Du Weilun opened the folder in his hands and read,
"After reviewing the new students' performances in the assessment, the academy has approved the following students as Core Disciples: Ning Tian, Xie Huanyue, Dai Huabin, and Bai Yi."
The students below saw Du Weilun stop speaking and were all stunned. No way—there were only four Core Disciples this time?
Wait! What about Mo Yuan? Surely Mo Yuan could become a Core Disciple too, couldn't he?
"What's going on? Brother Moyuan, where's your name?" Bai Yi asked, looking stunned.
Mo Yuan furrowed his brow slightly but said nothing, feeling a little puzzled himself.
Had Shrek Academy gotten too full of itself lately? Were they trying to suppress him?
But before the students could voice their doubts, Du Weilun continued, "Given Mo Yuan's strength and talent, the academy has made other arrangements for him. Everyone should trust that Shrek Academy will never overlook a talented student. Here, every piece of gold will receive the treatment it deserves."
After the students below showed signs of understanding, Du Weilun turned a page in the folder and continued,
"Some new students performed exceptionally well in the assessment despite having certain shortcomings in talent and ability. The academy has decided to grant them Core Disciple benefits until the end of this academic year.
"If they make progress in next year's advancement exams, they will be considered for promotion to full Core Disciples. The students are as follows: Nanmen Yun'er, Wu Feng, Cao Jinxuan... Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao."
After Du Weilun finished reading the long list of names, Huo Yuhao's eager expression froze when he heard that his name wasn't among them. His eyes gradually went blank.
Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao, beside him, wanted to comfort him. But the moment Wang Dong patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder, he slapped her hand away.
Huo Yuhao glanced at Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao, both looking stunned, then at the dozen or so teachers on the platform. Finally, his gaze settled on Mo Yuan, not far away.
He seared that figure into his memory with a cold stare. Without saying a word, Huo Yuhao turned and left the assessment area.
As he felt one gaze after another fall on him, Huo Yuhao clenched his fists tightly and murmured,
"Just you wait. One day, you'll pay for your mistake..."
Huo Yuhao's departure caused no stir beyond leaving Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao baffled. In past years, plenty of students had left disappointed or angry when they found their names missing from the Core Disciple list. The academy was used to it by now.
After announcing the Core Disciple list, they moved on to class assignments. The first year was divided into four classes.
Class One was for Strong Attack System and Control System Soul Masters; Class Two, for Defense System and Agile Attack System Soul Masters; Class Three, for Support System Battle Soul Masters; and Class Four, for Battle Soul Masters and Tool Soul Masters with other special attributes, including the Food System and Healing System.
But Mo Yuan still didn't hear his name on the Class One list. As puzzlement stirred in his mind, a suspicion took shape.
After Du Weilun announced the end of the class assignments, Mo Yuan went with Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er to the Director's Office, following Du Weilun and holding on to that suspicion.
Du Weilun's office was much larger than Mu Jin's. Besides several large bookcases, a desk, and a sofa for guests, there was plenty of room.
"Have a seat. Make yourselves at home," Du Weilun said warmly, gesturing to the sofa.
Once the three had sat down, Du Weilun lightly brushed the large ruby ring on his right hand with his left. A leather pouch appeared on the desk in front of him.
The pouch seemed to be a Soul Tool. Dark patterns marked its brown leather, and it gave off faint fluctuations of Soul Power.
"This is the prize I prepared for you as the champions of the New Student Assessment. There's only one, so the three of you will need to decide who gets it. It's also the most precious prize the academy has awarded in the New Student Assessment in nearly a thousand years."
As he spoke, Du Weilun controlled the pouch with his Soul Power and sent it flying toward Mo Yuan.
"Open it and have a look."
Mo Yuan took the pouch and opened it under the curious gazes of Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er. A mass of white light emerged and slowly hovered in midair.
It was an oddly shaped bone, white as jade and wreathed in wisps of pale, icy air. When it was exposed, Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er could almost feel the temperature drop several degrees.
They couldn't tell what kind of creature it had come from, but it looked like a leg bone.
"Is that... a Soul Bone?!" Bai Yi exclaimed. Mo Yuan had expected it and showed no reaction, but even Nanmen Yun'er, who came from a distinguished family, couldn't help being surprised.
Du Weilun gave Mo Yuan, whose expression remained calm, a long, meaningful look before explaining the Soul Bone. "That's right. Your prize is a Soul Bone. You all know what Soul Bones are and how important they are, so I won't go into that. Let me tell you about this one."
"This Soul Bone came from an ice-attribute bird-type Soul Beast called a Frostwing Bird. You should have studied it in your first-year theory classes, so I won't say more.
"It's a Left Leg Bone, roughly ten thousand years old. According to the academy's assessment, an ice-attribute Soul Master who fuses with it will gain a large-area group attack called 'Frost Invasion.' If the Soul Master has a flying Soul Skill, it can also greatly increase their flight speed."
After hearing Du Weilun's explanation, Bai Yi's eyes burned with excitement. It was no exaggeration to say this Soul Bone seemed tailor-made for him.
But although Bai Yi badly wanted to claim the Soul Bone and absorb it right then and there, he quickly tamped down his greed and looked at Mo Yuan, who was holding it.
Nanmen Yun'er did the same. Their meaning was clear: they owed their championship entirely to Mo Yuan's help.
So Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er left the decision of who should receive the Soul Bone to Mo Yuan.
"Here," Mo Yuan said, casually tossing the Soul Bone to Bai Yi.
He felt nothing for this ice-attribute Left Leg Bone. Its attribute might not suit him, and he didn't rate it highly with such a low age.
After all, he'd even been willing to trade away a twelve-thousand-year-old Dragon Horn Hunting Lizard Right Arm Bone.
"Thank you for the generous gift, Brother Moyuan!"
Bai Yi fumbled to catch the Soul Bone, then immediately thanked him, overjoyed.
Nanmen Yun'er remained composed, a slight smile on her face. She had no objections to Mo Yuan's decision and wasn't displeased; the Soul Bone really was a better fit for Bai Yi.
"You can have the pouch, too. It can conceal fluctuations of Soul Power. Fuse with the Soul Bone as soon as you get back. The academy is safe, but even an innocent man may be punished for possessing a treasure. You must also keep the fact that you received a Soul Bone as a reward confidential on behalf of the academy. I trust you know what to do."
As Du Weilun spoke, he stood up. Seeing that Mo Yuan and the others were about to rise and leave as well, he quickly added,
"Mo Yuan, you don't need to get up. Someone wants to see you later, so you'll need to wait here for a while."
At that, Mo Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly. His suspicion was now seven or eight parts confirmed. He nodded to show he understood, then turned to stop Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er as they were about to leave the office.
"Here are two bottles of Xuan Water Pills. You know what they do, so I won't explain. Consider them gifts from me.
"As for you, Yun'er, you'll probably run into Teacher Mu Jin when you leave. She'll give the two of you a Soul Bone then. Don't wait for me to come back and decide—just hand it over to her."
As he spoke, Mo Yuan tossed the two jade bottles to Bai Yi and Nanmen Yun'er. He knew all about the bet between Mu Jin and Zhou Yi that had won them a Soul Bone.
Or rather, the whole thing was a trap set for Zhou Yi by Du Weilun, Mu Jin, and him.
The reason was obvious: Du Weilun and Mu Jin wanted Zhou Yi out of the academy, while Mo Yuan wanted a Soul Bone that was no use to him in exchange for gaining a useful subordinate.
A win-win for three parties, in a world where only Zhou Yi, Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao got hurt.
Thanks to reader A Shu Wants to Retire Early for the two monthly tickets, reader [Huanghun] for the two monthly tickets, reader dnwly for the four monthly tickets, reader qiu010513 for one monthly ticket, and reader 20190816111920058 for one monthly ticket.
Thank you for your support!
The author also wishes all readers a happy New Year's Eve, with your families reunited, your careers flourishing, promotions and wealth coming your way, and blessings filling your homes!
And to readers who are away from home this year and couldn't make it back: may next year bring you wealth and success in everything!
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