The next day,
Zhou Yi led Class One of the freshmen into their training session. Without hesitation, she appointed Su Yunlin as the class monitor—his cultivation level alone was enough to silence any objections. At Level 36 Spirit Power, not a single student in the class dared to disagree.
Huo Yuhao gazed at Su Yunlin's back, his eyes filled with admiration. Such a powerful class monitor, yet so gentle—despite bumping into him twice, he hadn't lost his temper at all.
Encouraging himself inwardly, Huo Yuhao resolved to cultivate diligently, striving to become someone as strong and kind as Su Yunlin.
What followed was their training time.
And what was "training"?
Weighted running. The same old method.
Ten thousand years had passed, yet nothing had changed. Even Su Yunlin couldn't help but want to complain—was there really nothing new?
Zhou Yi brought out ninety iron vests, each weighing thirty jin. Everyone received one—except Su Yunlin.
"Su Yunlin, since your cultivation is higher, this iron vest won't be effective for you. But as the class monitor, I must treat everyone fairly. Take this instead."
She handed him four rings made of special materials.
Su Yunlin examined them closely. "This is… a weight-type Soul Tool? And they all look like Rank 4 Soul Tools."
Zhou Yi was momentarily stunned. "You recognize Soul Tools?"
Su Yunlin replied casually, "Why wouldn't I? I'm a Soul Engineer myself. Rank 4."
Zhou Yi was genuinely surprised. Not only was this little monster powerful in cultivation, he was also a Soul Engineer? Truly a monster.
"These were made overnight by my husband," Zhou Yi explained. "Given your cultivation and physical strength, iron vests won't do much for you. These four weight-type Soul Tools can increase your load during training."
"At maximum output, each can reach five hundred jin. All four together can reach two thousand jin. Adjust them yourself—you should know how."
Su Yunlin nodded. This kind of device was simple enough—he could even make one himself. Still, he didn't think much of weighted running as a training method.
It felt… outdated.
Sure, it worked—but only to a limited extent.
Whatever. I'll treat it as a way to pass time. After all, this trip to Shrek has already brought me an unexpected gain.
As he thought this, his gaze shifted to Wang Dong nearby.
Wang Dong tilted his head. "Why are you looking at me?"
Su Yunlin smiled faintly. "Nothing. Just thinking you look pretty handsome. Want to compete again?"
Wang Dong only caught the first half. Immediately, he lifted his chin at a forty-five-degree angle, hands on his hips like a proud swan.
"Of course! I'm naturally gifted with beauty."
Su Yunlin's mouth twitched. He scratched his ear awkwardly. This girl wasn't just prideful—she was also a bit narcissistic. Still… raising her slowly might be interesting.
Soon, the running began.
While the rest of the class wore iron vests, Su Yunlin equipped the specialized weight Soul Tools, setting them to one hundred and twenty jin—roughly equivalent to carrying one and a half Wang Dongs on his back.
The two ran side by side until the end of class. Su Yunlin maintained a steady pace, but even for him, this level of weight was tiring. Sweat poured from his body—he hadn't felt this exhausted in quite some time.
Wang Dong, meanwhile, gritted his teeth and followed closely behind. He refused to lose too badly.
One by one, the other students collapsed from exhaustion, finding places to sit and rest. In the end, only three remained running—
Su Yunlin, Wang Dong, and the weakest of them all—Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao was only Level 11. Everyone had learned that on the first day, and most of the class looked down on him. But in terms of willpower, he was unmatched. Though slow, he never stopped.
His persistence inspired the resting students. One by one, they stood up and resumed running—they refused to be outdone by someone at Level 11.
Ding—ling—ling—
The bell rang.
The students who had been pushing themselves to the limit finally collapsed, their tension snapping all at once.
Wang Dong was no exception. His vision went dark, his body staggered, and he nearly fell.
But Su Yunlin was right beside him, catching him in time and preventing him from hitting the ground.
Zhou Yi summoned a healing-type Spirit Saint. This Spirit Master possessed the Life Tree Martial Soul. As his Spirit Ability activated, a gentle vitality washed over the students, relieving their physical strain.
"The Life Tree… what a display of resources," Su Yunlin murmured, feeling his body recover. A Martial Soul like that was top-tier even among healing types—Shrek Academy's foundation truly lived up to its reputation.
As long as there was no damage to one's foundation, this kind of physical training posed no real issue. A Spirit Saint's healing was more than sufficient.
Muscle strain from running? Having a Spirit Saint treat that was almost overkill.
As for hidden injuries? Please—these were Spirit Masters, not fragile glass. Who didn't carry a few injuries? In the future, they'd face far worse—possibly even life-threatening wounds.
To Su Yunlin, this kind of training was nothing compared to the dangers of absorbing thousand-year Spirit Rings beyond one's limits. Running only caused sore muscles, while absorbing Spirit Rings risked severe damage to one's meridians.
Of course, if anything did go wrong, he had access to specialized medicinal baths at home.
After all—
Being rich had its perks.
Zhou Yi gave a brief speech, praising the class for their performance. No one was eliminated this time. She specifically commended Huo Yuhao, as the weakest student who had persisted until the end.
As for Su Yunlin, she said little. Someone like him didn't need her guidance—his success was expected.
Afterward, the students returned to their dorms.
Su Yunlin carried Wang Dong on his back the entire way. While the healing Spirit Saint could treat injuries, fatigue was another matter—everyone was still exhausted.
Dorm 108—
Wang Dong slowly opened his eyes. Earlier, his vision had gone dark before he collapsed. Though semi-conscious, he had been too tired and fell asleep. Now, he found himself back in the dorm.
He sat up—
And instantly, his face turned bright red. Wisps of steam seemed to rise from his head.
"Ah—y-you—you! What are you doing?!"
The direction he pointed in revealed the scene—
Su Yunlin was bathing.
He sat in a white jade bathtub, his back facing Wang Dong.
Frowning, Su Yunlin glanced over his shoulder. "What does it look like? Taking a bath. Don't make a fuss—you know I have a cleanliness obsession. I hate communal bathing, so I brought hot water back to wash here."
"Honestly, bathing after exercise feels amazing. You're awake just in time—come, help scrub my back."
Wang Dong's face flushed even deeper. "Who would help you scrub your back?!"
"What a pity." Su Yunlin sighed, then stood up.
"Ahhh—you shameless guy!"
Wang Dong immediately covered his eyes—but left a small gap between his fingers.
"What are you yelling for? I'm wearing underwear."
The gap between Wang Dong's fingers widened. He peeked—and sure enough, Su Yunlin was wearing underwear.
He let out a small sigh of relief.
Lowering his hands, Wang Dong looked at Su Yunlin—and froze.
Su Yunlin's physique was fully on display. Not overly bulky, but well-defined, with firm muscles and eight-pack abs. His entire body carried a natural sense of aesthetic perfection.
Wang Dong stared blankly.
Then suddenly—
A warm sensation trickled from his nose.
He instinctively licked it. A faint metallic taste.
He had a nosebleed.
"You're bleeding from your nose?" Su Yunlin finished dressing and turned around, only to see Wang Dong in that state.
Wang Dong immediately turned away, hurriedly wiping his nose, his face burning red.
Su Yunlin grinned.
"I'm heading out for a walk and to grab dinner. You can clean yourself up. If I remember correctly, you've got a cleanliness obsession too. Use the bathtub if you want—it's yours."
With that, he left the dorm.
Leaving Wang Dong alone—
Face as red as a tomato, completely flustered.
"Ah! Su Yunlin, you absolute jerk!"