"Senior Yi, are you serious?" Xu Cheng was a bit excited.
After all, Yi Lao had been drawing this grand plan for over half a year, and now he finally told him that the inheritance ritual could begin...
"Would this old man lie to you?" Electrolux chuckled helplessly. His withered fingers stretched out and gently tapped beneath Xu Cheng's feet. A deep purple pentagram instantly spun, and Xu Cheng's aura vanished in an instant.
Inside the office, not a single person remained.
The Undead World
The sky was an endless black, resembling an apocalyptic scene, dyed entirely in ink. Or perhaps, this world had no real sky at all. It was surrounded by endless darkness and void. The only safe place was the ground beneath Xu Cheng's feet. Beyond a certain boundary, any normal creature would be assimilated into a skeleton.
"This is the pocket dimension you created by hand?" Xu Cheng clicked his tongue in amazement as he surveyed his surroundings.
Above, there was only a pitch-black sun, emitting a faint purple glow.
Visibility was extremely low.
Fortunately, Xu Cheng's martial soul was an eye, so turning on night vision was no problem.
"It can only be considered a demi-plane, still a step away from a true dimension. After all, my original purpose in creating it was simply to research necromantic magic or make it easier to summon the undead in the real world. After thousands of years, the undead in this world have developed into a force of their own." Electrolux, appearing as a ghostly figure, stood beside Xu Cheng, looking at his creation with satisfaction as he explained.
"I see..." Xu Cheng sighed in admiration.
To be able to casually create a demi-plane and talk about it so lightly—only Electrolux could do such a thing.
After all, he was Electro-knows-everything-lux.
"As for the inheritance, I believe you are capable of handling it. After all, as you've seen, a large portion of what I've imparted to you consists of necromantic magic. This type of magic, in your world, would likely be classified as evil."
Xu Cheng shrugged. I'm an evil soul master, so this is pretty much my field of expertise.
"Hahaha, I almost forgot about your identity," Electrolux laughed. "But that is precisely why I chose you for this inheritance. Necromancy, by its nature, is intimately tied to death, which leads many in this world to easily stray down dark paths. But you, despite being in the Holy Spirit Cult, have remained true to your heart. Entrusting this magic to you ensures it will be put to proper use."
"Necromantic magic primarily studies death. A world, a dimension—these should exist in a cycle of life and death. Only through the constant rotation of life and death can a world function properly. But as you see in this place, it does not contain only death—it also has a kind of 'vitality'. That is why these skeletons can exist in an 'undead' state. Strangely enough, these skeletal beings need to devour flesh to grow stronger. Perhaps that is a form of energy conversion between life and death..."
"Does that mean they can only grow stronger by consuming flesh?" Xu Cheng mused.
"Not necessarily. Their essence is the power of 'death'. And as I mentioned, death and vitality can be transformed into one another. Your spiritual sea holds an immense reservoir of life energy… perhaps you could try something." Electrolux hinted, then looked into the distance.
Down the hill, the view gradually expanded.
Countless humanoid skeletons stood, some wielding bone knives, others with bone axes, and some even holding their own severed arms.
The moment they noticed the two of them, a chorus of eerie war cries filled the air as they charged forward.
But before they could reach Xu Cheng, they suddenly halted hesitantly.
Xu Cheng, intrigued, approached one of the small skeletons and examined it. Judging by its energy, it was around the level of a Grand Soul Master—likely the lowest tier of skeleton soldiers in this undead world.
It had a simple skeletal frame, short limbs, and hollow eye sockets flickering with dim ghostly flames. Its expression was blank, giving it an oddly chibi-like, collectible figure appearance.
Xu Cheng chuckled and patted the skeleton's skull.
The skeleton immediately wobbled unsteadily, stumbling backward a few steps before freezing in place.
"Why did it stop moving?" Xu Cheng was puzzled.
"They fear you." Electrolux smiled. "Ordinary skeleton soldiers are fearless. Even when faced with Titled Douluo-level opponents from your world, they would charge forward relentlessly, even if they were smashed to pieces. They are already undead, after all. But with you... it's different."
Xu Cheng curiously approached more skeleton soldiers and, feeling playful, began posing them into different positions. None of them dared to resist, though their flickering eye flames indicated they were still conscious and had not fallen into a dormant state.
"These little collectibles, tsk tsk..." Xu Cheng admired his handiwork and nodded in satisfaction.
Back in his previous life, these little guys would have been worth a fortune to collectors.
To be honest, despite having lived in this world for over a decade and spending years in the Holy Spirit Cult, Xu Cheng had never encountered such pure death energy before.
As for why he called it pure—these little skeletons felt completely different from the twisted souls of Holy Spirit Cult members, whose hands were stained with blood. They were much... simpler.
"The control and enhancement of necromantic magic is closely tied to your spiritual power. Fortunately, you excel in that area. That is why now is the perfect time for me to pass this inheritance to you." Electrolux then pointed at Xu Cheng.
A gray soul ring appeared beneath Xu Cheng's feet.
"This is not a typical soul ring used for unleashing a soul skill. Instead, it is the framework of necromantic magic itself. Within this structure, you can refine and develop all the necromantic magic I have imprinted in your memory. It serves as the core of all necromantic magic."
"Of course, the key remains your spiritual power. You can think of your spiritual power as your mana pool, and these spells as your abilities. With this core framework, you have permission to access all the skills. However, whether you can actually cast them depends on whether your mana can sustain it."
"I see..." Xu Cheng nodded slowly.
"Enhancement!"
Closing his eyes briefly, he focused on the skeleton soldier in front of him and softly cast a spell.
In an instant, the skeleton's size quintupled, reaching over five meters tall. Its entire form had been enlarged proportionally, from its weight to its bone density.
However, the spell only lasted for a little over ten minutes, as it was just a basic spell. Xu Cheng nodded in satisfaction.
"The effectiveness of a spell is also linked to mental strength. If someone else tried this, they would likely only manage to double or triple the size. Even in my younger days, my spiritual power was far weaker than yours," Electrolux noted.
"Haha, just a lucky talent," Xu Cheng grinned.
"Enough with the false modesty. The necromantic knowledge I could pass on has already been fully imprinted in your mind. Do not rush into high-level spells. Even if your spiritual power is sufficient, do not attempt them recklessly. Also, one more thing..." Electrolux frowned slightly.
"I have traveled through hundreds, even thousands of different dimensions and seen countless cultivation systems. But I must say, the Douluo Continent's reliance on soul rings for advancement is the strangest one I've encountered. No other world has such an artificial bottleneck—cultivation is typically limited only by talent. If you can break through, you do. If not, you remain stuck forever."
Xu Cheng was stunned.
He had read many books questioning the logic behind soul rings, but no solution had ever been found.
To him, it felt more like an ancient god's arbitrary design. More likely, it was a lingering power struggle between soul beasts and humans—a punishment humans imposed after defeating the Beast God.
"Regardless, I will do my best to complete the artificial soul ring project. Though it's a slow process, at least we see some hope," Electrolux sighed before fading away, leaving Xu Cheng to continue experimenting with higher-level necromantic summoning spells.
Handing over the control of this half-dimension to Xu Cheng, the figure then disappeared.
Xu Cheng then began experimenting with higher-tier necromantic (summoning) magic.
As one skeleton soldier after another, along with skeletal cavalry, skeletal beasts, and skeletal dragons, were summoned forth—
"Let the world feel pain! (A sack of rice, how many floors must it be carried up?)"
A sudden burst of repulsive force erupted like a nuclear explosion, enveloping everything within a radius of several miles. Countless undead creatures were instantly reduced to ashes without feeling any pain, only to be reformed again.
As if he were the very consciousness that ruled this world, Xu Cheng suddenly elevated his own status.
Watching the entire world fall into chaos, condensing, dissipating, forming a cycle, he fell into deep contemplation…
…
"Dean, there's trouble!"
Duwei Lun rushed into Yan Shaozhe's office, panting heavily.
"What's with all the panic?" Yan Shaozhe, full of authority, wrote a few calligraphic characters—"The glory of the Martial Soul Department shall endure"—before frowning and looking at Duwei Lun.
"I…" The Martial Soul Department director swallowed hard.
"Enough, just say it." Yan Shaozhe put down his brush and leaned back into his comfortable chair, closing his eyes for a moment of rest.
He trusted Duwei Lun, after all, this subordinate had been personally appointed by him. For Duwei Lun to come rushing in like this, it had to be something serious.
"Yes," Duwei Lun said urgently. "The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect sent two of their direct disciples to the Sun-Moon Empire's Royal Academy for studies the day before yesterday! Both carry the bloodline of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, and there are also several adopted sect disciples, all around eleven or twelve years old, the right age for enrollment!"
"What!" Yan Shaozhe flew into a rage, slamming the table with such force that the pearwood desk instantly shattered into pieces, gently falling to the floor in fragments—a clear reflection of his turbulent emotions.
After all, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect held a high status. Though it had somewhat declined in recent years, it remained one of the most deeply rooted hidden sects on the continent.
Every move they made was closely watched by many.
Now, with Shrek already in turbulent times, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's actions were nothing short of a direct slap to his face.
"How dare he!" Yan Shaozhe's face twisted with rage.
Duwei Lun kept his head down, not daring to speak.
A long silence passed before Yan Shaozhe regained his composure and coldly looked at Duwei Lun. "What about the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect disciples still in the academy? Anyone in the inner court—assign them all to high-risk missions. As for those in the outer court—expel them! Get rid of them all! Shrek has no need for turncoats like them!"
Duwei Lun: "…"
After a long pause, he finally spoke with a bitter face, "Dean, just yesterday, I received word that almost all the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect disciples in the academy have already left. Their reason was quite consistent—they applied for leave…"
"Damn it!" Yan Shaozhe grew even more furious.
However, the thoroughness of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's actions showed they were truly determined this time.
"Very well, Ning Hao, Shrek will remember you." His eyes narrowed as he gazed out the window.
This Ning Hao… was even his junior.
But now…
"Shrek nurtured you, yet you turn around and bite the academy in return." Yan Shaozhe coldly looked at Duwei Lun. "Remember this: from this day forward, Shrek severs all ties with the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Add this to the academy's doctrine. As long as I, Yan Shaozhe, live, no member of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will set foot in Shrek!"
"And to think, we even changed the name for them… Ungrateful traitors."
"Understood." Duwei Lun dared not say more and quickly left.
"As expected, Teacher, you truly have grown old…" Yan Shaozhe murmured as he gazed out the window.
He had once hesitated about whether to follow his teacher's advice and tolerate Ma Rulong and the others' actions.
But now, this news only solidified his conviction.
No! Absolutely not!
Even the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had left. If another scandal broke out, wouldn't the entire Martial Soul Department collapse and become the laughingstock of the world?
Shrek Academy's millennia of glory would completely become a joke.
So…
On the Other Side.
Jing Hongchen's smile was so wide it was about to split his face.
He clasped Ning Hao's hand tightly, unwilling to let go, while his other hand pounded his chest with loud thuds. "Rest assured! These kids are treasures in our academy! If anyone dares to harm our academy's treasures, this old man will be the first to take them down!"
"That's good. Your academy has always had a reliable reputation, so of course, we trust you." Ning Hao, like an old fox himself, smiled pleasantly.
Between them, there was almost no scheming.
Even though they were both cunning old foxes.
Ning Hao had come to pledge allegiance, but his posture was extremely humble. Meanwhile, as the beneficiary, Jing Hongchen naturally wouldn't act arrogant. Thus, the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious.
Only the younger generation following behind them seemed somewhat reserved and at a loss.
Although Ning Hao had already reassured them that the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy was not a den of demons and that they should focus on learning because soul tools were the future trend, being in a new environment—especially one that their older siblings and relatives referred to as a stronghold of evil soul masters—naturally made them a bit nervous.
"Alright, Lin Jiayi, take the kids to arrange their dormitories."
Jing Hongchen waved his hand, signaling his deputy to handle the matter, while he himself pulled Ning Hao aside to drink and make merry.
He could already imagine how furious Yan Shaozhe at Shrek Academy must be…
The angrier the other side was, the happier he felt.
"Is everything ready?" Xiao Hongchen scanned his surroundings.
Li Yan, Lin Xi, and Ma Rulong gathered together, even the usually aloof Ji Juechen stood nearby, holding his sword.
"No problem. Once she starts class, we'll confront her immediately!" Lin Xi made an "OK" gesture.
As he spoke, he flipped through a stack of records and smacked his lips in amazement. "Honestly, before coming here, I thought Shrek Academy, though morally questionable, at least had solid strength. But after seeing this… the corruption runs deep. No wonder the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect representatives came to our academy the other day and directly laid their cards on the table. Their grievances must be immense."
"To be honest, I hesitated for a moment—should we really help Shrek get rid of this tumor? We're from the Sun Moon Empire. If they rot from within, isn't that better for us?" Ma Rulong chuckled and shook his head. "But after thinking it through, we shouldn't be arrogant. Shrek Academy has existed for ten thousand years and produced countless geniuses. Though their cultivation system is… questionable, few can match them in martial soul research. We should take this learning opportunity seriously and not waste it…"
Ding…
The class bell rang.
The group moved toward the training ground.
At this moment, the instructor was none other than Zhou Yi.
That's right—her class consisted of only two things: combat training and physical conditioning (running and weighted running).
For combat, she let students engage in spirit arena battles or three-on-three sparring, taking a completely hands-off approach. As for physical conditioning, running was her specialty.
As for most theoretical knowledge, it was covered in the first semester. After all, anyone who could enter Shrek Academy had already memorized the basics inside out.
As for more advanced knowledge beyond that… Well, she simply didn't know it.
So, she substituted running.
"Oh, so even you Sun Moon Empire trash have come?" Zhou Yi's command for the class to start running was briefly interrupted as she sneered.
In her eyes, these weaklings must have caved under pressure and come to beg her for instruction.
Since that was the case, she might as well crush them thoroughly. Otherwise, these troublemakers would keep challenging her, which was a nuisance…
"Trash? You, a mere Soul Emperor, dare to call us trash?" Xiao Hongchen crossed his arms and smirked contemptuously.
Ji Juechen stepped forward.
An invisible sword aura erupted like a miniature storm, sweeping across half of the training ground.
The pressure forced Zhou Yi's face to turn pale, and she staggered back two steps before barely stabilizing herself.
Instantly, the entire training ground's attention focused on them.
Even the students behind Zhou Yi, clad in heavy armor, stood frozen in shock.
Some wanted to step forward to help, but their companions held them back, whispering, "Wait and see…"
Only then did Zhou Yi regain her composure, her face alternating between red and pale. She gritted her teeth and glared at Xiao Hongchen's group. "Is this what Sun Moon Empire students are like? No respect for teachers! You're a disgrace to your academy!"
"We just wanted to prove that we're not trash. How does that…" Xiao Hongchen shrugged, looking aggrieved.
"You—!" Zhou Yi was so furious that she felt suffocated.
If she were at least a Soul Sage and strong enough to overpower Ji Juechen, she would have charged at them already.
But she wasn't.
As a Soul Emperor, she was only average among Shrek Academy's teachers.
Moreover, Ji Juechen had dared to challenge Ma Xiaotao—who was at her peak—back when he had just reached Soul King. Now, with his spirit power at rank 56 and wielding the "Sword of Judgment" given by Xu Cheng, he was on par with an ordinary Soul Sage.
Under such overwhelming pressure, Zhou Yi wasn't just unable to suppress him—she was the one being suppressed.
"Don't provoke the masses. Focus on the key point," Ma Rulong gently reminded.
Xiao Hongchen glanced at the surrounding students—many were itching to intervene.
Though his nature made him want to challenge everyone in the arena, his actions also affected his companions. So, he restrained himself and began laying a trap for Zhou Yi.
"Teacher Zhou Yi, we're not trash, right?" Xiao Hongchen smiled.
Zhou Yi glared at him coldly, remaining silent.
"Well, in our eyes, you are trash—not only talentless but completely incapable of teaching."
Xiao Hongchen's smile vanished as he spoke, enunciating each word clearly.
(End of Chapter)