While the group was talking, a middle-aged man entered the dining hall.
The man was of medium build, with a hooked nose and a long face. He wore crystal glasses that couldn't hide his cunning nature.
Upon seeing him, Ma Hongjun and Oscar stood up first.
Oscar pointed to the approaching man and introduced him, "This is our esteemed principal, Flender, a level 78 Soul Saint. The chubby one is his direct disciple."
Hearing this, everyone quickly stood up and nodded in greeting.
Xiao Wu, on the other hand, breathed a sigh of relief and murmured, "Thankfully, he's not a Soul Douluo."
"Xiao Wu, what's wrong?" Ning Rongrong asked from beside her.
Tang San, Zhu Zhuqing, and the others were also curious. What did she mean by thankfully he's not a Soul Douluo?
"Nothing," Xiao Wu shook her head to cover up her slip. "I was just speaking casually."
Speaking casually? Zhou Chen gave Xiao Wu a meaningful glance.
Soul masters above level 80, Soul Douluo and higher, could see through the disguise of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast in human form. This girl was worried about being recognized.
Imagine if a Soul Douluo pointed at Xiao Wu and shouted: "Demon, I can see at a glance you're not human! Great Vajra Dragon!" Zhou Chen found the thought quite entertaining.
Soon, Flender stood before the group.
He stopped, giving Zhou Chen a deep look, and spoke in a hoarse voice, "You must be Zhou Chen. I'm Flender, the principal of Shrek Academy."
"Good morning, Principal," Zhou Chen stood up, smiling and nodding to Flender.
Flender nodded in return, then said in a faint tone, "I heard from Old Zhao that you defeated him at only level 40. I've lived for over fifty years, and it's the first time I've heard of such a genius. Truly, youth is formidable!"
"You're too kind, Principal. Yesterday was just a friendly spar with Vice Principal Zhao; it shouldn't be taken seriously," Zhou Chen replied humbly, smiling innocently.
Flender was speechless.
If a friendly spar resulted in Zhao Wuji being seriously injured, would going all out mean beating him to death?
Rolling his eyes, Flender decided not to speak further with Zhou Chen. Instead, he looked over everyone and said, "This year is promising with five new students. On behalf of the academy, I welcome you all."
Then, Flender suddenly shifted topics, "Later, each of you should go to the finance office and pay Teacher Li Yusong a hundred gold coins."
Hearing this, Tang San and the others were speechless. This principal seemed to lack the scholarly air, asking for money right away?
"Oscar," Flender called.
"What do you need, Principal?" Oscar stepped forward, showing a bootlicker demeanor.
Flender said, "You and Ning Rongrong are support-type soul masters. You must be agile and quick to increase your survival chances. So today's lesson for you two is to run twenty laps around the village, and you can't eat until you finish. Oscar, you're in charge of leading."
Ning Rongrong nodded and ran out without hesitation. Her father, Ning Fengzhi, had also put her through similar physical training, so she agreed with Flender's view.
Oscar, knowing the full story, wore a pained expression. Though the village where the academy was located wasn't large, a lap was at least three kilometers, making twenty laps sixty kilometers!
Only an inexperienced girl like Ning Rongrong would think this training was doable.
"Sigh," Oscar sighed, giving Flender and Zhao Wuji a resentful look before following Ning Rongrong out.
Watching Oscar leave, Flender waved his hand, "The rest of you are dismissed. Tang San, come with me alone."
"Wait, Principal Flender, I have something to discuss with you," Zhou Chen suddenly called out as Flender was about to leave.
"What is it?" Flender stopped.
"I need to make a trip to Heaven Dou City, so I must ask for leave," Zhou Chen smiled.
To be precise, he needed to visit Sunset Forest near Heaven Dou City to find the abandoned God Realm prison that held 50 tons of divine crystals.
With these 50 tons of divine crystals, Ziwei Palace would be fearless!
This task was far more important than idling at Shrek Academy.
"Ask for leave? On the first day of school?" Flender was baffled, hesitating for a while before nodding, "I'd refuse anyone else, but since it's you... sigh, perhaps our Shrek Academy isn't qualified to teach a genius like you. Do as you wish."
Then, Flender cunningly smiled, "With your talent, becoming a Title Douluo is only a matter of time. When that happens, I'll place your statue at Shrek Academy's entrance to promote our academy's reputation. You have no objections, do you?"
"Of course not. I'd be grateful if the Principal would do me such an honor," Zhou Chen smiled, then added, "Also, Zhuqing will be taking leave with me."
"No," Flender rejected decisively, "Your strength means you can skip classes, but Zhu Zhuqing's soul power was only level 27 during yesterday's test. You're hindering her future."
Saying this, Flender looked at Zhu Zhuqing beside Zhou Chen.
Then, cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
He couldn't discern Zhu Zhuqing's strength! He couldn't even sense her soul power!
This only happened when facing someone stronger than him!
Frowning, Flender suddenly extended a hand, gathering half his soul power, and reached for Zhu Zhuqing!
Faced with the Principal's sudden move, Zhu Zhuqing remained calm, extending her slender, jade-like hand to meet Flender's!
"Boom!"
A muffled explosion echoed, and a powerful shockwave spread from Flender and Zhu Zhuqing!
Instantly, the tables and chairs in the dining hall shook, cutlery cracked, and Zhou Chen, Xiao Wu, and the others had to retreat quickly to avoid injury.
"Thud, thud, thud!"
After exchanging blows, Flender took several steps back, leaving deep footprints on the dining hall floor.
This scene shocked Tang San and the others to the core!
A supposedly level 27 Zhu Zhuqing had repelled the Soul Saint Flender?!
Were they putting on a show?
But Flender's next words shattered their illusions.
"Soul Saint! You're a Soul Saint! How is that possible?!"
Flender stared at Zhu Zhuqing in disbelief.
Just moments ago, he was marveling at Zhou Chen's unparalleled talent. Yet now, an even more prodigious genius appeared beside Zhou Chen!
A teenage level 70 Soul Saint was simply unheard of!
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