Chapter 556: A Surge in New Enrollments at Sun Moon Academy
"In the past, Shrek Academy, as the number one soul master academy on the Douluo Continent, was the dream school of countless people.
But a series of events has tarnished its reputation.
Now, many in the Three Douluo Nations are unwilling to send their children to Shrek Academy.
This should have been the academy's new enrollment season, yet the number of students signing up is shockingly low.
I am preparing to suggest to Dean Yan that we lower the admission standards this year
To accept as many students as possible.
Even though doing so might reduce the quality of new students,
We have no other way to make up for the loss in numbers."
As he spoke, Du Weilun's expression grew bitter.
Hearing this, Elder Xuan's face twisted in shock.
He had expected the enrollment rate to drop…
But never did he think it would plummet so drastically to the point where the academy had to lower its standards.
What shocked him even more was the number of outer court students choosing to drop out.
Why were they leaving?
Their families were killed by evil soul masters.
If they didn't cling to the academy, how could they avenge them?
Had these students given up on revenge?
No. Impossible.
Shrek students weren't that spineless.
Then…
Had these students found a new patron to help them fight the evil soul masters?
But who else on the Douluo Continent was powerful enough to lead them?
Had they all joined the Body Sect?
No, that doesn't make sense either.
The Body Sect only accepted those with Innate Body Martial Souls.
And to his knowledge, there weren't any students at Shrek who had such a martial soul.
There was no reason for the Body Sect to take them in.
"What about the inner court? What's the situation there?"
That was the real heart of Shrek Academy the so called "monsters' gathering place" and the main focus of the academy's resources.
Every inner court student was a genius among geniuses.
Du Weilun hesitated.
Then, gritting his teeth, he finally admitted:
"The inner court is struggling as well."
"Some of them also lost family members to the evil soul masters."
"After hearing your speech, they felt your apology was insincere, and your attempt to 'inspire' them was misplaced."
"Losing one's family to evil soul masters is an earth shattering tragedy. These students were already on edge, and your words only pushed them further."
"Many have left."
"They didn't officially withdraw, perhaps out of gratitude for the academy's past support… but they made it clear that they 'might never return.'"
Elder Xuan fell into a long silence.
The situation was growing dire.
For the first time, he sensed that Shrek Academy was on the brink of collapse.
No.
He had to save it.
Now that the academy was falling apart, and Mu En was blindly trusting Yan Shaozhe, an obvious traitor,
If he didn't step in now,
Shrek would be doomed!
A Few Days Later
Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy
The skies were clear, the weather perfect.
It was enrollment season, and large crowds of students and parents had gathered to register and pay tuition.
A constant buzz of chatter echoed through the academy.
This year's new student enrollment had skyrocketed far exceeding previous years.
There were two major reasons for this:
The Sun Moon Academy had won back to back championships, bringing glory to the Sun Moon Empire.
Many proud citizens now revered the academy, making it their top choice for education.
A massive wave of immigrants from the Three Douluo Nations had arrived in the Sun Moon Empire.
Fleeing an uncertain future, they were determined to secure a better education for their children.
Many of them chose Sun Moon Academy as their new home.
In a quiet, secluded pavilion, Meng Hongchen stood by the window, watching the sea of people below.
Her expression was one of shock.
**"Junior Yuhao, these are the immigrants you mentioned who wanted to join Sun Moon Academy?
"There are so many of them!"**
As someone with a grandfather who was the Dean, Meng Hongchen had spent years at the academy.
She had seen countless enrollment seasons…
But never had she witnessed a scene like this.
Beside her, Huo Yuhao smiled.
**"Senior Meng, this is only a small fraction of them.
"In a few more days, even more immigrants will arrive and apply for enrollment.
"When that happens, Sun Moon Academy's student population will skyrocket."**
Meng Hongchen's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Even more immigrants are coming?!"
Huo Yuhao nodded confidently.
**"Yes."In fact, the academy will probably have to build a new campus just to accommodate them all."**
He smirked inwardly.
Letting Elder Xuan go free, and using him to sabotage Shrek from within…
Had been the right decision.
Now, Shrek Academy's reputation had hit rock bottom.
Meanwhile, Sun Moon Academy was flourishing like never before.
The immigrants enrolling at Sun Moon Academy were mainly divided into two groups:
Students who originally planned to attend Shrek Academy
After the White Tiger City disaster, their families lost faith in Shrek.
Shrek Academy had failed to protect their loved ones from evil soul masters.
As a result, they no longer believed in Shrek's ability to defend against the Sun Moon Empire.
Rather than die as citizens of a defeated nation, they immigrated early, becoming "honorary Sun Moon citizens."
Students who dropped out of Shrek Academy
Their families had been slaughtered by Zhongli Wu's forces.
They were consumed with hatred for evil soul masters but also deeply resentful of Shrek.
Shrek had exploited their trust, only to fail them at the most critical moment.
Why should they remain in an academy that let their families die?
So they left.
And it was Huo Yuhao's Spirit Pagoda that reached out to them.
Ever since the Spirit Pagoda had begun expanding its influence within the Three Douluo Nations,
Its reach had grown rapidly.
Now, it had successfully redirected Shrek's abandoned students to Sun Moon Academy.
Shrek's loss was Sun Moon's gain.
And Huo Yuhao had orchestrated it all.
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