Furina's gaze turned back to Zhou Yi's face, which was slightly distorted by anger, and she spoke the last few words softly but with absolute certainty:
"...really, it is impossible to cultivate the 'monsters' you want. To be honest, this is more like stifling possibilities."
The word "Impossible" was articulated particularly clearly, like three cold stones thrown into the boiling fire of Zhou Yi's anger.
"You—!" The string of Zhou Yi's reason finally snapped. A powerful aura belonging to the Spirit Emperor level suddenly erupted from her; although it was released and retracted instantly, that momentary pressure still made the surrounding students' breath hitch.
"Furina! Don't be too presumptuous! Do you really think I don't dare to expel you right now? Do you really think I can't handle a student like you?!"
Facing the suddenly increased pressure, Furina didn't even move her feet. She even tilted her head, a hint of a mix of helplessness and faint irony appearing on her face.
"See, Teacher Zhou, here we go again." She spread her hands, her tone carrying a realization of "as expected."
"Besides coercion, you don't seem very good at other forms of communication? You are a Spirit Emperor, and looking at your irritable personality, your Spirit is clearly not of the support system. Whether it's Power Attack, Control, or Agility Attack, against an 'unarmed' support system Spirit Master like me, if you really make a move, do you think it's appropriate? There are so many classmates watching here."
She specifically emphasized "unarmed" and "watching," her gaze sweeping over Huo Yuhao, Xiao Xiao, Wang Dong, and those students who were fearful but still hadn't left.
"Oh, I see." Furina seemed to have suddenly thought of something, her index finger lightly tapping her chin, "You've been very restrained today, at least tolerating me saying so many 'outrageous' things, questioning your teaching, letting me be a temporary teacher, and even... indirectly questioning the theories of Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang whom you admire. This 'forbearance' is indeed rare."
This sentence completely ignited the final fuse. Zhou Yi's face turned ashen, and she no longer cared about any image, pointing at Furina's nose, her voice trembling with extreme anger:
"Shut up! You ignorant brat! Letting you temporarily take over teaching duties was my biggest mistake! What's more—"
She took a deep breath, as if grasping the ultimate handle, her tone becoming sharp and biting, "As a so-called 'Pope' of an external Sect, you sneaked into Shrek Academy, incited students, and questioned orthodoxy. Your fundamental purpose is probably to poach people and shake the academy's Foundation, right? With such malicious intent, based on this alone, I have sufficient reason to expel you immediately and clear you out of Shrek!"
A needle could be heard dropping on the plaza.
"Poaching"? "Malicious intent"? "Clearing out"?
These heavy words smashed down, leaving all the spectating students stunned. They looked at Furina with complex gazes. From today's contact, Furina's impression on them was mysterious, interesting, powerful, and empathetic. The pistol and Hidden Weaponss she brought out, and the philosophies she shared, all made their eyes light up. But Zhou Yi's accusation was so serious, directly escalating to the level of loyalty to the academy.
Huo Yuhao's brow furrowed tightly, and Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao exchanged worried looks. If Zhou Yi really attacked with this justification, things could become very troublesome.
Facing this near-ultimate accusation from Zhou Yi, Furina was silent for a moment.
Then, she suddenly laughed.
That smile wasn't flamboyant, even carrying a child-like purity, but against the backdrop of those heterochromatic eyes, it had a clarity that saw through everything and... a hint of faint pity.
She didn't directly refute the "poaching" accusation, nor was she in a hurry to defend herself. She just gently straightened her cuffs, which were slightly messy from the day's activities, looked up, and asked a seemingly irrelevant question in a voice so calm it was almost hollow:
"Teacher Zhou Yi, you firmly believe that Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang's theories are flawless and that your high-pressure teaching method is the only correct one... then, have you ever lowered your head and looked seriously and without any prejudice into the eyes of these students before you?"
Her gaze slowly swept across every young face; there was tension, curiosity, anger, and also confusion on those faces.
"They came here with a desire to become stronger and a longing for the future. They are not plants waiting to be pruned into uniform bonsai, let alone livestock that need to be driven forward by fear."
Furina looked back at Zhou Yi, her voice still steady, but seemingly containing something heavy:
"The essence of education is to light the soul fire, not to suffocate it in your so-called 'correct' mold. Expelling me is easy, Teacher Zhou. But have you ever thought that what you really want to expel might not just be the person 'Furina', but the little bit of courage to question and the longing for a different... light that has just been ignited in these children's hearts?"
Furina just quietly looked at Zhou Yi, waiting for the other's reaction or the arrival of the next storm.
And all the surrounding students, including Huo Yuhao, held their breath. They were witnessing what the final result would be. However, no matter the outcome, Furina would win, and Zhou Yi would only lose; it was just a matter of winning once or winning twice.
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