Shrek City has its own way of handling affairs, including taxation, laws, management, and everything else.
At first glance, it might seem like a separatist warlord force, but the Federation's system imposes strict limitations on it—primarily through the Council of Elders. No organization can escape or defy its authority as long as they are still registered members of the Federation with officially recognized identities.
The Council of Elders is best represented by its three veto powers. These are held by Shrek Academy, the Spirit Pagoda, and the overall Federal Parliament members. The War God Hall, being loyal to the Federation, does not have veto power. This means that for any major decision, as long as one of these three parties opposes it, the proposal cannot be approved. However, this system has its flaws, particularly when it comes to issues of fairness. In such cases, decisions rely on another method—public voting by the Federation's citizens.
In today's era of open-mindedness, unlike ten thousand or even twenty thousand years ago, people have their own thoughts about whom they should support and who is in the right. Gu You believed that the people would have their own correct answers.
Shen Yi emphasized, "Each of you has a student card. This card records various details about you, and it will also store your contribution points. You should already understand the importance of contribution points. Within the academy, they can be used for everything—acquiring cultivation resources, gaining access to specialized training facilities, requesting guidance from teachers, applying for soul spirits, and requesting entry into the Ascension Platform. In short, within the academy, contribution points are omnipotent. As long as it falls within reasonable and legal boundaries, contribution points can buy you anything you want."
"The academy's formal lessons take place only in the mornings. Afternoons and evenings are free time for you to manage however you wish. You may even leave the academy, as long as you don't miss class the next day. Unless under special circumstances and with the approval of your homeroom teacher, tardiness is not allowed. If you are late, it will be treated as skipping class. Skipping class three times will result in expulsion from the academy. Furthermore, any items purchased with Federation coins from outside Shrek Inner City cannot be brought into the academy. If caught, you will be fined ten times the amount in contribution points. Of course, you are welcome to try—if you don't get caught, consider yourself lucky. Some places within Shrek City do accept Federation coins, but as you may have already realized, the prices are extremely high."
Gu You smirked slightly. Hearing Shen Yi say this, he felt lucky he hadn't gotten caught yet.
"For work-study students, things will be even more difficult. You must use your contribution points to pay for your own meals. Of course, if you wish, you may go all the way outside Shrek Academy to eat. However, you must also complete at least one task daily. Let me warn you, though—this will waste a significant amount of your time. It all comes down to your time management skills. Time is crucial for every Shrek Academy student because once you fall behind, you risk being eliminated."
"There's one thing Elder Cai didn't mention earlier—Shrek Academy follows a bottom-ranking elimination system. Every year, the bottom five students in the small assessment are directly expelled from the academy without any chance for a retest. Shrek Academy's motto has always been: 'We only teach monsters, not ordinary people.' This rule has stood for ten thousand years. If you want to slack off and live comfortably here, that's your choice. But I can guarantee that if you do, you will only last one year."
"Soon, each of you will receive a list detailing all elective courses and available training resources beyond your normal curriculum. Every training resource requires contribution points to access. For ordinary students, some elective courses are free, while others require contribution points. For work-study students, all elective courses require contribution points. Contribution points can be traded among students. If you feel you have enough, you may exchange them for other things. However, private transactions are not protected by the academy. You may also choose to post tasks on the academy's public platform, which offers contractual protection—but the academy will take a 15% commission on all transactions."
"There's another important rule when taking on tasks: if you fail a task, you will be deducted points. If your points reach negative one thousand, you will be expelled from the academy. Since today is your first day, I'll stop here for now. Next, we will begin our formal lessons."
Gu You found all of this rather dull. This teacher sure can talk…
"Today's first lesson is about how to become a battle armor master and the definition of a battle armor master," Shen Yi announced. The moment she said this, the entire class perked up—except for Gu You.
Becoming a battle armor master was every soul master's dream. Especially for these young students, the topic was extremely enticing.
"You might be wondering why we are starting with this topic. The reason is simple: before coming here, all of you should have already completed your basic education. If your foundations are poor, then frankly, you wasted your previous years of schooling. Yet, somehow, you still managed to pass the entrance exams and get into Shrek! So here, there will be no lessons on the basics. From now on, your primary goal over the next five, ten, or even twenty years will be to become a battle armor master."
"You have already heard Elder Cai mention during the opening ceremony—thirty-five is the maximum age limit for outer court students. If you have not become a One-Word Battle Armor Master by thirty-five, you will not be allowed to graduate. On the other hand, if you achieve this goal before turning thirty-five, you may graduate from the outer court. This is the graduation standard at Shrek Academy. Now, let me tell you something else—among all outer court students, the graduation rate is only 33%. That means only one-third of you will ultimately succeed in becoming battle armor masters."
"If you've already built a solid foundation in your secondary profession before coming here, then congratulations! Your training in the coming years will be much smoother. If not, then you will need to work twice as hard."
"If you can become a One-Word Battle Armor Master by the age of twenty-five, you will be eligible to apply for the inner court exam. If you fail the exam, you will still graduate from the outer court and leave the academy…"
Shen Yi paused for a moment, then continued, "Now, let's talk about battle armor masters. The term doesn't just refer to those who possess battle armor—it also encompasses various related professions, such as mecha pilots."
"In simple terms, a battle armor master is a soul master, while a mecha…"
(Chapter End)