Qian Renxue and Yu Xiaogang

Of course, aside from that reason, Zhu Zhuqing had another consideration.

Although those two assassins were dead, Zhu Zhuyun might not have sent only this one group.

There was still a long way from here to Shrek Academy. If Nezha could travel with her, then with his strength, her safety would be far more assured.

Nezha paused at her words.

Go to Shrek Academy?

He raised his head to look at Zhu Zhuqing and shook his head without hesitation.

"No."

What a joke.

He knew Shrek Academy's true nature better than anyone.

It was a run-down little village without even a proper training ground. Its dean, Flender, spent all day figuring out how to save money. Among the teachers was a "theory master" who could not even break through rank thirty, along with Tang San, whose intentions were far from pure.

What use would a place like that be to him?

Was he tired of living?

Although Zhu Zhuqing had guessed that she might be refused, hearing such a decisive "no" still dimmed her gaze for a moment.

She said nothing else, merely nodding.

Nezha did not care about her feelings. The Gold Soul Coins were in hand; it was time to leave.

He waved at Zhu Zhuqing. "I'm off. We'll meet again if fate allows."

With that, he turned and left, still carrying the bundle of roasted meat. Within a few breaths, he vanished into the dense forest.

Zhu Zhuqing stood there alone, watching that red figure gradually get swallowed by the woods.

She withdrew her gaze, looked down at the two assassins' bodies on the ground, then glanced once more in the direction Nezha had gone before turning and walking the other way.

When Nezha returned to the treehouse, Xiao Wu, Da Ming, and Er Ming had already finished playing and were sitting by the entrance.

Er Ming's massive body squatted nearby. His enormous hand carefully pinched a wild fruit no bigger than his fingernail as he held his breath and tried to bring it to his mouth.

The fruit was too small. It slipped away three times, but on the last attempt, he finally managed to stuff it into his mouth. Without even chewing, he swallowed it and revealed a look of complete satisfaction.

Da Ming was coiled around a tree, the tip of his tail wrapped around a small basket woven from vines and filled with several bright red fruits.

His vertical pupils were half-closed, making him look as though he were dozing, but his tail remained perfectly steady, and not a single fruit fell.

Xiao Wu sat on the doorstep with a half-eaten wild fruit in her hand.

The Blue Silver Emperor by her feet swayed without wind, its leaves gently rustling as though it too were enjoying this rare moment of leisure with them.

Hearing footsteps, Xiao Wu looked up.

When she saw Nezha, she waved the half-eaten wild fruit in her hand.

"Did you find any fun spirit beasts?"

"I ran into a twenty-thousand-year-old black bear. Fought it for an hour. It wasn't very interesting."

"And then?"

Nezha sat down beside the Blue Silver Emperor. "Then I went into town and bought some food."

As he spoke, Nezha took out an oil-paper package from his storage Soul Tool and tossed it to Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu caught it. The moment she opened it, her eyes lit up.

"Roasted meat!"

She grabbed a piece and stuffed it into her mouth, her cheeks puffed out as she mumbled something that was probably along the lines of "delicious."

Nezha was not idle either. He fished a wild fruit from the fruit basket beside Xiao Wu and took a bite.

It was sour and sweet, bursting with juice.

"Oh, right." Chewing the fruit, he casually said, "I ran into a wealthy patron on the way back and made quite a bit of money."

Xiao Wu took another bite of fruit, swallowed it together with the roasted meat, and asked indistinctly, "Who?"

"The second daughter of the Zhu Family from the Star Luo Empire, Zhu Zhuqing."

Xiao Wu shook her head. "Never heard of her. But why did someone from the Star Luo Empire come all the way into Heaven Dou Empire territory?"

Nezha briefly told her what had happened.

He had happened upon two Soul Ancestors chasing and trying to kill that girl. He had not intended to interfere, but the assassins insisted on coming after him, so he had casually eliminated them and accepted a sum of Gold Soul Coins from the girl as payment.

Zhu Zhuqing had also wanted to bring him to Shrek Academy with her, but he had refused outright.

After hearing this, Xiao Wu was not interested in Zhu Zhuqing's tragic circumstances. Instead, something else caught her attention.

"Shrek Academy?"

She put down the roasted meat in her hand. "Isn't that the place Tang San, Yu Xiaogang's disciple, went to?"

Nezha nodded.

"What, is it that famous? Even people from the Star Luo Empire know about it?" Xiao Wu frowned.

"Who knows?" Nezha replied perfunctorily.

In fact, when Nezha and Xiao Wu were nearing graduation, Yu Xiaogang had specifically sought them out once.

The two of them had been completely baffled at the time. After all, they were not familiar with Yu Xiaogang, and their relationship was even somewhat strained.

After all, Nezha and Xiao Wu had first rejected his offer to take them as disciples, then later caught his disciple Tang San attempting a sneak attack in public.

Whether by sentiment or reason, Yu Xiaogang had no reason to seek them out.

But Yu Xiaogang was still a nominal teacher at Notting Academy, so they had to give him that much face. The two made time to meet him.

The moment they met, Yu Xiaogang began enthusiastically recommending Shrek Academy. He talked about how it only accepted monsters, how graduates would become the continent's top powerhouses, how its faculty was outstanding and its teaching philosophy advanced. He praised it to the heavens.

If Nezha had not already known Shrek Academy's true nature, he might have almost believed him.

A shabby village serving as a campus, a money-grubbing dean, and in the future, this theory master who could not even break through rank thirty would personally go there to provide guidance.

Xiao Wu had yawned nonstop as she listened, while Nezha had replied expressionlessly, "We'll consider it."

He neither agreed nor refused.

As for why he had not simply refused outright, Nezha had his own plans.

Over the past few years, he and Xiao Wu had remained in contact with Qian Renxue through letters.

To Qian Renxue, they were talented youths from a reclusive sect who had slipped out to gain experience. Nezha knew perfectly well that Qian Renxue intended to recruit them, and he was happy to play along.

The reason he did not directly reject Yu Xiaogang was because he wanted Yu Xiaogang to enter Qian Renxue's field of vision.

Just imagine it: two geniuses from a reclusive sect being desperately recommended by an unknown master to attend a shabby academy that no one had ever heard of.

With Qian Renxue's cautious nature, would she not investigate?

And once Qian Renxue began investigating Yu Xiaogang, with Spirit Hall's intelligence capabilities, she would sooner or later uncover that old history between Yu Xiaogang and Bibi Dong.

When that time came, how would Qian Renxue react?

After all, although Qian Renxue was Bibi Dong's daughter, the relationship between mother and daughter was like fire and water.

And now, she would learn that a worthless man who had once been in love with her mother was currently wasting away at a junior academy in some remote little city, while even dreaming of proving his theories by nurturing talented disciples.

Would Qian Renxue mock Bibi Dong when the time came?

Just thinking about it amused Nezha.

As for what might happen between Qian Renxue and Yu Xiaogang afterward, that was none of his business.

All he needed to do was casually mention it in a letter. Spirit Hall's intelligence network would take care of the rest for him.