Flender's Attention

"But for some reason, Flender had been incredibly determined to found an advanced soul master academy." As he said this, Nuo Si lowered his voice and leaned close to Qin Ming's ear.

"I've been to that Shrek Academy before. It was just a few rundown wooden huts, yet they dared call them student dormitories. Even dogs would probably shake their heads after seeing them, let alone spirit masters."

"Not to compare it with the famous Four Element Academies, but even Suotuo Advanced Soul Master Academy here in Suotuo City has simulated environments, dedicated training grounds, and sometimes meals made with thousand-year soul beast meat."

"And they even claimed to accept only geniuses. Tell me, what kind of genius would go there unless he'd been kicked in the head by a donkey? Wouldn't that just be ruining his own talent?" The more Nuo Si spoke, the more he could not help laughing. Afraid that the people in the room would hear him, he hunched over and covered his mouth with both hands, his cheeks puffed up like a toad's, making for a rather comical sight.

Qin Ming, who was listening nearby, was starting to lose it. After all, he had joined Shrek Academy in the original story. It felt a little like Nuo Si was calling him someone who had been kicked in the head by a donkey, leaving him with an indescribable feeling.

Who knew what method Flender had used to fool the original Qin Ming into joining Shrek Academy?

But Qin Ming, now carrying memories from his past life, only wanted to say, Rare talent—stay away from Shrek Academy!

After arguing for a while, the two people in the study still failed to reach any conclusion.

Click— The door opened.

A young man wearing glasses stepped out. He wore a brown trench coat, and unshaven stubble still covered his face. He was neither handsome nor ugly.

This should be Flender. Qin Ming quietly committed the man's appearance to memory.

Flender's face was flushed red, clearly showing that he had been quite enraged. The moment he opened the door, he saw the two people standing nearby.

Flender had seen the older one before. He was a deacon specifically responsible for awakening martial souls for commoners, apparently named Nuo Si. And indeed, it was time for Spirit Hall's annual martial soul awakening for commoners.

Then, he shifted his gaze to Qin Ming beside Nuo Si.

"A child?" Flender's eyes narrowed, and a faint, almost imperceptible blue glimmer flashed through the eyes behind his lenses.

Qin Ming immediately felt every hair on his body stand on end, as though some monster had fixed its gaze on him.

When he looked up, he found Flender staring at him with a foolish grin, one that did not look remotely decent.

A chill crawled up Qin Ming's spine and straight to the top of his head. Could Flender possibly have some special ideas about him?

Did he have a preference for little boys?

Seeing Qin Ming look at him, Flender tried hard to put on what he believed was his kindest expression and walked over.

The moment Flender approached, Qin Ming immediately hid behind Nuo Si.

"Uh..." Flender was somewhat crushed. Was he really that suspicious-looking?

"Little friend, my name is Flender. I'm not a bad person."

"I'm a Level 68 Soul Emperor and the dean of Shrek Advanced Soul Master Academy. I just wanted to get acquainted with you." Flender forcefully suppressed his emotions, trying to salvage his earlier loss of composure.

But his face, twisted like a knotted rope, reminded Qin Ming of cow dung that had been stepped on by the soles of villagers' shoes.

No one responded, and the atmosphere became awkward. Even Nuo Si was speechless toward Flender. A Soul Emperor wanted to get acquainted with a raggedly dressed child—what could his intentions possibly be? And he was even giving himself a good-person card.

It made Nuo Si think of rumors from Spirit Halls in other cities about priests who liked little boys.

The way Nuo Si looked at Flender changed as well. He had originally thought Flender was merely a powerful Soul Emperor with a bad brain, but he had not expected him to have such a preference.

To think that he would openly commit such filthy behavior in a sacred place like the Martial Soul Main Hall.

"Your Excellency Soul Emperor, please conduct yourself with dignity!" Nuo Si shielded Qin Ming behind him. He did not believe Flender would dare do anything excessive inside the Martial Soul Main Hall.

Spirit Hall was the number one power on the continent. The price of provoking its authority was not something a mere Soul Emperor could bear.

Just as the atmosphere turned strange, an elderly man in red robes and a ceremonial crown walked out of the study.

"Bishop Charlton!" As though he had seen a pillar of support, Nuo Si immediately pulled Qin Ming toward him.

"Sir Flender, please leave. I still have other matters to handle." Charlton pointed toward the entrance door, making his meaning perfectly clear.

Flender himself also felt embarrassed, so he deliberately put on a composed appearance and strode away.

Once the troublesome Flender had finally left, Charlton directly led the two of them into the study.

The study was not large, only around a dozen square meters. Its interior was entirely wood-paneled, and compared to the luxury of the outer hall, it was exceedingly plain and unadorned.

After closing the door, Charlton returned directly to his seat behind the desk, casually waving for the two of them to sit opposite him.

After thanking him, Qin Ming and Nuo Si sat down.

"Bishop, that Flender was far too arrogant!" Before his chair had even warmed up, Nuo Si could not help complaining. What had happened earlier had clearly shocked him greatly.

Qin Ming was a genius he had discovered! If a Soul Emperor had any special ideas about him, Nuo Si could not simply stand by, whether out of duty or personal conscience.

"Nuo Si, look at you. You still can't keep your cool." Rather than directly answering him, Charlton teased him in a half-joking manner.

"Bishop, Bishop, you're just too mild-tempered. If you were a little tougher, would that Flender still dare come to Spirit Hall again and again to make unreasonable trouble?" Seeing that Charlton was not worried, Nuo Si could not help pounding his chest and stamping his feet.

"This young brother is Qin Ming, a genius I brought back after awakening his martial soul this time."

"Oh? A genius?" Charlton immediately became interested. It had been a long time since he had heard those two words.

"That's right. A Fire Attribute Mutated Beast Martial Soul, Innate Level 8 Soul Power. What do you think? Talented enough, right? And he has already agreed to join Spirit Hall." When Nuo Si said the words "agreed to join Spirit Hall," he deliberately raised his voice, afraid that Charlton would not take it seriously enough.

"A Mutated Martial Soul, Innate Level 8 Soul Power." Charlton repeated the words softly. He had served Spirit Hall in Suotuo City for more than forty years, awakening martial souls for hundreds of thousands of children of the appropriate age every year.

Yet in all his memories, talents like this could be counted on two hands.

"Flender's Four-Eyed Owl martial soul is a mental-type Mutated Beast Martial Soul. Its perceptive abilities are quite strong, so he must have noticed something about young brother Qin Ming." Charlton analyzed the situation, and his brows could not help furrowing.

"So Flender noticed Qin Ming's talent and developed thoughts of taking him as a disciple?" Nuo Si also understood the reasoning, immediately feeling that this would be troublesome.

Hearing their conversation, Qin Ming finally understood what that earlier sense of unease had been. So that old bastard Flender had been using Mental Power to probe him.

Did I just get doxxed?

The original Qin Ming had probably caught Flender's attention here. Later, Flender had used some unknown method to talk him into joining Shrek Academy.

"Child, your name is Qin Ming, right?" Charlton looked at Qin Ming with a kindly expression.

"Yes, Bishop."

"None of that 'sir' business. We don't do that here! Just call me Grandpa Charlton." Charlton deliberately put on a stern expression.

"Grandpa Charlton!" Qin Ming immediately changed how he addressed him, and his opinion of the old man rose another level. Despite being the red-robed bishop of the Martial Soul Main Hall, Charlton did not put on any airs at all.