Dai Mubai's Lack of Intelligence

They crossed Suotuo City's bustling central district and headed for the southern gate. The morning light stretched their shadows long. Vendors' cries rose and fell along the way, but the farther south they went, the sparser and more dilapidated the buildings became, until they entered the villages on the outskirts of the city.

"This is where Shrek Academy is?" Ning Rongrong looked at the muddy dirt road before her and the low thatched cottages on either side, her frown deepening. "But isn't this... a little too shabby?"

Little Jade lay lazily across Yan Zu's shoulder as he glanced at the farmland faintly visible in the distance. "A true recluse hides in the marketplace. A place that can produce 'monsters' doesn't need to be decked out in gold and jade."

After walking for about half an hour, a village appeared at the edge of their vision. It was small, with around a hundred households, but quite a few people had gathered at its entrance. Most were teenagers waiting in line with their parents, and the air was thick with tension.

A battered wooden table stood at the entrance. Behind it sat a serious-faced middle-aged man in a gray robe, holding a long staff carved with dragon patterns. He was Li Yusong, a teacher at Shrek Academy, a level sixty-three Soul Emperor whose Martial Soul was the Dragon Pattern Staff. Dai Mubai stood to one side, his expression gloomy. Yesterday's humiliation at the Rose Hotel was evidently still etched in his heart.

When Yan Zu and the other three approached, Li Yusong raised his head, his gaze sweeping over them like lightning. "Registration costs ten Gold Soul Coins. No refunds if you fail. Release your Martial Souls and state your ages and levels."

When Dai Mubai saw Zhu Zhuqing, a trace of complicated emotion flashed through his evil eyes, but he quickly suppressed it and stood coldly to one side without a word.

Yan Zu stepped forward and placed forty Gold Soul Coins in the wooden box on the table. "The four of us are together."

"One at a time," Li Yusong said in a deep voice. "Anyone over twelve or below level twenty in Soul Power can leave now. You, first."

He pointed at Ning Rongrong.

Ning Rongrong took a deep breath, stepped forward, and released her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. "Ning Rongrong, twelve years old. Martial Soul: Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. Level thirty-one Support System Soul Elder."

Two glazed pagodas spun in her palm as three Soul Rings rose around her: two yellow and one purple.

Li Yusong's pupils contracted slightly, and the Dragon Pattern Staff in his hand trembled. "Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda? An heir of the Upper Three Sects? You pass. Go to the second test."

A chorus of startled cries immediately broke out among the people in line.

"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda? What's someone that important doing in a place like this?"

"Level thirty-one? Twelve years old? What kind of monster is that?!"

Zhu Zhuqing was next. "Zhu Zhuqing, twelve years old. Martial Soul: Hell Spirit Cat. Level twenty-seven Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master." Two yellow Soul Rings rose as the Hell Spirit Cat possessed her body, and a sharp killing aura radiated from her.

"The Star Luo Zhu Family..." Li Yusong's gaze deepened. "You pass."

"Xiao Wu, twelve years old. Martial Soul: Phantom Jade Rabbit. Level thirty-two Power Attack System Battle Soul Master (actually level forty-eight)." Grinning, Xiao Wu released her Martial Soul, and two yellow Soul Rings and one purple Soul Ring pulsed around her.

Finally, it was Yan Zu's turn. He stepped forward, and Little Jade leaped off his shoulder, transforming in the wind into a jade-colored Qilin half the height of a person. Two yellow Soul Rings and one purple Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet. "Yan Zu, eleven years old. Martial Soul: Qilin. Level thirty-one Support System Soul Master (actually level forty-six)."

Another chorus of startled cries rose from the crowd. Good grief, two more Soul Elders, and one of them was only eleven.

"Level thirty-one? Level thirty-two?" Li Yusong shot to his feet, staring fixedly at Little Jade. "Is that an External Beast Martial Soul? And this presence... it feels so comfortable!"

He took a deep breath and suppressed his astonishment. "Your Soul Power levels are all above twenty-five? Go straight to the fourth test, then. You can skip the two before it. Dai Mubai, take them to the fourth test."

Dai Mubai pointed toward the depths of the village, his face cold. "Follow me."

They passed through the village, and the sight before them left Ning Rongrong speechless once again. The so-called "Shrek Academy" was nothing more than a few dilapidated wooden buildings. The school's name was written crookedly on the surrounding wall, weeds ran rampant across the training ground, and a few hens were even scratching at the dirt.

"This... this is the legendary Monster Academy?" Ning Rongrong could hardly believe it. "Have we been tricked? What kind of powerhouse could a dump like this produce?"

Dai Mubai was already nursing a grudge over yesterday's humiliation. Hearing Ning Rongrong's mockery, he could no longer resist speaking up, his tone tinged with pride and defensiveness.

"Since you've come to Shrek, let me open your eyes. This school was founded twenty years ago by Dean Flender himself, one of the Golden Iron Triangle. To date, it has only enrolled forty-two students, but only fourteen have graduated. Do you know why?"

He paused and puffed out his chest, his tone full of superior arrogance. "Because Shrek's graduation requirements are extraordinarily strict-you have to become a Soul Ancestor before you turn twenty! Do you know what that means? It means every graduate is a true genius among geniuses!"

Ning Rongrong raised an eyebrow and was about to retort, but Dai Mubai only grew more animated, as though he meant to regain all the face he had lost at the Rose Hotel yesterday. "And of those fourteen graduates, one has even risen to become an elder of Spirit Hall, holding the power of life and death over countless Soul Masters. That is Shrek's foundation! It's not something noble children like you, who rely on your sects' influence and flashy but useless tricks, can understand!"

"Oh?" Yan Zu suddenly spoke, his voice calm but carrying an unmistakable force. "Senior Dai, you said a graduate became an elder of Spirit Hall?"

Dai Mubai thought he had been awed and said smugly, "Of course! It's a point of pride for the academy. Everyone in Suotuo City knows it!"

"Then I have a question." Yan Zu fixed Dai Mubai with a sharp gaze. "The minimum requirement for an elder of Spirit Hall is Titled Douluo-level strength, isn't it? Given the academy's graduation requirement of reaching Soul Ancestor before twenty, even a graduate from the first class would probably have been under forty when they reached Titled Douluo. But as far as I know, the youngest Titled Douluo on the continent is Clear Sky Douluo, who reached that level at forty-four. So I'd like to ask: who exactly is this outstanding graduate of Shrek? Someone so exceptional couldn't possibly be unknown, could they?"

The smugness on Dai Mubai's face froze. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. He only knew the story passed around the academy; he had never considered the holes in the timeline and strength levels, nor had he ever asked who this Spirit Hall elder who graduated from Shrek actually was.

"Furthermore," Yan Zu pressed on, his pace steady but every word a blade, "Shrek was founded twenty years ago, enrolled forty-two students, and graduated fourteen. That's a graduation rate of only thirty percent. By your account, its admission standards are extremely high and it only accepts 'monsters.' So why were seventy percent of its students unable to graduate? Were they not talented enough, or is there a problem with the academy's training system? Or did they... perish along the way?"

Those two questions struck the holes in Dai Mubai's logic like two precisely aimed sledgehammers.

"You... you're twisting words!" Humiliation turned to anger, and Dai Mubai's face flushed crimson. "How dare an outsider like you question the academy's training methods? Those who were eliminated weren't true monsters at all. They were trash who had talent but didn't work hard!"

"Is that so?" Yan Zu smiled faintly. "If they really didn't work hard, how did they pass the academy's entrance examination in the first place? They were monsters when they entered, but became trash afterward. Isn't that the academy's problem?"

Dai Mubai was left speechless. A trace of malice flashed through his evil eyes, but he could not produce another word in rebuttal.

"Most importantly, Senior Dai, haven't you ever thought about these questions yourself?" Yan Zu struck at his heart after killing him.

Ning Rongrong couldn't help laughing. "A-Zu's right! I bet this lecherous tiger used all his intelligence on women. He never even thought about these questions, and he doesn't know he's been fooled!"

Dai Mubai was so stung he nearly spat blood. Forcing down his anger, he said coldly, "Cut the crap! Believe it or not, you'll see Shrek's strength during the test! If you don't want to join, then get lost. No one's begging you!"

With that, he ignored them and quickened his pace toward the training ground, his retreating figure looking somewhat discomfited.

Yan Zu watched him go without pressing further. He simply said softly to the three women, "Let's go. No matter how much the academy boasts, we're already here, so let's take a look. We'll know whether it's any good after the test."

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