Arriving at Shrek Academy

Only after leaving the shop did Ning Rongrong ask, "Sister Youquan, what did you mean by that just now?"

"Didn't you notice? He was trying to intimidate us," Youquan explained.

"Intimidate us?" Ning Rongrong asked in surprise.

"I could sense it too." Xiaoxiao nodded, agreeing with Youquan.

"He heard everything we said in the shop. First, our attitude toward Tang San and Xiaowu wasn't particularly friendly, especially mine. The belt I gave Tang San was probably from that shopkeeper's friend or something, which is why he treated the two of us so differently. He was nothing like a normal businessman." Youquan looked at Ning Rongrong and continued with a smile, "Rongrong, think carefully. Whenever you bought something in the past, had any merchant ever given one customer a discount right in front of another customer, then ruthlessly overcharged the other?"

"Indeed, none." After thinking it over carefully, Ning Rongrong shook her head.

"If I'm not mistaken, he might be part of Shrek Academy's upper ranks—perhaps a teacher or an administrator," Youquan continued analyzing.

"What did you say?" Ning Rongrong was even more shocked now.

"His Soul Power isn't low. The sign at the entrance showed that he's a Spirit Master. What Spirit Master in the world wouldn't want to be on good terms with your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect? Even if they didn't actively curry favor, they certainly wouldn't offend you. Yet he knew we were together. Without knowing where I came from, he would normally assume we came from the same place, but he still made things difficult for us. If he had a grudge against the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, his methods wouldn't be so lowly. Combined with his attitude toward Tang San, and the way he seemed to think he would have plenty of chances to deal with me after we left, I couldn't help linking him to Shrek Academy." Youquan explained her reasoning to Ning Rongrong.

"I agree with Youquan." Xiaoxiao nodded in agreement. If she wasn't mistaken, that shopkeeper should have been Shrek Academy's dean, Flender.

"Fine, my rose-colored glasses for Shrek Academy have completely shattered." Ning Rongrong spoke with some disappointment, then sighed toward the sky. "Am I really going to Heaven Dou Royal Academy?"

Xiaoxiao quietly nodded in agreement. Her impression of Shrek had also shattered quite a bit.

"We're already here. Let's go take a look. Maybe the other teachers and students are all quite good. We've traveled so far—would you really be willing to turn back just like this?" Youquan teased with a smile.

"I wouldn't, but I'm afraid that crooked merchant will make things difficult for us," Ning Rongrong said dejectedly.

"You're the eldest young lady of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Wasn't he trying to take the wind out of your sails beforehand because he was afraid you'd throw your weight around and make things difficult for him? He's the one afraid you'll make things difficult for him. After all, one hand from one of your sect's consecrated elders could wipe out a tiny Shrek Academy." Seeing Ning Rongrong's low spirits, Youquan immediately encouraged her.

"You're right. In that case, we shouldn't let such trivial matters affect our mood. It's still early, so let's continue our shopping spree. I saw that the entire street next door is full of clothing shops." Ning Rongrong placed one hand on her hip and pointed toward the neighboring street with the other.

Youquan and Xiaoxiao exchanged a glance, then smiled helplessly and followed Ning Rongrong.

Early the next morning, Youquan, Ning Rongrong, and Xiaoxiao got themselves ready early, ate breakfast, and prepared to wait at the inn entrance for Tang San and Xiaowu, with whom they had arranged to set off.

"You're here so early." As soon as the three left the inn, they saw Tang San feeding Xiaowu carrots and greeted them first.

"We just arrived too," Tang San explained with a smile.

"Since that's the case, let's set off," Youquan said to everyone.

The group left Suotuo City together. They chatted and laughed along the way, and though they had no carriage, the journey still had its own pleasures.

Continuing south from Suotuo City along the road, vast golden fields stretched along both sides of the main road. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but farmland, with no large buildings or anything resembling an academy in sight.

"Little San, do you know where Shrek Academy is?" Xiaowu had looked around for quite a while without seeing their destination, so she hurriedly asked Tang San.

"I'm not sure about the exact location either. Teacher told me that we only needed to leave Suotuo City and keep heading south to see it. Since Dai Mubai is a student of Shrek Academy, that means the academy really exists. Let's keep going," Tang San explained to Xiaowu somewhat helplessly.

"Do you know where Shrek Academy is?" Xiaowu looked toward Youquan and the other two.

Youquan spread her hands to indicate that she did not know.

Xiaoxiao likewise spread her hands and explained, "I only heard that it's in the southern part of Suotuo City. I don't know anything else."

"Don't look at me. The information I know is no different from yours. All I know is that it's in southern Suotuo City," Ning Rongrong said hurriedly.

Youquan and Xiaowu sighed at the same time, both feeling that this Shrek Academy was not very reliable.

"There's a small village up ahead. Let's go take a look and ask around while we're at it." Youquan spotted a small village not far ahead and pointed in its direction.

Everyone looked where Youquan was pointing and saw a small village about a kilometer away. It was not large, though it was still somewhat bigger than the village where Baishuang and Zhuang Yanyan had once lived.

A ring of wooden fencing surrounded the village, seemingly meant to keep out wild beasts. Quite a few people were gathered at the village entrance, though it was unclear what was happening.

Only after they drew closer did they realize something was off. Most of those gathered at the village entrance were youths around their age, and most of them were accompanied by their parents.

A table had been set up at the village entrance, with an elderly man in his sixties seated behind it. What left them dumbfounded was the tattered plaque hanging from a crudely assembled wooden archway at the entrance. Five extremely plain characters were carved on it: Shrek Academy.

Before those five characters was a green head. It was a green, somewhat adorable little monster.

The elderly man behind the table also wore a badge with the same design on his chest. It seemed to be Shrek Academy's school emblem.

"This is an advanced Spirit Master academy?" Ning Rongrong blurted out in surprise.

Xiaowu nodded in agreement, then looked at Tang San. "Brother, did Grandmaster get it wrong? No matter how I look at it, this doesn't resemble a Spirit Master Academy. Nuoding Academy was only a junior Spirit Master academy, but it was much bigger than this place. Were we tricked?"

Tang San smiled wryly. "We're already here. Let's take a look first."

Youquan suddenly burst into laughter. When everyone looked at her, she awkwardly waved her hands and explained, "I was just reminded of something my teacher once said. There are three phrases no one can refuse: 'We're already here,' 'It's a joyous occasion,' and 'She's still just a child.'"

Hearing Youquan's words, much of the disappointment brought on by the academy instantly dissipated.

"Youquan is right. Since we're already here, let's go take a look," Tang San said with a smile.