Chapter 242: Shrek Academy Hindrance

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Zeng Yi, along with Xue Qinghe and the young girl, entered through the gates of the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy .

Inside the academy, Zeng Yi was able to get a sense of the scale of the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy . The fresh air felt like being in a forest, each breath bringing refreshing energy to every cell in his body.

Most of the area within the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was covered in green plants, resembling a forest park. The main campus was built halfway up the mountain, while the mountain top and foot were dedicated to training environments.

The term "training environment" referred to creating a suitable environment for Spirit masters to cultivate their martial Spirits. Although it couldn't ensure twice the result with half the effort, it could provide considerable assistance.

This was the reason why the Grandmaster insisted on bringing Shrek Academy to the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy —to have access to such training environments. These facilities were beyond what Shrek Academy could provide to its students.

But the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was different. As a comprehensive advanced Spirit master academy, it had various training environments. Though it couldn't accommodate all Spirit masters, it boasted nearly a hundred different training grounds. This was the reason why it was known as the number one academy. Both in terms of teaching staff and training facilities, it was undoubtedly top-notch within the Heaven Dou Empire.

As for the students' abilities, most of them were children of the empire's nobles or nobles from other kingdoms. Many came here for the prestige of the academy.

Walking along the path on the mountain, they climbed the stairs made of white jade. Each step was carved with different Spirit beast patterns, showing exquisite craftsmanship. The setting sun cast a faint red shadow on the stairs, adding a touch of tranquility and elegance to the entire campus.

Along the way, Xue Qinghe introduced the sights along the route and the general situation of the academy. Zeng Yi also learned that Xue Qinghe was the crown prince of the Heaven Dou Empire and the next emperor. Hearing this, Zeng Yi was somewhat taken aback, but he didn't change his attitude towards Xue Qinghe. He treated him as an ordinary friend.

After all, this was an extraordinary world where a person's status was determined by their strength. Royal authority could easily be ignored if one had enough power. As a disciple of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and a Titled Douluo, Zeng Yi's status was on par, if not greater, than that of an imperial prince.

But when Xu You and Niu Man learned of Xue Qinghe's identity, they became much more respectful. The status of being a prince was unattainable for them.

The girl beside Xue Qinghe, named Xue Ke, was the princess of the Heaven Dou Empire and Xue Qinghe's sister.

Although Xue Qinghe was a student of the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy , as the crown prince, he rarely stayed in the academy. He was basically just affiliated with the academy and would be considered an outstanding graduate in the future.

"Zeng Brother, how does our academy compare to your Shrek Academy?" Xue Qinghe asked after introducing the basic situation of the academy.

The principal of the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was the Emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire, so it was correct to say that it was his family's academy.

Zeng Yi couldn't help but laugh at his words, saying, "How can Shrek compare to your esteemed academy? It's just a small academy in the countryside."

Xue Qinghe calmly explained, "Our academy boasts the best training environment in the entire empire and the strongest teaching staff. However, most of the students here are mediocre. Even if they graduate and work for the empire, they will only be parasites, contributing to the empire's decay. The students of your Shrek Academy are far better than ours."

These words surprised Zeng Yi, as he couldn't understand what Xue Qinghe meant.

"Xue Brother is joking. I have met the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy 's team, and they have great talent and strength, right?" Zeng Yi replied.

However, Xue Qinghe shook his head. "But they were still defeated by your Shrek Academy."

He was aware of Zeng Yi's strength, and there was no way the members of the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy 's team could compete with Shrek's team when Zeng Yi was present.

"Hehe, maybe they just had bad luck." Zeng Yi joked.

Talent can be found anywhere; it's not unique to Shrek Academy. Zeng Yi had visited the Skywater Academy, and their chief disciple, Shui Bing'er, had strong talent and power. Except for Tang San, who was a shadow behind her, and Xiao Wu, who was a Spirit beast, none of the other members of the Seven Devils could match Shui Bing'er.

After all, she had reached the Spirit Ancestor rank at a young age with a top-tier beast martial Spirit. She had already become a Spirit Ancestor at the age of sixteen.

Honestly, the admission requirements of Shrek Academy were a subject of mockery. To join Shrek Academy, one had to achieve a strength level of Rank 25 or above by the age of twelve and possess two hundred-year Spirit rings. They also had to reach the Spirit Ancestor rank by the age of twenty. Zeng Yi didn't know how to comment on this.

Leaving aside the fact that achieving such power at the age of twelve was nearly impossible, the talent required alone was beyond extraordinary. When joining Shrek Academy, aside from being able to help students hunt Spirit beasts and engage in training battles, the academy provided little assistance in their cultivation.

Without training environments that could mimic their own cultivation environments, the students' cultivation progress would always be slower than those from other academies. With such students, if they went to a more reputable academy with resources from the school, such as the Five Elements Academies or the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy , they would undoubtedly have a much higher cultivation speed and reach the Spirit Ancestor rank before the age of twenty.

Shrek even regarded being able to reach the Spirit Ancestor rank before the age of twenty as a great honor. But for those who were capable of it, it was already difficult enough. Zeng Yi had heard from Dai Mubai that there were students who couldn't graduate from the academy. Zeng Yi felt that those students were unable to break through to the Spirit Ancestor rank before the age of twenty due to the burden placed on them by the academy.

At the age of twelve, possessing a Rank 25 or above strength level and two hundred-year Spirit rings, with such talent, unless something unexpected happened, it would be impossible not to break through to the Spirit Ancestor level before the age of twenty.

That Flender was able to attract so many geniuses to his academy; it was truly fortunate. It was also because those students were not yet mature enough and lacked the ability to discern right from wrong.

But it was understandable. After all, they were only twelve years old.

"Why doesn't our academy have that kind of luck?" Xue Qinghe sighed. He knew that many talents would rather study at the Five Elements Academies than come to the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy , despite its better facilities and stronger teaching staff. It was because the atmosphere there was not very good. These noble children might not have strong abilities, but they certainly had huge tempers.

"It would be great to have someone like Zeng Brother."

"Xue Brother, are you inviting me to join the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy ?" Zeng Yi figured out Xue Qinghe's intention.

"I do have that thought. What do you think, Zeng Brother?" Xue Qinghe no longer hid his intentions and invited Zeng Yi.

Shaking his head, Zeng Yi said, "I don't plan to cultivate in an academy again. It no longer benefits my cultivation. Even if I return to Shrek, I will apply for graduation and leave the academy. So, I can only apologize."

"Graduation?"

Xue Qinghe couldn't help but be surprised. "Zeng Brother, don't you know that there will be a Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Tournament in less than a year? If you graduate now, you will miss this grand event."

"With your strength, you will definitely shine in the tournament. Graduating now means missing a great opportunity to enhance your reputation."

"Hehe, reputation is just an illusion. Why bother caring about it?" Zeng Yi smiled. With his current strength, he would easily dominate the competition. But going with the Shrek team, which was already the most likely to win the championship, would only give others hope.

"Since Zeng Brother is determined, I won't say anything more."

Next, Xue Qinghe prepared a lavish feast for Zeng Yi and his party, treating them to a late night of drinking before they dispersed to rest.

Early the next morning, Xue Qinghe prepared a carriage for Zeng Yi and traveled with him to Shrek Academy in the city of Heaven Dou.