Shrek Academy had its dedicated training grounds.
Neuvillette swiped his card to enter.
The manager of the training grounds, an old man, glanced curiously at the three following behind Neuvillette—Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, and Huo Yutong—then spoke to him.
"You brat, what brings you to the training grounds today? I remember those little fellows from the inner court tremble at mentioning your name. When you drag them here, their legs weaken before they even step inside."
"Besides, the golden training rooms are already full today. The soonest one will be free in about two hours."
"Heh, Old Cheng, I've already graduated."
Neuvillette handed over a pale-gold card and smiled faintly.
"I'm not here to train myself today. I'm here to put these little ones through their paces—get them ready for the upcoming academy assessment."
"Just open a regular training room for me."
"Them, huh?"
Old Cheng raised an eyebrow, giving the three a long, interested look before clicking his tongue in admiration.
"You kids have no idea what kind of blessing you've stumbled into, getting special training from this guy…"
"Hehe."
The three instantly grinned sheepishly.
"All right then. Just let me know when you're done."
Old Cheng quickly lost interest again, leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes.
"Let's go."
Neuvillette kept his calm expression, retrieved the gold card, and headed toward the inner training rooms.
The three little ones followed behind, whispering to each other.
Xiao Xiao's beautiful eyes were full of admiration as she watched Neuvillette's back.
"That Old Cheng is said to be a Titled Douluo who retired from the inner court due to injuries. He's always been cold and aloof, hardly sparing a word for even many senior students from the inner court. I didn't expect Senior Neuvillette to be able to chat and laugh with him."
"That old man just now was a Titled Douluo?!"
Huo Yutong's eyes went wide, and she couldn't help glancing back at the plain-looking old man reclining leisurely with his eyes closed in that small room.
Unlike Wang Dong, her biological father was a Titled Douluo, but she had never once met him, so this was her first time coming into contact with a powerhouse of that level.
Recalling the calm ease with which Neuvillette had spoken with him, the young girl bit her red lip.
The gap between them was like a chasm. Could she ever truly bridge it?
"Hurry up, Yutong!"
Only when Wang Dong called out did the girl snap out of her thoughts and hurry to catch up.
Inside the training room.
The three huddled together to discuss tactics.
Although they had been classmates for three months, they only studied theory together. When it came to cultivation, they trained separately, so they were both familiar and unfamiliar with each other.
Huo Yutong spoke first.
"My martial soul is a pair of eyes—spiritual-type. I specialize in spiritual detection, with a radius of ninety meters."
Wang Dong went next.
"I'm an assault-type battle soul master. I can attack both at range and in close quarters, and my advantage is flight." Her second soul ring was a thousand-year one—among peers of the same level, virtually no one could match her.
Xiao Xiao pursed her lips before speaking.
"My primary martial soul is the Three Lives Town-Soul Cauldron. It can attack and defend, and hitting the enemy causes dizziness. My second martial soul is the Nine Phoenixes' Welcome Flute—right now it only has one hundred-year soul ring, which can slow opponents."
"All right, in that case, we'll stick to the kiting tactic we discussed earlier. Everyone's clear, right?"
Wang Dong leaned in and whispered to the other two.
"Got it!" ×2
"Good. Then—let's begin!!"
In the next instant.
Two soul rings rose beneath Xiao Xiao's feet, and a massive illusory shadow appeared above her head— her martial soul, the Three Lives Town-Soul Cauldron.
Huo Yutong's second soul ring rose into view.
To Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong's surprise, this soul ring was milky white, emitting a faint glow—a mere "ten-year" soul ring.
But soon both girls' spirits lifted again.
Wang Dong's gorgeous blue wings snapped open behind her, golden light flashing as a yellow and a purple soul ring glowed beneath her feet.
In a flash, she charged excitedly toward Neuvillette, sitting some distance away with his eyes closed in meditation.
Only when she was right in front of him did Neuvillette slowly open his eyes. Seeing her reflection in his pupils, Wang Dong's initial excitement suddenly gave way to a jolt of dread.
A pale-blue ripple spread out from his body.
A terrifying pressure instantly filled the entire training room.
Even the wooden chairs nearby trembled slightly under the weight of it.
Looking at the motionless Wang Dong hanging in midair, Neuvillette's lips curved into a faint smile.
"Special training… isn't nearly as simple as you imagine."
In the lounge by the entrance.
Old Cheng slowly opened his eyes, tilting his head toward Neuvillette's training room.
He grinned.
"Hahaha… Neuvillette's training isn't something just anyone can withstand. Even those inner court brats avoided it like the plague. And yet—here we have a few little ones walking right into the fire…"
Muttering to himself, he shifted position and closed his eyes again.
Half an hour later—
Inside the training room—
The three were sprawled out on the floor, their soul power completely drained.
Over the past thirty minutes, they had endured hellish training—beaten black and blue over and over, only for Neuvillette to restore them each time and force them to continue fighting.
Though the physical injuries vanished instantly under his treatment, the mental exhaustion was impossible to hide.
Only now did Wang Dong finally understand the look Old Cheng had given them before leaving.
It had been pity.
"All right, that's enough for today."
Neuvillette raised his right hand and glanced elegantly at his watch.
Unlike the three's bedraggled state, his clothes were still immaculate—and over the entire session, Wang Dong hadn't even managed to touch the hem of his robe.
Of course, after nearly a hundred cycles of collapsing and standing back up, the time they could last under his hands had finally grown—from one second… to one point-something seconds.
Neuvillette gave a small nod.
Not bad. That was real progress.
Wang Dong still wore a dead-eyed expression. Perhaps some terrors could only be truly understood through personal experience.
To them, Neuvillette was like a fresh-faced newbie trying to solo the final raid boss.
Tapping his staff to the floor—
In the next moment, a gentle pale-blue light enveloped the three.
This time, the healing made them all exhale in relief at once.
Feeling the soothing warmth seeping deep into their bones, Wang Dong suddenly cried out—
"Eh? My soul power loosened?!"
"Mine too!"
The petite beauty Xiao Xiao's eyes went wide as well.
Neuvillette smiled faintly as he watched the three whisper excitedly to each other.
His special training was feared throughout the inner court—yet plenty of people still came seeking the abuse.
Not just because his signature healing could erase hidden injuries without leaving the slightest trace—
But because his training results were absurdly good.
Under the crushing pressure of high-intensity combat, not only did one's combat habits improve, but even soul power grew stronger.
(End of Chapter)