Chapter 129.1: Shrek's Seven Monsters

Book 15: Victors

Yan Shaozhe nodded his head and said, “It’s been tough on the both of you this time. Go back and rest. Remember to keep everything you’ve seen in the Sea God’s Pavilion a secret. Yueheng, you’ve completed sufficient policing work. You can start preparing for the inner courtyard test.”

“Yes.” Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen left the Sea God’s Pavilion after they respectfully bade their farewells.

The two of them only relaxed after they had left. Although the elders present didn’t say anything, they still felt the immense pressure at the long table. They were clearly aware that all the elders were Titled Douluo! And most of them were even…

Although they didn’t really receive any important rewards, they weren’t really punished either. At least the tournament was over. As for Dai Yueheng, it also meant that he was going to graduate from Shrek Academy’s inner courtyard since Yan Shaozhe told him to prepare for the test. He could return to his empire after that. After cultivating tirelessly for more than 10 years, he could finally embark on a new journey. He was extremely anxious now.

Only Wang Yan, Bei Bei, He Caitou, Xu Sanshi, Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong were left in the Sea God’s Pavilion right now.

Their excitement had died down after Yan Shaozhe reprimanded both Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen. They were even a little discomforted now.

Yan Shaozhe turned to them and smiled. He said, “What’s wrong? Do all of you think that the academy is being too strict on them? I have to say that these are the academy’s requirements of all our inner courtyard students. The academy has used various forms of resources to nurture the inner courtyard disciples, thus it’s natural that our requirements are high too. You’re also going to be part of the inner courtyard in the near future. All of you will understand then. Alright, it’s time for your rewards. Teacher Wang.”

“Dean Yan.” Wang Yan stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Yan Shaozhe said sincerely, “Although we didn’t have all our team members around… four official team members couldn’t compete, and three of the others were even injured, and yet you still managed to lead the team to victory in the tournament. All of us can see how capable you are. You shall be promoted to Shrek Academy’s top-ranked teacher of the inner courtyard.”

Wang Yan said hurriedly, “Dean, I don’t want any reward. It’s not really my effort that won us the tournament. It’s all because of these kids’ hard work. They gave their all and came back from the dead more than once. If the academy really wants to reward someone, they should reward all of them handsomely.”

Dai Yueheng and Ling Luochen’s treatment left Wang Yan frightened that the academy would neglect these kids’ hard work!

Yan Shaozhe smiled slightly and answered, “They’ll be rewarded too. So will you. What I just mentioned wasn’t even considering your reward yet. It’s only just a normal promotion. The real reward for you is that the Sea God’s Hidden Beach will be open to you for a year. You are allowed to read anything you want within this year, but you can only read and research within the Hidden Beach.”

“What?” After hearing his reward, Wang Yan didn’t conceal his emotions in front of all the elders. He was so excited that he jumped up, and his face turned red from agitation.

What was in the Sea God’s Hidden Beach? There were countless solitary copies of books, out-of-print collections and resources. At least in Wang Yan’s eyes, it was the greatest wealth that Shrek Academy possessed! Even the Sea God’s Pavilion elders had to go through complicated administrative processes to enter the Hidden Beach to read. One year of access to the Hidden Beach was extremely valuable to Wang Yan.

Yan Shaozhe smiled upon seeing Wang Yan’s excited behavior. He said, “Teacher Wang, this is the reward that you deserve. We can see your contributions to the academy, as well as your persistence and hard work in your research. I hope that you can learn more from the Sea God’s Hidden Beach over the next year.”

“Thank you Dean, thank you elders.” Wang Yan was so excited that he almost bowed all the way to the ground. He would’ve never have imagined that he would be given access to the Sea God’s Hidden Beach!

All the elders smiled and nodded their heads at him. In Shrek Academy, only the best were valued. This was applicable even in the aspect of theoretical research, which was considered crucial in the academy. There was one seven-ringed elder in the Sea God’s Pavilion who specialized in theoretical research. But he didn’t have such a long lifespan compared to the Titled Douluo. That was why such individuals tend to be lower in numbers in the Sea God’s Pavilion.

Yan Shaozhe turned to Huo Yuhao and the rest and he said, “It’s all of your turns.”

“Kids, I can only express my astonishment and awe regarding your performances. Shrek Academy has emerged champions in the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament several thousand times. But I am certain that this is one of the most meaningful triumphs that we have achieved, and it deserves to be recorded in our history. Shrek will remember the contributions that all of you have made. All of you are the academy’s true heroes.”

Everyone was moved when they heard Yan Shaozhe’s words. They didn’t expect such an appraisal from the academy. It was glorious to be recorded in Shrek’s history! Everyone suddenly started to feel passionate.

Yan Shaozhe said, “The academy’s senior management are aware of what all of you have done. All of you have shouldered Shrek’s shining glory. In a tournament that was supposed to merely be training for all of you, you fought unyieldingly, and attained the championship through your efforts. Your brilliance has left all of us astounded. After a conference here in the Sea God’s Pavilion, we’ve decided to award two different rewards to all of you. The academy was given three soul bones and one extra one as the champions. The extra one is suitable for Huo Yuhao. The academy has also decided to offer three more soul bones, so that each one of the rest of you can receive one soul bone each. All of you will be allowed to choose based on your abilities and special characteristics too.”

Another three soul bones? Everyone was delighted. If each of them was given a soul bone each, there wouldn’t be much of a choice anyway. The reward offered by the academy was comparable to the Star Luo Empire’s!

But they would be even more shocked by what was to come.

Yan Shaozhe said in a deep voice, “The soul bones are used to encourage all of you for your efforts in the tournament. But the academy is also going to credit all of you for protecting the academy’s glory. From this moment onwards, the academy shall name the seven of you Shrek’s Seven Monsters.”

He stopped for a moment before saying seriously, “For life.”

“Ah…”

Huo Yuhao and the others couldn’t help but exclaim in shock after they heard those last two words. They stared at Yan Shaozhe with their eyes and mouths wide open. They felt as if their spirits had left their bodies at this moment.

Shrek’s Seven Monsters. While these words sounded simple, they held a deep meaning to Shrek Academy, and even the entire Douluo Continent! Ever since the glory held by the first generation of Shrek’s Seven Monsters, this name continued to represent greatness up till now. There were only two instances so far in Shrek’s history that anyone possessed this name for life. They were only conferred to inner courtyard disciples that had contributed greatly to the academy. The soul bones were already a huge surprise to all of them, but this lifetime Shrek’s Seven Monsters title conferred onto them was much more meaningful!

The glory that belonged to Shrek would be imprinted onto their bodies and spirits from this moment onwards. They were going to shine for life under this glory that had been shared with them.

This reward brought such a shock to all of them that it couldn’t be described in words. Huo Yuhao and the rest were all speechless. They finally understood why Yan Shaozhe was so determined to let Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan follow them to the Sea God’s Pavilion. He didn’t just want to censure them, but to give them the opportunity to claim their rewards personally! This was an extremely important moment in all their lives. They would regret it for life if they missed this moment!

Yan Shaozhe said in a deep voice, “The Sea God’s Pavilion discussed the matter for an entire day before we came up with this reward. It was only decided after a round of voting by the elders and a final decision by the Master. But I must clarify one thing first. To ensure the smooth progression of your studies in the academy, this will not be publicized. It will even only be recorded in our history. Before all of you graduate, only all of you will be privy to this. Please don’t make it public.”

They could understand this restriction they had to face. If news of this spread, they would be put into the limelight. This would then affect their normal cultivation and studies.

As their team leader, Bei Bei could not help but ask, “Dean Yan, does lifetime refer to the time we spend in the academy or…”

Yan Shaozhe smiled and replied, “What? Is it so difficult to understand? It’s called lifetime because it’ll be with all of you for your entire lives. Furthermore, this title will not be given to anyone else as long as one of you is still alive. That’s why all of you need to work hard at your cultivation and try to live longer. This glory will then stay with all of you for a longer period of time.”

Bei Bei was delighted, and used his eyes to gesture to the rest. He bowed respectfully towards the four deans and the elders present.

The others understood him and followed his lead, as they bowed respectfully too.

Yan Shaozhe stepped to one side and said respectfully to someone at the head of the table, “Teacher, do you have any other instructions?”

Everyone just now realized that there was someone half-lying on the other side of the table. They couldn’t see what he looked like because of their perspective.

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