A mere chicken dares to compete with a Divine Bird?

In the original timeline, Dai Mubai had personally said that in the twenty years since Shrek Academy was founded, it had admitted over sixty students, yet only a dozen or so had graduated normally.

Shrek Academy never helped its students hunt spirit beasts. Of the remaining fifty-odd who failed to graduate, most had likely died during spirit beast hunts or suffered severe injuries that left them unable to continue cultivating!

Wu Qi knew that having a Soul Power Level above twenty-one before the age of thirteen was merely a prerequisite. There were still two more entrance tests afterward.

In short, to pass those trials, one needed at least Soul Power Level twenty-five and Innate Soul Power of seven or higher.

What a pity for those fifty-plus geniuses with Innate Soul Power above seven. Shrek Academy had ruined them.

Their teaching model was no different from raising venomous insects in a jar.

They simply let the students hunt spirit beasts on their own. Those who survived were bound to be top-tier geniuses.

Then, once those students graduated and achieved success in the future, all the credit would go to Shrek Academy.

Conversely, those who failed to graduate were deemed mediocrities in their eyes!

If they could not even hunt spirit beasts independently, did they deserve to be students of Shrek Academy?

Every Advanced Spirit Master Academy on the continent encouraged students to hunt spirit beasts independently, but the premise was that the students could form their own teams and cooperate with one another during the hunt—not face the spirit beasts in the forest alone.

The Masters did not simply leave them unattended. They kept watch from the shadows at all times, preventing accidents from happening.

But what about Shrek Academy? It barely had any students in total and could not even put together a decent team. Furthermore, their Masters did not protect the students from the shadows.

An academy like that was a disgrace to spirit master education. No wonder the Balak Kingdom Ministry of Education had refused to approve it.

Looking ahead, Shrek Academy was undoubtedly a den of rebels in Spirit Hall's eyes.

People like Oscar and Ma Hongjun had received who knew how many spirit master subsidies from Spirit Hall, only to become the vanguard of the anti-Spirit Hall movement in the end!

Setting those thoughts aside, Wu Qi turned his gaze toward the window.

He could almost foresee that this trip to Suotuo City would be quite exciting!

Shrek Academy was about to begin its term, and the Shrek Seven Devils would gather there as well.

Elsewhere in Suotuo City.

Ning Rongrong wandered aimlessly through the city.

After seeing the sights within the city, she could not help muttering, "Suotuo City isn't as great as the rumors made it out to be."

The only thing that could possibly pique her interest was Shrek Academy.

With the school term approaching, quite a few people in the city were discussing how many students Shrek Academy would manage to recruit this year.

Ning Rongrong was extremely confident in herself. She possessed the top-tier Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul and Innate Soul Power as high as level nine.

If someone with qualifications like hers could not join Shrek Academy, then the problem would not be hers.

Xue Qinghe had said that Wu Qi and his companion had come to Suotuo City to carry out a mission. Yet after searching for so long, she had not caught sight of either of them.

At the same time, another possibility occurred to her.

Wu Qi and his companion were not very old. Could they have come to Suotuo City at this time to join Shrek Academy as well?

If that was the case, they would be classmates in the future and could see each other every day.

Lost in her fantasies, she arrived at a restaurant known for its local specialties.

As Ning Fengzhi's beloved daughter, she had never lacked food or drink since childhood, but that did not mean she had tasted every delicacy on the continent.

Filled with curiosity, Ning Rongrong walked inside.

At the same time, Wu Qi and Qian Gu Changkong happened to pass by from across the street.

"By the way, does this place really have a shop that sells Soul Tools?" Qian Gu Changkong was doubtful.

The shop Wu Qi had mentioned was Flender's shop.

The main purpose of this trip was to buy the Crystal Gold Filament.

Showing mercy to an enemy was being cruel to oneself. Taking away the Crystal Gold Filament would indirectly weaken Tang San's overall strength.

Later, when he clashed with Zhao Wuji, he would likely lose even more miserably. But what did that have to do with Wu Qi?

As they spoke, the two arrived before a storefront with no signboard.

Wu Qi had already noticed the place when they entered the city.

Earlier, he had been busy finding lodging and obtaining their spirit fighting badges, so he had not had time to come over.

Once they entered, they found the interior old-fashioned and simple. In other words, there was practically no decoration at all—just a few shelves placed around casually.

The objects on the shelves emitted faint fluctuations of soul power. As spirit masters, they were exceedingly sensitive to such a presence.

"There really are Soul Tools."

Qian Gu Changkong found it novel and kept searching the shelves for items that caught his eye.

Under normal circumstances, Soul Tools only appeared at auction houses or high-end shopping centers.

The Qian Gu Clan had produced two consecrated elders. Though the clan was wealthy, Qian Gu Changkong received very little pocket money.

It was his first time seeing so many Soul Tools outside of those places. How could he not be curious?

The shop was not large. With a turn of his head, he saw a hook-nosed man reclining in a chair behind the counter.

Flender's Spirit was a Cat Eagle, and his perception was exceptionally sharp. Within the shop, no subtle movement could escape his notice.

Wu Qi withdrew his gaze and searched through the lower shelves.

Flender was a shrewd merchant. The moment he noticed someone showing curiosity toward an item, he would surely demand an exorbitant price.

He could sense their expressions and movements, but could he sense their thoughts as well?

As he searched, Wu Qi also kept an eye out for Crystal Gold Filament, though he did not show any strong interest in it.

Before long, he noticed a stone that had been casually placed in the corner by the wall.

At the same time, a voice came from outside the shop. "Master, are you in there?"

The voice drew closer, and a round-bodied youth appeared at the entrance.

"Good grief! Taking advantage of Master's absence to steal things? You've got some nerve!" The youth crossed his arms over his chest and berated them.

"Are you talking to us?" Qian Gu Changkong looked around but saw no one else.

Wu Qi turned his head and found that Flender had left the shop at some point.

Well then, they were being mistaken for thieves.

"If not you, then who else?"

The youth had a fiery temper. As he spoke, a Spirit radiating the aura of flames appeared behind him.

"A top-tier Spirit?" Qian Gu Changkong was initially startled, then could not help laughing. "I thought it was a phoenix. Turns out it's just a lit-up grass chicken. Say, when did you become a roast chicken?"

Just as expected, Wu Qi thought.

Calling Flender Master and possessing a Phoenix Spirit—this had to be Ma Hongjun.

Both possessed Avian Spirits, and Wu Qi could easily sense that the other's bloodline was impure and riddled with enormous flaws.

"You're fucking courting death!" Ma Hongjun flew into a rage.

The thief was still acting so arrogantly. Did he think Ma Hongjun was made of dough?

"First Soul Skill, Phoenix Fire Line."

Soul Power gathered in his mouth before he spat out a stream of flame.

Qian Gu Changkong was eager to give it a try, but Wu Qi stepped in front of him.

How could a mere grass chicken dare compete with a Divine Bird?

The Azure Luan Spirit emerged, and Luan Cry rang out without end.

As the Spirit beat its wings, the surrounding air was stirred into a barrier of wind.

No matter how Ma Hongjun increased his Soul Power output, his flames could never cross that wall of wind!