The Grandmaster Arrives, Flender the Miser Actually Pays Up?

Shrek Academy, in the shabby courtyard.

Flender stood at the gate, looking at the three people walking in from outside, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

Tang San walked at the front, his clothes covered in tears, several fresh wounds added to his face.

Dai Mubai followed behind him, his face livid, the bandages on his body seeping blood again.

Ma Hongjun walked at the very back, his round body swaying from side to side. A large patch of his clothes had been scorched, and even his hair had curled up. However, compared with Tang San and Dai Mubai, the expression on his face could be considered good, as if he had vented his Evil Fire.

Flender did not think too much of this. After all, when he had first met Ma Hongjun, he himself had often taken this brat there. Thinking about it now, it must have been Dai Mubai who had taken him.

He just had not expected that disciple Yu Xiaogang had mentioned, Tang San, to be that sort of person as well—another romantic rogue.

Of course, the injuries on the three of them were still a question. They clearly could not have been left behind during a romantic encounter.

Flender looked at the three of them, his brows tightly knitted, his tone carrying a hint of interrogation.

"What happened to you three?"

"You were perfectly fine when you went out, and now you've come back like this?"

On the way back, the three of them had already agreed that they could not speak of that matter. They could not tell anyone, not even the dean.

Ma Hongjun was the first to speak. The fat on his face squeezed together, his eyes red-rimmed, making him look extremely aggrieved.

"Dean, you have to stand up for us!"

His voice carried a sobbing tone.

"The people from that academy across the way had no sense of martial virtue!"

"We were just passing by, and without a word, they pulled out some strange weapon and blasted us with it!"

"That thing was terrifyingly powerful. We didn't have time to react at all..."

Flender's frown deepened.

He looked at Tang San, then at Dai Mubai.

Tang San lowered his head and said nothing. Dai Mubai gritted his teeth and also said nothing.

Flender sighed inwardly.

How had this bunch provoked the people across the way again? And how was he supposed to stand up for them? Zhao Wuji had been beaten into that state by the other side. If he went over, wouldn't he just be serving himself up too?

Flender quickly adjusted his mindset, his expression becoming extremely grave and serious.

"This is a conflict between students. It isn't convenient for me to intervene. If I, as the dean of an academy, were to make a move, it would easily cause a conflict between the two academies."

Ma Hongjun froze. Was this still the dean who had told him that those who did not dare cause trouble were mediocrities?

"Dean..."

Flender raised a hand and cut him off.

"Let me ask you. Why were you beaten?"

The three of them did not speak. Flender's voice rose a little.

"Because your abilities aren't good enough."

"If you had enough strength, would they dare bully you?"

"If you had enough strength, would you have been beaten this badly?"

The three of them all looked rather unsightly.

Flender continued.

"In this world, strength is everything."

"Without strength, no one can help you."

"With strength, others will look up to you, and they won't dare bully you."

"So, your most urgent task right now isn't to have me stand up for you."

"It's to become stronger."

"Strong enough to surpass everyone on the other side."

"When that time comes, it will be hard to say who bullies whom."

The courtyard fell silent.

Tang San lowered his head, both fists clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white, his nails digging into his palms until threads of blood seeped out.

"Become stronger..."

He silently repeated those two words in his heart, fury surging in his chest.

Flender made it sound so simple... He had no idea what Tang San had experienced that night. If he had merely been hit by a Soul Cannon, that would have been one thing. The key was that he had actually encountered something like that. It was truly impossible to forget!

But Flender was not wrong. It was because his strength was too weak that he had encountered such a thing. That academy across the way, Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun...

One by one, they all had a path to death!

Xiao Wu ran over from the side. When she saw Tang San like that, her eyes immediately reddened.

"San-ge, how did you get hurt this badly?"

She reached out, wanting to touch Tang San's face, but was afraid of hurting him. Her hand hung suspended in midair.

Tang San lifted his head, a smile appearing on his face, as gentle as it usually was.

"I'm fine, Xiao Wu."

"Just flesh wounds. It's nothing serious."

Xiao Wu looked at him, feeling as if something was off.

"San-ge, your expression..."

"It seems a little strange."

Tang San's smile stiffened for an instant, but quickly returned to normal.

"Not at all. I'm just a little tired."

He said he was fine, but inside, his emotions were in turmoil. Especially when he saw Xiao Wu, the strange feeling of the Evil Fire behind him was extremely uncomfortable, as if it were constantly reminding him that he was no longer pure and unstained.

Xiao Wu noticed that Tang San's expression seemed a little off and hurriedly asked him.

"San-ge, why is your face red?"

Tang San forced out another smile.

"I'm fine. Maybe it's too hot."

Xiao Wu blinked and did not press him further.

Flender looked at the sorry state the few of them were in and shook his head.

"Oscar, come here."

Oscar jogged over from the side, already holding several sausages in his hand.

"Dean, here."

Flender took the sausages and handed them to Tang San, Dai Mubai, and Ma Hongjun.

"Eat them. Heal up first."

"With you looking like this, how are you supposed to train?"

Tang San took the sausage and put it into his mouth.

Once the sausage entered his stomach, a warm current surged out. The wounds on his body slowly healed, and the pain eased considerably.

Only after Flender watched the three of them finish the sausages did he speak.

"In a few days, Grandmaster will be here."

"When the time comes, he will personally teach you."

"So these next few days, all of you had better rest and recover properly. Adjust yourselves back to peak condition."

"Don't let Grandmaster arrive only to find you still lying in bed, unable to get up."

Tang San's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Teacher... is coming?"

He thought to himself, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. This was the only good news he had heard in the past few days.

Back in Notting City, only Grandmaster had guided him.

Although Grandmaster's theory was very strong, for many things, theory alone was not enough.

He needed resources, helpers, and an environment where he could cultivate in peace.

Now, Grandmaster was coming.

Once Teacher comes, everything will get better.

Tang San thought to himself. He had accumulated many questions that he wanted to ask Yu Xiaogang, especially regarding that fellow Tang Wulin's spirit ring configuration, and how the other party's Blue Silver Grass was actually stronger than his own. How had he trained it to that point?

Flender waved his hand.

"Go back and rest."

"Three days from now, Grandmaster will arrive."

Everyone dispersed one after another. Tang San walked at the very back, his steps very slow. When his gaze met Ma Hongjun's, Tang San glared fiercely at him again.

Three days later, on the streets of Suo Tuo City.

A middle-aged man stood in the middle of the street, looking left, then right, completely stunned.

He wore a gray robe. His face was thin, and his eyes were not large, but they were bright and full of spirit.

Overall, he looked rather unkempt, with a few strands of stubble on his chin.

It was Yu Xiaogang.

Yu Xiaogang raised his head and looked to both sides. There were actually two Shrek Academies? Flender had not mentioned this to him in the letter.

Yu Xiaogang's gaze landed on the one that looked better overall. He thought, Could it be that miser Flender finally became willing to spend money and renovated Shrek Academy a little?

That was fine too. That meant Tang San could have more resources for cultivation. Flender had finally done something decent.

Thinking this, Yu Xiaogang walked into the Shrek Academy that looked better from the outside.