Each with Their Own Thoughts

After all, Tang San's things were his, and Tang San himself was his as well.

Whether the Blue Silver Emperor spirit bone was used by Tang San or by himself, there was no real difference.

The next morning, as the whistle blew, the members of Shrek Academy scrambled out of bed and sprinted toward the sound.

Li Luo and Tang San were the first to arrive, having risen early to practice the Purple Demon Eye, which gave them a head start over the others.

Once everyone had assembled, Flender announced the day's training regimen.

Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, Li Luo, Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Zhu Zhuqing were given no special requirements for the day.

Instead, Flender specifically singled out Oscar and Ning Rongrong.

"Oscar, Ning Rongrong, do you know what is most important for an auxiliary-type spirit master?"

Flender tested them.

"Reporting to the Dean, it's running fast! You have to make sure the enemy's assault-type and agility-type spirit masters can't get close."

Oscar answered first, shooting a glance at Ning Rongrong as if to show off his knowledge.

Flender nodded, clearly satisfied with Oscar's answer.

However, Ning Rongrong looked at Oscar's response with utter disdain.

Noticing her expression, Flender turned the question to her.

"Ning Rongrong, what do you think is most important for an auxiliary-type spirit master?"

Oscar had expected her to give an answer similar to his own, but her response was completely different.

"I believe that for an auxiliary-type spirit master, the most important thing is, of course, to find a powerful battle spirit master to protect you."

"As for running fast? That's complete nonsense. No matter how fast an auxiliary-type spirit master runs, can they really outrun a battle spirit master?"

Her answer caught both Flender and Oscar off guard.

Flender looked at her with a strange expression, puzzled by her perspective, but after a moment of reflection on the traditions of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he understood and said nothing more.

Oscar, however, turned pale with agitation and retorted loudly.

"You... you're talking nonsense! An auxiliary-type spirit master is clearly..."

He stammered for a long time, unable to come up with a single reason to refute her.

His distress stemmed entirely from the fact that her answer contradicted everything he had been taught; he couldn't actually articulate a logical argument of his own.

"Ahem!"

Flender coughed twice, breaking the mounting tension.

"I called you two out separately today to assign you individual training tasks."

"Now, run twenty laps around the village. You may use your spirit power. No breakfast until you finish."

Flender stuck to his guns, issuing the order to run.

Oscar, ever obedient, took off immediately, putting in extra effort as he tried to outpace Ning Rongrong.

But to everyone's surprise, Ning Rongrong didn't move. She stared calmly at Flender, neither speaking nor budging.

"Why aren't you running?"

Flender, annoyed by her defiance, demanded an explanation.

Ning Rongrong didn't flinch.

"I said it before: the most important thing for an auxiliary-type spirit master is to find a powerful battle spirit master for protection. I won't waste my time on meaningless tasks!"

"Are you going to run or not?"

Flender was even more incensed by her backtalk, his tone sharpening.

"No!"

Ning Rongrong replied with ironclad resolve.

"Fine, fine, fine! You won't run, is that it? Very well. Since you refuse to follow instructions, pack your things and get out of Shrek Academy!"

Flender felt a twinge of insecurity as he said this. Although Ning Fengzhi had written to him, telling him not to worry about her status and to discipline her as he saw fit, he couldn't truly kick her out. After all, Ning Fengzhi had provided a massive amount of funding; if she left, his cash cow would vanish.

Yet, Flender dared to scold her this way because he was banking on her pride and competitive nature.

Sure enough, upon hearing the threat of expulsion, Ning Rongrong turned back and retorted sharply.

"You want me to leave? Hmph! This young lady isn't going anywhere. What are you going to do about it?"

With that, she turned and headed toward Li Luo without a second glance.

Watching her retreat, Flender couldn't help but sigh.

He thought of someone else, believing that only that person could truly manage a student as unruly as her.

With the sudden influx of such exceptionally talented students—especially those like Li Luo and Tang San, whose spirit ring configurations defied common sense—Flender felt a growing lack of confidence in his ability to guide them all.

Thus, a thought sprouted in his mind: to write a letter to his good friend Yu Xiaogang—the renowned "Grandmaster"—and have him come to assist in teaching the new students.

Thinking of this, Flender finally breathed a sigh of relief and turned to head back to write the letter, but he inadvertently caught sight of Oscar, who was still standing rooted to the spot, staring blankly at the figure of Ning Rongrong as she departed.

"What are you looking at? Get going and run your laps!"

Flender urged him impatiently.

Urged by Flender, Oscar dared not throw a tantrum or resist like Ning Rongrong, so he could only honestly run his twenty laps.

However, while running, Oscar was clearly absent-minded and deeply dejected, nearly tripping several times because he wasn't watching his footing.

But no one cared about him, and he had long since grown accustomed to running laps like this; in the past, he had always done it alone.

As for Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, they would go to Suotuo City together to find amusement, and the two of them rarely brought him along.

Ning Rongrong quickly caught up to Li Luo.

Li Luo knew Ning Rongrong's temperament, so he did not leave, but instead waited on the spot for her arrival.

He knew that Ning Rongrong would never obediently listen to Flender and run those ridiculous laps.

"Brother Luo!"

Ning Rongrong shouted from not far away.

Li Luo turned his head, opened his chest, and raised his arms.

Ning Rongrong leaped forward, landing directly into Li Luo's embrace.

Li Luo caught Ning Rongrong steadily, spun around in a half-circle, and set off on the road toward Suotuo City.

Ning Rongrong was in Li Luo's arms, like a cute kitten, greedily inhaling the scent from her master.

Li Luo walked in front, with Tang San and Xiao Wu following closely behind; Xiao Wu looked at Ning Rongrong in Li Luo's arms with jealousy, the envy overflowing on her face.

Zhu Zhuqing followed not far away; she wanted to approach Li Luo, but did not know what reason to use, so she maintained a cautious distance, trailing behind him.

Dai Mubai followed behind Zhu Zhuqing, wanting to take the initiative to approach her and chat about something, but he was never able to get close to her.

Ma Hongjun's intentions were relatively simpler—he just "purely" wanted to vent his urges. He followed behind Dai Mubai, fantasizing about being taken to a high-end establishment, and as he imagined these things, an undisguised, lecherous grin appeared on his face.