Next, Mu Jin abruptly changed the subject, and her tone turned serious.
"However, what I want to tell you is that Shrek Academy has never lacked geniuses."
"Here, the talent you once took pride in may not stand out at all. You might even fade into the crowd!"
"With every Freshman Assessment, more than half of the freshmen are eliminated."
"In other words, fewer than half of you will be able to remain at the academy and continue studying."
"All you can do is give it everything you have over these three months, improve yourselves desperately, and fight for the chance to stay."
Seeing the grave expressions on the students' faces, Mu Jin knew her warning had achieved its intended effect.
She turned around and wrote two large words on the blackboard.
Class Monitor!
Then her gaze swept across the room as she called out, "Huo Yuhao, Ning Tian."
The two seated beside each other slowly rose to their feet.
"I have reviewed your entrance test results. Among you, Ning Tian is a level thirty-one Soul Elder, while Huo Yuhao is a level twenty-five Soul Grandmaster.
Their cultivation levels are far ahead of everyone else's. Therefore, from today onward, they will serve as the class monitor and vice monitor of Freshman Class 9."
"However, Shrek Academy has always let the capable take the position. The class monitor and vice monitor positions are not fixed.
Ning Tian is an auxiliary-type Soul Master. Anyone wishing to challenge her position as class monitor must find another student to form a team and face Ning Tian and Huo Yuhao in a two-on-two team battle.
If someone defeats Huo Yuhao alone, they can replace him as vice monitor."
As Mu Jin's words fell, the previously silent classroom erupted into commotion once more.
The way everyone looked at Huo Yuhao and Ning Tian changed instantly.
The female students in the class looked at Huo Yuhao with even greater enthusiasm, their admiration and curiosity entirely undisguised.
Wang Dong'er, seated to Huo Yuhao's left, was rather surprised.
There was actually a Soul Elder under twelve years old?
Even as the young sect master of the Clear Sky Sect, her cultivation had yet to reach that level.
It seemed she needed to spend another shichen cultivating at night...
No, half a shichen would do. Balancing work and rest was what mattered most.
She had no desire to exhaust herself.
Wu Feng, seated to Ning Tian's right, stared intently at Huo Yuhao, her eyes filled with scrutiny and defiance.
Soul Power cultivation did not necessarily represent one's combat strength, especially among Soul Masters below level thirty.
Her Soul Power Level was already level twenty-four, and her martial soul was the top-tier assault-type Red Dragon.
A mere Huo Yuhao could be suppressed with one hand.
The task of protecting the young mistress could only be handled by me, Wu Feng.
Not to mention, when Mu Jin had announced Huo Yuhao's Soul Power Level earlier, the young mistress's gaze toward him had noticeably changed.
She knew perfectly well why Ning Tian had truly come to Shrek Academy. She absolutely could not allow someone else to steal the young mistress away.
With that thought, Wu Feng abruptly stood up, her clear voice cutting through the classroom's noise.
"Teacher Mu, I challenge Huo Yuhao!"
Ignoring the faint displeasure in Ning Tian's eyes beside her, she raised her voice again and stared directly at Huo Yuhao.
"Huo Yuhao, don't tell me you don't dare accept my challenge?"
The scent of gunpowder instantly filled the air, and the commotion in the classroom only grew louder.
Every student present considered themselves an elite. They were proud to the bone, and naturally none of them accepted anyone else's superiority.
Now that someone had taken the lead, they were more than happy to see what Huo Yuhao was truly capable of.
"Wu Feng, I accept your challenge."
Huo Yuhao answered calmly, then turned his gaze toward Mu Jin on the podium.
A meaningful smile appeared on Mu Jin's face.
She had already been curious about the rumors concerning Huo Yuhao circulating outside. This was a perfect chance to verify them herself.
She waved a hand, signaling everyone to quiet down.
"Since that is the case, everyone will go to the Soul Fighting Zone to watch this match."
After seeing the other students and Huo Yuhao leave the classroom with Mu Jin, Wu Feng, who had deliberately been kept behind by Ning Tian, asked with some confusion, "Young Mistress, is there something you need?"
"Feng Mei, we came to Shrek Academy to make friends and broaden our horizons, not to make enemies everywhere. You understand that, don't you?"
Ning Tian looked at this loyal yet somewhat impulsive maid before her, a trace of helplessness in her tone.
She knew more about Huo Yuhao than Wu Feng did, and she did not think Wu Feng could defeat him.
The reason Ning Tian had not forcibly stopped this impulsive duel was because she wanted Huo Yuhao to dampen Wu Feng's arrogance a little.
Otherwise, with Wu Feng's current temperament, she would sooner or later cause even greater trouble.
"Mm."
Wu Feng replied softly, appearing obedient, but the coldness in her dark-red eyes had not faded in the slightest.
Over the years, this was the first time she had seen Ning Tian show such obvious concern toward a male her own age.
Wu Feng silently followed behind Ning Tian and left the classroom.
As soon as they reached the corridor, they saw that most of the Class Nine students had not immediately headed for the Soul Fighting Zone. Instead, they had gathered in small groups by the corridor windows, looking toward Shrek Plaza.
Among the crowd, Wang Dong'er stood beside Huo Yuhao with her head tilted, watching the boys and girls running desperately around Shrek Plaza. A relieved expression appeared on her face as she muttered under her breath.
"Good thing I was smart and didn't go head-to-head with that old hag. Otherwise, I'd probably be down there running in circles until my legs gave out."
Huo Yuhao looked at those familiar and unfamiliar faces. Then, when he spotted the blue-haired youth sprinting wildly among the crowd, he could not help but find it amusing.
He had not expected that the youth suspected of being Tang San reincarnated would have such "good" luck.
The other Class Nine students could not restrain their curiosity upon seeing this and began asking Mu Jin questions all at once.
"Teacher Mu, we won't have to run laps around Shrek Plaza like them in the future, will we?"
"Teacher Mu, could running possibly be Shrek Academy's secret weapon for becoming so powerful?"
"Teacher Mu, I heard that the Sea God from ten thousand years ago also loved running. Is that true?"
Listening to the students' assorted questions, Mu Jin's temple twitched.
Other than that Zhou Yi, who in Shrek Academy would be bored enough to make students run endlessly around Shrek Plaza?
She did not even distinguish between the physical qualities of different Soul Masters and made everyone run the same number of laps. It was utter nonsense.
Mu Jin gave a light cough, interrupting the students' discussion.
"Please rest assured, I will not use such a simple and crude method.
Later, based on each person's individual circumstances, such as the characteristics of your martial souls and your physical foundations, I will arrange different and more targeted physical training for everyone."
"Awesome! Long live Teacher Mu!"
Upon hearing Mu Jin's promise, the Class Nine students all breathed sighs of relief, relaxed smiles appearing on their faces.
After all, simply running like that looked far too foolish, and the results might not even be good.
Before you continue