"Wait, we're students from Shrek Academy. We only acted because of the assessment and meant no harm."
Seeing Yu Longheng fall into a strange silence, Ning Yue panicked and mustered the courage to speak up: "Fellow soul masters, and the uncle over there, I'll compensate for your losses later!"
What on earth is going on?
That blue-eyed boy just glanced at them, why did Longheng become so stunned and immobile?
It's utterly baffling!
"Shrek?" Xie Xie paused, his expression turning odd. "You're students from Shrek Academy?"
"My martial soul is the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda!" Ning Yue raised the seven-tiered pagoda in her hand. "I'm a member of the Nine Treasure Glazed Sect. You must have heard of the legend of our ancestor, Ning Rongrong. This should be proof enough."
Xie Xie glanced at Gu Yuena, then back at Ning Yue, his expression growing even more peculiar. "You're all around fourteen years old, right? As Shrek students, you're only Soul Elders?"
Not to mention Boss Huo, who's a freak, but even Sister Na was at least a Soul King or Soul Ancestor by that age…
Fourteen years old and only Soul Elders?
Even before joining the Spirit Pagoda, he could have managed that!
With Shrek Academy's bizarre assessment methods, Xie Xie suddenly felt his illusions shattering.
Wei Xiaofeng wants to join Shrek… I hope he's okay.
Ning Yue's mouth twitched, feeling like the boy was mocking their cultivation level.
What's wrong with being Soul Elders at this age?
Is it that bad?
Besides, if Longheng wanted, he could have already advanced to Soul Ancestor. He's just waiting to absorb a ten-thousand-year spirit soul for his fourth spirit ring.
But she didn't have the heart to explain this, instead asking, "Do you believe our identities now? Can we leave?"
Xie Xie shrugged, "Too late, I've already informed the law enforcement team. And shouldn't compensation be given now? This uncle and I were beaten so badly by you, and you just want to walk away?"
Honestly, after seeing the two of them scared stiff by a single glance from Huo Yuhao, most of his anger had dissipated. The key issue was this innocent uncle who got electrocated…
Speaking of which, this uncle is really weak. He initially thought the man was a bad guy working with these two to scam others.
"This…"
Ning Yue looked at the middle-aged man lying in the corner, unsure of what to say.
Seeing this, Xie Xie's expression turned cold. "You're not seriously thinking of leaving, are you? According to federal law, if a soul master injures someone without justifiable defense, causing minor injuries leads to fines and detention, while severe injuries or death result in imprisonment! Do you want to be locked up?"
In their cultural classes, Teacher Luoyang had drilled them endlessly on following federal laws. He'd memorized so many provisions targeting soul masters that his head spun.
He never thought he'd actually use them.
If you hurt someone and don't compensate or take responsibility, then the federal law will handle it. Who cares about your assessment!
Ning Yue: "…"
Fines? Detention? Imprisonment?
All their belongings had been confiscated, and the money they'd earned along the way was just enough to get by. They didn't have much! Plus, they couldn't afford to be detained here, or they'd miss the assessment deadline!
Ning Yue grew anxious.
She was just a support-type soul master, no match for a battle soul master. She'd been relying on Yu Longheng, but now that he seemed incapacitated, she was at a loss.
It seemed their only hope was for their teacher to step in, but even as the law enforcement team arrived, Shen Yi didn't make a move. Ning Yue's heart sank.
"Right, if the teacher intervenes, our assessment would fail. What's the point then?" Ning Yue sighed, feeling frustrated.
If it weren't for that blue-eyed boy and the black-haired girl, they would have already left, and she wouldn't be praying for the teacher's help.
But contrary to Ning Yue's thoughts, it wasn't that Shen Yi was unwilling to act. From the moment Huo Yuhao and the others arrived, she had been locked down by a powerful spiritual force.
She frowned, observing carefully, and eventually came to a conclusion that left her in disbelief.
This Spirit Abyss-level spiritual force was emanating from Huo Yuhao!
Spirit Abyss, a realm typically only touched by Title Douluos. Even for those once-in-a-generation geniuses, it was usually only achievable at the Soul Sage level. How could this boy already…
Shen Yi, usually calm and composed, stared intently at Huo Yuhao, her mind reeling.
A ten-year-old at the Spirit Abyss level? Had such a being ever existed in the entire history of the Federation?
As Shen Yi was lost in thought, the law enforcement team quickly arrived, and she could no longer intervene. She could only watch as Yu Longheng and Ning Yue were taken away by the team.
Among them, Yu Longheng's steps were heavy, as if he was still immersed in the shock from earlier.
Just as he was about to pass by Huo Yuhao, Yu Longheng suddenly looked up, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
He turned his head, his gaze like a blade piercing toward Huo Yuhao. "Eighth on the Young Genius Ranking, Huo Yuhao, I'll remember you! The humiliation of today will be repaid in the future."
Huo Yuhao raised an eyebrow.
Why did it feel like he was the villain here?
Oh, right, the Spirit Pagoda played the role of the antagonist in the Dragon King version.
"Young Genius Ranking? What's that?" Xie Xie glanced at the departing Yu Longheng, not paying much attention to his words, and turned to Huo Yuhao with curiosity.
If he's no match for Boss Huo now, he'll be even less so in the future.
Huo Yuhao explained, "It's a ranking set up by the Spirit Pagoda, open to the entire Federation. It includes soul masters under eighteen years old, ranked based on spirit power level, potential, and secondary professions."
The soul master strength in Eastsea was considered second-tier in the Federation, so people here didn't pay much attention to the Wind and Cloud Ranking and its sub-rankings. After all, it had nothing to do with Eastsea City, and no locals were on the list, so Xie Xie genuinely didn't know.
Xie Xie's eyes lit up. "That guy just said you're eighth, meaning your talent is in the top ten in the entire Federation? As expected of you!"
At this point, Xie Xie thought of something and suddenly looked at Gu Yuena.
"Sister Na, are you on it too?"
"Thirteenth."
Gu Yuena nodded faintly, not elaborating further. Her gaze shifted to the middle-aged man who had long since regained consciousness but hadn't left. She exchanged a glance with Huo Yuhao and communicated via spiritual transmission.
"Yuhao, he's the deputy pagoda master of the Heaven Dou branch, a Title Douluo arranged by Di Tian to assist Xiong Jun."
"Mm, I roughly guessed his identity. He's probably the teacher Xie Xie mentioned today, the one teaching him. Quite a… character."
A Title Douluo being knocked down by Yu Longheng, a Soul Elder. A Soul Elder defeating a Title Douluo, the latter could brag about it for a lifetime.
Huo Yuhao thought to himself, withdrawing the spiritual force that had been restraining Shen Yi. He glanced at the middle-aged man in the corner and transmitted to Gu Yuena, "Let's go. He's probably here to see Xie Xie."
After saying this, Huo Yuhao turned to Xie Xie:
"Since we've helped this far, do you want to take this uncle to see a healing soul master?"
"Sure." Xie Xie had no objections. He walked over and grabbed the "confused" uncle, leading him away. "Uncle, I'll take you to get checked out."
Liang Xiaoyu looked at him, somewhat speechless.
This disciple isn't very bright. He's heard my voice before, yet he still hasn't figured it out…
Today, he had wanted to meet Xie Xie, his prospective disciple, and test him a bit. He hadn't expected to run into Shrek students blocking people near the Spirit Pagoda. He couldn't just ignore it and let them cause trouble near the pagoda.
So, he planned to pretend to be a Soul Ancestor and teach these brats a lesson, then invite them to the Spirit Pagoda for "tea" to prevent them from causing more trouble.
But when Xie Xie arrived, he didn't act immediately, wanting to see the character and abilities of this prospective disciple. The rest was history.
"This kid's response was too poor. If it weren't for his companions being strong, he wouldn't have just been electrocuted. He needs more training."
Liang Xiaoyu thought to himself.
At this moment, Xie Xie chuckled, "Uncle, how are you so weak? A Soul Ancestor can't even take one move from a Soul Elder."
"By the way, after being electrocuted like that, the little hair you have left is going to disappear even more, right? It's already not much, what are you going to do in the future?"
Liang Xiaoyu: "…"
This mouth is so annoying. Suddenly, I don't want to take this disciple anymore.