Another Year, Another Enrollment Season

Vacations always flew by. Before Qin Muchu and Xiao Wu had properly enjoyed theirs, it was already time for school to start again.

"Ugh. No matter when it happens, the start of school always saps my spirit." Standing at the gates of Shrek Academy, Qin Muchu couldn't help sighing.

Xiao Wu tilted her head and smiled, her eyes twinkling. "You've got Sister Xiao Wu keeping you company. Aren't you happy?"

The bright smile on her face swept away the last of Qin Muchu's gloom about returning to school. He ruffled her hair and chuckled. "You're getting more and more pleased with yourself. Come on, let's go see the Dean and the others."

The two walked in, laughing and chatting. As soon as they reached the training ground, they spotted Dai Mubai and the others. The group saw them too and waved from afar.

Seeing Flender and Zhao Wuji there as well, Qin Muchu walked over. "Hey, everyone! Your brilliant geniuses, Qin Muchu and Xiao Wu, are back. Did you miss me?"

Flender pushed up the glasses on his nose. "You brat, always running your mouth. Out with it—what level are you now?"

The others looked at him expectantly too.

"Ahem." Qin Muchu cleared his throat and stepped forward. "Nothing special. I've only just reached level fifty-five."

"Level fifty-five?" The moment the words left his mouth, everyone drew in a sharp breath.

"Good grief, Brother Qin! Did you grow up eating talent? How are you leveling up so fast?" Ma Hongjun stared at him in amazement.

Oscar looked just as envious. "Exactly, Brother Qin. I thought breaking through to level thirty-two the day before yesterday was impressive, but you... Sigh. How are ordinary people like us supposed to live?"

Spurred on by Qin Muchu, Dai Mubai and the other two were all at higher levels than they had been at this point in the original story. Dai Mubai had reached level thirty-eight, while Oscar had broken through level thirty ahead of schedule. His third Soul Skill was the Flying Sausage, just as before. Ma Hongjun had reached level twenty-nine and would likely break through to level thirty soon, becoming a Soul Elder.

Qin Muchu gave each of the two a punch. "Stop trying to compare yourselves with me."

"Muchu's right," Flender said from the side. "You don't need to measure yourselves against these two Little Monsters. Set your sights on ordinary geniuses instead. Otherwise, you could easily lose your footing and harm your future cultivation."

The three bowed. "Yes, Dean."

"Mm." Flender stroked his beard, his gaze passing over the five young faces before him. A gratified smile crossed his face. As expected of my students.

"All right, you're dismissed. Go back and get some rest today. Tomorrow, we'll welcome the new students. Muchu, help Teacher Li handle recruitment at the gate." Flender lifted his chin.

"Me?" Qin Muchu pointed at himself. "Doesn't Boss Dai usually handle recruitment?"

Dai Mubai patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "You and Xiao Wu are the faces of our academy now. Xiao Wu's a girl, so the job naturally falls to you. Do your best tomorrow and make us proud."

"All right, then." Qin Muchu could only agree. Then something occurred to him, and he gave Dai Mubai a meaningful look.

"What?" Uneasy under Qin Muchu's gaze, Dai Mubai touched his face without thinking.

"Heh, nothing. I just think spring's almost here."

Dai Mubai nodded in earnest. "It is. The Start of Spring is only a few days away. You and Xiao Wu had only just enrolled around this time last year. Time flies."

"Pfft." Xiao Wu, standing beside them, could no longer hold back her laughter. She knew exactly what Qin Muchu meant by spring.

Dai Mubai watched the two leave, utterly baffled. What's gotten into them? The Dean was right—genius and madness really do go hand in hand.

The next day, Qin Muchu got up early for once and followed Li Yusong to the main gate. At his request, they set out a wooden sign bearing a crookedly written admissions notice.

After setting up the notice and Li Yusong's desk, Qin Muchu sat down on a stone bench nearby, propped his chin in his hand, and lazily basked in the sun. If nothing unexpected happened, this year's only new students would be Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing.

Li Yusong sat behind the wooden desk. A wooden box for application fees rested on top of it.

He sighed worriedly. "I wonder if we'll get any decent new students this year."

Qin Muchu's languid voice drifted over. "Don't worry, Teacher Li. We'll definitely get someone you're happy with this year."

"Oh?" Li Yusong turned to look at him. They had known each other for a year, but he still couldn't quite make sense of the boy. His talent was frightening enough, and though he was only twelve, he sometimes behaved nothing like a child his age. "I hope so. If we can't find new students, the academy will be short of funds again."

The two chatted idly. Before long, people began arriving and lining up, most of them children accompanied by their parents.

"Teacher, someone from Spirit Hall said that anyone who graduates from your academy can become a noble. Is that true?" the man at the front of the line asked cautiously. Those behind him pricked up their ears to listen.

Qin Muchu was rather speechless. Granted, a level-thirty Soul Master who joined an empire could become a viscount, but the two empires had viscounts as plentiful as hairs on an ox. With no fief or other rewards, they received only a fixed stipend. How could that title compare to the standing of a Soul Master? Level-thirty Soul Masters might not seem like much in the original story, but in reality, those capable of becoming Soul Masters were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. Their status across the continent was far from low. Ordinary people who couldn't cultivate were the ones truly at the bottom.

Still, he was here to recruit students, so he had to answer the question. He cleared his throat. "Of course. One of Shrek Academy's graduation requirements is reaching level forty and becoming a Soul Ancestor. So anyone who graduates from Shrek can naturally become a noble by joining the Heaven Dou Empire."

The crowd erupted at Qin Muchu's words. Many of the students who met the entrance requirements, along with their parents, looked thrilled. Qin Muchu shook his head inwardly. Dreams were plump; reality was all skin and bones. There was no shortage of mediocre people in this world.

He said nothing more and returned to the stone bench, waiting quietly for the people he was looking for to appear.

But he had gotten ahead of himself. Only two students would ultimately enroll, yet quite a few passed the initial test, and his job was to lead them to the second stage.

They did not pass the initial test all at once, so he had to keep running back and forth. Finally fed up, Qin Muchu found a boy who had failed the second stage and gave him twenty Gold Soul Coins to run the errand in his place. Only then did he get a chance to rest.