455. Crying For Him

A Spirit Elder?!

Tang San and Dai Mubai stared in shock at the young girl in a white dress standing at the table.

She was simply too young!

In contrast, Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing were much calmer, showing little reaction.

Ning Rongrong, unfazed by their astonishment, clasped her hands behind her back and asked with a sweet smile, “Excuse me, have I passed the initial test?”

Li Yusong’s expression turned peculiar as he asked, “Does your family know you’re here?”

“Am I not qualified?”

“Of course you are!”

After a moment of hesitation, Li Yusong nodded slightly in admiration before turning to Dai Mubai and instructing him, “Mubai, take her straight to the fourth trial.”

“The fourth trial?”

Ning Rongrong blinked in confusion.

A glint of something predatory flashed in Dai Mubai’s eyes as he explained, “Anyone who meets the qualifications and has spirit power above level 25 can skip directly to the fourth trial.”

“Really~”

Ning Rongrong clapped her hands in delight, though a trace of displeasure lingered beneath her radiant gaze.

That damn blond tiger—don’t let me catch you slipping!

“Haha, that’s great!”

Xiao Wu laughed and skipped forward excitedly.

“In that case, I can go straight to the fourth trial too!”

Before anyone could respond, Xiao Wu activated her martial spirit.

Her rabbit ears perked up, and fluffy white tufts of fur appeared on her hands and lower back. Her figure became more lithe, with two yellow spirit rings orbiting around her.

She placed her hand confidently on the table.

“I’m a level 29 Spirit Master. I definitely qualify!”

“Very well, very well.”

Li Yusong quickly measured her bone age, a look of pleasant surprise appearing on his face.

This year’s admissions were truly full of surprises!

Dai Mubai’s expression shifted subtly.

He hadn’t expected the “hedgehog’s” companion to be so talented.

It was a good thing Xiao Wu hadn’t made a move that day—otherwise, his injuries might have been far worse than a bit of poison and some bruises.

Li Yusong glanced at Tang San and Xiao Wu, smiling as he remarked to Dai Mubai, “Mubai, wait a moment for the next applicant.”

“No problem.”

Dai Mubai nodded, his gaze shifting to Zhu Zhuqing.

Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong walked to the side with composure, and Xiao Wu turned back with a playful grin.

“Tang San, hurry up!”

“Alright.”

Tang San’s face was tinged with bitterness as he approached the table and extended his arm for examination.

“Hmm?”

Li Yusong frowned as he squeezed Tang San’s wrist, lifting it and setting it down several times.

“Put your leg on the table.”

“...”

Zhu Zhuqing’s eyes narrowed slightly as she observed the scene.

Black Jade Hand?

So, it’s him—the thief!

“Your bone age checks out. Now, release your martial spirit,” Li Yusong instructed.

Tang San hesitated before nodding reluctantly.

Lifting his left hand, blue light shimmered, and an ordinary Blue Silver Grass sprouted from his palm, coiled by two white spirit rings.

“Blue Silver Grass? Two white rings?”

Li Yusong’s words were like two blunt knives striking Tang San’s face.

Ning Rongrong couldn’t help herself and burst out laughing.

“Pfft, hahaha!”

Tang San immediately retracted his martial spirit.

After being mocked by Dai Mubai earlier, he already knew such ridicule was inevitable.

Still, he was proud, and his expression turned dark as his fists clenched tightly.

Xiao Wu, for her part, dug her nails into her thigh to stop herself from laughing out loud.

But no matter how hard she tried, the image of Tang San as a ridiculous toad kept popping into her mind.

“You—stop laughing!” Tang San exclaimed, glaring at her.



Xiao Wu bit her lip tightly, turning to Ning Rongrong with a comically exaggerated expression.

"Mm!"

Ning Rongrong, covering her mouth in shock, froze for a moment at Xiao Wu’s antics before doubling over in laughter.

“Hahaha!”

Pointing at Xiao Wu, tears gathered in the corners of Ning Rongrong's eyes.

“You two are so funny!”

“Ah! Y-you’re not allowed to laugh!”

Xiao Wu's voice cracked as she held back tears and rushed into Ning Rongrong’s arms, burying her face in the latter’s chest while muffling her laughter.

"Hey, let go of me!"

Ning Rongrong stopped laughing and grabbed Xiao Wu's trembling shoulders, trying to push her away.

"Xiao Wu?"

Tang San stared at the trembling girl in Ning Rongrong's arms, his expression full of surprise.

Xiao Wu was not only standing up for him—she was crying for him!

Dai Mubai’s face twisted into a confused expression. Wasn’t this a bit unnecessary?

Meanwhile, Xiao Wu kept her head buried in Ning Rongrong’s chest, making sounds that were somewhere between crying and laughing.

“Don’t laugh!”

“Hey! What’s wrong with you? Who’s even laughing anymore!”

Ning Rongrong's cheeks flushed red, and her ladylike demeanor nearly fell apart.

“Xiao Wu~”

Tang San’s eyes softened, full of tenderness.

To him, this wasn’t exaggerated at all—it was warm and heartfelt.

Zhu Zhuqing seemed to finally understand why her teacher had warned her not to harm the little rabbit.

"Ahem."

Li Yusong cleared his throat twice, drawing everyone’s attention.

Looking at Tang San, he sighed and said, “It’s impressive that you’ve been able to cultivate so far with Blue Silver Grass, but your spirit rings...”

“Teacher!”

Before Li Yusong could finish, Dai Mubai interrupted.

“Tang San is a level 25 Spirit Master.”

“Oh?”

Li Yusong’s eyes showed a hint of surprise.

Dai Mubai continued, “According to the academy’s rules, Tang San qualifies for direct promotion to the fourth trial.”

“That’s true, but...”

Li Yusong nodded slightly but hesitated nonetheless.

Shrek Academy’s entrance exam had four stages:

1. Initial Test: Measuring bone age and spirit power. Those who fell behind in cultivation speed were eliminated.


2. Martial Spirit Evaluation: Assessing the potential of a candidate’s martial spirit. Spirits with low growth potential were rejected.


3. Martial Spirit Application: Evaluating spirit rings and abilities. Wasting ability slots resulted in disqualification.


4. Combat Assessment: Testing real-world combat capabilities. Overprotected or pampered candidates were dismissed outright.



That said, Shrek Academy had a special rule: any applicant under 13 years old who reached level 25 spirit power would be automatically promoted to the fourth trial.

After all, exceptional cultivation speed could compensate for other shortcomings.

Rapid advancement was a hallmark of "extreme talent."

Tang San clearly met the criteria.

"Very well."

Li Yusong shook his head helplessly.

“For someone with Blue Silver Grass and two white rings to progress this quickly, I suppose you do qualify as a ‘monster.’”

“...”

Tang San's mouth twitched.

That word—“monster”—felt more like a backhanded insult than a compliment.

Even Zhu Zhuqing allowed herself a faint smirk before stepping forward.

"My turn," she said coolly, her voice catching everyone’s attention.

Meow—

A resonant cat’s cry echoed.

Cat ears appeared atop Zhu Zhuqing's head, her hands transformed into razor-sharp claws, and a sleek tail swayed behind her.

Four spirit rings—three purple and one black—emerged in an imposing display.

"What?! A Spirit Ancestor?!"

Li Yusong shot to his feet, utterly stunned.

"All thousand-year spirit rings—and a ten-thousand-year ring?! How is this possible?!"

Tang San stared at Zhu Zhuqing in disbelief.

Every night, he studied under Grandmaster, who drilled theoretical principles into him.

Tang San had always trusted those teachings without question.

Yet now, standing before him was a living contradiction to everything he believed.

“This...!”

Dai Mubai was equally shocked, but his shock quickly turned to exhilaration.

This is amazing! This is perfect!

The battle for the royal inheritance—it wasn’t over yet!

Dai Mubai’s eyes gleamed with excitement, his body trembling.

Is she here to drag me back to resume the fight?