"All right, bringing me this far is enough. You may go."
Qin Xiao ignored Dai Mubai, who stood frozen like a wooden chicken. He waved a hand with his back to Dai Mubai and walked toward the two-story building before him.
"I'll take my leave."
At his words, Dai Mubai snapped awake as if from a dream. Not daring to show the slightest negligence, he bowed and backed away.
The little courtyard was simply furnished.
There was a gazebo, a round table, a few ordinary flowers and plants, and a rocking chair woven from bamboo and rattan.
Qin Xiao walked straight to the rocking chair and lay down.
He had not forgotten the system's reminder to get himself into the right state.
"You've been spying on me for quite a while. Aren't you going to come out and meet me?"
He gently closed his eyes and spoke calmly.
But no one answered.
"You're a Titled Douluo, yet you don't even have the courage to come out and meet me?"
Qin Xiao spoke again.
He was not making accusations out of thin air.
In fact, ever since he had demonstrated his strength at the academy gates, he had felt someone watching him. It had even given him a faint sense of danger.
At this particular time, here at Shrek Academy, Qin Xiao could have figured out with his toes that Tang Hao had to be the one spying on him.
Especially after Dai Mubai left, that feeling of being watched had grown stronger. He no longer wanted to pretend he knew nothing and laid his cards on the table.
After all, he had no twisted tastes. Having a pair of eyes watching him from the shadows was deeply uncomfortable.
Yet...
Still, no one answered him, and Qin Xiao felt that sense of being watched suddenly disappear.
"Looks like Tang Hao left?"
"Heh, he probably couldn't gauge my true strength and didn't dare attack me outright. The Clear Sky Douluo is nothing more than this."
Qin Xiao laughed.
Actually, he could more or less guess why Tang Hao was spying on him.
It was simply because Qin Xiao's presence might pose a threat to Tang San and Xiao Wu.
"Dean, Zhao Wuji, the courtyard where Your Holiness the Thunder Emperor is staying is just ahead. Is there anything we should watch out for?"
Just then, Qin Xiao heard footsteps and a jumble of voices.
He recognized the speaker as Li Yusong, who had overseen the first entrance examination at Shrek Academy's gates.
Immediately afterward, another voice rang out. "Follow my lead once we're inside. Those who know how to speak should keep it brief, and those who don't should keep their mouths shut altogether. Remember, do not upset him."
"Yes."
"Don't worry, boss."
Qin Xiao could tell that the visitors were probably Li Yusong, Flender, and the other teachers at Shrek Academy.
Before long, the disorderly footsteps stopped outside the gate.
"Your Holiness, Li Yusong requests an audience."
"Flender, dean of Shrek Academy, requests an audience."
"Shao Xin requests an audience."
"Lu Qibin requests an audience."
The deeply respectful voices outside the courtyard reached Qin Xiao's ears.
The dean and teachers personally came to pay their respects on my very first day as a new student. I must be one of a kind, huh? Qin Xiao smiled self-mockingly.
If he had not been saddled with a system that seemed to be missing a few screws, he would never have been bored enough to come here.
"Come in."
Qin Xiao's voice carried outside. At the same time, he stood up and looked at the people entering the courtyard. That was the bare minimum of respect.
Soon, all four visitors entered Qin Xiao's courtyard.
Qin Xiao had already met Li Yusong, so he gave him only a glance before looking at the next man.
Beside Li Yusong stood Flender, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, his face full of shrewdness.
Next came the somewhat plump food-type Soul Master, Shao Xin. The last was an old man with snow-white hair and beard: Lu Qibin, whose martial soul was Star Luo Chess.
"Dean Flender, if you need anything, just send someone to let me know. There's no need to come with such a grand entourage. After all, I'm halfway to being a Shrek student now."
Qin Xiao wore a smile as soothing as a spring breeze.
What merit or ability do I have to deserve a personal visit from a Titled Douluo?
Flender smiled bitterly inwardly. "Your Holiness, I'll get straight to the point. The teachers and I came to ask whether there is anything we can help you with."
No one visited a temple without a reason. Flender felt that having such a mighty god arrive at his little shrine was anything but normal.
"Nothing in particular. You can think of it as..."
"Having fun."
After thinking it over, Qin Xiao gave that answer.
"Having fun?"
A bitter smile immediately appeared on Flender's face.
It may be nothing to you, and you make it sound so easy, but we're under enormous pressure here!
Couldn't you have fun somewhere else?
Flender had grievances he could not voice.
Yet...
Qin Xiao saw right through his thoughts. "Dean Flender, you needn't worry too much about me. You can simply act as though I'm not here. If I need anything, I'll come find you."
He understood Flender's predicament as well and offered those words of reassurance.
"Well, all right."
"In that case, we won't disturb your rest any longer, Your Eminence."
For better or worse, Flender had at least gotten a promise from Qin Xiao.
At least he now knew how to coexist with Qin Xiao, which was a worthwhile gain.
He quit while he was ahead and took his leave with Li Yusong and the others.
After Flender and the others left, Qin Xiao lay back down in the rocking chair. Without realizing it, he actually fell asleep.
In the blink of an eye, it was late at night.
[Ding! The host has been detected to be in excellent mental condition and may accept a mission.]
In his sleep, Qin Xiao was suddenly startled awake by the system's voice.
Damn it!
You damned system, you're interrupting my sweet dreams!
Do you know what a terrible sin you've committed?
Qin Xiao was extremely displeased by the system's sudden appearance.
He could not even remember the last time he had slept so soundly.
Interrupting someone's sweet dreams was a heinous crime.
However, the system ignored Qin Xiao entirely and issued a mission directly.
[Ding! A new mission has been issued.] [Beginner guidance (3): Rookie Soul Master, your martial soul is weak, and your aptitude for cultivation is poor. You barely managed to enter Shrek Academy, so you must especially cherish this hard-won opportunity...]
Is it talking about me?
Qin Xiao kept feeling that the person the system described was someone else entirely.
You're calling the Thunder Emperor martial soul, one of the Ten Fiends, weak?
I became a Titled Douluo at eighteen, and you're saying my aptitude is poor?
If I went out and described myself that way, those so-called geniuses would probably be so ashamed they'd find a block of tofu to bash themselves to death against...
The only thing Qin Xiao thought he had barely managed was holding back enough not to strike Zhao Wuji dead...
But the system paid him no mind.
[Rookie, you must understand that a slow bird needs to take flight first, and diligence can make up for shortcomings. Only by shedding more sweat than others can you avoid being left far behind by the academy's other students. Mission requirement: Train diligently from late at night until dawn for seven consecutive days. Mission reward: Soul power level +1.]
Hmm?
Seeing the system's reward, Qin Xiao's eyes lit up.
Although the system had spouted plenty of bullshit that made it seem seriously defective, the reward was quite good.
"Even if I devour and refine lightning, converting it into soul power to improve my cultivation, gaining a single level of soul power still takes months or even longer. This reward of one soul power level will save me quite a bit of time."
Qin Xiao's eyes lit up, and his body honestly followed his desires as he walked out of the courtyard.
Since the system had told him to train hard, he could not simply go through the motions.
He needed to find somewhere to draw down lightning and use it for Thunder Tempering.
Only that would deserve to be called hard training.
Before you continue