Douro Continent

Chapter 226 The Last Piece of the Golden Triangle (Part 1)

The towering city gate was ten meters high and ten meters wide, large enough for six riders to ride abreast. There were also two side gates, each five meters high and wide. Passersby could only enter through the side gates, while the main gate in the center remained tightly closed.

The Shrek Academy group arrived outside the city gate. Just as they were about to enter the city, they saw a huge announcement on the bulletin board next to the city gate.

"Hiring. Blue Tyrant Advanced Soul Master Academy is expanding and is now recruiting ten Soul Masters of level 40 or above. Those with high Soul Power will be given priority. Excellent benefits will be offered upon hiring."

Upon seeing this message, Flander exclaimed in surprise, "Why are all the guys from this academy posting on the city gate bulletin board? How much does this cost?!" By this time, his mood had improved somewhat, and his stingy nature resurfaced.

Qin Ming, who was most familiar with the situation in the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire, quickly said, "The advanced soul master academies that can be located in Heaven Dou City all have certain backgrounds. Although I don't know what the background of this Blue Tyrant Academy is, it was this academy that eliminated one of the two participating teams from the Heaven Dou Royal Academy during the Heaven Dou Capital Region preliminary round of the last All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament. However, the students from Blue Tyrant Academy should have graduated this year, and the Heaven Dou Academy's Royal Team is much stronger than it was in the last Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament. I guess they don't have much of a chance this time."

Flander asked, "How big is this Blue Tyrant Academy?"

Qin Ming said, "It's about a third the size of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Although it's smaller, it's located in Heaven Dou City, so its expenses are no less than the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's. It just doesn't have the royal background. I've heard that this academy has very rigorous teaching methods and a unique feature: it only accepts commoners and rejects all nobles. If it didn't have a background, it would never have been able to gain a foothold in Heaven Dou City."

A hint of vengeful satisfaction flashed in Flander's eyes. "Who said Blue Tyrant Academy didn't have the ability to compete with Heaven Dou Royal Academy in this Soul Master Academy Tournament? Soon, they will."

Qin Ming was taken aback. "Dean, you mean...?"

Flander sighed and said, "I've thought this through on the way here. Our original Shrek Academy didn't really qualify as a high-level Soul Master Academy, so rebuilding it would be incredibly difficult. There are just too many problems to solve. I'm getting old, and I can't let so many of my old brothers suffer for my vague ideals anymore. Since this Blue Tyrant Academy seems good, let's go take a look. Besides, it's not my style to let this humiliation go unavenged. What do you all say?" The last sentence was addressed to the other teachers and the Shrek Seven Devils.

Zhao Wuji chuckled and said, "You're the boss, so you make the decisions. Why ask us?"

The Shrek Seven Devils said in unison, "We'll leave it entirely to the Dean."

Flander smiled slightly and said, "If it still doesn't work here, we can go back and rebuild the academy. Let's go and take a look first." No one noticed that a cunning glint appeared deep in Flander's eyes at this moment.

Following the address on the notice board, the group entered Tiandou City. Without needing to ask around, with Qin Ming as their guide, they navigated the streets and alleys and quickly found their destination.

Tiandou City is extremely prosperous. All the streets are paved with blue bricks, and any one of them is as wide as the main road of Soto City. The scale of the entire city can only be described as magnificent.

The gatehouse of Blue Tyrant Academy looked almost identical to the gate of Heaven Dou City, though much slenderer, but the entrance was indeed ten meters high. The white marble gatehouse, while not particularly ornate, was quite imposing, with eight large gilded characters on it: Blue Tyrant Advanced Soul Master Academy.

Upon arriving at the entrance of Blue Tyrant Academy, Qin Ming immediately found the reception area next to the gatekeeper, which was marked as the recruitment registration room.

"Are you all here to register as teachers at the academy?" The person in charge of receiving them was a middle-aged Soul Master who looked to be in his forties. His question was mainly directed at the Shrek Seven Devils, after all, these children were only teenagers.

Flanders said, "No, it's us who are applying; these children are our students. If we are successful in our applications here, our students also hope to study at the academy."

The welcoming teacher said, "Students also need to pass an examination to enroll. How about this, all you Soul Masters, take our test first. If you can become teachers at the academy, I think your disciples can also be accommodated to attend classes there. After all, the new student registration period has already passed, and your disciples are a bit too young."

Generally speaking, even outstanding soul masters need to be at least sixteen to eighteen years old to enter advanced soul master academies. The average age is twenty. Tang San and his companions certainly don't look eighteen.

"The test is fine. Where is it?"

The receptionist had been waiting here for several days, but very few Soul Masters had come to register. After all, the treatment of a teacher at a Soul Master Academy could never compare to that of someone attached to a powerful family; that was the best path for high-level Soul Masters. Now, at least seven teachers had come to register, so how could he not take it seriously? He quickly said, "I'll take you to the test."

Stepping into Blue Tyrant Academy, one senses a significant difference from Heaven Dou Royal Academy. While it may not possess the scenic beauty of the mountain surrounding Heaven Dou Royal Academy, everything here exudes a grand and imposing atmosphere. A wide path leads directly inside, flanked by groves of trees. At the end of the path, one sees a large playground with a diameter exceeding two hundred meters, surrounded by a ring of three-story buildings.

The teachers introduced the three-story buildings to everyone, explaining that they included places for practicing in simulated environments, student dormitories, and teaching buildings.

If the Heaven Dou Royal Academy was built against a mountain, then the Blue Tyrant Academy was situated in the heart of a forest. The area surrounding the teaching buildings was entirely forest. It was said to be the largest plant community in the entire Heaven Dou City. The existence of such a forest within the capital city truly confirmed Qin Ming's words: who dares say that Blue Tyrant Academy has no powerful backing?

The welcoming teacher led everyone into a building with a pointed roof, which appeared to be the most sturdy of all the buildings in the academy. Inside was a vast, empty hall. Surprisingly, there were no separate rooms. Bright light streamed in from the windows, making the space extremely luminous.

The ground was paved with granite, and the walls were simply painted white without any decoration.

The teacher in charge of receiving them asked everyone to wait there before leaving. A short while later, three Soul Masters entered from outside.

These three men were all in their forties, with ordinary appearances and nothing particularly remarkable about them. What they had in common was the seriousness on their faces.

The three stopped at the inner side of the hall. The leader said, "All Soul Masters participating in the assessment, please undergo the evaluation one by one. Who would like to go first?"

All eyes turned to Flander, who smiled slightly, waved to Qin Ming, and said, "Xiao Ming, you go first."

Qin Ming nodded, stepped forward, and asked the three Soul Masters, "Excuse me, how shall the evaluation be conducted?"

The Soul Master who spoke earlier said, "Please release your Martial Soul. If it is above level 40, then you can fight one of the three of us and last for ten minutes to pass the test."

Soul power level is naturally the most important factor. Once a martial soul is released, the level and attribute of the soul master are immediately apparent. As for combat, that's the test of real-world experience. After all, it's clearly undesirable for a teacher to lack extensive practical experience.

"Alright." Qin Ming was already holding back his anger because of what happened at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, so he didn't hold back at all and released his martial soul directly.

In an instant, the air in the entire hall seemed to become heavy. The three Blue Tyrant Academy teachers standing opposite Qin Ming swayed at the same time, and their faces showed horror.

The three teachers in charge of the evaluation were all Soul Kings at level 50+. The fact that the opponent's martial soul had just been released, yet its sheer aura had already caused them to react, could only prove that the young Soul Master before them was far more powerful than them.

Immediately afterward, a ball of yellow flame erupted from Qin Ming's body. Accompanied by a low roar, the muscles beneath his clothes suddenly swelled, stretching his previously loose outer garment taut. His eyes simultaneously turned yellow, and a total of six spirit rings emerged from beneath his feet: two yellow, three purple, and one black. Although not the optimal combination of spirit rings, the simultaneous appearance of all six still greatly shocked the three Blue Tyrant Academy teachers before them.

Qin Ming said in a deep voice: "Level 62 Fiery Wolf Battle Soul Emperor, Qin Ming. Power Attack type."

As a martial soul, wolves are generally of the cold attribute. A fire-attribute wolf like Qin Ming's is a mutation, extremely rare. This perfectly illustrates Flander's famous saying: Shrek Academy only accepts monsters. If Qin Ming isn't a monster, how could he have gotten into Shrek in the first place?

Level 62? Faced with the blazing bright yellow flames emanating from Qin Ming, the three testing Soul Masters simultaneously took two steps back, avoiding the brunt of his attack.

Qin Ming raised his right hand, gesturing for someone to offer their guidance. "Who would like to offer their advice?"

(End of this chapter)