Rumors of Shrek Academy

Suotuo City was located on the Lima Plain, where the Heaven Dou Empire's most fertile lands lay.

But it was also very close to the Star Dou Great Forest.

Grain merchants and spirit masters hunting soul beasts often stopped here to rest, indirectly bringing prosperity to the city.

Qian Gu Changkong's cultivation had now reached level twenty-nine, only a step away from breaking through to level thirty.

When entering Heaven Dou City, in order to avoid being discovered by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and experts from other forces, the Golden Eagle Douluo had not followed them into the city. Instead, he had remained stationed outside.

But upon arriving in Suotuo City, the Golden Eagle Douluo no longer had any such concerns. He followed them into the city and secretly protected the two from behind.

Compared to prosperous Heaven Dou City, Suotuo City seemed rather underdeveloped.

Quite a few Heaven Dou City nobles who had believed the rumors cried that they had been duped after arriving in Suotuo City.

But since they were already here, the group still decided to spend some time sightseeing.

The sudden influx of people over a short period had indirectly promoted the development of commerce within the city.

Had it been before this, the gap between this place and Heaven Dou City would only have been even greater.

Hearing Qian Gu Changkong complain about how "barren" the commerce here was, Wu Qi said irritably, "This isn't the imperial capital, nor is it the capital of a kingdom. It's already not bad for it to have developed this much."

Following his original plan, he did not conduct any investigation into where the grain was going.

The two headed toward the center of the city and stopped before a massive structure.

The Great Soul Arena!

Spirit Hall and Heaven Dou City both had Great Soul Arenas, and they were even larger and more prosperous than the one in Suotuo City.

"Are we starting the training mission this quickly?" Qian Gu Changkong could not help muttering.

Within the Great Soul Arena's badge system, the Gold Spirit Badge ranked above iron, bronze, and silver, placing it at the fourth tier. Above it were Violetgold, Sapphire, Ruby, and Diamond Badges.

A rank below the middle, in his view, was something he could complete with ease.

Perhaps guessing what he was thinking, Wu Qi said crossly, "Has it occurred to you that the highest-level badge an ordinary person can obtain is the Violetgold Spirit Badge? The badges above that are all honorary badges, specifically awarded to experts."

While in Spirit City, Wu Qi had inquired about the Great Soul Arena.

Only Soul Saints and stronger experts could be awarded Sapphire Badges and above.

Rumor had it that there was another rank of badge above Diamond, specifically bestowed upon Titled Douluo experts. Unfortunately, from ancient times until now, not a single Titled Douluo had ever joined an organization like the Great Soul Arena.

As for the points required for a Violetgold Spirit Badge, they could only be described as astronomical.

Even if one was the strongest among those of the same rank and capable of fighting above one's level, participating daily in one-on-one, two-on-two, and team spirit battles, while maintaining a win rate above ninety-five percent, it would still take more than a year of grinding in the Soul Arena to barely accumulate enough points.

This was no longer a matter of difficulty. It required long-term, relentless grinding.

Wu Qi did not intend to spend too much time training at the Great Soul Arena.

To achieve good results in the next Spirit Master Competition, he needed to spend a great deal of time building a team capable of winning the championship!

The Great Soul Arena did not host spirit battles during the day. The two had only come to register for their spirit battle badges in advance.

After leaving the Great Soul Arena, they found a hotel nearby to settle in.

Wu Qi finally understood why rooms had been so scarce when Tang San and Xiao Wu arrived in Suotuo City in the original timeline.

At first, he had thought that it was because so many parents had brought their children here to register at Shrek Academy.

But Suotuo City was a commercial city to begin with, with an endless stream of grain merchants passing through. How could it possibly lack guest rooms?

The reality was likely that those nobles "tricked" here by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had taken up a large number of rooms.

After paying triple the usual room rate, the two finally had a place to stay.

"That Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is fucking immoral!" Qian Gu Changkong could not help cursing.

"This is merely a small indulgence of power." Wu Qi shook his head bitterly.

As they spoke, a hotel worker noticed how young they looked and could not help approaching them. "Are you two young masters here to register at Shrek Academy as well?"

"What makes you say that?" Wu Qi asked in return.

Thanks to Titled Flender's successful marketing, Shrek Academy was highly renowned in Suotuo City and several nearby cities.

When they entered the city, the two had also heard quite a few rumors about Shrek Academy.

Qian Gu Changkong had not paid attention at first, but when he heard someone mention it again, he became interested. "I heard that Shrek Academy only admits students under thirteen whose Soul Power Level exceeds twenty-one?"

If that was the case, then every student at Shrek Academy must have possessed Innate Soul Power above level six.

Qian Gu Changkong had not expected that this unplanned visit to Suotuo City would bring such an unexpected gain.

What an enormous contribution it would be if he recruited every Shrek Academy student into Spirit Hall!

Besides, if they entered an academy like this, would they still need to worry about finding teammates for the Spirit Master Competition?

Wu Qi lightly patted his shoulder and shook his head.

If such an extraordinary academy truly existed on the continent, its fame would likely have spread to every corner of the continent long ago, rather than only becoming known after arriving in Suotuo City.

The people in the city only knew that Shrek Academy's admissions standards were harsh, and that it might go a long time without recruiting a single suitable student.

Moreover, no one in the city had ever seen Shrek Academy's actual campus. They only regarded the registration site outside the city as a test.

With all these factors combined, many people were impressed without really understanding why.

Even the hotel staff held them in particularly high regard!

"I think you two are already over thirteen, aren't you? Shrek Academy may be famous, but if you don't meet the requirements, going there will only bring humiliation upon yourselves. Please consider this carefully, esteemed guests."

Wu Qi nodded, no longer interested in continuing the conversation. He cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for the information. I believe we already know what we'll do."

With that, he pulled Qian Gu Changkong into the room.

The latter looked confused and hurriedly asked, "Wu Ge, we haven't finished listening yet. Don't you think this Shrek Academy sounds interesting? Besides, our actual ages haven't exceeded thirteen."

"If we join them, all our classmates will be geniuses. Wouldn't it be easy to form a strong team?"

Wu Qi sat on the sofa in a lazy posture. "What we heard was only rumor. We haven't seen Shrek Academy's real situation, so don't jump to conclusions."

"Besides, according to Shrek Academy's admission requirements, students need at least Rank Six Innate Soul Power to qualify."

"How many people on the continent do you think can awaken Innate Soul Power above Rank Six? And most of those who meet Shrek Academy's requirements would be recruited by major factions from a young age. Who would go to Shrek Academy?"

Listening to his explanation, Qian Gu Changkong gradually calmed down and seriously considered the issue.

"Wu Ge, could this Shrek Academy be some kind of scam academy?"

In truth, Shrek Academy was no different from a scam academy. The only difference was that they occasionally provided cultivation guidance to their students.