Enrollment

Upon entering the door, Huo Yuhao immediately sensed something was off. Most of the merchandise here consisted of soul tools, but their functions were quite primitive; in Huo Yuhao's eyes, they were practically antiques.

There was only a middle-aged man in the shop, presumably the owner, lying on a recliner that creaked rhythmically as he rocked back and forth.

As for his appearance... how to put it? The only adjective that came to Huo Yuhao's mind was "sly old fox."

He scanned the displayed goods casually, his gaze lingering for a moment on a head-sized crystal before he shifted his eyes away with an expressionless face.

"Boss, how much for this?" Huo Yuhao asked, picking up an item at random.

"One hundred Gold Soul Coin."

The boss didn't even lift his head, speaking in a languid tone.

Xiao Wu was stunned. She looked at the ordinary trinket in Huo Yuhao's hand.

"A rip-off!! Why don't you just go rob someone!?"

"Everything in my shop starts at one hundred Gold Soul Coin. If you aren't buying, you can leave." The middle-aged boss opened his eyes, glanced at Xiao Wu, and spoke.

Huo Yuhao pulled Xiao Wu back and shook his head slightly. After putting down the trinket, he picked up another soul tool—a long, cylindrical object with glass in the center.

"Boss, what's the price for this?"

Huo Yuhao held up the Telescope Soul Tool.

"One hundred Gold Soul Coin."

Huo Yuhao nodded slightly and pointed at the head-sized crystal. "Is that one also one hundred Gold Soul Coin?"

"Correct."

"I'll take both. Two hundred Gold Soul Coin for the lot."

As he spoke, he quickly paid the money under Xiao Wu's dazed gaze, grabbed the two items, and pulled her out of the shop.

"Heh, clever kid."

The middle-aged man only then realized he had been played. He shook his head with a chuckle, didn't mind it, and closed his eyes again as the creaking sound resumed echoing through the shop.

They hadn't walked two steps after leaving the shop when Xiao Wu couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Yuhao, why buy those pieces of junk? And for two hundred Gold Soul Coin!"

Her words were filled with heartache, as if she had lost her life savings.

"Heh, the yellow turbid mass inside that crystal is a very rare Crystal Plate. I can use it to craft soul tools. We really hit the jackpot this time."

Hearing that they had found a treasure, Xiao Wu immediately became excited. She didn't care about rarity; as long as she could get a good deal, she was happy.

After that, the two didn't continue shopping, and Xiao Wu was pulled back to the hotel by Huo Yuhao.

As soon as Huo Yuhao entered the room, he quickly closed the door and drew the curtains, plunging the room into dimness.

"???"

Xiao Wu's heart suddenly panicked. They were supposed to be looking at a treasure, so what was this?

Before Xiao Wu could let her imagination run wild, Huo Yuhao took out the crystal. The tattoo of the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion appeared on his back, and waves of icy air radiated from his body, causing the room's temperature to drop significantly as a chilling aura of a fierce beast surged forth.

Huo Yuhao's hands were also covered in crystalline ice shards, and he suddenly exerted force with both hands.

Countless cracks spread across the crystal in an instant. Under Huo Yuhao's sustained pressure, the crystal could no longer hold up and finally shattered with a bang.

Once Huo Yuhao brushed away the excess crystal fragments, Xiao Wu finally saw the golden particles in his hand—about the size of rice grains, emitting a faint golden light.

Curious, she picked one up to examine it. "Is this the Crystal Plate you mentioned?"

"Yes, try injecting your soul power into it." Huo Yuhao nodded with a smile.

Watching the small golden grain transform into a needle as thin as a hair, Xiao Wu exclaimed excitedly, "Wow! This is too magical! It looks like we really did hit the jackpot."

"With these gold grains, even if I just make a simple glove, I can trigger the soul power the moment it strikes. A single swipe would be enough to tear off a chunk of flesh."

Huo Yuhao explained the function simply, and Xiao Wu couldn't help but shiver as she imagined the scene.

"Yuhao, you must never use this thing on me!"

"Of course, I would never use it on one of our own."

Early the next morning, the three of them met in the hotel lobby, had a simple breakfast, and headed toward Shrek Academy.

The three left the city and traveled south, with vast stretches of farmland appearing along the roadside.

Looking at the endless fields, their moods lifted, and faint smiles couldn't help but appear on their faces.

"There's a village up ahead. Let's go ask for directions."

Xiao Wu pointed ahead. Huo Yuhao, relying on the advantage of his martial soul, had already seen the situation of the village and couldn't help but smile as he reminded them.

"That is Shrek Academy."

"Ah?? This is too run-down!"

Xiao Wu and Tang San were somewhat incredulous, but they both knew Huo Yuhao's keen eyesight; there was no need for him to lie to them at such a close distance.

Tang San suggested helplessly, "No choice, let's go check it out."

As they drew closer, the two stared blankly at the wooden archway and the tattered plaque.

"You were actually right... Does this even count as an academy? It's not even as good as our Notting Academy."

Huo Yuhao's words from when they first entered the city were still fresh in their minds.

"This is practically a scam..." Xiao Wu said with a bitter expression.

Despite the academy's dilapidated state, many had come to sign up, so the group joined the end of the line.

They heard parents and children ahead complaining about the run-down school, and Xiao Wu nodded along, feeling that every word hit home.

Huo Yuhao ignored the crowd and activated Spirit Detection to share with the other two. Their attention quickly shifted to the front of the line, where a table marked as the registration desk stood.

They witnessed the scene where the lazy old man took the money, refused the applicant, and then refused to offer a refund.

"..."

Xiao Wu was stunned. She hadn't seen such arrogance even at Notting Academy; this was nothing more than a bandit's den!

Huo Yuhao frowned as well. He hadn't expected Shrek Academy to be like this during its early days, and he felt a wave of disappointment.

Just as the child's father was about to demand justice, the old man waved his hand.

Dai Mubai, standing to the side like a lackey, stepped forward to act as a thug, though the swelling and bruises on his face had yet to fully fade.

Even with his three-ring cultivation on display, his intimidation factor was greatly diminished.

Regardless, he was a genuine Soul Elder. Under his pressure, the line thinned out significantly, which actually helped the trio move forward much faster.

As more and more people were rejected for failing to meet the criteria, the three finally understood the standards for Shrek Academy's recruitment.

Under thirteen years of age, and a soul power of level twenty-one or higher.

One had to realize that the soul power requirement alone was already the graduation standard for an intermediate Soul Master Academy.

Tang San sighed slightly, "As expected of a monster academy!"

It was almost their turn. Dai Mubai, standing beside the old man, caught sight of Huo Yuhao and a flicker of panic crossed his eyes.

He couldn't help but turn his head away, pretending he hadn't seen the three of them.

A young girl in a white dress ahead of them passed the preliminary test, and Dai Mubai seized the opportunity to lead her into the school, avoiding the awkwardness of facing Huo Yuhao.

Finally, it was Tang San's turn.

Huo Yuhao, standing at the back, suddenly sensed someone approaching from behind. He turned to look and saw a girl dressed in black.

She had a fiery figure and a cold expression, radiating an aura that warned others to keep their distance.

Ancestor?

Although there were still some differences, both her figure and her beautiful face bore the embryonic form of his past life's memory.

"Do you know me?"

The cold woman read the look in Huo Yuhao's eyes, a hint of confusion flashing through her own.

"No, sorry, I mistook you for someone else..." Huo Yuhao shook his head, but his arm suddenly stung. He saw Xiao Wu pouting at him, looking jealous.

Huo Yuhao scratched his head and gave a wry smile.

At this moment, Tang San paid the thirty Gold Soul Coins to register for all of them.

"Alright, hold out your hands."

As the three reached out, the old man touched them one by one to check their bone age.

When he touched Huo Yuhao's wrist, the old man, who had been feeling with his eyes closed, suddenly snapped them open and stared fixedly at him.

"Did I pass?"

The old man smacked his lips with a sense of wonder, waved his hand, and muttered to himself.

"What a monster..."

Though the voice was soft, it was still heard by those nearby.

Xiao Wu and Tang San didn't react much, as they were already used to it, but Zhu Qing, standing behind them, looked at Huo Yuhao with curiosity.

She had never seen the old man look so shocked by anyone before; it seemed this young man's strength was truly extraordinary...

"Next, release your martial souls."

Tang San and Xiao Wu each had two soul rings rise from beneath their feet. The old man nodded, then looked at Huo Yuhao, his pupils constricting.

There were still many onlookers present. As Huo Yuhao's pupils turned golden and a black ring emerged, followed by two yellow and one purple soul ring rising slowly, the scene fell into a dead silence, so quiet that even the sound of breathing vanished.

"This... he passed the bone age test, so he can't be thirteen yet, right? What kind of monster is this??"