An Inexplicable Class

Before long, when the hour was up, Huo Yuhao completed one hundred laps near the front of the group at a steady pace, neither falling behind nor standing out too much.

As usual, Zhou Yi picked out several students who had failed to complete the running assignment and expelled them.

As was customary, Zhou Yi selected several students who had failed to complete the task. Some had been spoiled by their wealthy families, while others were unable to persist due to naturally weak constitutions.

The reason she employed this method was precisely to show the new students her iron-handed methods, while also selecting a few "chickens" to "warn the monkeys." After all, if no one slacked off, physical fitness alone could still eliminate a few people.

The students who had been called out left indignantly, heading for the Academic Affairs Office to lodge complaints.

However, at Shrek Academy, renowned as the continent's foremost academy, students' grievances and dissatisfaction often found it difficult to shake the academy's ironclad rules.

Even though some within the academy had considerable objections to Zhou Yi's methods, they maintained a unified stance when facing these students. After all, Zhou Yi was a teacher of Shrek Academy, and her actions represented the academy's authority and dignity.

Seeing that Zhou Yi had truly expelled several people without showing them any mercy, the other new students looked quite unpleasant, but they had clearly all been intimidated by her.

Huo Yuhao, however, remained exceptionally calm about everything. In his eyes, Zhou Yi's so-called attempts to make things difficult were nothing more than child's play.

He was not one of these eleven- or twelve-year-old freshmen. His worldview and way of thinking had long since matured and stabilized; he would not be easily swayed by Zhou Yi.

He would never allow Zhou Yi to lead him by the nose and ultimately turn him into Shrek's golden signboard, like Huo Yuhao in the original story.

Having established her authority, Zhou Yi swept her cold gaze over the students. "All right, go back to your dormitories and change clothes, then report to the classroom for class. I'm only giving you fifteen minutes."

With that, Zhou Yi turned and headed straight for the teaching building.

At once, the freshmen scattered like startled birds and beasts. None of them dared waste even a second as they dragged their exhausted bodies toward their dormitories at top speed.

Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao were naturally no exception. However, Wang Dong was surprised to discover that, like her, Huo Yuhao had barely broken a sweat. Clearly, those hundred laps had been nothing to him.

He even looked to be in much better condition than she was. Running one hundred laps had consumed plenty of her Soul Power and stamina, while Huo Yuhao clearly still had plenty to spare. He had likely only expended Soul Power and had not yet begun pushing his physical strength to its limits.

"How did you do that? Aren't you only at Soul Power Level Twelve?" Wang Dong asked like a curious child.

"Secret," Huo Yuhao answered blandly before entering the dormitory. Wang Dong stood at the door, unwilling to go in for quite some time, but Huo Yuhao said nothing more. He simply shut the door, cleaned himself up, and changed into his academy uniform.

When he came out of the dormitory, he casually tossed Wang Dong a clean towel. "All right, go in. I won't pry into your secrets, and you shouldn't pry into mine. Understand?"

Wang Dong froze for a moment, but she still nodded, took the towel, and entered the dormitory. Soon, she too had changed and come back out. Then Huo Yuhao led Wang Dong toward the classroom at an unhurried pace.

"Hey, why are you so relaxed? Aren't you afraid that crazy old hag will lose her temper again?" Wang Dong asked in confusion.

"A person cannot stand without trust. Since she said fifteen minutes before, then given that she needs to establish her authority over everyone, I believe she will not go back on her word. There's still plenty of time left."

Huo Yuhao answered calmly. At the same time, he knew that he was not afraid of being expelled, because he had more than enough options and places to go.

Besides, if he truly were expelled, there would be plenty of places where he could start anew. If that really happened, Tang San would be the one panicking, not him.

Wang Dong nodded thoughtfully, seeming to digest the meaning behind Huo Yuhao's words.

"Everyone acts to achieve their own goals. Even when facing a madman, if you calmly analyze his actions, you can still sort out the logic behind his madness."

"Then, by examining his behavioral logic and personality, you can naturally follow his actions to analyze his ultimate objective."

"What that crazy old hag did throughout this class was actually just one thing: establishing authority."

"Think carefully about the imposing manner she displayed from the moment she appeared, how she invoked Shrek Academy's motto, revealed her cultivation as a Soul Emperor, then used corporal punishment to influence people's minds, and finally killed the chicken to warn the monkeys and intimidate everyone."

"In essence, every one of those measures served one purpose: establishing authority. Through intimidation, she wants to tame everyone in Class One, or at the very least crush the pride each of you originally had."

Huo Yuhao spoke eloquently, then looked at Wang Dong. "But honestly, think about it carefully. Is everyone really going to fall for that? She's only a Soul Emperor. Have you never seen one before? Do you really think she's that impressive? So tell me, what kind of person do you think Zhou Yi is?"

Wang Dong furrowed her brows and began thinking. Her steps unconsciously slowed, but before she could speak, they had already reached the classroom.

Once everyone had taken their seats, the fifteen minutes quickly passed. Zhou Yi indeed arrived at the classroom exactly on time, just as she had said.

She then walked to the podium and addressed the remaining students in the classroom. "We will begin class now. You have basically satisfied me in the test just now, but that was only the beginning. Running is merely the simplest assessment."

After sweeping her gaze around the room, she addressed Huo Yuhao, who was sitting in the corner. "Huo Yuhao, stand up and state your Soul Power Level."

"Level Twelve." Huo Yuhao stood and answered in a calm, clear voice.

The other students all wore strange expressions upon hearing this, but with Zhou Yi present, none dared whisper among themselves.

They all knew that Shrek Academy's minimum admission requirement was Soul Power Level Fifteen, and those who had noticed Huo Yuhao were even more puzzled.

During the earlier running test, Huo Yuhao had not ranked near the back. He had even performed quite well. That was not something a Level Twelve Soul Master should have been able to accomplish.

"Huo Yuhao's Soul Power Level is only Twelve, but I can tell you that he is outstanding. He originally entered Shrek Academy without taking the entrance exam as a Special Invitee."

"Yet even so, he still passed Shrek Academy's practical combat assessment and received an excellent evaluation. You should have noticed his performance during the run just now."

Zhou Yi once again swept a cold gaze over the crowd. "So if even a Level Twelve Soul Master can complete this task, what excuse do you have for failing?"

"Those who failed to complete the running assignment have already been expelled, but I hope you remember them. Do not become people like them—people expelled by me."

"And although Huo Yuhao's Soul Power Level is not high, until he is eliminated because of internal academy assessments, he is a Shrek student just like all of you. No one is to make an issue of this."

"All right, Huo Yuhao, sit down. Next, we will officially begin class."

Huo Yuhao sat down directly and began considering Zhou Yi's intentions.

This is a little troublesome, but not a major issue. Zhou Yi used me as a target because of my Soul Power.

The other students will probably see me as a major rival from now on. After all, it would be embarrassing if they performed worse than me, the lowest-ranked dead last in terms of Soul Power. Still, there's no need to care about these fellow students.

Zhou Yi then began teaching in an orderly fashion. She first brought up the theory of Soul Masters' offensive and defensive methods once again, and unsurprisingly, poor Wang Dong was once more chosen to answer the question.

"For today's first lesson, I will teach you the offensive and defensive methods of Soul Masters. Because of Martial Soul abilities, Soul Masters have been divided since ancient times into Assault Type, Agility Assault Type, Support Type, Food Type, Control Type, and Defense Type."

"Among Soul Masters, some schools specialize in pushing one aspect to its limits, while others develop in a balanced manner. There are all kinds."

"Then Wang Dong, stand up and tell me: among the various types of Soul Masters, who is better at offense, and who is better at defense and support?"

Wang Dong stood and answered directly, "Naturally, Assault Type, Agility Assault Type, and Control Type Soul Masters are more inclined toward offense, while Support Type, Food Type, and Defense Type Soul Masters are more inclined toward defense."

"Idiot. Sit down." Zhou Yi waved her hand, and a powerful pressure of Soul Power immediately forced Wang Dong to close her mouth and sit back down.

"That answer would indeed have been correct more than four thousand years ago, before the Sun Moon Continent collided with our Douluo Continent. But today, that answer is utterly wrong."

Zhou Yi looked at Huo Yuhao. "Huo Yuhao, tell me why."

Huo Yuhao frowned and stood up. "I believe Wang Dong's answer is not wrong."

Zhou Yi raised her brow at those words, her gaze turning somewhat colder. However, she did not interrupt him and merely gestured for Huo Yuhao to continue.

"Soul Tools have indeed narrowed the gap between different types of Soul Masters to a certain extent, but the essence remains unchanged."

"From the perspective of close combat, give an Assault Type Soul Master a powerful close-range Soul Tool, and likewise give a Support Type Soul Master a powerful close-range Soul Tool."

"If the two Soul Tools possess equal power and the two Soul Masters have roughly similar cultivation and Soul Ring configurations, then the outcome is naturally obvious. By combining the Soul Tool with the advantages of his own Martial Soul, the Assault Type Soul Master can still easily defeat the Support Type Soul Master."

"There is only a slightly greater possibility that he might be injured by the latter's desperate final counterattack. But whether in physical ability or Soul Skill coordination, an Assault Type Soul Master completely overwhelms a Support Type Soul Master. It will not reverse the balance of offense and defense."

"Even if the combat range is extended, as long as it does not reach a distance where the Soul Master's original Soul Ring combat system and combat techniques are completely overwhelmed—"

"Then there is no doubt that Assault Type, Agility Assault Type, and Control Type Soul Masters excel at attacking, while Food Type, Support Type, and Defense Type Soul Masters excel at defense."

"Even if it truly reaches a situation where the outcome can only be determined by long-range Soul Tools, then regardless of their type, the concept of a Soul Master itself has essentially been blurred."

"What is being used then is not the Soul Master's own ability, but rather their ability to manufacture Soul Tools and sustain combat. This cannot be lumped together with the original six major types. It should instead be considered separately."

"If the goal is specialization or coordination, Soul Masters of the corresponding type using Soul Tools suited to their own type will certainly achieve results far superior to those of Soul Masters from other types."

"That concludes my answer." Huo Yuhao looked at Zhou Yi after finishing.

Zhou Yi was somewhat stiff at that moment and found herself speechless. After all, she had only brought up Soul Tools in order to belittle Soul Engineers and promote Shrek Academy's educational principles.

Aside from the occasional Soul Tool theory Fan Yu had mentioned to her, she herself was merely a traditional Soul Master and did not place much importance on Soul Tools.

If she truly had to debate Huo Yuhao, she unexpectedly had no idea how to respond.

In the end, Zhou Yi still frowned and said stiffly, "Sit down. What you said only applies to Soul Masters below Level Fifty."

"But Soul Master cultivation involves continuously developing and strengthening one's physical fitness, while also pairing it with powerful and excellent Soul Ring choices. Soul Tools can narrow the gap between Soul Masters only in the early stages."

"Even powerful Soul Tools can only be wielded by the strong. When the strong are equipped with Soul Tools, they are like tigers with wings."

"The blurring of offense and defense is precisely what I wished to discuss, but what I want to tell you is that Shrek Academy does not train the trash Soul Masters found outside."

"Every graduate of Shrek Academy must be an elite among elites. Over the next three months, my primary training for you will focus on physical fitness."

"No matter who you are, what background you have, or how talented you may be, if you cannot pass my assessment after three months, then get lost."

"This morning's lesson ends here. I suggest you eat well at noon. Physical fitness training begins this afternoon. Class dismissed."

"Huo Yuhao, come to my office." Having said that, Zhou Yi turned and left, even though the bell had not yet rung.

Watching her retreating back, Huo Yuhao rose helplessly and followed.

What a half-baked ending. What was all that supposed to mean? Did that conclusion have anything to do with the topic she raised at the beginning?

I thought she might offer some other viewpoint to refute me. She probably only heard the general idea from Fan Yu.

As he passed Wang Dong, Huo Yuhao glanced at her. Wang Dong's eyes were filled with confusion and clear stupidity; Zhou Yi's inexplicable teaching had obviously completely muddled her.

I hope you'll understand things a little better later. At the very least, don't end up getting sold off and still helping them count the money, like in the original story, Huo Yuhao sighed inwardly.