Suotuo City, a major commercial hub in the Balak Kingdom, welcomed three unusual visitors that day. Everyone who saw these three youths could not help praising them inwardly: what a group of outstanding young talents.
Xiao Wu went without saying. She had already blossomed into a beauty, her black scorpion braid hanging past her calves, her slender waist small enough to encircle with one hand and enough to make countless women envious.
Beside her, Tang San was not quite so outstanding in appearance, but he possessed a bearing that made him seem very approachable. Gentle and lustrous as jade was precisely the description for someone like him.
But the one who drew the most attention was Qi Ling. His looks possessed an aggressive handsomeness that made girls blush involuntarily at first glance and lose themselves completely at the second.
With black hair, black eyes, and a tall, straight figure, Qi Ling seemed to have enjoyed all of heaven's favor. Not a single flaw could be found in him, as though he were the very embodiment of perfection.
"So this is Suotuo City? It really is a big city! Haha!" Qi Ling said with keen interest as he looked at the bustling city before him.
"More importantly, there are plenty of beauties on the streets. Not bad at all! Wouldn't you say, Xiao San?"
Tang San covered his face with one hand. "Big Brother, let's find somewhere to rest first. We can take our time with everything else after we've eaten."
After a simple lunch, the three began looking for somewhere to stay. Soon, a hotel with a distinctive design caught Xiao Wu's attention.
"Wow! Brother San, Brother Qi, this hotel is so pretty! Can we stay here?" Xiao Wu said happily, her eyes seeming to sparkle.
It was a three-story hotel. Though it did not look particularly large, its amenities were top-notch. The entire hotel seemed wrapped inside a giant rose; its design alone was stunning enough.
"Rose Hotel. Even the name is elegant. Not bad. Big Brother, I think we should stay here," Tang San said with a nod.
Looking at his two worldly-inexperienced younger companions, Qi Ling felt cold sweat trickling down.
One was innocent to the extreme, while the other had absolutely no interest in anything beyond Hidden Weapons.
But before Qi Ling could stop them, Xiao Wu had already skipped inside, leaving Tang San and Qi Ling no choice but to follow.
"Boss, give us your three best rooms! The very best!" Xiao Wu immediately said to the attendant at the counter as she entered the hotel.
The attendant looked up, and his eyes immediately lit up. Though still young, Xiao Wu was already a rare beauty, and naturally attracted attention.
"Oh, miss, are you here alone, or..." The attendant stopped there, because he had already spotted Qi Ling and Tang San walking in.
Looking at Xiao Wu, then at Qi Ling and Tang San, the attendant's jaw dropped!
Seeing the attendant's expression, Qi Ling knew without thinking what she had misunderstood and helplessly slapped his forehead! In her place, he probably would have misunderstood too.
"Never mind anything else. Just do your job and get us three rooms!" Qi Ling stepped forward and said.
"Ah! Oh, oh, all right..." The attendant hurriedly began checking the room information.
For some reason, this youth possessed a presence that brooked no questioning.
"I'm terribly sorry, guests," the attendant said, looking up shortly afterward. "I don't know what's going on today, but there's only one room left. Would you..."
"Only one room? How are we supposed to fit?" Qi Ling asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's fine, Brother Qi. We're so small, and we hardly take up any space. All three of us can fit!" Xiao Wu seemed very interested in the room and insisted on staying here.
"That won't do, Xiao Wu. We're not that young anymore. We should start paying attention to these things," Qi Ling said.
"It doesn't matter for two guys like Xiao San and me, but you're a girl. How can you not be mindful of this?"
"What does it matter? You're my brothers!" Xiao Wu said with complete confidence.
"But..." Qi Ling felt helpless.
"Oh, Brother Qi, I want to stay here!" Seeing that she was getting nowhere, Xiao Wu immediately unleashed her invincible trump card, hugging Qi Ling's arm and wheedling.
"Fine, fine. We'll stay here. At worst, Xiao San and I can sleep on the floor." Qi Ling was helpless. Against Xiao Wu's wheedling, he truly had no defense at all.
"Yay! Great!" Xiao Wu knew this very well too. Though her big brother was a man of steel when it came to romance, he was especially softhearted toward girls. This move of hers never failed.
Just as Xiao Wu was about to step forward and take the room key card from the attendant, a voice suddenly came from the entrance. "Say, shouldn't that room belong to me?"
They turned and saw a rather tall youth walking in through the entrance, his arms around two stunningly beautiful twins.
Judging by his appearance, he was probably only a few years older than Qi Ling and the others. His blond hair framed a handsome face that was enough to make girls scream.
Even more distinctive were his eyes: each actually had double pupils, giving them a unique charm.
The youth walked past them to the counter and said to the attendant, "You're new here, aren't you? Don't you know you're always supposed to keep a room for me?"
As he spoke, the youth snatched the key card from the attendant's hand first, but someone intercepted it in midair as he drew it toward himself.
Qi Ling held the other end of the key card. "Brother, I believe we were here first?"
"Hmph, so what? Here in Suotuo City, no one dares oppose me, the Evil Eyed White Tiger, Dai Mubai!" the youth said, staring straight at Qi Ling.
"Heh, what a coincidence. My favorite thing to do is oppose people who think so highly of themselves!" Qi Ling said with a smile. Then he exerted force with his hand and pulled the key card out of Dai Mubai's grasp.
Dai Mubai froze for a moment as the key card was pulled away. He had not let his guard down in the slightest, yet the other boy had still snatched the card from his hand. That meant he had lost their contest of strength.
Judging by his age, the boy was probably younger than him, yet he possessed such strength. Dai Mubai could not help feeling his competitive spirit stir.
"Fine. In that case, we'll settle this by the rules!" Dai Mubai said. "Come fight me. If you win, the room is yours! If you lose, get the hell out, and make it quick!"
[Ding-dong! The host has been detected facing Dai Mubai's challenge. Please choose from the following options.] Option one: Refuse to spar with Dai Mubai and avoid conflict. Receive rewards: Dai Mubai's favorability -100%, loss of eligibility to enroll in Shrek Academy. Option two: Accept Dai Mubai's challenge and defeat him. Receive rewards: Dai Mubai's favorability +10%, Shrek Academy Pass.
To think refusing Dai Mubai's challenge would lower his favorability by that much, while beating him would actually raise it. Could this Dai Mubai be a masochist?
But none of that mattered. Qi Ling was going to teach this brat a lesson anyway. How could he allow someone to be even more arrogant than himself?
[Ding-dong! Congratulations to the host for selecting option two: defeat Dai Mubai. Receive reward: Shrek Academy Pass. With this pass, you can directly pass Shrek Academy's entrance test.]