"Yes, Grandfather. Everything is ready to go, and it looks to me like Shrek Academy has accepted its fate. We"ve received widespread attention through our promotion of the academy, but Shrek Academy hasn"t displayed any reactions. I think they"re giving up because they know that they can"t compete anyway. You may think this is blind overconfidence, but even I can"t think of any way for them to turn the tables. In terms of resources, they can"t even begin to compare with us. If it weren"t for the potential repercussions that could arise, I was planning to announce that our Spirit PaG.o.da would refuse to provide soul spirits to all students of Shrek Academy. If we do that, I"m sure we"ll be able to completely stomp them into the dirt."
Qiangu Dongfeng cautioned, "Stop spouting nonsense! That"s something that we absolutely cannot do as it"ll make us a public enemy to all supporters and sympathizers of Shrek Academy. Having said that, some things can be done in private."
Qiangu Zhangting"s eyes immediately lit up upon hearing this. "What are your plans, Grandfather?"
Qiangu Dongfeng replied, "After enrollment, make a tally of how many students Shrek Academy managed to enroll. I want to know the exact numbers so I can devise a plan to target them. Just because we"re not making any public announcements doesn"t mean we won"t pull any strings in the shadows. We"re going to make sure that they"re dead and buried once and for all."
Qiangu Zhangting"s eyes lit up even further. "I understand, Grandfather."
This was a tranquil and scenic day without a single cloud in sight.
This was just an ordinary day for the Douluo Continent, but it was a very important day for the Soul Master world.
This was the first enrollment day for the reconstructed Shrek Academy, and it was very apparent that Spirit Academy was also holding its enrollment day on the same day as a provocative gesture.
The two academies were less than 15 kilometers away from one another, yet they were openly competing with each other.
The success of the rebuilt Shrek Academy and whether it could contend with Spirit Academy would hinge on the results of this enrollment day.
The benefits offered by Spirit Academy were undoubtedly far more practically alluring, but Shrek Academy had its ill.u.s.trious history and traditions, so it wasn"t completely without chances.
During the joust for a spouse event, the two powers had completely done away with all semblance of pleasantries. Which side was going to come out on top?
Early in the morning, all of the major media crews had already flocked to the two academies. All of the media outlets had sent out two crews, one to each academy, in order to facilitate live comparisons.
Sure enough, prospective students had already begun lining up in front of the two academies. The media was then greeted by the sight of two ma.s.sive banners that were unfurled around 100 meters in front of the main entrance of Shrek Academy.
The banner on the left read: "Spirit Academy, soul spirits for life", and the banner on the right read: "Make the right choice, or live to rue your decision".
These banners were accompanied by two ma.s.sive arrows pointing toward Spirit Academy, and beside the banners were over 30 soul buses bearing the hexagonal emblem of Spirit Academy.
This wasn"t just provocation anymore; this was a clear threat to all those looking to enroll to Shrek Academy, and it was clear that the gloves were truly off.
Two middle-aged men with powerful auras stood under the banners, and they were both clearly powerful Soul Masters.
"Good morning, everyone, I am a reporter from the Bright City Television Station, and as we all know, today is enrollment day for Spirit Academy and Shrek Academy. We"ve only just arrived at Shrek Academy, and as everyone can see through these banners set up by Spirit Academy, the compet.i.tion between the two academies is already very fierce. How will the prospective new students choose? Let"s interview one right now."
The reporter was quite a beauty, and she made her way to the end of the line in front of the main entrance of Shrek Academy to interview a prospective student.
All prospective students had to be no more than 12 years of age, so almost all of them were accompanied by their parents.
"Hi there, why are you applying for Shrek Academy?" the reporter asked.
The young boy at the end of the line replied in a slightly jittery manner, "Of course I"m applying for Shrek Academy! Shrek Academy is the number one academy on the continent; I really want to go there!"
The reporter then pointed at the banners in the distance. "What do you think of these tactics being employed by Spirit Academy?"
The young boy hesitated momentarily before turning to his father.
His father replied, "I think these tactics are very unscrupulous. In my opinion, the most important thing in an academy is its culture, and through these banners, Spirit Academy is displaying a lack of basic decency and respect. Shrek Academy has produced countless exceptional Soul Masters over the past 20,000 years. We trust in Shrek Academy, and I hope my son can make it into the academy."
The reporter asked, "What if your son doesn"t make it? Will you consider Spirit Academy then?"
The middle-aged man faltered slightly before replying, "Perhaps."
The reporter continued, "Spirit Academy is offering some very alluring benefits, including the prioritized provision of soul spirits and chances to access the Spirit Ascension Plane and Myriad Beast Plane; these are all beyond what Shrek Academy can offer. It seems that you must be quite well-off to persist with Shrek Academy despite all this."
The middle-aged man"s brows furrowed slightly as he replied, "Investment is required when nurturing a child. Having said that, Spirit Academy"s resources really are more plentiful."
The reporter said, "Indeed. With the tension between these two academies, I wonder if your child will have issues securing soul spirits from the Spirit PaG.o.da in the future if he chooses to study at Shrek Academy."
The middle-aged man"s expression changed slightly upon hearing this. "Surely not!"
The reporter shrugged in response. "I"m not sure, either, but it seems that the relations.h.i.+p between the Spirit PaG.o.da and Shrek Academy really is quite strained. Alright, I have to interview some other people now; I wish you the best of luck."
Many similar interviews were taking place in front of Shrek Academy, and almost all of the reporters had a clear bias toward Spirit Academy.
Soon, people"s resolve began to sway, and some of them began to make their way toward the Spirit Academy buses.
In response to this, Shrek Academy displayed no reaction and continued proceedings as normal.
"According to our estimates, there are currently around twice as many people applying for Spirit Academy than for Shrek Academy. It seems that the resources being offered by the Spirit PaG.o.da have attracted a lot of people. We really want to know what Shrek Academy thinks of this, but they"ve refused all interviews, stating that they would like to focus wholeheartedly on enrollment procedures."
"Look, everyone!"
Right at this moment, a deafening burst of buzzing rang out from Spirit Academy, and over 300 mechas rose up into the air above the academy.
These mechas were all of different grades, and they were led by three extremely eye-catching red divine-grade mechas.
The three red mechas were flying in the air in a triangular formation, holding identical giant banners to the ones set up in front of Shrek Academy.
The 300 mechas presented a very stunning sight to behold, and they were occasionally performing some aerobatic tricks as part of a show of power from Spirit Academy.
Through its actions, the Spirit PaG.o.da was targeting Shrek Academy in the most straightforward way, rather than resorting to any sneaky tricks.