The Talismans Emerge

Flender was checking how much money he had saved this month when he was suddenly interrupted.

"You little brat, are you looking for a beating?"

He came out from behind his desk, but before he could finish his angry retort, he froze. "W-Why are there two Dai Mubais?"

On the left, the sinister-looking Dai Mubai stood with his arms crossed. He had just kicked the door open and barged in.

On the right, Dai Mubai stood tall, his chest puffed out and his expression righteous.

"Hey, old man, what are you staring at? Hurry up and throw this guy out!" Evil Dai Mubai said scornfully.

"What are you talking about? I'm the real one!"

The other turned to Flender and said anxiously, "Teacher, he's the fake Dai Mubai! I'm the real one!"

"You pathetic clown! Believe me, I'll kill you!"

"Bring it on! You think I'm afraid of you?" the other retorted, unwilling to back down.

"All right, all right. Both of you, calm down." Flender pulled them apart and stood there with a headache.

Although he had no idea what had happened, he could understand the situation.

For some reason, Dai Mubai had split into two people, and they had completely different personalities. In fact, they were polar opposites.

One was sinister and wicked, while the other was upright and open, standing with his chest puffed out and head held high. The two were like fire and water, their words clashing as if they were born to oppose each other.

This gave him a terrible headache. All he could do was ask whether anything strange had happened before this that might have caused it.

After thinking it over, the righteous Dai Mubai suddenly said, "I know!"

He raised the half of the Talisman in his hand. "It was this. I only split into a second self after I picked it up."

"Who are you calling your second self? You're asking for a beating!"

"All right, calm down."

Flender restrained the furious, evil Dai Mubai, then took the half Talisman and studied it closely. The white tiger on it looked lifelike.

Since the Talisman had broken in half, it was clearly connected to Mubai splitting into two.

After thinking it over, he told them to put the two halves back together.

"Both of you, join the Talisman pieces and see what happens. Maybe it'll undo the split."

"I'm not doing that!"

Evil Dai Mubai snorted and flatly refused to reunite them. To Flender's surprise, the other one hesitated too, and for once didn't argue with him.

"Why?" Flender asked, looking utterly incredulous.

"Hmph. Isn't it obvious? If we successfully become whole again, will the me afterward still be me?"

"You! You're both Dai Mubai. Neither of you can be missing! Only together can you be the real Dai Mubai!" Flender urged them earnestly.

"You're right!" Evil Dai Mubai nodded in agreement, then suddenly grinned wickedly. "So I'm not called Dai Mubai anymore. I'm Dai Xieyue!"

"What?"

Flender was utterly shocked. The man before him felt like a complete stranger!

"Then I won't be called Dai Mubai anymore either. I'll be Dai Shengyang," Good Dai Mubai said, promptly changing his name as well.

Each of them held half the Talisman and absorbed it into his body. They glared at each other, neither willing to back down, and showed no intention of reuniting.

Flender tried to reason with them, but no matter what he said, neither would change his mind. They were set on it.

"Ah!"

Looking at the two of them, Flender could only shake his head helplessly. He had no idea what to do, so he let them leave.

Life at the academy had to go on.

These were the days when the academy recruited new students—and when it raked in money. Flender shamelessly raised the registration fee by another gold coin, hoping to swindle a little more money out of them.

Applicants streamed through the academy gates. The children gazed eagerly at the line ahead, imagining themselves studying inside.

They still didn't know that this school had never been built for them. They were destined to leave disappointed.

A few people in the line caught the eye.

One was an ordinary-looking young man, accompanied by a lively girl with rabbit ears, a long-legged woman in leather with a stunning figure and breathtaking face, and a gentle, jade-like girl-next-door.

They were Tang San, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong, respectively.

"Third Brother, why do you think Grandmaster told us to come to this school?"

Tang San looked at the line and shook his head. "I don't know either, but Grandmaster must have had his reasons. Let's wait and see."

Xiao Wu nodded obediently.

At the head of the line, an old man sat in a chair, feeling the bones of an eager young boy. Two identical twins stood on either side of the gate, like guardian deities watching over the academy entrance.

"Are those two twins? They're even wearing the exact same clothes. How amazing!" Xiao Wu's eyes lit up. She had never seen twins before.

Tang San was surprised too. He sensed something extraordinary about the two of them.

Since Dai Mubai had split into Dai Xieyue and Dai Shengyang, Tang San had never met him.

Behind them, a cold voice suddenly rang out.

"How is this possible?"

Zhu Zhuqing stared in shock at the two identical Dai Mubais. Her mind went completely blank, and she had no idea what to think.

What had happened? Why were there two Dai Mubais?

She had left the Star Luo Empire to seek Dai Mubai's help. Before setting out, she had considered all sorts of possibilities—that he might have given up competing for the throne, or that he might have fallen for someone else. But this situation was clearly beyond anything she had expected.

While she was still stunned, Tang San and the others passed the assessment.

"Go on in. According to the rules, you can go straight to the fourth test," Shao Xin said approvingly.

He had never seen such a talented student. The academy had struck it rich by recruiting him.

Behind them, Dai Xieyue heard this and rubbed his hands together. With a wicked grin, he strode forward. "At last, someone passed! Come on, let your senior teach you a good lesson."

But he had barely taken a few steps when a strong hand stopped him.

"Dai Xieyue, how can you be so rude to your junior?" Dai Shengyang turned warmly toward Tang San and Xiao Wu, smiling politely. "Pay him no mind. The people at our academy are very nice. Welcome to the school, juniors."

"Please come with me. You only need to take a small test. I'm sure you'll pass."

"Dai Shengyang, why are you pretending to be such a good person? When you were fooling around with those twins, I never saw you act this nice," Dai Xieyue said, turning away in disdain.

When Dai Shengyang heard him insult him, he flew into a rage. The two of them began arguing right there at the academy gates, paying no attention to the onlookers.

Xieyue? Shengyang? What on earth was going on?

Zhu Zhuqing was completely dumbfounded. With her head full of questions and confusion, she somehow muddled her way through the assessment.

Meanwhile, at Spirit Hall—

"Bibi Dong, my Talisman has appeared. Go and bring it back to me!"

"Shendu, which Talisman is it, and where is it?"

Bibi Dong asked.

"It's the Sheep Talisman. Its holder is Xue Qinghe—or should I say, Qian Renxue!"

Bibi Dong's pupils contracted sharply.