sect were hidden, nor when they might explode.
The entire population of the Sun-Moon Federation lived in fear.
Yet the Federation itself had no solutions. At this moment, despair consumed the citizens.
By releasing the video, Cao Dezhi was giving them a sliver of hope.
He wanted them to pin all their expectations on Xia Yi.
Then, if Xia Yi failed to resolve the crisis, the people would turn against him—blaming him for stepping forward arrogantly without the ability to deliver. They would also blame the Sun-Moon Federation, not only for its incompetence but for its failure to recognize talent.
This would only deepen the already-growing disappointment of the people.
The Tang Sect's reputation was already in ruins. Only by muddying the waters further could they create an opportunity to maneuver.
Of course, for Cao Dezhi to dare release such a video, he must have been certain that Xia Yi had no way of helping the Federation.
After all, if so many top figures in the Sun-Moon Federation had deliberated for half a day and still found no solution, how could Xia Yi possibly succeed?
Cao Dezhi: "Xia Yi? Ha! I can only laugh!"
"This is an open scheme," Yali sighed. "It forces Xia Yi into a corner while also pressuring the Sun-Moon Federation. Unless we have someone else willing to step forward and take responsibility, this burden can only fall onto Xia Yi."
If not, the brief hope that had ignited among the people would be extinguished once again, and their complaints would only grow louder.
"Do we really have no choice but to let the Tang Sect lead us by the nose?" The Speaker of the Sun-Moon Federation asked reluctantly.
Silence filled the room once again.
Apart from following the Tang Sect's lead, they truly had no alternatives.
Now, they could only hope—desperately hope—that Xia Yi actually had a way to help the Federation through this crisis.
By the time Xia Yi and Gu Yue arrived in Mingdu from the Star Dou Forest, Leng Yaozhu had already departed for the Blood God Legion.
The Blood God Legion was crucial to the fate of the entire Douluo Plane. Leng Yaozhu and Zhang Huanyun had only taken a brief trip to Mingdu and couldn't afford to stay long.
Moreover, with Cao Dezhi leading Tang Sect disciples to defect from the Blood God Legion and Blood God Battalion, there were many urgent matters awaiting their attention.
So even though she knew Xia Yi would be arriving in Mingdu soon, Leng Yaozhu couldn't afford to wait.
Although Leng Yaozhu and Zhang Huanyun had left, many high-ranking figures remained. They had not left the Federation's parliamentary hall, waiting anxiously for Xia Yi's arrival.
The crisis in Mingdu and the conflict with the Tang Sect could no longer be delayed. They all wanted to see—firsthand—if this Xia Yi, whom Xia Hong had spoken so highly of, could truly resolve this crisis.
Upon arriving in Mingdu, Xia Yi and Gu Yue did not immediately go to the parliamentary hall to meet the officials.
Instead, they both flew high into the sky, circling above Mingdu before descending into the massive crater formed by the underground weapons factory explosion in the Cangshan District.
"Roar—!"
A deep and solemn dragon's roar reverberated through Mingdu.
Even Ultimate Douluo-level powerhouses felt the weight of an immense, mountain-like pressure.
The citizens of Mingdu hadn't yet grasped what was happening when, in the next moment, the dust covering the entire sky suddenly began to move without any wind.
All of it gathered toward the source of the dragon's roar.
Before everyone's eyes, the air of Mingdu began to clear at an astonishingly visible rate.
At that moment, the officials in the parliamentary hall could no longer sit still.
One after another, they rushed toward Cangshan District, following the source of the dragon's roar.
By the time they arrived, visibility in Mingdu had improved to about ten meters. Meanwhile, the crater—once a hundred meters deep—had already been filled in by ten meters.
At the bottom of the crater, Xia Yi sat cross-legged atop a thousand-meter-long dragon.
The dragon's body was semi-transparent and ochre in color. It had no wings, but its body was thick and robust, with particularly massive limbs that resembled towering pillars holding up the sky.
A powerful, unfathomable aura radiated from it.
Dust from thousands of meters around was gathering toward Xia Yi and the dragon at a rate far exceeding that of other areas.
A small mountain of dust had already formed around them.
"Hahaha! At this rate, Mingdu's air quality will return to normal within a day! With all the dust settling back into the crater, reconstruction in Cangshan District will be much easier, too. Minister of News, summon your people! I want a live broadcast—let the entire Federation see that Xia Yi has the ability to resolve this crisis!"
The Speaker of the Federation laughed heartily.
With the Tang Sect's prior publicity, broadcasting Xia Yi's purification of Mingdu's air would undoubtedly reassure the citizens.
Looking at the colossal dragon beneath Xia Yi, the Speaker couldn't stop smiling. He might not understand what was happening, but he was certain that when the people of the Federation saw Xia Yi commanding such a massive beast, they would view him as a god descending to save them.
With some clever manipulation by the media, they could effortlessly dispel the fear and anxiety plaguing the people.
At this moment, the Federation's leadership almost felt like thanking Cao Dezhi for his premature publicity.
So this was Cao Dezhi's so-called open scheme?
Hah!
Everyone present wanted to laugh.
"That's a dragon soul! A dragon soul from the Dragon Valley Small World! Zang Xin was right—Xia Yi and Gu Yue really do control the Dragon Valley Small World!"
The Federation's leaders were ecstatic.
Only Yun Ming narrowed his eyes, quietly clenching his fists.
"Don't do anything foolish. I beg you, Yun Ming—don't make another mistake," Yali's pleading voice rang in his ears.
"Do something foolish? Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't dare! Even if I dared—what could I possibly do against such a terrifying dragon soul?" Yun Ming's eyelids twitched.
Even though the Mountain Dragon King was just a dragon soul, it could still swat him—the strongest human—dead in an instant.
He had no desire for such a meaningless death.
Sighing, Yun Ming murmured, "I need to talk to Cao Dezhi. If Xia Yi truly controls the dragon souls of the Dragon Valley, going head-to-head with the Federation now will only end in disaster."
If they still refused to back down, the Tang Sect might truly become a thing of the past.
As the live broadcast began, cheers erupted across the entire federation. Taking advantage of the moment when Yali's gaze was fixed on Xia Yi, Yun Ming quietly retreated behind the crowd.
By the time Yali snapped back to her senses, he had already left Mingdu.
"Yun Ming!" Yali closed her eyes in pain. She never expected that not only would Yun Ming refuse to heed her advice, but he wouldn't even believe her anymore.