Let Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu Compete as a Team!

Du Weilun stood before the desk, holding a freshly printed report in his hand. He did not sit down; his back was ramrod straight.

"Weilun, the Freshman Assessment hasn't even started yet. How come you have time to come see me?" Yan Shaozhe blew the foam from his tea and took a leisurely sip.

Du Weilun took a deep breath and handed over the report.

"Dean, something big has happened. Today, during Class Nine's class monitor selection in the Soul Fighting Arena, a Hell White Tiger appeared."

Yan Shaozhe paused and set down his teapot.

"A Hell White Tiger? People from the Dai Family and the Zhu Family of the Star Luo Empire? What's so unusual about that? Every generation has a few who come to our Shrek Academy. Being able to use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill is only to be expected."

"But Dean, their Soul Power Levels... are higher than we expected."

Du Weilun swallowed.

"Dai Huabin was eleven years old. When he first came to register, he was at level thirty-two. Today, he's already reached level thirty-three. Zhu Lu also broke through from level twenty-five to level twenty-six."

"Level thirty-three at eleven?" Yan Shaozhe's expression finally changed.

He stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"He truly is a rare genius. Even in the Inner Academy, that talent would be top-tier. Did the boy have some kind of lucky encounter?"

"That's not all."

Du Weilun raised his voice, bracing both hands against the edge of the desk.

"They were surrounded by the entire class in the Soul Fighting Arena. When they were facing certain defeat, the Hell White Tiger they summoned grew wings."

Yan Shaozhe's hand jolted, and the purple clay teapot knocked against the tabletop with a dull thud.

A few drops of scalding tea splashed out, but he paid them no mind.

He sprang to his feet, his white robe billowing as if stirred by an unseen wind.

"Wings? Are you sure you saw correctly?" Yan Shaozhe's voice tightened, and he spoke at lightning speed.

"Absolutely. I was watching from the edge of the arena."

Du Weilun nodded firmly.

"The pair of wings, one black and one white, spanned a full ten meters. They also used a brand-new Soul Skill, 'Hell White Tiger Break,' destroying everyone's defenses in a single strike. Its power even reached the Soul King level."

Yan Shaozhe braced both hands on the desk. It took him quite a while to recover.

Ten thousand years.

The records in Shrek Academy's archives were perfectly clear. After taking an Immortal Herb, the War God Dai Mubai and the God of Speed Zhu Zhuqing, two of the original Shrek Seven Devils, had cultivated their Martial Soul Fusion to its utmost potential. Only then had the Hell White Tiger evolved wings.

And now, two eleven-year-old children, at the age when they should have only three rings, had reached this point without the aid of Immortal Herbs.

"This goes beyond the word genius."

Yan Shaozhe circled the desk and paced back and forth, his steps quick.

"Perfect compatibility... This means their martial souls don't merely complement each other; their very souls have reached a profound resonance.

Even in the history of Shrek, such a thing is as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns."

Du Weilun added from the side:

"I also noticed that Dai Huabin is extremely arrogant. He challenged the entire class and wagered that he would win over that little girl from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect. His cunning and nerve are nothing like those of an eleven-year-old boy."

"A little arrogance is good. Without pride, how could someone be called a genius?"

Yan Shaozhe waved a hand and walked to the window. He pushed it open. On the Outer Academy's grounds, many new students were walking together in groups.

"Weilun." Yan Shaozhe suddenly turned around.

"Yes, Dean."

"Keep a close eye on Dai Huabin. I want to see how he performs in the Freshman Assessment."

Yan Shaozhe paused, his tone turning very serious.

"Also, for the Freshman Assessment in three months, make the arrangements. Have Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu compete as a team!"

"Rest assured, Dean. I'll personally arrange the teams for the Freshman Assessment."

Du Weilun replied.

Dai Huabin and Zhu Lu had managed to summon a mutated Hell White Tiger. That kind of talent could no longer be measured by ordinary standards.

More importantly, the two of them were direct descendants of the White Tiger Duke Mansion and the Netherworld Duke Mansion.

For ten thousand years, these two great families of the Star Luo Empire had stood shoulder to shoulder with Shrek Academy.

No matter how arrogant Dai Huabin was or how overbearing his methods, there could be no question of where his loyalties lay.

With proper nurturing, he would undoubtedly become a pillar of the Martial Soul Department—and a pillar of Shrek Academy as well.

After Du Weilun left, Yan Shaozhe settled back into his rosewood chair.

He lifted his teacup and blew away the steam on its surface, feeling quite pleased.

"What a delightful surprise. It seems this generation's Shrek Seven Devils Reserve Team will have two more guaranteed spots."

Yan Shaozhe murmured to himself, his face alight with joy.

Meanwhile, at Shrek Square.

The midday sun beat down mercilessly, baking the ground until white wisps of heat rose from it.

Zhou Yi, the Class One homeroom teacher, stood at the edge of the track in her same old gray robe, a black pointer in hand and a vicious look on her face.

"Did you all skip lunch? If you're going to run this slowly, you might as well pack your bags and crawl back home!"

Zhou Yi's voice rang across the field.

The new students of Class One were all dressed in heavy iron suits. They were drenched in sweat, their steps unsteady, like machines on the verge of falling apart.

Huo Yuhao carried his iron suit and clenched his teeth. Sweat blurred his eyes, and he didn't even have the strength to wipe it away.

With every breath, his lungs ached like bellows being pumped.

Zhou Yi was in an unusually foul temper today.

That morning, she had happened to run into Mu Jin.

Mu Jin, who was usually one step behind her, had been beaming from ear to ear today, walking with a spring in her step.

After asking around, Zhou Yi learned that two students in Mu Jin's class could use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill—and that the pair had challenged more than twenty people and won.

There was no one in Zhou Yi's own class who could stand up to students like that. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, so she turned around and poured all her fury onto the new students of Class One.

"Move faster! The last person in line gets expelled!" Zhou Yi's pointer struck the ground with a sharp crack.

The scene shifted back to Freshman Class 9.

The morning theory class had just ended.

To be honest, Mu Jin had taught a dreadful class. She had spent the entire lesson suppressing her elation, her mind nowhere near the textbook, and had done nothing but praise Dai Huabin.

As soon as the bell rang, the students in Class Nine didn't dare move. They all snuck glances at Dai Huabin, seated in the back row.

Ning Tian stood up from the front row and smoothed her pale yellow pleated skirt.

She walked straight to Dai Huabin's desk, her gait graceful, her every gesture carrying the composure of a great sect's heir.

"Class monitor, how about I treat you to lunch to celebrate your new position?"

Ning Tian extended the invitation openly and graciously.

Dai Huabin was lounging in his chair, idly twirling a lock of Zhu Lu's hair in his left hand.

Like a well-fed cat, Zhu Lu lay obediently on the desk beside him, letting him play with her hair.

At Ning Tian's words, Dai Huabin raised an eyebrow.

"Sure. Though, I do have a few people with me."

He spread his hands and gestured around them.