"Whew..."
Yan Shaozhe drew a deep breath, persuading himself inwardly, As long as I can bring this boy into the Martial Soul Department, it'll all be worth it.
Besides, if he and Xiaotao end up together, he'll be one of our own. There's nothing wrong with giving him a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone ahead of time.
I'll just treat it as... an early investment!
In truth, Yan Shaozhe's heart ached so badly it was almost bleeding.
To the stingy, tightfisted Yan Shaozhe, Gu Yunxiao's "kitten's yawn" had undoubtedly landed a critical hit with every word, each sentence piercing his heart.
"Yunxiao, since you've agreed, and there aren't any classes in the Soul Tool Department right now, come with me to the Martial Soul Department."
Afraid Gu Yunxiao would refuse again, Yan Shaozhe hurriedly added, "Not for class. Just to meet your teacher and classmates."
Gu Yunxiao nodded and casually asked, "Which class am I going to?"
"Freshman..." Yan Shaozhe had been about to answer, but instead asked, "Is there a particular class you'd like to join, Yunxiao? As dean, I can arrange it."
"What classes are there? Let me take a look."
Gu Yunxiao held out his hand, his expression calm.
Yan Shaozhe was utterly speechless inside, but still took a freshman class assignment chart for the Martial Soul Department out of his storage ring.
Gu Yunxiao accepted the chart and quickly scanned it.
Finally, his gaze stopped on the entry labeled "Freshman Class One, homeroom teacher: Zhou Yi."
A faint gleam flickered in Gu Yunxiao's eyes as he considered, I could certainly stir up some trouble right under this old woman's nose.
With his temperament, he was bound to clash with Zhou Yi's teaching methods. It would be the perfect opportunity to knock the old woman off her perch.
There was no other reason. He simply couldn't stand her.
He had already transmigrated. Focusing only on getting stronger would be rather dull, so he was definitely going to stir things up and have some fun.
Having transmigrated into this world, he had clear goals.
First came growing stronger, second came romance, and third came making trouble.
The target for growing stronger was himself.
The targets for romance were beauties.
The targets for making trouble were enemies.
"Dean, I'll join Freshman Class One." Gu Yunxiao handed the chart back.
"Class One..."
Yan Shaozhe immediately thought of Zhou Yi, who was known as the "monster teacher." Given Gu Yunxiao's temperament, the two might well clash.
If that happened, things would be rather difficult to resolve.
Gu Yunxiao's status was too distinguished for him to be offended.
Zhou Yi's husband, Fan Yu, was an important figure in the Soul Tool Department, and he couldn't be lightly offended either.
Forget it. I'll warn Zhou Yi beforehand.
After giving it some thought, Yan Shaozhe looked at Gu Yunxiao and nodded with a smile. "Certainly. I'll take you over now to meet Class One's teacher and students."
"Mm."
Gu Yunxiao nodded, went downstairs, and headed toward the Martial Soul Department's teaching building.
Walking behind him, Yan Shaozhe suddenly felt something was off. He hurried past Gu Yunxiao in a few quick strides to lead the way.
The Martial Soul Department's teaching building was very close to the Soul Tool Department's, and Freshman Class One happened to be running laps on the field.
Thus, Gu Yunxiao and Yan Shaozhe didn't have to walk far before arriving.
Their arrival also caught quite a few students' attention.
Seeing Yan Shaozhe, Zhou Yi immediately approached and greeted him. "Dean Yan."
Yan Shaozhe nodded slightly.
Zhou Yi then turned her gaze to Gu Yunxiao beside him.
Since her husband was Fan Yu, she had heard about Gu Yunxiao and even knew a little of what had been discussed at the Sea God Pavilion Meeting.
The academy intended to grant Gu Yunxiao dual student status in the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Tool Department.
Yan Shaozhe's arrival now clearly meant he intended to place Gu Yunxiao in Class One.
This was... a good thing!
Having a student like Gu Yunxiao enter her teaching career would undoubtedly be a tremendous help to her future.
"This is Gu Yunxiao. You should already know of him."
"From now on, Gu Yunxiao will study in Freshman Class One, but his schedule will be flexible. He won't necessarily attend every day."
"There's no need to question him about it. This is a special privilege granted by the academy."
Yan Shaozhe's greatest concern was that Zhou Yi would use Gu Yunxiao's tardiness or absences as an excuse to cause trouble.
By then, it would be too late.
He had to administer a preventive dose beforehand.
Little did he know that Zhou Yi understood it to mean Gu Yunxiao had to study in both departments, leaving him very little time.
That, she could understand.
"Understood."
Zhou Yi nodded and looked at Gu Yunxiao. "Yunxiao, welcome to Freshman Class One."
Gu Yunxiao nodded slightly, his gaze settling on the freshmen running laps not far away.
Apart from Freshman Class One, quite a few other classes had come down one after another and joined the large crowd running laps.
"This is a little test for the incoming freshmen."
"Running laps exercises their bodies and expends their stamina, allowing us to assess each student's physical condition and adjust the intensity of their subsequent lessons accordingly."
"Would you like to give it a try, Yunxiao?"
Yan Shaozhe smiled faintly as he explained to Gu Yunxiao.
Gu Yunxiao, however, wore an odd expression. He remembered that Zhou Yi's "lap running" was no "assessment," but outright torment.
Beside them, Zhou Yi's expression also grew somewhat unnatural.
The academy's original intention was indeed just as Yan Shaozhe had described, but her philosophy and methods were completely different.
"No. It wouldn't do anything for me."
Gu Yunxiao shook his head and remarked, seemingly casually, "If the laps are tailored to each student's physical condition, shouldn't some of them be about done?"
"From what I can see, their bodies have already reached their limits. If they keep running, they could damage their knees and leave themselves with problems down the road."
As his words fell, silence followed.
Beside him, Zhou Yi's expression shifted slightly, and a trace of displeasure toward Gu Yunxiao rose within her.
It was only because she didn't know the full contents of the Sea God Pavilion Meeting. Otherwise, she would have had to put Gu Yunxiao on a pedestal and worship him like an ancestor.
"Hmm?"
Yan Shaozhe also noticed the problem Gu Yunxiao had pointed out.
Quite a few freshmen from Class One had indeed reached their limits, yet they still hadn't stopped. They even looked nervous and frightened.
"Teacher Zhou Yi."
Yan Shaozhe glanced at Zhou Yi, his eyes flickering and his expression laden with meaning.
He had heard plenty of rumors about Zhou Yi and immediately guessed what was happening.
"Dean, I'm doing this to help them."
"Only by constantly breaking past their limits can they have a better future."
Zhou Yi hurried to explain.
"That's rather different from what the elders in my family told me."
Gu Yunxiao interjected and explained, "At this age, their bodies are in a critical stage of growth. An appropriate amount of exercise and physical activity is perfectly fine."
"Squeezing them to their limits will naturally produce striking results, but it borrows against their future rather than giving them greater potential."
The more Gu Yunxiao spoke, the worse Zhou Yi's expression became, and the more intensely her displeasure grew.
What right did some brat with a little talent have to question her teaching methods?
Beside her, Yan Shaozhe's expression grew increasingly grim.
It wasn't because of Zhou Yi's teaching methods, but because Gu Yunxiao had happened to witness them.
He had been hoping Gu Yunxiao would form a favorable impression of the Martial Soul Department, making it easier to win him over later.
Instead, he had been given a bad impression right from the start.
"Zhou Yi, that's enough. Have them stop and rest. The children's health comes first." Yan Shaozhe glanced at her.
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