"What a freakish talent! He's actually a seven-ring Spirit Saint?"
"So beautiful... his Martial Soul is so beautiful..."
"He's like a Peach Blossom Immortal! It's an absolutely gorgeous sight, as if we've been transported to an immortal paradise!"
"And that Spirit Ring configuration! How is that possible? His fourth ring is already a ten-thousand-year ring? Am I seeing things? That's impossible!"
"Didn't the Grandmaster say that the limit for a second Spirit Ring is 764 years, the third can't exceed 1,760 years, and the fourth should only be three to five thousand years at most? This man has surpassed that limit by five or six thousand years!"
The moment Su Ran's Spirit Rings were revealed, everyone present was stunned into silence.
A shiver ran through Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing, and a pang of regret struck them for not having decisively chosen to become his disciple.
Ning Rongrong's eyes widened. Standing amidst the swirling peach blossoms, she stared at Su Ran in utter disbelief, completely captivated by her new teacher's Martial Soul. My heavens, such a Spirit Ring configuration and such a beautiful Martial Soul! You probably couldn't find another one like it in the entire continent!
Flender, Dai Mubai, and the others were shocked to their core, finding it hard to believe that Su Ran was a seven-ring Spirit Saint.
The scene was breathtaking:
A grove of radiant peach trees bloomed like a rosy dawn, and among them stood a graceful youth in his prime. His white robes, purer than snow, danced in the wind, and his handsome eyes, holding the light of stars, reflected the beauty of the world. With a single thought, a peach branch descended upon the mortal realm, severing ten thousand years of worldly ties. Such a being should only exist in the heavens; how often could one hear of such a person in the mortal world?
[Fourth Spirit Ability: Crimson Moon's Splendor!]
With a casual wave of his hand, Su Ran decided not to waste any more time with Shrek. Since they wanted to put on a show, he would end it in an instant.
A crimson moon appeared among the branches of the great peach tree behind Su Ran. With a gentle point of his finger, that scarlet moon detached from the magnificent tree. Though it seemed to drift down slowly, it crossed the distance to Li Yusong in the blink of an eye.
Li Yusong threw a punch at the descending moon.
There was a deafening BOOM.
The peach moon bloomed, and a massive shockwave sent everyone from Shrek Academy flying back dozens of meters. The peach blossoms exploded like shrapnel from a bomb or flying daggers, leaving cuts on everyone they touched.
Ning Rongrong's beautiful face turned pale with fright at the sight of the deadly petals flying toward her. It would be terrible if her exquisite face was scarred. Just then, Su Ran, holding a peach branch, effortlessly blocked every single petal fragment that shot toward her.
Ning Rongrong blinked her watery eyes, a sudden, overwhelming sense of security washing over her. Everything Teacher does is just so cool!
Meanwhile, Li Yusong, who had been at the epicenter of the collision with the Crimson Moon's Splendor, was blasted away like an arrow released from its bow, his body covered in wounds. The arm he had used to strike the moon was fractured and mangled, and a pained scream escaped his lips.
"Teacher Yusong!"
"Li Yusong, are you alright?"
"Do I look like I'm alright?!" Li Yusong coughed up a mouthful of blood, wounded both physically and mentally.
"I accept your concession," Su Ran's calm voice drifted over. "Dean Flender, am I now qualified to open an academy and be a teacher?"
His words only served to further infuriate Flender and Li Yusong.
Flender gritted his teeth and spat, "Yes, you are qualified. Very well. I hope your students will shine brightly in the spirit arenas in the future. It would be best if they could participate in the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament."
"They certainly will. Thank you for your blessing," Su Ran replied, his infuriatingly calm demeanor showing no fear in the face of Flender's sarcasm and threats.
"Let's go, Little Sheng, Rongrong. Time to return to the academy." Su Ran turned and led Wang Sheng and Ning Rongrong through the gates of Taoyuan Academy.
Flender, meanwhile, helped the injured Li Yusong back into Shrek Academy to tend to his wounds.
Zhu Zhuqing glanced back at the gate of Taoyuan Academy, a sudden wave of regret washing over her for not choosing to register there. But then she saw Dai Mubai's back and sighed helplessly. Perhaps... this is just my fate.
"Third Brother, that person was so powerful. Are you sure Grandmaster wanted us to join Shrek Academy and not Taoyuan Academy across the street?" Xiao Wu's lively eyes were wide, her opinion of the new academy having changed completely. The other academy's student was stronger than Shrek's, and their teacher was so stylish, with the best aura she had ever seen on a human. Joining Taoyuan Academy seemed like a very good option now.
"Dean, what happened? Who injured Old Li so badly?" Inside Shrek Academy, Zhao Wuji had been waiting boredly to test the new students. He was shocked to see Flender helping a heavily injured Li Yusong in, followed by Dai Mubai, who was clutching his chest and gasping for breath. "And Mubai, you're injured too?"
"Don't ask. I'm taking Old Li and Mubai to get treated. Old Zhao, these are the new students. Just give them a simple assessment of their strength. Don't scare them away," Flender instructed.
Zhao Wuji scratched his head, surprised. "Strange. In the past, you wanted the test to be as strict as possible to weed out the unqualified and save the school some money. Why are you asking for a 'simple assessment' today?"
He turned to the three youths. "**You're the three little ones joining Shrek? Come on, release your Martial Souls and let me see what you've got," Zhao Wuji said calmly, standing before Tang San, Zhu Zhuqing, and Xiao Wu like a small mountain.
Meanwhile, Ning Rongrong followed Su Ran and Wang Sheng into Taoyuan Academy.
The academy's layout was simple. Two blooming peach trees flanked the entrance, and the school's emblem and sign were made of peach branches and petals, giving it the feel of an entrance to a hidden paradise. Just inside the gate were two rooms that served as the security office, where Wang Sheng now lived.
Within the campus, the main building was Teacher Su Ran's house, fronted by a small garden with a clear pond filled with koi fish. In front of the garden were the classroom and a training ground. To the left were a few dormitory rooms, and to the right were the kitchen and a storage room.
They walked along a tranquil stone path lined with peach and red maple trees until they reached the classroom, where Ning Rongrong formally performed the disciple-acceptance ceremony.
Afterward, Su Ran pointed to the first room on the left and said calmly, "You will live here from now on. Get used to the environment. Although our Taoyuan Academy is a bit better than Shrek's, life here is still quite modest."
"Previously, Wang Sheng was responsible for all the cooking and cleaning. From now on, you will share the duties. He will take care of the outer courtyard, and you will clean the inner courtyard."
"Yes, Teacher," Wang Sheng said with a slight bow.
"What? I have to sweep and cook?" Ning Rongrong asked, utterly shocked.
Su Ran smiled faintly but didn't answer her. Instead, he said to Wang Sheng, "She probably has never done these things before. You should teach her."
"Yes, Teacher," Wang Sheng replied respectfully.
"Wait, what? I joined Taoyuan Academy for you to teach me everything you know, not to learn how to do laundry and cook from him!" Ning Rongrong was completely bewildered.
But Su Ran was already walking back to his room along the garden path, his parting words floating back to her: "I will be teaching in the classroom tomorrow morning. Don't be late."
"What in the world!" Ning Rongrong muttered, the smile gone from her face. "What kind of teacher is this? A home economics teacher who teaches students how to do chores?"
"Hey, I'm warning you," Wang Sheng said in a low voice, sensing her dissatisfaction with Su Ran. "Even though you're the teacher's disciple now, I won't be polite if you dare to slander him."
This only made Ning Rongrong more defiant. "Am I wrong? The very first thing he does after accepting a disciple is make her do menial tasks. What's the reasoning behind that?"
"Of course there's a reason. Teacher says, 'If you cannot sweep a single room, how can you sweep the world?' If you can't even do the most basic things well, how can you become a top-tier Spirit Master?" Wang Sheng explained. "As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. Teacher says that even in the simplest tasks like sweeping, washing clothes, or cutting vegetables, one can train to develop peerless skills."
"You're kidding, right? You can develop ultimate skills from sweeping and chopping vegetables?" Ning Rongrong was stunned.
"Well, that's what Teacher says," Wang Sheng said with a shrug. "Alright, I'm generally not allowed in the inner courtyard, so it's all up to you now. I hope you can take good care of the teacher's daily life."
"I'm going out to practice my forms. I still have to practice the Tiger Form Fist ten more times today."
"Hey! Are you recruiting students or maids for your teacher?!"
"A bit of both, hehe," Wang Sheng said with a simple-minded grin.
Ning Rongrong: "..."
"Let me ask you a question," she said, changing the subject. "Why does Teacher always wear a mask?"
"Probably... because Teacher is too handsome."
"?"
(End of Chapter)