The Glory of the Sun and Moon in the Peerless Tang Sect

The entrance fee is one Silver Soul Coin. Don't underestimate its small price; it adds up to a staggering sum. One-tenth of Shrek City's annual tax revenue comes from this.

The area leading into Shrek City from the south gate is its most bustling commercial district. Various shops line the streets, selling specialty goods from various empires. While Shrek City's size and permanent population may not rival the capitals of major empires, it is undoubtedly the heart of the continent.

Xu Zihuang casually asked a shop to process the Flame Lion King's fur, while he found a quiet hotel to rest and recuperate.

The journey took nearly two months, crossing the sea from Moon Pivot Island to the Star Luo Empire, then traversing the entire territory of the Star Luo Empire from south to north, and finally arriving at Shrek City from the Star Dou Great Forest.

Although he was physically fine, he inevitably felt mentally exhausted.

For three days in a row, he spent his days wandering around Shrek City, buying supplies he would need to study at Shrek Academy. At night, he didn't even cultivate his soul power, forcing himself to sleep and recharge.

However, this only lasted for three days, and he resumed his cultivation as usual afterward. After officially advancing to the Soul Venerable level, he also began to attempt to inscribe a level four core magic array.

The inscription of a level four core array is much more complex than that of a level three core array. Even with his amazing talent in creating soul tools, ten days was still too short a time.

Unsurprisingly, it did not succeed.

In terms of soul power cultivation, he finally realized just how difficult it was for a soul master with an ultimate martial soul to cultivate.

After breaking through level 30 in soul power, because the soul power quality of a soul master with an ultimate martial soul is far superior to that of an ordinary soul master, the process of condensing soul power is inevitable so that one's body can withstand this ultimate attribute.

His cultivation speed has slowed down significantly compared to before. If he cultivates normally, it will take at least three years to reach the next level 40 bottleneck.

However, thanks to the ability to gather the primordial energy of heaven and earth granted to him by the Silver Scale White Whale, he was able to shorten this process to within two years.

……

As the sky in the distance began to lighten with the first hint of dawn, Xu Zihuang, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, opened his bright, piercing eyes precisely on time.

The brilliant golden soul power shimmering on his body was contained within, and every move he made seemed to possess a captivating magic.

"Today is the last day for Shrek Academy to recruit new students." Xu Zihuang stood by the French windows, watching the rising golden-red sun, and murmured to himself.

After quickly washing up, he had breakfast in the hotel lobby, then checked out and headed towards the East Gate where Shrek Academy was located.

The hotel had a great environment and excellent service, but it cost ten gold soul coins per night. After more than ten days of accommodation, plus daily food expenses, he now had less than eight hundred gold soul coins left from his original one thousand.

However, he didn't seem to care much. Coming from the royal family of the Sun Moon Empire, he had a certain level of sophistication. Money was just a number to him. With his strength, getting money within Shrek Academy wouldn't be difficult. He could simply challenge the older students in the Soul Arena.

Half an hour later, Xu Zihuang circled around from the south of Shrek City to the outside of the east gate.

There were far fewer vendors gathered nearby than before.

Xu Zihuang bypassed the crowd from the side and arrived outside the East Gate.

At the east gate, a dozen or so young men and women, not much older than him, stood guard. Each of them wore a yellow outfit with a green badge on their chest. This was the uniform of second and third-year students from the outer academy of Shrek Academy.

However, the most eye-catching figures were the two people standing in front of them.

The two of them wore the same standard school uniform colors as everyone else: one was purple, and the other was black.

Xu Zihuang had heard Bei Bei explain before that purple was the school uniform for fourth and fifth graders, while black was the school uniform for sixth graders.

The girl in the purple school uniform looked to be only fourteen or fifteen years old. She had a slender and well-proportioned figure, long golden hair that cascaded down her back in large waves, snow-white skin, and eyes like clear water. With each glance, she exuded an elegant and refined air.

The other person was a boy about the same age as the girl. He was tall, with thick eyebrows, piercing eyes, a straight nose, and a square mouth—truly a handsome man. However, his fawning and obsequious manner in front of the girl made him look like a complete simp.

"Nannan, how about we go have lunch together later?"

"No need." The girl's expression was indifferent, and she didn't even glance at the boy beside her.

Xu Zihuang raised an eyebrow with a strange expression. From their conversation, he had already guessed their identities.

Aren't they Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan from the original novel?

Noticing Xu Zihuang approaching, everyone instinctively turned their gaze to him. Even Jiang Nannan couldn't help but take a second look at the ethereal Xu Zihuang.

"Excuse me, senior, is this where the new students take their tests?" Xu Zihuang greeted Jiang Nannan with a gentle smile.

Jiang Nannan, who had previously been indifferent to Xu Sanshi, was much more friendly towards Xu Zihuang.

"Are you a new student? You need to register here and then pass the soul power test."

It's a long-standing tradition at Shrek Academy for senior students to be in charge of recruiting new students, and the academy also provides these senior students with some financial subsidies. Jiang Nannan comes from a commoner background, and because of the fifth-grade entrance exams, she only recently had time to take charge of recruiting new students.

But she didn't expect that Xu Sanshi would stick to her like a leech, making her feel extremely annoyed.

Just as Xu Zihuang was about to take the form from Jiang Nannan, Xu Sanshi suddenly stepped in front of Jiang Nannan, looking at Xu Zihuang warily.

"Young man, let me handle your registration. My name is Xu Sanshi."

Xu Zihuang's exceptional good looks put considerable pressure on him. In his opinion, even the most handsome student in Shrek Academy's outer courtyard, Bei Bei, was probably far inferior to this junior student in front of him.

He knew Jiang Nannan wasn't the type to judge a book by its cover, but what if she was? He had to nip that in the bud.

Jiang Nannan frowned slightly, but didn't say anything more.

It's good that Xu Sanshi is there to receive us; he'll be taking us to the college to register later anyway, so it'll save us the trouble of bothering her here.

"I don't really care." Xu Zihuang shrugged, registered his information, and then injected his soul power into a blue crystal ball.

Once you prove that your soul power exceeds level 15, the test is considered complete.

Xu Sanshi led Xu Zihuang toward Shrek Academy, not forgetting to turn back and wave to Jiang Nannan.

"Nannan, I'll be right back."

It makes one marvel at how shameless he is.

Shrek Academy boasts a beautiful environment with abundant and lush vegetation. Walking along the wide avenues, no matter which direction you look, you can see at least ten different types of plants, all of which have clearly been carefully pruned.

After walking two hundred meters forward, several enormous statues blocked the view ahead. There were ten statues in total, each ten meters tall, carved from the hardest granite.

This is the golden trio that founded Shrek Academy ten thousand years ago, and the original Shrek Seven Devils.

Xu Zihuang glanced at it briefly before looking away.

Xu Sanshi was also eager to finish the mission and return to Jiang Nannan's side, so he had no time to explain things to Xu Zihuang.

Turn left from the statue, and the road is still wide enough for four or five carriages to walk side by side. There is a sign on the side of the road that reads "Lakeside Path".

Through the shady green trees on the right, one can vaguely see a wide expanse of water. In other words, behind these ten statues lies a large lake.

Strolling along the lakeside path, Xu Zihuang, who was thinking about Xu Sanshi's future deeds, suddenly spoke up: "Senior Brother Xu, do you like that senior sister from earlier? I think you two are quite a good match."

The story of a persistent simp who tirelessly flatters his girlfriend and finally wins her heart is truly a classic tale.

Upon hearing Xu Zihuang's words, Xu Sanshi, who was walking ahead, couldn't help but turn around and look. Not understanding the implication in Xu Zihuang's words, he grinned and patted Xu Zihuang's shoulder affectionately.

Xu Zihuang's words struck a chord with him.

"Junior, I didn't expect you to have such good taste. If you ever get into trouble at Shrek Academy, just mention my name, Xu Sanshi, and I'll protect you."

"Then thank you, Senior Brother Xu." Xu Zihuang chuckled, feeling that the future Xu Sanshi was too humble, and couldn't help but remind him.

"However, Senior Brother Xu, such one-sided dedication is destined to yield little reward."

The more you invest, the more you care. The more you invest in someone, the more you'll like them. More often than not, what you care about is the time and energy you put in; the more you invest, the less willing you are to give up.

Xu Sanshi had walked into such a dead end. His love for Jiang Nannan might not have been that deep.

Xu Sanshi sighed with a wry smile in response to Xu Zihuang's advice.

"You do not understand."

Seeing this, Xu Zihuang understood and said nothing more, secretly pondering to himself.

Indeed, no one knows how to be a simp better than you.

Chapter 60 Roommate Tuoba Yu

The two walked south along the lakeside path for nearly fifteen minutes before turning west. After another fifteen minutes, the path began to narrow, and a wide rectangular plaza came into view. A sign for Shrek Plaza also appeared nearby.

Behind Shrek Square stand rows of tall school buildings, each a different color, primarily white, yellow, purple, and black. Further away lies a cluster of gray school buildings.

Because of their conversation, Xu Sanshi, who had a very good impression of Xu Zihuang, took the initiative to introduce him.

"The colors of the teaching buildings represent different grades, which are distinguished by the colors of the spirit rings. White is the teaching building for freshmen, which is like the lowest-level ten-year spirit ring. Yellow is the teaching building for the second and third year students of the outer academy. Purple is the teaching building for the fourth and fifth year students. Black is the teaching building for the sixth year students. Being able to walk out of the black teaching building means you can get your graduation certificate from the outer academy."

"Those gray teaching buildings in the distance belong to the Soul Guidance Department. Besides these buildings at the front, there are many other specific teaching areas behind them, such as the Soul Battle Arena, the Assessment Area, the Dormitory Area, and the Faculty Office Area. You'll gradually become familiar with them after studying at the academy for a while. The white freshman teaching building is on the southernmost side; just go there to register."

After saying that, Xu Sanshi patted Xu Zihuang on the shoulder and then impatiently returned the way he came.

If Xu Zihuang hadn't made a good impression on him just now, he wouldn't have bothered saying any of this. After all, his purpose in welcoming the new students was simply to spend time with Jiang Nannan.

Today is the last day for new student recruitment, and there aren't many new students like Xu Zihuang who have passed the assessment and are here to register.

Because, apart from those from prominent families and those with exceptional talents, the class assignments for Shrek Academy freshmen are entirely based on their registration time.

At this time, only three classes—Freshman Class 8, Freshman Class 9, and Freshman Class 10—were not yet full. Three short lines were sparsely formed in front of the white freshman teaching building.

Xu Zihuang had already learned at the east gate of Shrek City that he had been assigned to the class, which was the freshman class nine.

Xu Zihuang's registration and check-in went very smoothly. He only needed to pay a registration fee of ten gold soul coins and submit a letter of recommendation.

The letter of recommendation will detail the student's martial spirit and specific spirit power level.

However, the information on this recommendation letter can only be viewed by the homeroom teacher of the freshman class; even Du Weilun, the dean of studies in charge of the Martial Soul Department's outer academy, cannot easily overstep his authority. Martial Soul is the foundation of a Soul Master, and Shrek Academy does this to show the utmost respect to its students.

After receiving his dormitory key, two sets of school uniforms, and a white freshman badge, Xu Zihuang headed towards the dormitory behind the teaching building.

But when he passed a bulletin board, he subconsciously stopped.

The notice read:

Zhou Yi, the homeroom teacher of Class 1, freshmen

……

Mu Jin, the homeroom teacher of Class 9, freshmen

……

Zhou Yi and Mu Jin?

According to the registration time, Huo Yuhao, who registered on the first day, must have been assigned to Class 1 of the freshmen.

Xu Zihuang wasn't too surprised by this. After all, in the original novel, Huo Yuhao was taught by Zhou Yi.

What he didn't expect was that he was assigned to the class of Mu Jin, Zhou Yi's nemesis.

Slowly withdrawing his gaze, Xu Zihuang didn't delve too deeply into the matter. The feud between Mu Jin and Zhou Yi had nothing to do with him; he came to Shrek Academy simply to find an environment that would facilitate his cultivation.

He could indeed enjoy top-tier cultivation resources on Moon Pivot Island, and acquiring spirit rings wouldn't be a problem. However, he wouldn't be able to be surrounded by numerous genius spirit masters of his age like he was at Shrek Academy.

Not to mention the freshmen of this year, even if he were to fight against Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, who are known as the twin stars of the Foreign Languages ​​Department, he would definitely benefit greatly.