After all, Su Ming had been her student for a time. But he had always been arrogant and unruly, never taking her seriously.
Whenever he looked at her, his eyes were filled with undisguised contempt, as if he were looking at a useless nobody.
At first, she had been furious and wanted to teach this disrespectful student a lesson. But Su Ming's talent for soul tools was heaven-defying, and he was highly valued by the academy.
He was also on close terms with Xuan Zi. With such a powerful backer, she had no way to stand against him.
Even her husband, Fan Yu, the vice dean of the Soul Tool Department, had personally warned her several times never to get into a conflict with Su Ming, lest she bring disaster upon herself.
So when she first saw Su Ming appear, she could only force down her anger and pretend not to notice him. But when she saw that he showed no sign of leaving,
and stayed on the training field, she began to sense that something was wrong. It wasn't until she saw him suddenly grab Huo Yuhao and carry him to the finish line that she realized something was amiss. Su Ming was sure to seize the chance to make trouble.
Completely enraged by Su Ming's attitude, Zhou Yi immediately shouted at him, her voice cold and harsh:
"Of course I'm expelling every last one of them! Shrek Academy only accepts monsters, not ordinary people. If they can't complete the assigned task, that proves they don't deserve to stay at Shrek. These good-for-nothings can all get lost!"
As her heartless words fell, the students on the track who had failed the test or barely managed to endure it went deathly pale and began to tremble.
Many of them buckled at the knees and collapsed to the ground. Some even threw themselves facedown on the track and wept.
They had endured untold hardships and given everything they had to get into Shrek Academy, believing they would be able to embark on an entirely new path of cultivation.
But they had never expected to be ruthlessly kicked out on their very first day. When they went home, they wouldn't be able to face the families who had placed such high hopes in them.
Watching Zhou Yi's domineering, overbearing behavior, Su Ming had never intended to show her the slightest courtesy. He had long known all about her teaching style, so harsh it was almost cruel,
with not the slightest regard for her students' lives. Now he tore off all pretense and berated her in front of everyone.
"Zhou Yi, who do you think you are? What makes you fit to stand at Shrek's lectern and teach? You're deciding whether students stay or go based on a single run.
You're always threatening to expel them and telling them to get lost. Shrek Academy has stood for a thousand years by teaching students according to their abilities and honing their skills—not by abusing your power to bully the weak and treat human lives like grass!"
"You make no effort to tell right from wrong. You punish students on a whim, according to your own moods, and casually rob them of the chance to study.
You're being utterly irresponsible toward these students and their futures! You haven't just disgraced yourself—you've disgraced Shrek Academy's thousand-year legacy and personally set out to destroy its foundations!"
"You keep saying it's all for the students' growth, but really, you're just indulging your desire to control everything and issue orders as you please!
A true teacher protects students as they grow, guides them according to their abilities, and helps them move forward. A true teacher doesn't treat students like ants to be trampled and humiliated at will!
You'd better drop this domineering act right now and think carefully about what your responsibilities as a teacher are!"
"These new students simply haven't finished the required number of laps yet. A temporary setback doesn't mean they can't become outstanding talents who stand on their own in the future.
And now you want to drive away all the academy's future pillars without even considering the reasons? How can you call yourself a teacher? You're completely unreasonable!"
Su Ming's words rang out with force, every one of them striking home. He showed no mercy as he publicly left Zhou Yi speechless.
The new students around them stared in shock, then admiration flooded their faces. They all looked at Su Ming with respect, marveling inwardly:
That senior is incredible. He actually dared to talk back to a teacher like that in front of everyone. What's more, he said exactly what we've all been thinking. The fear and resentment bottled up inside us have eased a little.
Xiao Xiao, whom Su Ming had caught when she nearly fell earlier, had unmistakable awe and admiration in her clear eyes.
Her sparkling gaze stayed fixed on Su Ming, brimming with unreserved admiration and trust. Her cheeks even warmed slightly as she filled with respect for the person before her.
That merciless humiliation made Zhou Yi tremble with rage. Her face twisted into a vicious, contorted mask, and she immediately snapped, her voice shrill and piercing:
"Su Ming! Who do you think you are? I'm teaching my own students. Who are you to interfere? You're nothing but a fourth-year student, yet you dare to act so insolently in front of me!"
Su Ming didn't even look Zhou Yi in the eye. "What, did I say anything wrong? You're expelling students over one run without even going to the teaching office to discuss it with Du Weilun. Who do you think you are?"
Huo Yuhao had only just reached the finish line and still hadn't caught his breath. Seeing Su Ming rally to the defense of the students who hadn't crossed the line on their own,
Huo Yuhao spoke weakly as well. "Teacher Zhou Yi, strictness isn't the same as tyranny, and punishment isn't the same as humiliation.
"You can demand that we train hard, but you can't take away our basic dignity as students. What truly helps people grow is respect, not fear.
"You can use your strength to make us obey, but you can't make us accept you from the heart.
"Unrelenting tyranny and pressure will only wear down our fighting spirit, not temper our character. I can't accept teaching like that."
The students watching nearby had already been filled with resentment. Now that someone had finally spoken up, they nodded in agreement one after another. Their overlapping voices of protest immediately filled the entire training ground.
A thin, frail-looking student frowned, his voice full of frustration and grievance as he shouted in protest:
"That's right! You're a teacher at Shrek, yet you made us support-system Soul Masters run the same laps as Power Attack System students in their extreme physical conditioning! How could you even come up with such an outrageous demand?"
Another student promptly stepped forward, his face full of indignation as he pointed out the absurdity of the rules:
"Why should you expel us just because we didn't finish a high-intensity running drill? A mere endurance run
can't possibly determine the quality of our Martial Souls or our future potential! Your way of testing us is far too arbitrary and unprofessional!"
Wang Dong had always been outspoken and impulsive. He was also close to Huo Yuhao, and from the moment Zhou Yi had assigned the run, he had already been fed up with her harsh, unreasonable way of doing things.
Now, seeing what was happening, Wang Dong immediately stepped forward, lifting his chin as open disdain filled his eyes. He spoke without hesitation:
"In my opinion, you're not fit to be our teacher. You haven't shown the slightest ability to teach from start to finish!"
One blunt challenge after another rang out, surging toward Zhou Yi like a tide.
Zhou Yi's face had been cold, but after a whole crowd of students talked back to her in public, she had lost all face. The anger in her heart erupted at once.
Her expression grew ever more livid, fury flaring between her brows. She could no longer maintain her composure and became completely irritable and volatile.
"You bunch of ignorant little brats think you can question my teaching?"
Zhou Yi barked. Her Soul Power suddenly surged into a frenzy! Blazing Soul Rings rose one after another from beneath her feet, glowing yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black. Six richly colored Soul Rings revolved neatly around her.
The overwhelming pressure of a Soul Master swept across the entire training ground. The formidable strength of a level-six Soul Emperor was on full display, and even the air grew heavy and oppressive.
The students fell silent at once. Many struggled to breathe under the vast pressure and instinctively took half a step back, fear welling up inside them.
Just as everyone was cowed by Zhou Yi's Soul Emperor aura and no one dared to speak, a steady, upright figure suddenly stepped forward.
Su Ming remained calm, utterly undaunted by the Soul Emperor's pressure before him. With a thought, brilliant silver-white light burst from his entire body.
Amid the sharp, ringing clank of metal, the thunderous sound of his armor assembling echoed in every direction!
The formidable, handsome Snow Mastiff Armor instantly enveloped him from head to toe. Its gleaming white plates, etched with sharp, clean lines, covered his entire body.
The heavy, sturdy armor gleamed with a cold metallic sheen. Like a white steel war god standing firm upon the earth, it radiated an imposing presence, resembling a white-skinned tank as it stood solidly in the middle of the training ground.
At the same time, four Soul Rings slowly rose from beneath Su Ming's feet, glowing yellow, purple, purple, black. This simple yet exceptionally powerful Soul Ring Configuration revolved quietly around him.
Compared with Zhou Yi's six Soul Rings, stacked up by age, Su Ming's advanced configuration—two purple and one black, combining supreme talent with strength beyond his level—shocked everyone far more!
Everyone knew that Soul Ring quality was a far better measure of talent and strength than quantity. To possess a black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring at such a young age was beyond anything anyone there could comprehend.
For a moment, every gaze in the crowd locked onto Su Ming. Shock and disbelief spread across every face.