After spending a full half month in Shrek City, Xu Zhengyang had gained a preliminary understanding of Shrek Academy. Though the information came in all shapes and sizes, he had learned its principles and methods for training students. In the end, it all boiled down to one sentence: grow stronger through actual combat, and grow stronger between life and death.
There was no concern for student safety here. Every year saw an extremely high elimination rate and even a substantial death rate, yet young students still flocked to it like ducks to water.
The sheer number of geniuses, in particular, was staggering. The students admitted each year were under twelve, yet almost every year, one or even several Soul Elders appeared among them-and Soul Elders with considerable combat ability at that.
It could be said that at Shrek Academy, Soul Power was the most basic of foundations. Martial Soul quality and individual combat ability were the true keys.
This was completely different from the situation on the Sun Moon Continent. Its Soul Master academies cared little about the type or quality of Martial Souls, concerning themselves only with Innate Soul Power levels and the speed of a Soul Master's cultivation. They attached very little importance to actual combat, and it could even be said that a lack of combat ability was widespread.
It was not that Xu Zhengyang had never considered entering Shrek Academy, but it was practically impossible.
Moreover, with Shrek Academy's information network spread across the entire Douluo Continent, it was not as though they could not uncover his origins. In particular, he was now eleven years old with rank twenty-six Soul Power. Even at Shrek Academy, he would count as a genius and would certainly attract plenty of attention. If they discovered that he came from the Sun Moon Empire and the Xu Clan, given the opposing sides' positions and hatred, they would absolutely not let him off.
If he pretended to be an orphan like Huo Yuhao, he might be able to enter Shrek Academy, but that also carried enormous risks. Studying at Shrek Academy required a recommendation, and the person providing it could not be of low standing.
There was another point: before leaving home to gain experience, he had already agreed with his father that he had to return before turning twelve. In other words, he could spend at most a year gaining experience outside.
Besides learning about Shrek Academy, he had another, more important purpose in coming to Shrek City: he wanted to find out exactly what era he was in and whether he lived in the same era as those people from the original novel.
Through what he had learned recently, he already had a rough answer to that question. He should be living in the era of the Peerless Tang Sect.
Although he had heard no news about Shrek Academy's students, its dean's name had long resounded throughout the world. The current dean was none other than Yan Shaozhe.
Xu Zhengyang knew perfectly well that Yan Shaozhe was the dean of Shrek's Martial Soul Department, yet Shrek Academy's Soul Tool Department was little known. As for Mu En and Xuan Zi, they were figures akin to legends, with no news of them circulating among ordinary people.
Xu Zhengyang had originally been ready to give up, but an utterly melodramatic scene suddenly unfolded that day, making him understand his situation in an instant.
That evening, Xu Zhengyang was eating at a restaurant in Shrek City. This was also when the most students were around, as many came out at this hour to eat, or simply to walk around and take a break.
Just then, several students in school uniforms entered the restaurant. They were all girls and looked very lovely, especially the one in the middle. She appeared twelve or thirteen, with a slender, well-proportioned figure. Her long golden hair fell behind her head in large waves, her skin surpassed snow, and her beauty defied description.
Even Xu Zhengyang, who ordinarily paid little attention to girls, could not help staring. He kept feeling that she looked familiar, as though he had seen her somewhere before.
Unfortunately, even after searching through all his memories, he seemed never to have seen such a beautiful woman in this life. The sorrow in her eyes and brows, in particular, made her so lovely and vulnerable that even he could not help feeling tenderness toward her.
It was the restaurant's busiest hour, and nearly every seat was occupied. Only one empty table remained beside Xu Zhengyang.
Xu Zhengyang had always preferred coming and going alone, and he knew no one in Shrek City. He was eating by himself at a table covered in food. Because of his long-term body tempering, he needed to eat a substantial amount every day.
But just as the girls were about to sit at the table beside him, another girl of twelve or thirteen suddenly appeared. Her long black hair was tied into a ponytail that hung down her back, and she, too, wore Shrek Academy's uniform. She had phoenix eyes that were large and lively, a high, pert nose, and a youthful air radiating from her entire body.
The girl was rather boisterous. Despite arriving later, she reached the table first and took a seat ahead of them, completely unconcerned by anyone else's gaze.
The girls who had been about to sit froze, never expecting someone to snatch the seats they had picked.
The stunningly beautiful girl looked a little angry. "How can you do that? We picked these seats first. Don't you understand first come, first served?"
The ponytailed girl looked smug. "Just because you picked them, does that make them yours? You said it yourself: first come, first served. I sat here first, so I was here first."
The stunning girl's expression darkened. "You're deliberately targeting me. There are so many restaurants around, but you didn't go to any of them. Why did you have to come to this one, and to these particular seats?"
A trace of disdain appeared on the ponytailed girl's face. "Do you think I'm like those men, all eager to lick your stinking boots? You're just a little prettier and draw a few men around you like bees and butterflies. Do you really think you're something special?"
The stunning girl's expression grew even uglier at those words, but as a girl, she seemed to want to maintain her reserve and appeared unwilling to fight at this moment. She looked somewhat torn.
Just then, a black-clad youth came to the stunning girl's side, looking every bit the protector of a beauty. His voice was exceptionally loud.
"Tang Ya, don't take a mile when you're given an inch. If you dare mock Nannan again, believe me, I'll teach you a lesson! Believe me, I won't show Bei Bei any consideration!"
At the black-clad youth's sudden appearance, the entire restaurant fell silent. Everyone seemed to feel the pressure coming from him.
The ponytailed girl did not back down in the slightest. "Xu Sanshi, what are you acting so arrogant for? You think the likes of you can bully this lady? Believe me, I'll teach you a lesson!"
The black-clad youth flew into a rage, but just then, a figure appeared in front of the ponytailed girl. The newcomer likewise gave off a powerful presence and likewise wore Shrek Academy's uniform.
If the others in the restaurant were intimidated by this scene, then Xu Zhengyang's eyes were now filled with shock.
He instantly understood who these people before him were. The stunning girl was none other than Jiang Nannan from the original novel, while the ponytailed girl was Tang Ya of the Tang Sect. As for the two protectors who had appeared afterward, they were Xu Sanshi and Bei Bei.
The four of them were around twelve or thirteen, but their Soul Power was by no means weak. Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi should both have already reached Soul Elder, while even Tang Ya and Jiang Nannan were already at the Grand Soul Master realm.