"Wow~"
Ning Rongrong exclaimed in surprise, covering her small mouth, her eyes sparkling with little stars. "Are you all that amazing? If Shrek can cultivate talents like you, then it must be quite extraordinary!"
Oscar, facing Ning Rongrong's admiration and anticipation, recalled the environment of Shrek Academy, which resembled a backward little mountain village, and suddenly found himself at a loss for words.
He looked at Ning Rongrong's attire and demeanor, imagining such a young lady in Shrek, and felt it was extremely out of place.
But ultimately, his desire to impress took precedence.
"Of course~"
Oscar's eyes darted, and he said earnestly, "Miss Ning, our Shrek has no less than one Soul Saint teacher, and among them, there is even a Food System Soul Saint! Most importantly, unlike those universities, Shrek has strict admissions, and the number of students is scarce. Every student basically has the opportunity to receive one-on-one guidance from these powerful figures!"
Oscar spoke confidently, and even Ning Rongrong was somewhat impressed.
Although she had a Titled Douluo personally teaching her, she was well aware that a Soul Saint was already considered a top-tier powerhouse on the Douluo Continent. Ordinary intermediate academies would be hard-pressed to have even one Soul Saint, yet Shrek had multiple Soul Saints teaching, which indeed held significant value.
"So amazing?"
Ning Rongrong showed an interested expression, her brows slightly furrowing as she said, "Actually, I've been hesitating about which academy to attend recently…"
Oscar's eyes lit up at her words.
If Ning Rongrong could attend Shrek, wouldn't that mean she could get close to him?
"We at Shrek are about to start admissions soon. If you're interested, I can take you to visit Shrek and meet those Soul Saint teachers. How does that sound?"
"Ah? Is that really okay?"
"It's fine, it's fine! They are also worried about not being able to recruit—ah, I mean, the teachers are very eager to cultivate talent. If you come to them, they would be delighted!"
"In that case, I'll trouble you."
"Hehe, it's no trouble at all."
The proud Oscar completely forgot about the environment of Shrek Academy, his heart set on bringing Ning Rongrong to Shrek.
Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong looked at the grinning Oscar, feeling a bit disdainful towards this ordinary guy who was completely under her control.
Clearly, she wanted to visit Shrek herself, but now the situation had turned into Oscar actively inviting her.
'This guy probably feels quite accomplished in his heart~'
Ning Rongrong chuckled inwardly.
In any case, both sides maintained a pleasant mood as they headed towards Shrek Academy.
Then…
Ning Rongrong's cheerful mood quickly soured.
"This, this is the Shrek you said has a strong faculty and excellent teaching conditions?"
Her smiling mask stiffened slightly, her facial muscles twitching involuntarily.
Looking at the academy building that seemed to stand in a desolate wilderness, Ning Rongrong couldn't help but think: 'How could a school like this possibly have high teaching quality?'
"Ahem."
Oscar suddenly remembered his initial thoughts. Indeed, for a young lady from a wealthy family, Shrek's appearance made it seem very unreliable and hard to adapt to.
'Now that she's here, she wouldn't just turn around and run away, would she?'
Oscar thought of the several Soul Saint teachers and managed to muster some confidence, saying to Ning Rongrong, "Although the exterior is a bit shabby, the levels of the teachers are absolutely unquestionable!"
Even though Oscar appeared confident, Ning Rongrong still found it hard to believe without reservation.
Tang San, seeing Ning Rongrong's expression, thought of Yu Xiaogang, who was also being questioned, and frowned, saying, "Oscar, if she doesn't want to, don't force her. We only accept monsters here; she might not pass the assessment."
Ning Rongrong's forehead twitched, glancing at Tang San.
Compared to the delicate-looking Oscar, Ning Rongrong had little interest in the seemingly simple country boy Tang San.
He didn't look like a genius student at all.
Originally, Ning Rongrong thought she couldn't back down from Ning Fengzhi's strict demands.
Now, however, she had the added thought of wanting to slap this rural boy hard in the face!
Moreover… Ning Rongrong also thought, perhaps Oscar really wasn't lying?
Just like those parents and children who had been deceived by Shrek in the past, although the academy looked unimpressive from the outside, who knows, maybe the inside was really quite good?
Ning Rongrong remained silent, but Oscar couldn't stand by and watch the girl he liked being mocked. After all, she already felt like she was being deceived; if he provoked her, wouldn't that drive her away? Tang San had Xiao Wu to fawn over, but Oscar didn't even have anyone to fawn over in Shrek Academy!
He hurriedly remedied the situation, saying, "Hey, Miss Ning, Tang San's mouth is a bit foul, but that's because there's a teacher here whom he truly respects, so he reacted strongly. Don't take it to heart."
Ning Rongrong merely smiled, "I don't mind."
Oscar looked at Ning Rongrong's poised attitude, feeling as if he had been struck by an arrow: 'This personality, this aura, this is the true destined goddess I'm looking for!'
He then shot a fierce glare at Tang San.
The three of them arrived at the main gate of Shrek Academy, where a male teacher was working as a gatekeeper, dozing off at a table.
"Yo, Teacher Li! Is the dean here today?" Oscar cheerfully greeted.
Li Yusong yawned, glanced at the unfamiliar face of Ning Rongrong, then looked at Oscar's excited expression, and understood the situation, but still said, "Oh, it's you, Xiao Ao. The dean isn't here today. What's up?"
Oscar scratched the back of his head, smiling, "My friend wants to visit Shrek Academy, so I thought I'd ask."
"Alright, go on in."
Just a girl of eleven or twelve years old, Li Yusong casually chose to let them pass.
As the saying goes, the greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.
Once they truly stepped into the academy and saw that it resembled a wasteland, having walked quite a distance without seeing a single person, Ning Rongrong had lost most of her patience.
'My father sent me here, and this is such a desolate place? No way, I can't let them send me to a school like this!'
But she still maintained the demeanor of a gentle rich girl, pretending to be curious as she said, "Oscar, why have we walked for so long? Besides that teacher at the entrance, we haven't encountered anyone else. Where are the other students of Shrek Academy?"
"Uh…"
Oscar finally seemed a bit stunned.
He stopped in his tracks, awkwardly smiled, and scratched his cheek, saying, "Including me and Tang San, there are only five students in the academy right now. So it's normal not to see anyone."
"Five!?"
Even though she had prepared herself mentally, Ning Rongrong couldn't help but exclaim.
She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and scoff, "With so few students, how do you maintain your income? How has Shrek Academy managed to stay operational until now?"
At this moment, Ning Rongrong was starting to lose her patience with the pretense.
"Hmph!"
Ultimately, it was Tang San who couldn't stand it any longer. He probably also knew that Oscar wouldn't speak loudly in front of the girl, so he stepped forward and said proudly, "Our academy values quality over quantity. We'd rather have none than accept waste. We only accept monsters.
Do you know what the graduation requirements of the academy are? We are neither an intermediate Soul Master academy nor a senior Soul Master academy. Our requirements are different from theirs. We only accept students under thirteen years old, and they must be exceptionally gifted. The graduation requirement is to exceed level forty and reach the Soul Master level before the age of twenty.
Because of this, it's not surprising that there are fewer students than teachers. But what's wrong with that? On the Douluo Continent, strength is paramount. Rather than cultivate a bunch of weaklings, it's better to nurture a few strong ones who can change the world!"
As Tang San spoke, he seemed to immerse himself in the topic, his tone growing more passionate. "In the past twenty years, we have admitted a total of sixty-two students, but only fourteen have truly graduated. Yet, every one of those fourteen has become a figure of great renown after leaving the academy. The most outstanding one is now the youngest elder in the Spirit Hall, second only to the Pope!"
He cast a disdainful glance at Ning Rongrong, saying, "I'm very fortunate to be here."
Already tired of pretending and wanting to refuse to attend Shrek, Ning Rongrong was about to organize her rebuttal when suddenly…
"Hahaha. This kid sounds so proud; he can't really believe such promotional words, can he? There are indeed elders in the Spirit Hall, and they even set up an Elder Hall! But those who can truly be called elders are all Titled Douluo level powerhouses! According to this kid, if the age limit for admission is thirteen, and the academy has been open for twenty years, that means that student would have to be in their thirties to become a Titled Douluo?
You should know that the current record for the age of a Titled Douluo on the Douluo Continent is held by the Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao, who was forty-four years old over a decade ago! Most importantly, if that student has already become a Titled Douluo and an elder in the Spirit Hall, why hasn't he given back to his alma mater? Why does it still look so dilapidated and desolate here?"
The sudden voice that rang in her ears made Ning Rongrong's expression change drastically. She turned her head sharply to see a tall, slender man standing there, having appeared out of nowhere.
Most importantly, the man's face was completely blurred; she felt she could see his features but couldn't recall whether he was handsome or ugly, nor could she remember his specific appearance.
Normally, if one couldn't see a person's face, it would be impossible to determine their identity.
But when the face was so blurred that it couldn't be remembered, it became an extremely obvious characteristic!
At this moment, Ning Rongrong realized the identity of the newcomer, her eyes widening as she exclaimed, "Beast Soul Senior!?"
"Beast Soul? Is that what you Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School people call me? That's quite a nice title."
You Chen nodded slightly, acknowledging the name.
Seeing this peak powerhouse appear beside her, Ning Rongrong felt as if she were still dreaming.
Just a short while ago, she had regarded him as her number one enemy while browsing the Beast Soul Commerce, but now that he was actually in front of her, she couldn't care about those little schemes and felt a bit nervous.
For a moment, Ning Rongrong forgot her anger from Tang San's remarks and, with hesitation and curiosity, asked, "How did you end up here?"
You Chen blinked, "I should be asking you that. The young lady of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, what are you doing alone in the Beast Soul Commerce? You're not… thinking of gathering intelligence on the enemy, are you?"
Ning Rongrong's face turned red.
To be caught investigating a competitor like this was an embarrassment she had never experienced before.
"Ah, you guessed right?"
You Chen laughed heartily, "Just kidding, what enemy intelligence? Aren't our two commerce groups business partners now? After all, I also work at the Beast Soul Commerce. I was just idly checking things out in the store when I happened to see you wandering around. Coincidentally, I've been in Soto City for quite a while and have some understanding of Shrek Academy's reputation. That boy wanted to lure you in, and as a business partner, I can't just watch my ally's daughter get deceived without knowing!"
In truth, the opposite was more accurate.
The Starlight Avatar that appeared here was actually left behind to monitor Tang San's movements.
However, for a powerhouse like You Chen, most of his time was still spent comprehending and researching various techniques and mysteries; monitoring was just a small part of his focus.
After all, monitoring a single person didn't consume much energy.
However, a certain range of spiritual power detection was still kept in a constant state.
This allowed him to detect Ning Rongrong's presence.
After a bit of consideration, it was also about time for Shrek Academy's enrollment season. Although it was slightly earlier than the original timeline, his appearance had caused some butterfly effects, which was not surprising.
If there was anything worth specifically brushing for a blood reward on the Douluo Continent, the "Shrek Seven Monsters" group would definitely count as one.
As a group that spanned thousands of years of history on the Douluo Continent, their fate was naturally not weak.
However, You Chen had already received the blood reward from the number one child of fate, Tang San, and it was unlikely that Xiao Wu would leave anything behind. Zhu Zhuqing was involved in some of his arrangements regarding the Star Luo Empire and wouldn't leave anything for Shrek…
So the value of the Shrek Seven Monsters would inevitably drop significantly.
You Chen had quite a few projects on his plate, including Perfect Realm, Stardust Power, and Domain Power… he had temporarily set those aside to focus on Godly Elephant Suppressing Prison Strength, not to mention opening new fields?
For You Chen, it was better to stock up for a while longer, waiting for this batch of "chives" to grow a bit more before harvesting for better rewards.
Although the expected personnel would differ greatly from the original work, as there were no Immortal Herbs, the strength would also drop significantly, but it shouldn't be worse than the group rewards from the Royal Fight Team… right?
In any case, for You Chen, just like with Tang San, it was an important yet unimportant matter.
Mainly because Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing were likely to have run away, Ning Rongrong didn't need to be kept around for him.
Moreover, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School was still his designated subordinate, and it was just a coincidence that he encountered her, so stirring up some trouble wouldn't hurt.
Seeing You Chen being so friendly, as if he was genuinely worried about her, and recalling that he had only scared her a little before without actually harming her, Ning Rongrong relaxed her guard a bit.
Then, she noticed that although she and You Chen had been conversing, Tang San and Oscar had not reacted at all, instead walking away, engrossed in their own conversation.
You Chen noticed Ning Rongrong's confusion and smiled lightly, "Don't look at them. In their eyes, you're just silent and unresponsive, which is equivalent to being persuaded by that kid named Tang San just now."
You Chen pointed to his own face, saying, "It's the same principle as how you see me."
Ning Rongrong felt a surge of anger at the thought that in Tang San and Oscar's eyes, she had appeared completely unrefuted, as if she had been silenced.
It felt similar to being insulted without having the chance to retort, only for the other party to end the topic on their own.
"Beast Soul Senior, why did you suddenly come out to scare me…"
But in the end, Ning Rongrong was still a bit afraid of You Chen, and she could only mumble, "At least let me retort to that little brat before you come out…"
Seeing that Ning Rongrong was completely unfazed by his astonishing illusion, You Chen felt a bit of a lack of accomplishment.
But… never mind.
You Chen glanced at Ning Rongrong, saying, "Don't you want to refute them? The information I just gave you is the best material for a comeback, isn't it?"
Saying this, You Chen grinned mischievously, "You want to see them speechless, right?"
Ning Rongrong looked at You Chen. Although she still couldn't confirm his appearance, she could accurately recognize his expression.
However, how wonderful and astonishing this peculiar feeling was, and how much technical content it possessed, a mere twelve-year-old Soul Sovereign like Ning Rongrong could not comprehend.
She only sensed a kindred spirit from You Chen's somewhat mischievous expression, and her eyes lit up: "Beast Soul Senior, what you said earlier was all true?"
Although Ning Rongrong had received a good education, she was still just a twelve-year-old girl. She knew about the power of the Spirit Hall but couldn't remember all the details clearly and firmly.
Otherwise, in the original timeline, Flender's numerous fallacies in his boastful advertisements wouldn't have gone unnoticed.
Because even if an elder was just a Soul Douluo or even a Soul Saint, the best graduates of Shrek Academy at that time wouldn't have met such conditions.
"It's not about the distinction between the main and branch offices of the Spirit Hall; there are also institutional differences within the Spirit Hall. The three highest institutions are the Worship Hall, the Pope Hall, and the Elder Hall. There's nominally a Douluo Hall, but that's just a tomb for the titles of Titled Douluo after they pass away. Among the three institutions, the Worship Hall is the most transcendent, while the power difference between the Pope Hall and the Elder Hall is only slight. After all, those who can stand alongside the Pope must at least be Soul Douluo level powerhouses, right? Of course, the Spirit Hall is vast and filled with strong individuals, so the elders in the Elder Hall are all Titled Douluo."
You Chen calmly analyzed for Ning Rongrong.
"This…"
Ning Rongrong keenly sensed something, her eyes widening as she exclaimed, "If the elders are all at least Titled Douluo, then the higher-ranking worshippers must be even stronger, right? Does this mean that even if the Worship Hall and Elder Hall only have five people each, the Spirit Hall could have ten Titled Douluo!? Is the Spirit Hall really that powerful? Didn't they say there are only about twenty Titled Douluo on the entire continent? Isn't that nearly half already?"
"Your mind is quite sharp, huh? That's pretty much how it is." You Chen smiled and nodded.
Ning Rongrong felt a moment of breathlessness, unable to find her voice.
Although she had known the Spirit Hall was strong, she had always thought that the top three sects were about the same.
But
looking at it this way, how could they be comparable? Even if the top three sects combined, they wouldn't be able to match the Spirit Hall!
"Hahaha, you little girl don't need to worry about such things."
You Chen naturally patted Ning Rongrong's head, laughing, "Your father and two grandfathers know about this situation. They're not anxious, so why should you be?"
"Don't pat my head!"
Ning Rongrong angrily slapped You Chen's hand away and glared at him.
After You Chen had thoroughly analyzed the situation for her, Ning Rongrong, during their brief interaction, discovered that You Chen wasn't as fearsome as she had imagined. In fact, he was quite easy to talk to, which made her gradually relax a bit.
She turned her head and jogged to catch up with Tang San, who was already several steps ahead.
Although Ning Rongrong was less reserved now, it didn't mean she had completely let down her guard against You Chen.
It was impossible for her to go against her father's decision just because of You Chen's words.
While Ning Rongrong was very free-spirited and unrestrained in front of Ning Fengzhi, she still held deep respect for her father in her heart.
In private, she often acted willfully, but in front of outsiders, she never behaved in a way that would undermine her father's authority.
If her father knew that she had been persuaded by a few words from a business ally or rival to go against his decision, he would surely be very upset.
Thinking this way, Ning Rongrong followed Tang San and the others.
You Chen suddenly surprised Ning Rongrong by revealing such an astonishing fact, which made her lose much of her previous enthusiasm for being angry with Tang San, and her earlier emotions dissipated significantly.
Seeing this, You Chen didn't show any emotion but followed them with evident interest.
Cultivation always requires relaxation; balancing tension and ease is the way to go.
A rare opportunity for leisure should not be missed.
"What's going on here?"
Unconsciously, the group had arrived at a training ground. Just as Ning Rongrong and the illusion created by You Chen overlapped, she noticed that the atmosphere in the field was a bit off.
There were two unfamiliar figures present.
One was a girl with an ethereal aura, wielding a scorpion-tailed whip. Though not fully mature, she already had the makings of a stunning beauty, and even Ning Rongrong was somewhat awestruck at first glance.
The other was a tall, handsome young man with golden hair, a sinister aura, and eyes that seemed to have double pupils.
They both appeared to be students of Shrek Academy, but the scene was far from harmonious; instead, it was quite tense.
You Chen crossed his arms, watching the scene unfold. His gaze flickered over Tang San, who was visibly trying to suppress his anger, and he commented indifferently, "It's nothing, just a typical case of rivalry and jealousy."
With so few students, they still managed to stir up a love triangle. It just goes to show that the teachers at Shrek Academy are a bit too lax. (End of Chapter)