Heaven Dou Royal Academy's main gate was imposing and grand.
The gate tower, built from white marble, stood thirty meters high. Six gilded characters—"Heaven Dou Royal Academy"—shone brilliantly in the sunlight, proclaiming the dignity and splendor of the empire's foremost institution.
Yet at that moment, before the solemn plaza at the entrance, stood a group of people who seemed completely out of place.
At their head was a middle-aged man with a close-cropped haircut and an unremarkable face, yet a calm, capable bearing. He was none other than Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang.
Beside him stood Flender, a tall man in a battered tailcoat and glasses, with a hooked nose and a somewhat comical face.
Zhao Wuji and several other teachers from Shrek Academy were there as well, all looking dusty from the road.
But the most eye-catching were the young men and women standing behind the teachers.
Their clothes were plain, even shabby, but each of them radiated the sharpness and resilience forged through hardship. Their eyes were bright, their spirits high—a striking contrast to the Heaven Dou students around them, who were dressed in finery but carried an air of arrogance.
The group's arrival had already drawn quite a few students to stop and watch outside the academy.
Whispers rose without pause, most tinged with curiosity, scrutiny, and undisguised contempt.
After all, the Shrek group's attire hardly looked fit for anyone about to enter Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
"You just wait!" Xue Beng shouted, his entire face beaten into a pig's head, glaring venomously at Dai Mubai before hurling threats at the rest of the Shrek group.
Just then, Qin Ming arrived, followed close behind by Tang Yin and Dugu Yan.
"That's enough, Xue Beng! This is an academy, not a place for you to run wild!" Seeing how things