After Arthur left.
Ya Li gazed quietly at Sea God Lake.
The next moment, a young man's figure appeared beside her.
Yun Ming asked with some confusion, "Is it really necessary to go this far?"
What he meant, naturally, was why Ya Li was courting Arthur so deliberately.
Reflected in her eyes were the distant ancient trees. Ya Li's gaze remained calm and steady. "It's necessary."
She turned to look at Yun Ming, her tone firm. "That move he used to defeat Qian Wu, you've only seen the recording. You can't grasp the power behind it."
Yun Ming's brow shifted slightly. At the time, Arthur, only a Soul Elder, had defeated a Soul King clad in a single-piece Battle Armor. That alone had been shocking enough.
But now, going by what Ya Li said, it seemed the true weight of that battle went far beyond what had appeared on the surface.
"That move was no ordinary soul skill." A trace of gravity crept into Ya Li's voice, subtle but unmistakable.
"Unless you witness it with your own eyes, you can't understand just how singular that power was."
"Is that so." Yun Ming fell into thought, his gaze drifting toward the direction Arthur had gone.
On the day of the entrance assessment, having already made peace with her teacher, Wu Changkong returned and looked over the assembled members of Class Zero.
"It's about time. Let's go."
"Wait, hold on!" Na'er hopped forward. "What about Big Brother Arthur?"
A vein twitched at Wu Changkong's temple without her meaning it to. The mention of that name brought back yesterday's humiliation, and her tone cooled a few degrees. "He's waiting for you all at the academy. You'll see him when the time comes."
Xu Xiaoyan crossed her arms and muttered, "I have a bad feeling about this."
Glancing at the group, who had already started chattering excitedly among themselves, Wu Changkong shook her head helplessly. "Just focus on yourselves for now. This assessment determines whether you get to stay at Shrek. No matter what happens, give it everything you've got."
"Got it!" the group answered in unison, anticipation for Shrek Academy plain in their eyes.
After all, nearly everyone in the Federation had grown up hearing stories of Shrek Academy.
The group soon arrived at the assessment plaza. The plaza was already packed, a sea of gifted young men and women from across the Federation, shoulder to shoulder, the air thick with a mix of tension and excitement.
On a platform at the center of the plaza stood several stern-faced examiners, all senior instructors of Shrek Academy.
One of them cleared his throat and called out in a voice that carried across the entire plaza, "Attention, new students! You will now be assessed in order, by group!"
The examinees were then led, in sequence, into a large circular hall.
The most striking feature of the hall was the mural on its domed ceiling.
The first trial was to face that mural head-on, one that carried the pressure of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King's very bloodline.
Dark golden patterns rippled across the mural. The moment the students stepped into the hall, an overwhelming draconic presence crashed down on them like a mountain.
It was the unique aura of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King, thick with pressure, and it left many of the new students instantly pale-faced, their legs going weak.
Those with dragon-type martial souls, like Wang Jinxi, were affected the most, collapsing on the spot.
Xu Xiaoyan's small face had gone white as well.
Within Class Zero, aside from Gu Yue and Na'er, everyone else was struggling.
"Hmph!"
With a soft snort, a golden dragon's phantom rose up behind Na'er.
The golden dragon phantom spread its wings naturally, sheltering the members of Class Zero beneath them. Na'er's purple eyes shone with startling brilliance as she gave a small wave of her hand.
A weight lifted off Xu Xiaoyan and the others; the pressure from before vanished completely.
Gu Yue, too, silently withdrew the elemental power she'd been about to summon. With Na'er's protection, everyone in Class Zero was safe.
"Wow! Na'er, you're amazing!" Xu Xiaoyan let out a breath of relief, patting her chest as she caught her breath, looking at Na'er with pure admiration.
Of course, mixed in there was also a faint trace of dejection. The stronger Na'er got, the smaller her own hopes seemed to shrink.
The others chimed in with their thanks as well.
A few of the other examinees, noticing this, got some ideas of their own and quietly edged closer, hoping to tag along and slip through.
Only to be casually swatted away by the golden dragon.
Unseen, three judges observed the scheming examinees and began scoring them.
Two old men, and one little blond troublemaker.
Zhuo Shi's eyes lit up. "Is that a Golden Dragon martial soul?"
"Probably," Arthur said vaguely.
Old Li nodded. "A fine girl. Give her a perfect score. The others she protected pass too."
"Luck is part of skill, after all. Let's say an eight."
"An eight? Old Li, aren't you being a bit harsh?" Arthur clicked his tongue, snapping his scoring sheet down with a smack. "I'd call that a perfect ten!"
"Just look at them, clearly talented, clearly the cream of the crop."
"You're kidding, right?" Old Li's face darkened. "Without that girl, the others wouldn't have had it nearly so easy. Eight is already generous."
Zhuo Shi cut in to smooth things over, rambling on. "Ah, come on, old Li, no need to be so strict. The kid's got a point too. I like what I see in these Class Zero kids,
no scheming, no opportunism, and that kind of character is exactly what Shrek values. I say we give them a nine. That way we don't undersell their potential, and there's still room to grow."
"Now that's someone who gets me!" Arthur immediately seconded him, his pen flying across the scoring sheet as he revised the numbers.
Boxed in by the two of them going back and forth, Old Li had nothing left to say and could only give a cold snort. "You two are clearly in cahoots. Fine, do as you like. Though you both do have scoring authority, in the end it's still our combined average that counts."
"Heh heh." Having given all his friends full marks, Arthur went quiet.
He began paying attention, watching for anyone else worth noting.
Next came the second trial: the beast arena.
The arena adjusted the strength and number of soul beasts based on how many examinees were participating.
Candidates were required to survive for at least one minute; those who managed to injure a soul beast would receive bonus points.
The hall transformed dramatically.
Everyone was pulled into a simulated space.
From here on, examinees were free to team up for the assessment.
"We can team up? Ugh, another freebie round." Xie Xie let out a yawn, already a little bored.
Arthur wasn't there.
But with Gu Yue and Na'er, two heavy hitters, on hand, that was more than enough.
Sure enough, in the fight that followed, Gu Yue shielded the group, a dazzling storm of elements flying in every direction as she commanded the entire field.
Not a single soul beast managed to break through her defense.
Na'er, meanwhile, went on the offensive, cutting through the ranks of soul beasts like she was moving through open air.
The golden dragon phantom wove between the soul beasts, its claws flashing, batting them aside with each strike. Wherever the golden draconic pressure passed, the soul beasts didn't dare come near.
Na'er moved exactly as she pleased, darting in, striking from the side, every single move landing with plain, unadorned efficiency.
Watching in secret, Old Li and Zhuo Shi's eyes went wide. "These two girls are genuine little monsters!"
Beside them, Arthur said nothing, simply handing out perfect scores to everyone in Class Zero, one after another.
Oh, and maxing out the bonus points too.
Then came the third trial, the fourth...
And finally, the tenth trial, the last one.