Douluo Dalu 3: Legend of the White Fox

Seeing how comfortable Xia Yi was living his life, Yali couldn't help but think of the heavy atmosphere hanging over Sea God's Pavilion.

Watching Xia Yi's almost smirking face, she recalled Yun Ming's dejected and dispirited state.

This made her grit her teeth in frustration.

If conditions allowed, she would definitely pin Xia Yi down!

And ruthlessly!Ruthlessly!Grind him against the ground.

Just to vent her resentment.

Actually, Xia Yi was a little worried.

Yali indeed wouldn't vent her anger on him, but resentment? That was another story.

Fortunately, Yali wasn't in the mood to argue with Xia Yi at the moment. She just gazed at him sorrowfully, like a grieving wife, and sighed, "So much has happened. While it's true that many of these issues are Shrek Academy's responsibility and not necessarily your fault, most of them were triggered because of you. Do you feel no guilt at all?"

"The millennium-long honor of Shrek Academy is in ruins, and yet you're still here, eating, drinking, and enjoying yourself. Does your conscience not ache?"

Her expression, eyes, and voice were full of grief, as if Xia Yi had abandoned her.

Xia Yi was dumbfounded.

"What?"

"???"

What kind of twisted logic was this?

If it wasn't his fault, why should he feel guilty?

Xia Yi curled his lips and said casually, "Two things: first, stop looking at me like that—I'm afraid of getting beaten up by Skycover Douluo. Second, my logic isn't as twisted as yours. If you try to reason with me using your logic, I might start swearing at you."

He was utterly speechless.

All this roundabout talk, why not just say, 'Let's ignore the facts' and be done with it?

Yali sighed softly, sat down across from Xia Yi and Gu Yue, and stared at Xia Yi as she spoke softly, "Seeing you like this, I'm very disappointed."

"Stop right there. I already know what you're going to say." Xia Yi shook his head and said flatly, "Just leave. If you keep talking, I can't guarantee I won't start cursing you out."

"You know what I'm going to say?" Yali was taken aback. "Then tell me, what am I going to say?"

"What else could it be? You naively think I may be mischievous but not inherently bad," Xia Yi sneered and continued, "And now, because Shrek Academy is facing disaster, yet I show no sympathy, you think I've changed for the worse. You feel disappointed in me, don't you?"

"You… How do you know that?" Yali looked at Xia Yi in shock.

Even the powerful figures in Sea God's Pavilion didn't know what she was thinking, yet Xia Yi saw right through her?

"How do I know? You might as well have written it all over your face," Xia Yi rolled his eyes and said, "I even know what you're going to say next, so don't bother. Otherwise, I really will curse at you."

"Curse me?" Yali was stunned again. She lowered her head and said, "Perhaps Shrek Academy mishandled some things regarding your situation, but personally, I have always acted with a clear conscience towards you and Senior Sister Yaozhu. Even if I deceived you, I never meant either of you any harm."

Then, Yali suddenly looked up, her voice no longer soft but firm and powerful. She locked eyes with Xia Yi and said, "Tell me, when have I ever intended to harm you? If you can prove me wrong, I'll let you curse at me all you want."

"I'll give you that much. Even when you used me to threaten my teacher, your intention was still good. Even if there was some selfishness in it, you never wanted to harm me or my teacher," Xia Yi nodded and added, "That's exactly why my teacher said yesterday that she wouldn't truly hold a grudge over it."

"So, you're angry because Shrek Academy protected the real culprits?" Yali asked softly.

On this matter, she was powerless.

Though she was the nominal master of Sea God's Pavilion, the real decision-makers were still others.

Even if Yun Ming was silent, the authority was not truly in her hands.

Even if she had the power, she was too kind-hearted to enforce such a punishment.

"You think I have nothing better to do than hold a grudge against you?" Xia Yi scoffed. "I'm not angry at all."

"Not angry?" Yali clearly didn't believe him. "If you're not angry, then why do you completely ignore Shrek Academy's predicament?"

"Heh." Xia Yi chuckled. "I'm too lazy to argue with you. Just tell me—did you come to see me and my teacher to demand an explanation? Do you think that while Shrek Academy was wrong first, my teacher's retaliation was too excessive?"

Yali was stunned again.

Xia Yi actually knew exactly what she wanted to say?

Since he had laid it all out, there was no need to beat around the bush anymore.

Her gaze instantly turned cold as she said, "Isn't it? I admit that Shrek Academy's previous actions may have been improper, but you weren't actually harmed. Yet your teacher still pushed Shrek into the abyss. Don't you think she was too cruel?"

Yali's voice grew more agitated, her eyes colder. "Yes, Shrek Academy was wrong, but it was the fault of a few individuals. Fine, as the leader of Sea God's Pavilion, I also bear responsibility. If your teacher wants revenge, she should have come at me alone. No matter what she did to me, I wouldn't have complained, but why did she choose this path? Do you have any idea how much damage this has done to Shrek Academy?"

By the end, Yali's eyes were bloodshot, and her fists clenched so tightly that her pale hands turned even whiter.

Among the three giants of Sea God's Pavilion:

Yun Ming was despondent—not because he couldn't accept the current situation, but because he couldn't even understand what he did wrong.

Long Yeyue was full of fury and hatred, blaming Leng Yaozhu for dragging Shrek into the abyss.

In her heart, Leng Yaozhu was more detestable than Qiangu Dongfeng and the Holy Spirit Cult's leaders combined.

Yali, however, felt guilt.

She believed that if she hadn't used Xia Yi to threaten Leng Yaozhu, perhaps things wouldn't have turned out this way.

She hadn't truly hated Xia Yi or Leng Yaozhu—after all, she had been in the wrong first.

But seeing Xia Yi completely devoid of guilt, she suddenly felt hatred.

She hated Xia Yi's cold-heartedness.

And she hated herself for misjudging him.

How could she have once thought that Xia Yi wasn't a bad person?

"Stop playing the victim in front of me," Xia Yi sneered. "You were just being an idiot. Whose fault is that? Sea God's Pavilion? More like a bunch of self-righteous fools. You had so many chances to avoid this disaster, yet you missed every single one. Now you have the nerve to complain? If I were you, I'd just find a tofu block and bash my head in."

As soon as Xia Yi said this, both Yali and Gu Yue were stunned.

Gu Yue could even feel waves of anger gathering above the work-study dormitory.

That was the spiritual pressure of the Sea God's Pavilion powerhouses.

Everything had started because of Xia Yi.

How could the elders of Sea God's Pavilion not pay attention to Yali's meeting with him?

Hearing him insult them so directly, how could they not be furious?

If Yali weren't present, they probably would have stormed in already.

"That felt good!" Xia Yi exhaled in satisfaction.

He had warned Yali that he might start cursing if she kept talking.

After holding back for so long, he finally let it all out.

Now, he felt as comfortable as ever.

"I already warned you that I'd curse, yet you still asked for it. Tell me, aren't you just being stupid?" Xia Yi said indifferently, completely ignoring the stunned expressions of Ya Li and Gu Yue.

"You better convince me." Looking at Xia Yi's smug expression, Ya Li spoke calmly.

Her gaze was neutral, her expression gentle, and there was even a faint smile on her lips.

However, her delicate fists were clenched so tightly that they made a creaking sound, exuding a clear sense of threat.

"Stop trying to intimidate me." Xia Yi rolled his eyes and said, "The wedding preparations lasted for five days. For a full five days, my teacher was in seclusion. That means she never contacted you and never made any public statements. Anyone with half a brain would have noticed that something was off. Only you bunch of idiots would blindly rush over for the wedding."

"If it weren't for Qian Gu Dong Feng playing along with us before, we would have noticed something was wrong," Ya Li argued, her face turning red, and she slowly loosened her clenched fists.

It was only after Xia Yi pointed it out that she suddenly realized—perhaps she really had been a little foolish.

She had failed to notice something so crucial.

(End of Chapter)