The reception hall of Haotian Academy was quiet, its vast space polished to a ceremonial coldness.
Tang San stood at the center, posture measured to the point of restraint. He inclined his head slightly, neither servile nor distant, his voice warm but controlled.
"Tang San greets the seniors."
The courtesy was flawless. So was the calculation beneath it.
As he spoke, his gaze moved—not openly, but with the practiced awareness of someone long accustomed to weighing reactions before words. Hime. Yuhi. And at the center, the Ten Thousand Demon King. Three presences that distorted the air itself, not through pressure, but through the absence of any need to prove dominance.
For this meeting, Tang San had deliberately brought Xiao Wu.
She stood half a step behind him, hands folded, eyes bright. Too bright. The excitement was impossible to hide, and neither was her pride. These were Spirit Beast monarchs—existences whispered about in fear—and yet her attention never left Tang San. Admiration, attachment, and something dangerously unguarded flickered openly in her gaze.
The three Spirit Beast powerhouses noticed immediately.
Their eyes paused on Xiao Wu for only a breath, but that was enough. A transformed Spirit Beast whose focus was not on the fate of her race, but on one man. Not loyalty to a cause—loyalty to an individual.
It was abnormal. And revealing.
Yet none of them reacted.
The Ten Thousand Demon King withdrew his gaze first, expression unreadable, and gave a faint nod.
"Since this is cooperation," he said evenly, "formality is unnecessary."
The words were mild. The implication was not.
Hime and Yuhi exchanged a glance—silent, precise. An understanding passed between them without speech.
Tang San noticed. His shoulders loosened by a fraction. The danger he had anticipated did not surface—at least not openly.
He moved forward, voice careful. "As previously agreed, I will arrange for the three of you to serve as guest Elders of the Tang Sect."
Yuhi replied immediately. "No need."
The refusal was flat, unadorned.
"We will teach at Haotian Academy," Yuhi continued. "We intend to promote coexistence between Spirit Beasts and Spirit Masters. When conditions mature, transformed Spirit Beasts will also enroll."
Tang San's brow creased—barely.
This was not what had been discussed.
His gaze passed over their faces, slow and deliberate. Tang Yuehua had been the one to finalize the earlier terms. Now she was absent, having returned to the Clear Sky Sect to handle internal matters. The timing was inconvenient. Possibly deliberate.
A change in venue was not trivial. Tang Sect and Haotian Academy were not the same battlefield.
Before he could respond, Xiao Wu tugged lightly at his sleeve.
"Third Brother!" Her voice was bright, unguarded. "This is wonderful. If the seniors teach at the Academy, more Spirit Beasts can truly integrate into the human world."
Her sincerity was genuine. And strategically inconvenient.
Tang San closed his eyes for a brief moment.
When he opened them, his decision was made.
"Very well," he said. "You will serve as guest Elders of Haotian Academy, responsible for instruction."
Only instruction.
No administrative authority. No control over policy. No access to the academy's deeper mechanisms.
The Spirit Beast monarchs accepted without hesitation.
Too easily.
Tang San smiled—but his fingers curled slightly at his side.
After Xiao Wu led the three away to arrange their accommodations, the reception hall emptied. Silence returned, heavier than before.
Tang San remained standing.
His thumb brushed against his belt, slow, unconscious. He paced once. Then again.
"The Tang Sect," he muttered. "Not the Academy."
The shift gnawed at him. Agreements did not change without reason. And Tang Yuehua's absence loomed larger the more he considered it.
He turned sharply and headed for the Training Tower.
The moment he entered the training grounds, Tang San activated his communicator.
"Fatty," he said without preamble. "Gather everyone. Plaza Seven. Now."
Minutes later, the Shrek group assembled. Tang San led them away from the open field, choosing a corner shielded by stone pillars and shadow.
He did not waste time.
"How have you considered joining Haotian Academy?"
Zhao Wuji frowned immediately. "We agreed to think it over. Why the rush?"
"The Academy is understaffed," Tang San replied evenly. "Circumstances have changed."
Another voice cut in. "Haotian Academy rejects outsiders. Even if we join, how much can we really change?"
Zhao Wuji snorted. "And with our numbers? Against the Clear Sky Sect?"
"That's why I involved the Spirit Beast race," Tang San said. "Three fierce-beast-level existences are already in place as guest Elders."
Shock rippled through the group.
Tang San pressed forward, his voice steady. "With their presence—and all of you—we can take control of the Clear Sky Sect."
Silence followed.
Oscar spoke first, slow and careful. "The Clear Sky Sect has centuries of foundation. Acting rashly is too dangerous."
Dai Mubai stepped forward, voice sharp. "Danger comes with opportunity. With their resources, our cultivation speed could increase by thirty percent."
The words struck true.
Ma Hongjun nodded vigorously. "Exactly. With those resources—"
His voice shook.
For him, resources were not ambition. They were desperation.
His cultivation lagged behind despite everything. Third-grade methods. Fourth-grade methods he couldn't fully utilize. No sacrificial coins. Repeated defeats. Being forced into the role of dead weight.
The pressure had been accumulating for months.
"Oscar," Ma Hongjun said suddenly, gripping his arm. His strength was startling. "Do you still consider me your brother?"
Oscar froze.
Ma Hongjun's eyes were bloodshot. His usual grin was gone, replaced by something raw and fractured.
"When you were powerless, who stood in front?" Ma Hongjun said hoarsely. "Who stayed up with you? Who believed you could fight?"
Each word landed like a blade.
"And now," he continued, voice breaking, "can't you think of me once?"
Tears spilled freely now.
"I'm the burden," he said. "Every battle. Every fight."
Oscar couldn't speak.
He remembered those nights. The ridicule. The helplessness.
And now that same despair stared back at him.
Oscar nodded.
Ma Hongjun laughed through tears.
Flender stepped in immediately, his palm striking Ma Hongjun's shoulder hard enough to stagger him.
"We understand," Flender said coldly. "But obsession destroys faster than weakness."
Zhao Wuji folded his arms. "If resources are the problem, we'll earn them. If training is the issue, I'll beat it into you myself."
Shao Xin sighed. "Your state is unstable. Power gained now would break you."
Ma Hongjun stood frozen, anger draining into confusion.
"I just don't want to hold us back," he whispered.
Flender's voice softened. "Shrek has never been about strength alone."
No one objected further.
Flender turned to Tang San. "Remember your promise."
Tang San inclined his head. "When the Clear Sky Sect is under control, Haotian Academy can become Shrek Academy."
That was enough.
"Then we go together," Flender said.
Tang San watched them agree, relief flickering briefly through his eyes.
With Shrek inside Haotian Academy, he finally had eyes close enough to watch the Spirit Beasts at all times.