"This is Shrek Academy?"
Xiao Wu's mouth dropped open in disbelief. "This is clearly just a rundown village!"
Ning Rongrong, standing beside her, was equally incredulous. She had come here after running away from home because her father, Ning Fengzhi, highly praised Shrek Academy. But what she saw now made her question everything.
"Since we're here, let's see for ourselves," Zhou Chen said calmly as he jumped off the carriage.
As they approached, they noticed a gathering of teenagers their age at the village entrance, accompanied by their parents. Among the five of them, except for Tang San, whose appearance was relatively ordinary, the others were all strikingly attractive. Such a high-profile group instantly drew the attention of everyone present.
"That boy is so handsome!"
"Yeah, his skin is better than a girl's, practically glowing."
"And that girl in black, what a figure."
"The girl with the bunny-ear headband is adorable."
"The young lady in the green and white dress looks like she's from a noble family..."
The teens and parents waiting in line whispered among themselves, creating a somewhat chaotic atmosphere.
"Silence! Anyone who disrupts the registration will be kicked out immediately!"
Suddenly, an authoritative and aged voice boomed, silencing the entire crowd.
At the village entrance was a table, behind which sat an elderly man in his sixties. The man dressed simply, resembling a village farmer, and if it weren't for the green slime badge on his chest, no one would take him for a soul master.
"What an arrogant old man," Xiao Wu grumbled in dissatisfaction.
"What did you say?" The old man's gaze snapped towards them, causing Xiao Wu to hide behind Zhou Chen and Tang San.
Seeing the old man's unfriendly look, Zhou Chen stepped forward with a gentle smile, "There's no need to argue with a child."
"Twelve years old is not so young," the old man replied with a faint smile, then waved his hand. "But I'm not one to get angry over words. Continue with the registration."
He sat back down, and soon the crowd resumed registering. However, one teenager after another was rejected by the old man.
The problem was, the old man refused to refund the ten gold soul coins registration fee!
This infuriated the parents!
Ten gold soul coins were enough to support an ordinary family for several years!
Rejecting students without refunding fees felt like a scam. Parents began to protest, and some hot-tempered ones even summoned their soul rings, ready to confront the old man!
"Insolent!"
The old man slammed the table and stood up, releasing an overwhelmingly powerful surge of soul power.
A rich red glow burst from the old man, and a long staff engraved with intricate patterns appeared in his hand!
Most terrifying of all, six dazzling soul rings—one white, one yellow, three purple, and one black—rose from his feet!
"Hiss—"
A collective gasp echoed as nearly everyone stared in shock at the six soul rings on the old man.
A Soul Emperor! The old man was above level 60—a Soul Emperor!
Such a formidable figure, capable of rivaling a thousand-strong army, was a rarity even in the entire Balak Kingdom!
Moreover, if the person in charge of registration was a Soul Emperor, just how powerful was the faculty of Shrek Academy?
Instantly, almost everyone fell silent.
Seeing the crowd subdued, the old man spoke coolly, "You should have learned the rules before coming here. At Shrek Academy, we never refund fees."
"Furthermore, do you know what 'Shrek' means? Shrek is a monster, and our Shrek Academy is a Monster Academy. We only accept monsters, in other words, geniuses. Those over thirteen years old without soul power above level 21 may leave."
With these words, most people could only sigh and leave, leaving only a few dozen applicants.
Soon it was Zhou Chen and his group's turn.
"You five are together, right? Show your soul rings and come to me to check your bone age. Passing the first round is simple," the old man said indifferently.
Upon hearing this, Tang San, Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong stepped forward to check their bone age. Once confirmed, they displayed their soul rings.
The sight of eight hundred-year soul rings left everyone present astounded.
Even the normally stoic old man stroked his beard in excitement, "Not bad, not bad. It seems we'll enroll some students this year."
But then the old man noticed something amiss. He looked at Zhou Chen and frowned, "Why aren't you showing your soul rings?"
"It's inconvenient," Zhou Chen replied with a smile. He dared not reveal his three god-level soul rings in front of so many people. Although most would mistake them for deep yellow hundred-year soul rings, there might be experts who recognized them!
For instance, the 63rd-level Dragon Staff Soul Emperor, Li Yusong, before him, might know.
If the old man inadvertently let it slip, it wouldn't be long before the Title Douluos of the Spirit Hall and Xingluo Empire came to assassinate him.
"Inconvenient?"
Li Yusong frowned and glanced at Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing beside Zhou Chen. When he checked their bone ages earlier, he also noted their martial souls. One was from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, and the other from the Xingluo Zhu family, both of considerable status.
Perhaps this handsome young man, like the two girls, had a powerful background and secrets within his soul rings that were not for public display?
Considering this, the elderly Li Yusong did not press further. He nodded and said, "Very well, use the soul power crystal to test your soul power level instead."
He then retrieved a blue soul power crystal ball and placed it on the table.
"This..."
Zhou Chen's mouth twitched, feeling a bit awkward, "That's also inconvenient."
Kidding aside, the last time he used such a blue crystal to test his soul power, it was six years ago. Back then, he nearly shocked Su Yuntao and Tang San into a stupor.
Now, Zhou Chen's soul power was even stronger and more refined. If he used the soul power crystal, it might cause every soul master below level 40 within a hundred-meter radius to faint instantly!
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