While Furina and the others were chatting over dinner, the atmosphere in the high-level area of Shrek Academy was completely different.
In the office of the Martial Soul Department's Dean Yan Shaozhe, the lights were bright. Du Weilun, the Director of Instruction for the Outer Court, stood by the desk with a deep frown. Before them was Zhou Yi, who was being supported by two teachers as she entered.
Seeing Zhou Yi in such a state, Yan Shaozhe and Du Weilun's pupils constricted simultaneously.
Zhou Yi was notoriously difficult to deal with at Shrek Academy. As a teacher, her teaching style was extremely strict, even cruel. Every year, the number of students in her class who passed the Promotion Assessment was always the lowest, but those who survived and successfully advanced were often of the highest quality. Because of this, the academy's high-level officials had always turned a blind eye to some of her outrageous behaviors, letting her be as long as she didn't cause major trouble.
The reason Du Weilun had transferred Zhou Yi to the Freshman Class recently was also because there were too many complaints from the older students that could no longer be suppressed. He thought that letting her lead the freshmen might make her show some restraint. But who could have imagined that on the very first day of school, such a big incident would occur?
At this moment, Zhou Yi's state was clearly abnormal. Her pale Face had an unnatural flush, traces of uncleaned blood remained at the corners of her mouth, her eyes were unfocused, and her breathing was rapid. She looked as if she had been severely provoked, even showing signs of Qi Deviation.
"What happened?" Du Weilun asked in a low voice, his sharp gaze sweeping over the two accompanying teachers. "Has an external enemy invaded the academy? Is it an Evil Soul Master? Or the Sun Moon Empire? But... didn't Vice Dean Qian Duoduo set up a Soul Tool Defense Array long ago?"
A middle-aged male teacher quickly stepped forward and reported the sequence of events from the beginning—starting from the practical lesson in the Soul Fighting Area where Furina served as a temporary teacher, to the subsequent conflict in the square, how Zhou Yi was provoked by Furina's words, how she was publicly slandered as an "Evil Soul Master," and finally how she coughed up blood in anger, her disguise was exposed, and she was surrounded and jeered at by the students...
He reported everything exactly as it happened. He tried to speak as objectively as possible, but his words still betrayed his disapproval of Zhou Yi's behavior of releasing her Spirit Emperor pressure to oppress the students in public.
After hearing the report, Du Weilun first sighed in relief.
"It's good that it wasn't an invasion by Evil Soul Masters." He rubbed his brow, but then found it absurd. "But for Teacher Zhou, a dignified Spirit Emperor who has taught for many years and even has the private nickname 'Perverted Old Witch,' to be pushed to such a state by a freshman? This batch of freshmen... is quite interesting."
Yan Shaozhe, who had remained silent, now spoke slowly, "No wonder Elder Mu specifically instructed me a couple of days ago to pay more attention to this year's freshmen."
"Elder Mu?" Du Weilun turned to look at Yan Shaozhe in surprise. "Among this batch of freshmen, there's actually someone who could alert Elder Mu?"
Elder Mu, full name Mu En, was the Master of the Sea Gods Pavilion of Shrek Academy and one of the three current Limit Douluos. He was the true pillar of Shrek Academy. He usually lived in seclusion and rarely interfered in specific affairs, let alone paying special attention to a particular batch of freshmen.
"It's more than just alerting him." Yan Shaozhe shook his head with a complex expression. "Elder Mu explicitly said not to interfere too much with the students' normal studies. We can let go appropriately and allow them to perform freely. He said... Shrek needs some new vitality."
He paused and looked at Zhou Yi, who was still in a daze, his tone calm but carrying an undeniable weight. "Teacher Zhou, your words and actions today were indeed inappropriate. As a teacher of Shrek Academy, regardless of the reason, you must resolutely draw a clear line from the words 'Evil Soul Master,' and you certainly shouldn't have released your pressure on students in public to suppress them with power."
Zhou Yi's body trembled slightly, as if she wanted to argue, but in the end, she didn't make a sound.
Yan Shaozhe continued, "You will continue to lead Class One. However, go back and rest well today to calm down. As a teacher, you should be more open-minded and not always compete with students. If you really find that student named Furina difficult to get along with..."
He glanced at Zhou Yi and gave her an option. "I can transfer her, along with that Huo Yuhao, to another class. Elder Mu is very concerned about Furina. A Genius like Furina is someone our Shrek cannot afford to lose."
When Zhou Yi heard the phrase "Elder Mu is quite concerned about Furina," her heart sank. No matter how arrogant she was, she knew what Elder Mu represented in Shrek Academy. He was a powerhouse standing at the Peak of the continent and the true Soul figure of Shrek.
Someone he paid attention to was someone even Dean Yan Shaozhe had to treat with caution, let alone a Spirit Emperor teacher like her.
She remained silent for a long time before finally giving a stiff nod. She turned and stumbled out of the office alone, even forgetting to answer Yan Shaozhe's question about whether to transfer Furina.
Perhaps her mind was a mess right now, and she couldn't think about these things at all. Everything that happened today was too big a blow to her. A dignified Spirit Emperor and a senior teacher of Shrek Academy had been provoked by a fourteen-year-old girl into coughing up blood in public and slandered as an Evil Soul Master, losing all Face. She even felt ashamed to Face her lover, Fan Yu.
The meaning behind Yan Shaozhe's last sentence was very clear: don't target Furina; she is someone Elder Mu values. No matter how domineering Zhou Yi was, she was just an Outer Court Freshman Class teacher. How could she compete with someone valued by the Master of the Sea Gods Pavilion and a Limit Douluo?
Stepping out of the Dean's office, the night wind made Zhou Yi shiver. Looking at the brightly lit teaching building in the distance, a wave of unprecedented exhaustion and confusion welled up in her heart. Perhaps... in future teaching, she should just go through the motions.
Since her authority had already been swept away and her Face was completely lost, it was better to let that Furina toss about while she enjoyed some peace. Once this thought arose, it actually gave her a sense of twisted relief.
...
In the office, after Zhou Yi left, the atmosphere eased slightly.
Du Weilun couldn't help but ask, "Dean Yan, was it true what you said about Elder Mu being very concerned about that girl named Furina? What exactly is so special about her?"
Yan Shaozhe didn't answer directly but asked instead, "Do you know the spirit ring configuration of her and that Huo Yuhao?"
"spirit rings?" Du Weilun was taken aback. "What could be wrong with their spirit rings? At most, the years might be a bit higher... Could it be?"
Yan Shaozhe walked behind the desk, sat down, took out two thin files from a drawer, and pushed them toward Du Weilun.
"See for yourself. These are the basic details I had someone pull from the registration office this afternoon."
Du Weilun picked up the files and flipped through them quickly. When he saw Furina's page, his eyes widened, and his breathing quickened.
"Furina, age: fourteen. Soul Power Rank: 47. Martial Soul: cake (food system). spirit ring: Purple, Purple, Black, Black."
He read it over several times, almost unable to believe his eyes.
"Fourteen years old? food system Martial Soul? Rank 47 Soul Power?! This... how is this possible!" Du Weilun's voice changed pitch. "And these spirit rings! Two purple and two black! This completely defies the common sense of the Spirit Master world! Even that Thousand Hand Douluo Tang San of the Original Shrek Seven Devils from ten thousand years ago only had two yellow, one purple, and one black during his four-ring period! Compared to this Furina, it's simply..."
He couldn't find the words, feeling his understanding of the world had been severely shaken.
Yan Shaozhe understood his shock. His reaction had been similar when he first saw this information in the afternoon. He spoke slowly, "A fourteen-year-old food system Soul Ancestor with Soul Power as high as Rank 47 and a spirit ring configuration that breaks conventional knowledge. You should know what this means. It's almost a certainty that she will become a Titled Douluo in the future, and she might even... reach that Realm."
He didn't explicitly say the words "Limit Douluo," but Du Weilun already understood.
"A monster... no, a monster among monsters!" Du Weilun murmured. "In the ten thousand years since Shrek Academy was founded, I'm afraid such an example has never appeared. Food Element Soul Master Cultivate slowly by nature; how on earth did she do it?"
Yan Shaozhe shook his head and gestured for him to continue reading the next file.
Du Weilun took a deep breath, suppressed the stormy waves in his heart, and picked up Huo Yuhao's file.
"Huo Yuhao, age: twelve. Soul Power Rank: 31. Martial Soul: Spirit Eyes (Spiritual System Body Martial Soul). spirit ring: White, Purple, Black."
"This..." Du Weilun was stunned again, his brow furrowing deeply. "A white ten-year spirit ring? The second ring is a purple thousand-year one? The third ring is directly a black ten-thousand-year one? This... this is even more ridiculous than Furina's spirit rings! How could a white spirit ring possibly withstand the pressure of the subsequent thousand-year and ten-thousand-year spirit rings? This completely violates the basic theory of Spirit Masters absorbing spirit rings!"
He looked up at Yan Shaozhe, his eyes full of confusion and disbelief. "Dean Yan, is this information... certain to be correct?"
Yan Shaozhe gave a bitter smile. "I also wish it were a mistake. But the Soul Power test and spirit ring manifestation at the registration office cannot be faked. Furthermore, according to feedback from the teachers present this afternoon, Huo Yuhao's white spirit ring is extremely bizarre, with Spirit Ability effects that are incredibly powerful, suspected to be some kind of ultimate support-type skill. The command and field control abilities he showed in actual combat far exceed those of his peers, even surpassing many senior students. This is yet another... monster that is difficult to explain with common logic."
Du Weilun put down the files, feeling a bit dazed. In a single day, two students had appeared who completely overturned the theoretical common sense of Spirit Masters, leaving even him, the Director of Instruction, somewhat caught off guard.
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