Arrogant Shrek Teachers!

A crimson figure raced toward Huo Yuhao and the other two at incredible speed, Evil Fire that seemed capable of burning everything surging around her as it swallowed them whole.

Huo Yuhao and Zhu Lu instantly entered Martial Soul Possession. Huo Yuhao directly summoned the Human Emperor Sword, and its freezing aura seemed to draw the crimson figure's attention. The phoenix phantom behind her spread its wings and dove toward the three of them.

"Damn it!" Huo Yuhao mobilized his Soul Power, releasing a freezing aura from the Human Emperor Sword as he slashed at the phoenix phantom. The frigid sword energy collided with it, only to be devoured outright. Seeing this, Huo Yuhao knew he could no longer hide his strength.

A towering figure emerged behind him. As his Soul Power poured forth at full force, Wei Qing's figure solidified, raising the longsword in his hand high before bringing it down upon the phantom before him.

"Mountain Suppression!"

Wei Qing shouted with icy killing intent. Terrifying sword energy erupted, instantly blanketing the entire phoenix phantom, freezing it solid before it shattered into powder.

At the same time, Tian Meng stopped holding back and directly used a layer of his origin power. An icy aura gathered in Huo Yuhao's hands. Huo Yuhao slowly raised one hand and extended his index finger. A beam of white light shot forth, instantly freezing the summoner of the phoenix phantom and sending her plummeting into Sea God Lake.

"Hmph! How dare she touch someone I chose!"

"Enough, big bug. Stop showing off. We need to retreat!" Wei Qing reminded him, and the man and bug returned to Huo Yuhao's Spirit Sea.

At Huo Yuhao's reminder, the three of them also pretended to fall unconscious. This situation clearly had some hidden story behind it.

The two girls nodded. Although they did not understand, Huo Yuhao would never say anything without basis. They immediately followed Huo Yuhao's lead and collapsed onto the ground. The three of them fell unconscious, and to make it more convincing, Huo Yuhao used his spiritual power to disguise their appearances.

The very next second after Huo Yuhao finished, two figures appeared. Looking at the three lying on the grass, one teacher cried out in alarm, "Not good! There are students here too!"

The other teacher's face turned grave at those words. He came before the three unconscious students, feeling troubled as he looked at them, but he still took out what the dean had instructed him to prepare.

Three jade-green pills appeared in his hand.

"You stay here and watch them. This is their compensation. Remember, Xiao Tao's situation cannot get out!" The higher-ranking teacher spoke sternly. The other teacher nodded in acknowledgment. At the same time, another teacher flew out of the lake, carrying the unconscious Ma Xiaotao at his waist.

Yes, the one who had attacked Huo Yuhao and the others was Ma Xiaotao, who had secretly cultivated until the Evil Fire lost control over her.

"Xiao Tao has fallen unconscious, but the Evil Fire seems to have been suppressed! And an icy aura has appeared over her body. An Ultimate Ice Soul Master was here!"

Hearing this, the higher-ranking teacher was visibly shaken. He immediately turned his gaze toward the three on the ground, but none of them appeared to meet that criterion.

"Bring Xiao Tao back first! Report this to the dean as well. Teacher Lin, I'll leave this to you!"

The teacher assigned to stay behind nodded, and the other two headed toward the Inner Court.

While the three teachers discussed their response, the three on the ground were not idle either.

"Shrek really doesn't treat us like people! We nearly lost our lives!"

Wang Dong complained indignantly, while Huo Yuhao and Zhu Lu seemed accustomed to such treatment. This kind of thing happened every day at the Duke's Estate. Those without status could be dismissed with a little unwanted compensation.

And Shrek Academy was no different now. It was clear that this place could no longer be considered an academy, but rather a faction—a faction operating under the name of an academy.

"Alright, we'll stick to what we agreed on later. Remember, you must act afraid. Say that you were blown away by the flames, and when you woke up, you were already here. Understand?"

The two girls nodded. Then the three of them fluttered their eyelids. The teacher resting nearby immediately noticed and knew they were about to wake up. He walked over, preparing to question them about what they remembered.

"Did you see anything?" Rather than asking about their condition first, he directly questioned their memories. Clearly, in Shrek's eyes, only the Inner Court was truly their own. The Outer Court? Just a mixed bag of people.

Pretending to have a headache, Huo Yuhao rubbed his temples and looked innocently at the teacher before him. Upon hearing the question, he recounted what they had agreed upon. Wang Dong and Zhu Lu also chimed in with vague, ambiguous answers.

"Very good. This is the academy's compensation for you. Forget what you saw today, and report your names."

After they gave their information to the teacher, he signaled that they could leave.

Along the way, Wang Dong felt utterly depressed. Shrek did not seem as wonderful as she had imagined. She now felt as though she had entered some unfamiliar faction—if you had value, they would spare you a glance; if not, they would casually dismiss you.

"What is it? Are you still thinking about what happened earlier?" As Wang Dong's close friend, Zhu Lu noticed that something was wrong and quietly came to her side to comfort her.

"Yeah. I never thought Shrek Academy would be this kind of academy. I think I regret enrolling here. It feels like I'm just wasting my time!" Wang Dong complained gloomily. Zhu Lu chuckled softly and stroked her best friend's head in reassurance.

"Alright, let's head back first. From now on, it'll be time to study Soul Tools." Huo Yuhao spoke softly. There might be ears in the walls, so it was better to be careful.

The two girls nodded. After bidding one another farewell, Wang Dong returned to the dormitory with Huo Yuhao. She collapsed lifelessly onto her bed, recalling the attitude of the Inner Court teachers that day. Wang Dong truly regretted coming to Shrek.

"Feeling bad?" Huo Yuhao chuckled. But on second thought, it was only natural. For Shrek, a faction wearing the facade of an academy, such things were perfectly normal.

Over the following period, Huo Yuhao and the other two focused on two main tasks: cultivation and studying Soul Tools. Their greatest progress came in Soul Tools. By now, the three could make some first-grade Soul Tools, while Huo Yuhao, relying on his Spirit Eyes Martial Soul, could even attempt to create second-grade Soul Tools.

Fan Yu praised them repeatedly. In his heart, even if he could not win over Wang Dong and Zhu Lu, the Soul Guidance Department absolutely had to secure Huo Yuhao!

Time flew by, and the first semester soon reached its final days. During this period, Huo Yuhao completed his second Heavenly Cycle and could independently breathe and refine the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Under Huo Yuhao's guidance, Wang Dong and Zhu Lu also condensed their own first Heavenly Cycles. Feeling the changes within her body, Wang Dong clicked her tongue in amazement. She had now reached Rank 30, only one Soul Ring away from breaking through to Soul Elder.

Zhu Lu, meanwhile, had reached Rank 34. It had to be said, once one reached the Soul Elder stage, rapidly increasing one's cultivation truly became a major challenge!

During this time, the three also became acquainted with Ning Tian, Wu Feng, and Xiao Xiao. The six girls and boys often exchanged cultivation insights together.

Huo Yuhao also learned from Ning Tian about the abilities of the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda Martial Soul: it could specifically enhance a chosen support target's abilities, with both its duration and intensity increasing alongside the user's Soul Power rank.