Flender came strolling over with a phony smile on his face.
Yu Xiaogang followed behind him. Both wore smiles, each sleazier than the other.
"Geniuses! True geniuses!" Flender clapped his hands. "Teacher Li, both of your outstanding disciples are monsters.
"Ah, we at Shrek Academy just love monster students!"
He walked to the center of the grounds and pressed both hands downward.
"Since you've finished all the procedures, let's not waste time. We'll go straight to the final test!"
"For the final test, Zhao Wuji, Teacher Zhao, will conduct a practical combat assessment."
As soon as he finished speaking, Dai Mubai's expression changed.
He rushed over in a few strides and stood before Flender. "Headmaster! Didn't we agree that I would be the examiner for the final test? I've spent a whole month preparing for this!"
Flender smiled amiably. "Mubai, of course I know how strong you are, but this time is different.
"These two young students have Soul Power Levels every bit as high as yours. You might not find it easy to beat them..."
"I don't care!" Dai Mubai interrupted him. "My martial soul is no worse than theirs, and I have my third soul skill, White Tiger Vajra Transformation, to back me up!
"Besides, having similar strength is even better. They'd make perfect opponents for honing my combat experience!"
The more he spoke, the more agitated he became, his ponytail swishing in the wind.
Flender's smile faded a fraction, then quickly returned. "Ah, that's not how you should look at it..."
"But I'm still the examiner! If you wanted to replace me with Teacher Zhao, you should at least have told me beforehand!"
"This is the academy's decision."
"I don't agree!"
The two stood at an impasse, Dai Mubai puffing out his cheeks in displeasure.
Li Hanqiu watched from the side for a while, then suddenly spoke:
"Let Teacher Zhao be the examiner."
Everyone looked toward him.
He smiled. "Let Teacher Zhao do it. This will be a good chance for my two disciples to see what real combat is."
Dai Mubai whipped his head around in disbelief. "What do you mean? Are you looking down on me?"
"If that's how you want to take it, there's nothing I can do." Li Hanqiu glanced at him. "If you want to practice your combat skills, you can come to me privately. I can teach-"
Before Li Hanqiu could finish, Dai Mubai snorted. His lips curled, his expression brimming with disdain and disgust.
"Oh, so you've set your sights on me! I'll never agree to it. You pervert, don't even dream of getting your way!"
Li Hanqiu blinked, started to speak, then stopped. In the end, all he could manage was a helpless laugh.
He wasn't angry, though. He wasn't about to take a youngster's words to heart.
Flender had already settled the matter with a chuckle. "Teacher Li is the sensible one. Teacher Zhao, please!"
Zhao Wuji had been standing at the edge of the grounds all along. Arms folded, he walked toward the center, one step at a time.
Meanwhile, among the crowd to the north.
Zhu Zhuqing slowly shifted her gaze, though her attention remained on Dai Mubai.
That blond youngster's anxious, stubborn expression when he had rushed forward to argue seemed like something she had seen before.
Zhu Zhuqing gazed at Dai Mubai, something stirring in her heart. A sense of familiarity welled up within her, as though he were an old acquaintance.
But I clearly don't know him.
A faint trace of bewilderment surfaced in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes.
"Miss, what's wrong? Do you need this young lady's help?" Ning Rongrong rested an arm against a tree trunk, leaning sideways as she tilted her head to look at her.
"Nothing." Zhu Zhuqing lowered her eyes.
When she looked up again, the blond figure was already mostly hidden behind the spectators.
Elsewhere, Zhao Wuji grinned, sweeping his gaze over Tang San, then Xiao Wu.
Finally, his gaze lingered on Li Hanqiu for an extra moment, its meaning unclear.
"All four of you, come at me together."
Zhao Wuji stood in the middle of the grounds with his hands on his hips.
He gave a light stamp, and the dirt clearing shook with a thud, a ring of fine dust spreading from his feet.
Zhao Wuji extended a finger, pointing at Tang San and Xiao Wu, then toward the north. "And you two."
Four gazes turned northward at once.
Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing slowly walked out of the crowd.
Xiao Wu blinked. "Four? Isn't it just me and Little San?"
Flender walked over with a chuckle and spread his arms. "These two students arrived half an incense stick before you did. They've already passed the first two tests.
"You can join up and take the final combat assessment together."
Tang San said nothing. A subtle gleam appeared in his eyes as he carefully studied Ning Rongrong's and Zhu Zhuqing's faces and figures.
They really are beautiful and alluring. No wonder Teacher was sneaking looks at them...
Ning Rongrong stepped in front of Zhu Zhuqing and lifted her little face.
She brushed aside the pink hair over her forehead, her voice light but tinged with undisguised pride.
"Let me introduce myself first. My name is Ning Rongrong, a level twenty-seven Support System Soul Master. My martial soul is the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda."
When she said "Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda," her chin unconsciously rose a little higher, and she puffed out her chest slightly.
Some of the knowledgeable Soul Masters who had come to enroll were already murmuring, "The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect? Could she be the daughter of Ning Fengzhi, the current sect master?"
Hearing them, Ning Rongrong's lips curled upward even further.
"Oh, so you're a little princess." Quick-tongued as ever, Xiao Wu deliberately cupped her hands in an exaggerated salute. "My name is Xiao Wu, a level thirty-three Power Attack System Soul Master. My martial soul is the Soft Bone Rabbit."
Tang San introduced himself as well. "Tang San, a level thirty-five Control System Soul Master. My martial soul is Blue Silver Grass."
At the words "Blue Silver Grass," Ning Rongrong frowned slightly and gave Tang San an almost imperceptible glance.
He's reached level thirty-five at his age, but his martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, the stuff growing by every roadside?
Doubts stirred in her mind, but she kept them to herself.
Then it was Zhu Zhuqing's turn.
She stood where she was, her expression unmoving, her voice cool and terse.
"Zhu Zhuqing, a level twenty-eight Agility Attack System Soul Master. My martial soul is the Hell Spirit Cat."
"A cat..." Xiao Wu's eyes lit up. "Can you let me see?"
Zhu Zhuqing offered no reply, but her body answered honestly enough.
Her voice rang clear, as pure as the tinkling of flowing water. "Hell Spirit Cat, possess!"
Faint, inky soul power rippled outward around Zhu Zhuqing, and two yellow rings slowly rose.
At the same time, a pair of fluffy black cat ears quietly appeared atop the girl's head, while a long, sleek cat tail unfurled behind her, swaying gently.
"Wow, you're so pretty." Xiao Wu nearly climbed onto Zhu Zhuqing, leaning close to inspect the lovely vertical pupils in her eyes.
Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up too. She instinctively wanted to step forward for a closer look, but suddenly remembered something and hastily stopped.
Clearly, the pride ingrained in her bones would not allow her to reveal even a hint of interest.
"I-it's only so-so. It's still a little inferior to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda." Ning Rongrong folded her arms over her chest, raised her chin slightly, and gave a soft snort.
Tang San hadn't spared a glance for Zhu Zhuqing. He had been staring intently at Li Hanqiu all along.
When he saw that Li Hanqiu's gaze lingered on Zhu Zhuqing for only a few seconds before moving away, Tang San breathed a sigh of relief.
At that moment, however, someone trembled all over. It was Dai Mubai.
He stood beneath the crooked tree, his arms still folded, sulking over being unable to fight, his face long.
At the words "Hell Spirit Cat," he froze as though nailed to the spot.
He abruptly turned his head, pushed aside the two people in front of him, and looked at the black-haired girl.
The Hell Spirit Cat. Could she be...
Dai Mubai's breathing quickened for a couple of beats before he forcibly steadied it.
Then, inwardly, he rejected the hope that had just kindled:
No, impossible. She couldn't be Little Qing.
Little Qing was dead. She had died that year. He had seen it with his own eyes...
Dai Mubai slowly turned his face away, his gaze drifting toward the distant treetops. His throat bobbed, but in the end, he said nothing.
Before you continue