Douluo Dalu 2: Reincarnated as the Auspicious Beast

"Still angry?" Wang Rui nudged Huo Yuqing with his shoulder.

At the moment, they were walking along a narrow path. On both sides of the road, finely manicured vegetation could be seen—unlike the wild, untamed flora of the Star Dou Forest.

"They were totally cheating!" Huo Yuqing pouted angrily.

The girl's mood wasn't great, but Wang Rui seemed quite pleased.

Huo Yuqing's admiration for Shrek had turned into disappointment, which delighted the mischievous Sacred Beast.

"I've heard many stories from my mother," Huo Yuqing said, frowning. "Stories about the Sea God from ten thousand years ago, and the various legends Shrek left across the continent. All I knew was that this was a very prestigious academy, and every student who graduated from here had great prospects. But now... it's not what I imagined."

"You shouldn't have held Shrek Academy in such high regard," Jiang Nannan shrugged. "Everyone thinks that way at first, but well... Welcome to Shrek—where only your power and background matter."

As they talked, a small plaza appeared at the end of the road, featuring ten statues standing tall—Shrek Academy's founders and the original Seven Monsters.

"Look, there are the founders and the original Shrek Seven Monsters' statues."

"Speaking of Shrek's founders..." Wang Rui thought for a moment and decided to spare everyone the messy love triangles for now. He began in a neutral tone, "The one in the center is Flender, who established Shrek's tradition of high tuition fees with no refunds. Next to him is the legendary Grandmaster, Yu Xiaogang, the teacher of the Sea God Tang San, known for his work 'The Ten Common Principles of Martial Souls.'

"On the other side is Liu Erlong, Yu Xiaogang's cousin... and wife. Yes, their family basically took turns running Shrek as the headmasters over generations, turning Shrek into a family enterprise."

Jiang Nannan perked up, listening intently. Even though she attended the outer court, she had never heard such specific gossip.

Behind the three founders stood the original Shrek Seven Monsters, their statues arranged in a neat row.

A beautiful girl stood beside Ning Rongrong's statue. She had short, neat golden hair, large water-blue eyes, long curly lashes, and a few adorable freckles scattered across her cheeks.

Wang Rui glanced at her but didn't pay her much mind.

"Ah, those are the original Seven Monsters," he said in a lighthearted tone. "Here's a little secret: although it's commonly believed that only Tang San ascended to godhood, in reality, all seven of them became gods."

The girl showed a slightly surprised expression, then smiled warmly and nodded politely in their direction.

"Hey, classmate, from what you're saying, it sounds like you know a lot about the original Seven Monsters?" the girl asked curiously, though to Wang Rui, her curiosity seemed a bit too deliberate.

"Yeah, something passed down from the elders," Wang Rui shrugged, already guessing who she was.

The girl was also wearing a white school uniform. Given her earlier gaze fixed on Ning Rongrong's statue, she was likely Ning Tian, the current heir of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"Are you a new student too?" Ning Tian tilted her head and smiled. "I'm quite interested in the stories of the original Seven Monsters as well. If there's a chance in the future, could we chat more about it?"

"Sure."

"Great, let's talk more when there's a chance." Ning Tian nodded politely and turned to leave.

Wang Rui watched her retreating figure thoughtfully.

It seemed the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had well-informed sources. In the time between his registration and Huo Yuqing's assessment, Ning Tian had likely already learned about the mysterious soul master with a three-ring cultivation joining Shrek. It appeared she wanted to create a shared topic of interest as an opening to approach him.

Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect... Wang Rui narrowed his eyes, recalling the way Ning Tian had looked at Ning Rongrong's statue. It didn't seem like she held much reverence for her sect's ancestor.

Suddenly, he felt a tug on his sleeve.

"Wang Rui, I'm from the Star Luo Empire. Can you tell me about the White Tiger Douluo and the Nether Douluo?" Huo Yuqing asked.

Wang Rui had a vague feeling that Huo Yuqing seemed a bit unhappy, but he couldn't figure out exactly why.

"You want to hear about White Tiger Douluo and Nether Douluo? They inherited the positions of the God of War and the God of Speed, respectively..." He wore a mischievous grin. "You know how the stories say that the first White Tiger Douluo was incredibly loyal, with only one wife throughout his life? Well, the truth is... he had many flings."

Huo Yuqing's eyes widened.

"You also know that the original White Tiger Douluo became the emperor of Star Luo. To ensure that the throne wouldn't fall into someone else's hands, he left behind a legitimate heir with his wife before ascending to the God Realm in haste, without raising the child properly," Wang Rui said with a faint, unreadable smile.

"But what he didn't know was that during his time at Shrek, he had entangled himself with several women, naturally resulting in other illegitimate descendants. This caused quite a bit of trouble for his legitimate heir... Star Luo always had a tradition of sibling rivalry. Since he ascended to godhood in such a rush, without properly grooming his heir, and gods couldn't directly interfere with mortal affairs, the political scene in Star Luo became chaotic.

He fixed his gaze on Huo Yuqing, hoping she wouldn't idolize such an irresponsible ancestor. After all, this ancestor eventually humiliated a second-tier god and even forced the god to change his surname, which was genuinely unpleasant.

"So being a philanderer is a White Tiger tradition, huh..." Huo Yuqing muttered disdainfully, glaring at Dai Mubai's statue.

Suddenly, Wang Rui noticed something. He looked up at Ma Hongjun's statue.

A sharp-tailed swift flew over and perched on Ma Hongjun's head.

"Tch. Fatty, is the God Realm really that great? It's been ten thousand years, and you haven't come down to take a look?" The swift muttered. "Ten thousand years have passed... The White Tiger family is long gone, and the Shrek you cherished isn't all that impressive anymore. Back then, you were known as the Phoenix Douluo. Now Shrek has renamed your title to the Evil Phoenix Douluo... Hmph! Evil Phoenix Douluo."

"I chose to accept help, merging my soul with my martial soul and reincarnating as a soul beast. Maybe that way, we'll have a chance to meet again."

"But I don't even know if what I feel for you is still love. Perhaps it is, but it doesn't seem the same anymore. This feeling is all I have left to hold onto from the past." The sharp-tailed swift—or rather, Bai Chenxiang—spoke softly.

"Looking back, those feelings from youth seem a bit irrational now. But in the end, you did treat me well later on... Sigh, saying all this doesn't change anything. I just hope the Rui Beast's promise can come true."

After venting to the statue, the sharp-tailed swift flapped its wings and flew away.