The buildings surrounding the area had clearly been built with care, and none of them incorporated elements from other nations.
That was unlike Heaven Dou City, Star Luo City, or the Sun Moon Empire's headquarters, all of which blended in elements from various countries.
With Jiang Nannan leading the way, Xu Yanli finally reached the clean-looking room at the back. He slowly sat down beside the woman, who looked extremely old.
Xu Yanli studied the elderly woman's condition, then slowly walked to one side. The sacred Angel Martial Soul spread open behind him.
"First Soul Skill, Holy Prayer Sun Moon Light Heal." Xu Yanli spoke softly. A dense force of the sun and moon slowly flowed into Jiang Nannan's mother.
Jiang Nannan watched her mother nervously. She saw her face change from the deathly pallor of someone on the verge of dying to a healthy flush.
Jiang Nannan was so excited that she nearly burst into tears. Her mother was finally saved.
With a thump, Jiang Nannan fell to her knees. Her eyes brimmed with gratitude, and her voice trembled. "Thank you, Pavilion Master, for saving my mother. I, Jiang Nannan, have no way to repay you. From this day forward, I entrust my life to you and will obey your every command. I will never betray you in this life."
Xu Yanli glanced down at her and waved a hand. "Get up. There'll naturally be a time when I need you. Just don't forget the oath you swore today when that time comes."
Seeing that she didn't get up, Xu Yanli didn't insist. As he passed Jiang Nannan, he patted her on the shoulder, then turned and left, heading for his courtyard.
At that moment, around seven or eight people were seated at the lower end of the main courtyard.
Xu Yanli spotted the people in the courtyard. Before he'd even had a chance to rest, he saw them sitting there, upright and attentive.
Xu Yanli cursed them out in his heart.
These people didn't even know to let him rest for two minutes. Ah, forget it. Who could blame them? He was a prince, after all.
With the air of someone marching to his death, Xu Yanli walked to the seat of honor, sat down, and looked at the people below.
Xu Yanli nodded to Kong Deming. Kong Deming took something from his Storage Soul Tool and activated it, enveloping the entire reception hall.
"We have several main tasks at Shrek Academy. First, do our best to recruit the students from ordinary commoner families. I hear that Zhou Yi expels a great many students, so try to recruit those she kicks out." Xu Yanli tapped the tea table beside him as he spoke.
"Is there any point in recruiting students who've been expelled by Shrek Academy?" A Level 9 Soul Engineer seated at the far end raised an objection.
Xu Yanli glanced at him and smiled. "This Zhou Yi is quite unusual. Look into her and you'll understand. Besides, I guarantee that with just a little guidance, those students who leave may come to hate Shrek Academy."
"Second, regarding the former Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire, Xu He, I can now say with near certainty that he's He Caitou, a core disciple of Shrek Academy's Soul Tool Department."
"Are we supposed to wipe them all out?" A trace of hesitation showed on Kong Deming's face.
"Don't worry. I'm not asking you to do it yourselves." Xu Yanli swept his gaze across them and smiled.
There was something inscrutable in Xu Yanli's smile. "We can use someone else to do the dirty work. For instance, we could make use of the Original Three Kingdoms."
"How could we possibly get them to help us?"
"Exactly. Why would anyone from the Original Three Kingdoms do our bidding?"
Xu Yanli rubbed his brow. "When we're getting ready to leave, just leak Xu He's identity. At the same time, spread a rumor: Shrek Academy is harboring the former Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire. Does that mean they intend to join forces with the Sun Moon Empire?"
"Trust me. The people of the Original Three Kingdoms will make a scene." Xu Yanli's eyes glinted. "Actually, at this point, I'd rather Shrek Academy didn't kill him. That way, its relationship with the Original Three Kingdoms will sour."
Kong Deming's eyes lit up. "Shrek Academy doesn't seem like the sort to offend the Original Three Kingdoms for an ordinary outer-court disciple, especially one from the Soul Tool Department."
"Exactly. But even if Shrek Academy doesn't kill him, the thorn will already be planted." Xu Yanli let out a cold laugh. "And it'll be a big thorn. Given Shrek Academy's arrogance, they might sacrifice that student without hesitation in the moment. But after thinking it over, they may well come to resent the people of the Original Three Kingdoms."
"But we'll have to take our time with this. Otherwise, it'll look too deliberate." Xu Yanli tapped the table with a finger.
Xu Yanli glanced around at them. "As for what you do in your spare time, study Soul Tools. Keep exploring the gear principle I told you about last time."
"All right, you can all leave. I've been busy for quite a while today. Let me get some rest." Xu Yanli finished speaking, turned, and headed for the rear hall of the main courtyard.
Xu Yanli went to the bathhouse and rinsed off. Feeling refreshed from head to toe, he finally let out a breath of relief.
Xu Yanli lay on the bed, feeling rather speechless. What did Shrek Academy even have? Nothing but information on Soul Masters. As for their teaching plan?
What kind of teaching plan did they even have?
Running? And not even tailored to each person's physical condition. Back in the day, even that fool Yu Xiaogang calculated how far each person should run based on their physical limits.
Damn it, what kind of garbage was Zhou Yi? She made everyone run together, and later on, the weights they carried were all exactly the same. Wouldn't that really injure them?
And if someone snuck off or skipped a lap, they were expelled on the spot.
Honestly, they were all just twelve-year-old kids. What kid didn't want to slack off a little? It was just like how he hadn't wanted to do his homework back then.
Xu Yanli still remembered how, in his previous life, he'd often skipped two or three laps during the morning run.
Shrek Academy might be different from ordinary academies and from the schools of his previous life, but that didn't mean they could expel someone just for running two or three laps short.
Xu Yanli rolled his eyes. If he hadn't needed a way to leave the Sun Moon Empire, he'd have had to be crazy to agree to come to Shrek Academy.
Fortunately, his cheap old man hadn't required him to stay for very long.
Now that the photocopier and scanner were ready, he could make a few more trips to the library and record what was inside.
Xu Yanli rubbed his chin. This was called reclaiming things, not stealing.
The things Shrek Academy had obtained from Spirit Hall back then.
Xu Yanli yawned. He had an Angel Martial Soul, after all. In a sense, he was also a descendant of Spirit Hall, wasn't he?
Yeah, that was right. Whether it was true or not, he could put on a convincing show first.
Xu Yanli slowly rose, sat cross-legged, and began cultivating.
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