Huo Yuhao: "Call you teacher, and you think you're worthy of the title?"

Huo Yuhao's footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

In that instant, the air in the entire classroom seemed to be gripped tight by an invisible hand.

His once calm and ripple-free profile was stained with a bone-chilling coldness at a speed visible to the naked eye; it was the long-dormant reverse scale, now being ruthlessly crushed by another.

He turned around slowly.

There was no raging roar in his eyes, only a bottomless, frozen abyss.

"Zhou Yi."

He spoke, his voice light, yet as cold as an ice blade scraping against bone, "I call you 'Teacher' out of courtesy, but do you truly believe you are worthy of the title?"

"What did you say?!"

Zhou Yi was stunned by that gaze, then flew into a towering rage, "How dare you speak to me like that?"

"I said, you are not fit to be a teacher at all."

Huo Yuhao walked step by step back to the center of the classroom, standing where the entire class's attention was most intense. His voice was not loud, but every word was clear, shaking everyone to their core:

"A teacher is a guide for a student's path ahead, a lamp in times of confusion, and a hand to pull one up when they fall.

And you?

Expelling students at will, trampling on others' dignity, calling them idiots and trash at every turn—in what way are you worthy of the word 'teacher'?"

"Among them, how many fought with their lives to obtain a recommendation letter from their main city, carrying the hopes of their families and their own dreams, traveling thousands of miles to come here?

Perhaps their talent is not the most elite, but they are working just as hard, struggling just as desperately, and yearning just as much to become stronger!

Yet you, Zhou Yi, with a light 'mediocre,' shatter over a decade of their hard work, destroying their dreams, turning them into laughingstocks, and perhaps even leaving them unable to recover for the rest of their lives!"

"Tell me—with conduct like this, are you fit to be a teacher?!

You are not educating people; you are ruining them!

You are defiling the very word 'teacher'!"

In this life, having been reborn, Huo Yuhao had always been forbearing and cautious, planning every step with care.

But caution was not cowardice, nor was it allowing someone to ride on his head to insult his mother while he bowed his head and played the fool.

Hidden within his bones and blood was a ruthlessness and ferocity forged from mountains of corpses, seas of blood, and the edge of life and death.

What Zhou Yi stepped on today was the only reverse scale of his entire life.

Zhou Yi was left trembling by his words, blood rushing to her head. Her entire face flushed a deep red, she was completely "overheated," almost losing her sanity.

As a Spirit Emperor, being pointed at and scolded by a thirteen-level freshman for not being fit to be a teacher was a supreme humiliation.

Her spirit power surged, and she was about to strike on the spot to teach this boy—who had no background, no strength, and yet dared to talk back—a lesson.

Just then—

A lazy voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, drifted lightly from the doorway:

"I was wondering why it was so noisy; so it's you throwing your weight around again. Zhou Yi, what have you done this time?"

A figure leaned against the doorframe.

The newcomer was a female teacher who looked to be in her thirties, with a delicate appearance, a spirited temperament, and a hint of amusement in her eyes as she watched the spectacle.

It was Mu Jin, the homeroom teacher of Freshman Class Nine.

She first gave Huo Yuhao a deep, unperturbed look, a flash of clear appreciation passing through her eyes, before turning to Zhou Yi with a mocking smile: "You're making so much noise that my Class Nine can't even hold class."

"Mu Jin!" Upon seeing her, Zhou Yi's expression turned even uglier, her eyes filled with undisguised disgust, "This is a matter for my Class One. As a homeroom teacher of Class Nine, stop meddling in other people's business and go look after your own!"

"I was originally holding class," Mu Jin shrugged, her tone indifferent, "but the noise from your side was truly too loud; it was hard not to hear. As it happens, I heard every word of the conversation between you and this little junior."

She looked at Zhou Yi, her smile slowly fading:

"Teacher Zhou, I actually think this junior is absolutely right—do you truly believe you are fit to be a teacher?"

"Whether I am fit or not is not for you to judge!" Zhou Yi snapped, "He assaulted his superior and showed no respect for his elders; I have the authority to expel him immediately!"

"Fine."

Mu Jin smiled faintly, her tone casual, yet every word struck Zhou Yi's heart:

"Then go ahead and expel him. I'll take this person."

"From today on, he comes to my Class Nine. I'd like to see on what grounds you intend to expel him."

Zhou Yi's expression changed drastically.

She knew very well that Mu Jin had considerable seniority within the academy and truly possessed the authority to forcibly take Huo Yuhao and protect him.

For a moment, Zhou Yi was filled with both anger and hatred, her mind racing as she thought of how to secretly make things difficult for Huo Yuhao later, forcing him into a corner at Shrek until he voluntarily withdrew.

Just then.

Huo Yuhao's voice rang out calmly once more.

This time, it carried a sharpness that made everyone's heart contract.

"Zhou Yi."

"Since you believe your teaching methods are flawless, do you dare to make a wager with me?"

Zhou Yi was stunned: "What are you trying to do?"

"I challenge every student you have ever taught at the Shrek Soul Fighting Arena."

Huo Yuhao's gaze was clear, yet carried a confidence that could sweep away everything:

"Anyone above level 10 and below level 30, as long as they are your students, can come."

"If I lose a single match, I will kowtow to apologize to you on the spot, voluntarily withdraw from Shrek Academy, and never set foot here again. But if you lose—"

His eyes turned cold:

"I want you to stand at the main gate of Shrek Academy, in front of all the teachers and students, and admit it yourself—that your teaching is incompetent and you are unfit to be a mentor."

Zhou Yi was startled at first, then felt a surge of wild joy in her heart.

It was as if she had been dozing off and someone had handed her a pillow!

She had just been wondering how to deal with Huo Yuhao in a justifiable way, never expecting this brat to walk straight into a death trap.

However, she feigned a stern expression, raised the stakes, and spoke with a vicious tone:

"The wager is insufficient. If you lose, it won't just be an apology and withdrawal; you will kneel in Shrek Square, apologize to me in public, and then get out of Shrek!"

"Agreed."

Huo Yuhao didn't even hesitate, nodding calmly. "But I have one more condition to add."

"If you lose, you will also kneel and apologize. Right at the main gate of the academy, to me, and to all the students you have trampled upon and expelled without cause."

He did not mention soul bones, soul coins, or any other resources.

He knew very well that while Zhou Yi was arrogant, she was not stupid; she would never gamble with precious treasures against him.

Moreover, what he wanted was never treasure—it was justice, it was dignity, and it was forcing her to admit her own faults.

Zhou Yi agreed almost without a second thought, her voice filled with irrepressible excitement:

"No problem! I accept!"

In her eyes, this was a wager she could not possibly lose.

Among the students she had taught, those at level 20 and approaching level 30 were everywhere, a full major realm higher than Huo Yuhao.

A level 13 piece of trash daring to challenge the students she had trained?

It was simply seeking his own death.

All the students of Class One, having witnessed this thrilling exchange, had faces already occupied by extreme shock.

From Zhou Yi's earlier scolding, they all understood one fact—Huo Yuhao's soul power was only level 13.

And for Zhou Yi to ensure a win and completely crush him, she would never send out a freshman of the same level; at the very least, it would be a Soul Grand Master above level 20 who had already absorbed a second soul ring.

This meant that Huo Yuhao intended to face a two-ring Soul Grand Master while being a one-ring soul master, crossing an entire major realm.

To everyone present, this was no different from suicide.

Lin Yan, standing in the crowd, felt his pupils constrict, his heart churning with turbulent waves.

In his fragmented memories, Huo Yuhao should have been that insecure, sensitive, and paranoid youth.

Yet, the boy before him—

Daring to openly defy a Soul Emperor teacher, daring to expose her hypocritical facade, daring to set a life-or-death wager, daring to challenge experts over level 20 with only level 13, high-spirited and sharp-edged, as if he dared to pierce a hole in the very sky.

Is this truly the Huo Yuhao he knew?

Beside him, Mu Jin, the moment she heard the terms of the wager, furrowed her delicate brows and instinctively wanted to intervene.

Fighting someone over level 20 with only level 10+ was a gap as wide as a chasm; a moment of carelessness could lead to severe injury or even lifelong cultivation impediments.

But when her gaze fell upon Huo Yuhao, all the words of dissuasion were swallowed back down.

The boy stood there, his posture upright, his eyes as calm as an abyss, without a trace of panic or luck, only a certainty and firmness born from having walked through life and death and holding everything in his control.

That look clearly said—I have the certainty of victory.

Mu Jin's heart stirred.

She did not know what trump cards this seemingly ordinary freshman was hiding that allowed him to make such a wild bet across a major realm.

But she could see that Huo Yuhao was not acting on impulse, nor was he seeking his own death.

Since he dared to gamble, then she, Mu Jin, would believe in him this once.

Her hand, which had been raised, gently lowered; the intention to intervene vanished, replaced by a faint, appreciative look.

She wanted to see just how much of a storm this boy, who dared to make Zhou Yi suffer, could stir up.