Chapter 435 - Ambitions

After a moment of silence, Ye Xinglan opened her mouth. “I want to stay at Shrek. I want to stay there forever and never leave. I may have been demoted to the outer court, but I’m certain I will return to the inner court one day. Once that happens, I’ll work hard to become a battle armor master and one of the Academy’s guardians.” 

Tang Wulin looked at her in astonishment. “Really? You don’t want to go out and explore the world?”

“I can still do that. Shrek Academy is just a place. However, from the moment my martial soul awakened as the Stargod Sword, elders of my clan told me that I’m the clan’s hope and future. They told me to grow strong and revitalize the clan. I’m not interested in any of that. I like the sword, but I dislike clan politics. I only realized what I really wanted when I went to Shrek. I like everything about Shrek; the peace, the tranquility, the overall atmosphere. As long as I remain a part of Shrek, my clan can’t force me to do anything. I want to stay there forever.” 

Xie Xie couldn’t help but say, “So you basically want to live the life of a quiet young lady?” 

Ye Xinglan groaned. “You understand.” 

Tang Wulin smiled and turned to Xu Xiaoyan. “What about you, Xiaoyan? What do you want to do?” 

“Eh? Me? I don’t really know! I just want to find a nice guy to marry when I grow up. Then I’ll become a housewife. I get what Xinglan’s thinking. I don’t want to be involved with my clan’s politics either. I just want to keep living as an idle princess. It would have been great if my martial soul weren’t the starlight variant.”

“No ambition, huh!” Xie Xie snorted. “I’m aiming way higher than you are. I want to become one of this generation’s Shrek Seven Monsters. A new generation is only selected to replace the old one every fifty years, and I heard that the next generation of the Shrek Seven Monsters will be chosen in four! Any student of Shrek Academy twenty-five or younger can compete for a spot. I’ll definitely make it in.” 

“The Shrek Seven Monsters?” Tang Wulin said in awe. A reverent atmosphere filled the car at the mere mention of the title. 

“I want to become one too.” Ye Xinglan eyes shone. 

There was a lot of weight to the name of the Shrek Seven Monsters. Each generation served as a cornerstone of Shrek Academy, and perhaps even for the entire soul master world. 

Tang San, the legendary founder of the Tang Sect, had led the first generation of the Shrek Seven Monsters. That generation revolutionized the power structure of the entire continent. The next, most well-known generation was that of the Spirit Ice Douluo, Huo Yuhao. They had shocked the entire continent with their feats of valor, and then the Spirit Ice Douluo founded the Spirit Pagoda. 

The title of Shrek Seven Monster was one of the greatest honors on the Douluo Continent. Only students of Shrek Academy were eligible to take up the mantle, and even then, the opportunity depended on luck. The selection for each generation only came once every few decades! If one were born too early or too late, they would forever miss their chance. 

Fortunately, Tang Wulin and his friends came at the right time. They could take a shot at becoming one of the Shrek Seven Monsters. The only downside was that they would only be eighteen when selection time arrived. At that time, they would be facing geniuses with an advantage of up to seven years. 

“I have lofty goals!” Xie Xie proudly stated.

“What use are goals if you can’t accomplish them?” Xu Xiaoyan jabbed at him. 

Xie Xie fumed. “Who are you to say I can’t? I’ll stake everything on it! This is my life’s goal.” 

“Where did you hear about all this?” Tang Wulin asked.

“From Yuanen!” Xie Xie answered subconsciously. 

“Hm…” Everyone apart from him hummed thoughtfully. 

“You guys!” Xie Xie glared at them in embarrassment. As he did, the car drifted to the side. It nearly hit the railing, but he managed turn his attention back to the road and frantically swerve away.The sharp turn caught the others unaware. Gu Yue, in particular, was thrown toward Tang Wulin. She fell upon him, hitting his nose, and his eyes teared up from the pain. 

“Watch the road!” Tang Wulin shouted. “You’re responsible for six lives here!”

Gu Yue rushed to rub Tang Wulin’s nose in apology. 

Xie Xie grumbled, “Who told you guys to make such a strange noise?”

Once the situation grew calm once more, Xu Xiaoyan shifted forward in her seat. “So, are you putting in all that effort to become one of the Shrek Seven Monsters and catch up to Yuanen Yehui?” 

“Yeah. She’s so strong. Doesn’t she make a good goal to strive for?” Xie Xie quibbled. 

Tang Wulin smiled warmly at the verbal sparring before turning to Xu Lizhi. “Hey, Lizhi, what about you?” 

Xu Lizhi snapped out of his feigned sleep. “I want to stay at Shrek too. I’m really lazy and Shrek suits me, but making it into the Shrek Seven Monsters is a pipe dream for me. As long as I can stay there, I’ll be content.” 

“Why is that a pipe dream?” Tang Wulin asked. “There was a food-type soul master in the first generation of the Shrek Seven Monsters, and he even ascended to godhood in the end! If he could, why not you?”

Xu Lizhi sat up straight in his chair and turned to look at Tang Wulin with excitement in his eyes. “Wulin, do you really think I can do it? You’re talking about Big Sausage Uncle Oscar, right?”

Tang Wulin nodded. “I read that he worked as hard as he could and managed to develop combat strength. Then he cultivated his sausage to the pinnacle and even gained a godly resurrection soul skill. Let’s do our best together. Lizhi. I’m certain we can do it as a team!” 

“Alright! Want a bun?” Xu Lizhi showed his gratitude in a simple way.

Tang Wulin accepted the bun and quickly devoured it in a couple of bites. After he finished, he glanced at Gu Yue. “How about you? What do you want to do?”

“Marry you.” 

The entire car descended into silence. Gu Yue hadn’t been the one to speak. Xie Xie had imitated Gu Yue’s voice. 

“Hey, Xie Xie, I didn’t know you were looking to die today.” Gu Yue’s words carried a cold edge to them. 

Xie Xie quickly put on a fearful smile. “Sister-in-law, I made a mistake! I talked about what’s in your heart. Don’t forget that I’m driving right now! Remember what Wulin said? There are six lives in this car! Don’t kill me!” 

Tang Wulin was red with embarrassment. “Just shut up!” 

Scared for his life, Xie Xie didn’t dare utter another word. 

“So, what are your ambitions?” Tang Wulin asked, turning to Gu Yue. He wanted to quickly change the topic. 

After a moment of silence, Gu Yue spoke up. “I don’t want to lie to you guys, so I won’t tell you.”

Everyone was astonished by her answer. They heard the gloom in her voice. 

“Okay,” Tang Wulin said. “That’s fine. Everyone has their secrets. You don’t have to tell us”

Gu Yue looked at him. “It’s your turn now.” 

“I want to join the military,” Tang Wulin answered without hesitation.

The others could hardly believe their ears. They had assumed his goal was to become one of the Shrek Seven Monsters, so this answer caught them completely by surprise.

“Why do you want to join the military?” Gu Yue asked.

 “That’s a secret.” Tang Wulin smiled wryly. In truth, he wanted to join the military to gain the strength necessary to find his parents and take them back. However, he didn’t want to burden his friends with his own problems. 

Without missing a beat, Xu Xiaoyan smiled sweetly. “Good luck, everyone! I hope all of our dreams come true!”

Tang Wulin looked out the window, a huge grin on his face. I really do hope my dreams come true. I wouldn’t even care if my days passed idly by as long as mom and dad come back. And Na’er too. It’s already been so long. 

Beside him, Gu Yue stared into empty space, deep in contemplation. 

Traffic was good and they sped along the highway. Riding the train would have taken only two hours, but it took them three and a half hours by car The only silver lining was that there weren’t any incidents along the way. 

“We’ve arrived at Heaven Spirit City. How are we going to find an opponent?” Xie Xie glanced at Tang Wulin. It was already dusk, the last glimpses of sunlight fading in the distance.

“Let’s find somewhere to stay first,” Tang Wulin replied. “It’s been a long day and everyone’s tired. We can figure things out in the morning once we’ve rested.”