Shrek Academy was highly efficient. Just three days later, a simple report appeared on the desk of Du Weilun, the dean of the Outer Court at Shrek Academy.
"Thank you for your hard work this time, brother. Take this and go collect your reward from the City Lord."
Du Weilun scribbled a note and handed it to the masked man in black robes standing before him.
"Dean Du, you're too kind. It's an honor for us Shrek people to serve the academy."
The masked man put away the note, and the eight Soul Rings pulsating around him flickered slightly before he disappeared from Du Weilun's office.
"He truly lives up to being a genius who came out of our Shrek Outer Court. With people like you, Shrek will never fall."
Du Weilun looked admiringly in the direction the masked man had disappeared, a smile playing on his lips.
The latter was once a student of Shrek Academy but failed to get into the Inner Court. After graduating from the Outer Court, he joined the City Defense Army of Shrek City, under its jurisdiction, and has served ever since. He is the fastest Soul Douluo in the City Defense Army.
Dean Yan had personally instructed him to handle the matter quickly, so Du Weilun naturally didn't dare to delay and went directly to the City Defense Army to find the latter for help.
His gaze returned to the simple material on his desk. Du Weilun frowned, pondered for a moment, then picked up the material and headed towards Yan Shaozhe's office.
"Although Xu Tianxi didn't awaken the Profound Tortoise, he has innate Soul Power at rank seven, so he's still a decent talent. Please make the final decision, Dean…"
"Oh? A rare spiritual Martial Soul, Moon Shadow, and innate Soul Power at rank seven? This kid's talent isn't too bad. What a pity, though. It looks like his Martial Soul underwent a malignant mutation. Even with Mystic Water Pills and Black Tortoise Divine Pills, he only reached innate rank seven. Without those pills, he probably wouldn't even have reached innate rank three."
Yan Shaozhe slapped the urgent intelligence report onto the table, a subtle sneer playing on his face.
"Weilun, in your opinion, what do you think of this kid's talent? Can he graduate from the Outer Court? And can he get into the Inner Court?"
"In my opinion… unless there's something special about his Martial Soul that we don't know about, he might barely be able to graduate from the Outer Court, but he has no hope of getting into the Inner Court."
Du Weilun's tone was decisive. He then analyzed calmly, "Innate Soul Power at rank seven meets our minimum graduation requirement for Outer Court disciples. No more than fifty students graduate from our Outer Court each year, and their innate Soul Power won't be lower than rank seven."
"Spiritual Martial Souls are somewhat unique compared to other Martial Souls. If he cultivates diligently, he might have a chance to graduate from the Outer Court."
Shrek Academy gathers countless geniuses from the Three Great Empires. Every year, some people are eliminated, and almost no one who makes it to the sixth year has innate Soul Power below rank seven.
Geniuses with innate rank eight, rank nine, or even full innate Soul Power are rare outside, but they are commonplace at Shrek Academy, continuously entering year after year.
Although after ten thousand years of development, Titled Douluo are no longer so rare, the innate Soul Power of most Titled Douluo from the original Three Great Empires is still above rank seven, with almost no exceptions. This is also one reason why the Outer Court sets such a high graduation threshold.
"As for the Inner Court… although occasionally a genius with innate rank seven Soul Power passes the assessment, it's almost impossible for Xu Tianxi with his spiritual attribute, unless the Xuanming Sect is willing to expend a huge amount of resources on him."
Du Weilun took into full consideration Xu Tianxi's background when making his most reliable judgment.
Yan Shaozhe smiled and asked, "So it's impossible, then. Why are you so certain?"
"Dean, with your discerning eye, why bother asking me again?"
Du Weilun shook his head with a forced smile, then said seriously, "The reason is simple: spiritual Soul Beasts are too rare, and powerful ones are even rarer. Even with our academy's ten-thousand-year heritage, it's difficult to find a suitable Soul Ring combination for him, let alone for the Xuanming Sect."
"If he can't find suitable Soul Rings, it will be very difficult for his Martial Soul to continue cultivating. It would be incredibly hard for him to even reach seven rings. Where would he find suitable Soul Beasts after that? He can't exactly go to the Sun Moon Empire to find Evil Eyes, can he?"
As he spoke, Du Weilun himself found his words amusing. The Evil Forest is a forbidden land for Soul Masters, whose danger level is no less than that of the fierce Star Dou Great Forest. Even Titled Douluo are deeply wary of it.
Even if the Xuanming Sect had the resources, they probably wouldn't expend them on such a long-shot junior. Their internal competition is very fierce.
"By the way, what's the situation with Old Monster Xu and the Xu family head? Have they been investigated thoroughly as well?"
Yan Shaozhe remembered the two people closest to Xu Tianxi in the Xuanming Sect and cautiously asked.
If Old Monster Xu was dead set on cultivating Xu Tianxi, he really couldn't do anything to Xu Tianxi.
"This is quite a coincidence. Our people just sent back news that Xu Fu, the Xuanming family head, has been handing over his affairs to other clan members these past two days, claiming he's going into seclusion in the back mountains. We haven't received any news about Old Monster Xu."
"It's normal not to get news… Send a message to Xue Lingxun. Whether to agree or not, let her decide for herself."
Yan Shaozhe paced for a while with his hands behind his back, then made a decision.
"Alright," Du Weilun replied, turning to make preparations.
Xuanming Sect, Sect Master's Wife's residence.
Xue Lingxun, dressed in an elegant palace gown with a noble aura, held the letter in her hand, her brows tightly furrowed.
After closing her eyes and pondering for a long time, she opened her beautiful eyes and beckoned to the two maids standing respectfully at her side, asking:
"Xue Han, Xue Nuan, what do you two think?"
The two women exchanged glances and replied in unison, "It's all up to Your Highness to decide."
The two of them were Xue Lingxun's personal maids, brought from the Dou Ling Empire. She had bestowed the surname Xue upon them, making them her absolute confidantes.
"Let me decide… Heh, this matter is a real headache. What am I to do?"
Having married into the Xuanming Sect many years ago, Xue Lingxun had a slight understanding of the Xuanming Sect's strength. If she had to describe it in one word, it would be unfathomable.
She had once thought of bringing Xu Sanshi and her husband back to Dou Ling to see her family, hoping the imperial family would use this opportunity to invite the Xuanming Sect to become a protecting sect of Dou Ling. This would greatly benefit both her husband's family and her own.
But she hadn't expected that her family had a very strong opinion against her husband, who had eloped with her. Even when her husband revealed his identity as the Sect Master of the Xuanming Sect and displayed cultivation close to that of a Titled Douluo, her father, who had once doted on her the most, still showed them no favor. As for her nephew, who had just ascended the throne, there was even less to say.
Her husband was also a generation's prodigy in his youth, not a mud doll without temper. He couldn't endure the cold sarcasm and various forms of contempt, and soon they parted ways unhappily.
Although her title as princess was not stripped after she returned with her husband, her influence as a former princess in the Dou Ling Empire had dwindled significantly.
For the Dean of Shrek Academy to ask her to make things difficult for Xu Tianxi—he really had the nerve to think of such a shameless idea.
"This matter could be big or small; it really depends on how much that boy means to my husband."
Xue Lingxun slowly made up her mind, then turned to the two women and instructed,
"Xue Han, gather people and prepare a large pot of whale glue tonic soup. Tonight, invite the Sect Master over. I wish to have a heart-to-heart talk with him by candlelight."
"Xue Nuan, take some people to the market and buy lots of toys that children like. The more variety, the better. Tomorrow, deliver them to Xu Tianxi of the second branch under my name. Also, check if he's lacking anything good and make sure to provide it all to him."
Upon hearing this, Xue Han's cheeks flushed slightly as she respectfully assented. Whale glue was a potent aphrodisiac, so she naturally understood the meaning of a "heart-to-heart talk by candlelight." Her Royal Highness was clearly missing the Sect Master.
Xue Nuan, however, looked confused and asked, "This servant is foolish; I don't understand the meaning of Your Highness's actions."
"What meaning could there be? It's simply to treat him well, give him whatever he likes, let him indulge in pleasure, and neglect his cultivation. Isn't that how royalty raises their wastrels?"
Xue Lingxun languidly brushed her hair, smiling as she said, "That child just lost his mother, so it's only right for me to care for him. As for whether this approach works, that's not for me to worry about."
"I've done my part and tried my best. I hope they'll pay more attention to Sanshi too. After all, I'm just a small Soul King; they can't possibly expect me to take action myself."
"Alright, you two, go quickly. Have Xue Xin and Xue Ling come in. I need to bathe and get ready. It's been a while since I've seen the Sect Master, and I miss him quite a bit. He said he'd be in seclusion for two or three years. If I don't see him now, I'll really miss him later."
"Yes." The two women bowed gracefully and departed.
Seeing the room empty, a hint of mockery flickered in Xue Lingxun's eyes.
The people of Shrek Academy are truly accustomed to their arrogance. Do they really think everyone is a fool willing to be their pawn? If not for their apprehension of the Sun Moon Empire, why would the Three Great Empires tolerate such an overbearing presence lording over them?
Especially for the imperial family, while the threat of the Sun Moon Empire is indeed terrifying, isn't Shrek Academy, which could overturn their throne at any time, equally terrifying?
That night, Xu Fu, who had been summoned by Xue Lingxun under the pretext of "discussing important matters," was surprised to find his Great Madam already waiting for him, dressed in an elegant, luxurious gown.
A golden hairpin adorned her elaborate hair, and a floral ornament dangled from her hairpiece, highlighting the expanse of pale skin at her chest.
After a few bowls of whale glue tonic soup, the rest goes without saying.
The following day at noon, Xu Tianxi, who was reading in the Library Pavilion, looked at the pile of antique toys, miscellaneous books, and a Gold Soul Card brought by Xue Nuan and her people, a series of question marks forming on his forehead.
"Chen Wu, Yue Lao, what do you think the Great Madam means by this? Why is she giving me these things?"
Xu Tianxi casually picked up an arrow used for touhu and twirled it, a thoughtful look in his eyes. These things were nice, but why give them to him out of the blue? He hadn't even gone to pay his respects to her.
Yue Lao frowned in thought, while Chen Wu boisterously said, "I think she just wants to show off her status. Or perhaps, Young Master San, you should go play with Young Master Er?"
"Makes sense."
Without much more discussion, Xu Tianxi directly asked Xu Xiaoyun to help him find Xu Sanshi, who had been avoiding him like the plague these past few days. He then smiled and said,
"Third Brother Sanshi, I have something I need your help understanding…"
After quickly explaining his confusion about Xue Lingxun, Xu Sanshi furrowed his brow and pondered for a long time before finally answering.
"I don't know about other things, but when I went to pay my respects to her this morning, I found her still in bed, unable to get up. Then I asked my mother's personal maid, and she said that the old man was invited over by my mother last night, and they kept at it all night…"
"My mother was extremely happy then, and she even casually gave me a Gold Soul Card, telling me to spend it freely when I return to Shrek."
Xu Tianxi: "…???"
What's going on? Could it be that Xu Fu pleased her, and now she just wants to hand out rewards everywhere?
Thinking about it that way, Xu Fu is quite selfless. Xue Lingxun is at an age where she's like a wolf or a tiger, and by working so hard, he's essentially sacrificing himself to secure benefits for the two of them, even if he doesn't particularly need them himself.
"It seems the old man is a good person," Xu Tianxi mused with an inexplicable sigh. Although he still couldn't fully ascertain Xue Lingxun's motives, with his ancestor backing him, there was no need to overthink things.
"Yes, the old man truly is a good person," Xu Sanshi echoed sincerely, caressing the Gold Soul Card he had just received.
Xu Xiaoyun stood silently, his eyes flickering as he caught a familiar scent from the conversation.
"I should go ask that boy Xu Fu later…"