Punishment

Without any hesitation, Su Qiu leaped out of the corridor window. The Rending Sky Screaming Vulture Spirit flashed past, and with the help of the wind, he hovered in midair briefly before charging into the second floor.

At the same time, a series of equations formed in his mind:

"At such a young age, and already learning bad habits. What kind of campus bullying is this?"

"If they dared to bully others today, they would dare to kill tomorrow!"

"That would make them future Evil Soul Masters."

"Then they deserved to be beaten down hard by me."

The start of the school year should have been a happy occasion. Yet Tang Wulin felt deeply wronged.

Everything in Eastsea City was new to him. Along the way, the looks people gave him ranged from envy to disdain.

Some even called him a country bumpkin.

Tang Wulin felt miserable. He did not understand why city people held such hostility toward him.

However, the senior student responsible for picking up new students at Eastsea Academy had been very kind and gentle.

With her help, Tang Wulin arrived at the academy and went to the Academic Affairs Office to collect his new student uniform and dormitory key.

He had originally looked forward to meeting the companions he would spend the next few years with, but upon entering the dormitory, he found that things were nothing like he had imagined.

It was an ordinary four-person dormitory, and both lower bunks were already occupied.

The two people looked over at him.

The student on the left lower bunk was tall and broad. Fierce light shone from beneath his short hair, making him look quite intimidating.

The other was comparatively small and thin, wearing glasses and seemingly reading a book.

The bespectacled student introduced himself as Yun Xiao.

Through their conversation, Tang Wulin learned that the fierce-looking person seemed to be named Zhou Changxi.

Zhou Changxi rudely ordered Tang Wulin, "New guy, go clean the dormitory."

Having just arrived and still rather clueless, Tang Wulin nodded obediently. "Okay."

Then he went out to fetch some water.

But when he returned and stepped inside, he saw his belongings scattered all over the floor.

Zhou Changxi was still holding his bag.

His quilt, clothes, and all sorts of daily necessities lay strewn across the floor. Even the two new school uniforms he had just received were among them.

The dormitory floor had not even been cleaned yet at the start of the school year, and the dust clinging to those things was painfully conspicuous.

His mother had bought all of those things with him. Before purchasing every item, he had talked it over with her for a long time.

At that moment, scenes flashed through Tang Wulin's mind—his mother packing his luggage before he left, placing each item neatly into his bag while anxiously reminding him of one thing after another.

"What are you doing?!"

Tang Wulin's eyes turned red. He was angry.

Mom worked so hard to pack my luggage for me. How dare you touch it!

Zhou Changxi stepped on his quilt and said disdainfully, "Nothing. I was just seeing what sort of things a country bumpkin like you brought."

"Turns out it's all trash. You really are a country bumpkin."

In an instant, something snapped inside Tang Wulin.

His mother had bought those things for him. They were not trash!

Driven by Zhou Changxi's vicious taunts, Tang Wulin moved. He charged forward with unstoppable momentum, the air itself bursting in a series of explosions. At terrifying speed, he rammed toward his opponent and threw a punch.

Zhou Changxi was no stranger to fighting and had long been prepared. He swiftly raised his hand to block.

Yet his defense posed no obstacle at all to Tang Wulin, like an ant trying to shake a tree.

That punch easily smashed through Zhou Changxi's palm and struck his chest.

Under the tremendous force, Zhou Changxi flew like a kite with a broken string, crashing through the window and falling downstairs.

From Tang Wulin's roar to Zhou Changxi being sent flying, only a second had passed.

Yun Xiao, standing nearby, was already scared senseless and froze in place.

Just then, someone walked in from outside. He wore a black tracksuit and had an ice-cold expression. The scattered belongings on the floor made him frown. He casually kicked them aside, then coldly said to Tang Wulin, who was blocking his path, "Move."

"You deserve to die too!"

Already emotionally unstable, Tang Wulin rushed forward and threw another punch. In his eyes, this person was the same kind as Zhou Changxi.

Unlike Zhou Changxi, the Arrogant Youth did not take the punch head-on. With a shift of his feet, he easily dodged it, then spun around and drove an elbow into Tang Wulin's back.

Tang Wulin, who had been charging forward, lost his balance and flew toward the dormitory entrance.

"Oh? You all have quite the personalities. Fighting on the first day of school, huh?"

Su Qiu arrived. He caught Tang Wulin and casually flicked his wrist, easily dispersing the force.

Still consumed by rage, Tang Wulin did not realize that the person catching him had helped him. Instinctively, he swung a backhanded punch.

Its force was similar to the punch Zhou Changxi had faced moments ago.

But Su Qiu raised a hand and steadily blocked it. This block was something Zhou Changxi would never have been capable of in his entire life.

"Classmate, calm down."

With a thought.

A gentle breeze brushed over Tang Wulin's head, cooling his mind and bringing him back to his senses.

"I... I'm sorry."

Tang Wulin lowered his head in apology. He realized that this person had just helped him.

"It's fine. You already apologized, so what else is there to say?"

Su Qiu waved a hand and walked into the dormitory.

"Can someone explain what just happened?"

Su Qiu smelled the stench of evil. He was going to judge an Evil Soul Master... oh, not yet. He was going to judge a bully.

But first, he needed to understand the full story.

The Arrogant Youth ignored him and simply found himself a bed to settle into.

Yun Xiao finally came back to his senses. His mind had always been quick since childhood, and he opened his mouth to explain.

At that moment, another deep voice came from outside the door.

"What's going on?"

The teacher had arrived. Pretty efficient.

Ten minutes later.

Eastsea Academy Intermediate Department, Academic Affairs Office.

"So you fought over this?" Long Hengxu coldly looked at the new students before him, his expression dark.

"What do you mean, 'over this'?"

After hearing the entire story from the side, Su Qiu had not expected the person he caught to be Tang Wulin.

Tang Wulin had been bullied on his first day of school?

He had forgotten those details.

Then this smug guy was Xie Xie, right?

Still, if someone threw around the things his mother had given him, he would fight them to the death too.

Long Hengxu ignored Su Qiu. This was the real young master of Eastsea City, so he might as well indulge him.

"Zhou Changxi, you could have entered Class Three, but it seems your character is deeply flawed. You completely deserved that beating. You will remain in Class Five forever."

Zhou Changxi wanted to argue, but Long Hengxu's gloomy gaze stopped him cold.

"And you two. Fighting as soon as you enroll, both of you will go to Class Five." This time, he was referring to Xie Xie and Yun Xiao.

Xie Xie paid him no mind and maintained his aloof demeanor. It did not matter where he went; he was confident in his own talent.

Yun Xiao immediately cried injustice. He had not done anything at all, yet Long Hengxu ruthlessly suppressed him through moral coercion.

"As for you." This time, Long Hengxu was addressing Su Qiu, but he faltered. Su Qiu had done nothing wrong. Was he supposed to praise him?

That would not work either. Long Hengxu's mind was full of suppressive education; with students fighting, he simply could not bring himself to praise anyone.

More importantly, Su Qiu's background was too formidable, so criticizing him was out of the question as well.

"You..."

"I'll go to Class Five too."

Su Qiu made the suggestion himself. He suddenly remembered that Class Five was taught by Wu Changkong, a former Shrek student.

More importantly, Wu Changkong also used a sword. Su Qiu had been worrying about how to practice swordsmanship, since Old Man Su Wuyan's head was full of that shitty Ultimate Skill of bullying the weak with strength.

Perfect. He could spar with Wu Changkong.

And he could take the chance to see what level Shrek's geniuses were at, preparing himself for the future.

"You're sure?" Long Hengxu looked at him strangely. Someone actually wanted to go to Class Five voluntarily?

Then he realized that Wu Changkong was teaching this year's Class Five. Su Qiu must have gotten the news and come specifically for him.