Word Count: 2,830 Words
******
Shrek Academy, Sea God Island.
"Alright then, let's part ways here. I'll head back with Sister Ruoruo to heal our injuries. You two go to the Surveillance Pavilion to receive your surveillance assignments."
Wu Ming stretched lazily as the sunlight streamed in from behind her, outlining her exquisite curves. Her pretty face visibly relaxed; after over a decade at Shrek Academy, the academy felt like a second home to her.
Han Ruoruo cast a deep, concerned look at Ling Bai. Gently, she reminded him, "Little Junior Brother, remember what I told you last night. Surveillance assignments are different from examination ones; there is no element of luck involved.
To ensure high assignment completion rates and the students' survival, the academy assigns the most suitable surveillance assignments to each Inner Courtyard student based on talent, combat strength, and personality..."
At these words, Chu Qingtian couldn't help but clench his fists. Great, last time he drew a black-grade assignment to kill a Blood-Face Evil Spirit Master. Heaven knows how much he suffered. Had that fellow not provoked the granddaughter of a Titled Douluo, and had the little girl who narrowly escaped death not called her grandfather to intervene, he surely would have been reduced to mincemeat by the Evil Spirit Master long ago.
Han Ruoruo continued unhurriedly, "Based on your evaluation, I guess your assignment will likely be a red-grade surveillance assignment, the highest level of difficulty. Your injuries require at least seven days of rest, so it is inadvisable for you to engage in further battles during this period.
Fortunately, the academy has relaxed the requirements for new students' first surveillance assignment; you have one month during the break to complete it. Do not force yourself, or you may inflict lasting health issues that cause trouble later.
Also, you must pay attention to your diet during recovery. I know you prefer sour, sweet, and spicy foods, but while healing, you need to eat more bland fare."
"Got it."
Ling Bai indicated that he had taken her instructions to heart.
"One more thing, stay away from darkness and get closer to light. Spend at least an hour in the sun each day to dispel evil energy.
And another, five years ago, I bought the wings of the Bright Goddess Butterfly at the academy's Treasure Gathering Pavilion. During the break, I'll have a skilled craftsman make you a protective amulet...
And one more thing..."
As Ling Bai listened, black lines gradually crawled over his forehead. Chu Qingtian was nodding off, feeling as if he'd returned to his first-year theory class in the Outer Courtyard with the homeroom teacher droning on about Spirit Master theory.
Being straightforward, Wu Ming interrupted Han Ruoruo's incessant nagging and pretended to be annoyed: "Stop, stop, stop! Dear Miss Han Ruoruo, please remember you're his Senior Sister, not his mother! It's just a mere surveillance assignment. If you're so worried, why don't you go with him instead!"
"That seems reasonable. Although it violates academy regulations... then again, rules are dead and people are alive…"
Han Ruoruo seemed quite tempted. Ever since learning about the hidden danger of the Evil Martial Spirit, the Death Abyss Spider Emperor, she was even more reluctant to let Ling Bai out of her sight for even half a second, fearing that the moment she looked away, he might suddenly fall into darkness and go on a killing spree.
At this, Wu Ming's expression shifted from confusion to shock to horror. Her fair face instantly displayed a colorful array of emotions. Big Sis, have you gone mad? Are you really going to be his mother?
Without hesitation, she jumped up, hooked her arm around Han Ruoruo's slender, swan-like neck, and forcefully dragged her away while shouting to Ling Bai and Chu Qingtian:
"I'm taking her to wash her brain! You two hurry and go!"
From afar, Ling Bai gave an OK gesture and, side by side with Chu Qingtian, walked toward the Surveillance Pavilion of the Inner Courtyard.
"Ling-ge, why do I get the feeling that Senior Sister Han is overly concerned about you?" Chu Qingtian scratched his head. "It's as if she can't wait to personally take care of your food, clothing, shelter, and transportation."
The reason, of course, was not something to be told to outsiders. Ling Bai smiled and explained, "It's just normal concern. We are Senior Sister and Junior Brother in the Inner Courtyard, so it's natural for us to be a bit closer."
"Hmm..."
Chu Qingtian thought about it and found it reasonable. After all, Ling Bai and Han Ruoruo had never been secretive; everyone in the Inner Courtyard knew they were close.
Later, the two entered Shrek's Surveillance Pavilion and happened to encounter Dugu Lin and Pan Tao. The two girls were conversing with an old man whose face was marred by a hideous scar running across it.
"Elder Li, why is it you?"
Ling Bai and Chu Qingtian were slightly surprised. Wasn't Elder Li the head of the Examination Hall? How did he come to be at the Surveillance Pavilion?
"Shrek Academy allows its staff to hold multiple positions. Do you two have any objections?"
Elder Li, who served as both Examination Hall master and Surveillance Pavilion master, raised an eyebrow. It seemed that if they gave the wrong answer, the old comrade would make life difficult for them every day henceforth.
"Haha, how could we have any objections? Elder Li, you're so energetic and seem to be getting younger every day. I think someone as venerable as you could even go to the Beast Dueling Area and replace the Beast King," Ling Bai closed his eyes and spoke in a sincere manner.
"Now that's more like it. You four little ones, follow me."
A slight smile tugged at Elder Li's lips, and the centipede-like scar on his face twitched as he turned and walked into the depths of the Surveillance Pavilion, gesturing for the four of them to follow.
Dugu Lin naturally drew close to Ling Bai, leaning in to whisper with a warm, fragrant breath. She chuckled softly, "You came up with that so quickly, but why did you close your eyes?"
Ling Bai whispered back, "In case you tell lies with your eyes open, you might just get struck by lightning."
"Hahaha, you're so bad~"
Creak—
It's getting hard, getting hard; Elder Li's fist is getting hard!
Deep within the Surveillance Pavilion was a spacious hall, so vast it felt unusually quiet. All four of them were students who had been studying in the Inner Courtyard for nearly a year. Elder Li didn't bother beating around the bush and got straight to the point:
"I believe you are all clear about the four major graduation standards of Shrek Academy's Inner Courtyard: reaching Rank 60 spirit power, obtaining a black Spirit Dueling Badge, passing the graduation examination, and completing thirty surveillance assignments.
On the continent, the Inner Courtyard of Shrek Academy is also known as the Shrek Guardians. Each generation's Sea God Pavilion Master personally serves as the leader of the Shrek Guardians, and any evil or chaotic events on the continent fall under their responsibility. Therefore, throughout history, countless Shrek students and teachers have died carrying out surveillance assignments in honor of this responsibility and sacrifice…"
This monument built with flesh and blood was weighty. Elder Li paused briefly before continuing:
"Surveillance assignments, like examination assignments, are divided into five grades: White, Yellow, Purple, Black, and Red, with difficulty increasing accordingly. The first surveillance assignment for new students also serves as your annual advancement examination with an assignment period of one month. Those who fail might as well return to their sects to enjoy life; there is no need to continue suffering on Sea God Island.
Now, on behalf of the Sea God Pavilion Master, I will issue your surveillance assignments. First up, Pan Tao."
"Present!"
Pan Tao gave an imperfect military salute.
"White-grade assignment: Man Faced Demon Spider. A 3,000-year Man Faced Demon Spider is wreaking havoc in villages near Yaoxing City of the Star Luo Empire. Go eliminate it and restore peace for the villagers."
"Guaranteed to complete the assignment!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, these days even Man Faced Demon Spiders have been reduced to white-grade assignments..."
Chu Qingtian felt a toothache coming on. He dared not imagine how difficult black and red-grade assignments would be!
"Dugu Lin, black-grade assignment: Catwoman. In Hailing City of the Dou Spirit Empire, a grand noble named Xue Wang is fond of Catwomen. He forces commoner women to mate with feline spirit beasts to obtain half-human, half-cat Catwomen. Your assignment is to kill Xue Wang and rescue those innocent women."
"Understood!"
A bone-chilling coldness flashed in Dugu Lin's eyes, her pupils showing a tendency to transform into vertical slits. The aristocratic class of the Douluo Continent had many perverse and cruel individuals who loved hybrid offspring between humans and spirit beasts—Catwomen, Snakewomen, Dragonwomen...
Their births trampled on the flesh, blood, and souls of countless women, existing solely for people's amusement. As a woman herself, Dugu Lin deeply empathized. She swore to the heavens that she would make Xue Wang pay a bloody price!
"Chu Qingtian, black-grade assignment: Eliminate an Evil Spirit Master..."
"What? Another black-grade, and it's an Evil Spirit Master again?!"
Chu Qingtian's high-pitched voice shook leaves off the trees outside the pavilion, birds startled into flapping their wings and bursting out of the bushes. He trembled as he pointed at Dugu Lin, crying out in grief and indignation:
"Elder Li, the academy might as well just kill me outright! How on earth do you see me and Sister Lin as being on the same level? She could beat three of me with just one finger without even breaking a sweat!"
"Believe in yourself. Don't underestimate your abilities. You did great on your last examination assignment."
Elder Li tried to comfort Chu Qingtian, but at this moment, the latter seemed to have been petrified as if he'd met Medusa's Gaze. He seriously suspected that Shrek Academy was deliberately targeting him.
"Actually, there are benefits to undertaking black-grade assignments." Elder Li coughed lightly. "Surveillance assignments are divided into white, yellow, purple, black, and red grades. The academy's graduation requirement is thirty white-grade assignments. Therefore, with each increase in assignment grade, it equates to an additional count in white-grade assignments. Completing one of the most challenging red-grade assignments is equivalent to five white-grade ones.
Think about it carefully. Being assigned a black-grade assignment on your first try means you'll reach the graduation requirements much faster!"
"That's if I live long enough to graduate..."
Chu Qingtian squatted to the side, drawing circles on the ground. Elder Li went over to explain the assignment details to him, then turned his gaze to Ling Bai.
After a long while, he suddenly smiled and asked:
"Ling Bai, guess what grade your surveillance assignment is?"
"Red-grade."
"So calm?" Elder Li was surprised. "Last time, when you drew the red-grade examination assignment of Medusa, you seemed a bit rattled."
"..."
What kind of words are those?!
Drawing the one-in-a-thousand chance of a red-grade examination assignment was bad luck. Getting a red-grade surveillance assignment means you're strong!
You're confusing concepts!
Moreover, he had just obtained a 70,000-year Scorching Sun Fire Dragon torso spirit bone that swept away his previous slump. If Spirit Cameras had been invented on the Douluo Continent, he would have snapped a photo of that moment, framed it, and hung it on the wall to prove that his luck was actually excellent!
Ling Bai's resentment soared as Dugu Lin and Pan Tao laughed merrily, swaying like flowers in the wind. Elder Li, unable to hide a slight upward curve in his mouth, then announced,
"Red-grade assignment: Calamitous Ice Devil. Near Dragon City in the Heavenly Soul Empire, close to the Extreme North region, the nearby villages make a living by cultivating special foods and medicinal materials like Extreme North Moonlight Rice.
Recently, their fields have been wantonly destroyed by spirit beasts. According to the analysis of Shrek Academy's investigators, it's highly likely the work of a 30,000-year Calamitous Ice Devil."
"Calamitous Ice Devil?"
The name sounded extremely unfamiliar. Dugu Lin and Pan Tao racked their brains but couldn't recall any corresponding spirit beast.
Elder Li explained, "The Calamitous Ice Devil is a mutated Ice Devil Titan. It's inherently prone to bringing disaster. To ensure peace in their homeland, the Ice Devil Titan King, one of the three Arctic Kings of the Extreme North, personally executes any Calamitous Ice Devils, resulting in their extremely scarce numbers. Therefore, the academy's spirit beast theory courses have not introduced the Calamitous Ice Devil.
Ling Bai, you can either capture or kill that 30,000-year Calamitous Ice Devil. Just ensure it can no longer destroy the villagers' fields."
"Understood." Ling Bai nodded slightly.
"What kind of luck do you have..."
Dugu Lin patted his shoulder and sighed, "First the Luminous Mystic Forest, now the Extreme North. Each place is more perilous than the last. Your luck is terrible!"
"I don't think so." Ling Bai gazed northward, a meaningful smile on his face.
'Abundant in heavenly treasures and home to extraordinary people, the Extreme North truly is...
A good place.'
…
Meanwhile, in the dormitories of the first-year students in the Outer Courtyard.
"Yuhao, I'm off! See you when school starts!"
Wang Dong hurriedly closed the door, leaving only Huo Yuhao alone in the dormitory.
"Brother Skydream, wake up quickly!"
Huo Yuhao frantically called out Skydream in his Spiritual Sea.
Skydream rubbed its eyes and mumbled, "What's wrong, Xiao Yuhao? You seem so flustered."
"Of course I'm flustered!" Huo Yuhao said irritably. "After the break, we have the Outer Courtyard advancement examination. If I can't pass, I'll be expelled from the Martial Spirit Department.
The minimum requirement to participate is Rank 20 spirit power. I've been cultivating day and night, but I'm only at Rank 17, and that's even after Big Senior Brother won a Mysterious Water Pill from Xu Sanshi at the Spirit Dueling Arena to improve my foundation!"
Having missed certain opportunities, Huo Yuhao's strength had significantly decreased. Now visibly anxious, although the Spirit Guidance Department had high hopes for him, Shrek Academy is the continent's number one academy for Spirit Masters, and he was unwilling to give up the excellent educational resources of the Martial Spirit Department.
"What's the big deal?"
Skydream flipped over, yawning as he said, "During the break, I'll take you to the Extreme North. By then, whether it's reaching Rank 20 spirit power, obtaining a second ice-element Martial Spirit, a 100,000-year spirit ring, or a 100,000-year spirit bone, we'll solve them all at once! Just wait for your meteoric rise!"
"Huh???"
The pie was both big and lavish; Huo Yuhao was knocked flat.
"Trust me, as the continent's first 1,000,000-year spirit beast and an unprecedented intelligent spirit ring, your future is the sea of stars!"
"I love you, Brother Skydream! I'll pack my things right now and head to the Extreme North!"
"Calm down. First, buy some necessities for the journey..."
...
After receiving his surveillance assignment, Ling Bai arrived beneath the girls' dormitory of the Outer Courtyard. His stunningly handsome face once again caused many passing girls to bump into poles. Although their heads throbbed, they could not tear their eyes away from him.
If it weren't for having experienced countless rejections over the past few months, they would have rushed over like a pack of wolves to throw themselves at him.
Unfortunately, this unbelievably attractive Inner Courtyard student only gave special treatment to one and a half girls in the Outer Courtyard.
The Young Miss of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, Ning Tian.
Wu Feng (the half).
The two of them slowly walked out. As soon as Ning Tian's innate noble aura emerged, the other girls felt ashamed and dispersed. Wu Feng pursed her lips and, upon seeing this, instantly turned into a sour lemon as she said sarcastically:
"Oh my, Young Master Ling, your love life is really flourishing~ I wonder how many beauties you've secretly tasted already?"
Smack!
"Ow!"
A karate chop landed on Wu Feng's head, the strength just right to daze without causing harm.
Ling Bai looked straight ahead, the very picture of righteousness. "Stop spreading rumors about me. You should be more concerned about whether you can pass the advancement examination."
Wu Feng rubbed the bump on her head, grimacing, "Who cares about the advancement examination? Don't change the subject! Ning Tian and I have heard all about how well you're living in the Inner Courtyard, with a bunch of pretty Senior Sisters blocking you every day."
"Indeed, blocking me at the Spirit Dueling Area every day."
Ling Bai specifically called out Ling Luochen, Ma Xiaotao, Dugu Lin, and others.
"Alright, Xiao Feng."
Ning Tian helplessly poked Wu Feng, then said to Ling Bai:
"Bai-ge, I've arranged for a carriage in advance. We can set off at any time."
"Let's go. Let's head home together."