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As the elder council members began speculating, Yun Ming finally spoke.
"Everyone, do you still remember those three Godslayer Missiles?"
His words caught the elders off guard, as they had been speculating in other directions.
What?
The Godslayer Missiles?
Soon, the elders began recalling what the Godslayer Missiles were.
"Are you referring to the three twelfth-level fixed-load soul-guided cannons held by the Federation?" Cai Yue'er asked in surprise.
She had assumed this meeting of the Sea God Pavilion was to discuss the selection of the new generation of Shrek's Seven Treasures.
"Yun Ming, why are you bringing this up now?"
Sitting beside Yun Ming, aside from Yali, was another elderly woman who appeared unassuming. She had just spoken, and notably, she didn't address Yun Ming as "Master."
The wife of the previous Master of the Sea God Pavilion, she was also one of the strongest individuals in Shrek's Sea God Pavilion—one of the two quasi-gods besides Yun Ming herself—Long Yeyue.
"Sister Yue, please take a moment to carefully sense it," Yun Ming said to the elderly woman.
Long Yeyue furrowed her brows, seeing that Yun Ming wasn't joking. She closed her eyes and focused on sensing.
She didn't feel anything.
Opening her eyes, she looked at Yun Ming again, confusion evident on her face.
"You can't sense it either, Sister Yue?" Yun Ming's heart sank.
He felt that there might truly be someone targeting Shrek with these missiles.
It was through Xu Yuan and Na'er's casual remarks that he became aware of this looming threat.
If it weren't for his connection to the prototype of the god seat and his mastery of integrating essence, energy, and spirit into the surrounding environment, he might not have sensed this faint sense of crisis either.
"It was only after Xiao Yuan and Na'er reminded me that I noticed the three Godslayer Missiles. I sense a threat, and I suspect the missiles may have already been moved."
Yun Ming's words shocked everyone present.
What?
How could that be?
Many powerful individuals would trust their vague, intuitive sense of danger because the more they cultivated, the firmer their minds became. Rarely did they experience such unease unless they were being specifically targeted, which could sometimes manifest as faint signals transmitted through the environment. Occasionally, strong individuals could pick up on these signs.
However, such intuitions weren't always reliable.
But for someone of Yun Ming's caliber, the likelihood of unreliability was minimal.
"Sister Yue, I'm not entirely certain, which is why I've called this meeting. We need to discuss how to verify whether the three Godslayer Missiles are still in the Federation's possession, whether they're still sealed, and whether any intelligence about them has leaked."
Although Yun Ming said he wasn't sure, he already had a contingency plan in mind. However, executing it would require Long Yeyue's help.
After all, the three Godslayer Missiles weren't something anyone could casually investigate—not even the War Gods of the War God Hall could easily pry into such classified matters, let alone conduct covert investigations for outsiders.
But there were people with the necessary qualifications.
Long Yeyue fell silent.
The others also remained quiet, waiting for her response.
Though their exchange had been brief, they had already vaguely grasped the situation.
Yun Ming suspected that something was amiss with the three Godslayer Missiles and wanted confirmation. Directly confronting the Federation would certainly tip them off, so evidence—or at least verification of the current status of the three missiles—was needed.
And within Shrek, the only person capable of achieving this was Long Yeyue.
To clarify, it wasn't that she could infiltrate the depths of the Federation herself—it was that she could seek assistance from a high-ranking official within the Federation.
"Sister Yue, I don't need you to persuade him. I only hope you'll allow me to arrange a meeting with Chen Xinjie under your name. I'll personally explain the situation to him," Yun Ming said.
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"Class Monitor, you really don't feel any pressure from the upcoming inter-grade competition, do you?" Wu Siduo finally spotted Xu Yuan at the training ground and complained, "We've already been training for over a week!"
A week ago, Wu Changkong had selected the participants for the competition and instructed them to train daily. However, without Xu Yuan around, their training lacked direction, and the results were less than ideal.
"I've looked into the second-years' situation. They have some strong individuals, but only a handful. Our class being the strongest in a century isn't an empty claim. Relax—we can win," Xu Yuan reassured them.
"Compared to the second-years, the third-years' match is the one you should really focus on."
"What?" The six students—Wu Siduo, Fang Yuan, Ye Xinglan, Xu Lizhi, Tang Wulin, and Gu Yue—were visibly shocked.
Xu Yuan looked at them blankly.
"Didn't Teacher Wu tell you?"
The six exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.
No.
"After our match with the second-years, if we win, Teacher Wu will apply for us to compete against the third-years," Xu Yuan explained.
The six immediately felt the weight of the pressure.
"See? This makes facing the second-years much easier, right?"
Xu Yuan glanced at the six of them and continued, "You all already have sufficient combat skills. Before coming to Shrek, you must have had plenty of real-world battle experience. What's most important before the competition is refining teamwork."
"The six of you will form groups and rotate teammates for 3v3 skirmishes. Fight together in teams for at least five matches, then all six of you will team up to fight against me."
Surprisingly, none of the six objected to Xu Yuan's proposal.
Clearly, Xu Yuan's performance during the class officer elections three months ago had earned their respect.
"Brother Xu."
Tang Wulin called out to Xu Yuan.
"What is it?"
"Brother Xu, are you making battle armor?" Tang Wulin hesitated for a moment but decided to ask anyway.
Xu Yuan shook his head.
"No, due to personal reasons, I won't be able to start designing my battle armor until later."
Not started yet?
Tang Wulin's heart skipped a beat.
Previously, Gu Yue had mentioned that Xu Yuan hadn't used his full strength during the class officer elections and still had reserves, leading them to believe that Xu Yuan had already crafted several pieces of battle armor.
During this time, they had been working tirelessly, doing everything possible to catch up to Xu Yuan's level.
Never did they expect that Xu Yuan hadn't even started crafting his battle armor!
Tang Wulin felt a surge of excitement.
This meant that their chance to catch up to Xu Yuan truly existed—it lay in the battle armor they would craft this semester!
"Brother Xu, I think you should also join the early stages of the battles. That way, we can better integrate as a team."
Unlike his earlier passive attitude, Tang Wulin now suggested that Xu Yuan join the team-building process instead of waiting until the final one-versus-six showdown.
Class Monitor, two months ago, you might have had the ability to take on six opponents.
But now, you might not have that capability anymore!
Xu Yuan looked at the confident Tang Wulin and roughly understood where this newfound confidence came from.
"Alright, I'll team up with Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi. You four will form the other team," Xu Yuan said.
Tang Wulin thought for a moment, then hesitated.
Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi were part of their battle armor crafting group. They definitely knew his trump cards, and once they discussed tactics, everything would come to light.
"How about… Class Monitor, you team up with Wu Siduo and Fang Yuan instead?"
Xu Yuan looked at him in surprise.
Well, well—quite confident indeed.
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