Douluo Continent: Building a Divine Kingdom Starting from the Spirit Hall

People around were whispering among themselves, their attention successfully drawn to the Shrek team.

Hearing the words of the people around them, Dai Mubai and the others turned pale, wishing they could disappear into the ground. Ning Rongrong quietly retreated, pretending not to know those people.

She held a high position in the Shrek team and was entitled to refuse to wear that kind of combat uniform; at least the color wasn't that shit-green, but a bright green like the tender buds of trees.

Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu were also dressed in the same color. They really couldn't accept that shit-green color, especially after hearing someone say that it looked like the color of a latrine, which made them even more disgusted.

Among the Shrek team, only a few male members, including Dai Mubai, and four substitute members, including Tailong, dressed like this.

Compared to the gloomy demeanor of Dai Mubai and the others, Flander, who was moving forward, was quite pleased and satisfied.

That's exactly what he wanted—to stand out, so that he could attract attention.

He was self-aware enough to know that his team's uniforms were far inferior to those of established academies in terms of design and aesthetics, and he didn't have the money to produce such high-quality combat uniforms.

But there are ways to play even when you're broke. If you want to attract attention, you have to be different, and it seems to be working very well.

Once you have attention and traffic, businessmen will come knocking and give you money, which will solve the college's financial problems.

Just then, a group of people dressed in moon-white Soul Master robes walked over; it was the Canghui Battle Team.

"Hey, it's an old acquaintance. Your outfits are quite unique. Did you fall into a cesspool and just climb out?"

Lin Ziping made no attempt to hide his mockery, and Shen Xinshui and the others also wore expressions of sarcasm.

Flander and his companions glanced at the Canghui team, then at the leader and Ye Zhi Qiu, their faces grim, but they said nothing, quietly observing the Canghui team, wondering what they intended to do.

Seeing that it was their old rival, the Shrek team members' expressions were also not good, especially Ma Hongjun and Oscar.

They were tormented to the point of near death by the arrows of the Zhuge Divine Crossbow back then, and they still remember it vividly. The cause of all that was the Canghui Battle Team.

When enemies meet, their eyes are filled with intense hatred!

Even Tang San felt murderous intent. Xiao Wu had been hurt by these people before, and he had always kept that debt in his heart.

However, he realized that the Canghui team was deliberately provoking and angering them, so he suppressed his anger and murderous intent, while holding down Tailong, who was about to be provoked into using his martial spirit.

"If you want to fight, you can do whatever you want once you're on the arena. Fighting between Soul Master academies is prohibited here."

After offering a reminder, Tang San glanced at the Canghui team and said calmly, "Where did this bunch of little white dogs come from? Do they have any owners with them? Take them away quickly, don't let them stay here barking and disrupting the order of the competition."

Equally angry and resentful about the last battle, Dai Mubai chimed in, "They must be a bunch of stray dogs left unattended. Although fighting is prohibited here, self-defense is always allowed, right? I don't mind lending a hand and sending you little white dogs home."

As he spoke, Dai Mubai stepped forward, fidgeting with his fingers, further displaying his arrogance and domineering nature.

They did lose the battle last year, and they lost badly. But things are different now. Now they are a prodigy, and they can suppress these trash by themselves.

However, the Canghui team, who were called "little white dogs," showed no anger whatsoever. In fact, they even dropped their mocking expressions and began to seriously examine Dai Mubai and his group.

"It's a kind of confidence from the bottom of their hearts. It's certain that they have improved a lot over the past year or so, and they dealt with the challenges they encountered in the competition with care."

Lian Xuefeng, who possessed the Mind Gem and was adept at perceiving emotions and thoughts, said something and then continued on her way. Before leaving, she glanced at Ma Hongjun, who had been staring at her with a blatant gaze, and a fleeting hint of pink flashed in her eyes.

After giving Dai Mubai and the others a deep look, Shen Xinshui and the others continued on their way.

This trip was just a test, so that they would have some idea of ​​what to expect if they faced off in the first round.

The reason they came over was that Lian Xuefeng, who had the strongest senses in the group, sensed a threat from these people and came to test them.

Judging from the results of the probing, the other side has become stronger, at least confident enough to deal with the same opponents as a year ago, and should not be underestimated.

This gesture only made Tang San and the others look worse once again, and they realized that what had just happened was just a test. Compared to that, their performance was much worse, and they were at a disadvantage.

What happened next almost made Tang San collapse. Ma Hongjun suddenly hugged Tang San and used the special skills she had learned from the older sisters.

Tang San's mind went blank, and Dai Mubai and the others were also stunned and petrified.

What's happening here?

The people around were equally bewildered; were those two boys?

Are boys playing this intensely these days?

"Go to hell!"

Xiao Wu, who was the first to react, kicked Ma Hongjun away and chased after him, preparing to unleash a devastating eight-stage throw.

This is her self-created soul skill, which has extremely strong attack power.

In other words, he couldn't use it against opponents he had encountered before, but now he's using it in a fit of rage.

"Stop, stop, stop! Can't you see that Hongjun has been bewitched?"

Realizing what was happening, Flander quickly grabbed Xiao Wu, then pulled Ma Hongjun up and slapped his chubby face repeatedly.

Stimulated by this pain, the bewildered Ma Hongjun finally woke up.

"Wasn't I at Dream Soul Bar?"

When Ma Hongjun regained consciousness, he looked bewildered. He seemed to have just met a girl at the Dream Soul Bar and was about to get started when someone seemed to pull his foot, followed by a sharp pain in his cheek, as if he had been slapped.

Also, how come the environment has suddenly changed? Where is my pink bed?

"You haven't realized you've been ambushed yet?"

Flander was disappointed in his disciple, who had been expected to become a prodigy after consuming the elixir, only to be defeated in a single move.

What did I just do?

Ma Hongjun, who had just come to his senses, looked at Tang San and Xiao Wu, who were full of murderous intent, then at Dai Mubai and the others with strange expressions, and finally at the people around him who also had disgusted expressions. He was very confused.

What just happened?

"Disgraceful! Let's go!"

Flander, equally embarrassed, strode forward, with Yu Xiaogang, Dai Mubai, and the others quickly following.

How embarrassing! So embarrassing!

After walking for a while, everyone finally felt a little better. However, Tang San, as the victim, was still in great pain and frantically poured water into his water bag to rinse his mouth.

Just thinking about what had just happened made him want to kill that fatso.

Xiao Wu was also furious. She knew that was her third brother's first kiss, and she hadn't even gotten it herself, but that fatso beat her to it. It was infuriating!

"The Crown Prince of Qinghe!"

Suddenly, Flander spotted Xue Qinghe leading the Royal Fighting Team. He called out to him and quickly walked over. Although Dai Mubai and the others didn't look too good, they still followed.

They lost in the Soto Grand Arena last year, but they will never lose in this Soul Master Tournament.

"Dean Flander!"

Seeing Flander approach, Xue Qinghe nodded gently, his gaze sweeping over the Shrek Academy team behind him, lingering particularly on Tang San.

"Your Highness, the amount of financial allocation given to Shrek Academy this year is incorrect."

Flander took out a form and said he wanted to file a complaint.

According to imperial rules, the empire sends a portion of its financial allocations every year during graduation season.

At this time last year, the financial allocation to Blue Tyrant Academy was 100,000 gold soul coins. This year, an even larger amount of over 10 million gold soul coins was sent, but it was a negative number.

This isn't an allocation of funds, it's a fine!

Furthermore, a payment deadline was stipulated, and failure to pay by the deadline would result in the cancellation of the academy qualification. Without the academy qualification, one would naturally be unable to participate in the Soul Master Competition, which is why he came to find Xue Qinghe.

After carefully reading the form, Xue Qinghe finally looked up at Flander.

"Didn't Dean Flander carefully read the conditions for the Empire's funding of the Soul Master Academy?"

The amount of funding the Empire allocates to the academy depends on the quality of the academy's teaching, with the core factor being the annual advancement that students receive after entering the academy.

This year, however, Dean Flander forcibly expelled the academy's students. Almost none of them met the standardized graduation standard of level 40 for advanced soul master academies; they could only be considered as having completed their studies but not graduated. This kind of thing is punishable by fines, so this list is not problematic.

With patience, Xue Qinghe offered a brief explanation, his expression remaining gentle and composed.

This isn't because they're trying to sabotage Shrek Academy; that rule has been in place for a long time. It's mainly to warn some unscrupulous academies against doing things behind the scenes.

After all, rewards must be accompanied by penalties. Their empire's wealth doesn't come from thin air. Since they've taken our money, they must properly cultivate talent for the empire.

In this regard, their Heavenly Dou Empire has a complete assessment system, and there is no problem with issuing this fine.

Moreover, it was mainly because Flander and the others went too far, forcibly expelling almost all the students of Blue Tyrant Academy and fining each of them about 10,000 gold soul coins, which added up to more than 10 million in fines.

The amount of the fine is calculated correctly.

"Is there such a rule?"

Flander's face darkened, and he turned to look at his friend Yu Xiaogang beside him, who was unaware of this rule.

Yu Xiaogang was also quite bewildered. As a member of the Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex family, he had never attended a Soul Master Academy, let alone an Advanced Soul Master Academy.

Even after spending so many years at Notting College, he only focused on research and didn't know much about financial allocations.

Shrek Academy was previously an illegal institution that never received government funding and was therefore even less aware of such matters.

Looking at his best friend's eyes, Flander knew he had asked in vain, and turned to look at Qin Ming on the other side.

Although I am very disappointed with this student's performance over the past year, he is indeed very capable, especially since he learned a lot of useful things at the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy and played a significant role in improving the academy.

Moreover, Qin Ming had spent so many years at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, he should know this.

However, Qin Ming was also confused, clearly unaware of this matter as well.

“You don’t need to look at Teacher Qin Ming. Our Heaven Dou Royal Academy is a bit special. Our funding doesn’t come from the Imperial Treasury, and Teacher Qin Ming wasn’t in charge of finances when he was in the academy.”

Xue Qinghe explained and nodded to Qin Ming.

He highly regarded his former team leader, whose qualifications and character were impeccable, making him a pillar of the empire's future. It was a pity that he was betrayed by Shrek Academy.

Moreover, their Heaven Dou Royal Academy is directly affiliated with the royal family and operates through the royal treasury. It is not part of the same system as other advanced soul master academies, and its investment is unlimited.

After confirming that Xue Qinghe and the fine were not a joke, Flander's expression became even more unpleasant.

"Your Highness, we are not aware of this matter. Could you please make an exception?"

By lowering his stance, Flander can only look for other solutions now, otherwise Shrek Academy will not be able to participate in the Soul Master Competition, and all his previous efforts will be in vain. At the same time, he is filled with regret.

If he had known this would happen, he would never have tried to persuade those students to leave. Now, he has turned the tables and tricked them.

“Once the rules have been established, they cannot be broken. Moreover, a large part of the fines in this regard is compensation for those trainees who are advised to withdraw, and it needs to be distributed afterwards.”

Xue Qinghe expressed his helplessness. If it were just a simple imperial fine, he could try to circumvent it, but most of the fines were compensation for those students who were expelled, and they would need to be paid out in real money afterward.

If I help Shrek Academy now, who will pay the compensation to the students of Blue Tyrant Academy later?

Do you pay for it yourself?