Chapter 78: Zhou Yi
"I've decided to join the Church of the Water God. I will become one of its members." Jiang Nannan's voice rang clear and resolute, an unshakable determination blazing in her bright, limpid eyes.
She straightened her back ever so slightly, her golden hair stirring gently in the breeze. In this moment, it was as if an entirely new radiance had suffused her entire being.
A gratified smile curved at the corner of Furina's lips. She raised her hand in an elegant gesture of welcome. "Excellent. Welcome to the Church of the Water God. From this day forward, you shall be assigned to the Tang Sect division." Her gaze was warm and sincere, as if she were welcoming an old friend after a long parting.
"Wonderful!" Tang Ya leaped up with excitement and threw her arms around Jiang Nannan. "Now we're truly companions!" Her laughter rang out like silver bells, infectious and bright, touching everyone present. Bei Bei stood to the side, a gentle smile on his face, softly applauding to lend the moment a touch of ceremony.
Huo Yuhao glanced at the dishes on the table, now gradually cooling, and offered a timely reminder. "Everyone, let's eat first. If we wait any longer, these carefully prepared dishes will have missed their prime." His words pulled the group back from their celebratory mood. They exchanged smiles and took their seats once more.
"Well said!" Tang Ya was the first to respond, eagerly snatching up her chopsticks. Then, as if suddenly recalling something, she turned and winked playfully at Jiang Nannan. "Nannan, from now on we're family. I'll be counting on your guidance."
After the meal, the afterglow of the setting sun dyed the sky a warm, glowing orange. Furina retrieved an exquisitely bound cultivation manual from her storage soul tool and placed it solemnly into Jiang Nannan's hands. "This Soft Water Tome should be well-suited to your Soft-Boned Rabbit martial soul. The techniques recorded within, centered on overcoming hardness with softness, complement your martial soul's innate characteristics perfectly." She then produced a crystal-clear stored-value card. "This holds one hundred thousand gold soul coins—the church's standard support for new members."
Tang Ya and Bei Bei stared, utterly dumbfounded. Tang Ya couldn't help muttering under her breath, "The Church of the Water God is just... insanely generous..."
Bei Bei nodded thoughtfully, his estimation of the church's strength quietly ratcheting upward.
Furina glanced at Bei Bei. She would have liked to give him a new cultivation technique as well, but light-attribute techniques were simply far too rare. The only one she'd ever drawn had already gone to Ye Guyi, and she had no duplicate. For now, Bei Bei would have to continue cultivating the Mysterious Heaven Technique—though thankfully, the complete version would still significantly accelerate his progress.
Returning to Shrek Academy, the four first collected their dormitory keys, then made their way together to the public announcement board to check their class placements. The golden light of the setting sun filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled patterns of light and shadow across the board.
"Oh my god!" Tang Ya suddenly let out a low yelp, her finger trembling as she pointed at a particular name. "How can it be that abnormal old hag Zhou Yi?! Hasn't she always taught the third-years? How was she assigned to the new student class?!" Her voice was thick with unmistakable worry, her brow furrowing unconsciously.
Bei Bei offered a rueful explanation. "I heard that Teacher Zhou was far too harsh while instructing the third-years. She expelled so many students that only a tenth of her class managed to advance to the fourth year. The flood of complaints from students was so overwhelming that the academy finally transferred her to the new student cohort." He turned to Furina and Huo Yuhao, his voice turning grave. "You two must be extremely careful. The outer court of Shrek Academy doesn't have many monstrous students—but it has plenty of monstrous teachers. And among them, Teacher Zhou is the most infamous."
Hearing this, not only did Furina show no trace of fear—instead, an almost provocative smile rose to her lips. "Oh? In that case, I'm rather curious to see just how 'monstrous' she really is." Her voice was crisp and pleasing, yet carried an unshakable confidence. "What kind of good teacher arbitrarily expels students at will? Besides, I'm quite certain she wouldn't dare expel me. And even if she did—I'd be more than happy to have a proper contest with her."
Tang Ya couldn't help raising a thumbs-up. "Admirable courage! That's so like you. You're the real 'monster' here!" Her voice brimmed with admiration, tinged with more than a little anticipation for the show to come.
Huo Yuhao asked thoughtfully, "Senior Bei Bei, with a teacher like this... does the academy really not intervene?"
Bei Bei lowered his voice. "Though Teacher Zhou Yi is harsh, she is undeniably a highly capable instructor. Among the students who manage to endure her class to the end, not a single one has anything but praise for her."
He paused, gathering his thoughts. "Teacher Zhou's harshness primarily manifests in her extremely high standards and her... unique teaching methods. According to the statistics, among the students she's taught who successfully advanced, nearly a quarter ultimately entered the inner court. That figure is among the very highest in the entire academy. It was only because the commotion became far too great this time that she was transferred to the new student year. But so long as you're hardworking and outstanding enough, under Teacher Zhou's guidance you can indeed improve tremendously."
Furina shook her head lightly, a trace of scorn curling at her lips. "Isn't that a textbook case of survivorship bias? The students she's molded into perfect, obedient tools are naturally left behind—of course they won't speak ill of her. Kick out all the disobedient and poorly performing students, and your advancement rate naturally shoots up."
Her analysis struck with surgical precision, making Tang Ya nod in sudden, dawning realization.
Bei Bei's expression grew somewhat tangled. He looked at Furina, wanting to say something but hesitating. He had to admit—Furina always managed to pierce straight to the heart of any problem, and every time, she made it impossible to refute.
"In my view, arbitrarily expelling students is in itself a fundamentally wrong choice," Furina continued, her voice gradually taking on a more serious edge. "If she were truly an excellent teacher, I believe that even the worst students, under her guidance, could grow into individuals no less formidable than ordinary geniuses. But clearly—she hasn't achieved that." Her gaze drifted toward the distant teaching buildings, as if it could pierce straight through the walls to see that teacher she had never met.
"From what I've previously understood, a truly good teacher never gives up on any student lightly. Even for the poorest performers, they exhaust every possible means to help." Furina's voice carried both nostalgia and unwavering resolve. "Since she is now my teacher—I'll be more than happy to teach her a proper lesson. On what true education really means."
Huo Yuhao listened quietly, a light of agreement shining in his eyes. He began to applaud softly. Tang Ya clapped even more enthusiastically. "Go for it! I've disliked that old hag Zhou Yi for ages!"
Bei Bei let out a helpless sigh. "Ah... I don't even know what to say anymore. Do whatever you think is right. I'll use whatever connections I have to make sure Teacher Zhou Yi doesn't expel you." His voice was sincere, tinged with genuine concern. "After all, geniuses like you and Huo Yuhao are a rare sight indeed in Shrek Academy. Losing you would be an immense loss for the academy."
In truth, Bei Bei was already mentally calculating whether he should inform his great-grandfather, Elder Mu, about Furina and Huo Yuhao and ask this venerable senior to keep a protective eye on them. Geniuses like this were truly hard to come by. He knew with absolute clarity that if Furina were expelled, Huo Yuhao would follow her out without a moment's hesitation. The time they'd spent together had shown him this plainly—Huo Yuhao was like Furina's most loyal follower. If she said go east, he would never even glance west.
"Thank you for your kindness," Furina inclined her head slightly, genuine gratitude in her voice.
Huo Yuhao immediately followed suit. "Thank you, Senior Bei Bei."
The sun had by now fully sunk beneath the horizon, leaving only a faint smear of rose-gold light at the edge of the sky. The four stood before the announcement board, each wrapped in their own thoughts. For the new semester to come, a light of eager anticipation blazed in Furina's eyes—as if she was already fully prepared to stir up a storm unlike any this renowned academy had ever seen.
Huo Yuhao stood quietly at Furina's side, his gaze steady and resolute, clearly ready to support her at any moment. Tang Ya was still gleefully plotting how best to enjoy the coming spectacle, while Bei Bei silently calculated the best way to ensure that these two prodigious students could remain at the academy without incident.