The First Lesson of School

"When it comes to controlling Soul Power, Xiao Tian's habits are practically identical to yours."

"Only..."

"Are you sure Xiao Tian didn't punish Xiao Feng right where she liked it?"

As soon as those words were spoken, the room fell utterly silent.

Ning Tian's raised right arm froze in midair, her expression slowly stiffening.

Pinned to the ground and unable to fight back, Wu Feng's pretty face was flushed, heat radiating from her.

Yet a closer look would reveal a flash of panic darting through those watery red eyes.

Ning Huan, meanwhile, stared blankly for a moment, then rolled his eyes at Zhang Lexuan, utterly speechless.

He showed his deep contempt for her irresponsible behavior: deliberately stirring things up just now, then pretending to be innocent.

"You've gone too far! Why do you just say whatever pops into your head?"

"Ehehe~"

"Ugh! A twenty-three-year-old big sister, and you're trying to act cute!"

Zhang Lexuan: "..."

How had such a nice person ended up with such a sharp tongue!

Big Sister is in the prime of her youth and beauty!

You just don't appreciate it!

What should I do?

I want to hit him too!

At the same time, Ning Tian, who suddenly felt dizzy, had no inclination to join in their banter.

Her golden eyes stayed fixed on Wu Feng beneath her.

They held three parts conflicted feelings, three parts anger, and ninety-four parts questioning everything she knew about life.

"When did this happen?"

"Please, Young Mistress, let me explain!"

"Go on. I'm listening."

"I... Oh, come on! It definitely isn't what you think!"

"Heh. Isn't it? You just want a monogamous relationship, don't you?"

Ning Huan, who had been trading jabs with Zhang Lexuan while keeping an eye on how things were unfolding, was left baffled.

What on earth was this girl saying?

He couldn't remember teaching her such an advanced interpretation of the term.

But now that he thought about it, Wu Feng's behavior over the past year did seem... well... a little off.

However, just as Ning Huan fell silent, Wu Feng's answer proved to be utterly unexpected.

"What monogamous relationship? Young Mistress, aren't you angry because I have a bad habit of liking to be bullied?"

"Hm?"

"What the heck?"

"Brilliant~"

All three turned to look at the red-haired girl sprawled on the floor, who had just finished blurting out her secret.

A question mark popped up over each of their heads.

Then, as if they had thought of the same thing, Ning Tian and Zhang Lexuan turned almost in sync toward the only boy in the room.

Understanding dawned in both their eyes.

No wonder Feng Mei (Xiao Feng) likes provoking him. She's gotten hooked!

Without a doubt, this time it was Ning Huan's turn to be in hot water.

He'd never expected that after a lifetime of hunting geese, he'd finally have his eyes pecked out by one.

He'd somehow ended up as the subject of the gossip!

Ning Tian was fine; she was only a little upset. He could cheer her up later.

But what was Zhang Lexuan's deal?

I'm a perfectly normal person. And you're a Soul Douluo, a woman in her twenties—why are you acting like you've been personally slighted?

Unfortunately, one of the three present couldn't bring herself to hit him, one couldn't beat him, and the last one treated a scolding like a reward.

So no matter how angry Ning Huan got, his only option in the end was to swallow his pride.

"Everyone, break it up! Classes start tomorrow, so get some rest!"

"Hehe, Xiao Tian, look! He's flustered. It's rare to see him unable to keep up that calm act."

"Mm, Ning Huan really does look different like this."

"He's flustered, he's flustered~"

"Little lunatic, whose fault do you think this is? Tomorrow's training load is doubled! Xiao Tian will supervise!"

Ning Huan could just about put up with the first two jibes.

He had no choice. He'd picked them himself, so he had to put up with them.

But he couldn't stand that last one for even half a second!

"Huh? Why?!"

"Double it again! No food if you don't finish!"

"No!"

The next day, Shrek Academy, quiet for over a month, finally burst back into life.

The newly enrolled students brimmed with anticipation, endlessly curious about the future.

Most of the upper-year students, by contrast, wore grave expressions and hurried along with heavy steps.

Only the few with especially powerful auras showed the slightest hint of relief or happiness.

That was the crushing pressure brought on by Shrek's cultivation-based elimination system, enforced for ten thousand years.

"There are even fewer people this time..."

Looking at the two sharply divided groups in the distance, Zhang Lexuan was struck by a wave of emotion.

It was clear she'd witnessed this troubling scene more than once.

"Xiao Huan, what do you think?"

Ning Huan, who seemed to be looking for something nearby, replied absentmindedly.

"Cruel. It's reality. And it drives the two groups even further apart."

"The Outer Court's resources are already fixed. If you want to allocate more of them to the students 'worth' cultivating, you can only eliminate the ones who aren't."

As he spoke, he suddenly paused. Several breaths passed before he continued.

"If I were in that position, I'd do the same!"

"Survival of the fittest! The strong prey on the weak!"

"That talk of fairness and reason doesn't work here!"

His calm, detached words crashed through the hearts of the three girls.

Wu Feng was confused.

Zhang Lexuan was astonished.

Ning Tian understood, and beneath that understanding lay her support.

"Sometimes I really want to know what exactly is going on in that head of yours."

Zhang Lexuan thought for a long while, then could only shake her head helplessly.

Right now, she couldn't even convince herself, let alone argue right and wrong with him when he was so clearheaded.

"Alright, you two go to class first. Wait for me downstairs at the teaching building after class."

"Mm. See you."

"Goodbye, Sister Lexuan."

After watching Zhang Lexuan leave, Ning Huan said his own farewell and left the group as well.

There was nothing he could do. When you live under someone else's roof, you have to bow your head.

Ning Tian and Wu Feng were new students, so they had classes in the white teaching building.

Because of his age and strength, he'd been assigned to the fifth year.

That was why the three of them rarely had to split up.

Before long...

"Class, settle down!"

"This student is an exchange student sent by the Nine Treasures Glazed Academy to learn from us!"

"For the next three months, you'll study together and improve side by side!"

"Let's give him a round of applause!"

At the teacher's words, a few scattered claps sounded around the classroom. There were so few that anyone would have felt disrespected.

But the middle-aged teacher with a receding hairline, standing beside Ning Huan, didn't seem to mind.

After all, in his eyes, any student who could enter Shrek and make it to the fifth year was a top-tier genius on the continent.

Even if they couldn't compare with the true prodigies of the Inner Court,

they were still far beyond the students of a fledgling academy like the Nine Treasures Glazed Academy.

"Alright, Ning, find yourself a seat. Let's begin."

"Mm."

There was no self-introduction, no extra formalities, and no verbal or physical provocation.

The middle-aged homeroom teacher's contempt and the more critical than approving looks of the twenty-odd students below the platform likewise failed to stir even the slightest ripple in Ning Huan's heart.

They were just a bunch of people with no value to exploit. Why bother wasting time on them?

He only needed to teach them a lesson when he found the time.

Of course, the class wasn't quite as boring as he'd imagined.

At least two people had never looked at him...

Jiang Nannan!

Xu Sanshi!

I ended up in the same class as those two... This should be interesting~