Zhu Zhuqing Knocks on the Door at Midnight

Flender was greedy for money, and Shrek Academy was facing a financial crisis. Ye Tianxing planned to use this as an opening, probing indirectly and approaching the search for the Blue Silver Emperor and spirit bones from another angle.

At sunset, while Dai Mubai, Tang San, and the others had yet to return, Ye Tianxing went into the city for dinner first.

On his way back to Shrek Academy after eating and drinking his fill, he ran into Ning Rongrong at a roadside stall. At that moment, she completely disregarded the elegance expected of a young lady as she wolfed down roasted chicken, with the bamboo basket filled with stones sitting beside her.

Ye Tianxing merely glanced at her before walking away. Someone else would deal with Ning Rongrong.

Outside the gates of Shrek Academy, Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, and the others sprawled on the ground, drenched in sweat and too exhausted to straighten their backs. After eating Oscar's sausages, their gnawing hunger was finally somewhat relieved.

Ning Rongrong arrived late. When Xiao Wu asked where she had been earlier, Ning Rongrong casually and skillfully made up a lie to smooth it over.

"Good work, everyone. There's food left for you in the dining hall." Ye Tianxing picked at his teeth and smacked his lips as he came from the dining hall.

"Ye Ping'an! I've put up with you for long enough!" Dai Mubai finally unleashed the anger he had been bottling up all day, while Ma Hongjun glared furiously behind him.

When Ma Hongjun had tried to slack off, Ye Ping'an's sword had been pressed against his shoulder, only 0.01 centimeters from his throat.

"Everyone else is training hard, so why do you get to do whatever you want with your time? We're all from the same academy. Don't you know we should share hardships and joys together?"

Faced with Dai Mubai's accusation, Ye Tianxing appeared utterly unconcerned.

"Come talk to me about that when you reach my level."

With that, Ye Tianxing left on his own and returned to his dormitory to rest.

"I ran back and forth to Suotuo City over twenty times today. I'm exhausted. I need to sleep early, or I won't be able to get up tomorrow."

Everyone nearly coughed up blood upon hearing that. They were all human, yet the gap between them was simply too hard to accept.

They had taken the same course, yet Ye Ping'an had completed it with ease. That naturally left Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, who had spent the entire day running themselves ragged, deeply displeased.

"That Ye Ping'an really knows how to talk like a prick! One day, I'll..." Ma Hongjun found himself speechless. Even Dai Mubai and Tang San had lost to him; he truly had the right to be arrogant.

"You'll what? Are you a match for Ye Ping'an?" Oscar tore Ma Hongjun down, and the two quickly began grappling with each other.

Among them, only Tang San remained clear-headed. When Ye Tianxing had effortlessly completed the task Yu Xiaogang assigned, his heart had already sunk.

Tang San said, "Ye Ping'an's speed is unimaginably fast, and his swordsmanship is even more superb. Among the seven of us, not one is his match."

"So we're just going to let him keep enjoying himself? Today's training was more than what we used to do in an entire week." Xiao Wu grumbled as she rubbed legs that did not belong to her.

"Superb swordsmanship?" Ning Rongrong sneered. "I wouldn't say that. Grandpa Sword's swordsmanship is the best on the entire continent!"

Ye Tianxing sat cross-legged on his bed. With his keen ears and sharp senses, Ning Rongrong's words made him think of something else.

Qian Daoliu > Sword Douluo Chenxin's father.

In other words, each generation was worse than the last.

Knock, knock, knock...

At that moment, someone knocked on the door.

Ye Tianxing's spiritual power passed through the door. Upon seeing the vague yet alluring silhouette outside, he confirmed who it was.

"Come in."

Zhu Zhuqing opened the door and entered.

Ye Tianxing looked at Zhu Zhuqing, who had suddenly come to visit. Exhausted from the day's exertion, she was covered in fragrant sweat and had not yet bathed. Her damp clothes clung tightly to her flawless body, presenting her devilish, proud figure before his eyes.

Do I really get to see this for free? Ye Tianxing secretly laughed.

Keeping a smile on his face, Ye Tianxing asked, "Is there something you need from me, Zhu Zhuqing?"

"Why are you so strong?" Zhu Zhuqing got straight to the point and directly voiced the doubt in her heart.

Of the eight people at Shrek Academy, most were twelve years old, while Dai Mubai, the oldest, was fourteen.

Zhu Zhuqing admitted that she was currently no match for Dai Mubai, Tang San, Xiao Wu, and the others. Their strength had given her a clear understanding that they could still be surpassed.

But Ye Ping'an's strength was on another level entirely. His superb swordsmanship and unmatched speed—the ten return trips they had earned through desperate running were no more than routine to Ye Ping'an. It was truly difficult to imagine just how he had trained to achieve what he had today.

Impossible to surpass. That was Zhu Zhuqing's assessment.

"Through countless hardships." Ye Tianxing lifted his gaze toward the window.

"Achoo!"

Tang San sneezed inadvertently as he entered the dining hall. A chilly breeze swept past him, and a wave of cold immediately washed over his entire body.

"The Grandmaster really is something else. How did I never realize he was such a devil before? He even made my brother catch a cold." Xiao Wu moved closer to the burning pile of firewood, and warmth gradually returned to her body.

"Strange. Where did Zhuqing go?" Ma Hongjun looked around the dining hall. He coveted Zhu Zhuqing more than anyone, but recalling Dai Mubai's warning gaze from yesterday, as well as that murderous look in his eyes, he did not dare act on it.

"I think I saw her go to Ye Ping'an's room." Ning Rongrong giggled, deliberately casting a glance at Dai Mubai.

Just as expected, his expression darkened.

"That woman really knows how to curry favor with the powerful."

With a grim face, Dai Mubai slammed the door and stormed out.

"Through countless hardships?" Zhu Zhuqing murmured as she left Ye Ping'an's room.

It seemed he was unwilling to tell her. The reason she wanted to become stronger was nothing more than her family's fate and Dai Mubai's inaction.

Zhu Zhuqing was hurrying toward the dining hall when Dai Mubai happened to approach from the opposite direction, his face livid and his fists clenched tight.

"Answer me! Why did you go to Ye Ping'an's room?" Dai Mubai demanded furiously, flames of rage burning in his eyes.

He and Zhu Zhuqing had been betrothed since childhood. Sooner or later, Zhu Zhuqing would be his, Dai Mubai's. Yet before they were even married, she had gotten so close to another man—especially Ye Ping'an.

"Dai Mubai, I don't want to meddle in your affairs, and you'd better stay out of mine," Zhu Zhuqing said coldly. Then, ignoring him, she walked straight past him.

"Awooo! Awooo! Awooo!"

Wave after wave of tiger roars rang out. Ye Tianxing, who was meditating in his room, smiled faintly. To create discord within Shrek Academy, he had to start from the inside.

Listening to Dai Mubai's furious roars, Ye Tianxing's mood brightened. He was the enemy of everyone at Shrek Academy, and as someone born in Spirit Hall, he knew full well where the future was headed.

Different factions, different fates.

"For the sake of ultimate victory, Dai Mubai will have to suffer a little."

With just a few words of provocation, Ye Tianxing had done almost nothing yet made Dai Mubai suspicious. Seeing his fiancée emerge from another man's dormitory and hearing her say that her affairs were none of his concern gave Dai Mubai a firsthand taste of heartbreak.