Douluo Continent: My name is Lu Mingfei, and my martial soul is Lu Mingze.

Lu Mingfei lay on the ground, his whole body aching as if it were falling apart.

He tried to get up, but his body wouldn't obey him.

The jeers from the sidelines rang out again.

"He's still a piece of trash after all."

"How long did you hold out? Was it even a minute?"

"One minute? I think it'll be more than thirty seconds."

Lu Mingfei lay on the ground, looking at the sky.

The sky was very blue, the clouds were very white, and the sunlight was dazzling.

He thought of Old Wang.

The old man who had brought him out of that small village patted him on the shoulder and said, "Kid, you have good talent. Come with me to Shrek Academy."

Old Wang is dead.

He died in the third month after he enrolled in school.

I heard that he was killed by an evil spirit master while on a mission.

Lu Mingfei always felt that he owed Lao Wang a life.

It's not the kind of debt owed for saving a life, but the kind of debt owed for failing to live up to expectations.

Old Wang brought him to Shrek Academy, surely hoping he could make something of himself.

The results of it?

After two years of enrollment, his soul power remained stagnant, and he consistently ranked last in assessments, earning him the nickname "Shrek's Number One Waste."

Lu Mingfei raised one hand and pointed his finger to the sky.

Sunlight filtered through his fingers, stinging his eyes.

"I'm sorry." He spoke softly, as if he were talking to an old man who was no longer alive.

"The teacher wasn't satisfied."

The Soul Master frowned but remained silent.

The examiner wrote a few words on the scoreboard and then announced, "Lu Mingfei, you have failed the assessment."

There was an uproar on the sidelines, but more than anything, it was the expected boos.

"As expected, it didn't pass."

"This kind of good-for-nothing should have been fired long ago."

"Repeating him a year is too lenient for him; I think he should just drop out."

Lu Mingfei got up from the ground and dusted himself off.

My chest hurts terribly.

But he didn't say anything. He walked to the sidelines, leaned against the wall, and lowered his head.

The assessment was still ongoing on the training field, but it was no longer relevant to him.

The head of the teaching department, Old Li, stood on the stage, holding a list in his hand, and announced the assessment results.

Most people passed, and the few who failed were still honorable as they were granted the right to retake the exam.

As he read the last name on the list, Old Man Li glanced at the last name and sighed.

"Lu Mingfei failed the assessment and performed poorly. It is recommended that he repeat the second year."

These words sparked even louder discussions on the sidelines.

"Repeat a grade? With his current form, he'd still be useless even if he did."

"I heard he was pretty good when he first came, how come he's gotten worse as he's trained?"

"Who knows? Maybe that's all the talent I've got."

Lu Mingfei listened to the gossip with his head down, his face expressionless.

It's not that I'm not sad, but being sad is useless.

He remembered the day Old Wang brought him to Shrek Academy, and the expectant look on the old man's face.

"Kid, practice hard, you'll definitely amount to something great in the future."

A great talent?

Lu Mingfei gave a wry smile.

It failed to achieve great things, but instead became a vessel, the kind specifically for holding waste.

He took a deep breath and turned to leave.

There's no point in staying any longer.

So what if I have to repeat a year? It's not like it's the first time I've been a failure.

The only ones who had to repeat a grade were Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong.

He took a step.

Just then, a voice came from behind.

"Lu Mingfei".

The sound wasn't loud, but it was very clear, as if someone had forcefully carved a path through a cacophony of noise.

Lu Mingfei stopped in his tracks.

He turned his head.

At the entrance to the training ground, the sun was shining brightly, making his eyes a little blurry.

A figure stands in the light.

It's a girl.

She was tall and slender, with long black hair cascading over her shoulders, and her features were so exquisite they looked like they had been painted.

She was wearing a red school uniform with a badge pinned to her chest, which gleamed in the sunlight.

Zhang Lexuan.

She stood there, backlit, her whole body bathed in the sunlight, her silhouette gilded like a painting.

The noise on the training field suddenly subsided.

Everyone turned their heads and looked in that direction.

The emblem in the inner courtyard was particularly dazzling in the sunlight, like a star.

Zhang Lexuan looked at Lu Mingfei with a calm expression, but there was something indescribable in her eyes.

"Old Master Mu is still waiting for you."

She paused.

"We're running out of time. Do you still want to continue with the assessment?"

After he finished speaking, the entire training ground fell silent.

It wasn't the kind of silence where "everyone is silent," but rather a silence where "no one can believe their ears."

Elder Mu?

Which Elder Mu?

Shrek Academy only has one Elder Mu.

Mu En, the Pavilion Master of the Sea God Pavilion, the Limit Douluo, and a living legend on the continent.

Is that old man, whom even emperors from various countries would bow to, waiting for Lu Mingfei?

This piece of trash?

The students on the sidelines looked at each other, their expressions shifting from confusion to shock, and from shock to disbelief.

"Elder Mu? The Elder Mu she's referring to is..."

"Impossible, right? Why would Elder Mu wait for him?"

"Did I hear that right?"

Old Li stood on the stage, nearly dropping the list in his hand.

He looked at Zhang Lexuan, then at Lu Mingfei, opened his mouth, but didn't say anything.

Lu Mingfei was also stunned.

He turned his head and looked at Zhang Lexuan.

The sunlight was too bright for him to see her expression; he could only see her silhouette and her eyes shining in the shadows.

But Lu Mingfei felt that the person in front of him was the coolest person in the world.

Zhang Lexuan stood there, like a knife, cleaving away all the ridicule and gossip.

Lu Mingfei opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his throat felt like it was blocked by something.

Zhang Lexuan looked at him, a slight smile playing on her lips.

"What are you standing there for? Are you coming or not?"

Lu Mingfei took a deep breath.

My chest still hurts a lot; I think my ribs are really broken.

But he smiled.

"Walk."

He started walking, limping towards Zhang Lexuan.

A commotion erupted behind me.

"Wait! What do you mean? Elder Mu wants to see him?"

"On what grounds does he have to see Elder Mu?"

"Is this a scam?"

Old Li finally came to his senses and quickly walked up to Zhang Lexuan.

"Zhang... Zhang, you said Old Master Mu is waiting for him?"

Zhang Lexuan glanced at Old Man Li.

"Teacher Li, do you need me to repeat what Elder Mu meant?"

"No...no need."

He stepped aside, looked at Lu Mingfei, and slowly let out a sigh of relief.

The kid is really lucky, but it's good that he has no worries about the future.

Lu Mingfei walked up to Zhang Lexuan and looked up at her.

Sunlight shone from behind him, and this time he finally saw her face clearly.

very nice.

It looks better than anything in the sunlight.

"Senior," he said, "I'm here."

Zhang Lexuan nodded, then turned and left.

Lu Mingfei followed behind her, limping like a clumsy little follower.

But he walked very steadily.

Behind him, the people on the training field were still talking amongst themselves.

"Lu Mingfei? Elder Mu? How come these two names are put together?"

"Could he be hiding his true abilities? Is he actually quite skilled?"

"Impressive my foot! Didn't you see how badly he got beaten up?"

"Then why does Elder Mu want to see him?"

No one can answer this question.

Lu Mingfei didn't turn around.

He followed Zhang Lexuan, across the training ground, along the path, and through a grove of trees.

Sunlight filters through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

He suddenly spoke.

"Senior."

"Um?"

"Why does Elder Mu want to see me?"

Zhang Lexuan didn't turn around and continued walking forward.

You'll see when you get there.

Lu Mingfei didn't ask any more questions.

But a voice inside him said: Lu Mingfei, it seems you've been rescued again.

As always, every time you fall into a pit, someone will reach out and pull you out.

This time, however, it wasn't that old man who pulled you out, but a senior student wearing a red school uniform.

Lu Mingfei's lips curled up slightly.

Fine.

Whatever lies ahead is better than staying there and being laughed at.