The First Lesson of the School Year!

At nine o'clock, the class bell rang.

A plain-looking, medium-built man with a kindly expression, appearing to be in his early thirties, entered the classroom and stepped onto the podium.

The noisy classroom fell silent in an instant. All one hundred freshmen looked at him in unison, their gazes filled with intense curiosity and scrutiny.

No one would underestimate him because of his ordinary appearance. There was only one reason: he was a teacher at Shrek Academy!

It was universally acknowledged across the continent that Shrek Academy's teachers were all first-rate experts. To become a teacher at Shrek Academy, one had to meet two requirements: first, one had to be a graduate of Shrek Academy; second, one had to possess at least the cultivation of a Soul Emperor.

Shrek Academy's Outer Court was the only intermediate Soul Master Academy on the continent where every faculty member was at the Soul Emperor level.

That was right—an intermediate Soul Master Academy. At its core, Shrek Academy's Outer Court was an intermediate Soul Master Academy attached to Shrek Academy's Inner Court.

When Shrek Academy had first been established, it had been an advanced Soul Master Academy. The Outer Court had only appeared to satisfy the demands of the Imperial Families of the Three Great Empires.

"First of all, congratulations to all of you on temporarily becoming members of Shrek Academy." The man first swept his gaze around the room before speaking. His voice was just as ordinary, but what he said first made quite a few students' hearts tremble. "Why do I say temporarily? Because before advancing to the fourth year, you will have to undergo several assessments. Every assessment will inevitably eliminate some of you. Only those who pass every assessment can truly become members of Shrek Academy. So don't think that getting into Shrek Academy's Outer Court means you can rest easy!"

As the man finished his final sentence, his expression had already turned exceptionally stern.

The students in the classroom shuddered, and an air of tension spread among them.

The man paid no attention to their reactions and continued, "Next, my name is Xia Yu, and I will be your homeroom teacher from now on. Until the Freshman Assessment ends, I have the final say over whether you stay or leave. Let me make this clear: freshman homeroom teachers have the authority to expel new students directly. So I hope you will take my words seriously."

Everyone's expressions tightened. They could all sense the malice in his words.

"Lastly, and most importantly: the Freshman Assessment in three months." Xia Yu's expression remained stern, and his tone sank even lower. "I can responsibly tell you that the Freshman Assessment will eliminate half of all freshmen!"

"Ah!" The classroom immediately erupted into an uproar, and all the freshmen stared at Xia Yu in disbelief.

"My God! Eliminating half of us? Isn't that far too excessive?" Tang Ya said with a grave expression.

"Normal. This is Shrek Academy, after all!" Zhu Ziyang said with a curl of his lips. Such rules could only exist at the continent's number one academy.

"Quiet!" Xia Yu shouted in a low voice. It was soft, yet everyone in the classroom heard it clearly, as if he were speaking directly beside each person's ear.

The spacious classroom instantly quieted down.

"I know you're surprised, but this is Shrek Academy's rule. If you don't want to be eliminated, then work hard to improve yourselves!" Xia Yu said expressionlessly. "Your class has the fewest students in nearly thirty years, but it is also the class with the greatest disparity in Soul Power cultivation."

"Teacher, you said that our class has the largest gap in Soul Power cultivation. Just how large is that gap?" a boy asked.

"The lowest Soul Power cultivation in your class is level sixteen. As for the highest, there is only one person. He is also the freshman with the highest cultivation in the past ten years." Xia Yu spoke with a faint trace of emotion in his voice. "His cultivation is that of a three-ringed Soul Elder!"

"My God!"

"A Soul Elder? Someone from the same class as us?"

"As expected of Shrek Academy!"

"A twelve-year-old Soul Elder! When I was twelve, I would have been overjoyed just to become a Soul Grandmaster!"

"..."

The Class Four students all revealed shocked expressions before bursting into exclamations.

"Hey, Nannan, how do you think that Soul Elder freshman cultivated? Isn't that way too amazing? Could he be the successor of some hidden sect?" Tang Ya poked Jiang Nannan's arm and asked in surprise.

"No, he's a commoner." A faint smile rested on Jiang Nannan's lips. Naturally, she knew who Xia Yu was talking about, and she felt very proud. Hearing Tang Ya's words, she answered with certainty.

"A commoner? How is that possible..." Tang Ya instinctively wanted to refute her, but then she noticed the smile on Jiang Nannan's face, and a guess immediately surfaced in her mind.

"Teacher, can you tell us this Soul Elder's exact rank?" another student asked.

"As for that, it would be better for you to discover it yourselves." Xia Yu smiled as his gaze swept over the students. "Because this super genius is one of the students in our Class Four."

"What!"

Once again, one stone stirred up a thousand waves.

All the students who did not know each other began sizing one another up, trying to find that super genius.

"Nannan, is it him?" Tang Ya cried suspiciously as she looked at the unruffled Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan.

"Mhm!" Jiang Nannan nodded proudly.

"My God!" Tang Ya was utterly stunned.

"Enough. I won't say any more unnecessary things." Xia Yu interrupted the students' curiosity and said, "Next, please introduce yourselves."

"Nannan, really? Tell me!" Tang Ya wore an incredulous expression as she wrapped both hands around Jiang Nannan's arm and kept shaking it.

"Xiaoya, restrain yourself a little. The teacher is watching you!" Jiang Nannan helplessly pinched Tang Ya's hand in reminder.

"Ah!" Tang Ya froze, raised her head, and met Xia Yu's gaze.

"Very good." A smile appeared on Xia Yu's face as he looked at Tang Ya. "That girl with the pretty smile, you can go first!"

Tang Ya paused, then stood up with a smile on her face. This teacher has a good eye, she thought, while saying aloud, "Hello, everyone. My name is Tang Ya. I'm from Heaven Dou City in the Heaven Dou Empire, and I am the current Sect Master of the Tang Sect. If anyone wants to join the Tang Sect, you can come find me!"

She had truly carved the revival of the Tang Sect into her bones! Zhu Ziyang thought.

However, as soon as Tang Ya finished speaking, the classroom became noisy. Quite a few students who knew of the Tang Sect looked at Tang Ya differently—some with pity, some with mockery, and all manner of other expressions. Yet Tang Ya's expression did not change under her classmates' strange gazes. She still wore a smile, clearly long accustomed to it.

Jiang Nannan suddenly felt a little sorry for Tang Ya. She held her hand as if to comfort her, then gave her an encouraging smile.

"Oh! You're actually from the Tang Sect. That is a sect as ancient as our Shrek Academy. Its founder was Thousand Hands Douluo Tang San, one of the original Shrek Seven Devils!" Xia Yu spoke up, helping Tang Ya out. "Any students who wish to join the Tang Sect can ask Tang Ya about its history."

Tang Ya gave Xia Yu a grateful look for helping her out, then sat down.

"Alright, please have the beautiful girl beside Tang Ya introduce herself." Xia Yu continued, pointing at Jiang Nannan beside Tang Ya.