Not a Single Parent Showed Up for the Parent-Teacher Meeting

"Second brother!"

"Big brother!"

"Third brother!"

"Big brother, second brother!"

The three excitedly cupped their fists to one another, leaving Bei Bei and Tang Ya staring in bewilderment.

"All right, let's get into the academy."

Bei Bei chuckled and led the way, motioning for them to follow.

"By the way, little Wulin, why did you come to Shrek Academy when you're so young?"

Tang Ya skipped along the road, then suddenly stopped and bent down to ask the question she had wanted to ask for ages.

"My father sent me to study at Shrek Academy. I don't know why, either."

A trace of confusion flashed through Tang Wulin's eyes, soon replaced by delight. He had never attended a Soul Master Academy before and had no idea what school life would be like.

"Your father, huh."

Tang Ya nodded thoughtfully, her voice growing quieter. The mood among them suddenly turned heavy.

In truth, they were all thinking of their parents. Bei Bei's mother had died in childbirth, and his grief-stricken father had taken a difficult mission that sent him to his death. Tang Ya's parents had been killed along with the rest of her family. Huo Yuhao's father did not even know he had a son, and his mother had died of illness. Wang Dong's parents were still in the Divine Realm, but she had no memory of them. Only Tang Wulin had spoken to his father recently.

Put them all together for a parent-teacher meeting, and they could not produce a single parent.

But the sadness came and went quickly. Soon they entered Shrek Academy, where Bei Bei earnestly explained how things worked.

"You're all in Class One?"

"Thank goodness. Zhou Yi teaches Class Three, so none of you ended up in that old witch's class."

Standing before the noticeboard, Tang Ya could not help crying out when she saw the posted class list.

"I didn't expect her to end up teaching first-years. She was probably demoted."

Bei Bei gave a rueful smile, relieved for all three of them. If Huo Yuhao had ended up in Zhou Yi's class, he might well have been unable to stay.

After listening to Bei Bei's brief explanation, Wang Dong raised a fist and said angrily, "How can there be a teacher like that? Doesn't the academy do anything about her?"

"Exactly. Isn't a teacher supposed to help students grow? How can she throw students out of the academy in the name of being 'strict'?"

Tang Wulin frowned too. He had never imagined there could be a teacher like that. Perhaps Shrek Academy was not quite so wonderful after all.

"Maybe the academy has its own reasons."

Bei Bei shrugged helplessly. The stick had never fallen on his own back, so he did not know how much it hurt; he had not paid much attention to the matter.

"But I've heard of your homeroom teacher, Wang Yan. He has an extensive knowledge of theory, and he's a good person too."

Bei Bei's words dispersed their shared indignation.

"All right, Tang Ya and I have to take our advancement tests now. If we pass, we'll move up to the fourth year. I'm in Dormitory 316, so come find me if you need anything."

Bei Bei smiled. Tang Ya had been in such a hurry to obtain her third Soul Ring precisely so she could pass the advancement assessment. They still had plenty to do.

"Goodbye, Brother Bei."

"Goodbye, senior brother."

Tang Wulin and the other two understood their circumstances and waved farewell.

"Let's go, second brother, third brother."

Wang Dong strode ahead, taking the lead. With new students arriving and the school year beginning, the academy was in chaos. She marched toward the dormitory building with the other two behind her, and nearby students stepped aside to let them through.

The three soon reached the entrance to the white dormitory building. A middle-aged man lay there, basking leisurely in the sun.

"Hello, Elder Mu."

Tang Wulin recognized the man in the reclining chair and hurried over to greet him. The unease of being in an unfamiliar place vanished.

"Hello, Elder Mu."

Seeing Tang Wulin greet the man, Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao figured he must know him and dutifully greeted him too.

"Wulin. And two other little ones."

Mu En slowly opened his eyes, struggling to keep the corners of his mouth from rising. He had been too busy laughing from above to arrange the dormitories in time, so those two had chased him down here to use his authority as pavilion master to assign Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao to the same room.

"Let me see your dorm keys."

The three hurriedly handed them over.

Mu En jingled the keys and glanced at them, then pocketed all three and produced three different keys for them.

"Dormitory 100 is at the far end, and Dormitory 101 is right beside it. With the rooms next to each other, you three brothers can spend more time together."

A flicker of puzzlement crossed Mu En's eyes, but he quickly buried it and lay back down.

"Elder Mu, how did you know?"

"So you were watching us too, Elder Mu."

As if something had just occurred to him, Tang Wulin's face fell and turned red as a cooked shrimp.

Uncle Da Ming had been the one who told him to agree to it. How did Elder Mu know too?

This is so embarrassing.

"Hahaha! Hurry along."

Mu En did not answer. Clearly, he had known all along. He chuckled and waved the three inside.

"Goodbye, Elder Mu."

After saying farewell, Tang Wulin grabbed the other two and ran. Trusting him, Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao followed him straight into the dormitory building.

"Wulin, why are you running?"

Still holding Tang Wulin's hand, Wang Dong asked curiously. Huo Yuhao stayed quiet beside them, saying nothing, though complicated emotions occasionally surfaced in his eyes.

"My two uncles and Elder Mu know I became sworn brothers with you. Knowing them, they're probably laughing and making comments about it."

Tang Wulin shuddered. In the short time he had spent with them, he had already realized that Uncle Da Ming was fairly steady but had a mischievous streak, while Uncle Er Ming was downright "lively." Sometimes Er Ming seemed less mature than Tang Wulin himself.

At that, the other two understood, and their cheeks began to redden. Being caught becoming sworn siblings by someone's elders really was a little embarrassing.

They opened the dormitory door. The room was small—Tang Wulin had never lived anywhere this shabby in his life. A thin layer of dust covered every surface, and the air was terribly stale.

"Urgh—"

Tang Wulin and Huo Yuhao did not seem to mind, but Wang Dong nearly threw up. She had lived like a pampered young noble all her life. When had she ever stayed somewhere like this?

"This is a Shrek Academy dormitory?"

Wang Dong fled the room and stared inside in disbelief.

Tang Wulin was helpless too. He wondered if he could go back to cultivate; the environment here could not compare with the Golden Tree.

"I'll clean it."

Huo Yuhao stepped forward. This sort of work was routine for him.

"Let's do it together. As your big sister, how could I back down from this?"

Wang Dong pursed her lips, stubborn as ever. Though she kept a sour expression, she followed the other two and helped clean the room.

"Big sister, second brother, let's go eat!"

Once they finally finished cleaning, Tang Wulin rubbed his somewhat empty stomach and called to Wang Dong to get ready for a meal.

"Big sister? Second brother?"

A startled, uncertain voice sounded in his mind.