The four of them arrived at the village entrance.
They happened to see a line of people orderly registering with an old man around sixty years old.
"The registration fee is ten Gold Soul Coins."
"Excuse me, if we don't pass the registration, can we really still get into an academy belonging to the Judgment Society?"
"Can't you read what's written right beside you?" The old man sitting beside the rickety table and chairs reached out and tapped the sign standing next to him.
[Shrek Benefits:
Successful applicants: The first five Soul Rings will be entirely handled by our academy's teachers, who will ensure the best Soul Ring Configuration for your current age.
During your time at our academy, our professional staff will take full responsibility for every aspect of your physical fitness!
We will do everything we can to bring out the full potential of your body!
If you are not successfully admitted to the academy, a member of our academy's Judgment Association will issue you a recommendation letter for admission to the Judgment Society's Good and Evil Academy.
Note: This is only a recommendation. Admission is not guaranteed.]
"It's only a recommendation? That'll do..." When the burly, honest-looking man saw the final note, he hesitated briefly, but soon steeled his resolve.
First, he looked at the child beside him.
"For my child, I'll pay the ten Gold Soul Coins!" Gritting his teeth, the burly man handed the coins in his hand to the old man, his heart aching.
"Not qualified. Here's your recommendation letter. Next." With practiced ease, he handed an envelope to the burly man with the child, then expertly called for the next person.
"Thank you, Lord Soul Master!" Although he hadn't been admitted and felt a little disappointed,
the honest-looking man still took the envelope and left the line with his child. But there wasn't a trace of disappointment on his face. Instead, he stared at the envelope in his hand, visibly excited.
As the burly man led his child past Du Hao and the others,
they could still hear him telling the child, "We've got a recommendation letter, kid. We'll take you over to the academy tonight..."
Du Hao, who had stopped to watch, gazed at the parents and children leaving with recommendation letters in hand, a strange look in his eyes.
Tang San came over beside him. "Brother Hao, why do they seem so excited?"
"Obviously. The Judgment Society may be a bit of a mixed bag, but has it ever done anything to harm ordinary people?" Du Hao answered honestly, watching the parents and children walk away.
He thought back to his days at the academy.
Teachers who used to spend their time slacking off had started teaching their students real things after the Judgment Society got involved.
Even the Work-Study Students who lived in Dorm Seven had seen their lives improve considerably after the Judgment Society stepped in.
An organization like that might be strict in how it did things, but you had to admit it was a good organization.
"A Hao's right." Even Zhu Zhuqing, who had been standing quietly nearby, spoke up in agreement.
"At least since the Judgment Society got involved, cases of people being oppressed in Nuoding City have become rare."
And whenever an incident of oppression did occur, there were always Judgment Society members rushing over to deal with it.
Their response was lightning-fast.
Tang San thought it over and realized that seemed to be true.
"All right, why think so much about it?" Seeing Tang San deep in thought, Du Hao grabbed him and pulled him toward the line.
"Things will work themselves out. Thinking about it now just wastes brain cells. Hurry up and get in line."
"Can't you see? The line's getting longer by the minute." He pointed toward the crowds continuously pouring in from outside.
If they dawdled any longer, they probably wouldn't be able to register even by nightfall.
Once they had joined the line, the people gradually gathering behind them followed suit without a word.
Before long, the line stretched all the way outside the village.
Looking back at the line that seemed to have no end, Tang San wiped his forehead in dismay. "How long is this going to take? Why are there so many people?"
"Who cares? We're almost up." Holding Xiao Wu, who was queuing in front of them, Du Hao said unconcernedly.
The situation surprised him a little, but not much.
After all, with the founder of the Judgment Society right here, he was used to seeing the ripples caused by these butterflies flapping their wings.
"Brother Hao, aren't Shrek's admission standards a bit too high?" Tang San asked quietly, frowning.
Just a moment ago, he had clearly seen someone about his age, whose Soul Power had already reached around level twenty, get turned away.
"Why do you care so much?" Du Hao, standing in front of him and endlessly kneading the rabbit's cheeks, replied casually.
"Maybe that person didn't want to enroll at all and only came for a recommendation letter."
Xiao Wu, whose face had been kneaded relentlessly, seized the opportunity to wriggle free of Du Hao's grasp.
She turned toward Tang San behind her and said with absolute confidence, "Xiao San, have some confidence! With our levels, getting into this academy will be a piece of cake, right?"
As she spoke, she also patted the black... "Sister Zhuqing, don't you think I'm right?"
"Mm..." came the cool reply.
"All right, quit fooling around." He reached out and pinned the rabbit's head in his hand again, kneading it vigorously.
"Mm-hmm!" Xiao Wu immediately quieted down.
The line crept forward.
By the time it was their group's turn, not a single person ahead of them had qualified for admission.
"Come on, the registration fee is ten Gold Soul Coins." The old man urged them from the front. He had already taken out the recommendation letter.
Apparently, the motion had become muscle memory.
Du Hao, who had cut in ahead of Zhu Zhuqing, took out forty Gold Soul Coins and placed them on the table, paying for the other three as well.
The two girls behind him took it for granted.
Even Tang San looked calm. He was the poorest of the four. After spending so long forging Hidden Weapons,
he still owed Du Hao who knew how many tens of thousands of gold coins.
He was so deep in debt that another debt wouldn't make a difference.
"Reach out your hand." The nimble old man spoke with practiced ease.
"Here." Smiling, Du Hao held out his hand. He was about to put on a little show for the old man.
"Age checks out... Wait!" The little old man, who had been completely nonchalant, suddenly opened his eyes! He looked as if he had sensed something unbelievable.
As though he couldn't believe it, he closed his eyes again and carefully checked once more.
At last, he pulled his hand back, trembling, and stared at the youth before him in disbelief. "T-twenty-nine?"
After a long moment, the little old man abruptly stood up. "Are you sure you want to join our academy?
Why not go to the Judgment Society's Good and Evil Academy instead? I have a recommendation slot!"
As soon as those words fell, the whole scene took a sudden turn!
The little old man clutched Du Hao's hand tightly. "Our academy really isn't worthy of you!
I have a Judgment Society enforcer's token. You can use it to enroll directly..."
By the end, his voice had grown excited.
"In short, whatever you do, don't come to our academy! You'd be wasting your talent!!!"
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