The freshman building was bustling. Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan smoothly completed their registration, received their dorm keys, two sets of white freshman uniforms, and a white Shrek emblem. Afterward, the two of them walked out of the teaching building.
Outside the teaching building, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan exchanged smiles. From now on, they were students of the number one Academy in the world. It must be said that a sense of pride spontaneously arose within them.
"Let's go, let's organize our things in the dorm. As for classes, we can check that after dinner tonight," Zhu Ziyang said.
"Okay!" Jiang Nannan replied with a smile.
The two walked between the white freshman teaching building and the black second and third-year teaching buildings, and then saw the dormitory building. There was only one dormitory building, but it occupied an extremely large area. The design of this building was also very interesting; it was six stories high and had four entrances. From left to right, they were white, yellow, purple, and black, corresponding to the colors of the teaching buildings and clearly representing the living areas for students of different grades.
They arrived at the white entrance, representing freshmen. An old man in a gray cloth robe was half-reclining on a bamboo chair, leisurely basking in the sun. The old man was extremely ancient, with wrinkles on his face that seemed deep enough to trap flies. His eyes were slightly closed, a look of detachment from the world.
Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan instinctively bowed to him in greeting, out of respect for an elder, but that was all.
They did not wait for the old man's response and walked directly into the dormitory building.
Upon reaching the stairs, Jiang Nannan said, "Yang-ge, remember to wait for me!"
"Mhm!" Zhu Ziyang nodded, then walked towards his dormitory.
"This year there's a good seedling! An eleven-year-old Spirit Elder..." After Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan left, the old man's eyes trembled slightly, and his mouth moved, uttering inaudible sounds.
Zhu Ziyang easily found his dormitory, opened the door, and walked in. Looking at the simple dorm with only two beds and one table, he couldn't help but laugh.
If one only looked at the dormitory conditions, Anyang Academy would seem more like the true number one Academy in the world. Because Shrek Academy's dormitories, whether in environment or facilities, were directly a tier lower compared to Anyang Academy.
Inside the dormitory, there was some dust, and the two beds were empty. Clearly, his roommate had not yet arrived. Zhu Ziyang took action first, cleaning the dormitory thoroughly, inside and out, before starting to make his bed.
While cleaning the dorm, Zhu Ziyang couldn't help but wonder what kind of person his roommate might be. He hoped it would be someone easy to get along with, as he certainly didn't want to bully the weak.
However, he didn't ponder for long. For him, who his roommate was wasn't important. Because he certainly wouldn't be staying in this Shrek Outer Courtyard for six years. His goal was to enter the Shrek Inner Courtyard within three years!
Soon, Zhu Ziyang had tidied everything up and sat on his bed, reading a book while waiting for his roommate.
Half an hour passed, and he still hadn't seen his roommate, but he wasn't in a hurry. After all, enrollment wouldn't end for another three days.
Zhu Ziyang felt a bit hungry. He checked the time; it was almost six o'clock. He then left the dormitory and went to the front door of the dormitory building, quietly waiting for Jiang Nannan to appear. Normally, this was their dinner time, and Jiang Nannan would surely be hungry too, so he wouldn't have to wait too long.
At the front door of the dormitory building, Zhu Ziyang did not use the waiting time to read, but rather openly observed the old man in front of the door.
This seemingly frail old man was not as ordinary as he appeared; at least Zhu Ziyang could sense the old man's extraordinariness. As Zhu Ziyang, who possessed the Ultimate Light Spirit, he could feel the light emanating from the old man's body—very rich, very pure, and very grand.
Only someone with a profound understanding and control of the light element would possess such a light aura!
This old man was definitely not an ordinary person; he might even be an elder of the Sea God Pavilion! Zhu Ziyang thought to himself.
To mention the Sea God Pavilion, one must first understand the structure of Shrek Academy.
Shrek Academy Outer Courtyard: This is what is commonly referred to as Shrek Academy on the continent. This was specially expanded by Shrek Academy four thousand years ago, after the Douri War, at the request of the royal families of the original Douluo Three Kingdoms, with the aim of cultivating more talents.
Currently, the Outer Courtyard is divided into the Martial Soul Department and the Soul Tool Department. The Martial Soul Department is the traditional Spirit Master branch, while the Soul Tool Department was specially established to cultivate Soul Engineers in response to the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Tool technology.
Shrek Academy Inner Courtyard: This is the true Shrek Academy, and also the foundation of Shrek Academy's ten-thousand-year invincibility. It consistently upholds Shrek Academy's original educational philosophy, which is: an Academy that only recruits monsters!
So, what kind of Spirit Master is considered a monster? This involves the admission requirements for the Shrek Inner Courtyard.
The requirements for entering the Shrek Inner Courtyard are extremely stringent. One must be at most eighteen years old, that is, before graduating from the Shrek Outer Courtyard, and reach the four-ring Spirit Ancestor stage. This is the most basic requirement. An eighteen-year-old four-ring Spirit Master, as long as they don't die prematurely, is almost guaranteed to become a Spirit Douluo, or even a Titled Douluo, in the future!
Therefore, Spirit Masters who can enter the Shrek Inner Courtyard are the geniuses among geniuses, truly deserving of being called monsters.
Shrek Supervision Group: This is an organization specially established by Shrek Academy to eradicate Evil Soul Masters. It is composed of Shrek Inner Courtyard Disciples and teachers, regularly going out to suppress Evil Soul Masters. Since its establishment, its actions against Evil Soul Masters have been ceaseless.
Sea God Pavilion: The most mysterious and powerful organization on the continent, the sole core of Shrek Academy. It is a department entirely composed of Titled Douluo-level powerhouses. Members of the Sea God Pavilion are called elders.
For the Three Great Empires, the Sea God Pavilion is truly the stabilizing force. The Titled Douluo possessed by the Three Great Empires combined might not even outnumber the elders of the Sea God Pavilion. For the Sun Moon Empire, the Sea God Pavilion is a sword hanging over their heads, the reason they have not dared to start another war to this day.
This seemingly ordinary old man is very likely an elder of the Sea God Pavilion.
Perhaps sensing Zhu Ziyang's gaze, the old man raised his eyes, and his turbid yet profound gaze fell upon him. His voice was low and weak, saying, "Child, is there something wrong with me?"
"No, no!" Zhu Ziyang was startled, then quickly said, "I'm sorry, old sir, I didn't mean to disturb you, I just felt you were very kind!"
"Hehe, so that's it." The old man chuckled upon hearing this, then said nothing more.
Zhu Ziyang also remained silent.
A few more minutes passed, and Jiang Nannan finally came downstairs.
"Yang-ge!" Jiang Nannan saw Zhu Ziyang, then stuck out her cute little tongue apologetically and said, "I'm sorry, I made you wait a long time."
"It's fine, I just came out not long ago," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile, holding Jiang Nannan's small hand.
The two left the dormitory building.
"A keen little fellow... worth cultivating, indeed." The old man muttered, watching the departing Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan.
Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan arrived at the freshman-exclusive cafeteria.
Shrek Academy's cafeterias also have strict hierarchical divisions. Based on uniform color, they are divided into four cafeterias. Senior students are not allowed in junior cafeterias. Junior students, however, can dine in senior cafeterias, but they must be prepared to accept challenges from senior students at any time.
The freshman cafeteria is also quite unique. There are eight serving windows, with prices ranging from low to high. There are no tables or chairs in the hall, and students are not allowed to take their food out of the cafeteria; they can only eat in. It's truly interesting.