Inside Drunken Immortal Pavilion, Flender booked a private room and ordered the very best dishes. The table was filled with delicacies, some made from century-old spirit beasts, while the main course was crafted from a thousand-year spirit beast.
This was truly a huge splurge from Flender, but he seemed even happier than Oscar himself. Since he was spending for the sake of his students, he did so with a cheerful heart.
The reason for Flender's joy was simple: not only had Oscar, with a mere twenty-second rank spirit power, leapt ranks to defeat the thirty-sixth rank Bu Le, but the way Oscar had hidden his true spirit and fought using an external spirit bone as if it were his martial spirit had also surprised Flender immensely.
Flender was now almost certain that once Oscar fully grew up, he would bring both glory and prosperity to Shrek Academy. His future achievements would definitely not be inferior to Flender's own.
And beyond being the headmaster of Shrek Academy, Flender also carried another identity—he was the "Flying Horn" of the Golden Iron Triangle.
For Oscar, a food-type spirit master, to have reached such strength and accomplishments already meant he had surpassed every food-type spirit master in history.
After the feast, Zhao Wuji brought Oscar and Ma Hongjun back to Shrek Academy, while Flender stayed behind in Suotuo City to auction off this month's batch of Shao Xin's candies and also to tend to his little shop.
This time, Oscar's second spirit ability was not put up for auction. After learning its effect, Flender was still hesitant about whether Oscar's specially made antidote sausage should be made public.
Besides, Oscar had only just returned two days ago from obtaining his second spirit ring, and he hadn't had the time to mass-produce them.
As for Oscar himself, he didn't care too much whether the ability was auctioned or not. Now that he wasn't short on money, it didn't matter.
On their way back to the academy, Oscar threw out all the women's undergarments from Bu Le's red bracelet spirit tool and gave the storage item itself to Ma Hongjun.
Hongjun already had one spirit tool from Flender, but now with this three-cubic-meter one, he was naturally overjoyed. Inside were also a few hundred gold spirit coins and some daily supplies stolen by Bu Le—a fitting compensation for the beating he had taken yesterday.
After today's incident, Ma Hongjun became even more motivated in his training. Oscar's performance had been so dazzling that he practically worshipped him now, vowing that one day he would surpass even Oscar.
If a food-type spirit master like Oscar could fight across ranks, then he—Ma Hongjun—with his top-tier beast martial spirit of the strong attack type, had no reason to fall behind.
Oscar's battle also drew Flender and Zhao Wuji's attention to the peculiarity of that whale gelatin.
Oscar, however, gave them a proper explanation.
That seven-hundred-year-old whale gelatin was indeed rare, but its effect wasn't as exaggerated as they might imagine. If Ma Hongjun consumed it, it would at most raise his body's physical strength by about five levels.
The reason Oscar's improvement had been so massive—nearly ten levels—was that his body had already been tempered to its absolute limit. The whale gelatin acted like a key, unlocking and releasing all the potential he had accumulated inside, causing an explosive breakthrough.
If Oscar were to take another piece of whale gelatin, even one from a thousand-year-old beast, the effect would never be as dramatic again.
Even so, Flender and Zhao Wuji had seen enough to recognize its extraordinary value. From now on, even without Oscar's prompting, Flender would invest effort into obtaining more.
Oscar also thoughtfully reminded them that whale gelatin was a product of sea spirit beasts. The best chance of finding it was in coastal regions—or, if one had the strength, by hunting sea spirit beasts directly.
But therein lay the danger: whale gelatin only came from whale-type spirit beasts, and these were among the top tier of sea beasts. They usually lived in groups, and even someone as strong as Flender, a Spirit Sage, might not succeed in hunting them.
If all the Shrek Academy teachers went together, it might be possible to take down a few.
Oscar naturally wished for as much whale gelatin as possible, but he placed no pressure on Flender. Beyond purchasing it, whether they would risk hunting at sea was entirely up to them.
Back at the academy, Oscar resumed his usual routine: rising at seven to train, studying and exercising during the day, practicing swordsmanship in his spare time, and cultivating instead of sleeping at night.
But since no one at Shrek possessed a sword-type martial spirit, Oscar's sword training could only rely on his own trial and error.
Of course, he wished he had a great teacher to guide him. In his heart, he already knew the most suitable candidate—the one hailed as the "Sword Douluo," Chen Xin, the supreme master of swordsmanship on the continent. But realistically, Oscar knew he had no chance of meeting him now.
There was, however, a way. With Oscar's talent, if he were to pledge himself to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Chen Xin would certainly be willing to teach him. Even if Chen Xin refused, the sect master, Ning Fengzhi, would absolutely take Oscar in and ask Chen Xin to guide him.
Yet Oscar did not do this. First, joining them would mean leaving Shrek Academy, and then he might never cross paths with Tang San in the future.
It was possible Ning Rongrong would still come to Shrek as in the original story, and Oscar might eventually return with her, but that was uncertain—and Oscar was not willing to gamble on it.
Second, Oscar had no current desire to join any faction. With his talent, any major power would cultivate him as a core member, but he preferred his independence.
Third, these nearly three years in Shrek had given him genuine feelings for the academy. For now, he wasn't willing to leave.
So whenever the idea of finding a sword teacher came up, Oscar only laughed it off.
But Flender, after hearing this, took it seriously. In his eyes, Oscar going to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and apprenticing under Chen Xin would be far more beneficial.
After all, Oscar's Jade Heaven Spirit Sword might only be an external spirit bone, but right now it was his primary combat method. To Flender, it felt like Shrek might be holding him back.
Indeed, Oscar's reluctance to leave was born from his attachment to Shrek. Flender had noticed this, which was why he hadn't even let Oscar and Ma Hongjun go through official spirit master registration—for fear other powers might snatch them away.