Setting the Trap

The three girls were left hanging off to the side. Ning Rongrong curled her lip; Xiao Wu planted her hands on her hips and stomped angrily; Zhu Zhuqing remained expressionless, wearing a look that said, "This has nothing to do with me."

"Old Zhao!" Just then, Flender, who had gone out to sell goods and had now returned, walked into the courtyard. At a glance, he spotted the especially conspicuous tall figure in the crowd and said unhappily, "Doesn't our academy only accept students under thirteen? Why is there someone this big?"

It was not that Flender's eyesight was especially sharp—Qian Ren Shuang was a full two and a half heads taller than Zhao Wuji. Standing among this group of half-grown children, he was like a crane among chickens. It was hard not to notice him.

In Flender's mind, if this person was here to be a student, he was clearly far too old. At any other advanced soul master academy, he would have long since passed graduation age.

And he had still come running to their academy to study. Wasn't that just a textbook poor student?

If he was here to be a teacher, Shrek Academy's finances were already like walking a tightrope. Hiring another person as a teacher—wasn't that just thinking they were not disbanding fast enough?

"Boss Flender, here's the thing." Although Zhao Wuji felt somewhat guilty, he still braced himself and stepped forward to explain. "This Soul King took down that old bastard Li Yusong in one move. So, he can pay tuition like the other students, and he also counts as strengthening Shrek's teaching staff."

After saying this, Zhao Wuji desperately shot Qian Ren Shuang meaningful looks, signaling for him to hurry up and agree.

"Right!" With the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and Spirit Hall behind him, Qian Ren Shuang was not someone short on money in the first place. Problems that could be solved by spending a little money had never been problems to him.

Faced with Zhao Wuji's proposal to take advantage of the situation, he was not particularly opposed.

"Welcome, welcome!" The moment Flender heard that money would only come in and not go out, his attitude immediately did a complete one-eighty, his speed of changing faces comparable to a Sichuan opera master.

He clasped Qian Ren Shuang's hands tightly and began spinning a grand sales pitch. "Don't be fooled by how shabby the environment is here. We have plenty of teachers, so we can provide one-on-one tutoring for students! And our educational philosophy has always been 'invest limited resources into outstanding students'—so our academy becoming famous is only a matter of time. We're absolutely a stock with huge potential!"

The smile on this miser's face was so sincere it could practically be used as teaching material.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Flender finally let go of Qian Ren Shuang's hand. "Mubai, take everyone back to the dorms!"

"Headmaster," Qian Ren Shuang suddenly asked, "I came here as Rongrong's guard, after all. Can't you just arrange for me to stay somewhere closer?"

"Well..." Flender looked troubled. "Our academy has one male dormitory building and one female dormitory building. Although you're a teacher, arranging for you to live in the girls' dormitory building..."

"Headmaster, I don't mind!" Seeing Flender hesitate, Ning Rongrong immediately fanned the flames from the side, her eyes full of a smile that said she was waiting for a good show.

Zhu Zhuqing silently turned her head to one side, her face clearly saying, "You all discuss it. I don't get to decide"—she had long since been brainwashed into willingly becoming a male accessory.

Tang San gently nudged Xiao Wu with his elbow and advised her in a low voice, "Xiao Wu, object to it. If he lives where you girls do, won't your daily life be terribly inconvenient from now on? Besides, with a name like Guilmon, who knows if he might one day give in to his beastly nature..."

Xiao Wu opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Flender had already made the decision. "Qian Ren Shuang, you'll stay in Li Yusong's room. If you're worried, I'll arrange more school patrols afterward. Will that do?"

"That'll do." In any case, Qian Ren Shuang's goal had only been to make the other party agree to strengthen patrols. Seeing that Flender had agreed, he tactfully did not stubbornly insist and nodded.

Night gradually deepened, and moonlight poured like mercury over Shrek Academy's dilapidated eaves.

Tang Hao quietly slipped into Tang San's room and reached out to shake his sleeping son. "Little San, wake up."

Tang San had fought Dai Mubai during the day, and now his whole body ached while sleepiness weighed heavily on him. But after clearly seeing that the person who had come was his father, he still forced himself to perk up, rubbing his sleepy eyes as he asked, "Dad, why are you here?"

Tang Hao half-crouched by Tang San's bed, his rough large hand pressing on his son's shoulder, his tone somewhat solemn. "These questions—I'll explain everything to you myself once you reach the Soul Sage level. But right now, I have something more important to tell you."

Although he had many questions, to Tang San, who valued "Heaven, Earth, sovereign, parents, and teachers," listening to his father was the right thing to do. He immediately showed his attitude. "Tell me, Dad. I'll definitely do it."

"I want you to make sure you build a good relationship with Qian Ren Shuang. In the future, he may become your greatest aid."

In Tang Hao's heart, the calculation was very clear: that Guilmon of Qian Ren Shuang's carried so much evil energy that sooner or later, he would clash with Spirit Hall's Qian Clan; and because of Little San's mother's background, Little San would inevitably stand against Spirit Hall in the future as well.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Since they would have to face the same enemy sooner or later, why not establish that friendship now?

"Oh—" Tang San nodded as if he half understood.

Although he could not understand why his father had suddenly taken such an interest in a complete stranger, since his father had said so, he would simply do as told.

At the same time, he felt somewhat moved. And corresponding to this feeling of being moved, Tang San felt even greater loathing for Old Jack, the village chief of Holy Soul Village.

Look, this is how my father expresses love: protecting me in secret and helping pave the way for my future. He isn't some piece of trash at all! That village chief Jack actually dared to wrong my father. He already has a path to death!

And in the higher, farther void, a pair of eyes was peering through the Killing God Domain on Tang Hao's body, watching everything in the lower world. Those eyes belonged to the Asura God, and at this moment, his brows furrowed slightly.

"Hmm? Strange... Why is Bibi Dong's son here too?"

In the plan led by Asura God, Tang San had come to this place where representatives of the top forces on Douluo Continent were gathered precisely so that everyone could unite to deal with Spirit Hall.

In truth, when the carriage Qian Ren Shuang had been riding in had passed by Tang San earlier, Asura God had already tried to transmit his killing intent through the Killing God Domain, wanting Tang Hao to conveniently get rid of this eyesore of a young man.

Unfortunately, the Killing God Domain was like a thin straw. The will it could transmit in one go was truly far too limited.

That bit of killing intent could only briefly cause killing intent to arise in Tang Hao's heart. Once the other party recovered, it no longer had any effect.

"Forget it." Asura God withdrew his gaze and muttered to himself as if comforting himself. "In any case, this person's relationship with Bibi Dong isn't good either. Later, I'll create a few more crises to make his friendship with Tang San even stronger, and in the end, he might simply kill his mother for the other party... Mm, that doesn't seem bad either."

In truth, it was not that Asura God could not continue transmitting killing intent and keep Tang Hao constantly maintaining the thought of killing Qian Ren Shuang.

But as a deity, his most urgent task was to absorb Douluo Star's origin through Slaughter City to strengthen himself.