Old Hag

Sea God Lake was indeed enormous. Following the Lakeside Path south, they had walked for nearly fifteen minutes before turning west. After walking for another fifteen minutes or so, the path began to curve inward, and a broad rectangular plaza came into view. A sign for Shrek Square stood nearby.

Beyond Shrek Square stood rows of tall teaching buildings. These buildings came in different colors, mainly white, yellow, purple, and black. Looking into the distance north of Shrek Square, there seemed to be another cluster of gray teaching buildings.

Bei Bei pointed at the teaching buildings on the other side of the square. "The colors of the teaching buildings represent different grades, divided according to the colors of Soul Rings."

"White is the New Student Teaching Building, like the lowest-level Ten Year Soul Ring. Yellow is for the Outer Court's second- and third-year teaching buildings, while purple is for fourth- and fifth-year teaching buildings. Black is the Sixth Grade Teaching Building. Anyone who graduates from the black teaching building can receive an Outer Court graduation certificate from the academy."

"Those gray teaching buildings in the distance belong to the Soul Tool Department. By area, the Soul Tool Department occupies roughly one-third of the main teaching area, while the Martial Soul Department occupies two-thirds. Besides these teaching buildings at the front, there are also many specialized training facilities behind them—for example, the Soul Duel Arena, Assessment Area, Dormitory Area, teachers' offices, and so on."

The white New Student Teaching Building stood at the southernmost end and was also closest to the Lakeside Path. Huo Yuhao and the other two passed through the southern side of Shrek Square and entered the building.

Since it was currently the period for recruiting new students, the New Student Teaching Building was especially lively. Some new students who had already passed the assessment were registering here.

Huo Yuhao observed from afar and quickly memorized the specific enrollment procedure. He was somewhat surprised to discover that Shrek Academy's tuition for a single academic year actually cost as much as ten Gold Soul Coins—and that did not include meal expenses. If a student failed an assessment and dropped out midway, the tuition would not be refunded.

After registering, new students could receive a dormitory key, two sets of school uniforms, and a white New Student Badge. Huo Yuhao carefully noted down every part of this process, which he would eventually go through himself.

During the tour, Huo Yuhao also selectively told Bei Bei and Tang Ya about his circumstances. When Huo Yuhao said that he was only nine years old yet was already an eleventh-rank Soul Master with his First Soul Ring, and that he had no sect or family ties, both of them visibly became more interested.

"Little Yuhao, if money is tight for you, remember to register your Soul Master status at the academy's administrative office. With that proof of identity, you can receive one Gold Soul Coin every year from the treasury of the empire you belong to."

"Once you enroll successfully next year or the year after, pay more attention to the various academy competitions. There are prize rewards for winning. With your talent, earning enough for your tuition and living expenses certainly won't be difficult."

Tang Ya's advice was undoubtedly extremely valuable to ordinary new students. However, Huo Yuhao had already made up his mind from the very beginning: before enrolling, he wanted to earn enough for the next ten or even twenty years of living expenses, then devote himself completely to Soul Master cultivation and the study of Soul Tool technology. Thus, to Huo Yuhao, the methods Tang Ya recommended were still far too slow for making money.

"Xiao Ya Jie, um, I know how to grill fish, and my grilled fish tastes really good. Over the next two years, I should follow my mother and sell grilled fish outside the academy to earn tuition. Then I'll enroll through the Soul Tool Master Special Enrollment program. Actually, I'm also a First Level Soul Tool Master."

Huo Yuhao scratched his head and looked seriously at Tang Ya. When he mentioned that he was a Soul Tool Master, there was obvious pride in his voice.

A smile appeared on Bei Bei's face. "I was wondering why little brother Huo was so confident about visiting our academy at only nine years old. So you're already a First Level Soul Tool Master. Then when you come to the academy at eleven and apply through Soul Tool Master Special Enrollment, it should go very smoothly."

Bei Bei was considerate enough not to ask why Huo Yuhao had not chosen to directly apply to the Martial Soul Department, then join the Soul Tool Department after the new students' first assessment ended.

With the talent little brother Huo had displayed, reaching Soul Power Level 15 before the age of twelve would absolutely not be a problem. But Huo Yuhao had also said that he and his mother had come to Shrek Academy early because they wanted to rely on their grilled fish skills to earn tuition.

How could a family that had to scrape together even ten Gold Soul Coins a year possibly possess a recommendation letter from someone at the level of a main city lord?

Of course, Bei Bei also highly approved of the talent Huo Yuhao had displayed. He had even begun considering bringing him into the Tang Sect. Whether it was his age, aptitude, or the configuration of his First Soul Ring, Huo Yuhao's performance had been flawless.

But Huo Yuhao had also said that he wanted to rely on his own abilities to enter the academy through Soul Tool Master Special Enrollment.

If Bei Bei could not help with his enrollment, he truly would not feel comfortable forcibly pulling him into the Tang Sect's ranks. At most, he could pay closer attention to little brother Huo's movements and find a way to recruit him after he enrolled.

Of course, there was another very important reason Bei Bei did not open his mouth to recruit Huo Yuhao: when Huo Yuhao proudly stated that he was a First Level Soul Tool Master, Tang Ya's gaze had suddenly dimmed.

Bei Bei naturally understood that the Tang Sect's decline was inseparably connected to Soul Tools, as well as Tang Ya's disgust toward them. For that reason, even if he truly wanted to recruit little brother Huo into the Tang Sect, he would have to wait until he had the chance to discuss it carefully with Tang Ya before making a decision.

Huo Yuhao naturally knew nothing of these twists and turns. He had said those things because Bei Bei had previously mentioned the policy of Soul Tool Master Special Enrollment, so he had simply gone along with it and said that he would choose that route.

It could be said that if Bei Bei had not told him about such a policy at the academy, he might truly have needed to find a way to obtain a city lord's recommendation letter, or choose to join some sect faction in order to gain the qualifications for enrollment.

Huo Yuhao turned his gaze toward the bulletin board. He had always paid close attention to important places where large amounts of information were posted. Unfortunately, during the new student enrollment season, the bulletin board usually did not contain notices about events, competitions, or policies. It only displayed specific matters related to class assignments.

Class 1, Fourth Grade. Homeroom Teacher: Wang Yan. Class 2, Fifth Grade. Homeroom Teacher:

Class 1, Grade 2. Homeroom Teacher: Zhou Yi. Class 2, Grade 2. Homeroom Teacher:

New Student Class One. Homeroom Teacher:

"Wow, that Old Hag Zhou Yi is going to torment Class 1 again this year. The students in Class 1 are really pitiful."

Tang Ya followed Huo Yuhao's gaze. Upon seeing that the homeroom teacher of Class 1, Grade 2 was a teacher named Zhou Yi, she immediately let out a sigh of emotion. Her eyes even held a sympathy that Huo Yuhao could not understand.