Mu Jin led Huo Yuhao away.
Their footsteps faded down the corridor, growing more distant until they finally vanished around the corner.
Inside the Academic Affairs Office, Du Weilun stared at the door that had just closed again and remained silent for a long while.
He picked up the transfer file he had just finished processing. His gaze fell on the name "Huo Yuhao," and a complicated glint passed through his eyes.
Level fourteen.
Defeated someone at level twenty-nine.
Seventy-one consecutive battles, without a single defeat.
Just how many secrets was this boy hiding?
Du Weilun shook his head, set the file down, and bent over his desk again to deal with the endless pile of paperwork.
But in his heart, he had already engraved the boy's name in his memory.
Meanwhile.
Inside the Martial Soul Department dean's office.
Yan Shaozhe pushed open the door and entered, followed by a student.
The student stood respectfully by the door, waiting for instructions.
"You may go."
Yan Shaozhe waved a hand, his tone even.
The student bowed, gently shut the door, and withdrew.
Only Yan Shaozhe remained in the office.
He walked to the broad redwood desk and slowly sat down.
Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, bathing the entire room in warmth and light.
Beyond the window lay Shrek Academy's plaza, where the distant sounds of training could just be heard.
But Yan Shaozhe had no time to admire the view.
His gaze settled on the file that had long been prepared on his desk.
It was a list.
Several large characters were written across its cover: [New Core Disciple Candidate List].
According to tradition, after new students enrolled, the Martial Soul Department dean would gather and assess their records, then select a handful of the most outstanding students from among the hundreds of newcomers and designate them as Core Disciples for focused cultivation.
These Core Disciples would enjoy the academy's finest resources—the best teachers, the highest-level cultivation methods, priority access to Soul Ring Configuration, and even the opportunity to enter the inner courtyard and learn secrets known only to the elite.
It was a shortcut to becoming powerful.
It was also a weighty honor.
In previous years, the list would be drafted on the very first day of the school year.
But this year, because of the conflict between Huo Yuhao and Zhou Yi, Yan Shaozhe hadn't had time to deal with it.
Now, back in his office chair, he opened the summary of the new students' records and turned through it page by page.
Wang Dong, Martial Soul: Light Goddess Butterfly, Innate Full Soul Power, Soul Power Level: twenty-one...
Ning Tian, Martial Soul: Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda, Innate Full Soul Power, Soul Power Level: thirty-one...
Wu Feng, Martial Soul: Red Dragon, Innate Soul Power: level nine, Soul Power Level: twenty-three...
Xiao Xiao, Martial Soul: Nine Phoenixes Flute, Innate Soul Power: level nine, Soul Power Level: twenty-two...
As Yan Shaozhe read, he silently assessed them.
These children all had good talent. Given time, they would surely become pillars of strength.
He picked up his pen and circled several names.
Until—
He turned to a certain page, and his fingers paused.
[Class One: Huo Yuhao]
[Martial Soul: Spirit Eye (Spirit Attribute Body Martial Soul)]
[Soul Power Level: Thirteen]
[Soul Ring: Four Hundred Years]
[Innate Soul Power: One to Two Levels (Estimated)]
[Potential for Cultivation: Extremely Low]
Yan Shaozhe stared at the information and paused in surprise.
The list had been compiled before enrollment, so much of the information hadn't been updated. Huo Yuhao's Soul Power Level, for instance, was no longer thirteen, but fourteen. And his strength was far beyond that of an ordinary new student.
Yan Shaozhe's mind returned to the scenes he had witnessed earlier at the Soul Fighting Arena—
Huo Yuhao had displayed several strange Self-Created Soul Skills, wielding them with consummate skill.
And there were those calm, fearless eyes he had met when the boy stood his ground against him.
This boy truly was no ordinary person.
Yan Shaozhe fell silent for a moment, his pen hovering above the list without touching it.
He was hesitating.
Should he include Huo Yuhao on the Core Disciple list?
Judging by the strength Huo Yuhao had shown today—defeating a level-twenty-nine Soul Master at level fourteen, then fighting seventy-one consecutive battles without a loss—such combat prowess was rare even in Shrek's history.
In terms of talent, he absolutely qualified to become a Core Disciple.
But...
Yan Shaozhe's gaze fell on the note in the margin, on the line that read—
[Innate Soul Power: One to Two Levels (Estimated)]
Innate Soul Power.
It was one of a Soul Master's most important foundations.
Innate Soul Power determined the upper limit of a person's cultivation talent.
Someone with Innate Full Soul Power cultivated several times faster than an ordinary person and found it easier to break through bottlenecks.
But someone with only one or two levels of Innate Soul Power would be held back by their talent, no matter how hard they worked. Their cultivation would progress slowly, and bottlenecks would pile up.
Without a major stroke of fortune, such as an Immortal Herb or a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's sacrifice, they would be trapped for life.
That was an ironclad rule.
In ten thousand years, no one had ever broken it.
What had allowed Huo Yuhao to defeat someone at level twenty-nine despite being only level fourteen?
Those bizarre Self-Created Soul Skills.
That strange footwork, the layered palm techniques, and the counterattacking moves.
But could he rely on those forever?
Yan Shaozhe furrowed his brow and began to weigh the matter.
First, the limitations of his Innate Soul Power.
Huo Yuhao's Innate Soul Power was no higher than level two.
That meant his future cultivation speed would be extremely slow.
By the time he raised his Soul Power to the twenties, the geniuses his age would already have reached levels forty or fifty.
By then, what good would all those Self-Created Soul Skills do?
The gap in Soul Power would still be there.
A gap of an entire major realm was enough to crush any technique.
What's more—
Who could guarantee Huo Yuhao would keep devising more Self-Created Soul Skills?
Self-Created Soul Skills required tremendous time and effort to comprehend and refine.
If he devoted so much time to Self-Created Soul Skills, his cultivation would only fall further behind.
It was a vicious cycle.
Second, the flaws of his Martial Soul.
As a Spirit Attribute Body Martial Soul, the Spirit Eye was indeed rare and powerful.
But it had a fatal drawback—
Second Awakening.
The power of a Body Martial Soul lay in its ability to undergo a Second Awakening, or even a Third Awakening, with each awakening bringing a qualitative leap.
But Shrek Academy had yet to master the method for a Body Martial Soul's Second Awakening.
Over the past ten thousand years, the academy had trained many students with Body Martial Souls, but only a handful had ever managed a Second Awakening.
The academy simply couldn't help Huo Yuhao achieve a Martial Soul Second Awakening.
That meant his Martial Soul might remain forever in its initial state.
On top of that, Spirit Attribute Soul Beasts were exceedingly rare. Shrek Academy would have to devote a great deal of staff and resources to finding suitable Soul Rings for Huo Yuhao.
The resources spent would far outweigh the returns.
Third, there was the question of his temperament.
This was what concerned Yan Shaozhe most.
Huo Yuhao's personality was far too sharp-edged.
It was fine for young people to be spirited. Passion and drive were good things.
But there still had to be rules.
Earlier, at the Soul Fighting Arena, he, Yan Shaozhe, had personally stepped in to mediate and had given Huo Yuhao ample respect.
He had told Huo Yuhao to "know when to let things go" and ease his demands, saying he didn't need to make Zhou Yi kneel.
That was a way out.
Any student with a little tact would have taken it and shown the dean some respect.
But what about Huo Yuhao?
He refused.
He had deliberately left Yan Shaozhe with no way to save face.
Not only that, but in front of everyone, he had openly rebuffed Yan Shaozhe and continued to press Zhou Yi to apologize.
He was impossible to discipline.
Even if he was trained into a talent, he wouldn't become an asset to Shrek Academy.
On the contrary, he might become a ticking time bomb.
Yan Shaozhe had taught at Shrek for decades and had seen countless geniuses.
Some knew how to read the situation and repay kindness, and ultimately became pillars of the academy.
Others were arrogant, conceited, and disrespectful to their elders, and in the end either faded into obscurity or left the academy to seek their fortunes elsewhere.
Huo Yuhao was clearly the latter.
Yan Shaozhe set down his pen, leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and fell into deep thought.
Sunlight spilled across him, casting dappled shadows over his face.
After a long while.
He opened his eyes, picked up his pen, and drew it—
Gently across Huo Yuhao's name.
It was a mark meaning "not under consideration."
Although Huo Yuhao was exceptionally talented, capable of defeating a level-twenty-nine Soul Master at level fourteen, and although his performance that day had astonished everyone—
Those three fatal flaws made it impossible for Yan Shaozhe to include him on the Core Disciple list.
His Innate Soul Power was too low, so his future cultivation would be slow.
His Martial Soul would be difficult to awaken a second time, and Spirit Attribute Soul Rings would be hard to obtain.
His personality was too sharp-edged and he refused to be disciplined, making it difficult for him to become an asset to the academy.
These were problems that couldn't be ignored.
Before you continue