While Tang San was still laying the groundwork for his plan, Han Li also took action on his side.
Of course, he didn't intervene directly. Instead, he initiated a mental link, connecting with Zhu Zhuqing, who was resting nearby.
Zhu Zhuqing, still in a meditative state, felt a sudden jolt in her mind. She was about to stop her cultivation and investigate when she heard a familiar voice in her head.
"It's Han Li. Don't move. Pretend to continue meditating. I want to show you something."
Zhu Zhuqing was momentarily stunned but quietly resumed circulating her soul power. Then, she saw a scene materialize directly in her mind.
It was the training ground she knew so well, but strangely, she could only see a small part of it. This portion showed Tang San and the other three, while the rest of the area was obscured as if covered by a black veil.
"You don't need to speak out loud. If you want to say something, just think about it."
Seeing no response, Han Li added another sentence, almost forgetting that she was still a novice at using mental power.
"Where are you? Nearby? What kind of soul skill is this? What do you want me to see?"
In an instant, Zhu Zhuqing fired off four questions, her tone carrying a hint of caution.
"Does it matter? Even if I told you, you couldn't find me. And if I remember correctly, we're still considered enemies, aren't we? Why should I tell you?"
Han Li's teasing voice echoed in Zhu Zhuqing's mind, confirming to her that it was indeed him, with his personality as unpleasant as ever.
"Fine, I won't ask then."
A few seconds later, Zhu Zhuqing responded mentally, with a hint of gritted teeth.
Han Li's lips curled into a slight smile. Yes, the reaction was just right. After their last interaction, he had noticed that her inner thoughts were not as cold as her outward appearance suggested.
"That's better. Let's focus on what's happening over there."
Han Li's words still carried a hint of amusement, proving that his earlier behavior was intentional.
As Han Li's voice faded, sound finally accompanied the previously silent images.
"That's about it. After discussing with my teacher, we feel that Zhu Zhuqing's individualism has indeed damaged our team cohesion to some extent. Fatty, Oscar, you're both smart. I'm sure you can see this too."
The speaker was Tang San, his face wearing a very helpless expression, seemingly worried about the current situation.
"Fatty, Oscar, what Xiao San says makes sense. Think about it. If we can persuade her to complete the martial soul fusion technique with me, with our strength, we might be able to achieve excellent results. At the very least, defeating the Emperor Team shouldn't be a problem."
"Then, you'll receive more attention and admiration from others, and your future achievements will be even greater. What do you think?"
Seeing that the two seemed somewhat convinced, Dai Mubai immediately seized the opportunity to add.
"But, this…"
Oscar's face showed a somewhat troubled expression. Although what the two said made some sense, he felt something wasn't quite right.
Unlike the others, he had been directly recruited by Crown Prince Xue Qinghe. He had no combat ability, so even if they achieved better results, how much could his situation improve? He just wanted to coast smoothly until graduation and then join the Crown Prince's mansion. It wasn't worth making enemies over this.
He had seen how fierce Zhu Zhuqing could be in battle. If they pushed her too far, she might lash out at him with her claws. That would be disastrous.
"Damn it, Oscar, are you still one of us? We're telling you something important, and you're hemming and hawing. One word, are you in or not?"
To everyone's surprise, it was Ma Hongjun who spoke up first, glaring at Oscar with some displeasure.
To be honest, after hearing everything, Ma Hongjun was quite tempted.
Who was he? The Evil Fire Phoenix, a Fire Phoenix with the innate soul power of level nine—a genius.
He had thought coming to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy would be his chance to soar, but the reality was different. He knew his limitations. Not to mention Tang San and Xiao Wu, who refused recruitment—they had full innate soul power and stronger combat abilities, which he couldn't match.
As for Ning Rongrong, there was no comparison at all.
What hit him hardest was being stood up by Xue Qinghe, even after he had volunteered himself.
Why was Oscar, a food-system soul master with no combat ability, more popular than him? Just because he had full innate soul power? After losing contact with Xue Qinghe, although various nobles still constantly tried to recruit him, he privately compared their offers and found that, both in quality and quantity, Oscar's were more numerous and appealing.
Were all those people blind? He was a Fire Phoenix! Even with its flaws, it was still a top-tier beast soul.
Why should he put up with this nonsense? For soul masters, strength was what mattered. Coincidentally, Tang San and Dai Mubai's words had struck a chord with him.
The Continental Soul Master Tournament was the best stage to prove his powerful talent. He would be the center of attention then. After that, it wouldn't be others choosing him, but him choosing others.
"As expected, pretty boys can't be relied on."
Perhaps due to not going out for the past few days, Ma Hongjun was a bit irritable and muttered under his breath.
"Fatty, what did you say?"
Oscar's face immediately changed. What did that mean? He was just trying to think it through seriously, how did he end up being scolded?
"Fatty, what are you saying? Quickly apologize to Oscar."
Seeing that the matter wasn't settled and they were now infighting, Tang San couldn't help but feel exasperated. What was this all about?
"Apologize? Why should I apologize? Did I say anything wrong? Someone's always calling us brothers, but when it comes to such a small matter, he keeps making excuses. I think maybe his heart isn't with us anymore."
Ma Hongjun said loudly in a sarcastic tone, turning his back. Their commotion caught the attention of Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu.
"San-ge, what's wrong? Did something happen?"
Xiao Wu asked Tang San, who was now turning to look at them, seemingly wanting to come over and check.
"It's nothing, nothing. No need to come over. We're just fooling around."
Tang San, sweating profusely, still managed to reassure Xiao Wu. He wasn't worried about Xiao Wu coming over, as she would always be on his side.
But if Ning Rongrong came over now, it would be hard to wrap things up. They hadn't reached a consensus yet on their side.
"Was this your doing?"
In the mental link, Zhu Zhuqing's voice suddenly rang out.
"Ah, don't think so badly of me. I didn't do anything this time, just slightly amplified that chicken's emotions."
Han Li even kindly highlighted for her the red fire elements surrounding Ma Hongjun.
"Huh, so this is what you call doing nothing?"
Zhu Zhuqing scoffed.
"You can't blame me for this. For mental power detection, I have to release some mental energy, right? These fire elements were actively absorbed by him. What does that have to do with me?
Besides, with just that tiny bit of fire element, without me even attacking, his emotions were already ignited. It just shows he's weak. The others are nearby too—do you see them being affected?"
This wasn't Han Li trying to defend himself. This time, it wasn't his doing. It's just that the chicken's martial soul had inherent flaws, not even worth his effort.
Zhu Zhuqing didn't refute him. She had observed while Han Li was speaking.
The fire elements around Ma Hongjun were indeed slightly stronger, but he wasn't in his martial soul-attached state now, so it was just a tiny bit.
Ma Hongjun's behavior didn't surprise her. His hot-tempered nature and tendency to complain, always feeling that he was only temporarily low in soul power—this was his usual state.
Honestly speaking, compared to his behavior before his evil fire flared up, his condition was somewhat better.
"Rather than suspecting me, you'd better keep an eye on your companions. They're discussing how to deal with the trouble you're causing."
Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing no longer refuted him, Han Li added another jab.
"This kind of thing was already destined from the first time you met me. Do you find it interesting?"
Zhu Zhuqing's voice sounded faint, with a hint of sadness.
"Don't push everything onto me. You know whether it's because of me or not. Except for meeting you once over a year ago, I've never appeared."
Han Li didn't coddle her at all. What a bad habit—learning to shift blame. He wasn't Danzo, nor was he Tokiomi; he had no hobby of taking the blame randomly. [Danzo from Naruto and Tokiomi from Fate/Zero]
"You fundamentally changed my attitude towards them, didn't you?"
Zhu Zhuqing seemed unwilling to admit it, trying her best to refute it.
"You're right. I shouldn't have told you. I should have let you complete the martial soul fusion technique. That way, you could have defeated Yu Tianheng and the others. How wonderful that would have been."
"The Shrek Seven Monster, such a harmonious family, as close as siblings. I wonder if you'd still have your consciousness here, talking to me."
Han Li spoke these seemingly beautiful words in a strange tone. To Zhu Zhuqing's ears, they were full of mockery, making her clench her fists involuntarily.
"You're just a demon who toys with people's hearts," Zhu Zhuqing retorted weakly.
"Ah, yes, yes, yes."
In the mental world connecting the two, crisp applause suddenly rang out. Han Li's phantom. appeared to the left of Zhu Zhuqing's.
"I'm a demon who toys with people's hearts. What about them? What are they? Your companions? Your fiancé? Or the trustworthy third brother?"
Four clown masks appeared out of thin air, surrounding Zhu Zhuqing. They wore strange smiles, pointing a finger at Han Li, then at the figures on the light screen, and then unanimously at Zhu Zhuqing. They began to shake as if laughing out loud.
Zhu Zhuqing stared at the masks in a daze, seemingly not expecting him to have this kind of technique.
After a long while, she turned her head to look at Han Li.
"What's it called?"
"A Clown."
Han Li spoke these two words softly with a faint smile, words that needed no explanation to be understood.