Testing the waters, Tang Feng asked with feigned casualness, "Are you going to Shrek to study?"
Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a moment, then nodded lightly. "...Yes. I want to take a look."
Zhu Zhuqing paused, a trace of anticipation flashing through her eyes, and asked in return, "Are you too?"
"No," Tang Feng immediately denied, his tone calm. "I'm almost fifteen. I've long since passed the admission age limit."
Tang Feng began rapidly weighing things up. Shrek's admissions are tomorrow, and I was still worrying about how to get inside. Isn't this perfect timing? Could I use escorting Zhu Zhuqing to enroll as an excuse to openly slip into the academy and observe the situation?
Tang Feng nodded, feeling that it was entirely workable.
Tang Feng set down his chopsticks, his expression beneath the mask turning solemn as he said casually, "In that case, let me take you there. There are still a few li of wilderness between Suotuo City and Shrek Academy, and the road isn't safe. I'll escort you there and leave once you've passed the assessment and enrolled."
Zhu Zhuqing raised her eyes, her gaze falling on the boy's face as though trying to determine whether his words were true.
Tang Feng lowered his head to eat, avoiding her gaze.
After a long while, Zhu Zhuqing nodded gently. Her voice was soft, yet carried a barely perceptible trace of reassurance. "All right."
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing agree, Tang Feng felt thoroughly reassured. With this opportunity, I can observe the Shrek Seven Devils up close and get to the bottom of their backgrounds and personalities, preparing for my future plans.
Outside the window, crowds surged along the streets of Suotuo City. Hawkers' cries, the clatter of horses and carriages, and children's playful laughter merged into a clamorous symphony of city life.
With the heavy stone in his heart finally settled, Tang Feng leisurely sliced the Soul Beast steak on his plate. Suddenly, his brows twitched as he keenly sensed a violent fluctuation in Zhu Zhuqing's emotions across from him.
Tang Feng looked up and saw Zhu Zhuqing's fork hand trembling slightly, her knuckles white from the force of her grip. Her clear eyes stared fixedly out the window, complex emotions churning in her pupils: anger, humiliation, unwillingness, and a trace of sorrow she could hardly conceal.
Tang Feng followed Zhu Zhuqing's gaze.
Across the street, a blond young man with unusual eyes had a girl in each arm, exchanging intimate endearments with a pair of twin sisters at the street corner as though no one else existed.
The young man was around fifteen or sixteen, roughly 1.8 meters tall, and so handsome that his looks bordered on sinister. Each of his eyes held double pupils, deep as an abyss, exuding an innate air of kingly dominance.
The young man wore lavish aristocratic clothing, his blond hair falling to his shoulders, every gesture displaying nobility and arrogance.
The two women at his sides looked almost identical. Their tight purple dresses outlined their incredibly voluptuous curves, their water-snake waists almost coiling around his arms as they cast sultry glances and giggled incessantly.
The three embraced openly in public without the slightest shame, instead displaying a domineering air of staking their claim.
Zhu Zhuqing's face grew increasingly icy. She bit her lip so tightly that she nearly drew blood. Fury burned in her eyes, only to be forcibly suppressed and turn into a thin veil of tears.
Tang Feng sensed that something was wrong, but adhering to his principle of not meddling in others' affairs, he merely asked casually, "What's wrong? Did you come here to find him?"
Zhu Zhuqing drew a deep breath, struggling to control her emotions, and nodded lightly. "Mm..."
Her voice was so faint it was almost inaudible. Her eyes reddened slightly, tears pooling in them, and she looked so pitiful and forlorn that Tang Feng did not know how to comfort her for a moment.
Tang Feng understood, having roughly guessed what was going on. This would have been a tremendous humiliation for any girl.
But Tang Feng had no desire to get involved in this sort of melodrama. He could only pretend not to have noticed and bury his head in his food, continuing to feast with an eminently punchable air.
Before long, a boy and girl around twelve years old arrived at the entrance to the Rose Hotel.
The boy was about 1.7 meters tall, dressed in a blue martial outfit with worn cuffs. His figure was lean but straight, his appearance utterly ordinary, but his eyes were as deep as ancient wells, revealing a composure beyond his years.
The girl stood a little over 1.6 meters tall and wore a pink martial outfit, a silver belt accentuating her slender waist. Her figure, which had already begun to develop, was shapely. Her hair was arranged in a scorpion braid, the jet-black plait reaching her calves, its tip swaying lightly as she walked, lively and sprightly.
The two held hands and behaved intimately; they were probably a couple. They looked up at the Rose Hotel's sign, then walked inside.
At the same time, the man and two women by the roadside seemed to have gotten into the right mood. With his arms around the twin sisters, the blond man swaggered inside as well.
Before long, sounds of fierce fighting, fluctuations of Soul Power, and the twin sisters' screams came from inside the hotel. Clearly, the two groups had clashed.
Not long after the battle ended, the blond man with unusual eyes emerged and headed toward the western part of the city without looking back.
Zhu Zhuqing watched all this with an ashen face, never uttering a word. Only the hand gripping her teacup trembled slightly, and she did not even notice the tea spilling out.
Tang Feng finished the last plate of food on his own, leisurely wiped the grease from the corners of his mouth, then called a waiter over to settle the bill. Finally, he glanced at Zhu Zhuqing's icy profile and inwardly shook his head.
The two rose in silence and returned to their respective hotel rooms.
Early the next morning, when the sky had only just begun to brighten, Tang Feng was already up. After a quick wash, he came to Zhu Zhuqing's door and curled his fingers to knock lightly.
Knock, knock, knock!!!
The door opened.
Zhu Zhuqing stood inside, her eyes slightly red and bloodshot. Clearly, she had not slept all night, and tear tracks had left faint traces on her cheeks. Her expression remained cool, her back ramrod straight as she stubbornly maintained her last shred of dignity.
She had changed into a clean black martial outfit, her long hair hanging loose down her back. A few stray locks over her forehead were slightly disheveled, yet only added a fragile beauty to her appearance.
Tang Feng sighed inwardly, but showed nothing on his face, merely asking mildly, "Are you all right? Are you going to Shrek Academy to register today?"
Zhu Zhuqing lowered her eyes, her voice somewhat hoarse. "Yes. Give me a moment."
She turned and went back into her room. After tidying up briefly, she put that white mask back on, hiding all her emotions beneath an icy disguise.
The two went to the counter to check out. Seeing their masks and cold bearing, the attendant did not dare say anything unnecessary. He briskly completed the formalities and watched them leave.
The early-morning Suotuo City was shrouded in a thin mist. The two walked shoulder to shoulder toward the outskirts, the atmosphere silent and oppressive.
After leaving Suotuo City, they followed the main road south. The farther they went, the fewer people they saw, and even the houses grew increasingly scarce, leaving only vast stretches of farmland. There was no advanced Soul Master Academy anywhere in sight; instead, they came upon a small village.
"You..." Zhu Zhuqing suddenly spoke, her voice as faint as mist scattered by the wind. "Why are you helping me?"
Tang Feng looked at her calmly. "It's no trouble. I just want to take a look at Shrek, so I'm escorting you along the way."
Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a moment, then said softly, "Thank you."
Tang Feng did not respond again. He understood that the girl's heart was a tangled skein at this moment, and any comfort would be superfluous.
Being able to get back on her feet and continue toward Shrek was already the greatest strength she could muster.
After walking for two hours, they finally reached the outskirts of a village.
A dilapidated wooden sign stood at the village entrance, with the words "Shrek Academy" scrawled crookedly across it and a green monster's head drawn beside them.
The two stood shoulder to shoulder at the village entrance, looking at the village, which was so rudimentary it bordered on shabby, their expressions of shock plain to see.
Tang Feng had imagined Shrek would be run-down, but he had never expected it to be this run-down. Who designed this?
Zhu Zhuqing drew a deep breath and straightened her back, a stubborn flame reigniting in the eyes beneath her mask.
A group of people happened to be queuing outside Shrek Academy, seemingly all students preparing to register.
An elderly man in his sixties sat at the table at the very front. From the looks of things, he was probably Shrek Academy's admissions teacher.
Tang Feng swept his gaze over the queue and soon noticed a boy and girl. They were precisely the two he had seen at the Rose Hotel's entrance yesterday.
Could these be the son of destiny, Tang San, and the hundred-thousand-year rabbit, Xiao Wu? A flash of burning intensity flickered through Tang Feng's gaze as he looked at Xiao Wu. This was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. The Soul Ring and Soul Bone she would produce could be called priceless treasures in this world.
But Tang Feng could not act rashly. Tang Hao was certainly protecting the two of them from the shadows right now. Even if Tang Feng were to make a move, he would have to choose the right moment, and he could not let either Tang San or Tang Hao find out.
The people in the queue were buzzing with discussion, mostly comments and doubts about Shrek's teaching conditions.
Tang Feng frowned slightly. Shrek's image really did resemble the diploma mills of his previous life, their advertisements thundering to the heavens, endlessly boasting about their faculty and even hyping up their future prospects.
But in reality, they did not even have basic infrastructure, and even their buildings were rented. For all anyone knew, once they collected the tuition fees, the school itself might be nowhere to be found.