The Way to Conduct Oneself

After breakfast, Tang San carefully wrapped the little adamantine warhammer in strips of cloth and strapped it to his back. He also packed a small bundle containing a few changes of clothes. Though they were all made of coarse cloth, they had been washed spotlessly clean and folded neatly.

Everything was ready.

Tang San pushed open the door of the smithy and looked back at the room where he had lived for six years.

This was his first "home" in this world.

Tang San fell silent for a few seconds, then turned and strode out with firm steps, never looking back.

Inside the smithy.

Tang Hao stood before the window, silently watching the little figure recede into the distance through the hole in the pane.

With the warhammer wider than himself strapped to his back and a small bundle slung at his side, Tang San cast a long, slender shadow in the morning light. Every step he took was firm.

Tang Hao gripped the window frame tightly and closed his eyes, his Adam's apple bobbing. A torrent of complicated emotions surged through him: guilt, pain, regret...

Nuoding City.

After walking all morning, Tang San and Old Jack finally arrived at the gates of Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy.

Old Jack was getting on in years, after all, and walking was difficult for him. Tang San had originally said he could come alone.

But Old Jack was worried and insisted on seeing Tang San here, his attitude firm and beyond dispute.

Unable to change his mind, Tang San had no choice but to agree.

The old man was now panting heavily. Tang San's heart ached, and he silently treasured the kindness in his heart.

"What are you doing? Is this a place for country bumpkins like you?" A sharp shout interrupted Tang San's thoughts.

Sure enough, Tang San and Old Jack had been stopped by the young gatekeeper.

Old Jack hurried forward a step and said with an apologetic smile, "Young man, we're from Holy Soul Village. This child is the work-study student our village sent this year. Could you tell us what procedures we need to complete?"

"A work-study student?" The gatekeeper frowned and sneered. "Can a golden phoenix really come out of a grass nest? Someone from a tiny village has Soul Power? The academy hasn't had a work-study student in years. You're not impostors, are you?"

Old Jack's face flushed red. His lips trembled as he tried to argue, but he didn't know where to begin.

Tang San stood to the side, quietly watching the scene without a ripple in his heart.

He had seen too many scenes like this in his previous life. Tang San knew that when faced with something like this, there seemed to be nothing a cigarette couldn't solve. If one didn't work, then a whole pack would.

But in this life, Tang San didn't want to bow and scrape just to survive.

Tang San took the warhammer off his back, gripped its handle, and raised his arm. With the hammerhead pointing down, he slammed it into the ground.

Clang!

With a thunderous crash, the floor cracked inch by inch, and a blast of air rolled outward.

The young gatekeeper staggered back three steps, shaken by the display. He looked uncertain and alarmed.

Tang San said calmly, "Now, may we go in?"

"Yes, yes! This lowly one was blind. Please come in, Lord Soul Master!" The gatekeeper no longer dared object and hurriedly put on a smile.

Tang San ignored him, put away the warhammer, and strapped it back on. Then he turned to Old Jack and said softly, "Grandpa Jack, you should head back. I can register on my own."

Old Jack looked at Tang San and nodded. He carefully took the Martial Soul Awakening certificate from inside his clothes and handed it to Tang San. "Then take care of yourself, Little San. Grandpa will head back now. When the holidays come, Grandpa will come get you."

Tang San took the certificate and carefully tucked it inside his clothes.

Old Jack reached out and gently patted Tang San's head with his rough hand, then turned and slowly walked back the way he had come. After a few steps, he looked back and waved to Tang San.

Tang San stood where he was, watching until Old Jack's figure gradually disappeared around the street corner before withdrawing his gaze.

He walked over to the gatekeeper, took two Copper Soul Coins he had prepared long ago from his pocket, and handed them over. "Next time, don't be so overbearing with ordinary people. We're all commoners. Why should poor people make things difficult for other poor people?"

The gatekeeper accepted the Copper Soul Coins in surprise and suspicion, nodding repeatedly. "Thank you, Lord Soul Master! Thank you, Lord Soul Master!"

Tang San had never expected everyone to be a saint, nor had he ever demanded that he become one himself.

Petty men had their own unavoidable difficulties too. Perhaps this gatekeeper earned only a few Copper Soul Coins a month and depended entirely on such extra earnings to support his family.

And saints had their own sorrows too. They stood high above others, but that didn't necessarily mean they were free of worries or desires.

At least, Tang San felt that people shouldn't blurt out whenever something went against them, "You already have a way to die."

That was a madman's logic. Their personality had already become twisted; it was no way for a normal person to conduct themselves.

Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy was much larger than Tang San had imagined.

Bluestone paths crisscrossed the grounds, flanked by neatly trimmed bushes and flower beds. Several gray-brick teaching buildings stood at pleasing intervals in the distance. Looking farther in, he could make out what seemed to be a sizable training ground, and the crisp clash of weapons could faintly be heard.

Students walked along the paths in twos and threes, wearing matching uniforms and chatting and laughing. Now and then, they cast curious or disdainful glances at Tang San. Some whispered and pointed, probably discussing the strange hammer wrapped in strips of cloth on his back.

Tang San paid it all no mind.

Once inside the academy, Tang San didn't hurry to register. Instead, he looked around, discreetly searching the crowd as he walked at an unhurried pace, as though out for a stroll.

Where had Yu Xiaogang gone?

According to the original story's timeline, that trash Grandmaster should be wandering around the academy right now.

Tang San's loathing for the man had never diminished in the slightest, but the contract hung over his head. If he didn't take him as his master, he would die. What could he do? This concubine can't do it!

Disgusting or not, he still wanted to live.

Tang San walked and stopped, scanning his surroundings.

The next second, he glimpsed a figure out of the corner of his eye.

A middle-aged man in a dark robe was walking slowly toward him from a nearby side path. His face was ordinary, his expression stiff, and he had a rigid, dull air about him. Even his gait was somewhat peculiar, with the stoop typical of someone who had spent years frustrated and unfulfilled.

Tang San's heart stirred. This should be Yu Xiaogang.

Taking a deep breath, Tang San suppressed every trace of reluctance on his face and put on an innocent, guileless expression before hurrying over to meet him.

"Teacher!"

His voice was clear and polite, carrying just the right touch of the timidity a six-year-old child ought to have, without going too far.

Tang San stepped into Yu Xiaogang's path and looked up, giving him an obedient smile. "I'm here to register. Could you tell me where the registration point is?"

With that, Tang San presented the Martial Soul Awakening certificate in both hands, his respectful manner beyond reproach.

Yu Xiaogang stopped, looked down at Tang San, and reached out to take the certificate. His gaze fell on the paper, and he read it word by word. At first he was indifferent, but then his brows rose slightly.

Then Yu Xiaogang froze.

"Blue Silver Grass?"

"Innate Full Soul Power?"