Dai Huabin believed that he deserved to be the class monitor. In his eyes, Wang Dong was no match for him in terms of strength. However, he never expected Zhou Yi to be completely indifferent to his cultivation or his status as a core disciple. What surprised him even more was that Zhou Yi truly expelled him—not just from the class, but from Class 1 entirely.
Among the four Year 1 classes, Class 1 was the strongest, specially designated to train assault-type and control-type soul masters. If Class 1 no longer accepted him, where could he go? The only option left was Class 2, which focused on defense-type and agility-type soul masters. What could he possibly learn there? More than anything, this was a huge humiliation. As the son of the White Tiger Duke, he had been utterly disgraced in front of everyone. If it weren't for his status as a core disciple, he might have been expelled from the academy altogether.
For a moment, Dai Huabin was so filled with hatred that he clenched his fists tightly, as if ready to explode.
However... this was Shrek Academy, the number one academy on the entire continent. As a Soul Elder with three rings, he might be outstanding among his peers. But here, where powerful individuals were as numerous as stars in the sky, his strength meant nothing. Even if his father came, he would still have to bow before the statue of the original Seven Shrek Monsters. What could he do?
"Huabin, what should we do?" Zhu Lu asked anxiously. As an agility-type soul master, she was actually better suited to Class 2. But because of her martial soul compatibility with Dai Huabin, she had been placed in Class 1. Now the two of them were both expelled. Her attitude was no less arrogant than Huabin's.
Dai Huabin gritted his teeth. "Fine. We'll follow the academy's rules. But I'll remember this humiliation. One day... hmph."
Meanwhile, Wang Yan did not accuse Zhou Yi of any wrongdoing. On the contrary, he chose to support Zhou Yi's decision. The results were obvious: the students remaining in Class 1 became much more disciplined, and their enthusiasm for learning increased dramatically.
Wang Yan finally accepted the reality before him. He acknowledged that while Zhou Yi's methods seemed harsh, they were extremely effective. With a teacher like her, Class 1 just might produce an outstanding generation of students. As a result, he decided to speak with Zhou Yi directly before reporting the incident to the Academy. He made one request: that he be allowed to continue teaching Class 1 alongside Zhou Yi until they graduated from the outer courtyard. Zhou Yi agreed.
After the last class ended, Wang Yan and Zhou Yi were summoned by Du Weilun because of the commotion that happened that day.
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao rushed off to the Soul Tool Department. Since yesterday, he had officially become Fan Yu's student, and today was his first day of learning there.
"See you later, I'm heading out. You don't need to wait for me for dinner. I don't know when I'll be back, so go ahead and eat first!" he said to Wang Feng and Wang Dong.
The two nodded in understanding, and Huo Yuhao quickly took his leave.
Soon after, only Wang Feng and Wang Dong were left. Xiao Xiao had already gone earlier due to some other matter.
Suddenly, Wang Feng remembered something. "Wang Dong, I think I need to go somewhere too."
Wang Dong immediately looked at him suspiciously. "You're going to see that woman again, aren't you!?"
"Hehe, I'm just worried about Senior Ma Xiaotao. I didn't get the chance to suppress her evil fire yesterday. I'm afraid something might happen to her."
"Hmph! Go take care of your precious senior then!"
"Don't be mad, Dong'er. I didn't do anything weird."
"Don't call me Dong'er! We're not that close for you to just call me that so casually!"
"Okay, okay, sorry. In that case, I'm heading out. Just like Yuhao, you don't need to wait for me for dinner. I'm not sure when I'll be back either."
After saying that, Wang Feng turned around and left. Wang Dong could only pout as he watched his back disappear into the distance.
Wang Feng walked toward the Inner Court dorms and arrived in front of Ma Xiaotao's residence.
He knocked on the door and called out for Ma Xiaotao.
After a moment, the door opened. Ma Xiaotao appeared, her long red hair messy, and her clothes scorched in several places, showing just how chaotic her condition was.
"Wang Feng, you're finally here. Hurry, help me. My Martial Soul is starving and keeps acting up." Ma Xiaotao forcefully pulled Wang Feng inside.
She dragged him into the room they usually used when Wang Feng helped suppress her evil fire.
Ma Xiaotao quickly sat cross-legged in front of Wang Feng. "Come on, do it quickly."
Wang Feng also sat cross-legged behind her. Then, they began the familiar process they had carried out over the past few days.
After several hours of channeling his energy to satisfy the hunger of Ma Xiaotao's Martial Soul, Wang Feng finally finished his task. This time the process took longer than usual since he hadn't had the chance to suppress her evil fire the day before.
Ma Xiaotao let out a sigh of relief as the tension in her body slowly faded. Her face, usually fierce, now looked calm and peaceful. "Thank you," she said in an unusually gentle voice.
Wang Feng smiled as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "No need to thank me, Senior. It's already my responsibility."
Ma Xiaotao looked at him with meaningful eyes before suddenly asking, "Wang Feng, do you have a girlfriend? Or… is there someone you like?"
Wang Feng frowned slightly. "Why are you asking that all of a sudden, Senior?"
"I was just... curious," Ma Xiaotao replied while lowering her head.
"I don't have a girlfriend. As for someone I like…" Wang Feng paused for a moment, making Ma Xiaotao's body tense up. "Honestly, not yet, Senior."
The breath Ma Xiaotao had been holding slowly escaped her lips. Hearing this, Wang Feng asked, "What is it, Senior? Is the energy still not enough?"
"No," Ma Xiaotao said with a small smile. "I just remembered something… that made me feel relieved."
Wang Feng nodded, still looking a little confused. He then stood up to say goodbye. "Well then, if you're feeling better, I'll be going now."
Just as his hand touched the door handle, Ma Xiaotao's voice called out again. "Wait! I'll walk you back."
"There's no need to trouble yourself, Senior."
"It's no trouble. Besides…" Ma Xiaotao looked at him with a mysterious expression, "there's something I want to give you."
Wang Feng raised an eyebrow in curiosity, but eventually nodded. "Alright, then."