After leaving Nuoding City, Yu Xiaogang traveled all the way to Soto City, winding through streets before finally finding the remotely located Shrek Academy.
"Halt! What are you here for?"
At the entrance of Shrek Academy, an old man lay lazily on a wooden chair. He lifted his eyelids slightly, glancing sideways at the travel-worn Yu Xiaogang with a scrutinizing look in his eyes.
Yu Xiaogang adjusted his robe, trying to straighten his back and recover some of the dignity befitting a Grandmaster.
"I'm here to see Flender."
"To see the Dean?" The old man looked him up and down. "Do you have an appointment? Our Dean is a very busy man. Not just anyone can see him."
Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, suppressing his displeasure, and said in a low voice, "Go and inform him that an old friend, Yu Xiaogang, has come to visit."
Hearing the words "old friend," the old man hesitated for a moment, then got up and went inside to relay the message.
Not long after, hurried footsteps approached.
A bespectacled middle-aged man with a somewhat shrewd appearance walked out quickly. It was Flender, the Four-Eyed Owl.
Seeing Yu Xiaogang, his face revealed a mixture of surprise and joy: "Xiaogang! It really is you! How did you find this place?"
"Boss Flan, it's been many years. I hope you've been well."
Yu Xiaogang felt a slight warmth in his heart, forcing a faint smile onto his face.
Flender enthusiastically patted his shoulder: "How many years has it been since we brothers last met? I'm so happy you came!"
As a sworn brother, Flender had treated Yu Xiaogang to an almost extreme degree of kindness.
For the sake of his good brother, he not only voluntarily withdrew from the competition, willingly becoming a third wheel, but even held not a trace of resentment. It was truly incomprehensible.
Soon, the two entered the academy.
The interior of the academy was even more dilapidated than the outside suggested. The grounds were not large, consisting only of a few rundown wooden huts and an open area.
At a glance, a stocky, slightly shorter middle-aged man could be seen training four youths using his own methods.
Flender led Yu Xiaogang over, smiling as he said:
"Xiaogang, you came at just the right time. We just accepted two students with decent talent this morning. Except for one student who went out on some business, everyone else is here. How about you pick one to take as your disciple?"
As a good brother, Flender naturally knew that Yu Xiaogang had a complex—a desire to prove to the world that he was not a failure.
"You've been running this academy for so long, and you only have these few students?"
"There's no helping it. Our Shrek Academy adheres to the principle of preferring quality over quantity. Anyone who isn't a little monster gets kicked out immediately."
Pausing for a moment, a trace of pride appeared on Flender's face as he patted Yu Xiaogang's shoulder and continued, "Don't worry. These four are all geniuses, one in ten thousand. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Hearing this, a flash of delight crossed Yu Xiaogang's eyes, though he feigned an appearance of utter indifference on the surface.
"Then let's take a look first."
Yu Xiaogang clasped his hands behind his back, his face unreadable, adopting the posture of a Grandmaster.
Flender smiled and immediately called the four students over, introducing them solemnly:
"This is the renowned theoretical Grandmaster of the spirit master world, Yu Xiaogang. His theories are unparalleled under heaven. From now on, he will be responsible for guiding your cultivation."
Hearing the Dean's introduction, the four exchanged glances. They hadn't heard of any "Grandmaster."
However, since Dean Flender said so, this Grandmaster must have some extraordinary qualities.
"This is Dai Mubai. Spirit: White Tiger. Age fifteen. Rank 37 Battle Spirit Elder. Definitely a top-tier genius."
Flender pointed to the blond youth at the front. He had naturally odd-colored pupils, an extraordinary bearing, with a hint of unruliness and arrogance between his brows.
Hearing Flender's praise, Dai Mubai frowned slightly. This didn't seem like the Dean's usual style.
It felt more like he was setting someone up for a scam.
"Fifteen years old..."
Yu Xiaogang shook his head. Lin Mu had already been in the fortieth ranks by age sixteen. Compared to Lin Mu, this Dai Mubai was far too lacking.
Seeing the trace of disdain in Yu Xiaogang's eyes made Dai Mubai feel particularly displeased, but for Flender's sake, he had to hold it in.
"Zhu Zhuqing. Spirit: Nether Civet. Age eleven. Rank 27 Great Spirit Master."
Flender then pointed to a girl wearing tight-fitting leather. Her chest was particularly prominent, and she exuded an emotionless coldness.
Seeing this, the light in Yu Xiaogang's eyes dimmed a bit. The spirit wasn't exactly top-tier.
Flender sighed, a trace of helplessness in his eyes, then pointed to a boy with a hint of a mustache and continued the introduction: "Oscar. Spirit: Sausage. Innate Full Spirit Power. Age fourteen. Rank 29 Great Spirit Master."
"Innate Full Spirit Power, yet only rank 29 at fourteen?"
Yu Xiaogang shook his head, sounding slightly regretful.
Hearing this, Oscar merely gave an awkward smile, mentally offering a "friendly" greeting to eighteen generations of Yu Xiaogang's ancestors.
At that moment, Ning Rongrong suddenly remembered something and spoke up: "I heard my father mention that there was a theoretical Grandmaster who plagiarized the Spirit Hall's theories and then claimed them as his own research."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked. They all turned scrutinizing gazes towards Yu Xiaogang.
In that instant, Yu Xiaogang was reminded of the days of humiliation by Lin Mu. His entire body trembled uncontrollably.
His eyes turned bloodshot, he panted like an ox, glaring at Ning Rongrong almost maniacally.
"You're talking nonsense!"
"These are theories I painstakingly researched myself! They have nothing to do with the Spirit Hall! This is slander, defamation!"
Seeing Yu Xiaogang's terrifying appearance, Ning Rongrong was frightened.
"Then how do you explain having only rank 29?"
Hearing that this Grandmaster had spirit power of less than rank 30, Dai Mubai and the others were utterly furious.
Earlier, they had thought this Grandmaster was at least a Spirit Sage powerhouse like Dean Flender, which was why they had tolerated him repeatedly. They never expected he was just a failure.
"Judging people by their appearance," Dai Mubai sneered.
Yu Xiaogang almost spat out blood in anger. He never expected these people, like Lin Mu, to show no respect for their elders.
Flender looked extremely awkward, stepping forward to smooth things over: "Ahem, although Xiaogang's spirit power isn't high, his theoretical knowledge is absolutely top-notch."
To this, Dai Mubai and the others merely snorted coldly, having no desire to pay any attention to this fraud.
Just as Yu Xiaogang was in an extremely awkward predicament, a somewhat lecherous voice sounded.
"Dean, I'm back! I made a big haul today!"
A chubby figure came running from outside the academy, a satisfied yet somewhat dissipated smile on his face.
It was Ma Hongjun, returning from his "venting fire" trip.
Flender frowned: "Hongjun, you went to that kind of place again? Control yourself a bit!"
Ma Hongjun chuckled, patting his stomach: "Dean, I can't suppress this evil fire of mine. Otherwise, I'd burn up."
"Evil fire?"
Yu Xiaogang immediately became interested. He immediately stepped forward, grabbing Ma Hongjun's shoulders. "If you're willing to become my disciple, I can help you solve your evil fire problem."
Upon hearing this, Flender was completely dumbfounded.
First, you stole the girl, and now you're even taking his disciple.
But seeing Yu Xiaogang's frenzied state, Flender felt very conflicted. After all, Yu Xiaogang had said he could solve the evil fire issue.
After weighing the options, Flender gave Ma Hongjun a look, urging him to quickly become his disciple.
Although he wasn't sure if this person was reliable, in order to solve the evil fire problem, Ma Hongjun couldn't care about that anymore and immediately chose to become his disciple.
Watching Ma Hongjun being fooled so completely, Dai Mubai and Oscar exchanged a look of pity in their eyes.