I Almost Thought I Was the Protagonist

With a sharp howl, the golden abacus came hurtling down. Seeing Wang Nan still standing motionless before him, Sun He held back some of his strength at the last moment.

Yet in that opening created by his restraint, the Coiling Dragon Staff in Wang Nan's hand swept forward.

When Wang Nan absorbed his Second Soul Ring, he had undergone the same experience as the first time. Within his Spiritual Sea, he fought the Scaled Demonic Crocodile once again and learned another skill from it—this was also how he countered Sun He's mental attack.

Seeing Wang Nan attack, Sun He's eyes widened abruptly. Before his eyes, the pitch-black staff transformed into a thick tail, two Yellow Soul Rings hovering above it as it swept straight for his waist.

First, he stabbed me in the lower abdomen. Now he's sweeping at my waist. Who taught this brat to fight like that?

Sun He himself possessed mental attack abilities and quickly identified the nature of Wang Nan's strike. But the angle of the staff was too tricky, and he did not dare take it head-on. He could only withdraw his attack and use the abacus to block Wang Nan's Tail Sweep. With a clatter, the beads scattered in every direction, raining down onto the ground.

"Teacher Sun, your abacus beads flew right into my face."

"Hehe, you brat, now you're making fun of me? If this were a real battle, do you think you'd still have had the chance to use that last move?"

As Sun He spoke, he gathered the abacus beads scattered across the ground. Though it looked as if his Martial Soul had been shattered, it was actually just one of his Soul Skills, using the beads to lessen attacks that landed on him.

"Teacher, if this were a real battle, I would've started running the moment I saw six Soul Rings."

The smile on Sun He's face deepened. He produced a plaque from who knew where. "All right, all right, you sure know how to talk. You've passed the assessment. Take your certificate and go register."

"Thank you, Teacher Sun."

"Wait!"

Just as Wang Nan was about to leave, Sun He called him back.

"What is it, Teacher Sun?"

"Um, the letter of recommendation."

Wang Nan took out a bright yellow envelope and handed it over.

"Can't tell, but the Emperor of the Star Luo Empire seems to think quite highly of you." Sun He opened the envelope and clicked his tongue in amazement as he read its contents.

Wang Nan did not think the Star Luo Emperor truly regarded him differently. A recommendation letter naturally contained flattering words. It was enough to hear them in passing—could anyone really take them seriously?

Sun He said no more and waved at Wang Nan. "All right, hurry up and register."

After jumping down from the arena, Wang Nan looked around and found that, in the time it took to exchange those few words, Wang Yan had already reached another arena, watching the New Students on it with great interest.

"Second Uncle, what are you looking at?"

"Seeing whether there are any particularly unusual Martial Souls among this year's New Students." Wang Yan turned back toward him. "You got the certificate, right?"

"I got it." Wang Nan waved the plaque in his hand.

"Good. I'll take you to register now."

"By the way, Second Uncle, why does the academy insist on a letter of recommendation?" Wang Nan had wanted to ask this for a long time.

"You should know that Shrek Academy did not become an independent entity, beholden to none of the empires, without paying a price. To enter the academy, one needs a letter of recommendation from at least a city lord of one of the three great empires. This allows the three empires priority access to the academy's educational resources, while also serving as a restraint on the academy."

"Of course, that only applies to Outer Courtyard Disciples. Once the Inner Courtyard is involved, things are not so simple. To Shrek Academy, the Inner Courtyard is its true core. Naturally, the academy's higher-ups are willing to sacrifice some Outer Courtyard interests in exchange for an independent position."

After hearing this, Wang Nan did not ask any more questions. The adult world was far too complicated.

With Wang Yan leading him, Wang Nan quickly completed his registration, enrollment, and collection of academy supplies.

Upon arriving beneath the Dormitory Building, Wang Yan handed Wang Nan his dormitory key, School Uniform, and badge.

"All right, you'll have to walk the rest of the road on your own. There are still two days before classes officially begin, so take this time to look around and familiarize yourself with the place. Also, do you remember everything I told you on the way here?"

"I remember."

"Good. Go on."

"Goodbye, Second Uncle."

Wang Yan did not say anything, merely smiling as he waved.

Wang Nan turned around and looked at the Dormitory Building before him, painted in white, yellow, purple, and black. He silently mocked the bizarre color scheme before walking toward the white entrance designated for New Students.

At the entrance to the white dormitory building, an elderly man in the twilight of his years lay in a recliner, his eyes half-closed as if asleep. Wang Nan knew that this unremarkable old man was one of the strongest people on the Douluo Continent today: the Level 99 Limit Douluo, Mu En.

A Level 99 Limit Douluo stood right before him, and Wang Nan could not help taking another look. Yet when he looked a second time, he found that Mu En was also looking at him, wearing a kindly smile.

Their eyes met, and Wang Nan felt slightly embarrassed at being caught sneaking a look. "Uh, hello, Grandpa."

"Hello, hello." Mu En nodded gently.

Wang Nan did not disturb him further and entered the Dormitory Building.

"102." Wang Nan glanced at the key in his hand and quickly found his dormitory. It was fairly close to the entrance, only a few steps inside.

Pushing open the door, Wang Nan found the dormitory spotless. His roommate had already moved in and was currently sitting cross-legged on the bed, long hair falling naturally past his shoulders.

Hearing the door open, he turned around. A pair of delicate eyes met Wang Nan's.

Huh?

Wang Nan froze and checked the dormitory number again. He had come to the boys' dormitory, right?

"Hello, you're a New Student too, right? My name is Gongyang Mo. I'm also a New Student this year."

Gongyang Mo? Repeating the name in his mind, Wang Nan quickly remembered who he was.

In Wang Nan's memories, Gongyang Mo had not appeared very often. The reason Wang Nan remembered him so quickly, aside from his Rainbow Dragon Martial Soul being comparable to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, was that his looks and mannerisms closely resembled those of a girl.

Good thing it was Gongyang Mo. I almost thought I'd become the protagonist and ended up with a roommate who was a girl disguised as a boy.

"Hello, my name is Wang Nan."

After greeting him, Wang Nan entered the dormitory and took out his luggage from the Storage Soul Tool on his wrist.

Before he left, Wang Xing had prepared many things for him. This Storage Soul Tool was only one of them. Needless to say, there were all sorts of daily necessities, along with several defensive soul tools, several single-use consumable soul tools, some medicinal pills, and, of course, the most important thing—Gold Soul Coins. In terms of value alone, these items were already comparable to the entire fortune of some low-level Soul Masters.

Though any Teacher casually picked from Shrek Academy was stronger than Wang Xing, outside the academy, a Soul King was already beyond the reach of many people. Wang Xing could therefore be considered fairly well-off.

Moreover, Wang Xing knew that Wang Nan was not one to spend extravagantly, and he was afraid his child might suffer hardships at the academy. Naturally, the luggage he prepared was far from shabby.

While chatting intermittently with Gongyang Mo, Wang Nan quickly made his bed. Looking at the dormitory before him, he suddenly felt a sense of nostalgia.

It had been a long time since he had last lived in a dormitory.