Shrek Academy

"Just a small favor, no need to be so polite." Xue Qinghe smiled. "You two should get settled in the academy first. If anything comes up, come find me anytime." With that, he nodded to the three education committee members and turned to leave.

The three committee members sat back down, their gazes toward Nezha and Xiao Wu now entirely different.

Even His Highness the Crown Prince had personally vouched for them, forcing Prince Xue Xing to back down. These two children were not only exceptionally gifted, but also deeply connected.

Meng Shenji cleared his throat, his tone becoming even gentler than before. "A dedicated teacher will handle your enrollment procedures. You should go rest up in the dorms first."

As he spoke, he handed them two dormitory keys.

The dormitories at Heaven Dou Royal Academy housed two students per room and were spacious and bright.

Although Nezha and Xiao Wu were of different genders, they were specially admitted students recommended by the Crown Prince. The academy made an exception and assigned them a suite, with two bedrooms sharing a small sitting room.

The moment Xiao Wu entered the room, she threw herself onto the bed and let out a long breath as she stared at the ceiling.

"That Xue Beng is way too annoying. He's been chasing us since yesterday. If there hadn't been so many people just now, I would've kicked him a couple more times."

"There'll be plenty of chances later." Nezha leaned against the doorframe. "Still, that Prince Xue Xing is rather protective of his own."

"What good is that?" Xiao Wu rolled over. "Didn't Xue Qinghe send him packing with just a few words? Though, now that I think about it, Xue Qinghe looked all refined and scholarly, but his words really carried weight."

Nezha chuckled.

Naturally.

He was the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, and secretly, the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall, protected by two Titled Douluo at all times.

A mere Prince Xue Xing was never someone she took seriously.

Still, Xiao Wu would not understand even if he told her.

Elsewhere.

After leaving Star Dou Forest, Zhu Zhuqing traveled in constant fear.

She did not dare take the main roads, choosing only secluded paths. Whenever she reached a village or town, she did not dare stay long, afraid that the assassins sent by Zhu Zhuyun would catch up.

Traveling day and night, braving wind and sleeping outdoors, she journeyed for several days before finally reaching the village where Shrek Academy was located.

Zhu Zhuqing stood at the village entrance and took a deep breath.

"I finally made it."

She could hardly be blamed for such a sigh, because she looked truly wretched now.

Her black fitted clothes were covered in dust, with several streaks of mud across her cuffs and pant legs. Her long hair was tied carelessly behind her head, loose strands plastered to the sides of her face with sweat. Her lips were cracked, and dark circles stood out clearly beneath her eyes.

Ever since she had given nearly all of her Gold Soul Coins to Nezha in Star Dou Forest, she had only the registration fee for Shrek Academy left on her: two hundred Gold Soul Coins.

As for the expenses required for travel, food, and lodging, Zhu Zhuqing, who had been pampered since childhood, had never considered them at all.

On the journey from Star Dou Forest to Shrek Academy, she had no carriage, no guards, and no provisions. When hungry, she could only pick wild fruit. When thirsty, she drank from streams. When sleepy, she found a tree hollow and made do for the night.

On her first journey away from home alone, Zhu Zhuqing had come to deeply understand just how unbearable life without Gold Soul Coins could be.

In her current state, there was no trace left of the Zhu Family's second young lady. She looked more like a refugee fleeing disaster.

Zhu Zhuqing wiped her face and walked into the village.

The moment she entered, she froze.

The village before her had no more than a hundred households. Mud-brick houses were scattered along either side of the path, while the road itself was still bare earth. Last night's rain had not dried yet, and every step sent mud splattering.

A battered wooden table had been set up in the open space at the village entrance. Behind it sat a middle-aged man with drooping eyelids, looking as though he had not woken up yet.

Beside him stood a wooden sign, upon which four crooked words had been written—Shrek Academy.

Zhu Zhuqing stood there without moving for a long while.

This shabby village, with a registration desk as rundown as a roadside stall, was the monster academy she had endured so much to reach?

This was the place Dai Mubai had fled the Star Luo Empire to join?

For the first time, Zhu Zhuqing began to doubt Dai Mubai's intelligence.

She took a deep breath, temporarily forcing down the disappointment in her heart, then walked to the end of the line.

The queue was extremely long, with at least several dozen people ahead of her.

Standing at the back, Zhu Zhuqing swept her gaze across the people in front of her when a commotion suddenly broke out ahead.

She raised a brow and looked over, only to see a blond youth step out of the crowd, an unruly smile hanging from his lips.

He looked coldly at the restless crowd. He appeared to be an older student responsible for maintaining order.

Someone nearby shouted in dissatisfaction, demanding their money back.

The blond youth did not waste words and directly released his martial soul.

Two yellow and one purple, three soul rings rose from beneath his feet.

A Soul Elder.

Everyone who had been shouting moments ago fell silent.

Among commoners, a Soul Elder was already a rare expert.

But Zhu Zhuqing was not looking at those soul rings. She stared fixedly at the blond youth's face, her expression growing colder and colder.

She would never mistake those double pupils.

Dai Mubai. Her fiancé. The man who had fled the Star Luo Empire two years ago, leaving her alone to face the combined pressure of Zhu Zhuyun and Dai Weisi.

For two years, she had struggled at every step in the Star Luo Empire, constantly guarding against her sister's schemes. In the end, she had been forced to flee her home, hunted all the way here, nearly dying in Star Dou Forest.

And this man was here at Shrek Academy, acting as a genius senior student with that same carefree smile on his face.

Zhu Zhuqing clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms.

Dai Mubai clearly had not noticed Zhu Zhuqing at the back of the line. He withdrew his soul rings, basked smugly in the crowd's awed gazes, and swaggered back to stand behind the teacher.

The line formed up again.

The teacher of Shrek Academy announced the rules once more: those over thirteen would not be accepted, and neither would those whose Soul Power was below level twenty-one.

With just those two sentences, more than half the applicants were eliminated.

The line before Zhu Zhuqing shortened at a visible rate. Before long, only a handful of people remained.

Standing directly in front of her was a beautiful short-haired girl in a white dress, with bright almond-shaped eyes as she curiously looked around at everything.

Further ahead stood a gloomy black-haired youth. His face was expressionless, and he gave off an aura that warned strangers to stay away.

When it was the black-haired youth's turn, he made no unnecessary movements and directly released his martial soul.

Blue Silver Grass spread from his palm, while two yellow and one purple soul rings rose beneath his feet.

A Soul Elder.

Zhu Zhuqing's pupils contracted slightly.

A twelve-year-old Soul Elder. Another one.

And he had the optimal soul ring configuration too, with a thousand-year third ring.

What kind of place was this? Were geniuses everywhere?

That black-haired youth was naturally Tang San.

In the original story, Notting Academy had only Xiao Wu and Tang San with Innate Full Soul Power.

Xiao Wu had a playful nature and did not devote herself fully to cultivation, so Tang San had always cultivated the fastest in the academy.

He spent a great deal of time every day forging iron and crafting hidden weapons, yet his Soul Power growth still remained firmly in first place. This made Tang San rather proud of himself.