"Long Yue and the others are challenging us? They really are good friends, aren't they?" Xie Xie said with a hint of mockery in his voice.

The Smiling Douluo said, "The sect master is still in seclusion, so he won't be able to participate. After all, our priority is the Trial of Five Gods. If you want to accept their challenge, then wait until after the Trial of Five Gods."

Xie Xie turned to Yuanen Yehui and Ye Xinglan. In Tang Wulin's absence, the two women were the ones who called the shots.

"There's no need for that, Your Majesty; we'll take them on without Wulin," Yuanen Yehui said.

The Smiling Douluo raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "You'll fight them six-on-seven?"

Yuanen Yehui replied in a calm manner, "We're all members of Shrek’s Seven Monsters, so the six of us will be enough."

"That's right, the six of us will be more than enough!" Xie Xie chuckled, "It's been a long time since we encountered any powerful opponents. Back when we last fought, Long Yue swatted me away like a fly, but we're no longer the same as we once were, and it's time to take revenge! Boss and Gu Yue had to carry us last time; we have to prove to them now that we no longer need to be carried!"

The Smiling Douluo turned to all of the other members of Shrek's Six Monsters, only to find that all of them wore the same relaxed and confident expressions.

"Among the Monster Eight Kings, Long Yue is already a Titled Douluo, and the Tiger King, Fox King, and Wind King are all Soul Douluos. Hua Lantang and Ye Zhi are also close to the Soul Douluo level, and only Teng Teng is lagging slightly behind them, but he's still a Soul Sage as well. They're all disciples of the Tang Sect as well, so I'm aware of their situation. Among the younger generation, they stand at the pinnacle of the Star Luo Empire, so don't get complacent. If you lose this sparring match, I'm concerned that it'll affect the sect master's mental state going into the Trial of Five Gods."

"Rest assured, Your Majesty; we know what we're doing." Ye Xinglan rose to her feet, and in the instant that she did so, a burst of enormous sword intent erupted from her body, and her eyes became as bright as stars. Even the Smiling Douluo involuntarily narrowed his eyes slightly in response. Was this... sword soul?

Due to how exceptional Tang Wulin was, they were constantly being overshadowed, but were they really as mediocre as their captain made them appear? Of course not. They were also part of Shrek’s Seven Monsters, and they were truly the elite of the elite.

If the Eight Monster Kings stood at the pinnacle of the Star Luo Empire's younger generation, then the six of them were standing at the pinnacle of the entire Douluo Star's younger generation.

Soul power ranks alone were no longer clear indications of anything, and Shrek's Seven Monsters had never stopped advancing.

"Alright, I'm really looking forward to seeing your match," the Smiling Douluo said as a wide smile appeared on his face. He really was anticipating this matchup now as all of the people participating in the match, with the exception of Dai Yueyan, were members of the Tang Sect. No matter who won and who lost, they were all going to be bright talents who would support the Tang Sect in the future, and just the thought of this struck him with a sense of excitement.

This really was a generation that was rife with brilliant young talents!

"What? Six-on-seven? Tang Wulin is in seclusion?" Even the calm and steadfast Hua Lantang couldn't help but flare up with rage upon hearing this.

They were being looked down on! They had once defeated Shrek's Seven Monsters, yet Tang Wulin had chosen to sit out this rematch! This was a blatant insult!

"Yes, the sect master is in seclusion to prepare for the Trial of Five Gods, so if they wish for a rematch, then only six of Shrek's Seven Monsters will be available."

"My apologies, Hall Master, but I can't make a decision on this. However, I'm sure that all of my teammates will view this as an insult," Hua Lantang said in a heavy voice.

Hu Jie heaved a resigned sigh. "We have to prioritize the Trial of Five Gods, so we can't just ask the sect master to come out of seclusion. Perhaps you can wait until after the Trial of Five Gods, but I have to caution you; you may no longer have the courage to challenge them after the trial."

Hua Lantang faltered slightly upon hearing this. "Is there that much of a disparity between us?"

Hu Jie replied, "I don't know about anyone else, but the sect master's powers are truly well beyond his years."

Hua Lantang was quite stunned to hear this. "Are you saying that the sect master was able to defeat you during your sparring match?"

Hu Jie shook his head in response. "That's not the case. After all, our sect master is only in his early twenties. However, even if I want to defeat him, I'll have to pay a heavy price. It seems to everyone that the sect master will be thoroughly embarrassed during the Trial of Five Gods, but I think that he'll at least be able to win one or two matches."

Hua Lantang was stunned into silence for a long while before replying, "Alright, I'll go discuss this with everyone else."

Hu Jie continued, "Don't misrepresent the situation to them; the sect master really can't participate in this match, so Shrek’s Seven Monsters isn't doing this just to insult you. This is a sparring match anyway, so if you win, you can just have another seven-on-seven match following the Trial of Five Gods. Frequent sparring matches will be immensely beneficial for young people like you."

Hua Lantang departed in a gloomy mood, and the Smiling Douluo wasn't sure if this sparring match would go ahead or not. However, regardless of what happened, things were going to be very lively in the Tang Sect during this period of time. His only concern was whether the Tang Sect would be able to handle the pressure over at the federation. The Amorous Douluo most definitely had his plate full.

Unsurprisingly, when Hua Lantang relayed the response from Shrek's Six Monsters to his teammates, everyone was extremely displeased.

Shrek's Six Monsters were being far too conceited! They had indeed secured the final victory during the tournament, but they had only just barely scraped through to the championship title from a downright miraculous eruption from Tang Wulin and Gu Yue, and the complacency of Monster Academy had also played a role in their victory.

On average, the kings of Monster Academy were five years older than Shrek’s Seven Monsters, so they had naturally had a lot more time to cultivate. In terms of cultivation rank, there was no way that Shrek’s Seven Monsters could compare with them.

However, they were proposing a six-on-seven match, and the one to sit out on their side was Tang Wulin, who was the most powerful one among them; this was an extremely inflammatory insult!

"Accept their offer," Long Yue decided.

"Boss, how can we do that? They're missing a person; there's no glory to be had even if we win!"

Dai Yueyan suggested, "How about this? You sit out this match as well, Boss, and we'll take them on -six-on-six. Tang Wulin clearly has a good reason and isn't just sitting out this match to insult us, but we can't take advantage of this."

Long Yue nodded in agreement to this proposal. This was only a sparring match, but they still had to compete with honor. Long Yue was the captain of this team, so he was a direct counterpart to Tang Wulin. As such, if he sat out the match as well, then everything would be fair.

Thus, it was decided that this sparring match was going to be held the next morning.

In contrast with the sparring match between Tang Wulin and Hu Jie, which could only be spectated by Titled Douluos, this match was open to everyone in the Tang Sect headquarters.

Such a legendary rematch would undoubtedly attract everyone's attention, and also encourage young people to improve.