Douluo Dalu: The Legend of The Spider Emperor

Flender was at a loss for words, his palms clammy with sweat, and his back drenched.

Grandmaster inwardly sighed, blaming Flender for his incompetence.

"Using the Spirit Hall's name to swindle people? If the Spirit Hall finds out, they'll destroy you first!"

Seeing that the Shrek group remained silent, Ye Hao pressed further.

"Shrek Academy always boasts about only admitting monsters and not ordinary people. Fair enough, I understand the concept. But what I can't wrap my head around is this: why do you blatantly exploit people for money?"

Flender perked up and immediately shot back,

"Shrek Academy operates with integrity! We stand tall, with a clear conscience. How dare you accuse us of profiteering? Shrek Academy's success is built by me and my colleagues through hard work! If you don't clarify your baseless accusations today, don't blame me if I—"

Ye Hao interrupted, his gaze sharp as a blade, fixing the Shrek crowd with an intense glare.

"Blame you for what? Are you threatening me?"

With a cold chuckle, Ye Hao continued, "If I dare to speak, I have the evidence to back it up."

Turning to Ning Rongrong, he asked,

"Rongrong, how much was the admission fee when you first applied to Shrek?"

Ning Rongrong thought for a moment before answering,

"Ten gold soul coins."

Flender snapped, "What's wrong with a ten-gold-soul-coin admission fee? There are academies out there charging hundreds, even thousands! Why don't you pick on them instead of nitpicking here?"

Dai Mubai chimed in, "Exactly! Shrek Academy's fees are fair and just! Your accusations are groundless!"

Ye Hao smirked coldly.

"Oh, how touching—birds of a feather truly do flock together."

He raised his voice, "Do you even understand the value of ten gold soul coins? That's equivalent to one hundred silver soul coins or ten thousand copper soul coins. For soul masters from poor backgrounds, that's a fortune! Flender claims it's reasonable, but here's the real issue."

"Rongrong, do you remember how many people showed up to apply when you joined the academy?"

Ning Rongrong hesitated briefly before replying,

"About a hundred or so."

Ye Hao nodded.

"Correct. Let's say it was one hundred people, each paying ten gold soul coins. That's a total of one thousand gold soul coins. Shrek Academy has a rule of only admitting monsters and rejecting the rest. If that's the case, why keep the registration fees of those who weren't admitted?"

Flender's face turned ghostly pale. He stammered, "I… I…"

Ye Hao pressed on, "Not only did you keep the money, but you even threatened those who dared to ask for a refund, using force to intimidate them. That's not just extortion; it's outright robbery!"

"Three esteemed teaching committee members," Ye Hao addressed them with a respectful bow, "How can we possibly allow such an academy to merge with ours?"

The lead committee member, Meng Shenji, frowned deeply and stood up, directing his stern gaze at Flender.

"Flender, is what Ye Hao said true?"

Faced with Meng Shenji's inquiry, Flender visibly panicked, unable to form a coherent response.

At this moment, Grandmaster stepped in.

"Chairman Meng Shenji, please don't take Ye Hao's words at face value. There are reasons behind our actions. Flender's decisions were out of necessity, for the survival and development of our academy."

Flender quickly echoed,

"Yes, yes! Chairman Meng, we were desperate and had no other options!"

A sneer came from Zhi Lin, one of the committee members.

"Desperate? What desperation drove you to fraudulently use the Spirit Hall's name to lure applicants? Aren't you afraid of Spirit Hall's wrath?"

Bai Baoshan, another committee member, added icily, "Not only that, but you also engaged in blatant extortion. Your actions are no different from those of bandits. You're in the Heaven Dou Empire, which has clear laws prohibiting such behavior. For you to act with such impunity—it's outrageous. We cannot tolerate such a blight in our academy."

Both Zhi Lin and Bai Baoshan turned to Meng Shenji and said in unison,

"Chairman, we recommend severing ties with Shrek Academy immediately!"

Before Meng Shenji could respond, Ye Hao interjected.

"Wait!"

Meng Shenji turned toward him, puzzled.

"What is it?"

Ye Hao smiled faintly, his eyes narrowing as he glanced disdainfully at the Shrek group, who looked utterly defeated.

"Their wrongdoings don't end there."

The room fell silent, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife.

Could it be that Ye Hao had even more damning evidence?

Ning Fengzhi, who had been quietly observing, found himself increasingly troubled. He had brought Ning Rongrong to Shrek Academy in good faith, but today's revelations painted an ugly picture.

Beside him, Bone Douluo couldn't contain his frustration any longer. Using a voice transmission technique, he whispered to Ning Fengzhi,

"Fengzhi, look at what kind of academy you picked for Rongrong! Not only are they incompetent, but their morals are in the gutter. A lawless academy with no registration—how could you even consider this place? I say Rongrong's decision to quit was the right one. And now you're here, groveling to apologize? For what? This academy deserves to be disbanded."

Ning Fengzhi sighed, rubbing his temples.

"You're right, Uncle Gu. I misjudged. Let's see what more Ye Hao has to say."

"Hmph!" Bone Douluo snorted, glaring disdainfully at the Shrek group, his patience wearing thin.

Meanwhile, Ye Hao's sharp gaze swept over the Shrek teachers and students, lingering on their venomous expressions.

The rage in Flender and Tang San's eyes was unmistakable. Were it not for the powerful individuals in the room, Ye Hao suspected they would have already attacked him.