I Don't Want to Pretend Either!

As the words fell, the classroom instantly erupted into an uproar. Zhou stood to the side, watching the chaotic scene below with a slight frown. Her cold, sharp gaze swept across the room, and the noisy classroom fell silent in an instant, quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

Only then did she nod with satisfaction. "This is the minor reform I mentioned. Sometimes, we teachers can make mistakes, and one person's energy is limited; I cannot possibly look after every single one of you."

"Furthermore, as teaching assistants, they are young enough that they aren't much older than you. Since they were able to enter the Inner Court, they must possess some personal cultivation techniques—advantages that we teachers simply do not have."

Zhou's gaze slowly swept over the faces of the freshmen below. Her tone remained as characteristically cold and hard as ever, yet it carried a hint of intrigue: "Shrek has never been one to cling to outdated rules. The implementation of the teaching assistant system is meant to ensure that you freshmen can learn from the rigor of veteran teachers while also picking up the practical combat ingenuity of the Inner Court elite."

"Senior Jiang Che, I've heard that everyone who enters the Inner Court is a genius among geniuses. Your strength must be immense, right? Could you let us witness it?" No sooner had Zhou finished speaking than someone stood up to ask.

"Yeah, Senior Jiang Che, let us see what it means to be a genius."

"..."

With the first person leading the way, the rest of the students began to jeer. These individuals were all talented and came from families with some degree of influence.

Before entering Shrek, their families had told them that their greatest hope was simply for them to graduate smoothly; they didn't believe for a second that these students could make it into the Inner Court.

How could they, having been pampered since childhood and considering themselves extraordinary, ever accept that? Now that they had finally encountered someone from the Inner Court, they were determined to compare themselves.

"Bang! Bang!" Zhou slammed the desk in front of her heavily, drowning out their voices.

Afterward, Zhou looked at Jiang Che, and upon feeling her gaze, Jiang Che nodded at her.

"Heh, since you all want to know my strength so badly, I shall make a fool of myself." Jiang Che chuckled softly. He hadn't originally intended to show off, but the students were just too enthusiastic.

He held a legitimate position now, and as a "teacher," what was wrong with satisfying his students' curiosity?

Suddenly, a terrifying aura surged out from Jiang Che. The powerful fluctuation of soul power pressed down on every student present, leaving them unable to catch their breath, and even Zhou, a Soul Emperor, was not spared.

Rings of soul power rose from beneath Jiang Che's feet: one yellow, two purple, four black, and finally, a blood-red soul ring rose to complete the set.

Eight soul rings hovered silently beneath Jiang Che. The progression of yellow, purple, and black was already shocking enough, but that final blood-red soul ring, like a scarlet crescent moon, radiated a pressure that made one's heart tremble.

The entire classroom was deathly silent; even the sound of breathing was barely audible.

The jeering and curiosity on the freshmen's faces had long since vanished, replaced by extreme shock and awe.

Most of them had never even seen a Soul King, let alone this senior who looked to be barely over twenty, yet was already a Soul Douluo possessing a hundred-thousand-year soul ring!

Once Jiang Che retracted his soul rings, the crowd finally breathed a sigh of relief, gasping for air. Jiang Che had only displayed his rings for a few seconds, yet it had given them a sense of utter despair.

In those few seconds, they had experienced the agony of being at someone else's mercy; they hadn't even been able to circulate their soul power, let alone resist.

ps: Everyone, hang in there for a few more days. The trial period is almost over, and I will be able to resume daily updates of 4,000 words then.