The gathering of the first year students had begun. It was in the beautiful plaza of the founders of Shrek Academy. Three statues adorned its centre: Flander, the Headmaster and founder; the Grandmaster, Yu Xiaogang, the mind behind the original teaching programs for Shrek as well as a pioneer in research of Martial Souls and finally, there was his wife, Liu Erlong. She was the one who built the foundation of Shrek Academy as a school, place and funding. She gave Shrek the opportunity to settle down.
Karni looked around, a total of around 500 students were around them. He wondered how many of those were first years. They were chatting and admiring the architecture. It truly was grand. Around the plaza, like guardians, the original Shrek Seven Devils' statues were placed. If one went to the edge, they would notice that they are slightly above ground, lakewater flowing below the plaza. It really was a wondrous place. If he didn't know any better, he'd put this into a different age of technology. No modern technology was anywhere around them. Even the speakers for academy-wide announcements surrounding the plaza seemed old, one with nature.
Siduo was enjoying the plaza as well, though Karni could notice a slight frown when she looked at the outer statues. Perhaps she didn't have a good relationship with them when they were gods? She did tell him she lived around Huo Yuhao's time. Just what did she experience up there in Divine Realm? Or was it more just pure annoyance? If you weren't a close friend of Tang San's… well, even if you were his friend, he definitely had tendencies of making people frustrated.
Tang San was a cunning man, something which Tang Wulin inherited. A type Siduo didn't really mesh well with. At least Tang Wulin preferred to show off with his strength. He wasn't a pure tactician like his father, more of a leader, which was ironically something his father wasn't until later on in life.
Their admiration was disrupted by an incoming person. Karni took note of him. Wasn't that the Shackler, Luo Guixing? Someone on the Youth Ranking like Siduo? He was approaching with a small intelligent smile. Karni could already feel Siduo becoming annoyed just by that. Really a style she doesn't mesh well with.
"Wu Siduo? Val Karni? How lucky to meet you here." He offered a handshake.
Karni accepted it before Siduo would make a snide remark. "Hi. We've seen each other a few times in the exam."
"That we did. Speaking off," he leaned down and whispered, "did you really get full points?"
Karni was a bit surprised. "How'd you find out?"
"My team was the second one behind yours in the exam. We happened to see you being carried out asleep by Wu Siduo and overheard some things."
Karni glanced at Siduo and she glanced back at him, thjen smirked. Of course she smirked. He could imagine her words. "Aren't you glad I carried you out? You should be thankful, such a pretty girl carried you. You want to lie on my thighs again?"
Karni turned back towards Luo Guixing. "Well, stuff like that happens, she can't keep her hands off me." He gave him an 'apologetic' smile. Then turned back at Siduo. He won. Her face was red.
She sighed. "When did you learn to retort my thoughts so well?"
"I had a good teacher."
Meanwhile, poor Liu Guixing, who came here to make connections, was feeling a bit confused. These two are going to be a challenge. They seemed to be in their own worlds. Were they a couple? He turned towards Siduo. That's a shame. She's quite a beauty. Then again, he isn't surprised.
Leaving the misunderstanding behind, Liu Guixing addressed Siduo. "And I heard you gained 93 points? I did the same."
Siduo's face changed. "Oh? Where did you lose points?" Her competitive spirit was awakened.
"Endurance and will power."
"How many points in willpower?"
Liu Guixing raised his eyebrows and was quiet for a bit. He could tell what she was doing. In terms of ability, not all tests were the same.
"I got 6 points in will power. The passing grade."
"I got 7. Siduo smiled."
"Then when did you lose the other four?" Liu Guixing was curious.
"The moral character. I was a bit greedy. Encouraging a friend to do well, you know."
"Ah. Yes." He was a bit disappointed in himself. As much as he understood the importance of that test, it didn't really grade their combat prowess. This meant she was better than him at the moment.
Before they could continue, they were interrupted again. A group of people approached them, among which were Li Tai and Yu Tian. They have also been busy making connections. The group in which they were in were all people that Karni and Siduo were familiar with. People on the Genius Youth Ranking.
They came together to get familiar with each other. They were each other's greatest rivals, but most likely also greatest teammates. Karni felt a bit weird. Li Tai and Yu Tian weren't even in Shrek originally. Looks like it was him and Siduo that influenced this change in the world. A total of eight of them were here.
Luo Guixing was once the highest on the ranking, but with the Shrek Academy test and these people clearly aware of the rankings—probably due to Li Tai and Yu Tian—they regarded Karni and Siduo as the strongest for now. Karni and Siduo, having four Soul Rings, could be said to be on top. None but one other had that. And though Li Tai was about to breakthrough, he would still need a day or two before he was officially a Soul Ancestor. Originally he was hoping to do it in the middle of the exam, but the chance was only a fake one at the end. No, the only one other was known as the Immortal, but he had a different problem as a Soul Ancestor.
In such a way, everyone on the Genius Youth Ranking was gathered here. Karni had long been considered as part of it, even if he wasn't officially on it. At least he was considered so by those who closely followed the ranking.
Liu Guixing: Chackler. A Soul Elder with the Space Element. He was particularly known for his bright mind and charisma.
Xu Yucheng: Immortal. The third Soul Ancestor in the group. Though due to his Martial Soul, Demon Scythe, which was tyrannical on his body, he had to use Yellow Spirit Souls so he could live.
Yang Nianxia: Duskgold Bear. His Martial Soul was a descendant to the Duskgold Dreadclaw Bear. A terrifying pure Strength Type Soul Beast. Karni felt a bit of pity for him. His strongest aspect had already been surpassed by a different monster.
Zheng Yiran: Jade Snake. A poison type soul master with the infamous Jade Phosphor Serpent—a Martial Soul that has been infamous for its poison since the time of Tang San and even before him.
Finally, it was the four from Star Luo City Academy. Cloud Sword, Dragon Shield, Hell Siduo, who needed a new nickname, and finally, the nickname that Karni absolutely despised, the Untouched Dancer. He still cursed Siduo to this day for popularising this. At the very least, it was only known among the Genius Youth Ranking and teh Star Luo Academy. Over here at Shrek, he could make a new start—gain a better nickname.
He felt weird knowing that none of the people here were destined for the position of Shrek Seven Monsters. The leader of those had a goddamn God King level Divine Beast sealed inside his body. The competition had never been fair to begin with.
Yet even if he wasn't confident, knowing the other monsters, he would sure as hell give it a try to be considered on the same level as them. It wasn't the position that really mattered at the end.
The biggest reason as to why he was unsure about his and Siduo's potential to join the Shrek Seven Devils was the fact that teamwork was something that the academy considered as a key element. Currently, he was on neutral grounds with the four from the Eastsea Academy, while Siduo was even a bit hostile against them. Those four would for sure join the team.
This technically gave them the chance to join in if they made the connection with them sooner. Only three slots were technically taken, since Gu Yue would leave in her early adult years. Two other positions would be filled with Yue Zhengyu of the Angel Clan and Yuanen Yehui, the one they saw in the exam with Twin Martial Souls. From these two, Yuanen Yehui is certain to make a quick connection with the team, as she is already a working student and has an incident with Xie Xie on the first night. Meanwhile, if his memory served him right, Yue Zhengyu would join the working students this week as well.
Karni sighed. Perhaps he shouldn't have told Siduo about the Working Student conditions. There was no way she'd go there now.
Finally, there were Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi. Actually, they might be able to fight for position against those two, but they were arguably the most talented after Tang Wulin. Both were already in the Inner Court. They've been at Shrek for three years already. A genius swordswoman and a genius food type. That swordsman. Right now, she might actually be as strong as Siduo because of the nature of her Martial Soul, as well as her comprehension. They would have to push them out through underhanded means… One of these means is to get close to Tang Wulin.
Ah but, Karni mentally hit himself, Tang Wulin has met those two already as well!
Yet that wasn't the biggest problem either, Karni turned to Siduo. Siduo… He couldn't really see her going along with a plan of trying to grow closer with Tang Wulin's team only for the sake of eventually joining the Shrek Seven Devils. And he agreed to a degree as well. If it were to happen, it should be due to their own powers, otherwise, there was no worth to it really. Siduo would rather form a friendly rivalry with them, a hostile one would be okay to her as well.
Speaking of Siduo, shouldn't she have some comprehension like Ye Xinglan? She was once a god after all. Weapons, elements, stuff like that? Even if she couldn't actually bring her God position with her due to circumstances, comprehension shouldn't disappear, no?
Getting curious, he tried to ask, but was interrupted. A voice from the sky quieted down the whole plaza. A silver moon appeared above them in the middle of the day. Soon, about twenty figures appeared in the sky, presumably teachers.
A man stepped forward; one of the teachers. "A new academic year will begin again. At this time, every year, Shrek welcomes new blood to our academy. I invite the headmaster of the outer court, the illustrious Silver Moon Douluo, Elder Cai, to say a few words."
Karni looked with a neutral expression as he saw the silver woman who showed her power before stepping forward. He quickly turned to look for Tang Wulin's group. Their faces were quite comical.
Elder Cai wore a mask of indifference. "Shrek Academy has never forced its students to cultivate, nor is our education compulsory. There is an annual minor exam and a major one every three years. Failing the minor exam twice will result in expulsion. So, the number of students in each grade will decrease in the next three years."
The whole outer court was listening to Elder Cai. "For those in the sixth grade who have yet to meet the graduation requirements, I hope you will all work hard and fulfil them before you turn thirty-five. As for our new students, you have the option to relax and take it easy, but then you might not be here in three years."
"Of course, Shrek Academy will not hold back in your education. You can ask for guidance from your teacher and make use of the numerous facilities on campus. Naturally, you must exchange contribution points to utilise them. You new students will soon realise the importance of contribution points."
"Now, on the eve of the new academic year, let us celebrate Shrek's generations of honour and glory, and to many more generations of magnificence. But whether you'll be part of the glory or left on the sidelines in the future will be up to you."
She turned around and stepped away. Karni smiled. Thank god it was a short speech. He was used to the extensive speeches of his former headmaster in Star Luo City Academy.
But while this was all well and dandy, he noticed a few older students calling out to the first year students. They were being assigned their classes.
… … …
Karni and Siduo were standing with the group of Genius Youth Ranking students. The ceremony had ended and they were all put in the same classes. Tang Wulin's group of four was here as well. Their team was as comfortable as ever. They were quite unlike Star Luo City Academy's group of four. Karni and his team were more like two duos forced to work together.
Tang Wulin noticed Karni and Siduo. He gave them a small nod, which both returned.
"Mm?" Luo Guixing noticed it. "Who's he?"
"A guy who'll cause us all some trouble." Karni said absentmindedly.
Before Luo Guixing could ask any more questions, the whole group fell silent as it felt like the temperature in the air went cold. The teachers came. Two of them were assigned to this class.
One of them was a woman Karni was familiar with. Siduo and he saw her with Tang Wulin's group back on Sea God's Island. She took them back with the boat. Shen Yi. One of their new teachers.
The second teacher was an icy man in white clothes. Karni could already notice the girls fangirling over him. Even Siduo had a shine in her eyes. Wu Zhangkong. A Two-Word Battle Armour Master. A Soul Sage. He was someone quite legendary in the books in Karni's opinion, even if he never reached the absolute limit.
Shrek put the talented students in this class intentionally. Rivalry and competition complemented each other and brought out potential in people. They even put in one of the most brutal teachers. He got the Eastsea students in here. All of them. Even when they were late. That alone spoke of his competency in teaching.
Then they saw another figure approaching. The Silver Moon Douluo. Karni sighed on the inside. There was definitely drama in the Eastsea Academy's group exam. He could see small horror on their faces.
Elder Cai flew here with a smirk and eyed Tang Wulin's group directly. It didn't go unnoticed by the Genius Youth Ranking students. "I will be personally managing this year's new class. Beside me are my assistant teachers, Teacher Shen Yi and Teacher Wu Zhangkong. Now to the classroom."
Karni noticed Luo Guixing looked at him. The teens' eyes were questioning Karni, though Karni kept his face neutral. Luo Guixing was smart. He quickly noticed something going on.
The group of around 100 students were led to a large lecture theatre on the first floor of the main school building. It was much bigger than the classroom they saw during the exam. It was actually too big for this group. One could basically sit wherever they wanted to.
The teachers settled on the open centre. There was a lectern in the middle that Elder Cai occupied immediately by flying towards it. On the side, Shen Yi called out. "Students, please take your seat according to what I announce. Tang Wulin, row one seat one."
All the students turned towards the youth. Siduo chuckled a bit to herself, while the other group of Genius Youth Ranking looked at him with suspicion. Row one, seat one was neither on the left edge, nor the right, but dead centre.
"Gu Yue, row one, seat two!" This seat was on Tang Wulin's right.
"Xie Xie, row one, seat three!" This was on Tang Wulin's left.
"Xu Xiaoyan, row one, seat four!" She sat to Gu Yue's right.
"Val Karni, row two, seat one!" She shouted next and Karni wasn't really surprised, but some other students were. As he walked,he waved at Tang Wulin and sent him a silent message through his control of sound. "Trouble with the Elders you said eh?"
Tang Wulin turned to Karni with surprise.
"Tang Wulin!" Elder Cai shouted. "Focus."
Karni sent another message to Tang Wulin. "Sorry." His tone was sincere. He sat down directly behind Tang Wulin.
"Wu Siduo, row two, seat two." She was on Karni's right, directly behind Gu Yue. And Karni immediately noticed Siduo's look. She was slightly annoyed. Karni had to admit, Siduo's been rather bad at hiding her feelings lately. Thinking about it, he was too.
"Li Tai, row two, seat three." This was to Karni's left.
This middle section of the giant classroom was one of three. The first row of the centre had four seats, the second row had five. Meanwhile the left and right sections had one extra seat in each row.
The whole first row alone allowed for fourteen people, the second allowed for 17. It went such a way to the eleventh row, which allowed for just a bit over 300 students.
"Luo Guixing, row two, seat four." This seat was next to Siduo. On her right.
"Yu Tian, row two, seat five." The last seat available in the middle section, just next to the stairs. Next to Li Tai. Looks like the second row was the group of Star Luo City plus Luo Guixing as the best performer after Karni and Tang Wulin. He was tied with Wu Siduo.
The rest of the people were seated all around by groups. The Genius Youth Ranking was just behind Karni.
Shen Yi finished noting down the students. "Elder Cai, there should be 101 students in this year's new class, and I've counted 101 students. Everyone is present."
Elder Cai now finally stopped staring at the four students in front of Karni. "I believe you've all heard what I said at the opening ceremony, so I won't be repeating any of that. Here at Shrek Academy, your teachers will show you the door, but it is up to you to step through it. Your success here depends on your own efforts. Well, that's enough about that. Today you will familiarise yourselves with how things are done here. Teacher Shen will explain the rules and education style in a moment. Teacher Shen, if you will."
She turned and left towards the exit door, and Karni could hear an audible sigh of relief come from the group in front of him. You know what? This was surprisingly amusing.
Shen Yi replaced Elder Cai at the lectern and swept her gaze across the classroom. Wu Zhangkong now stood where Shen Yi stood before.
"On behalf of Shrek Academy, I welcome you. Everything I'm about to say concerns your future studies, so take note. It's important that new students like you know these things, and I will not repeat myself.
"All of you are now members of Shrek Academy. Whatever you do in the outside world represents Shrek Academy. If you overstep your bounds, the Academy will punish you. Punishment will be completely unrelated to whatever the Federation decides."
Siduo nodded to this, clearly agreeing with the sentiment. Shrek was an autonomous organisation, and leader of Shrek City. It was important for it to present itself in the correct manner. It had laws of its own, customs belonged to only Shrek. It has been like this since the continents of Douluo and Sun Moon first crashed into each other.
"Each one of you has a student identification card with your information and contribution points stored in it. I'm sure you're all curious about what you can use contribution points for. Simply put, they can be used for anything in the outer court. You can exchange them for cultivation resources, Spirit Souls, time in special facilities on campus, personal guidance from a teacher, and entrance to the Spirit Ascension Platform. Working students, in particular, need them to buy food. Within reason, you can exchange them for anything and everything you want."
Karni nodded, while Siduo listened attentively. This was a good system.
"You're all probably curious as to how you can obtain more points. Let me get this out of the way first: you cannot purchase contribution points with money. You have to complete jobs for the Academy in order to earn contribution points. There is a large variety of jobs for you to choose from. For example, you have physical labour, metal Forging, Mecha Design, Mecha Manufacture, Mecha Maintenance for Mecha Mechanics, and so on. As long as you are able to complete the job, you will be awarded contribution points. They can also be transferred between students. Private transactions will not receive the Academy's protection, but you can choose to make such transactions through the Academy's public platform at a small cost. The points will be valid as long as Shrek Academy still stands, and what you spend them on is up to you. Of course, if you're expelled, you will be given an opportunity to spend all your points before being forced to leave."
This was good for Karni and Siduo. Both of them were talented in the field of their professions. Karni was wondering if the 'so on' part included private research. He felt like his own research could do him good here.
"Classes are only held in the morning. You are free to do whatever you want in the afternoon and evening. You can study on campus in any way you wish or even go out into the city. Anything is fine as long as you do not miss your morning classes. Apart from special circumstances and the approval of a teacher, tardiness will not be excused. Instances in which you are late to class will be considered absences. Anyone who is absent three times will face expulsion."
This was also good for Karni. With the amount of tiredness he experienced during the exam, he appreciated time for rest as well. It would also give him more than enough time for his other interests.
"Continuing on, you are not allowed to bring anything bought with Federation money onto campus. Anyone who is caught doing so will be fined contribution points ten times the price of the items. You can try your luck in smuggling things in, but I wouldn't suggest it. Some places on campus do accept Federation money, but as I'm sure those of you who have been there already know, they are very expensive."
Karni frowned a bit. Anything at all? He'd have to look into this. It was far too limited to prevent one from doing anything useful. What of medicine, metals, designs and so on? Or perhaps that was the point. You could buy them, it just wasn't meant to be here on the campus. You'd have to store them elsewhere. If you'd bring items inside, you could trade them for contribution points.
"Those of you who are working students will have it harder. You will have to pay for your own meals. No one will stop you from going off-campus to eat, but I advise that you consider how much time would be wasted if you did. Time is the most important thing for students here. If you fall behind, you risk being expelled."
Siduo looked at Karni at that point. She was silently thanking him. She might've wanted to become a working student otherwise. This would just be a waste of time for her. It's not like she needed those restrictions to push her further, she's greatly motivated by herself already.
Meanwhile Karni had to reconsider his ideas of becoming a working student as well. He felt like the restrictions would not benefit him, despite the connections he might make. He had a decent number of ideas and research going on for him outside of Shrek. Getting there alone would already take time, just as teacher Shen said.
"There's one thing you should know that Elder Cai didn't mention earlier. In Shrek Academy's elimination system, anyone in the bottom five of the yearly minor exams will be expelled. Shrek Academy only raises monsters. You could spend your time here in a leisurely manner, but then your stay would only last a year." Here, Shen Yi paused with a sharp look. It almost felt like a threat to the student body.
Her eyes turned to normal again. "A list of optional courses will be passed around in the second semester. Some of those classes are free to normal students while others require payment. Working students, however, will have to pay for any optional classes they choose to take. All students will need to exchange contribution points for the resources used in these classes."
Karni sighed. This just sealed the deal. Karni was interested in some of these extra classes, particularly Mecha Piloting. And he definitely wouldn't have the time to gather money so he could attend them as a working student. He and Siduo were already busy enough with their 'extracurricular activities' with Mo Qing's missions through Tang Sect.
It was unfortunate. Despite Karni being especially talented as a Mecha Designer, this wouldn't bring in as many contribution points as, say, forging. Especially a rarely talented blacksmith as Tang Wulin. In fact, Karni was willing to bet that despite the two both being 5-Stars in their professions, Wulin, as a working student, will have more contribution points than him.
"That is all you need to know for now. You can familiarise yourselves with the campus or perhaps try doing some jobs to earn points. Oh, right, be careful of point deductions. If any of you reach negative one thousand points, you will be expelled."
Karni noticed Tang Wulin suffering during the speech. In fact, Tang Wulin could hardly hide it. He somewhat understood that pain. Well, Karni wouldn't have to deal with it in the future now that he decided to stay a normal student. Perhaps it's good for people like Tang Wulin, who thrive in the face of adversity, but Karni's very Martial Soul worked in the opposite way.
"Alright," Shen Yi said. "I've finished explaining the important stuff. Let's move on to the topic of this morning's class. Today's first topic is Battle Armour Masters."
Karni and Siduo looked at each other. Shen Yi began explaining the differences between Battle Armours and Mechas, but this was useless information for them. Mo Qing had already introduced them to the basics of designing them, though not fully. The only thing that interested them was actual theory.
With theory, Karni could actually look forward to how to truly create Battle Armour. He's tried to figure it out in secret before, but never could. He wanted to see if his idea of a fused Mecha and Battle Armour could be possible in the future.
As the class ended, Karni and Siduo left a bit disappointed. There was no theory discussed yet. They'd have to ask Mo Qing first. This time, he might actually introduce them to it.
Karni felt ashamed about the fact that he was a 5-star Mecha Designer, yet didn't know how to create Battle Armour. He had to know this now. It was necessary for the school.
The two relaxed outside the classroom. They were free. They had to visit Tang Sect to contact Mo Qing. They would definitely ask him about Battle Armour creation.
But before that, they already had a plan of action for their afternoon. Time to find a place that would sell cocoa.
They had to be honest with themselves. They used up all the reserves they brought with them on the way back, and they've been suffering ever since. They became addicts, like the people that couldn't function properly without their morning coffee, though cocoa didn't have caffeine in it.
They went outside the campus and started looking. Coffee shop after coffee shop. Questions after questions. Yet they received negative answers each and every time. No one sold cocoa!
They weren't really surprised, they were just disappointed. Cocoa was native to the Star Luo Continent. There they had a lack of coffee beans, but an abundance of cocoa beans and plantations. The Douluo Continent was the exact opposite. You could drink as much coffee as you want, but cocoa? Cocoa was nowhere to be seen.
Yet that wasn't to say that they didn't find hints. After extensive self-advertising of yet another coffee shop, their 11th coffee shop in fact, one of the newbies blurted out that there was one shop in the touristy side of Shrek City that might sell cocoa.
The two were on their way with the public Soul Bus immediately. They had to take the chance. It was unfortunate that the tourist spots were quite a way away from the academy grounds. To be exact, the academy was surrounded by tourists, but due to its presence, it didn't have touristy places around it. It was a matter of dignity. The touristy area was a 30 minute drive away.
They stepped off the bus and were greeted with a populated street that went on and on. They didn't see the end from here. Clothes shops, bars, restaurants, tourist shops, hagglers and performers everywhere. It was definitely the tourist street. No wonder the academy didn't allow this around its walls. It was utter chaos.
After a while of walking, they finally noticed a giant coffee shop sign—they recognised the brand as well. Their very own home city had a similar shop on their touristy street.
They entered and were filled by a now already annoyingly familiar scent of coffee. The place was filled to the brim with tourists. The shop definitely knew how to present itself. It was kind of like a playground for coffee enthusiasts. Like a giant LEGO shop back on Earth.
They reached the "Foreign" section and there they found their lord and saviour, Cocoa.
If only… if only it didn't cost ten times the price of normal coffee. The two swallowed their selivas and took out their wallets. Oh, but they had to have it. It's become their morning ritual. They needed it.
The two grabbed four bags. Looking at each other with eyes of determination. This was luxury, but it was luxury they needed. Four bags should be good enough to keep them going for a month, if they drink it every morning, with a few extras in between. This way they wouldn't have to visit too regularly.
They paid at the counter, where they received some weird looks for the amount of bags they bought.
By the end of the semester, the two would become known in the coffee shop as the Cocoa Connoisseurs.
But the future Cocoa Connoisseurs were now late. They didn't expect their most important find of the day to take this long. They had to hurry to Shrek's Tang Sect. Mo Qing would be waiting.