Men's Doubles

Oscar held several bamboo skewers threaded with grilled sausages.

"I grilled these myself. Three Copper Soul Coins each, or ten Copper Soul Coins for three. Great value, fair prices for all!"

Ye Hua stared at his full-on profiteer's grin and thought of his soul skill incantation. The corner of his mouth twitched. "Your arithmetic really is..."

"No problem!" Oscar cut him off. "It's an exclusive secret recipe, and there's only so much available each day. Naturally, buying more costs a little extra!"

"An exclusive secret recipe?" Ye Hua could no longer hold back the twitch at his lips. "Student Oscar, may I ask what this recipe is?"

"Uh..." Oscar scratched his head and gave an embarrassed laugh. "Teacher Ye, that's..."

Ye Hua shook his head. "If I don't know the recipe, I won't buy it. After all, I've sampled quite a few academy cafeteria recipes."

"Nothing more than inventions born from a couple of meals between administrators and contractors—putting things of dubious origin on the table, calling them nutritious meals, and charging a high price."

Seeing Ye Hua's faintly amused smile and everyone else's suspicious looks, Oscar knew that if he did not reveal it today, he could forget about selling sausages in the future.

He could only grit his teeth and shout—

"Super Invincible Great Sausage!!!"

The entire place fell silent.

Not a sound could be heard.

The girls were all dumbfounded.

"Student Xiao Ao," Ye Hua said, pressing a hand to his forehead, "I appreciate the gesture, but my soul power is still full. I have no use for it at the moment."

Oscar wiped his forehead, then gave another awkward laugh and proactively offered the sausages to Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing.

As expected, both girls politely refused in perfect unison.

When he reached Ning Rongrong, he received an especially vicious glare from the little witch. Oscar was so frightened that he hurriedly hid the sausages behind his back and repeatedly excused himself.

Watching his fleeing figure, Ye Hua could not help laughing.

Oscar was one of the few people in Shrek with decent character, wasn't he?

At the very least, his feelings for Ning Rongrong were sincere. He had even carried hidden weapons and entered the Far North Forest alone to obtain a Soul Ring in order to improve his combat strength.

That kind of courage—risking his life just to earn the approval of his beloved and future father-in-law—was enough to separate him from the hypocrites.

He was far better than someone who only knew how to shout, [Revive, my beloved]!

"Xiao Wu, Zhu Qing, you've had a tiring journey. Go rest first."

"Teacher Zhao is tough as hide, but my wrist is still aching from the shock. I'll head back to recuperate too."

Xiao Wu stepped forward and hugged Ye Hua. "Then don't go running around, Brother, or some wild fox might steal your soul."

"Alright, alright," Ye Hua readily agreed, affectionately rubbing Xiao Wu's head. "Besides, am I the kind of person who goes fooling around everywhere?"

Seeing Ye Hua's intimacy with Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing pressed her lips together, loneliness flashing through her eyes. Ning Rongrong, meanwhile, watched with great interest, as though she only lacked a handful of melon seeds to crack.

Ye Hua returned to his dormitory. Seeing the sky gradually darken, he took out his bedding and spread it out.

At least he would not be running around tonight. After all, there was a good show coming up soon!

At dusk, the fiery clouds dispersed and moonlight hung overhead. A lean figure stepped through the gates of Shrek Academy.

He was around fifty, with graying hair, thick black-rimmed glasses, and a well-tailored yet old-fashioned coat.

His features were sharply defined, and traces of his youthful handsomeness could still be seen. Yet his eyes carried the shrewdness of someone long accustomed to the marketplace.

Flander, the Four-Eyed Cat Eagle, a level seventy-eight agility-type battle Soul Saint and the headmaster of Shrek Academy.

The moment Flander entered the courtyard, he ran straight into a bruised and swollen face.

"Headmaster!"

Flander, who had just made a fortune selling gemstones, was startled half a step back by the miserable sight that suddenly sprang out before him.

He looked the man over for a long time before barely recognizing his own vice headmaster from his build.

"Zhao Wuji? How did you end up like this?" Flander frowned deeply, disbelief filling his voice. "Is there someone in Soto City who can beat you into this state? Did some Soul Douluo arrive?"

"A Soul Douluo wouldn't go that far..." Zhao Wuji stammered, his face flushing red.

Only after Flander questioned him repeatedly did he brace himself and recount the entire matter.

A thousand-year first ring, a ten-thousand-year third ring, only eighteen years old, applying to be a teacher.

Taken separately, none of those phrases seemed particularly remarkable.

But put together, they became utterly fantastical.

After hearing everything, Flander remained silent for a long time.

"A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring?" He stared at Zhao Wuji. "His third Soul Ring was ten thousand years? Are you sure you didn't see wrong?"

"I wish I had seen wrong!" Zhao Wuji pointed at his bruised and purple face. "Could this be fake? I saw it with my own eyes—purple, purple, black!"

Flander took a deep breath and slowly turned toward the dormitories.

"I want to meet him." A sharp glint flashed through Flander's eyes. "Our Shrek may be gaining a monster of a teacher!"

"Zhao Wuji, lead the way—"

Before he could finish, a deep, hoarse voice suddenly sounded from beyond the academy wall.

"Zhao Wuji, come out."

"Zhao Wuji, come out~~"

The voice and its echo were precisely confined to the entrance, never even reverberating through the academy. Both Soul Masters' expressions changed drastically.

"Who's there, pretending to be mysterious!"

Zhao Wuji gritted his teeth and rushed out of the academy.

He had been holding in a bellyful of anger all day with nowhere to vent it. He could not beat Ye Hua, he did not dare hit Ning Rongrong, and he could not kill Tang San.

Now someone had actually come to provoke him. He would beat that person to death!

But after rushing out of the academy and into the small forest nearby, he realized something was wrong.

The killing intent here was terrifyingly concentrated, almost solid. Even though he had killed countless people, he had never possessed such killing intent.

The newcomer stood atop a tree, dressed in coarse cloth and a messy outfit stained with grease.

But his eyes blazed with killing intent as he stared coldly at Zhao Wuji, making him shudder.

Even worse, a small dark-red hammer had appeared in his palm, and the outermost red Soul Ring was exceptionally conspicuous!

Clear Sky Douluo, Tang Hao!

A level ninety-five Title Douluo!

Zhao Wuji's pupils trembled, and his legs went weak.

Everyone in the Soul Master world knew how Tang Hao had severely injured the Pope, Qian Xunji, with the Clear Sky Hammer!

Zhao Wuji might have thrown his weight around in Soto City, but before the Clear Sky Douluo, he was not worth a damn!

"Your Excellency Clear Sky..." Zhao Wuji trembled all over. "What are your orders?"

"The mighty Unmoving King, bullying the weak and beating his own students half to death. How impressive."

Faced with Tang Hao's mockery, and recalling that both he and Tang San shared the surname Tang, how could Zhao Wuji fail to understand what this was about?

In an instant, his mouth filled with bitterness, as though he were about to vomit up his gallbladder!

He had never expected that not only was Ning Rongrong untouchable, Tang San was untouchable too!

Tang Hao put away the Clear Sky Hammer, but raised his palm.

"I won't touch your students." Tang Hao advanced step by step. "But you hit my son."

"No matter what he did, he is still Tang Hao's son. My son is someone only I can hit!"

Before Zhao Wuji could react, Tang Hao closed in.

He did not even summon his Soul Rings. Using only his hands, he slapped Zhao Wuji around like a kite with its string cut, sending him flying through the air.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

His screams rang out without end!

"Mercy, Your Excellency! Mercy!"

Zhao Wuji's face swelled larger than a pig's head as he hurriedly begged for mercy, but Tang Hao had no intention of stopping.

Tang Hao beat him for nearly half the time it took to burn an incense stick before finally letting Zhao Wuji go. By then, Zhao Wuji had been beaten limp and could barely rise.

"You are not to tell anyone about my presence here, and do not make things difficult for Xiao San again."

"Otherwise, next time, I would not mind showing you what a true Clear Sky Hammer is!"

"And since Xiao San has entered your academy, you must do your utmost to nurture him. Not only must you give him most of your resources, you must personally teach him practical combat."

"If, after several years, Xiao San is still stuck where he is, I'll skin you, you dog bear, and leave you on a cliff to dry in the wind!"

"As for Ye Hua, handle him however you see fit!!!"

Zhao Wuji was completely dumbfounded. Nurturing Tang San wholeheartedly was one thing, but going against Ye Hua—wasn't that asking him to die?

Even in a direct confrontation, he could not defeat Ye Hua, let alone with the possibility that Ye Hua had some major power behind him!

"Hm? You refuse?" Tang Hao frowned, killing intent gathering around him.

"No, no, no." Zhao Wuji gave a bitter smile. "It's just that Ye Hua is a teacher, not a student!"

"A teacher?" Tang Hao froze for a moment, then sneered. "Student or teacher, who cares? If his soul power increases at all over the next few years, I'll still skin you!"

Just as Tang Hao intended to continue applying pressure, his footsteps suddenly halted. His soul power erupted as he stared fixedly at the nearby bushes.

"Who?!"

The scene immediately fell silent. Zhao Wuji, collapsed on the ground, and Flander, who had finally deigned to come out, both focused their gazes on the bushes.

A rustling sound came from within. An old man holding an Ironblood Heavy Sword emerged with a smiling face.

"Clear Sky Douluo, it has been a long time."

"This old man heard someone mention my lord's name and came to take a look. I did not expect to find an old acquaintance."

Tang Hao was dumbstruck, his tense expression instantly collapsing!