Successful Enrollment

After the introduction, they had coincidentally arrived at a fork in the road. Bei Bei continued, "Going left here leads to the Martial Soul Branch, and going right leads to the Soul Guidance Branch. We'll head to the Martial Soul Branch first to register, and also take Xi Xi to participate in the recruitment assessment."

Taking two steps forward, Huo Yuhao noticed that behind the statue was a shimmering lake. "Senior Brother Bei Bei, is this lake artificially built?"

"Yes, legend has it that our Tang Sect's ancestor, Tang San, inherited the divinity of the Sea God. This Sea God Lake was built to commemorate him. Shrek Academy's inner courtyard is located on the island in the center of the lake," Tang Ya said proudly.

Huo Yuxi looked at the fish in the lake, lost in thought. Such plump fish would surely make delicious grilled fish...

Huo Yuhao had walked halfway when he realized his sister hadn't followed. He turned to see her hugging her spider plushie and drooling as she watched the fish.

Pulling her along to keep pace with Tang Ya and Bei Bei, he whispered, "We'll register first. I'll grill some fish for you when we have time."

"Okay." Huo Yuxi's spirits instantly lifted. Ever since she'd tasted her brother's grilled fish, she'd craved it if she went too long without it.

Arriving at Shrek Plaza, many people were undergoing tests for bone age, soul power level, and combat assessment. After passing, they could pay the tuition and register to enroll. "Xiao Ya, you accompany Xi Xi to queue up for the bone age test here. I'll go register with Yu Hao first."

"Okay, you two go ahead."

The registration area was on the other side. After the two of them left, Huo Yuxi looked at the long queue ahead and idly observed the surrounding buildings.

Behind the plaza were rows upon rows of teaching buildings, totaling four colors: white, yellow, purple, and black. Tang Ya explained to her, "These colors are mainly used to distinguish the grades. White is for first-year teaching buildings, yellow is for second and third years, purple is for fourth and fifth years, and black is for sixth year."

Huo Yuxi nodded, indicating she understood.

Soon, just as it was about to be Huo Yuxi's turn, Huo Yuhao and the others had returned. "Xi Xi, Teacher Xiao Ya, we're back."

"How was it? Which class were you assigned to? Who's the homeroom teacher?" Tang Ya stepped forward, asking excitedly.

Huo Yuxi quickly perked up her ears. Even the Soul Devouring Spider in her arms seemed to be listening intently, looking gossipy.

"We went early, so we were assigned to Class One. Our homeroom teacher is Teacher Zhou Yi," Huo Yuhao replied honestly.

"Ah, why is it that Zhou Yi, that Abbess Extinction?" Tang Ya's expression was strange, and her gaze towards Huo Yuhao was filled with sympathy.

Her look made Huo Yuhao's heart skip a beat. Just as he was about to say something, it was already Huo Yuxi's turn in the queue.

"Name, age, soul power level."

The old man sitting in front held a palm-leaf fan in one hand and a pen in the other, recording information nonchalantly. Seeing Huo Yuxi's malnourished appearance, he found it uninteresting.

He had tested so many people, and very few had passed. As for this little girl in front of him, her body was already so weak; even if her bone age was suitable, her soul power surely wouldn't be sufficient.

"My name is Huo Yuxi, I've just turned 11, and my soul power is level 29." Huo Yuxi's eyes were fixed on the notebook on the table, not daring to look at him directly. Although this old man looked a bit disheveled, his aura was imposing, and everyone else was quite intimidated, especially for her, who rarely encountered strangers.

"What?"

As soon as Huo Yuxi finished speaking, the old man abruptly stood up from his chair, startling her greatly. She instinctively looked for Huo Yuhao's figure and hid behind him.

Huo Yuhao also straightened up instantly, adopting a protective stance.

Perhaps realizing he had startled the young girl, he sat back down and picked up a crystal ball from the side. He said gently, "Huo Yuxi, right? Don't be scared. Come over and test your soul power."

Huo Yuhao patted her hand reassuringly. Huo Yuxi stepped forward, holding her plushie in her right arm and extending her left hand to inject her soul power into the crystal ball. Instantly, the ball flashed with light. Soul power, level 29.

Now, not only the old man was shocked, but the people queuing behind also noticed the phenomenon, craning their necks to look.

"Heavens, she looks only eight or nine years old, and she's already level 29 soul power?"

"No, I vaguely heard she's 11. She probably just looks younger."

"That's still astonishing. She's only 11 and already level 29. I'm less than two months away from turning 12, and I'm only at level 15."

The protagonist of everyone's discussion was now standing in the middle, holding the crystal ball. She didn't know whether to put it down or not. The reason was simple: the old man was stunned and hadn't told her to put it down, so she didn't dare to move.

Huo Yuhao couldn't bear to let his sister hold it for so long and stepped forward. "Grandpa, has the test passed?"

"Hmm?" The old man snapped back to attention. "Oh, oh, oh, it passed, it passed. No need to test the rest."

The old man's eyes lit up. Like a wolf grandmother luring Little Red Riding Hood, he lowered his voice and said, "Xi Xi, right? Do you have a teacher? How about you take me as your master? I can directly let you cultivate in the inner sect."

Huo Yuxi shook her head. "Thank you, Grandpa, but I want to be with my brother."

"Brother? This kid is your brother, is he? That's easy. Just have him become my disciple too." The old man didn't consider this a minor issue at all.

However, upon seeing Huo Yuhao's soul power level at 10, his eyes nearly fell out of their sockets.

Weren't these siblings twins? How could their talent gap be so large? Well, their bodies were also quite different. Although the brother looked thin and small, he seemed much more normal compared to his beloved disciple. He must have taken all the nutrients in the womb.

But thinking that all the talent was with his beloved disciple, he felt somewhat comforted.

He never imagined that these two would refuse him. After all, anyone normal wouldn't refuse the opportunity to study in Shrek Academy's inner courtyard.

"I'm very sorry, I refuse. I know my talent is poor, but I will rely on my own efforts to enter the inner sect." Huo Yuhao said firmly.

"Hey, you stubborn kid! You know, with your talent, even if you get into the academy, you'll definitely be eliminated and expelled in the freshman assessment three months from now. Now that such a good opportunity is right in front of you, you're still stepping on it?"

"Then I want to be with my brother too. Thank you for your kindness, Grandpa. I will enter the inner sect with my own strength in the future."

Seeing the little girl's determined expression, the old man's heart instantly softened. Who could refuse the request of such a cute and beautiful little girl?

"You're entering the inner sect with your own strength now. However, it's okay if you don't want to go yet. You can cultivate well in the outer courtyard for a few years."

While he said that, he was unwilling to give up such a talented disciple. But good things take time, and it might be good for her to forge her own path in the outer courtyard first.

"Alright, you can go register directly and pay the tuition."

"Okay, thank you."

Huo Yuxi was exempted from the combat assessment, so she arrived relatively early and successfully entered Class One, joining Huo Yuhao.

The tuition for both of them was ten gold soul coins. Huo Yuhao had no money, so Bei Bei paid for them.

"Thank you, Senior Bei Bei! I'll pay you back when I have money," Huo Yuhao said gratefully. After all, as the saying goes, good friends don't necessarily lend you money, but those who are willing to lend you money are good friends.

Bei Bei didn't refuse; refusing would have made things awkward. "You're welcome, and don't worry about it. We're friends."

"Mhm," Huo Yuhao nodded emphatically.