The next day arrived.
Warm sunlight spilled across the windows of the Martial Soul Department's first-year teaching building.
Everyone in Freshman Class 3 looked excited, passionately discussing something.
The classroom was unusually noisy and lively.
"Did you hear what happened in Class 1 yesterday?"
"Of course! The whole Outer Court is talking about it. A new student in Freshman Class 1 got into a fight with his instructor and went straight to the Spirit Fighting Arena!"
In one corner of the classroom, two students were excitedly discussing the news.
"Really? What happened next? How did that student fare?"
Just then, a bewildered-looking student beside them joined in. He clearly found it hard to believe something so outrageous had happened.
At his question, the two students exchanged a strange look. The one sitting beside him said, "Of course it's true. Everyone at Shrek knows about it now. How have you not heard?"
The student looked fairly handsome. He scratched his head awkwardly. "Ahem. I went out with a girl yesterday and didn't come back to the dorm, so I really didn't hear about it. What happened in the end?"
Didn't come back to the dorm? His deskmate gave him a deeply disdainful look before answering, "In the end, that student, who was only a One-Ring Soul Master, beat an instructor who was using the power of a three-ring Soul Master until he fled with his head in his hands. He even forced the instructor to use a ten-thousand-year sixth Soul Skill at the Spirit Emperor level. And even then, he still couldn't do anything to the student."
"And according to the latest news, the instructor from Freshman Class 1 has already been dismissed. Nobody knows the exact reason, but you could say that student beat the instructor right out of his job."
"That instructor's name was Zhou Yi, I think. Since Shrek was founded, there's never been an instructor beaten so badly by a student. That's something."
The student telling the story laughed gleefully.
Ouyang Junyi's bewilderment deepened. He even suspected his deskmate was messing with him.
But his deskmate didn't look like he was making it up, and Ouyang Junyi began to doubt himself instead.
A first-year student beating the stuffing out of an instructor?
You've got to be kidding me.
"What does he look like? What's his name?" he asked.
His deskmate replied, "They say he has black hair and black eyes, a handsome face and fair skin—the kind of person you'd never forget after seeing him just once. That kind of—"
As the student spoke, he suddenly stopped. He stared toward the classroom entrance, eyes wide and mouth hanging open, his face full of disbelief.
At the same time, the previously noisy class fell utterly silent. You could have heard a pin drop.
"What's wrong? Why did you stop talking all of a sudden?" Seeing his deskmate's reaction, Ouyang Junyi followed his gaze, confused.
He suddenly spotted a young man standing at the classroom entrance. The boy had black hair and black eyes, a handsome face and fair skin—the sort of person who made a lasting impression at first sight.
Wait! Weren't those exactly the features his deskmate had just described?
Could this young man be the legendary figure everyone in the class was talking about?
Ouyang Junyi swallowed nervously.
Just then, the handsome young man moved. He passed through the crowd and, by sheer coincidence, sat down in the empty seat behind Ouyang Junyi and his deskmate.
Huo Yuhao was a little baffled. The atmosphere in this class seemed kind of strange.
Following Zhang Lexuan's instructions, he had come straight to Freshman Class 3 today. As he approached the classroom, he had heard everyone inside talking noisily.
But as soon as he entered, the entire class had fallen silent.
Does this class have some kind of strange rule?
After taking an empty seat, he looked at the two students in front of him. They were both sitting stiffly, not moving a muscle.
Huo Yuhao asked curiously, "Hello, I'm a new transfer student joining Class 3 today. My name is Huo Yuhao. What's going on with everyone? Are the rules in this class really strict? Why is everyone sitting so still and not saying a word?"
At that, Ouyang Junyi visibly relaxed.
It's not that everyone doesn't want to move. We're all scared and nervous! We thought you'd come today to beat our instructor out of a job too.
Ouyang Junyi turned around and saw Huo Yuhao smiling, looking like someone who was easy to get along with. Much of his nervousness faded.
He reached out to Huo Yuyao with both hands and smiled. "Hello, I'm Ouyang Junyi. Welcome to Class 3, Student Huo. We don't really have any rules here. As for why everyone's so stiff... um, maybe we're all a little socially awkward. We'll be fine in a moment."
Ouyang Junyi's deskmate also nodded to Huo Yuhao. "Hello, Student Huo. I've heard a lot about you. My name is Chen Junfeng. I hope we'll get along."
Huo Yuhao nodded in understanding and shook hands with each of them.
Ouyang Junyi was good-looking, and from his clothes and manner, he seemed to be a noble's son.
Chen Junfeng, sitting beside him, was thin and looked like a commoner from his clothing. His gaze was filled with admiration as he looked at Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao asked in confusion, "You've heard a lot about me? Am I famous in the Outer Court?"
Chen Junfeng replied excitedly, "Famous is an understatement, Student Huo. You're practically everyone's idol in the Outer Court. A few days ago, you defeated Xu Sanshi, an upper-year student from the Outer Court, and yesterday you beat the instructor from Class 1 until he didn't know which way was up. You're practically an urban legend."
"They even call you Blood-Eyed Huo Yuhao!"
Huo Yuhao gave an awkward smile at that.
"Heh, that's an exaggeration. I'm not that incredible."
He hadn't expected news to spread so quickly throughout the Outer Court. But what was with that nickname, "Blood-Eyed"? It didn't sound good at all.
As Huo Yuhao chatted amiably with the two students in front of him, everyone else in the class gradually relaxed, and the classroom returned to normal.
Even so, most of them still sneaked glances at Huo Yuhao from time to time.
Just then, a middle-aged man in his forties entered the classroom. He wore a blue-green robe.
He had an unremarkable face, a pair of glasses and a kind smile. He didn't give off the slightest air of arrogance.
He had a strong scholarly air about him, refined and gentle, with the bearing of a cultured gentleman.
"Good morning, Teacher Wang." The students all rose and bowed to the middle-aged man.
Wang Yan chuckled. "Everyone, sit down. There's no need to be so formal next time. My teaching philosophy has always been to treat everyone as a friend. From now until the Freshman Assessment is over, you're all my little friends. If you run into any difficulties in your cultivation or daily life, you can come talk to me. If there's anything I can do to help, I'll do my best."
"Oh, we have a new student joining us today. I won't say much about him for now. As time goes by, I'm sure you'll all get to know each other."
"All right, everyone, perk up. Class is starting!"
Wang Yan's words made everyone in the class feel as if a spring breeze had brushed over them. They all sat up straight of their own accord and began listening attentively.
Seeing that Wang Yan wasn't giving him any special treatment, Huo Yuhao found himself liking the refined teacher even more.
So Shrek Academy still had normal people.
A class instructor like this, who treated everyone equally, taught seriously in class and earned the respect of all his students, was truly a breath of fresh air.
Compared with a certain instructor who only ever made people run and threatened to expel students at the drop of a hat—
The difference was so vast it left him speechless.
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