Those pleasantries had been perfectly proper. Lin Yao nodded, but didn't respond. There was no point trading polite words for their own sake. As for whether he would reach the summit, that would depend on how things developed from here.
Whether I reach the summit or not, I won't stay at Shrek forever. You expelled an inner court student who was my close friend for my sake. That was a losing deal if ever I saw one.
After Lin Yao left, Yan Shaozhe returned to the inner court's Sea God Pavilion. Xuan Zi was already waiting there. "How did it go?"
Yan Shaozhe sat down in a nearby chair and took a sip of tea before asking, "Elder Xuan, I still don't quite understand. Was it really wise to expel an inner court student for the sake of a new student?"
Xuan Zi waved a hand. "They weren't ordinary inner court students. Those people finished the graduation process years ago. They stayed because they were enamored with Shrek's comfortable surroundings and excellent conditions, claiming they couldn't bear to leave their teachers.
"They've been clinging to the academy ever since. Now they're all the sort who do little work and eat a lot. We might as well use this opportunity to expel as many as we can."
Yan Shaozhe was speechless, but still nodded. Xuan Zi rose to his feet, took a swig of wine, and said to Yan Shaozhe:
"Truth be told, I don't quite understand it either. Ever since that purple pillar of light appeared during the boy's Martial Soul Awakening, Mu En had been determined to bring him into Shrek Academy.
"From what I've heard, if nothing unexpected happens, the boy will even be groomed as the next Sea God Pavilion Master, succeeding the current one two generations later."
Yan Shaozhe's heart gave a jolt, but he replied to Xuan Zi without letting it show, "Teacher is a man of great wisdom. I'm sure he has his reasons."
Xuan Zi neither agreed nor disagreed. At the same time, in the Divine Realm, the God King of Destruction's face had gone as dark as the bottom of a cooking pot inside the Sea God Temple.
"Tang San, what do you mean by this? She's my successor. Why do you keep meddling?" God of Destruction asked Tang San in an unfriendly tone. He wasn't ready to reveal that he intended to pass the God Position of Life on to Lin Yao, so he hadn't brought Goddess of Life along to join him in confronting Tang San.
Tang San seemed to have expected the God King of Destruction to come. He grinned and made light of the situation. "Don't be such a stranger, Brother Destruction. I'm glad you've come around to passing on your position. Of course I'm not going to steal your successor. It's just..."
"Just what? If you've got something to say, say it. Don't stand there hemming and hawing." God of Destruction impatiently snapped at Tang San.
Tang San wasn't offended. He just smiled at God of Destruction. "Our Xiao Qi has also gone down to the lower realm. Isn't that quite a coincidence?"
God of Destruction rolled his eyes and replied just as gruffly, "Xiao Qi... What does Xiao Qi going to the Douluo Plane have to do with this? Hm? Don't tell me you're thinking of... I'm warning you, it's not happening. Don't even think about my successor."
Tang San's smile grew even brighter. With the easy familiarity of an old friend, he clapped God of Destruction on the shoulder. "Oh, don't be so stingy. You like Xiao Qi yourself, don't you? Can you really bear to let her get bullied on the Douluo Plane, or let some little punk trick her for fun? Besides, we're both God Kings. We're a good match in status. Why not become in-laws?"
God of Destruction rolled his eyes in exasperation, then said, "Tang San, don't try that on me. If Xiao Qi hadn't had your permission, how could she possibly have slipped down there under the watch of you and your wife?
"You allowed her to go, which means you've already made all the arrangements for her. If she still gets tricked under those circumstances, if she still meets the wrong man, then that's your own incompetence."
Tang San saw that God of Destruction wasn't budging. His eyes shifted slightly before he said, "Things have already come this far. I can hardly have someone go and expel him at the last minute."
"How about this? We don't interfere. We'll leave it to fate and see whether these two children are meant to be. That should be fine, right?"
God of Destruction rolled his eyes, then said to Tang San, "If you can really keep your hands off, then I won't interfere with whatever happens between the two children."
A smile immediately appeared on Tang San's face. He held out his hand to God of Destruction. "Then it's a deal!"
God of Destruction slapped Tang San's palm and said, "Let me make this clear first: if you interfere, I won't let you off."
Tang San nodded. Both their eyes held a glint of confidence. God of Destruction was confident because he had already seen how close Lin Yao and Ye Guyi had become. Tang San, meanwhile, had absolute faith in his daughter's charm.
Both sides thought they stood to gain from their decision, and each feared the other might go back on their word.
Their conversation in the Divine Realm hadn't lasted long, but two days had already passed on the Douluo Continent.
Lin Yao's enrollment had gone smoothly. His one misstep had been not having Ye Guyi disguise herself as a boy, so she'd been assigned to the girls' dormitory, while he stayed in the boys' dormitory on the first floor.
After the opening-day incident, when a Soul Ancestor had beaten an inner court Soul Emperor senior, Lin Yao had become famous throughout Shrek Academy's outer court. No one had come looking for trouble with him in the past two days.
Lin Yao and Ye Guyi often strolled around Shrek Academy's outer court together. As the continent's number-one academy, after ten thousand years of leeching wealth from the people, Shrek had built its grounds to be even more magnificent than the imperial gardens of the Dou Ling Empire.
"By the way, have you checked the class assignments? We're in the same class." As she walked with Lin Yao along the shore of Sea God Lake, Ye Guyi told him the news.
Lin Yao raised an eyebrow, then asked Ye Guyi, "Did you check which class we're in? And who's the homeroom teacher?"
Ye Guyi thought for a moment, then said to Lin Yao, "Freshman Class Nine. I think our homeroom teacher is called Mu Jin."
Lin Yao nodded slightly. Mu Jin? That was interesting.
Judging from his earlier encounter with Huo Yuhao, Huo Yuhao should have entered Shrek Academy too. That meant things would get interesting during the upcoming freshman assessment.
In principle, Lin Yao didn't want to get into a major conflict with Huo Yuhao. But with a god watching over him, there was no harm in testing himself against the child of this era's destiny.
Ye Guyi watched Lin Yao's expression and curiously waved a hand in front of him. "What's wrong?"
Lin Yao shook his head, then said to Ye Guyi, "Nothing. I'm in a good mood. Come have a drink with me."
Ye Guyi smiled and followed in Lin Yao's footsteps...
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