"What?"
Tang San failed to process it for a moment, but soon remembered what he had said not long ago.
Combined with the scene just now, some emotion made Tang San's face flush instantly, and his long-festering killing intent made him blurt out.
"That doesn't count! That doesn't count at all! You didn't rely on yourself! You relied on that Soul Beast!"
"Third Brother!"
Behind Tang San, Xiao Wu was startled and immediately tugged hard on the hem of his clothes.
At that moment, Tang San came back to his senses from his extreme emotions and realized what he had just done.
Tang San wanted to say something, but saw a golden ripple suddenly spread through the air in front of that blond little boy, who already had a reason to die.
An overwhelming sense of danger rang alarm bells deep in Tang San's heart, leaving only one thought in his mind.
Run. If he didn't run, he might very well die here!
Before he could push off with his feet, Tang San thought of Xiao Wu!
Xiao Wu was already trembling so badly that she couldn't move. After a moment of inner struggle, Tang San turned and held her, putting his back to Jing Shanshan, ready to take Jing Shanshan's coming attack with his back!
Tang San bet that the blond child wouldn't harbor murderous intent toward someone he had only just met!
Several different kinds of swords shot out of the golden ripple in succession. Ning Rongrong and the others heard a piercing whistle through the air, followed by Tang San's muffled groans of pain!
"Brother!"
The swords pierced different parts of Tang San's body. They appeared to have struck accurately and deeply, yet avoided his vital spots.
The ripple slowly closed. The swords remained embedded in Tang San for a breath, then turned into specks of starlight, dispersing into the air in wisps.
Lu Qibin still held his hand out.
The conflict between Tang San and Jing Shanshan had happened too quickly. By the time he realized something might go wrong and stepped in to stop them, Jing Shanshan had already finished his attack.
But how was he supposed to handle this!
How had the relationship between these two Little Monsters deteriorated to this point...
Forget it, forget it. This was something for that old money-grubbing dean to worry about!
With that thought, Lu Qibin immediately went over to examine Tang San's injuries and told Dai Mubai to fetch Oscar!
Jing Shanshan looked at Tang San, who was covered in blood and looked utterly miserable, and his brows furrowed imperceptibly.
After a long while, Jing Shanshan's taut muscles slowly relaxed. He looked around, then, seeing nothing, turned to leave, leaving a sentence behind.
"Tang San, this is your punishment for failing to show the respect due when facing a king."
Seeing that Jing Shanshan was about to leave, Lu Qibin felt both startled and confused, and hurriedly shouted.
"Hey, golden child! You passed the assessment! Where are you going?"
Jing Shanshan's steps paused briefly before he continued walking.
Lu Qibin's confusion instantly rose several levels. Soon, something occurred to him. After confirming that Tang San was merely somewhat weak and his life wasn't in danger, he immediately stood and ran after Jing Shanshan, calling as he went.
"King, could you tell me where you're going?"
Lu Qibin had met plenty of people, and instantly realized that someone as extremely self-centered as Jing Shanshan probably wouldn't pay him any attention unless he went along with Jing Shanshan's way of thinking!
Just as Lu Qibin had expected, Jing Shanshan stopped this time.
"This king will stress just one point. From beginning to end, this king never said he wanted to join Shrek Academy. This king merely came to see what the disciple of this so-called theoretical Grandmaster was capable of."
Having said this without even turning his head, Jing Shanshan continued to leave.
"What!"
How had Lu Qibin never heard anything about this? Why hadn't that fellow Li Yusong mentioned it!
Lu Qibin had no time to dwell on it and spoke up for one last attempt.
"But, King, not a single academy around here is more capable than our Shrek Academy! What other academy has two Soul Saints presiding over it! Here, you're sure to receive the best resources and education!"
Jing Shanshan's steps gradually slowed. He slowly turned his head and glanced at Lu Qibin, who stood a few steps away.
"Compared with Spirit Hall Academy, it's nothing special!"
Jing Shanshan's words effectively blocked every further attempt Lu Qibin might have made to persuade him.
Spirit Hall Academy-which academy on this continent could compare with Spirit Hall Academy!
After all, Spirit Hall Academy had Spirit Hall directly behind it!
What was Spirit Hall?
Spirit Hall could be called a power that practically monopolized the profession of Soul Master!
When it came to understanding Soul Masters, no power understood them better than Spirit Hall!
Within Spirit Hall, most Soul Masters could consult past records of Soul Masters with the same Martial Soul to identify possible latent problems in advance, saving themselves many detours!
Problems with cultivation were greatly reduced! Naturally, cultivation speed greatly increased!
Not to mention that Spirit Hall had existed longer than even the two great empires, with all the resources and reserves accumulated over that vast span of time!
Moreover, Spirit Hall helped people awaken their Martial Souls free of charge every year. How many talented students had it recruited that way!
It could be said that the teachers at Spirit Hall Academy had definitely taught no small number of students! Their teaching experience was absolutely beyond comparison with people at Shrek Academy, who had barely taught any students!
Shrek Academy couldn't compare with Spirit Hall Academy in any respect!
"Ah!"
Since Jing Shanshan had gone that far, Lu Qibin no longer stopped him.
They had recruited enough Little Monsters this year anyway. Losing one Little Monster with a somewhat strange Martial Soul wouldn't make much difference.
Ah, rather, they were losing one Little Monster who had relied on his family's influence to subdue a powerful Soul Beast. So be it!
Thinking this, Lu Qibin looked toward Tang San and the others. Just as he was about to say something, he caught sight of the young miss, Ning Rongrong!
Ning Rongrong noticed Lu Qibin's gaze. Only then did she shift her eyes from the direction where Jing Shanshan had disappeared to Lu Qibin, looking thoughtful!
A faint smile curved her lips, making her look exceptionally adorable, and she waved at Lu Qibin.
"Such a wealth of experiences-these are things I'd never get to experience at home. I'm very happy."
Before Lu Qibin could speak, Ning Rongrong continued.
"That blond child was quite right. Shrek Academy is pretty ordinary. I'm from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. With talent like mine, I don't have to worry about finding a school willing to admit me, and I have absolutely no need to stay at an academy in this little place."
With that, Ning Rongrong skipped off in the direction away from Shrek Academy.
Lu Qibin...
There was nothing he could do. He could only watch Ning Rongrong, whom he had thought highly of, leave.
As for whether he should stop someone from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?
That would be nothing short of courting death!
What on earth was all this! He kept feeling that things had veered completely off their original course!
Lu Qibin scratched his head in frustration and subconsciously looked toward the other Little Monsters enrolling this year.
Tang San and Xiao Wu were fine. They showed no intention of expressing an opinion, so they probably didn't want to leave Shrek Academy.
But when his gaze fell on Zhu Zhuqing, his heart immediately sank!
At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing looked just like Ning Rongrong had, lost in thought!
Wasn't this telling him, Lu Qibin, that Zhu Zhuqing was weighing the pros and cons of staying at Shrek Academy!