Soul Land 3: Legend Of The Dragon King

Tang Wulin's expression stiffened slightly upon hearing this. "Are you saying that all five major families played a role in plotting against Shrek Academy?"

Mo Lan shook her head in response. "No, I'm not going as far as to say that. I don't know exactly which sides contributed to the Shrek Academy bombing, but it's undoubtedly the case that the powerful Shrek Academy had been a restrictive force on all powers, including sects, families, and other organizations. It was only as a result of their influence that the continent was peaceful for so many years. Do you think the Eagle Faction has only recently been proposing war against the Star Luo Empire? Countless people have been supporting a war even prior to the founding of the federation, and it was only through the constant intervention and mediation from Shrek Academy that a war didn't eventuate.

"However, war is virtually unavoidable now, and it's something that we can't stop no matter how hard we try, and that's exactly because we've lost the almighty pillar that was Shrek Academy. Do you think anyone would wish to see a new Shrek Academy emerge under these circumstances? It's impossible. If you revive Shrek Academy, you'll be facing all five major families, the Spirit Pagoda, and the Holy Spirit Cult, any one of which is enough to crush you into nothingness. It's just too difficult.

"I understand what you're thinking and feeling. As the current leader of Shrek’s Seven Monsters, it's your duty and responsibility to revive Shrek Academy, but can you at least promise me that you won't do anything reckless before you accumulate a vast amount of power? I've lost too many loved ones and people who are close to me; I don't want you to follow in their footsteps!"

Tears began to well up in Mo Lan's eyes again as she spoke.

Tang Wulin had always known that reviving Shrek Academy would be an extremely difficult task, but he didn't think that it would be this difficult.

It was just as Mo Lan had said; if he wanted to rebuild Shrek Academy, then he'd be facing opposition from all of the major powers on the entire Douluo Continent. None of those powers wanted to see Shrek Academy make a resurgence, and that was the main issue that he had to face.

However, was he supposed to give up just because it was difficult? As the leader of Shrek’s Seven Monsters, he had to do this no matter what. However, Mo Lan's words had at least given him a much-needed reality check, warning him against doing anything reckless before he had made ample preparations.

Even if the federation were to wage war against the Dou Spirit Empire and the Star Luo Empire, it would not be a suitable opportunity for him to reveal the fact that he was reviving Shrek Academy; he still had to do things in the shadows.

"Don't worry, Sister, I won't do anything rash until I have absolute confidence in my own abilities, and I'll be sure to grow and develop at an even faster rate." Tang Wulin held onto Mo Lan's hands, and his heart throbbed with pain at the sight of her teary eyes.

Mo Lan had once had a happy family, yet she was now all alone.

He had to restructure his thought process, and it was also imperative for him to accumulate power in the shadows. Only after receiving sufficient support would he be able to create a stable foothold for Shrek Academy following its revival.

Tang Wulin then inquired Mo Lan about the current political situation on the continent, particularly about the military's current plans to instigate wars.

Mo Lan had quite an extensive understanding of the military's current plans, and she knew that troops were being mobilized toward the Northsea Legion base and the Eastsea Legion base.

It was undoubtedly the case that the Douluo Federation was the most advanced among the three continents when it came to soul weapon development, and as soul technology had progressively improved over the years, modern wars were no longer affairs that could be decided based on who had the most number of troops. At the same time, the federation was also prioritizing the construction of giant battleships. Soul fighter aircrafts could already be used in long-range battle, but an extremely long supply line had to be ensured in order to facilitate the invasion of another continent.

As such, these giant battleships were being constructed to transport fighter aircrafts, as well as to ferry supplies over to alternate continents, and they were going to be extremely important weapons in the upcoming wars to be waged against the Dou Spirit Empire and the Star Luo Empire. Everything was progressing at a rapid rate, and according to Mo Lan's estimations, all of the preparations would be completed in about a year, following which war would inevitably break out.

"Even if the federation is going to start a war, aren't they going to address their internal affairs first? What if the Holy Spirit Cult wreaks havoc within the federation once the war commences?"

A wry smile appeared on Mo Lan's face. "This is one of our main arguments against the Eagle Faction's war proposal. However, the Holy Spirit Cult is far too cunning and secretive, and we have no way of attacking them without receiving any concrete leads. The Eagle Faction's opinion is that we can't allow the Holy Spirit Cult to throw off the plans of the entire federations. The Eagle Faction currently supports research into spatial exploration, and they've also expressed strong support toward research and development into spaceships and aircrafts. 

"However, at the same time, they state that if we want to engage in spatial exploration and find alternate planets that are suitable for human habitation, that endeavor would require a vast amount of resources. At present, the entire continent is extremely short on resources, and there are no superfluous resources available to be used for research and development beyond the resources required to satisfy the basic operation of the federation. In contrast, the Star Luo Continent and Dou Spirit Continent are very rich in resources, so war is mandatory for the development of the entire human race as there's no way that the other two empires would be willing to hand over their resources to us. As such, they proclaim that only by uniting the Douluo Star can they better develop soul technology, thereby forging a stable foundation for us to venture into outer space."

Tang Wulin was rendered speechless upon hearing this. He had to admit that the Eagle Faction presented quite a compelling case. However, if a war were to break out, then the first victims would be the general public! The Star Luo Empire and Dou Spirit Empire were also filled with humans, just like the Douluo Continent; regardless of the outcome of the war, humanity would be the biggest loser.

Mo Lan continued with a wry smile, "The Eagle Faction had received some support from the neutral faction, as well as majority support from the general public. After all, this war will take place on foreign land, so it won't impact our people too much; this is the main reason behind their willingness to support the Eagle Faction."

Tang Wulin's brows furrowed tightly upon hearing this. "What a short-sighted way of thinking! The Holy Spirit Cult was able to destroy Shrek City, so they're clearly capable of laying waste to any city. Instead of addressing such a major internal threat, they're considering invading other continents; this is downright absurd!"

Mo Lan sighed, "The prospect of reaping profits has blinded everyone! Nothing anyone says can change everyone's mind now; this war is essentially inevitable. The Eagle Faction has stated that the Battle God Hall and Spirit Pagoda will work together to guard the federation against the Holy Spirit Cult. Furthermore, they've expressed a high level of confidence in their own abilities, and they're willing to take full responsibility if further terrorist attacks from the Holy Spirit Cult were to arise, so we're unable to raise any counter-arguments."

Tang Wulin asked, "Does the Dove Faction have any effective plans to target the Eagle Faction?"

Mo Lan shook her head in response. "We don't have anything decisive at the moment; we can only protect the power that we currently hold. This is why I had no choice but to back down in the face of the Shen Family. Wulin, you have to realize that the power of a single person is far too insignificant. Even if you can become the most powerful being in this world someday, you'll still only be one man, so please don't do anything reckless."

Tang Wulin nodded in a serious manner. "I understand. Don't worry, I won't do anything rash; I know my limits. Also, I understand how I need to face all of this. I'll be taking my leave now, Big Sister; keep in touch."

Mo Lan escorted him out of the building, then looked on as he hailed a taxi and departed. As she did so, she heaved a faint internal sigh. Despite how young Tang Wulin was, he had far too heavy a load on his shoulders, and even she couldn't help him much.

After returning to his hotel room, Tang Wulin immediately began to meditate and reorganize his thoughts. Some of his past plans would have to be modified and improved.

He was definitely going to revive Shrek Academy, but his original plan had now been revealed to be unrealistic.

It was far too naive to think that he could simply announce to the world that he was reviving Shrek Academy and expect all of the Shrek Academy supporters to flock to his banner.