First, Gather Everyone

Shen Zhaolin was awake.

When Xu Sheng came in, Shen Zhaolin was having an old cut on his hand bandaged again. Seeing Xu Sheng arrive in a hurry, he thought something had happened at the Soul Fighting Arena. He had just stood up when Xu Sheng pressed him back into his chair.

"Nothing happened. We won."

Xu Sheng laid two iron badges on the table.

Shen Zhaolin looked at them. "So?"

"I want to leave a few people in Soto."

He didn't begin by talking about how badly he needed a place, nor did he praise the Red Pine Courtyard to the skies. Instead, he explained the situation with He Zheng's group.

More and more otherworlders were scattered out there. Some had already moved past the initial novelty. They knew about meditation and Soul Rings, and they knew a team couldn't be made up entirely of people charging in with blades.

But when it actually came time to find help, they still asked around on their own.

Some were roped into doing hard labor for a few days. Others followed people out of the city in a daze and, when they returned, couldn't even say what kind of Soul Beast they had seen.

What Xu Sheng wanted was to take in a group of those willing to put their heads down and work.

"They'll still live in front of the old courtyard, and the rooms in back will be used as usual. For now, they can get acquainted with the fieldworkers here, and the suitable ones can be put forward for the Blood Angels. Whenever someone approaches a bottleneck, we'll note the information down in advance, instead of waiting until we leave the city to ask what they need."

Shen Zhaolin listened for a while, then lowered his eyes to the table.

Xu Sheng had even brought a sketch.

The layout wasn't accurate, but he had remembered exactly where the empty rooms were.

"You really haven't forgotten this courtyard."

"Didn't you say you wouldn't let me sleep on the street when I came back?"

"I meant you."

Xu Sheng stepped half a pace to the side.

Lu Song poked his head in through the doorway and dutifully called out, "Brother Shen."

Shen Zhaolin looked at the two faces, one big and one small, and laughed in exasperation.

"Who else is there? Call them all in."

Not everything was settled that night.

The next day, Xu Sheng first took the new arrivals to have their Soul Power checked and their backgrounds registered. Du Wenhe asked about everything they needed, then consulted the colleagues in charge of fieldwork. The front yard of the old courtyard was lent to them temporarily as a place to meet and practice working together, while field assignments still had to be approved by the hall.

Xu Sheng didn't complain about the pace.

With Du Wenhe helping move things along, it was already much faster than knocking on doors one by one himself.

Of the sixteen people He Zheng had invited, six showed up.

Two of them had only come to ask for directions. When they heard they would have to take turns helping the others, they got up and left. The remaining four stayed until noon, and not one of them pressed Xu Sheng to hurry.

Xu Sheng asked each of them about their Martial Souls and abilities, writing down what they could do and what they had done. He didn't close the register just because one of them had only obtained a White Soul Ring.

The man's name was Chen Tuo. His Martial Soul was a Copper-Eared Dog, and his Soul Power wasn't high, but he had a knack for identifying tracks on the ground. He took out two old beast-track maps and spent a long time explaining them with gestures.

After listening, Xu Sheng arranged for him to sit beside Jin Yuan.

But Chen Tuo didn't go over immediately. He gripped the registration form until it crumpled.

"I only have a White Ring. You saw that clearly, right?"

"I did."

"I won't be much help to you in a fight."

"That's why I'm having you watch the road first." Xu Sheng took the two beast-track maps and set them down in front of Jin Yuan. "You're good at reading tracks. You can't insist on forcing yourself to trade blades with people first."

Chen Tuo stared for a moment, then finally went over and sat down.

Jin Yuan had originally only come to have a look, but by the time he turned to the third sheet, he had moved his chair closer of his own accord.

"When did you travel through this gully?"

The two were talking eagerly, so Xu Sheng left them undisturbed and turned to look at He Gu.

He Gu was at level sixteen, with a Mysterious-Patterned Turtle Martial Soul and one Yellow Soul Ring. He wasn't tall, and his face was still a little youthful. After possession, a dark turtle shell emerged on his back, and when he stepped forward, he looked quite steady.

Lu Song pressed against him twice with a training shield. Afterward, he pulled him aside, and the two began muttering about something.

Before long, they came back together.

"I'll take him up front with me," Lu Song said.

"Sure."

Xu Sheng agreed readily.

He had been thinking of splitting up the front line, and the two of them had already settled half of it for him.

That afternoon, Du Wenhe brought a definite answer.

There would be a joint hunt in four days, led by Shen Zhaolin, with Du Wenhe accompanying him. They could take part. Song Xiaoqiao was one of the people specifically looking for a Soul Ring on this trip, along with two level-ten Soul Scholars registered with the hall.

They would first search the outskirts for ten- and hundred-year-old Soul Beasts, then head to the place where vine beasts grew that Jin Yuan had visited. Whether a beast was suitable would depend on its actual age, what the recipient could withstand, and the direction of their Martial Soul. They wouldn't force anyone to absorb a Soul Ring, or use other people's lives to make up for lost time.

As soon as Xu Sheng heard this, he called He Zheng over.

"Lend me your hammer for a few days."

He Zheng looked down at his hands.

"But you can't lend a Martial Soul..."

"I mean you!"

Beside them, Song Xiaoqiao doubled over laughing.

He Zheng caught on too and grinned. "Sure. What's the plan?"

"You're on my team. First learn the routes, then get to know them all. When I'm not in Soto in the future, you can't wait for someone to write you a letter just to tell you which way to go."

The smile on He Zheng's face faltered slightly.

At first, he had wanted to go out with Xu Sheng so he would have a reliable leader.

He hadn't expected Xu Sheng to already be thinking of leaving this place in his hands.

Xu Sheng said nothing more to sweeten the matter. He turned and went to get the courtyard gate key.

This time, Du Wenhe hadn't put a cup on top of it.

Over the next few days, there were people in the courtyard from morning to night.

Jin Yuan took Chen Tuo on a trip to the outskirts to check the roads; Du Wenhe observed Song Xiaoqiao's binding ability separately and helped her choose a direction for her Soul Beast; He Zheng and Lu Song worked out how to move past each other using wooden stakes, knocking plenty of them askew.

Ji Juechen practiced his sword during the day and went to the Soul Fighting Arena in the evening.

When Xu Sheng asked whether he had won, he first described his opponent's Martial Soul, then talked about which sword strike during the fight had been interesting. Only at the end, as though he had just remembered, did he add that he had won.

After listening for a long time, Xu Sheng couldn't help asking, "Could you say that last part first?"

Ji Juechen thought about it.

"I might not win the next one."

"...All right, you'd better talk about your sword first."

Xu Lizhi hadn't been idle either.

He gathered the Soul Scholars who would be accompanying the team and asked whether they had eaten anything made by a food-type Soul Master, who disliked being disturbed while meditating, and whose Soul Power was depleted especially quickly. Some took him for a child and laughed at first, but when he brought out his notes, they gradually grew serious.

Xu Sheng watched from the doorway for a while, but didn't go in to speak for him.

The little fatty explained himself clearly, and his face showed confidence too.

He didn't need someone else standing in front of him every time, calling out who he was.

On the night before they set out, however, Lu Song came to Xu Sheng to ask for leave.

"After we get back to the city, can I log off for a day?"

"Something going on?"

"My sister's school is putting on a performance. It's her first time on stage, and my parents can't make it there."

Xu Sheng did the math. One day would be six days here.

When Lu Song saw that he wasn't speaking, he hurriedly added, "I'll leave earlier when the time comes..."

"Go. Bring back a photo for me to see."

Lu Song broke into a smile and turned to leave.

When he reached the door, he looked back.

"She asked me to ask you, can you really fly?"

"What did you tell her?"

"I said you could. I also said you flew pretty well."

Xu Sheng was pleased at once.

"She's got an eye for talent."

Lu Song rubbed his nose. "She said she wants to see you fly over and bring her flowers."

"Get lost."

Laughter carried from the room all the way out beyond the courtyard.

At the same time, the Edge-Chasing Association had also gathered everyone who would be setting out.

Zhuo Yuan held a name list and circled several people from the group He Zheng had originally led.

Someone had to fill the places left vacant.