Chapter 145: Unsettling Dissonance
"Hey!" exclaimed Yan Shaozhe, though he was somewhat troubled. There was an odd sense of mismatch. Compared to the modern architecture, the training methods at Shrek Academy's outer court felt distinctly 'retro'...
Du Qianjue watched the outer court students running laps on the field, his mouth twitching violently. It wasn't until he saw the old woman with gray hair and a face full of wrinkles standing at the edge of the field that he finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Perfect. It's definitely her. Even though I've never actually met her, that iconic attire and unique training style can't belong to anyone but Zhou Yi, the formidable teacher of Shrek Academy!"
"She's an outer court instructor at our academy, known as Teacher Zhou Yi. Despite her fearsome reputation among the students, her classes have the highest advancement rates," explained Zhang Lexuan warmly as Du Qianjue assessed Zhou Yi, who was training second-year students.
"I've heard quite a lot about her," Du Qianjue nodded in agreement. "Her influence is undeniable. Even though she lost to Class Nine's team during the freshman assessment and had to settle for being the Class Two teacher, her three months of teaching significantly impacted Huo Yuhao."
"Is Teacher Zhou really that famous? Even you, the young master of the Sect, know of her," Zhang Lexuan blinked in surprise.
"I was a competitor in the last big tournament, and some friends from your academy's reserve team made a deep impression on me," Du Qianjue grinned, recalling Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao.
"I see," said Zhang Lexuan, unaware of the implications of his words.
"Du Qianjue?" A confused voice suddenly called out from behind.
The three turned around to see a striking figure standing under a nearby tree, her long golden hair shimmering in the sunlight, her long legs particularly eye-catching.
"Jiang Nannan?" Du Qianjue raised an eyebrow.
"I'm surprised you still remember me," Jiang Nannan said with a smirk. Since Du Qianjue had forcefully refuted Xu Sanshi, known as the sycophantic turtle, during the competition, she had felt much more at ease, no longer harassed by him daily.
"After facing each other on the field, it hasn't been that long. How could I forget?" Du Qianjue said, sounding somewhat resigned.
"I thought someone as talented as you would never notice us ordinary folks," Jiang Nannan quipped, her tone slightly bitter toward the end.
"Enough with the flattery," Du Qianjue sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Anyway, who are these two ladies?"
"This is Zhang Lexuan, the top senior sister of Shrek's Inner Academy and a Soul Douluo level fighter," Du Qianjue introduced, then gestured towards the woman he was holding hands with. "And this is my fiancée, Xue Linglong."
"Nice to meet you, senior sister," Jiang Nannan quickly bowed to Zhang Lexuan, then nodded at Xue Linglong, "Hello."
Xue Linglong nodded back silently.
"Hello, junior sister," Zhang Lexuan replied warmly.
"I'll leave you guys to it," said Jiang Nannan, waving her hand as she walked briskly toward the teaching building.
With Xu Sanshi no longer pestering her, Jiang Nannan's personality seemed to have brightened considerably...
Du Qianjue smiled faintly, hand-in-hand with Xue Linglong, strolling with Zhang Lexuan through the outer court of Shrek Academy. After touring the outer court, the trio reached the shores of Sea God Lake.
"This lake is our academy's Sea God Lake, and the island in the middle is Sea God Island, where the Inner Academy is located," Zhang Lexuan explained, enjoying the breeze from the lake.
"The residence Master Mu arranged for you is also on Sea God Island. I've never heard of any visitor staying there," she added.
"That is quite an honor," Du Qianjue replied with a smile.
"It's not so much an honor as it is a rarity, since Sea God Island generally doesn't host outsiders," Zhang Lexuan chuckled.
"Let's go then," Du Qianjue said, nodding, and together with Zhang Lexuan, they took to the air, flying towards Sea God Island.
On the second floor of the Sea God Hall, Yan Shaozhe watched Zhang Lexuan lead the way for Du Qianjue, his gaze thoughtful. "Why would the teacher let that girl host Du Qianjue? Could it be..."
His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of the lake's azure waters. In a few days, the Sea God Matchmaking Festival would begin...
Lifting his hand to stroke his beard, a brilliant plan began to form in Yan Shaozhe's mind.
"Lexuan, come here for a moment," he called out just as she had seen Du Qianjue to his quarters.
"Alright," Zhang Lexuan paused, looking puzzledly toward the golden tree.
Although unsure of Yan Shaozhe's reasons, she knew it must be something important. As the top senior sister of the Inner Academy, her influence was even greater than that of the outer court's head teacher, with real authority over student affairs.
Approaching Yan Shaozhe, who was smiling more broadly, he thought about how Du Qianjue already had a fiancée, and amusingly, she matched the type Zhang Lexuan might go for.
"Ah, the joys of matchmaking," he chuckled quietly to himself.
(End of Chapter)