In the forest on the border of Tian Dou.
A voluptuous and delicate-looking girl in black clothes, with her long hair flowing gently in the night breeze, resembling an elf in the darkness, swiftly moved through the woods.
It was none other than Zhu Zhuqing, who had just left the Star Luo Empire.
It had been over a year since she left the Star Luo Empire to cultivate the Nirvana Scripture. Now, her cultivation had reached the Soul Elder realm, and she had added a third soul ring to her martial soul.
The enhancement of her bloodline combined with the effects of her techniques helped her make up for the lack of foundation she had before.
Furthermore, with the absorption of soul rings, her current level was four levels higher than in the original timeline.
However, replicating this situation in the future would be difficult.
After all, the lower the strength of the martial soul, the easier it is to refine and strengthen it.
As the quality continued to improve, the difficulty of further advancement would also increase.
Unless she could compensate for the missing essential information in her martial soul and evolve the Hell Civet into the Hell White Tiger, she could only rely on time to slowly accumulate power.
And her purpose for this journey was precisely to obtain the Hell White Tiger.
In the south of the Tian Dou Empire, in the Barak Kingdom, in the city of Soto.
As Zhu Zhuqing followed the young man with heterochromatic eyes and a pair of twin sisters out of the hotel, she quietly observed the scene outside the village where the Shrek Academy registration point was located.
At this moment, Dai Mubai's cultivation was only at the Soul Elder level, not much higher than Zhu Zhuqing.
But Zhu Zhuqing had richer experience and comprehension in using martial souls. Her martial soul, the Hell Civet of the agility attack system, silently followed him without being noticed.
After observing for a while, Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help but frown at the behavior of the academy.
She was not someone with a soft heart. In the memories imprinted in her mind from her dreams, she effortlessly moved among many nobles, where countless scenes of bloody battles unfolded.
But extorting money from ordinary people was something she couldn't bring herself to do.
It was too cheap.
Ten gold soul coins might not be a small amount for ordinary people. In the Douluo Continent, one gold soul coin was enough to sustain a normal family of three for several months of normal expenses.
But for high-level soul masters, this money was insignificant. The elder sitting behind the table clearly had considerable strength.
If the admission standards were stated beforehand, it would have been acceptable. But taking the registration fee and then saying that the applicant didn't meet the admission criteria, refusing to refund the fee, was simply cheating under the guise of power.
However, Zhu Zhuqing had no intention of righting the wrong.
She was different from before, having long recognized the reality of this world.
Her disgust at the other party's actions had nothing to do with a sense of justice. She simply felt that such methods were too primitive.
At this moment, another young man and a girl walked over from not far away.
Originally, Zhu Zhuqing didn't pay much attention, but after noticing their age and cultivation, she was surprised.
Although these two were slightly older than her, they were close to the thirty-level mark from their aura.
"...Brother, don't think too much about that Su Cheng's matter. Maybe he just felt unsuitable to be a soul master and chose to drop out early."
"!"
Zhu Zhuqing had turned away, but after hearing the name, she suddenly turned her head and looked in the direction where the two were.
"Hmm?" Tang San raised his head sharply, scanning around, but did not notice anything unusual.
Zhu Zhuqing, hidden behind a tree, felt a slight shock in her heart, secretly acknowledging the other party's keen intuition.
She had just focused her gaze slightly, and the other party had sensed something amiss.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Wu looked puzzled and glanced around.
"It's nothing, probably just a misconception."
Tang San shook his head, and his slightly gloomy expression calmed down.
Originally, at graduation, he wanted to find Su Cheng first to avenge his previous humiliation, then follow Yu Xiao Gang's instructions to come to Soto City for enrollment.
After all, with his current formidable twenty-nine-level soul power, defeating Su Cheng would be a breeze.
However, after searching in vain, he learned from the dean that Su Cheng had already dropped out of the academy long ago, but the specific circumstances were not disclosed to him.
He glanced at Xiao Wu, a smile appearing on his face.
"You're right. The teacher told me before that with his innate soul power level, he was not suitable for the path of a soul master and probably gave up early."
As Zhu Zhuqing noticed, these two people seemed to imply that Su Cheng had poor aptitude and was not suitable for cultivation.
Although they were slightly older than her, if Su Cheng was truly that person, his cultivation aptitude would definitely not be poor.
Moreover, the White Tiger Martial Soul should not have been left unattended in the Tian Dou region for so many years without anyone noticing.
Even if ordinary people couldn't recognize it, the forces of the Soul Palace scattered across the continent should have detected it.
Shaking her head, she temporarily suppressed this matter.
"...Shrek is a kind of monster, even among soul beasts, it is a very peculiar existence. The meaning of our Shrek Academy is the Academy of Monsters. In other words, we only accept monsters, not ordinary people. If you are over thirteen years old or your soul power has not reached level twenty-one, there is no need to waste time here."
At this moment, the cold voice of the old man came from afar.
Zhu Zhuqing sneered inwardly at his words.
Dai Mubai actually found such a broken place to hide. This academy didn't seem very significant, but its attitude was quite arrogant.
However, for her, it was a good thing.
This academy was already remote, and with such bizarre admission criteria, there wouldn't be too many people inside, making it more convenient for her future actions.
Moreover, with the Nirvana Scripture in her hand and the experience of cultivation in her dreams, she didn't need the knowledge accumulation of the school.
It would be much easier to seize Dai Mubai's martial soul bloodline here.
However, the next moment, the elder behind the table suddenly emitted an extremely powerful aura, and a bright red light appeared from him. A staff with countless intricate patterns appeared in his right hand.
Even more terrifyingly, six soul rings—one white, one yellow, and three purple—rose from under his feet, making him the focus of the entire scene.
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes narrowed slightly.
She didn't expect the other party to be a Soul Emperor.
She had indeed sensed his strength, but she couldn't clearly probe his specific cultivation level with her current level, nor dared to probe.
But the powerful cultivation level displayed by the other party not only didn't excite her expectations but also made her feel more disappointed.
A Soul Emperor had fallen to such a state, even needing to find a way to extort ten gold soul coins from ordinary people, which was embarrassing.
She suspected that the other party had probably gotten into trouble outside and had to hide in such a remote place.
In the grand scheme of things, for a dignified Soul Emperor to stoop to the point of squeezing even ten gold soul coins from ordinary people is truly disgraceful.
Internally suspecting that the other party must have gotten into some trouble outside, forcing them to hide in such a remote corner.
Equally shocked were the crowds lining up.
If there were some parents who were unwilling before because of the old man's words, now everyone seemed to be silent as if under a spell.
Who would dare to offend a powerhouse at the level of a Soul Emperor?
In war, the strength of a Soul Emperor could at least match thousands of skilled warriors.
The disdain and contempt in the eyes of parents and prospective students vanished in an instant. On this continent, strength represents righteousness.
Equally changing expressions were Tang San and Xiao Wu.
But unlike Zhu Zhuqing's disappointment, their expressions were rather excited at this moment.
Looking at the applicants in front of them, Xiao Wu excitedly whispered to Tang San, "This academy seems very interesting, especially the teacher's remark about only accepting monsters and not ordinary people. It's really cool."
Tang San smiled and said, "Now you don't doubt the teacher's advice, do you? This Shrek Academy is extraordinary."
The remaining students quickly passed the old man's first round of testing, and it was finally Tang San and Xiao Wu's turn.
At this point, after sending off a few applicants, Dai Mubai had also returned to the old man's side.
Tang San was about to greet him when he suddenly noticed that Dai Mubai's gaze had changed, staring directly behind him as if he had seen something incredible.
He instinctively turned to look, although not as startled as Dai Mubai, his heart still trembled.
Behind him and Xiao Wu, there was only one applicant left, and it seemed she had just arrived.
She was also a girl, looking slightly younger than him and Xiao Wu, with long black hair cascading over her shoulders, a delicate face expressionless, and fair skin like warm jade.
But what was more impressive was the extraordinary aura emanating from this girl.
Although she was young, she seemed to possess an extraordinary leadership quality, with even her gaze seeming to look down on them from a high position. Her face was calm, not exactly cold, but naturally exuding a sense of distance that kept others at bay.
Under this aura, even her mature figure and exquisite beauty didn't seem as striking.
Her limbs were well-proportioned and slender, her hands naturally hanging at her sides, and the calm aura around her made people hesitate to approach.
"Do you intend to register or not? If not, don't block the way here." The old man's voice brought Tang San and the others back to their senses.
Tang San felt a pain in his hand and turned to see Xiao Wu glaring at him fiercely.
"We'll register together."
Tang San endured the pain in his hand and placed the twenty gold soul coins he had prepared into the wooden box, reaching out his hand along with Xiao Wu.
The old man pinched Xiao Wu's hand first, nodded, and said, "Your age is appropriate."
When he moved to Tang San's hand, he couldn't help but exclaim softly.
Seemingly unable to believe it, he pinched Tang San's hand a few more times, his expression becoming strange.
Looking up at Tang San, he asked, "Have you been practicing some soul technique?"
The reason he pinched the applicant's hand was to discern their true age by feeling the bones in their palm. This was something that couldn't be faked.
But Tang San's hand felt extremely flexible, making it difficult to discern the condition of his bones.
Tang San's heart skipped a beat but nodded, saying, "Yes."
The old man furrowed his brows, "Raise your calf."
Following his instructions, Tang San lifted his calf and placed it on the table. The old man pinched his calf through his pants, causing Tang San to feel a tingling sensation.
Nodding to himself, the old man said, "Muscle development is good, bone age is appropriate. Alright, release your martial souls."
Tang San and Xiao Wu exchanged glances and simultaneously activated their soul power.
Blue and red lights rose simultaneously, and their hundred-year soul rings hovered up.
Tang San's Blue Silver Grass martial soul and Xiao Wu's Soft Bone Rabbit martial soul were presented before the old man.
After a brief moment of surprise, the old man nodded in satisfaction.
Seeing this, Dai Mubai stepped forward, smiling at Tang San, but his attention seemed to be focused behind him.
He felt a certain complementary aura between him and Zhu Zhuqing.
After noticing each other's gaze, Zhu Zhuqing also walked forward openly.
With a cold face, she looked at Dai Mubai with a hint of surprise in her eyes.
Nodding at him, she said lightly, "Hello."
At this moment, Dai Mubai couldn't help but feel a sense of being honored and surprised.
He hurriedly nodded and said, "Hello, I'm Dai Mubai, fifteen years old this year..."
"Cough." Seeing that Dai Mubai seemed to continue his self-introduction, the old man coughed lightly to interrupt him.
His gaze also turned to Zhu Zhuqing, gesturing for her to extend her hand.
After sensing for a moment, he nodded and said, "Eleven years old, the age is appropriate. Alright, release your martial soul."
A dark blue light shone, and the soul rings hovered up.
At the same time, cat ears sprouted from her head, sharp claws protruding from between her fingers, and her body became even more slender.
Martial Soul: Hell Civet.
But that wasn't the most eye-catching aspect.
The light of her two yellow, one purple, three soul rings was the focus of their attention.
Especially after hearing her age, Tang San and the others found it even more unbelievable.
After all, Tang San and Xiao Wu themselves only reached Rank 29 at the age of twelve with full soul power from birth.
But this girl, who was even younger than them, already had the cultivation of a Soul Ancestor?
Upon seeing her martial soul, Dai Mubai's eyes widened slightly, his face full of disbelief.