Just as the two were conversing, the anticipated conflict broke out nearby.
Faced with provocation from a group of kids barely over ten years old, the students from Blue Sunshine Academy naturally wouldn't swallow their anger.
On the Shrek Academy side, most of them weren't the type to be low-key or reserved either. Especially Dai Mubai, whose temper was particularly fiery.
It could even be said that he had been looking for an excuse to pick a fight with Blue Sunshine Academy from the very beginning.
Ever since he was rebuffed by Zhu Zhuqing, he had been holding in his anger, just waiting for an outlet to release it.
The intentions of both sides coincided, though their methods were far from harmonious. In an instant, they began to clash.
Despite the fact that the young man from Blue Sunshine Academy was already in his twenties, his talent was mediocre compared to Dai Mubai. He was far inferior and was severely injured in just one move, spitting blood as he was sent flying to the ground.
"Sorry about that, I slipped," Dai Mubai straightened up and stretched lazily after his attack, his words laced with heavy sarcasm. His face was full of arrogance and disdain, looking extremely cocky.
The other diners in the hotel were immediately thrown into an uproar at this sight. The customers sitting near the tables of Shrek Academy and Blue Sunshine Academy quickly stood up and moved aside to avoid getting caught in the crossfire. However, most of them didn't choose to leave the restaurant immediately; instead, they excitedly watched the scene unfolding in front of them.
With this incident, how could the group from Blue Sunshine Academy endure any longer? The remaining students instantly stood up in unison, glaring angrily at Shrek Academy's table.
The middle-aged leader of Blue Sunshine Academy stopped his students and, after helping the heavily injured young man back into a chair, turned to Dai Mubai with a stern face and demanded, "Which academy are you kids from?"
Mockery flashed in Dai Mubai's eyes as he sneered, "You're not worthy of knowing."
With that, he sat back down in his seat.
On the other side, Ma Hongjun had already started eating again, casually commenting on the taste of the dishes, showing a complete lack of concern.
The teacher from Blue Sunshine Academy, seeing that his repeated forbearance only made the other side more arrogant, could no longer hold back. His face turned dark with anger as he ordered, "You insolent brats, teach them a lesson!"
The students from Blue Sunshine Academy had been waiting for this command.
Upon hearing the order, five of them, except for the young man injured by Dai Mubai and the only female student, immediately rushed toward Tang San and the others.
"Fighting? I love it!" Xiao Wu excitedly jumped up from her seat and charged forward without hesitation.
As soon as Xiao Wu moved, Tang San followed closely, his eyes already tinged with a faint purple hue.
Neither side directly activated their martial spirits.
The five youths from Blue Sunshine Academy were surprised to find that the person coming toward them was a delicate and pretty girl. Although she looked quite young, standing around 1.7 meters tall with a flexible and curvaceous figure, her presence was still quite striking.
Especially in her lightly blinking eyes, there seemed to be a faint allure that caused the momentum of the Blue Sunshine Academy students to falter as they hesitated.
The steps of the five students from Blue Sunshine Academy slowed, but Xiao Wu didn't stop.
She blinked her charming eyes and softly smiled, "Hello, brothers."
Hearing this, the group was momentarily stunned, glancing at each other in confusion.
Seizing this opportunity, Xiao Wu moved swiftly.
It seemed like her foot slipped, and she stumbled forward, her body falling toward one of the young men.
He instinctively raised his arm to catch Xiao Wu, but before he could react, her long, black braid lashed out like a whip, wrapping tightly around his neck.
Xiao Wu's forward momentum abruptly stopped as she curled up and leaped into the air, her back facing the young man as she kicked both feet directly into his chest.
Soft Skill!
Her movements were extremely quick; in the blink of an eye, she used the initial person as a pivot to weave through the group of five.
Sometimes she would slide sideways, sometimes duck under an arm, sometimes clamp down on someone's neck. In just a few short moments, she had thrown two students from Blue Sunshine Academy to the ground.
"Very impressive tactics. A pretty girl should know how to take full advantage of her appearance," Su Cheng commented with a smile, his eyes carrying a hint of teasing.
"…"
"By the way, you just mentioned that Xiao Wu is a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast in human form, right?"
"Tch."
Su Yue sneered, knowing that this was Su Cheng's way of getting back at her for the previous mockery. She didn't say much in response.
On the other side, when the teacher from Blue Sunshine Academy saw Xiao Wu's combat style, he was shocked and hurriedly scolded, "Idiots, use your martial spirits!"
At this moment, Dai Mubai stepped forward again, his body glowing as two yellow and one purple spirit rings appeared beneath him, and the silhouette of a white tiger manifested behind him.
As he walked, he said, "Xiao Wu, stand down. With us guys here, there's no need for you girls to fight."
Hearing this, Xiao Wu turned to look at Tang San, and when he nodded, she stopped fighting and calmly walked back.
However, when the Blue Sunshine Academy teacher saw Dai Mubai's spirit rings, his expression changed slightly.
His own strength wasn't particularly high, and his spiritual power hadn't yet evolved. So he hadn't sensed the level of these Shrek Academy students before this.
Now that he could see more clearly, he realized that a fifteen-year-old Advanced Spirit Elder with this level of power spoke volumes.
On this continent, hierarchy was clearly defined, and the strength of one's martial spirit and bloodline almost entirely determined a spirit master's future achievements.
It could even be said that for most spirit masters, just by observing someone's age, strength, and martial spirit, one could roughly judge their background.
A teenage genius like this was unlikely to come from an ordinary background.
"I am Ye Zhiqiu, the director of external affairs at Blue Sunshine Academy. May I ask, which sect are you from?" Ye Zhiqiu asked, with a hint of caution in his voice as he stepped forward.
"We're from Shrek Academy." Before Dai Mubai could respond, Ma Hongjun arrogantly introduced their group.
As he spoke, his eyes greedily scanned the lone female student from Blue Sunshine Academy.
Ye Zhiqiu was taken aback, "Shrek Academy? I don't think I've heard of it."
Dai Mubai snorted coldly, "That's because you're ignorant."
Upon hearing that they weren't from some powerful sect, Ye Zhiqiu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
But when he noticed the gluttonous gaze of the chubby kid and the arrogant expression on Dai Mubai's face, he couldn't help but feel displeased.
Coldly, he said, "You kids don't know your place. Stop talking nonsense and go get your teachers."
As he spoke, a black ripple emanated from his body, and one white, two yellow, and two purple spirit rings appeared around him, revealing his Spirit King-level strength. The oppressive force he exuded immediately subdued Dai Mubai and the others, making their faces turn pale.
"Black Tortoise Possession!"
As he finished speaking, his limbs shrank by a third, and his back swelled up, transforming into a huge shell.
Ma Hongjun let out a strange cry, "An old tortoise like you still wants to see our teachers? We're more than enough to deal with you!"
Due to his martial spirit, Ye Zhiqiu was extremely sensitive to the term "tortoise." Upon hearing Ma Hongjun's insult, his aura surged, and the pressure of his powerful cultivation caused Dai Mubai and the others to turn pale.
With a grim expression, Ye Zhiqiu scanned the group, laughing angrily, "Fine, I'll teach you a lesson myself. Let's take this outside."
He then glanced at Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, who were still seated, as well as Xiao Wu and Oscar on the other side, "You might as well join in too."
With that, he walked out of the hotel.
Dai Mubai and Tang San exchanged a wary glance, realizing they had underestimated the true power of a Spirit King-level expert.
The oppressive aura was so intense that they doubted their ability to win, even with Tang San's hidden weapons.
At this moment, everyone's gaze subconsciously shifted towards Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong.
Ning Rongrong was one thing, but they knew a bit more about Zhu Zhuqing's strength—she was far stronger than Dai Mubai by quite a margin.
If she was willing to step in, coupled with Xiao Wu providing support, they might not even fear this Soul King from Canghui Academy.
Zhu Zhuqing, naturally aware of the hesitant glances directed at her, quickly guessed their thoughts.
But she remained unmoved, quietly sitting there, eating her meal without showing any interest in getting involved.
Ning Rongrong, on the other hand, was caught in a moment of hesitation. She first glanced at Dai Mubai and the others, then at Zhu Zhuqing beside her, her expression conflicted.
On one hand, she enjoyed lively situations, and what was happening right now intrigued her—she wanted to participate.
Coming from a prestigious background with a discerning eye, she knew more about high-level soul masters. She had a sense that if Zhu Zhuqing were to take the lead in the battle, and she herself provided support, they should be able to easily defeat this ordinary Soul King whose soul rings were relatively low-grade and who didn't even possess a single ten-thousand-year soul ring.
On the other hand, she had a poor opinion of Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, detesting these two perverted lechers and wishing they would suffer some consequences.
As for the cause of this conflict and Flender's words about "those who dare not cause trouble are talentless," she didn't really take them to heart. She merely laughed it off.
She neither agreed nor disagreed.
Flender was just a small-time Soul Saint and didn't even register in her eyes.
In contrast, the few geniuses with innate full soul power in this academy had made a far greater impression on her than the principal ever had.
"Why are you all staring at me? Are you hungry too?"
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing finally stopped eating and looked up at them, then glanced at Ning Rongrong beside her.
Casually, she said, "Weren't you going to challenge someone? Are you fighting or not? If not, hurry up and apologize and then come back to eat."
"..."
Hearing her words, they immediately understood her attitude, leaving them momentarily speechless.
"What are you staring at!" Ning Rongrong also straightened up at this moment, glaring at Dai Mubai and the others. Gone was her earlier indecision. "That old turtle is still waiting at the door for you to go out and fight. What are you dilly-dallying about here for?"
Zhu Zhuqing: "..."
Dai Mubai: "..."
Ye Zhiqiu at the door: "..."
Regardless of what they were thinking, there was no way Dai Mubai and the others would back down at this point, and they immediately decided to fight.
With Tang San's hidden weapons as a trump card, there was still a chance.
At this moment, a lazy voice came from the direction of the stairs: "Why is it so difficult to have a meal? What nonsense are you guys up to?"
The next moment, a tall figure appeared in their line of sight. It was none other than their teacher, Zhao Wuji.
"You lot, sit down and eat properly."
Without even glancing at Ye Zhiqiu waiting at the door, he waved his hand, ordering the students standing there to hurry up and eat.
Then, frowning, he turned to Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, his expression darkening. "When your comrades are in conflict, why do you choose to stand by and do nothing? Haven't you already been taught the significance of your companions in this academy?"
This time, his tone was no longer as casual as before—it carried a touch of seriousness.
Combined with his somewhat fierce appearance and his robust, bear-like physique, the aura he exuded was quite intimidating.
Even Ning Rongrong, normally unafraid of anything, felt a rare moment of fear.
In truth, Zhao Wuji hadn't initially intended to intervene personally.
Because there was no need to.
On one hand, letting these kids from the academy face the Soul King from Blue Sunshine Academy alone might provide better pressure and help improve their teamwork.
Additionally, intense battles often foster stronger bonds and camaraderie between individuals—a double benefit.
On the other hand, he was well aware of Zhu Zhuqing's strength.
Her exceptional beast spirit was incredibly powerful, perhaps even rivaling the power of a Super Martial Spirit.
Therefore, even though Zhu Zhuqing was still young and slightly behind in levels, Blue Sunshine Academy's Soul King, lacking even a single ten-thousand-year soul ring, might not necessarily be able to suppress her one-on-one.
With the combined efforts of Dai Mubai, Tang San, and the other talented students, there was no need to worry.
However, after secretly observing for a long time, Zhao Wuji realized that this girl was actually choosing to stand by and watch, and this made him uneasy.
It didn't matter if they lost to that old turtle from Blue Sunshine Academy—that wasn't important.
But Zhu Zhuqing's indifferent attitude went against the values Shrek Academy sought to instill, and it left Zhao Wuji deeply dissatisfied.
Zhu Zhuqing raised her eyebrows and asked, puzzled, "Teacher Zhao, it was Dai Mubai and the others who picked the fight first. What does that have to do with me and Rongrong?"
It wasn't that she had an issue with the academy's values.
Although she found the act of picking a fight a bit tiresome and pointless, she was still young and her values hadn't fully formed yet, so she hadn't come to outright disapprove of her teachers' behavior.
She simply didn't understand Zhao Wuji's reasoning.
In Zhu Zhuqing's mind, if you cause trouble, you should take responsibility for the consequences. If you can't handle the situation, then wait for the teachers to clean up the mess—it was no big deal.
After all, this was how she had lived her entire life.
Even leaving the Star Luo Empire and fleeing to distant lands had been due to her awakening a unique, incredibly dangerous spirit. She had no complaints about being forced to leave her family.
If it had been Ning Rongrong who had gotten into trouble, she might have stepped in to help.
As for Dai Mubai?
Come on, they were just schoolmates—nothing more. They weren't family, so why should she stick her neck out for him?
Zhao Wuji's expression grew darker as he sternly said, "Zhu Zhuqing, you're classmates, you're companions. You're part of the same team—do you understand that? Look at how Tang San and Ma Hongjun act. Do you really think your attitude is appropriate?"
"But—"
"Enough."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't get a chance to finish before another voice interrupted. The speaker was none other than Ye Zhiqiu, who had been standing at the door all this time.
Zhao Wuji, however, had no interest in dealing with him at this point, and impatiently turned to bark, "What do you want now?"
...
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