"This year, the academy only enrolled four students, and they have all begun their training," Zhao Wuji said, shaking his head. He paid no mind to the ugly expression forming on Yu Xiaogang's face and continued his explanation. "Although I was in charge of the entrance exam, I only handled the final stage. The entire exam has four parts, and I was only responsible for the last one. The four students currently at the academy are the only ones who passed all four stages. If you're sure your disciple took the exam, then he must have failed one of the earlier tests."
Zhao Wuji paused, giving Yu Xiaogang a meaningful look. "At the very least, I can tell you that I never saw a student named Tang San in the final stage."
After hearing this, Yu Xiaogang's face turned an even darker shade of green. This man had talked for so long only to say nothing of value. Haven't you heard of him? Never seen him? If I knew the details, why would I be here asking you?
He was about to open his mouth to rephrase his question more simply, but Zhao Wuji spoke first.
"The person in charge of the first stage of the exam is Teacher Li Yusong. Every single student who registers has to be carefully screened by him. However, a lot of students sign up, and most of them are mediocre, so it might be difficult for him to remember any specific person." Zhao Wuji crossed his arms, looking down at the seated Yu Xiaogang. "Master, if your disciple has some outstanding quality, perhaps it left an impression on him. For example, his Spirit? Or his spirit power?"
Yu Xiaogang rubbed his forehead, hesitating for a long moment before he finally spoke, his voice low. "Tang San's Spirit is Blue Silver Grass. Is that considered unique?"
Hiss.
Zhao Wuji drew a sharp breath and turned to look at Flender. Their eyes met, and both men were clearly surprised. They weren't surprised that Blue Silver Grass was a special Spirit; they were surprised that the renowned Master of the Spirit Master world had accepted a disciple with a useless, trash Spirit like Blue Silver Grass. It made absolutely no sense.
Flender managed to hide his reaction, but Zhao Wuji's mind was racing. He knew that Yu Xiaogang's own Spirit was famously useless, though he didn't know the specifics. Could it be that the Master, saddled with a trash Spirit himself, had deliberately chosen a disciple with another trash Spirit just to prove that they could be cultivated into something great?
Now wasn't the time to dwell on it. He nodded, trying his best to keep his expression neutral. "In that case, yes, that is indeed special. Teacher Li Yusong might have an impression. Master, please wait a moment while I call him over."
Without waiting for Yu Xiaogang to respond, Zhao Wuji turned, pushed the door open, and walked out. A moment later, he returned with an old man who looked to be in his sixties. On the way over, Zhao Wuji had briefly explained the situation to him.
The teacher, Li Yusong, looked disdainful. He actually did have some impression of this Tang San. The reason, however, wasn't because his Blue Silver Grass Spirit was so special. It was because after being rejected, the boy had stubbornly refused to leave, demanding the return of his ten gold soul coin registration fee. He had made such a scene that Dai Mubai had almost beaten him up. How could a mere Blue Silver Grass Spirit possibly leave an impression otherwise?
Since joining Shrek Academy, Li Yusong had always followed the rules. Tang San simply did not meet the academy's strict admission requirements, so he was rejected. That was all there was to it. Even if the boy was the disciple of the Dean's good friend, he was prepared to stand by his decision.
When he entered the room, Yu Xiaogang was already on his feet, looking at him with an expression of pure anticipation. This time, Yu Xiaogang even took the initiative, offering a smile and extending his left hand. "Hello, Teacher Li Yusong. I'm Yu Xiaogang."
"Hahaha, this is Teacher Li Yusong! His Spirit is the Dragon Pattern Staff, and he's a rank 63 Spirit Emperor," Zhao Wuji introduced with a hearty laugh.
Li Yusong, by contrast, remained perfectly calm and simply nodded in response. "So you are the Master. I've long admired your name."
He made no mention of Tang San, even though Zhao Wuji had just explained everything. He certainly wasn't going to be the first to bring up a topic that could easily offend someone. Yu Xiaogang would have to ask himself, right in front of Dean Flender, so everyone could see who was taking the initiative.
At that moment, Yu Xiaogang recounted the entire story of Tang San from beginning to end. After listening, Li Yusong nodded and spoke directly. "To be honest, Master, the disciple you mentioned, Tang San, did indeed participate in the academy's entrance exam that day. However, he didn't pass the first round of the test, and he left."
Li Yusong's voice was completely flat, and his expression hadn't changed at all. He spoke as if he were discussing something utterly mundane.
Yu Xiaogang's face, on the other hand, was now completely gloomy. With Tang San's outstanding talent, not to mention his own relationship with Flender, how could this be? He could accept that Tang San wasn't as gifted as the four enrolled students, but to be eliminated in the very first round was impossible.
"Excuse me, Teacher Li Yusong," Yu Xiaogang said, refusing to give up. He stared at the old teacher with burning intensity. "I wonder why my disciple failed the entrance exam?"
Although his words were polite, his gaze was anything but. In his mind, Flender was the Dean. Why should he show any courtesy to an ordinary teacher? So what if the man was a Spirit Emperor over rank 60? Hadn't he heard that a higher rank always crushes a lower one?
"Because Tang San does not meet the academy's admission standards," Li Yusong replied, his voice firm and strong, neither humble nor arrogant. "According to the rules, the academy chose to reject him." He would not change his principles just because the man opposite him was the famous Yu Xiaogang.
"You—" Yu Xiaogang's face darkened, and his stiff jaw trembled. He collapsed back into the chair. After all that, the only thing he had confirmed was that Tang San had come, failed the first test, and left. He knew nothing else. Not only had he failed to get any valuable clues, but he was also furious with Li Yusong's attitude. He completely disagreed with the teacher's decision. With Tang San's talent, getting into Shrek should have been easy. He shouldn't have been stuck at the first gate.
Seeing that the situation was turning sour, Zhao Wuji glanced at Flender, flashed a simple smile, and said, "Well, now that we've figured things out, we'll be leaving first. You two can catch up on old times, haha."
After saying that, he quickly pulled Li Yusong out of the room. He didn't want to stay in that tense atmosphere for another second. He and Li Yusong were now on the same side; neither of them had the slightest good impression of Yu Xiaogang. He truly had no idea how the Dean had managed to be friends with someone like that for so long.
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