As they watched the applicants ahead of them,
Tang San smiled. "Now you won't doubt the teacher's advice anymore. This Shrek Academy is definitely no ordinary place."
Since they had moved closer to the front, they could now clearly see
Dai Mubai had finally spotted Tang San and Xiao Wu as well. A faint smile appeared on his cold face as he nodded toward them, then pointed at the old man, spread his hands, and made a helpless expression. He was clearly telling them that the registration depended entirely on their own efforts — there was nothing he could do to help.
Just as they were exchanging glances, a soft murmur of surprise suddenly drew Tang San's attention.
The old man handling the registration had a look of uncertainty and surprise on his face. Standing before him was a girl who had just withdrawn her outstretched hand.
She had come alone, without any parents to accompany her. A simple white dress gave her a very clean appearance. Her neat, ear-length hair was cut short, and she stood about half a head shorter than Xiao Wu. Since her back was turned to Tang San and Xiao Wu, they couldn't see her face, but the skin on her neck revealed an exceptionally fair and delicate complexion.
"May I ask if I've passed the preliminary test?" The girl's voice was soft and pleasant — it lacked a certain boldness, but the gentle, honeyed tones had a way of making one's bones go limp.
From the way Dai Mubai's gaze lingered on the girl, Tang San could tell she must be very beautiful. Those seductive eyes of his no longer held their usual coldness — instead they gleamed with the look of a wolf. The kind with a particular interest.
The surprise on the old man's face gradually faded. He frowned. "Did your family know you came here?"
The girl didn't directly answer his question. She simply smiled and said, "I've heard the saying 'education should be without discrimination.' As long as I meet the academy's requirements, you have no reason to turn me away, do you?"
The old man seemed to hesitate for a moment, then waved toward Dai Mubai. "Take her in."
The wolfish gleam in Dai Mubai's eyes vanished as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by his usual cold expression. He led the girl toward the academy.
The remaining applicants quickly passed the old man's first round of testing, and finally it was Tang San and Xiao Wu's turn. By this time, Dai Mubai had already returned to the old man's side after escorting several applicants.
Tang San suddenly noticed that Dai Mubai's expression had changed. He was staring fixedly toward the space behind Tang San, as though he had spotted something unbelievable.
Tang San instinctively turned to look. Although he didn't lose his composure the way Dai Mubai had, his heart gave a jolt of surprise.
Behind him and Xiao Wu, only one applicant remained — and she seemed to have just arrived. Another girl, who looked even a little younger than Tang San and Xiao Wu. Long black hair cascaded over her shoulders, her face was held slightly downward, and she was roughly the same height as the earlier girl in white. Her skin was similarly fair and pale. But this girl gave off a distinctly different impression.
In stark contrast to her curvaceous figure, the girl's expression was utterly cold — a coldness that emanated from within, a pure and crystalline chill. Her black eyes held not a single spark of vitality, which clashed strikingly with her otherwise beautiful face.
Her limbs were slender and perfectly proportioned, her hands hanging naturally at her sides. The deathly, lifeless aura she radiated was deeply unsettling.
"Are you registering or not? If not, stop blocking the way." The old man's voice snapped Tang San back from his thoughts. A sharp pain shot through his hand — he turned to find Xiao Wu glaring at him fiercely.
"We're registering together," Tang San said, enduring the pain as he placed the twenty Gold Soul Coins he had prepared into the wooden box. He and Xiao Wu both extended their hands.
The old man first squeezed Xiao Wu's hand and gave a nod. "Your age checks out." When his hand moved to Tang San's, that same sound of surprise escaped his lips once more.
The old man seemed to refuse to believe it and squeezed Tang San's hand several more times, his expression growing increasingly strange. He looked up at Tang San. "Have you been practicing some kind of Soul Skill with your hands?"
The reason he squeezed applicants' hands was to determine their true age from the bone structure of their palms — something that could not be faked. But Tang San's hand felt extraordinarily supple, and no matter how he tried, he couldn't get a clear read on the bones underneath.
Tang San's heart skipped a beat. He nodded. "Yes, I have."
The old man frowned. "Lift your lower leg."
Tang San complied, raising his leg and resting it on the table. The old man pressed a few spots on his calf through the fabric of his trousers, and Tang San immediately felt a wave of tingling numbness.
The old man nodded. "Good muscle development. Bone age is appropriate. Now then — release both of your Martial Souls."
Tang San and Xiao Wu exchanged a glance and simultaneously channeled the Soul Power within their bodies.
Blue and red light rose at the same moment, and Hundred-Year Soul Rings spiraled upward from beneath them.
Bunny ears sprouted from Xiao Wu's head, white and fluffy fur materialized on her hands, and her body grew more slender and lithe. The Jade Rabbit Martial Soul merged with her form.
In Tang San's palm, the most ordinary
The old man only spared Xiao Wu a cursory glance before fixing his eyes on Tang San. "Blue Silver Grass, of all things. Can Blue Silver Grass really cultivate this quickly?"
Tang San smiled faintly. "Teacher, isn't this academy supposed to only accept monsters? Would you say I qualify as one?"
(End of Chapter)