"Besides, there's no need to trouble the other mentors. Just bring him straight to the fourth gate for the assessment."
Recruiting Mentor Huohuo glared at Huohuo and snorted.
Huohuo had wanted to ask Zhu Zhuqing about her identity, but under the recruiting mentor's warning gaze, she could only swallow the question.
She shot Zhu Zhuqing a deep look, then directly dragged the stunned Han San toward the inner room.
Han San wanted to chat with Huoyao, so he took the initiative to strike up a conversation.
"Deputy, you can skip the assessment for Wu Xue and Yueyan. Yesterday, I thought I'd have to take care of things myself, but those three ten-thousand-year soul beasts of yours really gave me a scare."
Huoyao chuckled and waved her hand.
"That was only the effect of my soul skill. It just happened to knock out those people. No matter how much I improve, I couldn't possibly have ten ten-thousand-year soul beasts. At most, I could use one or two to intimidate people."
Huohuo's face darkened. He was the greatest victim of that soul skill.
Especially when he recalled how he had been forced to kneel before Huoyao after provoking Han San and the others yesterday, he grew even more furious.
Huohuo gave a cold snort and said nothing.
"The small hand-seal technique can only be used to intimidate people. Once you reach the fourth gate, you'll understand. Against a complete soul-force defense, even a single strike won't work."
Huoyao ignored Huohuo's unpleasant expression and politely nodded toward him.
"Is that so? Then why were you so fast yesterday?"
"You!"
Huohuo suddenly turned his head. His fierce gaze locked onto Huoyao, and his eyes were filled with anger, as though he wanted to tear him apart.
However, in the face of his rage, Huoyao remained completely calm. Instead, the nearby Zhu Zhuqing directly turned her cold gaze on him.
"What do you want?"
Huohuo's expression instantly froze.
If he guessed correctly, the girl before him was Zhu Zhuqing's companion. That meant she knew that Huoyao had a grudge against Huoyao. As a result, she had just happened to stand on Huoyao's side.
What was going on with this group?
The atmosphere instantly fell into silence. Han San hurriedly stepped out to smooth things over.
"All right, all right. It might be that everyone has misunderstood one another. What happened yesterday may only have been a small misunderstanding. We'll definitely clear things up later."
"Little Wu!"
The old man's unmarried daughter was living in the same room as him. How dare he call her Little Wu? If someone dared to do something to his daughter, would he still be able to remain silent?
Huohuo's eyes filled with killing intent. Even Han San froze in shock.
Fortunately, he still had some sense. He knew he was no match for Huoyao, and this matter had already been arranged by that terrifying person.
They were walking toward the Duoxu family's restaurant when they happened to run into Zhu Zhuqing. Without knowing the circumstances, she loudly exposed what had happened to her in Suotuo City over the past few years.
Even if Chang Feng learned of it from Taolangke's mentor, he probably would not blame him for it.
In any case, he was about to become Taolangke's deputy dean. He had to bring Zhu Zhuqing back no matter what happened.
Thinking of this, Huohuo took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed his anger, and followed behind the others.
Huoyao glanced at his back. Then, while raising the corner of her mouth, she once again whispered something in Zhu Zhuqing's ear.
[Zhu Zhuqing had already recognized Huohuo's true identity. She would no longer be deceived by him like in the original world. But precisely because of this, Huohuo had to guard against Huohuo's sudden attack.]
[When Huohuo thought Zhu Zhuqing wanted to leave with me, he chose to attack Zhu Zhuqing from behind, intending to kill her directly.]
[If I had not been there at that time, Huohuo would have been doomed. Fortunately, Xiao Wu and Duoxu had a good relationship with Zhu Zhuqing and chose to help her. Otherwise, Zhu Zhuqing would not have been able to survive.]
[Even if it was out of gratitude for saving Zhu Zhuqing in her previous life, I still could not simply watch her fall into Taolangke's hands. At the last moment, I had to help her leave with me.]
[Duoxu is slightly better. The Zhu Zhuqing beside her is the person who had just taken over Taolangke's position. However, Xiao Wu could not be allowed to continue staying there. She had been deceived by Han San for so long, and now she believed Han San had become her elder brother.]
[If I told her that Han San was an outsider demon, she definitely would not believe me. She might even think I was deliberately sowing discord. It would be better to wait until we became familiar with each other and let Zhu Zhuqing help me persuade her to leave together.]
When they arrived at the new assessment site, Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, Yueyan, and the other three women were waiting together in a tense atmosphere. They had decided to have a proper talk after the entrance assessment ended.
Zhu Zhuqing was especially affected. After learning about Huoyao's relationship with Huoyao, she had treated it as her own problem. She did not want to wait for Huoyao to come back and ask questions, so she called Xiao Wu over first to test her attitude.
After all, from the way she saw it, she had no intention of hiding anything from Han San. That girl already knew Han San's identity as an outsider demon, so it depended on how she planned to deal with it.
As for Duoxu...
Just as Huoyao had said, the Duoxu beside her had established a good relationship with Taolangke's people. Once she saw Huoyao's family members being killed by Han San, even the seven precious glazed clans might perish at Han San's hands. She definitely could not let the same thing happen again.
Just as Zhu Zhuqing was secretly pondering this, Han San and his group also arrived at Taolangke's fourth gate.
Huohuo saw him sitting on a chair, yawning at the entrance of the spacious building.
"Mentor, we've brought five people to take the fourth-gate assessment."
"Oh? This year, did the academy recruit people for the fourth gate? There are five of them?"
The mentor rubbed his sleepy eyes. When he saw that Huoyao and Zhu Zhuqing had brought five people, he was extremely surprised. Ever since the academy had been established by Han San, there had never been a year when so many people came to take the fourth-gate assessment.
Huohuo looked at Huoyao and the others, somewhat helplessly.
"Not only are there five people, but they've also directly skipped the second- and third-gate assessments."
Upon hearing this, the mentor's eyes widened. He immediately stood up from his chair.
The man was not tall, and his appearance was ordinary. His build, however, was exceptionally robust, with bulging muscles that looked as though they might tear his clothes apart.
After sizing up the five people, the mentor's eyes gleamed.
"All five of them have exceeded twenty-five ranks. Not bad, not bad. It seems this year's little monsters are quite impressive."
"Next, as long as you can pass my assessment, you can officially become a student of Taolangke. However, my assessment is not something you can pass so easily."
"Advancing through the ranks is something every soul master must accomplish. What I'm assessing is your ability in other areas."
"I'm Taolangke. Get to know one another first. In a moment, the formal assessment will begin."
Before you continue