Running Maniac?

Why did Chu Mo's reply feel so strange?

Meng Hongchen rested her head on her arms and stared at the cold words. She couldn't help feeling that the person who'd said them was cold, too.

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: Group owner, big brother, why does what you said sound so strange? The words are clearly so cold, so why do they make me feel so desolate?]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: It's as if you've already seen our future and are lamenting it.]

Chu Mo didn't hide anything when he saw that. He simply shook his head. He wasn't just lamenting; he was also making his feelings clear to the three girls watching him.

[Chu Mo: I'm just lamenting, that's all. But I really have seen the future I mentioned. I can't tell you who I am, though. Gotta leave some mystery. Anyway, I'll send you all a surprise tomorrow.]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: A surprise?]

[Ya: All right, @Chu Mo, see you tonight. I'm taking a bath and getting changed before I head back. I have two Milk Bottles left, and I want to make them last. I'll probably get back around nightfall.]

[Chu Mo: Mm. Safety first. There's plenty of that stuff. If you run out, just ask Meng to buy you more.]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: Exactly, exactly! You could send me that Demon Puppet so I can play with it. I'll talk to my grandpa and have him give you a few Level 8 Soul Tools for self-defense.]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: @Chu Mo, you still haven't told us what the surprise is!]

At her follow-up question, Chu Mo's mouth twitched. He was a little speechless. Hadn't he already said it was a surprise? What kind of surprise could it be if he told them beforehand?

After replying once more, he closed the Group Chat. Seeing that the three girls had finished eating, he stood up.

Chu Mo asked the three girls sitting in their chairs,

"Let's go now that we've finished eating. We don't know if we have class, since nobody told us. We should go take a look."

That was right: the four of them had eaten sitting in chairs. The Shrek cafeteria didn't even have seats, so they'd bought their food and brought it to a bench in the plaza.

"Okay."

As they walked, Xiao Xiao bounced along, wondering aloud,

"I wonder what class we'll have this afternoon."

"Heh, maybe we'll just keep running."

Wang Dong'er said with a laugh.

"Ah? If that's really the case, I want to switch classes."

Huo Yu'er replied timidly. Her physical condition was truly terrible. That morning, she'd gritted her teeth and relied on the Mysterious Heaven Skill to run laps, but she still hadn't managed to finish. If Wang Dong'er hadn't helped her, she might have been expelled.

If she had to go through that again, with the risk of being expelled at any moment, that would really be...

Chu Mo heard Huo Yu'er's worry and smiled. Her Martial Soul had probably already made Zhou Yi's list. Zhou Yi might take her to study in the Spirit Tool Department that afternoon or the next day.

"What are you smiling about? Are you thinking something bad?" Wang Dong'er asked unhappily, pursing her lips.

"Nothing. Yu'er's Martial Soul is her eyes, and it's related to spiritual power. You all know that Zhou Yi's husband is in the Spirit Tool Department and is in charge of researching Soul Tools. Spiritual power is very useful for making them..."

Chu Mo wasn't annoyed. He calmly said what he'd been about to say.

"Huh?"

Huo Yu'er was dumbfounded. Hadn't their homeroom teacher said in class that everyone admitted to Shrek was a genius and didn't need help from Soul Tools?

Chu Mo knew why. Huo Yu'er's Soul Skill was exceptionally powerful and could support attacks, so Zhou Yi had changed her opinion. And that change of opinion applied only to Huo Yu'er.

Still, he only smiled and shook his head. He'd let Huo Yu'er find out for herself. Maybe things would change because he'd crossed over into this world.

When they reached the classroom door, they heard a hubbub of noise inside. They hadn't expected to get back so quickly. It seemed everyone had been shocked by Zhou Yi's outrageous methods that morning.

"Did any of you ask the upperclassmen what class we'll have this afternoon?"

"I don't know. Some upperclassmen said we'd have to go running again this afternoon?"

The moment the word "running" was mentioned, the entire classroom fell silent for two seconds. Then a chorus of cries erupted!

"Ah!"

"Running again? My legs still hurt!"

"I just finished taking a Healing Pill."

A chorus of groans came from the classroom.

Xiao Xiao's expression shifted, and she shot Wang Dong'er a furtive glance. Had the other girl's ominous prediction really come true?

"Heh, probably not," Chu Mo said with a chuckle.

Truthfully, he didn't know either. Zhou Yi had plenty of outrageous methods, after all. Another weighted run wasn't out of the question. She was a true disciple of Grandmaster and had a peculiar obsession with running.

But worrying so much wasn't a good thing, so he was mostly just trying to reassure them.

Clack.

The four of them sat in the same seats as that morning and waited quietly, their chins propped on their hands. They chatted idly in the Group Chat.

[Dong'er is Not a Girl: @Ya, Sister Yaya, what did you usually do in the afternoon when you were in that old hag's class?]

[Xiao Who Plays the Flute: Exactly, exactly! I want to know too. Surely we aren't running again?]

[Ya: It's unlikely. On the first afternoon I was in her class, we introduced ourselves and got to know the others.]

[Ice Frog is Stronger than Poison Frog: This is wild. These past few days have shattered my image of the First Academy, and today's been even more shocking. I never expected the so-called First Academy's teaching to consist of running. They've even scared the students witless.]

[Revenge Girl: Same here.]

They'd thought Shrek Academy would be a Monster Academy that could let its students change their fates against all odds. Who would've guessed it would be monsters and geniuses doing the teaching?

It was so far from what they'd imagined. Now that the illusion had been shattered, they thought about it carefully: these geniuses could succeed anywhere. Shrek Academy didn't seem to have helped Tang San become a god at all. It was as if he'd merely been an honorary student.

This time, Wang Dong'er unusually didn't argue with their complaints. She agreed with them instead.

[Dong'er is Not a Girl: It really is pretty different from what I expected. And she's an old hag going through menopause, too. She might even threaten to expel us.]

Chu Mo saw that their chat wasn't saying anything useful, so he didn't join in. Instead, he used the Manifestation Technique and edited tomorrow's video in his mind.

He deleted the scenes of Wang Dong'er appearing in men's clothes, Meng Hongchen falling in love with her at first sight, and the later reveal of her identity that ended with Meng Hongchen vomiting blood.

The person who'd fallen in love at first sight would eventually be told that the other person was a woman—and that she'd already gotten together with someone Meng Hongchen looked down on.

Chu Mo was already looking forward to seeing the Group Chat members' reactions to the video.

Divine Realm.

Zhu Zhuqing couldn't believe that the faith she'd relied on to survive after escaping had been completely useless, so she explained what she'd understood back then.

[Cat Who Controls Speed: Why are you all saying that? Running tests more than just endurance—it tests willpower, too. I know the Shrek Seven Devils built up their physical strength under Grandmaster's running regimen. That was how Tang San could absorb Spirit Rings beyond his limit and ultimately win the Spirit Master Tournament.]

[Dong'er is Not a Girl: Didn't you see what the group owner said above? Grandmaster's running wasn't very useful. Eating an Immortal Herb would do more. Besides, they used medicinal baths to temper their bodies while running, so at least they wouldn't have hidden injuries. We don't get that.]