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"Who are you!" Ye Zhiqiu looked at the two of them warily.
Tang San had already activated his Purple Extreme Demon Eyes a while ago, so he naturally knew that Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun had been spectating nearby all along.
Not stepping in to help earlier and then jumping out to seize the spotlight after the conflict ended was rather dishonorable.
"We're from Shrek Academy," Ma Hongjun said proudly, puffing out his chest.
The moment Dai Mubai appeared, the three girls instinctively showed looks of disdain.
Seeing that Ning Tianchen didn't move, Oscar quietly retreated behind him.
When Ye Zhiqiu noticed that Ning Tianchen and the others remained indifferent, he finally let out a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, "At least they're not disciples of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect. Shrek Academy? What kind of nonsense academy is that?"
"I won't waste my time with you two brats. Unrelated people should step aside. Where are your elders from the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect? This matter isn't something you children can resolve," Ye Zhiqiu immediately declared.
"Damn it, are you blind?" Dai Mubai cursed angrily. "This matter—I'm getting involved no matter what. If you know what's good for you, take your lackeys and scram."
At this moment, he knew he should display the demeanor of the academy's big brother.
Perhaps he could even win Zhu Zhuqing's favor this way.
As for Ye Zhiqiu, he wasn't afraid at all.
"Our principal once said, 'Soul masters who fear trouble are mediocre talents.' I'll show you exactly why Canghui Academy deserves to be beaten!" Ma Hongjun boasted arrogantly.
"How boring," Zhu Zhuqing muttered softly, turning her head away.
"Are these two idiots crazy?" Ning Rongrong whispered into Ning Tianchen's ear.
The latter nodded in agreement.
Why was Dai Mubai jumping out now? Who was he trying to impress?
And as for the words Ma Hongjun had just spoken, Ning Tianchen couldn't agree with them at all.
In Soto City, when Ma Hongjun made such a statement, no one dared to lay a hand on him.
The reason was simple—Flender's strength was such that he could easily be considered the strongest in Soto City. Naturally, there was weight behind those words.
But looking at the broader world of soul masters, even a Soul Sage's strength wouldn't be enough to back up such arrogance.
Ma Hongjun didn't know his limits. Saying such a thing at this moment was practically asking for death.
Ning Tianchen signaled for everyone to retreat a bit.
By invoking the name of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, Ye Zhiqiu would at most spout some tough talk but wouldn't dare take further action.
Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were practically throwing themselves into the line of fire by jumping out now.
They weren't six-year-old children—they'd have to take responsibility for their actions.
"Tianchen, we are classmates after all. Is this really the right thing to do?" Tang San hesitated, unsure how to continue.
Ning Tianchen looked at him and calmly replied, "The matter was already over, but they jumped out to provoke trouble. Especially Ma Hongjun's words—he's not afraid of dying, so why should you stop him?"
"Besides, they arrived here long ago but didn't return to the group. Why should we consider them teammates?"
Tang San found his reasoning somewhat valid, but doing this would undoubtedly isolate Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun.
…
Even clay figurines have a spark of anger, let alone Ye Zhiqiu, who wasn't exactly a pushover.
"Brats, you're courting death!"
"Xuan Gui (turtle), fuse!"
With a roar, Ye Zhiqiu completed the fusion with his martial soul.
At this moment, his entire torso was encased in a green turtle shell, and two phantom turtle shells appeared on his arms.
"Haha, I thought it'd be something impressive. Turns out it's just an old tortoise," Ma Hongjun couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Many of the onlooker soul masters also chuckled.
They weren't mocking Ye Zhiqiu's martial soul but rather his inability to retaliate after being insulted to his face by a junior.
Dai Mubai was full of confidence and shouted, "Brothers, activate your martial souls!"
In his mind, upon his command, all members of Shrek Academy should respond and activate their martial souls simultaneously.
However, in reality, only Ma Hongjun activated his martial soul. Ning Tianchen and the others not only ignored him but even retreated more than twenty meters back.
"Damn it, a bunch of cowards," Dai Mubai cursed inwardly.
In fact, because of his relationship with Zhu Zhuqing, his "prestige" in Shrek Academy had already been completely depleted. Not only did the new students like Ning Tianchen look down on him, but even Oscar, a senior student, held him in contempt deep down.
"Bold of you," Ye Zhiqiu sneered. His soul ring configuration was white, yellow, yellow, purple, purple—not even a ten-thousand-year soul ring among them.
But the strength of a Soul King wasn't something a Soul Elder or Great Soul Master could challenge.
"Let's go. There's nothing left for us here," Ning Tianchen called out, taking Ning Rongrong's hand and walking toward the hotel.
Oscar and Zhu Zhuqing quickly followed.
"Third Brother, let's go too?" Xiao Wu tugged at his hand and said.
Tang San looked back and sighed deeply.
Putting aside past grievances, during the incident where Ning Rongrong was threatened, Dai Mubai hadn't stepped forward to help.
As the academy's big brother, he couldn't even unite everyone against a common enemy—it was truly disappointing.
…
"Rongrong, once the soul hunting is over, let's return to the sect," Ning Tianchen said, feeling that staying at Shrek Academy any longer was pointless.
If Ma Hongjun hadn't brought it up, he wouldn't have remembered that phrase—"soul masters who fear trouble are mediocre talents."
It was fine to say such things among acquaintances, but bringing it up in front of strangers was downright embarrassing.
After all, even powerful figures like the Bone Elder and Sword Elder of the continent didn't go around causing trouble every day, did they?
Even minor provocations from others might not warrant their attention.
Staying at Shrek Academy any longer might distort their values—it was better to leave sooner rather than later.
Ning Rongrong agreed. "What did that lecherous tiger and fatty say earlier? It's hard to believe such an academy has such a high reputation."
Shrek Academy only had some fame within Soto City, and Ning Rongrong knew their reputation was purely due to Ning Fengzhi spreading it discreetly.
She wondered what Ning Fengzhi had been thinking, arranging for Ning Rongrong to come here without proper investigation.
Sighing inwardly, Ning Tianchen continued, "Rongrong, make sure Zhu Zhuqing is ready. When we leave, bring Oscar and Zhu Zhuqing with us."
Oscar was a civilian soul master—it would be easy to recruit him into the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.
But Zhu Zhuqing was different.
She was from the Zhu family of Star Luo. Though she had no chance of becoming empress (at least at this stage), the Zhu family might not willingly let her go.
Of course, if Zhu Zhuqing explicitly expressed her desire to join the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Tianchen believed the Zhu family wouldn't risk offending the sect for someone as inconsequential as Zhu Zhuqing.
Ning Rongrong nodded. "I'll talk to Zhu Zhuqing. But, Tianchen big brother, Oscar's side depends on you. I always feel like his gaze on me is a bit strange…"
Ning Tianchen nodded.
Without his arrival, Ning Rongrong would have been Oscar's destined partner.
It was normal for Oscar to look at her with a hint of infatuation.
Once he entered the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect and learned its rules, he would surely abandon such foolish thoughts.
Moreover, there were many women in the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect—Oscar would eventually find someone else to his liking.
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