Xiao Wu was soon drawn in by the aroma of food wafting from Oscar's stall.
Her nose twitched, and her eyes lit up. She immediately tugged on Tang San's sleeve and pointed over there. "Third Brother, they're selling sausages! Let's go buy some. I didn't get enough to eat this morning."
Tang San naturally wouldn't refuse Xiao Wu, so the two of them walked over.
Seeing another group of new students approach, Oscar immediately regained a merchant's enthusiasm and greeted them with a smile:
"New students? Try my sausages! The budget version costs one Copper Soul Coin each. They don't have much of an effect, but they're filling and taste pretty good. The Recovery Big Sausages are made with a Soul Skill. These are on the house—consider them a welcome gift."
Tang San nodded and didn't refuse. He paid two Copper Soul Coins and took two fragrant, golden-brown grilled sausages, handing them both to Xiao Wu. He took the Recovery Big Sausage Oscar had made with Soul Power.
Xiao Wu took a bite of the grilled sausage and happily narrowed her eyes. "Mmm! Delicious! Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside!"
Tang San also put the Recovery Big Sausage in his hand into his mouth. Once it reached his stomach, a gentle warmth quickly spread through his limbs and bones. The slight fatigue from their journey faded at a clearly perceptible pace.
The effect wasn't very strong for him, but he had never experienced such immediate restorative power from food before.
Tang San was once again glad he'd taken Yu Xiaogang's advice and come to this seemingly dilapidated academy.
The students he'd met even before enrolling—Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and now Oscar, the food-type Soul Master—had already made him feel that this place truly belonged to a completely different world from Nuoding City.
Ning Rongrong was also nibbling on the Recovery Big Sausage, her eyes sparkling. She had clearly felt its benefits too.
Zhu Zhuqing hadn't come over, but her gaze lingered on Oscar and his stall for a moment.
Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing wasn't leaving right away, Dai Mubai felt a little reassured and came over as well.
After completing his task of showing them around, Ma Hongjun simply joined them too.
Before long, several people had gathered around Oscar's stall, and the atmosphere was livelier than before.
Taking the opportunity, Tang San briefly introduced himself and Xiao Wu to Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun. He also learned Ning Rongrong's and Zhu Zhuqing's names.
The boys and girls were all around the same age, and each was exceptionally talented. Though their personalities differed greatly, they quickly struck up a conversation.
Just as their conversation was getting underway, Zhao Wuji arrived with Xiao Qing.
Zhao Wuji stopped in front of them and looked over the four new students. In a gruff voice, he said, "I'm Zhao Wuji, and I'm in charge of your final entrance examination. But I'm not your examiner this time. He is!"
Zhao Wuji pointed to Xiao Qing beside him.
"All of you new students have one stick of incense to defeat Xiao Qing or last a stick of incense without being defeated by him. If you manage either one, all of you pass. If you don't, you all get lost."
At those words, Tang San's gaze immediately settled on Xiao Qing.
He was going to be their examiner?
Tang San's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. He admitted that Shrek Academy was full of hidden talents; Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun had already surprised him. But this boy called Xiao Qing looked far too young.
Ning Rongrong's reaction was more direct. She'd grown up in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, surrounded by geniuses and powerful figures.
Although Oscar's sausages had made her see the academy in a new light, that didn't mean she would readily accept someone her own age as an examiner.
She immediately voiced her doubts, looking straight at Xiao Qing. "Teacher Zhao, you're making him our examiner? I don't doubt that Shrek has its share of geniuses, but you're asking the four of us to last a stick of incense against him—or defeat him? Isn't this exam underestimating us?"
Zhu Zhuqing said nothing, but her gaze on Xiao Qing was appraising, with a sharp eagerness to test him.
Xiao Wu pursed her lips and leaned close to Tang San's ear, whispering, "This Xiao Qing looks pretty full of himself."
Facing Ning Rongrong's doubts and the crowd's varied looks, Xiao Qing's expression didn't change. He neither explained nor argued.
Xiao Qing simply stepped forward.
As he took that step, an invisible pulse of Soul Power quietly spread out from him.
Then came a sight that the four new students—and Tang San in particular—would never forget.
Three Soul Rings, all purple! Every one of them a thousand years old!
Tang San's pupils contracted, and his breathing caught.
The trace of doubt and scrutiny on his face froze, then gave way to overwhelming shock.
Three thousand-year Soul Rings? How was that possible?!
It completely defied the fundamental theories of the Soul Master World that Grandmaster had developed through extensive research, theories Tang San had treated as absolute truth!
Yet there was no mistaking the three purple rings at Xiao Qing's feet.
This ironclad fact crashed like a heavy hammer against the cornerstone of the theory Tang San had believed without question. His mind went blank for a moment, and his worldview suffered an unprecedented shock.
If Grandmaster's theory was wrong, then the direction I'd been cultivating in all this time...
No, that's not right! Grandmaster's theory was based on countless examples. But what am I supposed to make of what's right in front of me?
Just as Tang San's thoughts reeled and his mind fell into chaos, an even more shocking sight appeared.
Three figures of different sizes and shapes materialized beside Xiao Qing, each radiating a powerful, ferocious aura.
On the left stood Xiao Feng, whose age had already surpassed six thousand years. His four paws touched the ground without a sound as he calmly surveyed what lay ahead, faint streams of pale-green air swirling around him.
On the right stood A'Man, whose age was about to reach five thousand years. Just standing there, he gave off an oppressive sense of unbreakable strength.
Above Xiao Qing's head hovered his third Soul Beast, the Wind-Thunder Falcon. It was two thousand seven hundred years old, and Xiao Qing had named it Thunder Feather.
All three Soul Beasts were at the thousand-year level!
The three purple Soul Rings, combined with three powerful thousand-year Soul Beast companions, delivered a visual and psychological shock far greater than the Soul Rings alone had.
The doubt vanished from Ning Rongrong's face. Her eyes widened and her mouth fell slightly open as she stared at Xiao Qing and the three Soul Beasts beside him, as though she were looking at some unbelievable monster.
At last, Zhu Zhuqing's cold face showed a clear flicker of emotion.
Dai Mubai hadn't lied to her. Shrek Academy really did have people capable of breaking the rules and working miracles!
Perhaps she and Dai Mubai could transform themselves here too. Perhaps there really was a glimmer of dawn that could change the seemingly inevitable fate of despair awaiting them!
Xiao Wu also dropped her earlier nonchalance, her body tensing slightly. She could sense a powerful threat from the three Soul Beasts, especially the giant wolf and the enormous falcon.
Tang San was the most shaken of them all.
The shock of the three purple Soul Rings had yet to pass, and the appearance of three powerful thousand-year Soul Beasts shattered his fixed understanding even further. This was entirely beyond the bounds of his knowledge of Martial Souls and the Soul Master system.
Xiao Qing paid no attention to the new students' vivid expressions. His face remained calm.
With a thought, Thunder Feather, the Wind-Thunder Falcon above his head, and A'Man, the Iron Armor Bear on his right, turned into two streaks of light and vanished into his body.
Only Xiao Feng remained, crouching quietly beside him. Xiao Qing then took an ordinary incense stick from his Cloth Bag, lit it, and casually planted it in the soft earth beside him.
Only after doing all this did he raise his eyes and calmly sweep his gaze over the four new students.
"You can all come at me together!"
"Teacher Zhao said that if you can defeat me and Xiao Feng within the time it takes one stick of incense to burn, or last that long without being defeated, you pass!"
When he finished speaking, silence fell over the clearing. Only the incense stick burned soundlessly.
Xiao Qing stood with his hands behind his back, the Storm Wolf King poised beside him. An invisible pressure rolled out like a tangible tide, spreading over the entire examination ground.
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