After leaving the Star Dou Great Forest, Lu Ren didn’t rush on his way.
Instead, he found a shaded mountain hollow, confirmed no one was around, and sat down cross-legged.
He reached into his robes, took out the storage spirit tool he had swiped from Xu Sanshi, probed it with his consciousness, and retrieved a palm-sized jade bottle.
Pulling out the stopper, a cool, medicinal fragrance wafted toward him.
“Mysterious Water Pill.” Lu Ren examined the Medicinal Pill in the bottle and muttered to himself, “I heard this thing can raise Innate Soul Power by one Rank.
I don’t know if it will still have an effect since I already have Innate full Soul Power.”
He thought about it; it was stolen anyway, so he didn’t feel bad about it.
Trying it wouldn’t hurt.
He immediately tilted his head back and swallowed it.
The moment the Medicinal Pill entered his stomach, a warm energy rose from his lower abdomen and quickly flowed through his limbs and bones.
The feeling wasn’t like the surging of Soul Power, but rather like someone was giving him a bath with warm water.
It was warm and so comfortable that it made him want to sleep.
Ten minutes later.
Lu Ren opened his eyes and flexed his fingers.
The circulation speed of his Soul Power had clearly increased a bit, and his Meridians were also clearer than before.
With a thought, he circulated his Soul Power through his body.
Did it really go up by one Rank?
He was stunned for a moment and immediately called up the System interface.
[Host: Lu Ren]
[Soul Power Rank: Rank 43]
[spirit ring configuration: Purple, Purple, Black, Black]
[Current Cursed Techniques: Malevolent Shrine, Blood Manipulation…]
“It really went up?”
Lu Ren blinked, feeling somewhat surprised.
Innate full Soul Power can still be raised?
This Mysterious Water Pill has some kick.
He looked at the few remaining pills in the jade bottle, then at the “Rank 43” on the System interface, and the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but curl up.
The effect is so good, but it’s a pity that one can only take one.
Taking more won’t have an effect, especially since this Medicinal Pill only has a very obvious effect on Spirit Masters below Rank 20.
But it doesn’t matter; keeping them can be used to trade for other resources.
Putting away the jade bottle, Lu Ren stood up and stretched.
The sky had already darkened, and the afterglow of the setting sun dyed the horizon a shade of orange-red.
He was just about to find a place to spend the night when his gaze suddenly paused.
In the distance, toward the exit of the Star Dou Great Forest, several figures were slowly walking out.
Bei Bei, Tang Ya, and a limping Xu Sanshi.
And one more person.
A small, thin boy wearing tattered clothes, but with exceptionally bright eyes.
Huo Yuhao.
Lu Ren narrowed his eyes.
It seems the Tianmeng Iceworm has already entered his body.
The original plot has officially started.
The difference is that Electrolux, who should have landed in Huo Yuhao’s Sea of Consciousness, is now with him, Lu Ren.
Lu Ren’s gaze swept over the four of them and finally landed on Xu Sanshi.
That guy was limping at the back.
Although his black school uniform was beaten into a crumpled mess, it was still recognizable as the standard uniform for the Shrek Outer Court senior students.
Lu Ren looked at that black school uniform, then looked at his own clothes, and suddenly smiled.
“I’ve figured out how to sneak into Shrek City.”
…
Bei Bei and his group walked along the main road.
No one noticed that in the distance behind them, a figure was following unhurriedly.
Maintaining a perfect distance.
Neither losing them nor being discovered.
With Lu Ren’s current physical fitness, tracking a few teenagers whose Soul Power was far lower than his own was simply too easy.
After walking for about half an hour, the outline of a huge city gradually became clear on the horizon ahead.
It would be more appropriate to call it a city rather than an academy.
The tall city walls extended to the left and right, with no end in sight.
Inside the walls, buildings were densely packed, and the lights were just beginning to come on, dotting the city like stars.
Shrek City.
Built on the Lima Plain, it covered a vast area and was an independent city in its own right.
On the Douluo Continent, Shrek City was one of the top metropolises, home to over two million people.
Shrek Academy possessed sole governing rights over this city and did not need to pay taxes to any Empire.
In this regard, no other top-tier academy could compare.
The academy was located in the eastern part of the city, directly facing the direction of the Star Dou Great Forest.
The south, west, and north gates of the city were open to everyone; only the east gate was exclusive to Shrek Academy.
Lu Ren looked at the towering city gate from afar and couldn’t help but click his tongue.
Ten thousand years ago, Shrek Academy was just a small academy built in the middle of nowhere; it was hard to believe it had developed into this.
How ridiculous.
But it was normal; backed by the three great Empires and possessing the continent’s top faculty and students, it would be hard not to develop.
Lu Ren withdrew his thoughts and locked his gaze back on the four people in front.
They were almost at the east gate.
At the city gate, a dozen young men and women in yellow training gear were on duty, with green patterns embroidered on their chests.
That was the symbol of second and third-year students of the Shrek Outer Court.
Bei Bei and his group approached; the students on duty clearly recognized them, nodded in greeting, and didn’t stop them.
Now is the time.
Lu Ren took a deep breath and kicked off the ground.
His whole body was like an afterimage, instantly crossing several dozen zhang and pouncing straight at Xu Sanshi, who was at the back of the group.
Xu Sanshi was walking, still grumbling:
“Damn robber, don’t let me run into you again, or else I…”
Before he could finish, his neck tightened.
A large hand grabbed his neck directly.
The next second, he was hoisted up.
The wind whistled in his ears, and the scenery around him retreated rapidly.
Xu Sanshi only had time to let out a muffled grunt before everything went black, and he was dragged into the bushes by the side of the road in the distance.
Because Lu Ren’s speed was simply too fast, the others only felt a gust of wind sweep past from behind.
Bei Bei instinctively turned back, only to see that the place where Xu Sanshi had been standing was empty.
“?”
He rubbed his eyes again.
It was still empty.
“Eh?” Tang Ya also noticed something wrong.
“Where did that guy Xu Sanshi go?
Wasn’t he just behind us?”
Bei Bei frowned and looked at Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao understood immediately.
His Spirit Eyes Spirit activated instantly, his first spirit ring lit up, and he used Spirit Detection.
Invisible Mental Energy spread in all directions, covering a small area around them.
A moment later, Huo Yuhao shook his head.
“Senior Brother, I didn’t find him.”
Bei Bei’s brow furrowed even tighter.
When did that guy run off?
Where did he go?
But then he thought, they were already at Shrek City, what could happen?
Although that guy had a loose mouth, he wasn’t a child; he wouldn’t get lost at his own doorstep.
“He probably ran off somewhere else to report this.” Bei Bei waved his hand.
“Forget about him.
Let’s get your enrollment procedures done first.”
In his understanding, Shrek City was the safest place on the entire continent, so Bei Bei wasn’t worried that anything would happen to Xu Sanshi here.
Huo Yuhao nodded and followed Bei Bei and Tang Ya toward the city gate.
…
Meanwhile.
In a quiet alley a few hundred meters from the city gate.
Xu Sanshi hadn’t even reacted to what was happening; he only felt the world spinning, and then everything went black.
No, to be precise, it was a punch smashed into his face.
A dazzling black light erupted from the fist.
Xu Sanshi didn’t even have time to scream before his eyes rolled back, and he passed out directly.
Lu Ren withdrew his fist and looked at Xu Sanshi, who had collapsed to the ground, stunned for a moment.
“Uh…”
He looked down at his fist, then at the unconscious Xu Sanshi on the ground, his expression a bit subtle.
“Mistake.”
He really just threw a casual punch; he didn’t intend to use full force at all.
But who would have thought that a casual punch would trigger Black Flash?
Black Flash, in the Cursed Technique System, is equivalent to a critical hit.
The principle is that the impact of Cursed Energy and physical attack perfectly coincide within 0.000001 seconds, causing a 2.5-power damage multiplier.
The problem is that the conditions to trigger this thing are extremely metaphysical.
Even top-tier Cursed Technique users like Gojo Satoru or Sukuna wouldn’t dare guarantee they could land a Black Flash 100% of the time.
Yet he, Lu Ren, triggered it with a casual punch.
After all, he inherited the abilities of the Yuji Itadori.
Do you understand the value of every punch being a Black Flash?
High damage with the left fist, high damage with the right, every punch a Black Flash, converting mana bars to health bars, health bars to mana bars…
Lu Ren crouched down and checked Xu Sanshi’s breath.
Fortunately, he was still alive.
He looked at Xu Sanshi’s swollen, beaten face again and couldn’t help but mutter:
“It’s lucky that was just a casual hit.
If I had thrown a serious punch, you would be dust by now.”
Saying this, he began to peel off Xu Sanshi’s clothes with some distaste.
The black school uniform was the exclusive uniform for sixth-year students of the Shrek Outer Court.
Lu Ren quickly stripped off his own clothes and put on the black school uniform.
The size was just right; that guy Xu Sanshi had a build similar to his.
After changing clothes, Lu Ren grabbed a random piece of clothing from his storage spirit tool and threw it onto Xu Sanshi, barely covering his bare upper body.
“Make do with that; it’s better than nothing.”
After doing all this, Lu Ren stood up, patted his clothes, and strode toward the east gate.
…
At the east gate, a dozen students on duty were still chatting.
“It seems there are quite a few new students reporting today?”
“Yeah, it’s the new school year soon.
Quite a few people have been arriving one after another these past few days.”
As they were chatting, they suddenly felt someone approaching.
Looking up, they saw a boy wearing a black school uniform walking toward the city gate.
The boy had his hands in his pockets, his steps were lazy, there was no expression on his face, his eyes were indifferent, and he didn’t even look at them directly.
The black school uniform represented a sixth-year senior from the Shrek Outer Court.
Several students on duty immediately straightened their backs, instinctively preparing to salute.
However, when the boy reached the gate, he didn’t even pause his steps, as if they didn’t exist, and walked straight inside.
“Um…
Senior!” one student on duty mustered the courage to speak.
“Please show your proof…”
The boy didn’t stop, just coldly spat out one word:
“Scram.”
Only one word.
But the student on duty felt as if he had been doused with a basin of ice water from head to toe.
He froze in place, and the words in his throat were completely blocked.
The boy withdrew his gaze and continued walking forward, and no one dared to stop him again.
Not until the black figure disappeared inside the city gate did the students on duty dare to breathe deeply.
“Is…
is it really okay to just let him in like that?” a female student asked in a low voice.
The person next to her rolled their eyes at her.
“Do you not have eyes?
That’s a black school uniform, a sixth-year senior!
You dare to stop him?”
“But he didn’t show any proof…
wouldn’t it be too rash to just rely on the uniform?”
“Then why didn’t you stop him just now?”
The female student opened her mouth but couldn’t say anything.
That look just now, and that Aura—it was obvious at a glance that he was ridiculously strong.
Who would dare to stop him?
…
Inside the city gate.
Lu Ren walked forward with a relaxed expression, his hands clasped behind his head, his eyes narrowed.
The conversations behind him fell into his ears, word for word.
Bullying the weak and fearing the strong could also be considered one of Shrek’s essences.
But that’s fine; he had snuck in so easily.
Next…
Lu Ren looked up at the buildings ahead, a smile appearing on the corners of his mouth.
*******************************
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