Chapter 128: with translation of chapter title

Tang Wulin was still young and didn't understand tactical arrangements like Bei Bei and Wang Yan did, so he had remained silent.

But now he can no longer remain silent.

"Teacher, this approach violates the tournament rules; the competition should be fair and just, and I think this is not good."

Tang Wulin was all too aware of how terrifying Huo Yutong's Mental Detection Sharing was.

When Tang Wulin and the others were undergoing the freshman assessment, Huo Yutong only had Soul Shock and Mental Detection, yet the ability she displayed still surpassed that of the three-ringed Ning Tian.

One could say that with her using Mental Detection from below the stage, Shrek on stage was effectively equivalent to having two people, which is undoubtedly extremely unfair.

Tang Wulin's sudden opposition left Wang Yan momentarily speechless, and Bei Bei frowned and said, "Wulin, the situation isn't as serious as you say; we're just letting Huo Yutong use her strength to better assist the team."

He spoke sincerely, but Tang Wulin wasn't buying it.

"Huo Yutong assisting the team in a team battle is fine, but this is an individual elimination tournament; the point is to showcase individual ability. We can equip our teammates with soul tools, but I don't think letting Huo Yutong help from below the stage complies with the rules."

Xu San Shi waved his hand, speaking nonchalantly: "So Wulin, you're too rigid; this world is one where the strong reign supreme, rules are made for the weak, and since we have the ability to ignore the rules, we can naturally treat them as nothing."

Tang Wulin shook his head.

"No, rules are the minimum of morality, and morality is the highest rule. I don't want to cheat, and it has nothing to do with whether I'm capable of breaking the rules; it's just that I can't get past my own moral barrier."

Wang Yan probed and asked:

"Wulin, really, can't we compromise?"

"No."

Tang Wulin shook his head firmly.

This is his bottom line regarding the competition; under no circumstances can he cheat.

However, the possibility of letting Huo Yutong help from below the stage was too tempting for Bei Bei and the others, and they were unwilling to give it up, resulting in a stalemate between the two sides.

Wang Yan, caught in the middle, was torn; as a teacher he should have the authority to make a direct decision, but on one hand he wanted to uphold the Academy's honor, and on the other he didn't want to hurt Tang Wulin's feelings, so he couldn't make a decision right away.

Just then, the person who could truly make the decision spoke up.

"I say, have you all forgotten me?"

Everyone in the room instinctively looked toward the speaker.

Tang Wulin widened his eyes in surprise.

"Huo Yutong, what's this?"

Although not in a battle state, Huo Yutong activated her Ice Sky Snow Girl martial soul, and the Shrek Academy uniform turned pure white under her power; at this moment her expression was extremely stern.

She said coldly:

"Don't forget, I'm the only one who truly possesses the Mental Detection Sharing soul skill, so the final decision on whether to follow the teacher's instructions rests in my hands."

Bei Bei silently cursed, "Oh no."

He knew too well how important Tang Wulin was to Huo Yutong's heart, so he instantly understood what Huo Yutong was about to say.

He quickly urged, "Huo Yutong, this is all for upholding the Academy's honor; it's not just a matter of us few, but the Academy's ten-thousand-year legacy—don't act on impulse."

Huo Yutong turned her icy gaze toward him.

"Senior Brother, I address you as such, and I hope you won't disappoint me too much; if the Academy's honor must be maintained through cheating, then I think that honor is better off thrown in the trash."

"Huo Yutong, you..."

Bei Bei hadn't expected Huo Yutong to say something so harsh, and he was momentarily stunned.

Huo Yutong took Tang Wulin's hand, glanced around at everyone, and said lightly, "In short, I agree with Wulin; I won't help you cheat, and whatever you do from now on is up to you to decide."

Having said that, she pulled Tang Wulin's hand and walked out of the meeting room.

"Huo Yutong, wait!"

Wang Yan hurriedly tried to call her back.

Regardless of whether what she said was right or wrong, her attitude would obviously harm the team's harmony, so this matter couldn't just end like that.

Huo Yutong stopped, and said coldly, "You all know that when I use the Ice Snow Girl martial soul my personality becomes rather off, so if you want to hear an apology, wait until I dismiss the martial soul before speaking; at least right now I'm not in the mood." She then didn't linger, taking Tang Wulin out of the meeting room, leaving only the silent crowd and Wang Yan with a wry smile.

Everyone indeed knows that when Huo Yutong uses the Ice Snow Girl martial soul her personality turns cold and domineering, but previously she rarely activated her second martial soul while chatting, so no one had noticed anything off.

But this time she obviously activated the ice-snow form on purpose to retort, leaving them momentarily unsure what to say.

However, while Wang Yan felt speechless, he also secretly breathed a sigh of relief deep down.

Regardless of whether what she said came from her heart, it at least gave everyone some room for mediation, preventing a total fallout.

This was more important to Wang Yan than anything else.

Outside the meeting room, Huo Yutong quickly pulled Tang Wulin to her room.

As soon as the room door closed, Huo Yutong released her second martial soul and let out a great sigh of relief.

"Phew, Wulin, did I just say something too harsh?"

The stark contrast left Tang Wulin stunned; looking at the worried little girl before him, he could hardly imagine that just moments ago she had been the cold, aloof girl who had bluntly refused Wang Yan in the meeting room.

He asked, "Why did you speak in the Ice Snow Girl form just now?"

"Because without that form I don't dare to refuse." Huo Yutong sighed dejectedly, "Teacher Wang Yan and Senior Brother Bei Bei treat me well, but without becoming that person just now I lack the courage to say no to them, Wulin—am I a coward?"

"No, how could that be? I should be thanking you—I haven't even had the chance yet!"

Tang Wulin hurriedly said excitedly.

Just now he had actually prepared to fight alone, but he hadn't expected Huo Yutong to be willing to help him.

Huo Yutong instantly burst into a bright smile.

"Then that's good; being able to help you satisfies me."

Looking at that smile, Tang Wulin couldn't help but stare.

He suddenly felt ashamed and embarrassed.

As someone he likes, Huo Yutong is not only powerful in strength but also gentle in personality, understanding, good at cooking, and wholeheartedly considerate of him—she's a girl with hardly any flaws.

In his eyes, Huo Yutong is simply too perfect; her perfection makes him feel somewhat unworthy of her.

This can't go on; his self-respect won't allow it to continue like this.

Tang Wulin took a deep breath.

"Yutong, I've decided—I'm going into seclusion."

Huo Yutong froze for a moment, then quickly reacted.

"You mean……you definitely have to do it now?"

Tang Wulin nodded.

"Well, if I'm not mistaken, breaking through this seal will definitely give me a great boost. We've fallen to the point of needing to cheat only because we're too weak, but if I become stronger, everything will change. Please go tell the teachers."

The medicinal herbs and such were already prepared; he intends to break the fourth seal of the Golden Dragon King to quickly enhance his own strength.

Actually, when he broke through the third seal he didn't feel any pain, indicating his strength was already sufficient to absorb the fourth seal.

Considering he later absorbed the left leg bone of the Wind Dragon King, logically speaking, he shouldn't feel any pressure absorbing the fourth seal now.

He wants to become stronger, to uphold his conviction with strength, to lead the team to victory without cheating, to prove he is right, and——

To get closer to Huo Yutong.

As an aside, feeling depressed, I went to the forums to relax, only to see a post by the moderator of Haomeng Bar; in the original work, Jing Hong Chen couldn't care less about the team members who died in a match—well, one can't say he doesn't care at all, but their deaths clearly weigh less than "the Xiao Hongchen siblings knowing they tried," and suddenly I felt that Yan Shaozhe, in his presence, doesn't even count for anything, making my mood even more gloom……

All I can say is that the forces of Douluo Dalu II are just terrible, and even the hypocritical, double-standard Shrek Academy is relatively better by comparison.

By the way, I'll also mention my view on love: I think a qualified relationship should involve both parties considering each other and bringing mutual progress—perhaps naive, perhaps just the fantasy of a lifelong single who's been single for twenty years—but if I could write such a couple into a novel, I would do my best.

(End of chapter)