Chapter 52: The Plan to Destroy Shrek
"Heh… so this is Shrek Academy?" Guo Miao let out a bitter laugh. He lowered his head to glance at the still-unconscious Yingying in his arms, and his eyes instantly softened.
"Yingying, if this is what Shrek Academy is like, then it's not worth staying. I'll take you home right now." His voice was gentle. "We'll return to the Heavenly Soul Empire—back to our own home."
He carefully removed the iron vest from her body, and in doing so inevitably saw the raw, vicious marks the metal had rubbed into her skin.
Crack… crack…
His fists clenched until his knuckles turned white, his gaze filled with pain as he held her tighter.
The two of them were childhood sweethearts. Their families had been close for generations, and they had grown up together with deep affection. Seeing her like this nearly made Guo Miao's anger consume his reason entirely.
Tossing aside his own iron vest, he stood with Yingying in his arms and turned to glare at Zhou Yi with eyes full of resentment before walking toward Shrek's main gate.
From start to finish, Lin Yun had watched the scene, his gaze playful as it lingered on Zhou Yi.
Students like Guo Miao and Yingying, expelled by Zhou Yi's heavy-handedness, were hardly rare. Among them were more than a few she had once labeled as "trash," only for them to later surpass her in strength by a wide margin. Even now, though she hadn't taught long enough for expelled students to have much time to cultivate, many were far from being nobodies.
Quite a number of them weren't alone either—their families often held significant influence and power.
When she met Guo Miao's eyes in that last moment, Zhou Yi's body trembled ever so slightly. That kind of hateful stare was nothing new to her, and she knew well that if she were ever to leave Shrek Academy and Shrek City, those she had expelled might well tear her apart.
But so what?
She had an eighth-rank Soul Engineer for a husband, and Shrek itself as her backing. She feared nothing.
Even so, when she turned and saw Lin Yun's mocking expression, a flicker of unease rose in her chest.
Lin Yun…
She bit down lightly, anger and hatred flashing in her eyes. If not for him, she wouldn't be struggling at every step in Class One, her teaching philosophy hamstrung at every turn.
If only he were dead… how wonderful that would be.
When the thought crossed her mind, Zhou Yi startled herself, quickly shaking her head to banish it. But some seeds, once planted, were not so easily removed.
Without realizing it, a sliver of madness had already taken root deep inside her.
Madness—a fascinating word.
It could grant someone trapped in despair a thread of hope, or drive a sane person step by step into the abyss.
Lin Yun withdrew his gaze, rubbed Xiao Xiao's small head beside him, and then lay back down on the grass. Within moments, his breathing grew steady, accompanied by faint snores.
Asleep…
Xiao Xiao pouted, fixing her hair where Lin Yun had mussed it. She looked at his sleeping face, then summoned her Nine Phoenix Arrival Flute Martial Soul, playing a gentle, soothing melody.
The clear, ethereal notes blended with the wind, bringing a touch of peace to the sweltering afternoon.
Only Zhou Yi sat with furrowed brows, watching the "poor souls" running laps, the unease in her heart growing stronger.
That look in Lin Yun's eyes…
"Could he really have a way to make the academy abandon me? Impossible. The academy has never dismissed a teacher over a student. And with Fan Yu set to become the future vice dean—possibly even dean—of the Soul Tool Department, they would never do it!"
"Heh… then let me see just what you can do!"
Even now, Zhou Yi still didn't understand why she and Lin Yun seemed like mortal enemies, each bent on destroying the other.
…
Life-and-death enmity?
Just a jumping clown.
"Binger, tell the Ten Thousand Demon King the plan can begin." Back in the dormitory, Lin Yun looked out at the gradually darkening night sky, patted his chest lightly, and let a faint, unreadable smile curl at his lips.
The sun had set—night was coming.
The Ice Emperor crawled out from Lin Yun's collar and perched on his shoulder, her crystal-yellow eyes glimmering faintly as she silently relayed the message to the Ten Thousand Demon King.
Elsewhere—
Rooted in the courtyard in the form of a tree, the Ten Thousand Demon King swayed his canopy slightly. A flash of dark green light passed through him, and he transformed into a middle-aged man with a shadowy presence, stepping into the yard.
Inside, a handsome young man was bent over a desk, writing furiously. Beside him sat a refined, black-stockinged JK-style beauty with an aura of light, her face flushed red as she watched whatever the young man was producing.
Qing Ye and Sheng Xin.
"Sheng Xin, hit me with another Light Blessing—I feel like I can keep grinding for another day!" Qing Ye said with feverish excitement.
Sheng Xin pressed her lips together, then sprinkled a shower of golden radiance over him before walking toward the Ten Thousand Demon King.
Glancing at Qing Ye—who, after receiving the Light Blessing, was once again scribbling as if fueled by chicken blood—the Ten Thousand Demon King lowered his voice to Sheng Xin. "That lord has given word: the plan to destroy Shrek can now begin."
"Lord Ten Thousand Demon King, can… that stuff really affect Shrek?" Sheng Xin asked, her head spinning at the thought of the shameful material pouring from Qing Ye's brush—stuff that could make anyone flush just looking at it.
"You don't need to know that. All you need to understand is that the plan to destroy Shrek was personally devised by that lord." The Ten Thousand Demon King's voice was sharp.
"Yes, I understand," Sheng Xin said with a helpless nod.
When she'd first been summoned and told to accompany a human, Sheng Xin had refused outright. But once the Ten Thousand Demon King explained it was an arrangement from that lord—meant to destroy Shrek and restore the glory of the soul beast race—she could only agree.
In reality, though, her so-called assignment was simply to stay by the human's side, occasionally casting Light Blessing or Light Healing on him.
Oh—and watch him produce that shameful material.
In particular, there was one scene involving a refined middle-aged man and a muscular middle-aged man locked in a passionate wrestling match—a sight that had truly shaken the lofty and pure-hearted leader of the Bright Unicorn Clan.
If Sheng Xin remembered correctly, those two were actually the current dean and vice dean of Shrek Academy.
All she could say was… they really knew how to play.
What she didn't notice was that, after watching long enough, she'd started to enjoy these bizarre illustrated stories. Every time, she would cover her eyes in embarrassment—yet still peek through her fingers to watch Qing Ye "slay his enemies."
Perhaps… the fujoshi within her had already awakened. (Tragic)
(End of Chapter)
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