Yu Zhuo and Azure Luan

Going to school was truly unbearably boring, without the slightest bit of excitement. Now, no one in all of Notting Academy dared provoke the Work-Study Students. Really, who knew whether that monster Wu Liang might suddenly jump out?

Xiao Wu and Kanna had stopped attending classes at the academy. They stayed by Wu Liang and Bai Qi's sides, cultivating with them. Over the past month, the little hill behind the mountain had completely changed. Five small wooden cabins had been built in the clearing. Wu Liang felt that constantly traveling between the rear mountain and the dormitories was an enormous waste of time, so after discussing it with the Master, the Master had stepped in and approved this place on the rear mountain as a cultivation ground for them. The Master also often came by to teach the little monsters and occasionally guide Tang San, Xiao Wu, and the others.

Of course, he could not guide Wu Liang or Bai Qi. After all, Wu Liang cultivated swordsmanship, and the Master knew nothing about swords. Though the Master was respectfully called the Master, that was only because of the reputation he had made in his youth and his extraordinary research into theoretical knowledge and martial souls. Beyond that, there was nothing else.

The Master also felt that, as Wu Liang's teacher, he had provided him with far too little help. Therefore, as long as Wu Liang's requests were not excessive, the Master agreed to them all.

After another day of cultivation, everyone was utterly exhausted. After enjoying Wu Liang's recovery meal, they all lay sprawled without a care for their image in the open space among the cabins to rest.

Just then, startled cries came from the small forest behind the mountain.

"What... what is going on? Why are there so many scratches on the trees in the forest? Who was cruel enough to destroy these trees?"

The commotion from the forest also alerted the resting group. They saw a five- or six-year-old girl emerge from the woods, inspecting the sword marks on the trees as she walked. When she saw the small wooden cabins ahead and the few people lying around without the slightest regard for their appearance, she stopped examining the trees. She walked over and asked, "Did you cause the sword marks on the trees in the forest?"

Hearing this, Wu Liang finally raised his head and opened his eyes to look at her. "We did. What about it? Is there a problem? And who are you?"

The others were also curious about the little girl who had suddenly appeared. She should not have been from the academy. Normally, everyone at the academy deliberately avoided getting close to the rear mountain, since they all knew it had been claimed by several little monsters.

However, the little girl was not timid in the face of Wu Liang's question. She said innocently, "My name is Yu Yan. I'm from Yanzi Village, two hundred li outside Notting City. Today, I joined Notting Academy as a Work-Study Student on Spirit Hall's recommendation."

Wu Liang raised a brow. "So you just enrolled? You just enrolled, yet instead of properly learning what students are supposed to do and how Work-Study Students earn money through labor, you ran to the rear mountain. What are you doing here?"

Only then did the little girl grow somewhat nervous. "Senior, I heard loud noises constantly coming from the rear mountain, so I asked some other students about it. But they all avoided the subject, so I came to take a look. Is there some secret here that others aren't allowed to know? Then I'll leave now."

"There's no need to leave. Since we're both Work-Study Students, I'll give you some advice. At the academy, as long as you don't mention that you're a Work-Study Student, others will get along with you just fine. But once you reveal that you're a Work-Study Student, they'll treat you like a ghost or a god and won't want much contact with you," Wu Liang explained.

"As for this place, there is no secret. You only entered the academy today, so you don't know. This is an area the academy assigned to us for cultivation. Ordinary people don't come here. Even Work-Study Students won't come disturb us. If you have any more questions, ask now. Since we're resting, I can answer them."

"Is that so? Then you seniors must be amazing. The academy actually set aside a whole area for you to cultivate. Can I join you? My martial soul is rather special, and I'm afraid there won't be much I can learn at the academy." Yu Yan asked, sounding somewhat dejected.

"Your martial soul is special? Show it to us. Perhaps we can point you toward a path." Tang San stood up. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Tang San, a first-year Work-Study Student, an eighteenth-rank Control System Battle Spirit Master. My martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, and I'm from Holy Soul Village, not far from your village."

"Really? That's wonderful!"

Then, with a serious expression, Yu Yan said, "I'm currently rank nine. My martial soul is mutated, a strange flaming bird. Spirit Hall doesn't know whether my martial soul has any potential, because my Innate Soul Power is rank nine. But since it was caused by a martial soul mutation, Spirit Hall couldn't say much. They only gave me a recommendation letter to enter Notting Academy as a Work-Study Student."

With a clear cry, a strange bird appeared behind Yu Yan. It looked like a swallow, but had a long neck and was covered in black-blue flames. She did not undergo Martial Soul Possession, instead allowing Tang San and the others to observe the strange bird up close.

Tang San had learned quite a lot from the Master over the past few months. After carefully observing Yu Yan's flaming bird martial soul, he asked, "Your martial soul should have mutated in a favorable direction. I remember Teacher telling me that low-level Beast Spirits such as swallows generally don't have Innate Soul Power above rank one. Most have no Soul Power at all, or only half a rank. Yet your Innate Soul Power reached rank nine. That means either your father or mother should have had an advanced martial soul."

Yu Yan was deeply shocked by Tang San's words. Trembling, she said, "You only observed my martial soul for a moment, yet you already guessed my general circumstances. The teacher who taught someone like you must be a powerful Spirit Master. You're right. My father's martial soul was also a swallow, but my mother's martial soul was Yu Zhuo. I don't know what Yu Zhuo is, but it was a very powerful bird martial soul."

"Yu Zhuo?"

Wu Liang and Tang San were both stunned. Tang San had heard of this kind of bird in his previous life. It was a type of phoenix bird, but he had never seen one, since there were no recorded images of it.

Wu Liang, however, had seen it before. He had encountered this bird while playing games and reading novels in his previous life, and he had even specifically looked it up. Seeing that Tang San was shocked but unable to explain it clearly, Wu Liang took over. "Yu Zhuo is a type of phoenix bird, a branch of the phoenix family. It resembles a large duck, has red eyes, and is black or purple in color. It is a water-element phoenix. Yu Zhuo symbolizes steadfastness and independence. It is said that Yu Zhuo are devoted creatures. When their mates die, they cry themselves to death. Your martial soul probably has not yet completed its mutation. When your rank is higher, it may develop into a kind of water-element phoenix. Yu Zhuo is not the only kind of water-element phoenix. Although your mutation cannot be clearly identified yet, I have a guess. Perhaps it will eventually develop into an Azure Luan."

"Azure Luan?"

Tang San was shocked again. He could not help looking once more at the martial soul behind Yu Yan. It looked like a swallow, yet more like an immature Peacock. A swallow had a forked tail, but this one had three tail feathers. After hearing Wu Liang's explanation, it really might be an Azure Luan.

"What is an Azure Luan? Is it very powerful?" Yu Yan asked, still confused.

"Azure Luan is also a branch of the phoenix family. Combined with the fact that your mother's martial soul was Yu Zhuo, A Liang may really be right. Azure Luan is also a bird that symbolizes love.

Legend says there is a bird in this world called the Azure Luan, but no one has ever seen it. Legends are merely legends.

Legend says the Azure Luan is second only to the phoenix, its feathers as blue as the dawn sky, gleaming with a soft radiance beneath the sun.

Legend says the Azure Luan is a bird that lives for love. Its entire life is spent searching for another Azure Luan.

Legend says the Azure Luan possesses the most wondrous voice in the world, but it sings only for love. Yet no one has ever heard it, because there is only one Azure Luan in this world.

This Azure Luan of legend was born from heaven and earth. Beautiful and elegant, yet unable to make a sound, it was lonely and desolate because it had never found another of its kind. The admiring gazes of other birds did not add to its splendor. Instead, they only deepened its loneliness.

Until one day, it encountered the Phoenix and the Huang. It understood the meaning of its existence, and so it began searching for another Azure Luan. It flew over high mountains, crossed vast seas, passed over deserts, and traveled through cities, yet it never found another bird like itself.

When it was exhausted, it landed on the window of a household. Across from the window was a mirror. The Azure Luan's eyes lit up. It saw a bird exactly like itself, looking at it with eager eyes. Another Luan—it had finally found it.

Suddenly, a warm current that was bitter, sweet, and painfully intense burst through its heart. It sang an exquisitely beautiful song no other bird had ever sung. That was why the Azure Luan came to symbolize love.

That is the legend of the Azure Luan." Tang San looked at the strange bird martial soul with immense admiration.

"Wow, what a sad legend," Xiao Wu and Kanna said.

Even Yu Yan looked at her martial soul with sorrow filling her eyes. She murmured, "No wonder... no wonder Mother followed Father not long after he died. So Yu Zhuo is that kind of martial soul. Then does that mean you are the Azure Luan, carrying on the continuation of my parents' martial souls?"

"Alright, you now roughly understand your martial soul. Perhaps you should develop toward the Agility System. Strictly speaking, Azure Luan is a wind- and fire-element martial soul. How far you can develop it will depend on you. You could also become the Master's disciple. Then you could become our little junior sister. For a mutated martial soul like yours, I think the Master will certainly nurture you well," Wu Liang advised.

"Yes, that's right. Teacher definitely won't pass up a rare martial soul like yours. Perhaps in the future, he might even be able to use your martial soul to improve the flaws in his own martial soul." After saying this, Tang San excitedly ran back to the academy to fetch the Master.

Wu Liang also felt that having one more little junior sister was no big deal. Her martial soul was indeed rare. He just did not know whether it had any flaws. After all, that fat boy at Shrek also had an Evil Fire Phoenix mutated from a barnyard chicken. Who knew if there would be some strange defect? He seriously asked Yu Yan, "Does your martial soul have any limitations or flaws?"

Yu Yan withdrew her martial soul and thought seriously for a while before replying, "It doesn't seem to have any flaws. If I undergo Martial Soul Possession, my speed increases greatly, and my flying speed is also very fast. The only drawback is that I still can't control the flames flowing over my martial soul. For now, I can only use them for defense."