Chapter 161: Hollow

……

"Are you afraid?" Xue Di asked.

This feeling was exactly the same as when she first underwent her heavenly tribulation.

Back then, she had also been very afraid, not knowing if she could withstand the tribulation.

Nan Feng's current state was just like hers back then; he didn't know if he could make it through.

"I'm tired."

Nan Feng turned and left.

He was indeed afraid.

But what he feared was not that sword hanging over his head, which he didn't even know existed, but the future.

Since coming out of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, because of the appearance of the Dragon Talisman, the balancing power of the Tiger Talisman had been strengthened. His mind had gradually become clear, the madness of the past slowly fading away, and he suddenly discovered that everything he had done had no meaning.

What was it that he wanted? To eliminate oppression?

But this thing could not be eliminated.

Today's victims would also be tomorrow's perpetrators.

His so-called change was nothing more than pointing the spearhead of violence at another group of people.

Moreover, there was a very serious problem here.

He had no absolute stance! If he were a natural-born person of the Douluo Continent, he could righteously continue his subsequent actions; he would be doing it for the progress of this world.

But he wasn't; he didn't even care if the people of the Douluo Continent lived or died.

He didn't even care if these people lived or died, so how could he care how they lived? The past him was a madman; he didn't care about this point at all.

Everything he did was on a whim; it didn't matter if he succeeded or failed.

A true madman.

But now it was different; his mind had become clear, and he couldn't continue to be mad.

When he looked at everything he had done with a clear gaze, and then looked at what he wanted to obtain, he discovered that everything he had done had no meaning.

Darkness would always exist. If he chose to continue for the sake of those oppressed by darkness, his subsequent actions would likewise place other people in darkness.

Still the same question: why did he have to do this?

Did he have a reason he had to do it?

No! Absolutely not! When he sobered up, he discovered that his past self was so unreasonable! Self-contradictory! If he could have just kept being mad, it would have been fine; he would never have realized this point, but now he couldn't continue to be mad.

For the first time, he felt how devastating it was to have no stance.

Because he didn't even care if he himself lived or died! If he could truly be selfish enough, he could have another solution for what came next.

But he had no interest.

The clarity after the madness made him feel incomparably hollow! He didn't know how to face the future, didn't know how to face a future without a single ray of light.

He didn't even know why he was helping these people.

After Spirit Masters became common and soul tool technology advanced, the world's new rules would be set by new powerhouses, and the weak would follow the rules; it was just that the judgment of strong and weak would no longer be like before.

Isn't it like that now?

Had everything he done changed this world by even half a percent? No!

When he looked at his past self from a clear perspective, he couldn't even understand his past self! ……

The Spirit Master Tournament preliminaries began.

Because Tang San had left Lanba Academy and come to Tiandou Royal Academy, the Shrek team was never formed.

Moreover, in order to get Tang San to return to Tiandou Royal Academy and remain deeply convinced of his identity as the Crown Prince of the Clear Sky Sect, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi put on an attitude of thirsting for talent. Through this, Tang San became convinced that both Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi were trying to scheme something using his identity as a disciple of the Clear Sky Sect, and he also gained a bit more trust in the story Ning Fengzhi had concocted earlier.

In addition, Dai Mubai, seeing Tang San going solo and witnessing the strength of the Imperial Fighting Team, rekindled his hope, wanting to use the Imperial Fighting Team, or even the power of the Tiandou Imperial Family, to oppose Dai Weisi.

Dai Mubai wanted to use Tang San's Clear Sky Sect identity, Yu Tianheng's Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect power, as well as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Ning Fengzhi, and the power of the Tiandou Imperial Family to oppose Dai Weisi. If these forces could support him, then the position of Star Luo Crown Prince would naturally be within his grasp.

Ning Fengzhi, seeing through Dai Mubai's thoughts, was quite cooperative, also inviting Dai Mubai to the Imperial Fighting Team, which could be considered keeping Tang San company.

As it happened, Dai Mubai was a Star Luo prince, which could also make Tang San have more trust in the story he had been given.

Furthermore, in order to dispel Tang San's final concerns, Ning Fengzhi went so far as to invite Yu Xiaogang over as well, to serve as the leader of the Imperial Fighting Team.

Of course, apart from Tang San, Dai Mubai, and Yu Tianheng, absolutely no one paid him any mind.

The three committee members were too lazy to even say polite words; whatever arrangements there were, they spoke directly to Dugu Yan, who was the captain.

"The preliminaries have already begun. You should go observe those seed teams that might advance and summarize your experience. What is the meaning of lying here sleeping?"

In the Imperial Fighting Team training ground, because the Spirit Master Tournament preliminaries had already begun, all the Spirit Master students were on break to make it convenient for them to go watch the matches.

However, as the main forces of the Imperial Fighting Team, Dugu Yan, Ning Rongrong, Ye Lingling, and Xiao Wu, because of Nan Feng's situation, had no mood to watch the matches, nor any mood to train, so they simply lay on the training ground to sleep.

Regarding this, Yu Xiaogang, as the leader of the Imperial Fighting Team, was quite unable to stand it.

"Do you think your strength is already enough to ignore other teams?"

"Did your previous leader not tell you not to sit in a well and look at the sky, and even more so, not to look down on the Spirit Masters of the world?"

"Previous leader?" Dugu Yan turned to the side, glancing at Yu Xiaogang with some coldness.

"You still have the face to mention it? How did Teacher Qin Ming leave? Have you forgotten?"

If it weren't for this master and disciple pair making trouble, how could Qin Ming have been forced to leave Tiandou Royal Academy?

He didn't even know where he was wandering now! Qin Ming, a person with no background, how difficult it was for him to get to where he was today—did Yu Xiaogang know?

And he still had the face to shout here? "Student Dugu Yan, the previous matter was my fault. I can apologize to you, but you shouldn't use this tone to speak to my teacher. You should apologize to him," Tang San said.

Dugu Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. "Apologize?"

"Yan Zi!"

Seeing that Dugu Yan had a tendency to lose her temper, Yu Tianheng hurriedly walked up, blocking the middle.

"It seems someone has no self-awareness?" Dugu Yan stood up, five spirit rings—yellow, yellow, purple, black, black—slowly rising.

"Apologize? Are you worthy? Or is he worthy?"

"Yan Zi." Ye Lingling pulled Dugu Yan from behind.

"Don't mess around."

"I have a sense of proportion." Dugu Yan pulled away Ye Lingling's hand.

"Anyway, we don't need to play matches for the time being; the semi-finals are still far off. Even if I poison them lame, lying there for ten days or half a month, it won't have any impact."

"Even if they can't crawl up for the finals, it won't have any impact."

"This team is missing a leader and a control-system Spirit Master; it has no impact on our overall combat power!"

"Yan Zi, he is my uncle," Yu Tianheng said.

"So?" Dugu Yan glanced at Yu Tianheng indifferently.

"Are you wanting our team to be missing another power-attack system?"

"……"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 162 =====