Special Admissions

"That kid's got some tricks."

Li Yusong, who had been waiting to collect the money, suddenly narrowed his eyes and looked at Feng Xinglie with interest. Of everyone present, only Tang San, with his Purple Demon Eye, and Li Yusong, a Six-Ring Soul Emperor, had seen Feng Xinglie's movements clearly.

Fist Pulling Technique was a martial art similar to the quick-draw techniques used with swords and guns. By lowering his center of gravity and twisting his waist, the user drew a fist hidden in his pocket and poised to strike, launching an attack at incredible speed. It was a counterattacking style that struck after the opponent moved, yet arrived first.

"Third Brother, look! It's the person we met yesterday. He knocked that lecherous tiger flat with one punch!"

At the back of the line, Xiao Wu excitedly shook Tang San's arm. This rabbit, who loved fighting more than anything, had clearly developed a keen interest in Feng Xinglie's strength. Tang San, however, was focused on the movement that he himself had barely managed to see.

"What incredible speed. Is he an Agility Attack System Soul Master? No, he didn't use a Soul Skill just now. There wasn't even enough time to summon his Martial Soul. So what kind of technique was that?"

Unaware that both the male and female leads had taken an interest in him, Feng Xinglie walked straight up to Li Yusong, picked up the wooden box from the table, and handed it to the father and son beside him.

"Take your money back, and be careful from now on. Don't let anyone cheat you again."

"Yes, yes. Thank you, sir."

The man called Feng Xinglie, who was about the same age as his son, "sir" again and again. After all, strength ruled the Douluo Continent. Feng Xinglie had knocked out a Soul Elder with one punch to stand up for them. The father and son were so moved that they bowed repeatedly.

"You brat, who are you calling a cheat?"

Seeing the warm scene before him, Li Yusong was so angry his beard bristled. Feng Xinglie merely glanced at him coolly.

"You took the money without explaining the admission requirements, then threw people out and kept their money when they didn't meet the standards. What else would you call that but fraud? If you're going to run an academy, you should at least make the requirements clear beforehand."

His words immediately set off a wave of discussion among the crowd. The parents' gazes toward Li Yusong grew increasingly hostile. Seeing the situation slip out of his control, Li Yusong sprang to his feet, summoned his Martial Soul, the Dragon Patterned Staff, and slammed it hard against the ground.

"Everyone, shut up!"

As he roared, six Soul Rings appeared beneath his feet: white, yellow, purple, purple, purple, and black. The crowd immediately fell silent in fright. Who would have guessed that this unassuming old man was a Soul Emperor?

Once the scene had quieted down, Li Yusong gave a cold snort.

"Our Shrek Academy is an academy for monsters. That means we only accept monsters, not ordinary people. Anyone over thirteen whose Soul Power Level hasn't reached twenty-one can stop wasting their time here."

At those words, more than half the crowd dispersed. Some knew their children didn't meet the requirements; others couldn't stand Shrek's arrogant attitude. Surprisingly, Feng Xinglie was among those leaving.

"Hey! Brat, where are you going? Aren't you going to sign up?"

Seeing Feng Xinglie about to leave, Li Yusong grew anxious. Dai Mubai was currently the strongest student in their academy, yet Feng Xinglie had knocked him out with one punch without even using his Martial Soul. They couldn't let a genius like that walk away.

"I'm over thirteen, so I don't meet your admission requirements. What about it?"

Li Yusong was left speechless. He knew perfectly well that Dai Mubai was already fifteen; how could someone who beat him be under thirteen? But he didn't want to let such a rare Little Monster slip away, so he tried to persuade him.

"Heh, you defeated the best student at Shrek Academy, so we're making a special exception for you. We'll let you join Shrek. How about it? By the way, kid, what's your Soul Power Level?"

At that, Feng Xinglie gave a cold laugh. Four Soul Rings reappeared beneath his feet: yellow, purple, black, and black. Li Yusong was so shocked his voice trembled.

"A... a thousand-year second ring, and ten-thousand-year third and fourth rings? H-how is that possible?"

Feng Xinglie shrugged. "There are all kinds of strange Martial Souls in this world. Mine just happens to let me absorb Soul Rings beyond the usual limits. Is there a problem?"

"Excellent! You're the most terrifying Little Monster I've ever seen. Only Shrek Academy is worthy of teaching a child like you. Your age isn't a problem, and we can waive the tuition, too. We'll call on the academy's best teachers and give you everything we've got!"

Li Yusong couldn't care less about the admission requirements now. If they let a talent like this, one they might not see again in ten thousand years, slip away, it would be the academy's greatest loss. He had to recruit Feng Xinglie at any cost.

"All right. Since you've put it that way, I'll see whether your academy is capable of guiding me. But I'll make this clear: if Shrek isn't strong enough, I'll leave whenever I want."

"Of course. I'll agree on behalf of the dean. But you can rest assured—there's no academy anywhere on the Douluo Continent better than ours!"

Whatever it took, they had to get him enrolled first. Seeing Feng Xinglie relent, Li Yusong let out a long breath and hurriedly ushered him toward the academy.

"Mubai, Mubai! Wake up! You can't sleep here."

After slapping the unconscious Dai Mubai awake a few times, Li Yusong looked at the dazed Evil Eyed White Tiger and instructed him, "Pull yourself together. Take your new junior brothers and sisters to the next test. Remember, get to know your juniors and make them feel welcome."

"What? Teacher Li, this guy passed the first test?!"

Waking to the bad news, Dai Mubai rubbed his throbbing head and protested in annoyance.

"He knocked you out with one punch without using a Soul Skill. You tell me if he's qualified! Stop wasting time and take them inside!"

Under Li Yusong's threat, Dai Mubai reluctantly led Feng Xinglie and Zhu Zhuqing, who had just finished her test, farther into the academy. Off to the side, Xiao Wu's eyes lit up after watching the whole show.

"This academy looks really interesting. Especially what that teacher said about only accepting monsters and not ordinary people—that was so cool."

Tang San smiled. "You're not doubting our teacher's advice now, are you? Shrek Academy is definitely no ordinary place. But... how did that person's Soul Rings exceed the theoretical limits our teacher proposed?"

To Tang San, Yu Xiaogang's theories were absolute truths. So when he saw Feng Xinglie's unconventional Soul Rings, his surprise quickly turned to skepticism—but the one he doubted was Feng Xinglie.

After all the commotion, very few people remained at the registration desk. Aside from Zhu Zhuqing, who followed behind Feng Xinglie, and Ning Rongrong, dressed in green, only Tang San and Xiao Wu were left. After passing the test, they hurried after the others into the academy. But they hadn't gone far when they saw Feng Xinglie and the others stopped at a stall up ahead, apparently talking about something.