Early the next morning, the sun rose high in a clear, brilliant sky.
Warm sunlight poured down over the land, breathing vigorous life into everything beneath it.
Inside the headmaster's office of Shrek Academy, furious curses could be heard erupting from time to time.
Outside the door stood a brown-haired.
She looked to be around twelve or thirteen years old, with a quiet, gentle appearance. She wore a tea-green knee-length dress, her long dark hair flowing like a waterfall down to her waist. Her skin was soft and fresh like a peeled lychee, her features delicate and refined, her figure well-proportioned. Altogether, she gave off a feeling as refreshing as a spring breeze—like a well-educated young lady from a distinguished family. Every smile and frown of hers seemed to subtly affect the people around her.
But anyone who truly knew this girl would understand that beneath that warm, gentle exterior beat the heart of a mischievous little devil.
At this very moment, the girl was eavesdropping shamelessly at the door, her movements practiced and smooth—clearly not her first time doing something like this.
"Rongrong, what are you doing here?"
Suddenly, a crisp female voice sounded behind her. Immediately after, a fair, jade-like hand lightly patted her on the shoulder.
The girl stiffened at once. Turning around and seeing who it was, she finally let out a breath of relief. She quickly raised a finger to her lips.
"Shh—Xiao Wu, don't make a sound."
"What's wrong?" Xiao Wu whispered curiously. "Did something happen?"
"Yes, something definitely happened," Ning Rongrong replied, a sly glint flashing through her beautiful eyes. As a veteran gossip queen, she had an almost instinctive fascination with explosive news like this.
"Oh." Xiao Wu responded rather casually, clearly not very interested in the "big news" Ning Rongrong mentioned. She then asked, "Is Xiao San in there? I haven't seen him since last night. I was worried something might've happened to him, so I came to ask the headmaster."
"Relax," Ning Rongrong said with a smile. "Your Third Brother is perfectly fine. He's inside. Don't talk yet—keep listening."
"Oh."
Hearing that Tang San was fine, Xiao Wu finally relaxed. At the same time, a trace of curiosity rose in her heart. Imitating Ning Rongrong, she pressed herself against the door and began eavesdropping as well.
Just then, Oscar—who still held onto a sliver of hope regarding Ning Rongrong—came searching for her. Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu heard his footsteps. Before he could even speak, both girls turned around and made a synchronized "shh" gesture at him.
Oscar had no idea what was going on, but he could only follow their example and join in listening at the door.
Inside the room—
Dai Mubai, Tang San, and Ma Hongjun stood in a straight line from left to right. All three had their heads lowered, their expressions twisted into something extremely ugly and distorted.
Ma Hongjun in particular looked ready to explode. As one of last night's victims, his eyes were practically bulging with rage as he glared sideways at Dai Mubai and Tang San.
Last night, while completely unconscious from drinking, he had unknowingly experienced the same kind of pain Oscar had suffered more than two years ago.
When he woke up, his entire body ached as if it had fallen apart, like every bone had been disassembled and poorly put back together.
He hated it—hated himself even more. With Oscar's tragic example right in front of him, he still hadn't taken the slightest precaution. He had gotten dead drunk in front of that damned "ape-tiger," only to reap the bitter consequences and a lifetime of regret.
Perhaps this was what it meant to hunt geese all day, only to have your own beak pecked blind by one in the end.
"Well?" Flender said coldly, his gaze sweeping over the three of them. "Care to explain what exactly happened?"
The three of them kept their heads down, remaining silent.
"Speak!"
Seeing them refuse to say a word, Flender's anger flared even more. He kicked the chair in front of him, smashing it apart, then suddenly turned his gaze toward Ma Hongjun and barked, "Hongjun, you talk."
"Headmaster, I…"
Ma Hongjun stammered, his chubby face flushed red to the roots.
"Hurry up and say it. There's no one else here," Flender said firmly.
"Yes, Headmaster."
Ma Hongjun swallowed hard, shot a furious glare at Dai Mubai and Tang San, then, as if resigning himself to fate, spilled everything he could remember from last night.
"Headmaster, that's how it happened. After I got drunk last night, I completely blacked out. When I woke up, the Master and I had already been… by those two. Headmaster, you have to stand up for me! I treated them like brothers, and this is how they treated me. Back then, Xiao Ao was driven to a breakdown the same way by Dai Mubai!"
As he spoke, tears streamed down Ma Hongjun's face. At the same time, he couldn't help but clutch his butt— it was still burning with pain even now.
Hearing Ma Hongjun's account, Flender's heart softened immediately. Feeling heartache for his student, he then glared fiercely at Dai Mubai and Tang San.
"Do you two have anything to explain for yourselves?" he demanded.
"We… we blacked out from drinking," Dai Mubai said, his face pale as death. Last night, the two of them had actually dragged Ma Hongjun and Yu Xiaogang into a complete, chaotic mess together.
"Blacked out?" Flender snapped. "If you can't handle your liquor, then don't drink!"
So angry that his body trembled, Flender swung his hand and slapped Dai Mubai square across his broad face.
Originally, he had wanted to slap Tang San as well. But considering Tang Hao's existence—and the strong possibility that Tang San himself was a so-called "body-snatcher"—Flender forcibly held himself back. Instead, he spoke to Dai Mubai in a heavy, earnest tone:
"Mubai, you're already a senior student of Shrek Academy. When Xiao Ao first enrolled, I specifically asked you to arrange his dormitory. And what did you do? You knocked him unconscious and left him with a psychological scar that can never be erased. Even now, I still feel guilty toward Xiao Ao. A once-in-a-lifetime food-type spirit master with innate full soul power—completely ruined by your own hands."
"It's been two and a half years. Back then, your martial soul suddenly mutated, so I thought it was understandable. I believed you wouldn't repeat the same mistake. Never did I imagine you'd drag Tang San along and commit something this filthy."
"And you, Tang San."
Flender turned his gaze toward him, his voice filled with exhaustion. "Xiaogang is your teacher. How could you… sigh! Now nearly half the academy's instructors already know about this. I've issued a gag order, but there's no guarantee it won't leak out. What do you expect me to do?"
By the time he finished speaking, Flender looked utterly drained, as if all hope had left him. Of the six students he had brought over from Shrek, aside from the two girls, the remaining four were all deeply problematic. How was he supposed to face the entire faculty and student body of the former Blue Tyrant Academy now?
"Headmaster," Tang San said hoarsely, "I was drunk. I mistook the teacher for Xiao Wu, that's why I… I never meant to hurt the teacher."
The instant those words left his mouth—
Creaaak.
The door slowly opened.
Xiao Wu stood there.
Her eyes were red, her shoulders shaking violently. Silent tears poured uncontrollably down her pale face as she stood frozen in overwhelming emotional turmoil.
Behind her were Ning Rongrong, her face full of shock, as if she had just discovered an entirely new world; Oscar, whose face was deathly pale, as if his mother had just died; and several other Shrek students who had been drawn over by the commotion around Ning Rongrong and the others.
"Xiao Wu…"
Tang San's heart sank into despair, his voice failing him completely.
"Brother," Xiao Wu screamed, her voice breaking, "tell me this isn't true! Tell me it's not true!"
"N-No, Xiao Wu, listen to my explanation—"
"I won't listen! I won't listen!"
Xiao Wu shouted hysterically. "Tang San, I was wrong about you!"
As she spoke, she covered her ears, turned around, and sprinted away.
Ignoring the presence of everyone else, Tang San immediately chased after her, not caring about anything else at all.
(End of Chapter)
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