I vote for Huo Yuhao! He's the one everyone wants!

Huo Yuhao had won?!

Not only the surrounding students, but even Mu Jin had disbelief written in his eyes.

They had expected this fight to be a complete rout, but they had never imagined that instead of Wu Feng crushing Huo Yuhao, Huo Yuhao would obliterate Wu Feng in seconds.

In less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, with fewer than ten exchanges between them, Huo Yuhao had forced Wu Feng to surrender.

This was a fucking One-Ring Soul Master? You must be a spy who infiltrated their ranks!

Still, anyone with a discerning eye could see that although Wu Feng's close-combat skills fell short of Huo Yuhao's, she had actually lost because his martial soul countered hers.

But even Mu Jin could not understand it. Wu Feng's martial soul was the top-tier Red Dragon. How could Huo Yuhao's martial soul suppress it to such an extent?

What could suppress a top-tier martial soul? Could it be a divine martial soul?!

Hearing Wu Feng surrender, Huo Yuhao stopped absorbing the Red Dragon flames from her body and let go of her at once.

But Wu Feng had lost so much soul power that she could no longer stand. Her long, firm legs buckled, and she fell straight onto her backside.

Ning Tian hurried over and crouched down to support Wu Feng, casting Huo Yuhao a reproachful glance with her beautiful eyes. Meanwhile, the other male students in the class gave him thumbs-ups for being such an utterly oblivious straight guy.

Had they been in his place, with a beauty like Wu Feng collapsing against them, they would never have had the heart to let go. They would certainly have displayed their gentlemanly manners.

Huo Yuhao's verdict on that kind of thinking was that Boiling Goat ranked below even a dog.

In the distance, the students of Freshman Class One were suffering under the merciless exploitation of that deranged old spinster, Zhou Yi, running frantic laps around Shrek Academy's plaza. Yet Zhou Yi's gaze was not on her students, but on the sparring match that had just taken place in Class Nine.

"That damned Huo Yuhao! He was playing the pig to devour the tiger! If he's that strong, why didn't he dare give Wang Dong a beating? Instead, he dragged me into this mess!" Zhou Yi's eyes burned with fury.

Once this lesson ended, she would have to report to the academic affairs office to receive Du Weilun's punishment. If Du Weilun then reported the incident to Yan Shaozhe, dean of the Martial Soul Department, she would face an even harsher penalty.

"Just you wait. No matter how scheming you are, you're still only a student. Once I have my hands free, I'll make sure you slink out of Shrek Academy with your tail between your legs!"

After the match ended, Mu Jin led the students of Freshman Class Nine back to their classroom. This time, however, he erased the words "class monitor" from the blackboard and wrote "Huo Yuhao" in their place.

"You all saw that match. Although Huo Yuhao's cultivation was lower than Wu Feng's, he made full use of his advantages and overcame a stronger opponent. You should learn from him." Mu Jin glanced at the thoroughly dejected Wu Feng and smiled gently. "But victory and defeat are commonplace. There's no need to blame yourself over a temporary setback. Only by finding your weaknesses and overcoming them can you grow stronger."

Ning Tian gently stroked Wu Feng's back and gave Mu Jin a grateful look.

Mu Jin smiled and nodded at Ning Tian, then tapped Huo Yuhao's name on the blackboard.

"Now, I'll be the first to nominate Huo Yuhao as the class monitor of Freshman Class Nine. Who agrees, and who objects?"

The corner of Huo Yuhao's mouth twitched. Mu Jin's last line really made him want to crack a joke, but he quietly continued pretending to be invisible.

Becoming class monitor would bring him neither benefits nor drawbacks. Still, since Mu Jin had taken the initiative to welcome him, he was willing to return the peach with a plum and help train these youngsters into powerful soul masters. At the very least, he could keep too many of them from being eliminated in the freshman assessment.

The students in the classroom exchanged looks, but all remained silent. Originally, they had looked down on this transfer student with a mere rank-eleven soul power. Now that Huo Yuhao had revealed his formidable strength, however, they had no choice but to take notice.

With rank-twenty-three soul power and the top-tier fire-attribute beast martial soul, Red Dragon, Wu Feng was theoretically the strongest fighter in Class Nine.

Although Ning Tian's soul power was as high as rank twenty-nine, only one step away from becoming a Soul Elder, she was still a support-type soul master and had no direct combat ability.

Only one or two people in Class Nine could match Wu Feng's fighting strength. Yet even they had no confidence in fighting Huo Yuhao after witnessing his terrifying close-combat skills.

"I support Huo Yuhao becoming Class Nine's monitor!"

Suddenly, a clear, melodious voice rang out from the front row. Mu Jin lowered his gaze slightly and was surprised to discover that the speaker was Ning Tian.

"Young sect master, what are you..." Wu Feng froze at those words, staring in bewilderment at Ning Tian beside her.

"Feng, don't let anger cloud your judgment. You lost because your abilities fell short. There's no reason to blame heaven and everyone else. If you want to wash away the shame of defeat, you need to work hard yourself."

"We came to study at Shrek Academy for more than just advancing our cultivation and increasing our strength. Ten thousand years have passed, and the glory of the Upper Three Sects has dimmed. Our Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect must gain new helping hands to keep our sect's strength from declining any further and allow it to rise again."

"Although Huo Yuhao is still weak now, I can see that he possesses tremendous potential. If we show him some goodwill, perhaps once he grows strong, the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect will receive some help from him. Why wouldn't we do it?"

"Also, I've told you many times not to call me young sect master at the academy. We're sisters."

Wu Feng was momentarily stunned. She had never expected Ning Tian to have considered so much. Without giving it much more thought, she obediently murmured her assent, then lay her head on her desk and said no more.

With Ning Tian taking the lead, and already won over by the formidable strength Huo Yuhao had displayed earlier, the students of Class Nine began shouting their support.

"I support Huo Yuhao as class monitor!"

"The best fighter should be class monitor in the first place! I support Huo Yuhao!"

"I vote for Huo Yuhao! He's the one everyone wants!"

"Very good." Mu Jin smiled and nodded. "In that case, I hereby announce that from this moment on, Huo Yuhao is the class monitor of Freshman Class Nine. However, this position is subject to change. Anyone capable of defeating him can take his place as class monitor. Do you all understand?"

"Understood!" the students of Class Nine answered.

Mu Jin's approach did not nail Huo Yuhao permanently to the position of class monitor. Instead, it gave the other students hope of becoming class monitor themselves.

For Huo Yuhao, meanwhile, the other students' desire for his position would serve as a spur. He would have to cultivate tirelessly to earn their unanimous respect.

"Good! Next comes the first lesson you'll study here at Shrek Academy."

Mu Jin turned around and wrote two large words on the blackboard.

Attack! Defense!

"Huo Yuhao, as class monitor, let me test you. What is your understanding of a soul master's system of attack and defense?"