Sea God's Island

The feeling of comfort flowed through Karni. Fresh air, a soft breeze, temperate sun, shining at just the right temperature. The ground, the feeling of grass, was soft and warm. And the pillow! The pillow was just perfe-

He focused on the pillow. How did it feel in his hair? Was it made of leather? It was so squishy and soft. He opened his eyes just a little and saw a familiar person sleeping above him. It was Siduo.

He turned a bit. Her thighs. So soft and soothing. He sighed, filled with comfort and closed his eyes again. Cosy. Everything was just perfect.

"Kiki." A very quiet voice came from above him. He didn't answer.

"I know you're awake. Do you enjoy the feel of my thighs so much?"

Karni opened his eyes slightly, turning to face her. She was looking at him with a bit of blush on her face.

"Yes. Yes they are. Now lemme sleep a little more." He closed his eyes again.

She pinched his arm a little bit. That woke him up. "Ay! That was unnecessary!"

"That's the payment. Consider us even."

Karni stretched and finally sat up. "A price worth paying then."

She lightly tapped his head, as if scolding a kid, though she did it while laughing.

Karni noticed his surroundings. Lush forest and lively Bluesilver grass, a great shade covering them, and rays of light shining through warmly. They were also on a slight incline. Just where were they? Wait. That giant tree above him. It was brown in body but also golden.

"Sea God's Island?" He guessed out loud.

Siduo nodded to him with a smile. "Aren't you glad? They took you here as a reward for getting 100 points. I got an invite because you were clinging onto me."

"Did I do that? I just remember fainting."

"You did, you did." She teased. 

He, in fact, did not cling onto her. She was just lucky to be brought along since they could notice they were a pair.

He didn't mind her teasing, he let her enjoy this. They were just done with an arduous test, they deserved a little respite. He breathed in the surroundings. "Wow. This place is perfect for my cultivation. I didn't know I had such an affinity to nature."

"It's likely that bamboo of yours that's on your panda. Though the rich vitality is good even for me who doesn't have any Martial Souls connected to nature."

"Sisi. How long did I sleep exactly? It feels early in the morning."

"You enjoyed my thighs for about 18 hours. Your face was so content, I just couldn't wake up that adorable sleeping posture. You should thank my thighs, they felt quite numb. They went through a lot."

"18 hours? Damn." He turned to her thighs. "Thank you for the best pillow I've ever had."

Siduo shook her head. "That's enough, you. Come along." She stood up with some difficulty, shaking off the numbness in her legs. "They told me to bring you to a hut once you wake up. Unfortunately we don't have much time here. How are you feeling by the way? Is everything okay?"

"It's great! It feels like my body went through a quality change. I feel surprisingly refreshed." He jumped up and down a bit. He felt extra bouncy. His bloodline was calm now, yet it felt just a tiny bit thicker than before. Though he could only feel it after a thorough self check up with his Soul Power. His bloodline was a stubborn one. Even such vitality and a thorough sleep after all the exhaustion only barely gave an improvement. Then again, if it were that easy, the world wouldn't be fair.

Siduo sighed, like a weight had been lifted off her chest. "I'm glad. Let's go then."

The two went off. The island really was comforting. It felt like the hilly countryside he used to live in, the closest city to his home used to be half an hour drive away by car. It was kind of nostalgic, similar foliage. Or at least foliage that felt similar. 

They walked on a natural forest path, removed from human presence. Something he wasn't used to. Fallen leaves, healthy trees, it was peaceful and quiet. He enjoyed the city life too to a degree, but this was closer to his former home, an area surrounded by forest, houses here and there connected by an old concrete road. Yes. The Sea God's Island had much of his home in it, and so much more.

It wasn't long before they reached the hut. It was made of brownish-gold wood, much like the tree overlooking the whole island. No. That tree looked over all of Shrek. How did the ecosystem work here? It had to be wondrous. Usually the high trees overlooking everything took away nutrients from the smaller ones, yet here, the forest on the island was thriving in the shade of another.

Since it was a magical tree, it likely had a thick energy of life that it released on the whole area. Sunlight wasn't the only food plants ate in Douluo Dalu.

Siduo was about to knock onto the hut, but the door opened up beforehand and two figures came out hand in hand. A green haired beauty and a fair man that appeared in his thirties like the lady.

Siduo bowed. "Wu Siduo greets the Elder and the Pavilion Master."

Karni followed her steps. "Val Karni greets the elder and the…" then he realised, "Pavilion Master." He calmed himself quickly. Holy fuck. The Pavilion Master. He just met the leader of the whole Shrek Academy. No. The whole of Shrek City!

Ya Li and Yun Ming chuckled at his reaction. "Good. Despite your actions towards the end of the exam, you seem surprisingly humble."

Karni was confused. "But all I did was greet you."

"See?" Ya Li pointed at what Karni just said, which embarrassed him more.

"There's more to being humble than just words, Val Karni." 

Karni nodded slightly, but still in a bit of a daze. Ya Li was the one to ask him a question. "How's your bloodline? Has it calmed down now?"

Karni nodded. "Yes. The environment here seems especially comforting to my second martial soul."

Yun Ming noted. "So the two are connected then?"

Karni was a bit confused at the question. "Um. Yes. Why wouldn't they be?"

"Nevermind that. We just had some peculiar cases this year, that's all. There's something more important I need to ask you. Val Karni, did you really have visions of the future before?"

Karni realised why it was the Pavilion Master himself that greeted him now. The power to see into the future was indeed nothing to scoff at. He explained his experiences with as much detail as he could.

Yun Ming went into thought. "Do you think you could focus on a vision and call it out? Not one that has happened, but one of the future?"

Karni shrugged. "I honestly don't know. Up until now, they've always been random."

"I see. Would you mind if we try to call out a vision? I will help you."

Karni agreed with some doubt, having no clue as to how that would work. The two sat down, while Siduo and Ya Li just moved to the side and watched. Yun Ming placed his palms on Karni's back and filled him with peculiar, sharp Spiritual Energy.

"Focus on a particular subject. Maybe that friend of yours since you've had two visions about her before."

Karni nodded and did so. He thought of her. Of her future. Of what was to come for Wu Siduo. 

…

…

Nothing appeared. 

He focused more, what did he know? The events he knew would happen… though his Spiritual Energy felt incredibly focused, spreading far and wide… though even his Bloodline felt happy, his Soul Power excited… Still nothing came.

Was his knowledge actually the problem? Thinking about it, he never had an actual vision of what he had read about in the books. Was that why he couldn't call anything out?

After ten minutes, the Spiritual Energy left him, he suddenly felt empty. Yun Ming was in thought, he felt no changes on Karni himself. He wasn't sure about the success. "Did you see anything?"

Karni shook his head. "Nothing. I don't think I can just focus on a future I have no knowledge of."

The man was silent for a bit. "That does make sense. In that case, you can leave. And take this." He threw Karni a token.

"If you put your Soul Power into it at the edge of the Sea God's Lake you'll be able to message me. Do so if you have a vision. Then we can try and focus on that vision if it has yet to happen."

Karni nodded. That made sense. If he got a vision, maybe with sufficient power, he could explore it and see it in greater detail. It certainly was a sound hypothesis. There actually was one.

"Ya Li. Can you take them to the boat? The other group should also slowly get there. They can go to the actual academy that way."

"Wait." Karni interrupted. "I do have one vision that has yet to happen… though I think it's connected to the Star Luo Continent, so I'm not sure how well it might go…"

Yun Ming looked at Karni, then placed his palms on Karni's back. "It's worth a try."

Karni breathed. It was probably the worst vision in terms of suitability to try this. It happened far away, and it was the briefest he ever had.

He focused. What did he see back then? Bamboo. Bloodshed. He breathed, even thinking of his very own bamboo to try and go in the right direction…

The Spiritual Power flared, his Soul Power flared, and his bloodlin-

Gol-

It stopped. There was just a brief flash of gold. Karni breathed deeply. Exhausted.

Yun Ming looked at him. "Gold… Interesting. A simple colour." He smiled at Karni. "Extraordinary, but it seems you need to become stronger. What I said before still stands. Ya Li, if you will, please."

Ya Li nodded happily and took Karni and Siduo with her. Not even a minute afterwards another person appeared. She seemed like a lady well into her old age. "What did you think of him? Yun Ming?"

"Elder Long." Yun Ming bowed his head a little. The Pavilion Master showed his respect. "He is quite good. His bloodline made it incredibly easy for me to actually fill him with my Spiritual Power. It adapted with a scary speed. As for his visions, we'll have to wait and see, but the boy wasn't lying. That flash of gold triggered my sense of Fate, if barely."

"Ho? That's quite high praise. I'd imagine you'd have taken him in as a disciple then. He's more than capable, no? His abilities are just as unique as that disciple of yours. Speaking of, where is she really?"

"She is still asleep." The man sighed. "As for making him my disciple, we'll have to wait and see. I don't want to take disciples that easily. He should first grow by himself. Besides, I'm a master of the Spear first and foremost. He could find fine rivals in the Outer Court. They can sharpen him further."

Elder Long, who was, in fact, Long Yeyue—the eldest and arguably strongest or second strongest person in the academy, based on who you asked—was in thought. The Light Dark Douluo, a celebrity of the past and one of the true backbones of the academy, and here she was, seeming to laugh about Yun Ming's suggestion, as if she was just a regular old person. "Are you talking about that other group? I heard Elder Cai made quite the commotion."

"Tell me about it." Yun Ming sighed. "It's been a while since I've seen her be that stubborn. But Elder Long, why exactly are you here? Are you also interested in Val Karni?"

Long Yeyue shook her head. "No, I'm actually observing the girl with him."

"Wu Siduo?" Yun Ming went into thought, before his eyes cleared in understanding. "Her Martial Souls. I see. I didn't consider that."

Long Yeyue nodded. "Indeed. She'd be a perfect disciple to pass on my techniques to."

"Why don't you take her in then? She's almost guaranteed to become strong."

"Just like you, I want to see how she handles being in the academy with that other group. Unlike you, if she performs well I'll take her in as a direct disciple, not just to watch over her."

Yun Ming nodded. "That's a good point. We don't really have a suitable teacher to help Val Karni, even my techniques will only help him so much. This year should be interesting then. Many bright talents seem to have entered our academy."

The two were in silence for a while, before Long Yeyue asked a question that has been bugging her.

"We should make them take the inner court exam. They're more than qualified. That's always how the exam score worked. Not just Val Karni and Wu Siduo."

Yun Ming shook his head. "Actually, I've been thinking of doing a bit of reformation in terms of that. They should at least graduate from Outer Court. Especially this generation. It will do them more harm than good if they get into the inner court too soon. You know who I'm talking about." Then he smiled a bit. "Besides, we can always guide them with our teaching, even if they are in the Outer Court."

… … …

Karni and Siduo followed Ya Li towards the shore of the Sea God's Island. As the view of the lake opened itself to them, Karni's mouth hung open, while Siduo breathed in the air with a sense of nostalgia.

The lake was wide. Massive. It could've been mistaken for a small sea from here. Except it didn't have the smell of the sea, despite being called the Sea God's Lake. It was the most beautiful lake he'd ever seen. He could see life in it even from here. Many plant life lived on the beautiful lake in groups. Lotuses, Willow trees, tall grass. It felt alive.

At the shore of the island, they noticed a group of five. Familiar faces to Karni and Siduo. Weren't those Tang Wulin and his other friends? As well as what seemed like a teacher?

Ya Li approached the teacher, while Karni and Siduo approached the group. Karni caught eyes with Tang Wulin while Siduo glared at Gu Yue, who returned a neutral look.

"We meet again." Karni offered a handshake, which Tang Wulin accepted with a happy smile. It always felt like fate was playing around with encounters of life in moments like these.

"We do, how'd your exams go?"

Before Karni could answer, Ya Li interrupted them. "Oho? You children know each other? In that case you wouldn't mind taking them over to the other side right, Teacher Shen?"

Shen Yi nodded. "Of course Elder Ya."

"Good. Now then you two, study hard." Ya Li left them alone with a quick goodbye.

Shen Yi looked at the kids. "Let's get on the boat." She glanced at Karni and Siduo. Those two were with Elder Ya? Just how many monsters did they get this year?

On the boat, Karni and Tang Wulin resumed their conversation. "So? How did your exams go?"

"We went through them quite smoothly thankfully. Our team was well balanced so we didn't have too much trouble." Karni offered a polite answer for a start.

"We didn't have any trouble either!" Xie Xie said before Tang Wulin could answer on his own. "Our captain here even got all the points and enabled one of ours to pass that almost failed. And she was only going to fail because of a grumpy elde- OU! That hurts, captai- OU! Fine! I'll stop, no wai- OU!"

Karni and Siduo just stared at the scene. This group… Were they like that? Theirs was just… normal. At least in terms of personalities. "I take it you had some trouble then," Karni said with a badly-hidden smile. "Also, congratulations."

Tang Wulin stopped hitting his friend and sighed. "Yeah, there was some trouble."

"Let me guess. Silver haired elder?" Karni heard a cough from the teacher behind when he said that.

"She's Elder Cai, the Outer Court's Headmistress. Be respectful."

Siduo seemed to remember something in those words. "Oh! That one! Yeah, she did seem kind of nasty. What did she do? We only saw her on the final test because she was late at the start."

"Ah, so the Elders are allowed to be late, but we aren't." Xie Xie felt indignant. As did the rest of the group when they heard that. Even Tang Wulin's face soured a little.

Karni and Siduo stared at them a bit. Especially Siduo, who was slowly making a grin on her face. "Kek. You were late? No wonder the elders were mad, phaha!"

"Hey, don't you laugh! What kind of score did you get then? If it weren't for that elder, it wouldn't have been only Wulin that got the max score!"

Siduo grinned harder. Xie Xie was so easy to rile up. Karni was reminded of his old days. She really was an expert at poking pressure points, he just learned how to deal with it. She proudly stated. "I got 93 points."

Xie Xie laughed. "Hah. Still not full like our Captai-"

"Kiki here got the full score though."

They looked at Karni, who hit Siduo on the back of her head. "Don't rile them up."

"You got a full score as well?" Tang Wulin confirmed with him.

Karni nodded. "Yes, though it was a pain for me. My Martial Soul was causing me some trouble, making me fall asleep before the final evaluation finished."

They were confused. "How did that kind of thing happen?" Asked the blue haired girl from in the back. Xu Xiaoyan.

"After the sixth test, the eating one, my Martial Soul wanted me to rest. I usually become sleepy after dinner, but since that one was quite extreme for me, my Martial Soul and my Bloodline were especially active afterwards."

"Hehe." Xie Xie laughed. "We didn't have such a problem. That was the easiest one for us."

Siduo was surprised, while Karni looked at Tang Wulin. When she saw him looking at him, she felt like she understood. "You helped each other? Did you still get full points?"

"We did, we did. Captain ate all the food and even took some with him."

Even though Karni knew, even though he'd read it all… he looked at Tang Wulin as a monster. That kind of appetite… he glanced at Tang Wulin's body. It just wasn't fair, was it.

Tang Wulin felt a bit embarrassed when he saw how Karni and Siduo were looking at him. Luckily for him, they just hit the shore. He could run away. 

The Outer Court of Shrek Academy, their place of resident for the next few years, stood before them. Mighty. Rich. Green.

Shen Yi turned towards Karni and Siduo. "You two, the dormitories for you are in that direction, you should be able to register with ease. As for the rest of you, follow me."

Karni and Siduo looked at them weirdly. Tang Wulin explained while waving goodbye. "We were late, so we are to become Working Students instead of normal students. I hope we see each other again."

The two waved back at them. "Working students huh?" Siduo wondered. She looked at them seriously. "Those guys are probably strong."

Karni was surprised. "What makes you think that? I mean. I know why I would think that, but why do you?"

"Because, Kiki, this is Shrek. They wouldn't just accept anyone if they were late. That means they're strong."

Karni nodded in understanding. "You don't know this, but Working Students also have a reputation of being monsters."

"Hoho, perhaps we should join them then." Siduo was filled with confidence.

"They also have to pay rent to the academy, while we can stay here for free. Their rooms are what could maybe be considered a shack. Maybe." He remembered it well, that detail. It was iconic to him for some reason.

"We'll be proof that Working Students aren't the strongest there are. They should stay in their shacks. Let's go get food." She punched her fists together in excitement.

Karni sighed. This woman.

… … …

Karni stood in the middle of a room, satisfied after he finished furnishing it. He brought everything with him. He had to admit, even though these were just normal dormitories, they were better than the ones in Star Luo City Academy. The walls, the floor, the feel. Everything felt better.

In the middle of the back wall were his drums, surrounded with some other music equipment. Recorders, mixers and what not. Most of which he actually manipulated through Soul Power. One wouldn't believe what sort of weird musical equipment came into this world. Sensitive, not needing any electricity. Convenient for Soul Masters.

His bed was placed in the corner of the room and on the opposite corner on the same side of the wall was his equipment for Mecha Designing. He was lucky he was a Mecha Designer with a unique way of drawing up blueprints. He didn't need to rent a room from the academy. 

Now it truly felt like everything was ready. Tomorrow begins the entrance ceremony, and then… Hell. Shrek was the best, yes, but it was also hell. Infamously difficult.

He needed to keep up. At the very least, he had to stay close to Tang Wulin. Thus began his school life in the legendary academy. The Shrek Academy.