Morning.
Gu Chen woke up early, planning to go to the girls' dormitory to find Gu Yue Na.
On the way, he encountered Tang San, who was looking for Xiao Wu.
Tang San was about to knock on the door when Gu Chen shook his head. Through his bloodline sense, he called out to Gu Yue Na.
"What's wrong?" Gu Yue Na opened the dormitory door, her large, light purple eyes flickering with curiosity.
"Let's go have breakfast. By the way, call Xiao Wu along," Gu Chen said.
Gu Yue Na agreed, went back to her dorm to call Xiao Wu, and the group made their way outside Shrek Academy.
Not knowing where the academy's cafeteria was, they had to go to the village to buy some food from the villagers.
As they were about to buy food from a farm family, they saw a boy and a girl not far away arguing about something.
The boy and girl looked quite young. The girl appeared to be about fourteen or fifteen, with an average appearance but full of youthful energy. She wore simple peasant clothes, probably the child of a villager in the area.
The boy, who seemed younger than the girl, appeared to be around the same age as Tang San and Xiao Wu. He was short, slightly chubby, but his physique looked quite solid. He had short hair, small eyes, and his cheeks were round, making him seem a bit cute. His lips had a pair of small mustaches.
This was Ma Hongjun, one of the Shrek Seven Devils.
The girl looked at Ma Hongjun with a bit of fear in her eyes. "Ma Hongjun, I don't want to be with you anymore. We are breaking up."
Ma Hongjun responded in a strange tone, "Cuihua, haven't I treated you well? Why do you want to break up with me?"
Gu Chen and Gu Yue Na exchanged glances, as did Tang San and Xiao Wu. They could see a hint of amusement in each other's eyes. At such a young age, they were already learning about relationships?
However, they didn't seem to realize that they were doing the same thing.
Cuihua's face turned red. "You've been nice to me, but I really can't stand you anymore. We aren't suited for each other. Please, don't come after me again."
Ma Hongjun angrily said, "What do you mean you can't stand me? I really don't understand what these girls are thinking. Fine, if you want to break up, then do it. But you better come back to me once, or else, forget it."
While talking, Ma Hongjun raised his hand to grab Cuihua.
Cuihua quickly stepped back like a frightened rabbit, but Ma Hongjun was fast and grabbed her hand.
Cuihua pleaded, "No, please don't. Just let me go. Are you even human?"
Xiao Wu couldn't bear it any longer and jumped forward, shouting, "Stop it!"
Both Ma Hongjun and Cuihua paused and looked at her. Ma Hongjun blinked a few times and his small eyes lit up with excitement. "What a beautiful girl. So, do you want to replace her as my girlfriend? Fine, no problem, I agree."
Before he could finish speaking, his eyes shifted to Gu Yue Na, and he was instantly mesmerized. "This silver-haired girl is so beautiful, would you like to be my girlfriend too?"
But before Ma Hongjun could say more, a hard punch landed on his stomach.
Ma Hongjun's facial features contorted, his eyes bulged, and his body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing through a wooden house before stopping.
The owner of the punch was none other than Gu Chen. He had only wanted to watch the drama unfold, but he didn't expect Ma Hongjun to make a move on Gu Yue Na.
"Who's this scum, trying to ruin my fun?" Gu Chen muttered, clearly irritated.
Perhaps Gu Chen hadn't hit hard enough, as Ma Hongjun, looking furious, jumped out from the wreckage of the house and cursed, "You scum!"
"Who are you calling scum?" Gu Chen retorted.
"You're scum!" Ma Hongjun said, before realizing something and shouting angrily, "You tried to trick me!"
"Please don't speak to me using your waste disposal organ, it's very impolite. Thank you!" Gu Chen mocked.
"Ding dong! Your friend, Zuan Gu Chen, is now online!"
"You bastard..." Ma Hongjun tried to curse, but was cut off by Gu Chen.
"One kick and I can't even get your shit out. You must've cleaned up well. Who says pigs are the dumbest? I say pigs have the smartest brains. They eat and sleep, think nothing, and get fat and healthy. Pigs are well-maintained, and so are your brains!" Gu Chen spoke with a venomous tongue.
"Go to hell, you bastard! Phoenix Possession!"
A purple-red glow erupted from Ma Hongjun's body, and his short hair grew and gathered at the center, forming a Mohawk-style hairstyle. Though no wings appeared, the purple-red light emitted intense heat. Two yellow soul rings rose from his feet, and long feathers extended from his muscular arms, transforming his hands into claws.
Seeing him like this, Xiao Wu giggled. "Is there such a fat Phoenix? I can only see a fat chicken."
Ma Hongjun looked like his reverse scale had been touched. He shouted furiously, "Who are you calling a fat chicken?" He raised his hands, and his first soul ring lit up. He opened his mouth, and a thin stream of purple-red fire shot toward Xiao Wu.
Gu Yue Na stood in front of Xiao Wu, her purple eyes glowing with cold light. With a powerful control over the fire element, she seized control of the purple-red flame and directed it back at Ma Hongjun.
"What the hell!" Ma Hongjun used his second soul skill, Fire Phoenix, to block the flames coming from his own soul.
But the next second, Ma Hongjun stopped struggling, shivering in fear.
Thousands of wind blades appeared in the air, their sharp edges glinting. With a command from Gu Yue Na, these wind blades could slice Ma Hongjun into pieces!
"Stop, please stop!" Cuihua suddenly shouted, rushing over to Ma Hongjun and standing in front of him. She pleaded, "Please stop. Actually, Hongjun is a good person, it's just that we aren't suited for each other. Let me talk to him. You all can leave."
At that moment, a surprised voice came from afar, "Gu Yue Na, Fatty, what are you doing?"
Gu Chen's group and Ma Hongjun all turned toward the voice and saw a person in white clothes, with his hair neatly styled, walking toward them. It was Dai Mubai.
Xiao Wu snorted, "What's going on? Ask him. This fatty was bullying a girl in broad daylight, and we couldn't stand it, so we had to teach him a lesson."
Dai Mubai's usually cold face broke into a smile. "Xiao Wu, I think you've misunderstood. Cuihua, can you no longer put up with him?"
Cuihua blushed, nodded, and turned to run away. This time, Ma Hongjun didn't try to stop her, only showing a dejected look.
Tang San walked up to Dai Mubai and asked in confusion, "What exactly is going on here?"
Whoosh!
The thousands of wind blades dispersed, and Gu Yue Na walked back to Gu Chen's side.
Ma Hongjun suddenly sat down on the ground, shaking.
Dai Mubai looked at the fat man. "Do you want to tell them, or should I?"
Ma Hongjun glanced at Dai Mubai, lowered his head, and said, "You say it."
Dai Mubai laughed. "What's this? The fat man is shy? Fine, I'll say it."
He turned to Tang San and the others. "Do you remember I once told you there are only three students in the academy, including me?"
Tang San immediately understood, "You mean, he is…"
Dai Mubai nodded. "Yes, Fatty is the third one. He was the last to join the academy, after all of you. I didn't see what just happened, but I can guess. Actually, it's not really his fault, but more because of his trashy chicken soul."
"Shut up, your soul is trash! My soul is the Phoenix. Even if my ancestors had chicken souls, mine is a Phoenix. Haven't you heard? Even in a chicken nest, a golden phoenix can emerge!" Ma Hongjun retorted unhappily.
After Gu Chen and the others made peace with Ma Hongjun, the six of them returned to the Shrek Academy grounds, where Dai Mubai led them to the academy's cafeteria.
The so-called cafeteria was actually an agreement between the academy and the village, where several villagers were hired to manage the meals. Though breakfast was simple, it was plentiful enough, so no one went hungry.
After eating, a bell rang outside.
Dai Mubai quickly stood up. "That's the bell the dean rang to call us. Fatty, take them to the sports field. I'll go get Zhu Zhuqing." He said, quickly leaving the cafeteria.
At the sports field, they saw Oscar, who had shaved his beard, followed by Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing.
A middle-aged man came from another direction.
Upon seeing this man, Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Gu Yue Na all froze, but Gu Chen remained calm. Not only had he already known the plot, but he had also seen Flender last night during his spar with Tang Hao.
The man appeared to be in his fifties, with a strong build, a face with distinct features, a protruding chin, wide cheekbones, a flat face, and an eagle-like nose. If one had to describe him, his face resembled the bottom of a shoe. Even though his eyes were closed, he still gave off a cunning look. He wore a pair of black-framed crystal glasses, with square frames that looked stiff.
Xiao Wu was surprised. "Isn't this that shady merchant uncle?"
(End of chapter)