Cang Jingkong appeared once more in front of Fors, but this time, her expression was as if she had just seen a ghost.
Ten-thousand-year spirit rings! That was a ten-thousand-year spirit ring! And not just one—but four of them!
Heavens above! Even she, a Soul Emperor, only possessed two ten-thousand-year rings.
Among this year's new applicants, the strongest spirit rings she had seen so far were only thousand-year rings. Yet the little girl standing before her—no more than thirteen years old, perhaps even younger—already had four ten-thousand-year spirit rings.
As for whether they were fake? The thought didn't even cross her mind. The aura of those spirit rings couldn't possibly be faked.
A monster. This was undoubtedly a true, bona fide monster! A monster that perfectly fit the criteria for Shrek Academy's admissions!
Having four ten-thousand-year spirit rings meant that the girl's physical strength was absolutely extraordinary—stronger even than hers, a Soul Emperor.
And her spiritual power was at least at the Spirit Sea Realm. That, at least, didn't surprise Cang Jingkong; she had already seen Fors's overwhelming spiritual strength back in the first trial.
But the girl's Martial Soul was far stranger. When Fors evaded the Scarletflame Tiger's first pounce, she had clearly used spatial movement. Then she had displayed gravity manipulation, the fusion of water and earth elements into Swamp, and finally that terrifying ice element.
Just what kind of Martial Soul was this? With all her years of experience, Cang Jingkong couldn't even identify it.
If she weren't worried about scaring the girl, she would have stepped forward to touch her, just to make sure this little sister was really human. How could anyone be so against the heavens?!
"...Well then, Teacher Cang, how many points did I get for this round?" Fors asked with a faint, teasing smile.
"Perfect! Full marks—you get full marks!" Snapping back to her senses, Cang Jingkong hurriedly responded.
This was the second trial of Shrek Academy's entrance exam: the Beast Arena.
The rules were simple: the more participants, the stronger and more numerous the spirit beasts would be. The minimum requirement was to survive one minute under attack. Causing injury to the beasts would earn extra points.
The reason Cang Jingkong hadn't told Fors the rules beforehand was that Elder Li had instructed her not to—he wanted the girl to suffer a little setback, so she wouldn't grow arrogant and complacent.
That was why Fors had faced a two-thousand-year-old Scarletflame Tiger. Normally, for solo candidates, the most they'd face would be a standard thousand-year beast.
A two-thousand-year Scarletflame Tiger was meant for teams of three to five examinees.
Yet this little girl had crushed it with ease.
That was a Scarletflame Tiger! With cultivation over two thousand years! And she had frozen it solid in mere moments.
Even Cang Jingkong herself, without the aid of battle armor, would have needed significant effort to take it down. To do it as casually as Fors had? Impossible.
"Second trial: Beast Arena. Fors Wall—ten points." Cang Jingkong paused, then looked at her again. "Do you want to rest? The next trial will be dangerous."
But after seeing those four ten-thousand-year rings, she already knew: this girl was destined to enter Shrek Academy. Even among Shrek's own history, how many Soul Sects possessed ten-thousand-year spirit rings?
Fors had four. And she was still so young. A true monster—so monstrous that even if she were admitted directly into the Inner Court, it wouldn't be strange.
"No need." Fors shook her head. "That last fight didn't take much out of me. Better to finish early so I can rest sooner."
"Very well." Cang Jingkong nodded, then pushed open a great door, leading Fors into an open courtyard between stone towers.
In that space stood rows of gates. Dozens of them. Perhaps over a hundred, arranged in several rows.
Strictly speaking, these were not normal gates but guillotine gates—a frame with a massive blade suspended overhead. Each blade was two meters wide, over a meter tall, and half a meter thick.
Even a full-grown ox standing beneath one would be split in half with a single drop.
"This is the third trial—Adaptability. After I say 'prepare,' you'll have one minute. When I say 'begin,' you must pass through these gates.
If you finish within thirty seconds, you get six points. For every three seconds faster, you gain one point. For every three seconds slower, you lose one point.
Two warnings: first, the closer the gate to the starting line, the faster its blade will fall. These are real blades—if you're cut down, your life or death is your own responsibility.
Second, this trial can result in negative scores. If you cannot pass, then you're eliminated, and the later trials won't matter. Guillotine blades, rise!"
As she spoke, she gestured with her hand.
"Clang—!" The first massive blade fell, striking its slot with a deafening crash, sparks flying. Then it lifted again, then fell again—clang!
Soon the entire field rang with the sound of steel—clang, clang, clang!
"Prepare. One minute countdown begins." Cang Jingkong gave her no time to overthink.
"As expected of Shrek Academy… even their exams are life-threatening," Fors thought to herself with a wry smile.
She quickly scanned the gates. The shortest row had only six gates—but their blades fell with terrifying speed. The longest row had more than twenty gates—but their blades were slower.
Clearly, it was up to the candidate to choose: safer but low-scoring, or riskier but with the chance of full points.
"Ten, nine, eight…"
Cang Jingkong began counting down. The third trial was about to start.
Fors stepped calmly to the front of the shortest row—the one with the six fastest blades. Her expression remained utterly calm.
"Three, two, one—begin!"
"Boom!"
At the exact instant Cang Jingkong's voice fell, thunder roared. Fors's body vanished, replaced by a bolt of lightning that shot forward, streaking across the six guillotine gates in a flash.
In the blink of an eye, she had already reappeared on the other side, whole and unharmed.
This was the innate ability of the Thunderclaw Dragon Martial Soul: Lightning Form.
It wasn't a spirit skill, but a natural power of the Martial Soul itself.
Fors, having replicated the Thunderclaw Dragon's Martial Soul, might not wield it as powerfully as Shenwei Kamui, but she could still fully utilize its basic abilities.
Teacher Cang, she asked sweetly, smiling at the dumbstruck examiner, this round should be full marks as well, right?