Entering Shrek Academy

Crossing the border between the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Dou Empire and traveling another hundred miles south, a towering, massive city appeared in the four travelers' field of vision.

The city walls were constructed entirely of dark green boulders, standing a hundred meters high like a dormant giant dragon stretched across the plains.

Countless intricate Soul Tool arrays were inscribed upon the walls, and even from miles away, one could feel that heavy, majestic pressure.

Above the city gate, the four vigorous, powerful characters for "Shrek City" shimmered in the sunlight, exuding a domineering aura that looked down upon the world, even after ten thousand years of wind and rain.

This was the holy land in the hearts of all soul masters on the continent, the location of Shrek Academy.

It just so happened to be the season for Shrek Academy's annual freshman enrollment, and the wide official road was packed with a constant stream of people, carriages, and horses.

Soul masters from all over the continent brought their children here, all hoping their talented offspring could step into this legendary academy and ascend to the heavens in a single bound.

Ten-year-old Huo Yuhao followed beside Gu Yuan, his small face filled with unconcealable shock and longing.

Having been trapped within the confines of the White Tiger Duke Mansion since childhood, the most prosperous place he had ever seen was the main city where the mansion resided; he had never witnessed such a bustling, massive city teeming with experts.

Seven or eight out of every ten pedestrians on the road were soul masters. The halos of soul rings were visible everywhere; Soul Grand Master and Soul Elder ranks were common, and one could even occasionally spot Soul Ancestor or Soul King level experts galloping past on tall horses, surrounded by guards.

High-level soul masters, rarely seen in ordinary times, were nothing more than commoners here.

"Is this... Shrek City?" Huo Yuhao muttered to himself, his Spirit Eye wide open as he scanned the surroundings, his eyes filled with starlight.

"So many soul masters... far more than all the ones I've seen in the White Tiger Duke Mansion combined."

"This is only the city gate," Gu Yuan said in a calm tone.

Having stood for ten thousand years, Shrek Academy was no longer just an academy, but a completely independent city. It was not under the jurisdiction of the three great empires, possessing its own laws, its own army, and the continent's top resources; almost all the top geniuses gathered here.

Jin Ruiqiu, off to the side, was like a little bird just out of its cage, her large golden eyes darting around, filled with curiosity about everything.

Having grown up in the Star Dou Forest, she had never seen such a lively human marketplace.

The sugar figurines sold on the street, the colorful clothes, and the various Soul Tool trinkets kept her eyes glued to them. If Gu Yuena hadn't been holding her hand the whole time, she likely would have run off to play long ago.

"Sister Yue, look at that sugar figurine! It's golden and so cute!" Jin Ruiqiu tugged on Gu Yuena's sleeve, her small face full of excitement as she pointed at the sugar painting stall, her eyes filled with longing.

A soft smile appeared on Gu Yuena's cold, beautiful face. She reached out to stroke the girl's curly hair, took a gold coin from her storage Soul Tool, and handed it to the stall owner, saying gently, "Excuse me, please make a little rabbit for her."

The stall owner stared at the peerless young girl before him, stunned for a long time before coming to his senses. He hurriedly began boiling sugar and drawing the pattern with nimble hands. In just a moment, a lifelike sugar rabbit was handed to Jin Ruiqiu.

The little girl cradled the sugar figurine, her eyes crinkling into crescents with joy. She took a bite, the sweet taste melting in her mouth, and she couldn't stop smiling, skipping along behind Gu Yuena like a satisfied little kitten.

Gu Yuena watched her happy expression, the tenderness in her eyes deepening.

The four walked and stopped along the way, finally arriving at the main gate of Shrek City half an hour later.

The city gate was guarded by a Shrek Academy security team. Every guard possessed a cultivation of at least Soul Ancestor rank, their gazes sharp as they vigilantly scanned everyone entering the city.

Two massive stone tablets stood on either side of the gate; the left was inscribed with "Only Monsters Accepted," and the right with "No Ordinary People Accepted." The eight characters fully displayed the arrogance of Shrek Academy.

However, in Gu Yuan's view, this arrogance was quite thin. An academy was a place to educate and nurture; there was no great skill in simply cultivating a genius into a genius.

It was like a piece of raw jade that was beautiful without deliberate carving; a genius was already a naturally formed gem, so why would Shrek need to forcefully "cultivate" them into one?

The crowd entering the city consciously split into two lines. One was for examinees and parents participating in the enrollment assessment, standing in a long queue to undergo basic Innate Soul Power screening; the other was for Shrek Academy faculty, students, and permanent personnel of major factions, who used tokens issued by the academy or letters of recommendation to walk directly through the green channel.

The line of examinees was filled with tension and anxiety. Looking from afar, Huo Yuhao saw a boy of about twelve being turned away by the screening teacher simply because his Innate Soul Power was only level three. The boy's eyes were red with tears, yet he was still politely asked to leave the line by the guards.

"The Shrek Academy assessment is truly strict..." Huo Yuhao couldn't help but whisper, his palms sweating slightly.

Even though he was already a level 23 Soul Grand Master with an Ultimate Spirit attribute and a million-year soul ring to back him up, he still couldn't help but feel nervous facing this legendary holy land of soul masters.

"Don't be afraid," Gu Yuan patted his shoulder, his tone firm.

"We don't need to queue for the assessment; we can just take the green channel."

As he spoke, he took a gold-stamped letter from his storage Soul Tool. The envelope was imprinted with a primitive emblem; in the center of the emblem was a scepter, surrounded by dragon patterns and angel wings—it was the exclusive mark of Douluo Hall.

After two hundred years of development, Douluo Hall had grown from a small border-town faction into a continental giant that stood on equal footing with Shrek Academy.

Its branches spread across the entire continent, and its rule of awakening martial souls for commoners for free gave it unparalleled prestige among the people. Even Shrek Academy would not easily offend such a behemoth.

Gu Yuan led the three of them straight toward the entrance of the green channel. The teacher in charge of verification, who had been looking down to check tokens, was just about to speak up and stop them when his gaze fell upon the letter with the Douluo Hall emblem in Gu Yuan's hand. His expression changed instantly.

He hurriedly stood up and respectfully took the letter, holding it with both hands and carefully opening it.

The letter was written in the personal hand of the current Hall Master of Douluo Hall. The wording was concise, merely stating that four disciples were being recommended to study at Shrek Academy and requesting the academy to facilitate their admission.

At the end of the letter was the seal of the Douluo Hall Master, the bright red ink carrying an unquestionable weight.

The hands of the teacher in charge of verification trembled slightly.

He had worked at Shrek Academy for decades and had seen countless letters of recommendation from major factions—those from the Heaven Dou Empire's royal family and the Star Luo Empire's dukes were not rare. But this was the first time he had ever seen a personal letter of recommendation from the Douluo Hall Master.

Everyone knew that Douluo Hall and Shrek Academy kept to themselves on the surface, but had been in subtle competition behind the scenes all along.

Over the years, Douluo Hall had never recommended a single disciple to Shrek Academy. The weight of this letter of recommendation today could well be imagined.

"So it is a distinguished guest from Douluo Hall! My apologies, my apologies!" The verification teacher hurriedly tucked the letter away carefully, bowed to the four of them, and adopted an attitude of utmost respect.

"Please follow me, the four of you. I will take you to see the Director of the Academic Affairs Office immediately to process your enrollment."

As soon as he said this, the examinees and parents queuing nearby erupted in an uproar.

"My god! They're actually from Douluo Hall! No wonder they don't have to take the assessment and can walk straight through the green channel!"

"These four children look like they're only about ten years old, yet they have a letter of recommendation from Douluo Hall. What kind of background is this?"

"No wonder I felt these children had an extraordinary aura earlier; so they are geniuses from the Douluo Hall!"

Countless gazes filled with envy and curiosity fell upon the four of them in unison. Huo Yuhao felt his cheeks flush slightly under the weight of so many stares, subconsciously leaning closer to Gu Yuan, though a sense of pride also welled up in his heart.

He knew that the respect he was receiving now was granted by the Douluo Hall.

Jin Ruiqiu, however, remained indifferent to the surrounding gazes, continuing to hold her sugar rabbit and nibbling on it in small bites, looking as if the sky could fall and it would have nothing to do with her.

The faint aura surrounding Gu Yuena kept those nearby from daring to approach easily. Gu Yuan gave a slight nod to the verification teacher, his tone calm: "Thank you for your trouble."

The verification teacher waved his hands hurriedly, saying he dared not accept such thanks, and personally led the way, guiding the four through the city gates and into Shrek City.

The scene inside the city was even more prosperous than outside.

The wide streets were lined with shops; Soul Tool stores, spirit beast material shops, medicinal pill shops, and cultivation rooms were all available.

Students wearing the Shrek Academy uniform could be seen everywhere on the streets, each one possessing a steady aura and sharp eyes; even the younger students had cultivation levels far exceeding their peers.

As they walked, the verification teacher continuously introduced the layout of Shrek City to the four, his tone full of pride, yet his gaze toward them remained cautiously respectful.

He knew in his heart that children who could be personally recommended by the head of the Douluo Hall were definitely no ordinary geniuses, and their future achievements would surely be limitless.

Passing through the bustling main city area, they arrived at the main gate of Shrek Academy.

The academy's gate was far more archaic than the city gate, lacking excessive decoration, save for two massive stone carvings.

Beyond the gate lay an endless expanse of gardens where towering ancient trees could be seen everywhere, and the dense soul power permeating the air was several times richer than that of the outer reaches of the Star Dou Forest.

The verification teacher first took the four to the Academic Affairs Office to complete their enrollment procedures. The director of the office was also shocked to see the recommendation letter from the Douluo Hall and dared not show the slightest negligence, not only waiving the entrance exam for the four but also immediately reporting the matter to the higher-ups.

There must be some unknown reason for the Douluo Hall to send four geniuses to study for no reason.

By the time all the procedures were finished, the sun was already setting. The Academic Affairs Office specially arranged for a guide student to take the four to the student dormitory area.

The student dormitory area of Shrek Academy was divided into three parts: the Outer Court, the Inner Court, and the Core Area. Ordinary freshmen lived in communal dormitories, but the four, by virtue of the Douluo Hall's recommendation letter, were directly assigned to individual detached dorms in the Core Area. Each dormitory had an independent cultivation room, a living room, and a bedroom; the environment was tranquil and rich in soul power, representing the top-tier accommodation conditions in the academy.

Passing through layers of gardens, the guide student led the four to the entrance of the core dormitory area.

Beside the gate of the dormitory area stood a massive banyan tree, its canopy like an umbrella, blocking out the sky and sun. The afterglow of the setting sun spilled through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadows, while an elderly man with white hair lay on a rattan chair beneath the tree.

The old man wore a set of washed-out gray cloth clothes, his figure hunched and his face covered in wrinkles. His eyes were half-closed as he lazily basked in the sun, his hands toying with two smooth, shiny walnuts. He looked like an ordinary gatekeeping elder, devoid of any soul power fluctuations, as if he would topple over at the slightest breeze.

Yet, the moment the four stepped into the entrance of the dormitory area, the old man, who had been half-asleep, felt his eyelids twitch violently, and he slowly opened his eyes.

They were an incredibly bright pair of eyes; despite being set in an aged face, they seemed to contain the sun, moon, and stars—deep and transparent, as if they could see through all the illusions of the world.

The moment his gaze swept over the four, the old man's heart throbbed uncontrollably.

He was Mu En, the Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion at Shrek Academy, the Dragon God Douluo, and one of the few Limit Douluo on the continent today.

With a peak soul power of level 99, he was a figure standing at the pinnacle of the pyramid, even when looking at the entire Douluo Continent.

He usually enjoyed disguising himself as an ordinary old man, basking in the sun at the entrance of the dormitory area, watching the young students of the academy, and feeling the vitality of the freshmen.

But the moment he saw these four children today, his heart, which had been calm for decades, was unexpectedly stirred.