Shrek Eleven Monsters

Flender stood on the high platform, hands on his hips, his gaze sweeping over the sea of heads below.

The entire academy's faculty and students were present; the Shrek Seven Devils stood in the front row, other students in the back, and teachers on both sides. Even the cafeteria auntie was squeezed into the doorway, holding a rice scoop as she watched the excitement.

Flender cleared his throat, his voice amplified by soul power, carrying across the entire plaza: "After a month of observation and assessment, regarding the stay or departure of the four visitors who descended from the heavens, I have made the following decision."

He paused, raising his volume: "Han Li, Xiao Yan, Shi Hao, and Wang Lin are officially enrolled in Shrek Academy as special extramural students."

The entire academy was in an uproar.

Dai Mubai was the first to step out. He strode from the crowd, his expression clearly asking, Dean, have you lost your mind? "Dean! They are too weird!"

Flender glanced at him, expressionless: "Weird or not, we are taking them in."

Dai Mubai grew anxious: "Why?"

Flender did not answer directly. Instead, he pulled a slip of paper from his sleeve, unfolded it, and read: "The pills Han Li refined were sold to a pharmacy for a profit of ten thousand Gold Soul Coin. Xiao Yan burned down the training ground, and the repairs cost five thousand Gold Soul Coin. The mountain Shi Hao shattered required three thousand Gold Soul Coin in compensation. The two students Wang Lin scared unconscious required five hundred Gold Soul Coin in medical expenses."

He finished reading, put away the paper, and looked at Dai Mubai.

Dai Mubai was stunned. The Shrek Seven Devils exchanged glances, and Oscar asked cautiously: "So... they are here to spend money?"

The corners of Flender's mouth curled up slightly, revealing an expression that said, you are all too young: "Han Li's pills earned ten thousand. Xiao Yan paid for the training ground repairs himself; he has savings, I checked. Shi Hao's mountain was paid for with money he earned working; he spent a month moving bricks in Suotuo City. Wang Lin paid the medical expenses himself. So, all things considered, the academy is making a net profit."

He counted on his fingers: "Han Li supplies the pharmacy and will have a share of at least five thousand Gold Soul Coin every month. Although Xiao Yan burned the training ground, he promised to help repair it in the future; his Exotic Flame can fire special fire-resistant bricks that are sturdier than anything bought outside. Although Shi Hao shattered the mountain, the villagers said they wanted that land leveled for houses anyway, so Shi Hao saved them the demolition costs. And while Wang Lin scared two students, those two have been studying exceptionally hard ever since and haven't been late or left early once."

The Seven Devils were left completely speechless.

Flender clapped his hands to signal for silence. Once the uproar gradually subsided, he dropped a second bombshell: "Additionally, I have formed them into a team: the Four Monsters Team."

The chicken leg in Ma Hongjun's mouth fell: "Four Monsters? Then what about the Shrek Seven Devils?"

Flender crossed his arms, his tone flat: "From now on, Shrek Academy will have two representative teams: the Shrek Seven Devils and... the Four Monsters."

Oscar raised his hand, his expression complex: "Dean, isn't that name a bit too perfunctory?"

Flender gestured toward the direction where the four stood: "They chose it themselves."

Everyone's gaze turned toward the four individuals.

Flender clapped his hands again: "Also, for future team missions, the Seven Devils and the Four Monsters may need to coordinate, so you must get to know each other."

Dai Mubai's face could no longer be described as merely ugly; his expression was like he had swallowed a live fly, and his voice was squeezed through his teeth: "Coordinate with them?"

The four's responses were a disaster zone. Shi Hao was the first to raise his hand, his voice as loud as a charge on the battlefield: "I agree!"

Xiao Yan was the second to speak, not even turning his head, his tone stiff: "No."

Han Li was the third. He glanced at Dai Mubai and said two words: "Ask him."

Wang Lin was the last. With his eyes closed, his tone was as indifferent as if he were discussing someone else's business: "This Seat has no opinion."

Standing on the platform and watching the four answer in such a chaotic manner, Flender couldn't help but support his forehead.

He took a deep breath and said in a tone that suggested he had already given up on treatment: "Forget it, work it out amongst yourselves."

The final scene: eleven people stood in a row, the Shrek Seven Devils on the left, the four monsters on the right, with a one-person gap in between.

Flender looked at the eleven of them and took a deep breath: "From now on, you are..."

Dai Mubai shouted first: "The Shrek Seven Devils!"

Shi Hao followed immediately: "The Four Monsters!"

The two spoke at the same time, neither willing to yield.

Flender waited for a moment, and seeing that neither had any intention of stopping, he sighed and made the final decision: "Then... let's go with the Shrek Eleven Monsters."

Tang San raised his hand from the line, his face full of reluctance: "Dean, Eleven Monsters sounds terrible..."

Flender pulled a camera from his pocket—an old-fashioned Soul Guidance Camera he had found somewhere, which required soul power to operate.

Flender handed the camera to Yu Xiaogang, stood next to the group, and shouted: "Look at the lens, smile!"

Click. After the photo was developed, Flender held it in his hand for a long time. The expressions of the Seven Devils were normal: Dai Mubai smiled generously, Oscar smiled honestly, Ma Hongjun smiled happily, Ning Rongrong smiled sweetly, Zhu Zhuqing's expression was at least normal even if she didn't smile, and Xiao Wu's eyes were curved like crescent moons.

The expressions of the four monsters could only be described as "distinctive." Han Li was expressionless, his eyes wandering somewhere unknown, radiating an aura of "I have nothing to do with this photo."

Xiao Yan held his chin higher than the sky, a trace of arrogance on his lips that said, I disdain to take pictures with you lot.

Shi Hao grinned foolishly, smiling so hard his face distorted, looking like an idiot.

Wang Lin's mouth curled slightly, revealing a standard cold sneer.

Flender flipped the photo over and wrote a line on the back. After writing it, he shook his head and sighed. Standing behind him, Yu Xiaogang saw the line: "This is probably the biggest mistake I've made in my academy career."

He thought for a moment, took the pen, and added a sentence below: "And a four-man group that even I, a master of theory, cannot analyze."

Xiao Wu poked her head out from between the two, glanced at the photo, then at the two lines, and said with a smile: "But it will definitely be interesting."

Flender and Yu Xiaogang looked at Xiao Wu simultaneously, sighed at the same time, and said in unison: "It is very interesting."

Xiao Wu blinked, not quite understanding, but she felt that as long as it was interesting, that was all that mattered.

That night, in a tavern in Suotuo City.

The Eleven Monsters gathered to celebrate their formation.

Dai Mubai paid the bill; as the leader of the Shrek Seven Devils, he felt it was necessary to show some hospitality.

The tavern was small, and the eleven of them occupied two tables.

The Shrek Eleven Monsters sat at one table, while the four of them sat at another.

The table with the Shrek Eleven Monsters was as lively as a New Year's celebration; Oscar and Ma Hongjun were locked in a drinking contest, Ning Rongrong was cheering them on from the side, Xiao Wu was slamming the table in laughter, and Dai Mubai's face had turned red after being forced to down several glasses.

The table with the four of them was as quiet as a funeral parlor. Xiao Yan sat by the window, turning a wine cup in his hand without drinking. Shi Hao was devouring the food on the table, eating enough for five people all by himself. Wang Lin had his eyes closed, lost in either meditation or sleep, while Han Li was methodically eating a plate of greens.

Xiao Yan looked out at the night view of Suotuo City. It was brightly lit, bustling with traffic and people. This place was unlike any world he had ever visited; there was no Dou Qi, no Exotic Flame, no medicinal pills, and none of the things he was familiar with.

But there was fire-attribute soul power here. Although it was of a lower grade than Dou Qi, it was enough for his Exotic Flame to slowly recover. There were also opponents—opponents worth taking seriously—and those three weirdos who had fallen from the sky just like him. Though they were annoying as hell, they were at least not weak. Xiao Yan took a sip of wine and said softly, "Douluo Continent... not bad."

Shi Hao, his mouth stuffed with meat, mumbled vaguely, "I'm going to fight until I'm the strongest here!" With that, he buried his head back into his food.

Wang Lin opened his eyes, the flickering tavern lights reflected in his grey-white pupils: "This Seat intends to find the secret of reincarnation here."

After the three of them spoke, they looked at Han Li simultaneously. Han Li put down his chopsticks and remained silent for a long time—so long that Xiao Yan thought he hadn't heard and was preparing to repeat himself. Han Li finally spoke, his voice very flat, but with a rare earnestness in his eyes: "I want to find the way home, and then..."

The three of them looked at him in unison: "And then?"

The corners of Han Li's mouth lifted slightly in a rare expression that could almost be called a smile: "And then, beat the three of you who return before me."

Silence, then Xiao Yan laughed and slammed his wine cup onto the table: "Tch, it's not certain who will be beating whom."

Shi Hao's eyes shone like lamps, and his fists were already clenched: "I want to fight you!"

Wang Lin curled his lips into a half-smile: "This Seat shall watch from the sidelines."

The four of them shared a rare laugh. Although they still looked at each other with disdain, although they still refused to yield to one another, and although they still called each other "ugly monster," "noob," "lunatic," and "sissy" every day, they had inexplicably begun to find some common ground.

Perhaps it was just because none of them belonged to this world, or perhaps it was because they were all too strong—strong enough that only they could understand one another.

Regardless of the reason, they all knew one thing: in this strange world, these four people were the only ones who could understand what the others were saying.

Tang San walked over from the Shrek Eleven Monsters' table with a glass of wine. His face was a bit flushed, whether from the alcohol or nervousness, it was hard to tell.

He stood before the table of four and raised his glass: "The four of you, a toast to you all. Welcome to..."

Four pairs of chopsticks stopped at once, four mouths opened simultaneously, and they uttered the same syllable: "Scram."

Tang San stood there with his glass, his smile frozen on his face, his hand suspended in mid-air like a statue. Xiao Wu ran over from the other table and snatched the glass from Tang San's hand, her tone filled with the helplessness of someone saying "I told you so": "Third Brother, you brought this on yourself."

Tang San's face shifted from red to white, then back to red. His eyes grew moist. He looked at the four of them, his lips trembling. The word "Resurrect" had just reached his throat when Xiao Wu raised her hand and splashed half the glass of wine precisely onto Tang San's face.

"Wake up!" Xiao Wu demanded, hands on her hips, as the wine dripped down Tang San's face.

Tang San kept his eyes closed, his face soaked, wine droplets hanging from his eyelashes. He slowly opened his eyes, looked at Xiao Wu, wiped the wine from his face, and swallowed the six words "Resurrect, My Love" along with a mouthful of wine back into his stomach.

Seeing Tang San in such a pathetic yet comical state, Xiao Wu couldn't help but laugh. She reached out to help him wipe the wine from his face and said with a smile: "Third Brother, let's go home."

Tang San nodded.

He turned and followed Xiao Wu away. After two steps, he looked back at the table of four. Xiao Yan was drinking in silence, Shi Hao was gnawing on bones, Wang Lin had his eyes closed, and Han Li was eating his greens. None of them looked at him. Tang San withdrew his gaze and left.

The tavern was brightly lit! At the table of four, Xiao Yan put down his cup and shouted: "Boss, another pot!"

Shi Hao looked up from his pile of bones: "I want some too!"

Wang Lin opened his eyes and added calmly: "This Seat wants tea."

Han Li picked up a mouthful of greens and said expressionlessly: "Add a plate of peanuts."

And so, the story of the Shrek Eleven Monsters had only just begun.