"The exam?"
The moment the Shrek Academy exam came up, something clicked in Arthur's mind.
That promise Ya Li had made him, that during his time at Shrek Academy he'd enjoy the same treatment and resources originally reserved for Cai Yue'er.
If he remembered right, wasn't Cai Yue'er the dean of Shrek Academy's Outer Court?
Oh!
An idea suddenly struck him.
"What are you thinking about?" Noticing the increasingly sinister curve of Arthur's smile, Na'er couldn't help but ask.
"Ahem." Arthur waved a hand, gathering everyone's attention.
"What's up?" Xie Xie asked.
"I might not be taking the exam with the rest of you."
That single sentence silenced the room instantly, and the horseplay cut off cold.
Zhang Yangzi's eyes went wide as he pushed his face close to Arthur's, unable to believe his ears. "Huh? Why? Aren't we in Class Zero supposed to pass the exam together? How can you just drop out on your own?"
"Hey, relax." Arthur said it with a perfectly straight face. "It's because I got a direct admission."
Those two words, direct admission, killed the mood dead.
Xie Xie pointed a finger at Arthur, stammering, "Direct admission? Shrek does direct admissions?! On what grounds?!"
"Probably because I'm too handsome." Arthur sighed dramatically, putting on airs.
Na'er played along perfectly, nodding with great seriousness. "That checks out."
Xu Xiaoyan added, "On that point, I have to agree as well."
Forget Xie Xie, even Tang Wulin was left speechless.
Watching the little performance unfold in front of him.
Xie Xie couldn't hold it together and instinctively touched his own face. "I'm not bad looking either. Why doesn't anyone give me a direct admission?"
Tang Wulin held back a laugh and clapped Xie Xie on the shoulder. "Come on, Xie Xie. Arthur must have some special reason. It can't really be about looks."
Wu Changkong stood by the window, listening to the racket behind her, the corner of her mouth lifting in a barely perceptible curve before smoothing back into her usual cool composure. She turned and said, "Enough fooling around. There are only three days left before the exam. Get a good rest today."
At the heart of Shrek City stood Shrek Academy, its scale nothing short of immense.
Recognized across the continent as the foremost city and foremost academy, it was the sacred ground countless soul masters longed to reach.
The academy's history stretched back an astonishing twenty thousand years, its scale nothing short of vast.
Every year's intake of new students was one of the most watched events in the entire continent's soul master community.
There was a saying that circulated across the continent, that even those who failed to get into Shrek could enter a top-tier academy without further testing, and it wasn't an exaggeration in the slightest.
After all, every soul master who qualified to sit the exam was already a prodigy drawn from every corner of the land.
Shrek's Outer Court only admitted two hundred students each year. Fifty of those spots were reserved for those who failed the Inner Court exam.
The Inner Court itself only had fifty open spots per year. Passing meant starting from the very peak, while even failing still guaranteed a spot in the Outer Court, preserving the chance to try again in the future.
Every graduate of Shrek Academy was among the continent's top talent, and every major power scrambled to recruit them with generous terms.
Among them, the most valuable were the students who climbed from the Outer Court into the Inner Court.
Because the requirement for moving from the Outer Court to the Inner Court was becoming a Battle Armor Master.
Students who tested directly into the Inner Court, however, had no such requirement, which left far too much room for maneuvering and made personal connections carry far more weight.
Tomorrow was exam day, and the hotels surrounding the academy were already packed to capacity, a massive crowd of young soul masters competing for spots, along with the teachers and parents accompanying them.
Wu Changkong, without telling her own students, had arrived ahead of time.
She walked slowly toward the academy's west gate, her usually cold face carrying a hint of complicated emotion.
She had come to see her own teacher. What happened back then was something she needed to finally face.
Not wanting her students to find out, Wu Changkong had come early, intending to get a sense of things before they enrolled.
Otherwise, once they were students here, the truth might come to light.
As she drew near the towering gate tower, Wu Changkong found herself stopping in her tracks, lips pressed tight.
Shen Yi walked over and said softly, "Let's go. Our teacher's actually always thought of you. It's just that the two of you, teacher and student, are both stubborn as mules."
Just thinking about it gave her a headache. Her teacher and her senior brother: one refused to talk, the other hated talking.
Who could possibly understand the suffering she went through?
Wu Changkong lowered her head and stayed silent for a moment, then quickened her pace.
Meanwhile, Arthur had also arrived at Shrek Academy ahead of schedule.
At the gate stood two young men in dark green uniforms, keeping watch.
"Halt. Shrek Academy's exam doesn't start until tomorrow. Come back then."
They assumed Arthur was there for the exam.
"I'm not a candidate."
Arthur shook his head.
"Not a candidate?" The two exchanged a glance, and one of them asked, "Then you'll need an entry permit to get in."
"An entry permit?" Arthur scratched his head. Did he really need one of those?
He thought it over for a moment, then pulled out his soul communicator, saying as he did, "By rights, someone at your rank shouldn't even have the authority to stop me."
He displayed a string of numbers first, and under their puzzled stares, tapped to dial.
"Arthur?" A gentle female voice came through from the other end.
"I'm here. Right outside your academy's front gate."
"Wonderful!"
The voice carried a note of unmistakable excitement.
The very next moment.
A breathtakingly beautiful woman with an otherworldly aura appeared out of nowhere.
The Holy Spirit Douluo, Ya Li.
Ya Li's arrival was like moonlight falling into the mortal world, an ethereal presence spreading out around her instantly.
The two young men naturally recognized her at once, instinctively holding their breath before immediately bowing low. "Greetings, Your Excellency the Holy Spirit Douluo!"
Their voices carried a reverence they couldn't quite hide.
Not just at Shrek Academy, the name Holy Spirit Douluo carried special weight across the entire federation.
"I didn't think you'd actually come." Ya Li's face wore a smile she couldn't quite suppress.
"I said I would, so I did." Arthur ventured, "Do you still remember the promise you made back then?"
He turned his head slightly, muttering under his breath, "If I recall, wasn't Little Cai originally the Outer Court dean?"
"Little Cai?"
At that nickname, Ya Li nearly failed to place who he meant.
It took her a moment of thinking before she remembered what he was referring to.
Then Ya Li said, her tone firm and certain, "Of course I remember. During your time at Shrek Academy, you'll receive treatment equivalent to that of the Outer Court dean. That's what I said, and I don't go back on my word."
"So I'm the dean now?"
"Only in status." Ya Li glanced at Arthur, who looked like he was about to cause some kind of trouble, and sighed helplessly. "The Outer Court dean position is already held by a senior elder."
"Fair enough."
The two of them chatted as they walked into the academy.
The two young men naturally didn't dare stop them.
They watched Arthur chatting away happily with Her Excellency the Holy Spirit Douluo.
Their hearts wept without tears.
If you're this impressive, why didn't you say so from the start? What was the point of messing with the two of us on duty?
The two of them walked through Shrek Academy, with Ya Li doing all the explaining along the way while Arthur listened.
Ya Li said with a faint smile, "As the continent's foremost academy, Shrek naturally has deep roots and rich foundations. Not only are the resources here abundant, but there are also countless ancient texts and secret manuals, along with top-tier instructors. It'll be a great benefit to your growth."
"Maybe." Arthur wasn't particularly interested.
Seeing this, Ya Li continued, "This is just the Outer Court. The true essence of Shrek lies in the Inner Court. Let me take you to see it."
Arthur then followed Ya Li to a building surrounded by greenery.
A figure was kneeling there.
"Huh?" Arthur rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things.
Wasn't that Wu Changkong?
How had she suddenly become so pathetic-looking?
Flop Diary: Today I went to celebrate a friend's birthday. This jerk didn't even want cake, dragged us all out for barbecue instead.