Under Qin Ming's guidance, the group quickly found the teaching building and met the three deans, with Meng Shenji at the lead.

Meng Shenji and the others were puzzled—how could anyone take an entire morning to get lost in just a forest!?

"Junior Flender greets the three seniors! As a dean himself, Flender naturally stepped forward first and greeted Meng Shenji and the others with respect. Behind him, Zhao Wuji and several teachers, along with the Grandmaster, also clasped their fists and bowed.

"Hahaha! No need for formality! "

Bai Baoshan let out three hearty laughs. They were already quite familiar with Flender and the others, so there wasn't much distance between them.

Strictly speaking, this was all thanks to Zhao Wuji…

Meng Shenji hadn't met Han Feng and the others before. Stroking his beard kindly, he smiled and said,

"These must be the children who defeated the Emperor Team? Truly born prodigies! "

"Hehe, just luck! Nothing more than luck! " Flender waved his hand in false modesty, though the pride on his face was impossible to conceal.

Meng Shenji only chuckled at that and said no more.

Zhi Lin stepped in front of Han Feng, clicking his tongue in amazement:

"You must be the Flame Reversal Guardian, Han Feng? To restrain a genius of the Blue Tyrant Sect at rank 39 while only being rank 33 yourself—remarkable! "

Han Feng hurriedly waved his hands, flustered:

"Senior flatters me far too much! "

But inwardly, Han Feng felt uneasy. He clearly remembered that among the three deans, Zhi Lin was supposed to be the one most critical of Shrek's joining the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy. So why did he seem genuinely pleased now? Even more absurd, Han Feng could faintly sense a kind of senior-to-junior fondness coming from him.

But he swore—this was his very first time meeting Zhi Lin!

Zhi Lin only chuckled at Han Feng's reaction and said nothing further. Qian Renxue had already warned them never to let Han Feng know their true identities, and Zhi Lin naturally wouldn't overstep. He just wanted to leave a good impression on Han Feng.

"What flattery? Yu Tianheng's reputation as a genius is well earned. For you to defeat him across realms—how can that not be called extraordinary? " Bai Baoshan's chubby cheeks quivered as he spoke matter-of-factly, not sparing a thought for the Grandmaster's reaction.

Bai Baoshan was the simplest-minded among the three deans. He belonged to the Crown Prince's faction, and since Han Feng was the Crown Prince's close friend, he naturally drew closer to Han Feng. Simple as that.

But to Han Feng, the whole situation just felt bizarre…

The three deans' attitude toward him was overly favorable. They hadn't even spoken much to Zhao Wuji or the others, yet they were already going out of their way to praise him.

"Could it be because of Sister Qianqian? " Han Feng wondered. But he quickly denied the thought. "That shouldn't be… Sister Qianqian is just a minor princess. From what I recall, the three deans should already have aligned themselves with Xue Qinghe…"

"Or maybe because Qianqian and Xue Qinghe get along well? "

"No, that doesn't seem right either… At this point, Xue Qinghe should have already been replaced by Qian Renxue."

"Though, thinking about it, in the original story Princess Xue Ke did seem close with Qian Renxue—at least on the surface…"

Thoughts whirled endlessly in Han Feng's mind, guesses rising and being dismissed one after another, until his brow furrowed tightly.

Seeing his expression, the experienced Meng Shenji quickly tugged Bai Baoshan and Zhi Lin back—they were being far too obvious, treating Han Feng as though he were their own grandson!

Realizing their slip, Zhi Lin and Bai Baoshan quickly laughed it off and shifted their attention toward Tang San and Dai Mubai:

"You must be Tang San, the one with the external spirit bone who broke through Dugu Yan's snake venom? Truly a heaven-sent genius! "

"And you must be Dai Mubai, who possesses a martial soul fusion skill? Indeed, handsome and extraordinary! "

The way they acted was just like venerable seniors who cherished talent above all else!

The Grandmaster frowned slightly and whispered to Flender:

"The three deans' attitude toward Han Feng seems… a bit too enthusiastic."

Flender chuckled awkwardly. Having already signed his contract, he couldn't say more, so he covered with,

"What's so strange? When I learned that Tang San and the others joined Shrek Academy, I was even more excited than the three seniors are now! "

Though still doubtful, the Grandmaster could only nod at Flender's natural expression.

After a while, the three deans returned to their seats. They wanted to test Shrek's true strength, but when they looked over, the most outstanding ones were either keeping a low profile—Han Feng—or holding back for personal reasons—Dai Mubai standing silently with Zhu Zhuqing. With no choice, Zhi Lin turned his gaze toward Tang San.

In truth, they only needed to silence doubters. With the Crown Prince's word, Shrek's admission to Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was all but guaranteed.

The three deans exchanged glances and nodded subtly. Zhi Lin cleared his throat, stroked his beard, and called loudly:

"Tang San—"

Buzz!

As soon as Zhi Lin's voice fell, Tang San felt a hum within his mind. His pupils contracted sharply. He immediately realized Zhi Lin was testing him and braced himself under the dean's soul power pressure without moving an inch.

"Oh? " Zhi Lin raised his brows. He had unleashed the pressure of a level 20 spirit master, yet Tang San hadn't even been forced to release his spirit. That was surprising.

Up until now, most of their focus had been on Han Feng, and they hadn't paid much attention to the other Shrek students.

Now, Zhi Lin's interest was piqued. He slowly increased his pressure.

Bang!

To the astonishment of the three deans, Tang San only released his martial spirit when the pressure reached the level of a rank 40 Spirit Ancestor. His Blue Silver Grass automatically enveloped him, True Body Armor activating, and with the aid of Xuan Tian Gong, Tang San suddenly looked more composed than before.

The deans were shaken. Who would have thought a small academy like Shrek concealed such talents!

"Xiao Gang! That's Spirit Ancestor-level pressure already—are you sure this is safe!? " Flender gripped the Grandmaster's hand nervously.

But the Grandmaster calmly sipped his tea and asked coolly,

"What rank? "

"Forty-four point eight! " Flender replied gravely.

The Grandmaster glanced over. Seeing the deans hesitating to increase further, he exhaled, stood up, and declared confidently:

"Please, esteemed deans, continue to raise your pressure. Tang San is my student. If anything happens, I take full responsibility! "

"Heh…" Han Feng chuckled dryly from the side. This was exactly why he never became the Grandmaster's disciple—who knew how recklessly the man would push his students!?

The three deans exchanged hesitant looks until Meng Shenji finally smiled faintly and said,

"Since the Grandmaster insists, I'll respect his wishes! "

Buzz!

At his word, the pressure on Tang San surged again—to a terrifying rank of 45.

"Ahhh!"

Rip—rip—rip!

With a cry of pain, Tang San's Eight Spider Lances burst forth, eight gleaming spider limbs spreading behind him like skeletal wings.

The Grandmaster's rigid face finally showed a smile. Bowing slightly to the three deans, he said:

"Thank you, esteemed deans. Ever since acquiring this external spirit bone, my student has never been able to fully absorb it. Thanks to your assistance today, he has finally fused with it completely."

"Well now…" Bai Baoshan murmured in awe.

"For mere Blue Silver Grass to withstand the pressure of rank 45 and to even bear such a rare treasure as an external spirit bone… extraordinary! Truly extraordinary! "

Han Feng looked at Tang San's current state and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

He too possessed an external spirit bone, though he had yet to fully absorb it. If he used the power of these three Contras today, he could do so as well—but he wouldn't.

After all, only his parents and Sister Qianqian knew about his spirit bone, and he had no intention of exposing it until he had enough strength to protect himself.

That is—unless his Mask of the Void betrayed him by manifesting under strong emotions…

PS: Read Advance Chapters at patreon.com/c/Shinazuki