Absurd Shrek

Xu Lizhi immediately lowered his head.

His two chubby hands twisted together in front of him, and his voice became low and muffled.

"I just..."

"Just wanted to be a little closer to you."

Ye Xinglan smiled. There was not the slightest joy in that smile; instead, it carried an emotional tension bordering on collapse. The curve of her lips was stiff, while her eyes glistened with tears.

"Did I agree to that?!"

"Did I agree to let you get close to me?!"

Every word seemed to be forced through clenched teeth, carrying a sharp accusation.

Xu Lizhi felt even more wronged.

Just then, an Inner Court teacher happened to hear the commotion and walked over.

The moment he saw Ye Xinglan's agitated, out-of-control appearance and Xu Lizhi's wronged posture with his head lowered, his expression immediately darkened.

He came closer, his brows tightly furrowed.

His sharp gaze fell on Ye Xinglan, and he coldly spoke in a tone filled with undisguised severity and displeasure.

"Ye Xinglan!"

"Haven't I told you many times already?!"

"Don't let your personal emotions get in the way!"

"Student Xu Lizhi is a Food-type Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power. Do you know what that means?!"

He paused before continuing.

"In Shrek Academy's more than twenty thousand years of history, there have only been two Food-type Soul Masters with Innate Full Soul Power."

"One was His Excellency Oscar, one of the original Shrek Seven Monsters twenty thousand years ago. He eventually became a Deity!"

"The other was Senior He Caitou, one of the Shrek Seven Monsters from ten thousand years ago. He also eventually became a Super Douluo."

"So, do you understand how difficult it is for an Auxiliary Soul Master to become a Super Douluo?!"

His tone grew increasingly stern.

"If you keep throwing tantrums, I'll consider sending you home to rest for a few years."

"Once you're in your teens..."

"You can come back and take the Outer Court entrance examination."

The moment those words came out, Ye Xinglan's face turned deathly pale.

The last remnants of unwillingness and stubbornness in her eyes rapidly dimmed, as though extinguished by a basin of cold water.

She lowered her head. Her voice trembled slightly with sobs, carrying obedience suppressed to the utmost limit.

"I'm sorry."

The Inner Court teacher remained stern, his chin slightly raised, with no sign of his tone softening.

"You should apologize to Student Xu Lizhi..."

"Not to me."

Ye Xinglan's hands instantly clenched into fists.

But she still loosened them.

She could not leave Shrek Academy.

This was the continent's number one academy.

A sacred land for Soul Masters.

If she were dismissed from here...

Even if she was merely sent home to rest for a few years.

The course of her life would be completely rewritten.

All her expectations for the future, all her dreams of becoming a top-tier Soul Master, would turn to nothing in that instant.

So, she looked toward Xu Lizhi, and only numbness remained in her eyes.

She opened her mouth, about to speak.

But then, a cool voice rang out.

"So this is Shrek's teaching atmosphere?"

"Forcing a student to do something she doesn't want to do?"

Everyone turned toward the voice. It was Cao Xin.

At that moment, Cao Xin was genuinely speechless.

Was that really necessary?

If she did not like it, why did they have to force it down her throat?

Ye Xinglan did not like Xu Lizhi clinging to her...

Wasn't that a perfectly normal reaction?

She was only a child. Why should she be forced to "accept" someone she did not want to accept?

But when he remembered that this was Shrek...

He suddenly found it normal again.

This place had been rotten from the roots.

Twenty thousand years ago...

Shrek had pocketed the registration fees of applicants.

Those original teachers had used the slogan "we only accept monsters," yet charged every applicant exorbitant registration fees. Even if they failed to meet the requirements, the money was never refunded.

Then Flender had led Tang San and the others to leech off Heaven Dou Academy, using Heaven Dou Academy's resources for cultivation, only to leave in the end and restore the name of Shrek Academy.

They ate their food, used their resources, took their things, and then simply walked away in the end.

Heaven Dou Academy had truly been nothing more than a cash cow.

Cao Xin silently mocked them in his heart.

And then there was ten thousand years ago...

Xuan Zi's actions had been even more outrageous.

If Mu En had not stopped him, he would have wanted to directly seize Huo Yuhao and thoroughly investigate why Huo Yuhao possessed Ultimate Ice.

He had come to study, not to go to prison.

And when Xuan Zi led teams...

The students had suffered heavy casualties.

More than once, at that.

Even in this era, Shrek had not fallen short.

Long Yeyue and Cai Yue'er.

Those two were known as the Shrek Twin Moons.

Yet half of the hatred Shrek Academy had accumulated from outsiders...

Had been brought upon them by those two.

One had inexplicably slapped the master of the Spirit Pagoda.

The other's conduct was cunning and harsh...

She had offended more people than she had befriended.

For a moment, Cao Xin...

Did not even know how to mock them anymore.

Did Shrek not have a single normal person?

At that moment...

The Inner Court teacher's expression darkened as well.

He stared at Cao Xin with an offended, fierce gaze, like a wild beast whose tail had been stepped on, and spoke in an unfriendly tone.

"Whose student are you?"

Shrek Inner Academy was different from the Outer Court.

The Outer Court used a class system.

Students were divided into classes according to their grade and taught together.

But the Inner Academy emphasized teaching according to individual aptitude.

It used a master-disciple system. Every student had a dedicated mentor responsible for guiding their cultivation and growth, either one-on-one or one-on-many.

Thus, the first thing this Inner Court teacher asked was which teacher Cao Xin followed.

And what he despised most were people who defied teachers like this.

In his eyes, his words were the truth.

Students could only obey...

How could they refute or mock him?!

Cao Xin's earlier remark, "So this is Shrek's teaching atmosphere?" was like a thorn driven into his pride...

Making him feel that his authority and dignity had been challenged as never before.

Cao Xin snorted and waved a hand, his tone casual and cold.

"I'm not one of your Shrek people."

The Inner Court teacher was instantly stunned. His brows knitted even tighter, and his tone gained a hint of wariness and suspicion.

"Then how did you get into the Inner Academy?"

Shrek Inner Academy's security had always been strict. Outsiders without permission could never enter at will.

The very fact that a seven-year-old child could appear here was already unreasonable.

"Huh?"

Cao Xin tilted his head slightly and looked at the Inner Court teacher as though he were an idiot.

What, was Shrek Inner Academy supposed to be precious or something?

Was he not allowed in?

But at that moment, an excited flush suddenly appeared on the Inner Court teacher's face.

He stared at Cao Xin with a vicious gaze.

"Although I don't know how you got in."

"But since you're not a student of Shrek Academy, kid, you're finished!"

As he spoke, Soul Power radiance appeared around his right hand. Rings of Soul Rings suddenly lit up around him—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black...

The cultivation of a Seven-Ring Soul Sage was revealed without reservation.

His right hand shot toward Cao Xin like lightning, palm wind sharp and Soul Power surging...

He clearly intended to seize Cao Xin directly.