The hurried footsteps echoed through the spacious corridor, shattering the quiet of the Outer Court office building.
With a bang, the door was flung open.
Du Weilun, the Outer Court's Director of Instruction, didn't even have time to knock. He strode into the dean's office in a panic.
His breathing was a little ragged. Clearly, the moment he received Yan Shaozhe's message, he'd rushed over as fast as he could.
"Dean, what's the hurry? Things are busy over at new student registration..."
Du Weilun had only made it halfway through his sentence when his gaze swept across the office and his voice abruptly cut off.
He saw Xiao Yan and Xiao Xiao standing in front of the desk.
As the one in charge of the Outer Court, Du Weilun could tell at a glance that the siblings had an extraordinary air about them. The boy in particular, dressed in a moon-white robe, seemed untouched by the dust of the world. Even his face marked him as no ordinary person.
But no matter how outstanding they were, surely that wasn't enough for Dean Yan to summon him in such a hurry.
Yan Shaozhe didn't answer. Instead, he pushed the half-completed registration form on the desk toward Du Weilun and tapped the paper twice with his long, knuckled fingers.
"See for yourself."
Still full of questions, Du Weilun stepped forward and looked down at the form.
At first, his gaze was calm. But when he read the lines "eleven years old," "Twin Martial Souls," and "Level 35," his pupils suddenly contracted, and his breathing hitched.
He snatched up the registration form with both hands and brought it right up to his face.
The paper rustled in his grip.
When he saw the entry at the very bottom—"Xiao Yan, eleven years old, Level 46"—Du Weilun's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.
Level 46! Many of the Outer Court's graduating sixth-year core students were stuck at that very threshold.
And now an eleven-year-old new student had leaped past most of the Outer Court's progress in one bound. This was a heaven-sent pie dropping right onto Shrek Academy's head.
Yan Shaozhe took in Du Weilun's loss of composure and was quite pleased with his reaction.
"All right, take them and help them complete their enrollment." Yan Shaozhe's voice was not loud, but it carried authority.
"Make an exception for them. If they have any problems, handle whatever you can yourself. If you can't, come to me. Understood?"
Du Weilun shivered and nodded repeatedly. "Understood! Don't worry, Dean. I'll make sure everything is arranged properly!"
With Yan Shaozhe's personal approval, the rest of the process went smoothly.
Du Weilun turned around, his manner toward Xiao Yan and Xiao Xiao instantly becoming warm and friendly.
He cheerfully ushered the siblings out of the dean's office.
The senior student who had been handling registration followed them out.
Du Weilun stopped and turned to her, his face bright with praise.
"You did very well today. You acted decisively and didn't let the academy miss out on a top-tier talent. What's your name?"
The senior student was overwhelmed by the praise and quickly gave him her name.
"Good. Go back and continue handling admissions. When it's time for your graduating assessment, I'll personally add a commendation to your file."
Du Weilun gave her the most concrete promise he could.
For Outer Court students, a single commendation from the Director of Instruction could directly affect their prospects and career paths after graduation.
The senior student's face flushed with excitement. She bowed repeatedly in thanks, then turned and left with a light step, no longer even minding the scorching heat outside.
Du Weilun led them to his office, halfway down the second floor.
The room was far more practical than the dean's office, with files and all kinds of assessment forms piled everywhere.
Du Weilun first pulled out two chairs and invited Xiao Yan and Xiao Xiao to sit. Then he personally poured two cups of warm water and set them in front of the siblings.
"New students normally have to take an assessment and pay tuition." Du Weilun sat down on the single sofa opposite them and spoke softly.
"But with your Soul Power Levels, any assessment would be a mere formality. Your tuition and miscellaneous fees are waived. The academy will cover everything."
Xiao Yan picked up his paper cup and took a sip of warm water. His movements were smooth and unhurried, without the slightest hint of arrogance at being given special treatment.
The more Du Weilun looked at the boy, the more he felt there was something unusual about him. He opened the drawer beneath the coffee table, took out a form covered in names, and spread it across the tabletop.
"By the rules, new students are assigned to random classes. But your circumstances are special. The Outer Court's new student classes are still being formed, so you can choose one yourselves." Du Weilun pointed to the list with a beaming smile. "This is a list of the homeroom teachers in charge of this year's new students. Would you like me to introduce each teacher's strengths? The Outer Court teachers all have different styles. Some focus more on theory, while others emphasize practical combat..."
"No need to trouble yourself, Director Du." Xiao Yan set down his cup and looked over the list.
His gaze quickly swept over the first few classes.
When his eyes reached the name "Zhou Yi" beside "New Student Class One," they paused for half a second before moving on without a change in expression.
Zhou Yi, the homeroom teacher known in the original story for her harshness and sadistic punishments. In many people's eyes, she might have been a strict teacher capable of drawing out her students' potential.
But to Xiao Yan, her teaching methods were utterly foolish.
The Art of the Fuxi Emperor he cultivated focused on refining essence, energy, and spirit together, following the Great Dao and seeking a perfect state of mind and the endless renewal of energy.
Zhou Yi's methods—making students run laps in iron clothes until they vomited blood, and threatening them with expulsion—were not only crude, but also an interference with his pursuit of the Dao.
Xiao Yan had come to Shrek to use its resources and environment to stabilize his own destiny and lay out his plans for the continent. He hadn't come looking for a menopausal old woman to make trouble for him.
Even though Yan Shaozhe had his back and he could ignore Zhou Yi's rules outright or even slap her flying, getting tangled up in that kind of unreasonable nonsense would still be a waste of time.
For a pragmatist, avoiding pointless trouble was the most efficient way to break through a deadlock.
His gaze continued downward, finally stopping at the entry for "New Student Class Nine."
The name beside it was Mu Jin.
In the original course of events, Mu Jin was Zhou Yi's sworn rival. She was just as strong-willed, but her teaching methods were far more sensible.
Most importantly, Mu Jin had an intense desire for outstanding students. As long as he helped her outshine Zhou Yi, she would definitely offer him the best resources and the greatest freedom.
And freedom was exactly what Xiao Yan needed most at the moment.
His long, pale finger tapped lightly on the list.
Xiao Yan looked up at Du Weilun, his voice clear and steady. "We'll go to Class Nine, Teacher Mu Jin's class."
Du Weilun paused and glanced at the list.
Class Nine wasn't one of the most outstanding new student classes, and Mu Jin's credentials were fairly ordinary.
He'd expected Xiao Yan to choose a class taught by one of the more experienced senior teachers, but wisely, he didn't ask why.
When it came to a monster-level genius like this, going along with his wishes was the safest choice.
"Very well. Class Nine it is." Du Weilun agreed without hesitation, then turned to Xiao Xiao, who was holding her cup and blowing on the water. "What about you, Xiao Xiao? Which class would you like to join?"
Xiao Xiao set down her cup. Her big, emerald-green eyes rolled around before she answered as if it were obvious. "Wherever my brother goes, I'll go. I'll just follow him."
She didn't care about classes or teachers at all.
As long as she could see her handsome brother every day and play the qin and xiao with him, it didn't matter where she attended lessons.
Once they'd settled on a class, the rest of the process went astonishingly fast.
Du Weilun personally handled all the registration paperwork.
Before long, he handed them two keys with bronze tags, several sets of brand-new white student uniforms, and two badges identifying them as new students.
"Everything's taken care of. I'll show you to the new student dorms and help you find your way around." Du Weilun stood and took the lead.
The three of them left the office building and followed a shaded path along the edge of Shrek Square toward the dormitory area.
Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the leaves, scattering patches of dancing light across the ground.
Shrek Academy covered an astonishing amount of land. The dormitory area lay behind the teaching buildings, a sprawling collection of orderly, scattered structures.
Along the way, Du Weilun conscientiously played the role of guide, explaining the layout of the academy.
"Normally, new students share a room." Du Weilun pointed to the large, square building ahead and deliberately slowed his pace.
"But Dean Yan told me to make special arrangements for the two of you. At your level, you need a quiet place to meditate. Having too many people around would only be a hindrance. So I decided to give you each a single room."
Xiao Yan walked steadily over the fallen leaves.
At Du Weilun's words, he turned his head and nodded politely. "Thank you for taking the trouble, Director Du."
He needed a quiet space to cultivate the Art of the Fuxi Emperor and study Fuxi Bagua. Having a single room would save him the trouble of negotiating with the academy.
Du Weilun was an old hand at this. He really had covered every angle.
Xiao Xiao, walking beside them, wasn't happy to hear that.
She stopped, clutching the white uniform they'd just received. Her lips puckered into a pout as she muttered her complaint.
"Why do we get single rooms...? I can't live with my brother now. How boring."
Du Weilun, walking ahead, stumbled so badly he nearly stepped on his own foot.
He turned around and looked at the siblings with a very strange expression.
They were both eleven. Still children, of course, but out in broad daylight, his sister was complaining that she couldn't share a room with her brother. However he looked at it, it sounded a little off.
Du Weilun's gaze toward Xiao Yan took on a hint of something hard to explain.
Xiao Yan noticed the strange look in Du Weilun's eyes.
He sighed inwardly.
It was one thing for this girl to cling to him at home, but now she was running her mouth like this in public, too.
Without hesitation, he raised his right hand and clapped it over Xiao Xiao's mouth, which was still going on and on.
"Mmph... mmm?"
Startled by the sudden hand over her mouth, Xiao Xiao instinctively grabbed Xiao Yan's wrist with both hands.
She tilted her head up. Her delicate, sweet face was squashed out of shape, and her jade-green eyes blinked innocently as her long eyelashes fluttered like those of a startled little animal. She looked both aggrieved and impossibly cute.
Xiao Yan met Du Weilun's gaze calmly, his tone perfectly even. "She's been spoiled at home. She's afraid of the dark at night. Please don't mind her, Director Du."
Du Weilun coughed twice and tactfully looked away. He turned around and continued leading them, pretending he hadn't heard or seen a thing.
Xiao Yan let go and glanced down at Xiao Xiao.
He didn't need to say a word. One look was enough to make her behave.
She stuck out her tongue, not daring to mention sharing a room again. She simply followed her brother obediently toward the white dormitory building.