Dai Mubai's smile disappeared, and the others stared at Su Xiaoqi like he was an idiot. Zhu Zhuqing instinctively took a step back, frantically shaking her head, her face full of resistance.
Su Xiaoqi turned to Oscar and said,
> "Oscar, right? Your sausage tastes pretty good. Keep going. You still owe me a bunch."
> "Alrighty! Coming right up!"
Oscar, after a moment of surprise, grinned broadly. It was the first time someone hadn't been grossed out after hearing his chant and still liked his sausages.
However, his smile didn't last long. His face gradually turned pale.
> "Here—this is the last one. I really can't make any more."
Oscar handed Su Xiaoqi the final sausage before collapsing to the ground, completely drained of spirit power.
> "Alright, that'll do for today. Thanks—I'll be back."
Su Xiaoqi looked at the bundle of sausages in his hand with satisfaction. With these, he could "break the system" with some self-inflicted stunts later.
He picked one sausage up and turned to Ning Rongrong with a grin.
> "Oh right, I said I'd let you try one. Want it?"
> "N-no thanks. I'm not hungry anymore, but thank you."
Ning Rongrong gave a polite but clearly awkward smile.
Zhu Zhuqing noticed Su Xiaoqi looking at her and quickly snapped:
> "Don't look at me. I wouldn't eat that even if I were dying."
Su Xiaoqi chuckled,
> "Alright. I'll remember you said that."
---
Led by Dai Mubai, the group proceeded to the **second test** area. Thanks to the earlier commotion, there weren't many people left, so no waiting was necessary.
Just like in the original story, this round was a **spirit power level test**. Everyone passed smoothly—except Su Xiaoqi, who hadn't revealed his true strength.
* Tang San and Xiao Wu: Level 29
* Ning Rongrong: Level 26
* Zhu Zhuqing: Level 27
They were exempt from the third test and went straight toward the **fourth round**. On the way, Dai Mubai began bragging about Shrek Academy's so-called **"glorious achievements."**
> "Wow, Shrek Academy really is incredible!"
Su Xiaoqi clapped exaggeratedly. Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong exchanged glances—based on past experience, they knew he was definitely up to something.
Sure enough, the moment after, Su Xiaoqi began his performance.
> "Zhuqing, you better study hard here. Even bumpkins like us know that to become an elder of the Spirit Hall, the minimum requirement is to reach **Titled Douluo**."
> "But Shrek Academy, in just 20 years since it was founded, has produced a Titled Douluo? Let's do the math—they only accept students under 13. That means the person graduated and became a Titled Douluo before 40?! I've lived this long and haven't even seen a Spirit King, let alone a Titled Douluo!"
> "Maybe we should just get married right after you graduate. I'm afraid once you become a Titled Douluo, you'll look down on someone like me. I mean, I don't really have any talents... other than spending money and eating a lot."
He even sneakily winked at Zhu Zhuqing as he finished.
Zhu Zhuqing was barely holding her expression together. This guy was absolutely shameless—but effective. Sure enough, Tang San and Xiao Wu had already started asking Dai Mubai about that "legendary graduate."
But what surprised her most was what Su Xiaoqi said at the end.
Recalling his "marriage proposal," Zhu Zhuqing blushed and quietly mumbled:
> "I won't look down on you. If you want... then once I graduate, let's get married."
Su Xiaoqi thought she was playing her part excellently, and added:
> "Zhuqing, meeting someone like you is the greatest blessing of my life. I would never abandon you—only scumbags do that. I'll protect you with my whole life."
> "Okay, okay! That's enough! People are watching…"
Zhu Zhuqing had never heard such cheesy lines before. Even though she knew he was doing this to mess with Dai Mubai, she was barely keeping it together.
Sure enough, Dai Mubai—who had been trying to brush off Tang San and Xiao Wu—turned completely pale upon hearing this.
But Su Xiaoqi wasn't done. He walked over to Ning Rongrong.
> "You're Ning Rongrong, right? Since fate brought us together, let me give you a friendly warning. Just now, your senior said Shrek Academy has had **62 students** in total—but only **14 graduated**. Do you know what that means?"
> "What does it mean?" she asked, puzzled.
> "Well, think about it. Shrek's entry requirements are insanely high. People like you would be considered top-tier geniuses anywhere else. So how come these 'geniuses' didn't reach Level 40 before turning 20?"
> "Was it laziness? Unlikely. Geniuses tend to be prideful, not slackers. But your senior said many of the others **died during spirit beast hunts**. He didn't give numbers, but I bet it wasn't a small percentage."
> "So you'd better be careful. Your **Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda** is support-type. Even bumpkins like us know that. If you're sent to hunt spirit beasts... you'll be in real danger."
Ning Rongrong's expression drastically changed. She hadn't thought of that.
At 12 years old, she was already Level 26. Even if she slacked a bit, reaching Level 40 by 20 shouldn't be hard. Then what about those other "geniuses" who didn't graduate?
Most of them probably **died** in the wild.
And she... was a completely non-combat support-type.
> "Su Xiaoqi… thank you for the warning. I don't think I want to study here anymore. Why don't you and Zhu Zhuqing come with me? I'll take you back to the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan."
Even Xiao Wu chimed in:
> "Brother, I think Su Xiaoqi makes a good point. Let's find a different academy. I don't want anything to happen to you."
> "This…"
Dai Mubai was speechless. Everyone was suddenly ready to quit Shrek Academy.
And the worst part? He couldn't even argue with what Su Xiaoqi said—those were his own words earlier!
Tang San, too, started having doubts. He had been amazed by Shrek's supposed uniqueness, but now Su Xiaoqi's logic was making too much sense.
When he asked Dai Mubai earlier about the name of that supposed Titled Douluo graduate, Dai had been evasive.
Plus, **spirit beast hunting was dangerous**—but this kind of **fatality rate**?
> "Teacher... could you have been mistaken? Maybe Shrek Academy isn't as good as you thought."
Tang San began to question his teacher Yu Xiaogang's decision to send him here.