Unreasonable and Tyrannical Shrek

Upon hearing the old man's words, the child's parent immediately grew anxious.

"Teacher, please make an exception. The child has only just turned thirteen, and look, his soul ring configuration is the optimal one—two Century Soul Rings!"

The parent bowed and gripped the old man's hand, pleading.

But the old man's expression remained devoid of any ripples; he shook off the parent's hand and spoke in an indifferent tone.

"Rules are rules. Our Shrek Academy is an academy for monsters, so the students we recruit must naturally be monsters as well."

"A thirteen-year-old Soul Grand Master might be a genius elsewhere, but in our Shrek Academy, the one thing we have in abundance is geniuses. The geniuses among geniuses we seek to recruit are monsters!"

"Any student who graduates from our Shrek Academy is guaranteed to receive a noble title from the empire."

"Furthermore, we stated clearly before enrollment began: to register for Shrek Academy, one must be twelve years old or younger, possess two soul rings, and be a Soul Grand Master."

"Those who do not meet the criteria may leave; do not waste the registration fee or our time."

"Then what about the registration fee we paid?"

The parent was somewhat unconvinced and wanted to reclaim their registration fee.

The registration fee for Shrek Academy was ten Gold Soul Coins. In Suotuo City of the Bala Kingdom, although the general income of the residents was quite decent, ten Gold Soul Coins was still a significant sum.

"Registration fees are non-refundable!"

The old man's tone was firm, leaving no room for negotiation.

Upon hearing the old man's words, the parent immediately grew agitated.

"If you don't return our money, I'm going to report you to the Martial Soul Hall!"

The Martial Soul Hall held an extremely high status in the hearts of commoners on the Douluo Continent. When encountering difficulties or suffering bullying, the first thought of ordinary folk was to seek help from the Martial Soul Hall.

Most of the grassroots personnel of the Martial Soul Hall were people who got things done, and they would often help coordinate disputes among the common people.

Hearing the name of the Martial Soul Hall, the old man was visibly unsettled.

After all, Shrek Academy was not registered as a formal educational institution and did not belong to the official academy system.

If people from the Martial Soul Hall were to actually show up, the party at fault would undoubtedly be Shrek Academy.

He summoned a Dragon Pattern Staff into his hand, and six soul rings rose from beneath his feet in succession.

"Li Yusong, Level 63 Assault System Battle Soul Emperor, Martial Soul: Dragon Pattern Staff."

White, Yellow, Purple, Purple, Purple, Black.

"Hiss! A Soul Emperor!"

Seeing that the old man in charge of admissions was actually a powerhouse at the Soul Emperor level, the parent gasped and retreated repeatedly.

"If you want your registration fee back, it is not impossible. As long as you can defeat my student, the ten Gold Soul Coins will be returned in full."

"Come out and get to work, Mubai!"

As Li Yusong called out, a blond man walked out from some corner.

This person was none other than Dai Mubai.

A phantom of a White Tiger appeared behind Dai Mubai, and three soul rings—Yellow, Yellow, and Purple—rose from beneath his feet.

"Dai Mubai, Level 37 Assault System Battle Soul Elder, Martial Soul: White Tiger."

"As long as you can defeat me, the registration fee will be returned in full!"

Dai Mubai's tone was extremely arrogant. As a prince of the Star Luo Empire, to be honest, he looked down upon these commoners before him.

"Hiss, a Soul Elder with a thousand-year soul ring!"

The parent and the others waiting in line behind him all gasped in unison.

The pressure exerted by a thousand-year soul ring was immense.

"We don't want it anymore, is that alright? You win, we're leaving!"

The parent grabbed the child and prepared to leave.

Li Yusong immediately threw another bucket of cold water on those still waiting in line.

"I know you have all heard that our Shrek Academy students are guaranteed a noble title upon graduation, so you came to register with a sense of luck, but I will repeat the requirements once more."

"The enrollment requirements are to be no older than twelve and to be at the level of a Soul Grand Master or higher. Those who do not meet the requirements may leave."

"For those who have already registered, the registration fee will not be refunded."

After hearing Li Yusong's words, the parent's desire to seek justice had vanished entirely. Since the person guarding the gate was a Soul Emperor, wouldn't the teachers inside be Soul Saints or even stronger?

Suotuo City was, after all, only an ordinary city in the Bala Kingdom, and the highest-ranking official of the Martial Soul Hall stationed there was at most a Cardinal, which was also a Soul Emperor.

Even if he sought help from the Martial Soul Hall, it was not guaranteed that he would receive justice, and he might even face retaliation from Shrek Academy afterward.

At least, that was what he thought.

So now, he just wanted to leave as quickly as possible; he would consider the ten Gold Soul Coins as money thrown to the dogs.

But since Shrek Academy was being so arrogant, there would naturally be people who couldn't stand it.

"Wait! Stop right there!"

At this moment, a young voice rang out, calling to the parent and child who were preparing to leave after suffering a silent loss.

The source of the voice was none other than Li Luo.

He intended to help this disadvantaged parent just this once.

Li Luo did not consider himself a saint, but he truly could not stand the way Shrek Academy conducted itself.

Having come from the impoverished Holy Soul Village, Li Luo knew just how hard it was for ordinary people to earn money.

As a well-educated, progressive youth in his past life, Li Luo could not tolerate injustice. Although he could not change the problems of the entire Douluo Continent, he now had the ability to help those being bullied, and as long as it did not violate his principles, he was willing to lend a hand.

Nothing more; he simply sought peace of mind and a clear conscience.

Hearing Li Luo's voice, the parent seemed to have grasped a glimmer of hope and turned back around.

They stared at Li Luo with rapt attention.

Li Luo, Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Ning Rongrong—judging by their appearance, attire, and temperament—were clearly not ordinary people.

Thus, the parent's hope of recovering their hard-earned money was reignited.

"I will fight you. If I can win, you must return the money to this parent."

Li Luo pointed at Dai Mubai, though his eyes were fixed on Li Yusong.

Li Yusong sized Li Luo up, pondered for a moment, and agreed to his request.

"Fine. As long as you defeat Mubai, I will return the registration fee to him."

After all, Li Yusong was genuinely afraid that the parent might report Shrek Academy to the Martial Soul Hall. Since they were operating without official accreditation, being reported would certainly cause significant trouble.

If they settled it through a soul duel, Shrek Academy would have a valid excuse should the Martial Soul Hall come knocking later.

However, what Li Yusong failed to notice was that Dai Mubai's expression had turned rather ugly.

Initially, Dai Mubai had been disdainful upon hearing that someone was overestimating themselves by challenging him.

But upon seeing Li Luo, his expression changed instantly.

"Teacher Li, this... I'm afraid..."

Dai Mubai whispered to Li Yusong, stammering and hesitating to continue.

"What is it, Mubai?"

Only then did Li Yusong notice Dai Mubai's abnormality and asked.

Dai Mubai leaned into Li Yusong's ear and recounted, in full detail, how he had been easily defeated by Li Luo the previous day.

This included the fact that Li Luo was a level 40 Blue Silver Grass quasi-Soul Ancestor who possessed a three-ringed thousand-year soul ring.