Douluo Dalu 1: The Tang Family Rebel

Inside the cafeteria.

As Yun Chuan ate his breakfast, he noticed that his arrival had caused the people around him to fall silent, which made him feel somewhat awkward. After quickly finishing the food in his hand, he temporarily stopped eating.

Looking at the six people around him, he said, "I must admit, I've been negligent. As a teacher, I haven't even learned the most basic information about you. Since it's still early, why don't you introduce yourselves? This way, both new and old students can get to know each other."

Seeing that Yun Chuan was trying to ease the atmosphere, Dai Mubai also chimed in, "Teacher Tang is right. Since we'll all be living and training together from now on, it's good to get acquainted. I'll start to break the ice."

"I'm Dai Mubai, my martial soul is the White Tiger, and I'm at the Soul Elder level."

Following Dai Mubai's introduction, Ma Hongjun, as a senior student, also took the initiative to introduce himself, "I'm Ma Hongjun, my martial soul is the Evil Fire Phoenix, and I'm at the Grand Soul Master level."

"I'm Ning Rongrong, my martial soul is the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, and I'm also at the Grand Soul Master level," Ning Rongrong introduced herself as the first among the new students.

"…Zhu Zhuqing, my martial soul is the Nether Civet, and I'm also at the Grand Soul Master level." Zhu Zhuqing, who was not very talkative, spoke immediately after Ning Rongrong.

Finally, only Tang San and Xiao Wu remained.

"I'm Xiao Wu, as in 'dance.' My martial soul is a cute little rabbit, and I'm also at the Grand Soul Master level," Xiao Wu said first.

"I'm Tang San, my martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, and I'm also at the Grand Soul Master level," Tang San introduced himself last.

After all six had finished introducing themselves, Yun Chuan nodded in approval and smiled, "You are all quite outstanding. Now, let me introduce myself as well. My name is Tang Chuan, my martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, I'm ten years older than you, and my current soul power is at the seventy-first level, the Soul Saint stage."

"Teacher, you're only twenty-five years old, yet you're already a Soul Saint?!" Ning Rongrong exclaimed in a low voice. As the little princess of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Clan, she understood all too well what Yun Chuan's level at this age meant—it meant that this teacher was almost guaranteed to become a Title Douluo in the future!

"Haha, I just have slightly better talent," Yun Chuan replied modestly, then encouraged them, "You are all talented geniuses. As long as you work hard and study well, it's not impossible for you to reach the Soul Saint level at my age."

Although he said this, everyone present knew that he was merely motivating them. The truth was, the difference between people could be as vast as the difference between humans and soul beasts.

Reaching the Soul Saint stage at twenty-five years old?!

Anyone with a bit of common sense would understand how absurd that was.

Tang San, Dai Mubai, and Ma Hongjun didn't believe they could reach the Soul Saint stage by twenty-five—it was simply impossible for humans to achieve that. In fact, if someone had told them about a twenty-five-year-old Soul Saint without proof, they would have dismissed it as nonsense.

Compared to this teacher who had reached Soul Saint at twenty-five, could they still call themselves "monsters"?

Wasn't this teacher the real monster?

Seeing that everyone had gone silent, Dai Mubai quickly changed the topic to lighten the mood, "Since we'll all be learning together, there's no need to be too formal. Including the four newcomers, there are only seven students in the academy. Fatty and Xiao Ao call me 'Boss Dai' because I'm a little older than them. You can just call me Mubai. As for Ma Hongjun, just call him Fatty. That guy Oscar—you can call him Xiao Ao or 'Big Sausage Uncle.' Tang San, how about I call you Xiao San?"

Tang San nodded in agreement. Although he hadn't spent much time at Shrek Academy, he was already developing a sense of belonging. Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun each had unique characteristics, but none of them were unpleasant to be around.

Before Dai Mubai could assign himself a nickname, Ning Rongrong cheerfully said, "You can just call me Rongrong. That's what my family and friends call me."

With a smile constantly on her face, she effortlessly closed the distance between herself and the others. Yun Chuan observed this and thought, This little troublemaker is really good at pretending. If I hadn't read the original story, I wouldn't have guessed that this seemingly gentle and well-mannered girl was actually a spoiled and arrogant little princess.

When it was Xiao Wu's turn, there was no need to change her name. However, when Dai Mubai looked at Zhu Zhuqing, she simply stood up and said, "I'm full."

Then, without another word, she turned and left.

Ma Hongjun was a bit surprised and said to Dai Mubai, "Boss Dai, aren't you supposed to be irresistible to women, a legendary ladies' man? Why is this new beauty not even sparing you a glance?"

Dai Mubai forced a bitter smile and shook his head without explaining. Meanwhile, Yun Chuan thought, You abandoned your fiancée and ran away alone. If she weren't forced into this, would she even care about you?

Tang San turned to Dai Mubai and said, "Mubai, since we're all new here, can you tell us about the academy's rules and courses?" Since Yun Chuan was also a new teacher, he probably wasn't familiar with these details, so Tang San chose to ask Dai Mubai instead.

Dai Mubai composed himself and said, "The academy doesn't have many rules. Simply put, no crimes like assault, kidnapping, or looting are allowed, but fighting and gambling are encouraged."

Yun Chuan's expression remained unchanged, but inwardly, he sneered, What a rogue academy. With this kind of teaching environment, what kind of students can they possibly produce? No wonder they ended up training someone like Tang San, a walking disaster.

Hearing this, Tang San smiled—Shrek Academy truly lived up to its reputation as a "monster academy," even its teaching methods were completely different from those at Nuoding Academy.

Dai Mubai explained, "The teachers believe that combat is the best way to familiarize oneself with a martial soul and gain practical experience. Gambling, on the other hand, is a psychological contest that can enhance mental resilience, observation skills, and judgment. Of course, everything should be done in moderation—just don't kill anyone in fights, and don't gamble away your pants."

"As for the curriculum, I'm not sure about the future since our courses can change at any time. After all, we have more teachers than students. The academy adjusts the lessons based on individual circumstances. However, I can tell you the most important thing about today's lesson—paying tuition. The academy charges an annual fee of one hundred gold coins. As Grand Soul Masters, that should be no problem for you."

When Dai Mubai mentioned that the academy was poor, Xiao Wu couldn't help but ask, "Boss Dai, you said yesterday that the academy is very poor. But why? We've met several teachers so far, and they're all at least at the sixtieth level, some even in the seventieth. Based on their ranks, the subsidies they receive from the Spirit Hall should be astronomical—enough to support such a small academy."

Yun Chuan interjected, "Little Rabbit, you're too naive. The subsidies from the Spirit Hall come from the empire's funds, which are distributed by the Spirit Hall. However, the subsidies aren't unlimited—they only go up to the Soul Elder level. The maximum allowance is one hundred gold coins per month."

"Once a soul master surpasses the Soul Elder level, their subsidies don't increase—they disappear entirely."

"Why is that? The stronger a spirit master is, the more valuable they should be, right?" Xiao Wu asked curiously. Even Tang San, standing beside her, was intrigued.

Yun Chuan patiently explained, "However, we need to look at this from a practical perspective. While spirit masters are indeed a noble profession and their overall numbers are not large, they still constitute a considerable group. You should have done the calculations—if the stipend were issued according to the existing scale, a Spirit Saint would receive 100,000 gold spirit coins per month, totaling 1.2 million gold spirit coins per year. Just imagine what an astronomical figure that is!

Not to mention other places, but just considering the strength of our academy's teachers—if the empire were to fully fund their stipends, then in a single year, their income would be equivalent to one-tenth of the total income of all the residents in Soto City. That is an immense sum!

Across the entire empire, while high-level spirit masters are relatively rare, if stipends were granted in this manner, it would be enough to bankrupt the entire empire."

"Therefore, the empire has stipulated that stipends are only meant to encourage and support low-level spirit masters in their cultivation, helping them to quickly advance in strength. But once they surpass level forty, they are already considered quite powerful spirit masters and are fully capable of choosing to pledge allegiance to the empire or join the military. In doing so, the empire would provide them with corresponding remuneration. Of course, spirit masters also have the freedom to choose—they can align themselves with certain noble families and still earn a substantial income."

After Yun Chuan finished speaking, Dai Mubai picked up the conversation, his face showing a look of admiration. "All of our academy's teachers are spirit masters who refuse to seek shelter under any power. That means that before the academy was founded, they were all independent spirit masters, walking their own paths. They cherish their freedom and detest being constrained. They even disdain the noble titles granted by the empire. Think about it—under these circumstances, how could they have any steady income?"

Xiao Wu asked, "Why wouldn't they want to accept noble titles from the empire? Having a title should come with some form of income, right? I remember that spirit masters who reach level thirty can be granted the rank of baron, and those at level forty can become viscounts. But there are no further promotions beyond that."

At this moment, Ning Rongrong spoke up to answer Xiao Wu's question instead of Dai Mubai. "Accepting a noble title from the empire also means taking on the obligation of serving the empire. If a war were to break out, those who hold noble titles would be required to follow the empire's orders and head to the battlefield. While noble titles may seem appealing, they also act as a form of restriction, like a binding curse. Many powerful spirit masters refuse to accept noble ranks precisely because they do not want to be forced into serving a particular power at will."