Planning and Research

Feeling an immense suction from the crystal ball beneath his palm, Shi Yi also felt a familiar warmth rise within him. It flowed along his arm from his palm and into the crystal ball.

In an instant, the crystal ball lit up, giving off a faint glow.

As if he had expected it, the young man was not overly surprised when he saw the crystal ball light up.

"Not bad. You have Level 1 Innate Soul Power and can become a Soul Master," the young man said softly to Shi Yi, his attitude seeming to shift somewhat.

The other children also turned envious gazes toward Shi Yi.

Shi Yi smiled from the bottom of his heart. As long as he possessed Soul Power, everything else could be worked out. At the very least, he had obtained his own ticket of entry into the world of Douluo Continent.

Shi Yi politely bowed to the young man. "Thank you, Lord Soul Master."

Seeing Shi Yi's manner, the young man assumed he had learned it from Li Changshou. He smiled and said, "Since you have awakened Soul Power, you can attend a Junior Soul Master Academy."

As he spoke, the young man took out a sheet of paper from his bag and issued Shi Yi an Awakening Certificate. Only with this certificate could Shi Yi attend a Junior Soul Master Academy.

Before long, the young man handed the completed certificate to Shi Yi and softly instructed him, "Keep this certificate safe. Only this certificate will allow you to enroll as a Work-Study Student. The academy recognizes certificates, not people. Nobles do not have time to test your Soul Power again."

Shi Yi carefully put away the certificate. What Tang San had encountered with the gatekeeper in the original story already explained everything.

After the ceremony ended, the children slowly left with disappointed expressions. The young man began packing up, preparing to head to his next stop. Shi Yi did not leave. Instead, he helped the young man gather the black stones from the ground and softly called out, "Lord Soul Master."

The young man raised his head slightly to look at Shi Yi. Seeing him help with the packing, he could not help but feel a little more favorable toward him. "Is there anything else?"

"I wanted to ask whether I can attend Nuoding City Junior Soul Master Academy with this Soul Master certificate?" Shi Yi asked softly.

The young man was not surprised, since many people had asked such questions before. Most were going to rely on relatives. Though they could become Soul Masters, many low-level Soul Masters still had to make a living.

The young man nodded slightly. "If it is only Nuoding City, then yes. But you cannot go to cities outside Fasnuo Province."

A flash of delight crossed Shi Yi's eyes. Though he did not know where he was on the timeline, he still wanted to try his luck with Tang San. The reason was simple: his only advantage in this world was his knowledge of the plot.

First fate, second luck, third feng shui; fourth virtue, fifth learning.

Six name, seven appearance, eight reverence for gods; nine noble patrons, ten health.

The Dean from his previous life had told him this, and he had always remembered it. He had achieved a little success in his previous life because of these things as well.

His fate in this world was still not particularly good, but it was not bad either. At least he surpassed most people who could not cultivate. As for the rest, it depended on his own efforts.

If he could follow the protagonist, how could his feng shui be bad? As for what kind of person the protagonist was, Shi Yi did not care. At least by the protagonist's side, he would be safe. More importantly, he still lacked something crucial: knowledge. Cultivation was also a field of study. Though Yu Xiaogang was not particularly accomplished in that field, it did not change the fact that he had been to Spirit Hall and seen far more of the world. At least at this stage, he was much more capable than Shi Yi, a modern man who had never had any contact with cultivation. Shi Yi actually wanted to attend Spirit Hall Academy more, but his strength did not allow it.

As Shi Yi pondered this, he held the six gathered stones in his palms and handed them to the young man. The young man smiled and accepted the Formation Stones from him.

"All right, I should head to the next village as well. The Junior Soul Master Academy will be starting soon. If you plan to go to Nuoding City, you should hurry. That journey will not be easy for a child like you," the young man kindly reminded him.

Shi Yi nodded, feeling somewhat impatient as well. As someone who had transmigrated from modern civilization, he had yet to experience what cultivation felt like. He was also looking forward to his own Martial Soul. He understood that it was a potentially powerful mutation—after all, he had watched Pokémon.

With that in mind, Shi Yi was eager to return home. He had not yet had the chance to study his Martial Soul, and he also needed to carefully plan how to proceed down the road ahead.

Shi Yi left the building with the young man. As soon as they stepped outside, they saw Li Changshou hurrying over with a nervous expression.

"Lord Soul Master, I heard from the children that Xiao Yi awakened Soul Power. Did something go wrong?" Li Changshou asked the young man.

The young man shook his head. "Nothing happened. The child is quite sensible and even helped me pack up. It is getting late, so I will be leaving now."

Li Changshou let out a sigh of relief and bowed slightly to the young man. "Thank you for your trouble, Lord Soul Master."

The young man nodded and strode toward the edge of the village.

After seeing the young man off, Li Changshou's kind gaze slowly settled on Shi Yi. "Congratulations, Xiao Yi. Our village has not produced a Soul Master in a long time."

"It is also thanks to your help, and the help of all the uncles. Otherwise, how could Xiao Yi have survived until now?" Shi Yi said softly.

Li Changshou raised a hand and gently rubbed Shi Yi's head. "Such a good child..."

As he spoke, Li Changshou slowly took Shi Yi's hand. "Come with Grandpa. Grandpa will prepare some things for you. It is time for you to leave the village."

Shi Yi let the old man lead him, suppressing his urge to study his Martial Soul. He looked up at the slightly weathered face, and a trace of warmth welled up in his heart. He clearly remembered that when he had been admitted to university in his previous life, the Dean had given him one thousand yuan and applied for all kinds of subsidies for him.

Soon, Li Changshou led Shi Yi to the front of his home, where they saw a middle-aged man. Shi Yi recognized him as Li Changshou's son, Li Yi.

Shi Yi quickly greeted him. "Uncle Yi."

"Xiao Yi." Li Yi was quite enthusiastic when he saw Shi Yi.

Shi Yi was now as delicate as a carved doll. The villagers all said that when Shi Yi grew up, he would surely become the most handsome young man for miles around. Who could refuse such an adorable and polite child?

"Xiao Yi, prepare a bundle for Xiao Yi. Pack plenty of dry rations," Li Changshou said to his son.

"Dry rations? Is Xiao Yi going far away?" Li Yi asked in confusion.

"Lord Soul Master came today to awaken the children's Martial Souls. Xiao Yi awakened Soul Power," Li Changshou explained simply.

Li Yi's face showed surprise. After thinking about it briefly, though, it seemed only natural. "Xiao Yi has always been clever. He is a fine child indeed. Congratulations, congratulations! Uncle will go prepare some things for you right away."

With that, Li Yi headed into the house, while Li Changshou led Shi Yi to sit down in the courtyard.

"Xiao Yi, it is spring plowing season now, and Grandpa cannot leave. Our village is close to the city, and the main road is not far outside the village. Grandpa will not see you into the city," Li Changshou said softly.

Shi Yi nodded. It was just as well, since he did not know how to explain to Li Changshou that he wanted to go to Nuoding City. "There is no need to trouble yourself. Tomorrow, I can enter the city with the uncles going to the market."

Li Changshou nodded. That had been his thought as well.

"Once you are in the city, study your skills properly. Xiao Yi is so smart—you will surely achieve something." Li Changshou looked at Shi Yi kindly.

As they spoke, Li Yi emerged from the house carrying a large bundle, nearly half as large as Shi Yi himself.

"Take it. It is nothing valuable. This is all Uncle can do for you," Li Yi said, handing the bundle to Shi Yi.

The instant Shi Yi accepted it, he heard a faint metallic clinking from inside. He bowed slightly to Li Yi.

Li Yi quickly helped him back up. "Silly child, we are family. Why are you being so polite with Uncle?"

Shi Yi stared blankly at the bundle in his hands. In truth, he was best at handling scenes like this. After struggling in society for so many years, he naturally understood what he should say. Yet back when he had received that one thousand yuan, just like now, he had said nothing and merely left in silence. After becoming successful in his work, he would save part of his money to donate to the orphanage. He often brought things to visit the children and the Dean, because deep down, he felt that words of gratitude were merely words, not true gratitude.

After chatting with the father and son for a while, Shi Yi slowly left.

Before long, he returned to his own home. It was a small wooden hut Li Changshou had helped gather the villagers to build for him. It was not large, with only a simple room, but that was more than enough for a child like him.

Shi Yi sat on his bed, recalling the feeling of awakening his Martial Soul. Slowly raising his right hand, he willed it into being, and an ant appeared in his palm.

Shi Yi looked at the ant in his palm and gently stroked it with a finger of his left hand. He saw its long antennae twitch, and an unprecedentedly wondrous feeling arose in his heart. If he had to describe it, it was as though he shared a bloodline connection with the ant in his hand—or perhaps a telepathic bond. He seemed faintly able to sense his Martial Soul's emotions, though not clearly.

"I wonder what I should call you. How about Little Ant?"

"Can you eat?" Shi Yi asked softly, wanting to know whether his Martial Soul truly possessed all the characteristics of a living creature.

If it truly possessed every characteristic of a living creature, then could his Martial Soul, like a Soul Beast, have the potential to grow on its own?

Naturally, the ant could not understand Shi Yi's words, but it could sense his confusion.

Watching the ant move faintly in his palm, Shi Yi could not help smacking his own forehead. "I must be crazy. Even in a fantasy world, it could not possibly understand human speech so quickly."

"Ants eat quite a lot of things. Let's first see whether it can eat."

With that thought, Shi Yi scooped up a tiny bit of the rice porridge left over from breakfast with his fingertip and placed it in his palm.

Understanding Shi Yi's intent, Little Ant circled that tiny bit of rice porridge, yet did not take a single bite. It seemed to be saying, This is what you are giving me to eat?

Shi Yi only watched Little Ant keep circling the tiny bit of rice porridge, his eyes full of expectation, but he could not understand what Little Ant meant.

Seeing Shi Yi continue staring at it without doing anything, and sensing his expectant mood, Little Ant had no choice but to reluctantly eat a tiny bit in disgust.

When he saw that Little Ant could eat, excitement flashed through Shi Yi's eyes. Being able to eat meant Little Ant could actively draw energy from the natural world. That alone was something most Martial Souls could not do.

Shi Yi remembered Yu Xiaogang once saying, "The body and the Martial Soul are a pair of twins by nature, except the body takes the lead. Cultivating the Martial Soul and allowing it to grow alongside our body is the best way to treat this brother of ours."

Shi Yi believed those words were correct and applicable to most Soul Masters. Yet Yu Xiaogang himself was the exception. If a Martial Soul possessed extremely high intelligence and could exist like an ordinary living creature, then the question was no longer which side led the other. Instead, the Martial Soul and Soul Master had truly reached a state of balance.

With that thought, Shi Yi suddenly understood why Yu Xiaogang could not break through his innate shackles. Yu Xiaogang had always emphasized only the Soul Master's one-sided cultivation.

A lone yin cannot grow; a solitary yang cannot be born.

With Yu Xiaogang's pitiful half-level innate Soul Power, merely emphasizing the Soul Master's individual cultivation could not lead Luo Sanpao, which possessed the Golden Holy Dragon bloodline, to evolve. If he had Innate Full Soul Power, he could have used his powerful talent to nourish his Martial Soul in return, awakening the bloodline within it. That was also why Martial Souls continuously changed as Soul Masters advanced in cultivation.

Since Soul Masters could eat, sleep, and cultivate, why could living Martial Souls like Luo Sanpao and Little Ant not, like Soul Beasts, gradually raise their bloodline power through hunting and devouring, making their bloodlines stronger and stronger? Were the three Thousand Jun Ant Emperors in the Star Dou Great Forest not created that way?

The more Shi Yi thought about it, the more excited he became. At that moment, he even wanted to leave the village immediately and begin his journey as a Soul Master.

"I wonder which point in the original story I am currently in."

Shi Yi gently placed Little Ant from his hand onto the table nearby. A new question emerged in his mind: in a normal environment, without feeding, could Little Ant independently draw the scattered energy of heaven and earth?

This question would require time to prove. If a Martial Soul could truly absorb the scattered energy of heaven and earth on its own and possessed high intelligence as well, then it meant that living Martial Souls might even have the ability to meditate and cultivate independently.

This world had Simulated Training Environments specially designed for Martial Souls of different attributes, and Martial Souls could become more powerful in suitable environments. All of this proved that Martial Souls were influenced by their surroundings. Shi Yi believed that keeping one released outside for long periods would certainly be far better than keeping it inside the body all the time.

Shi Yi slowly lay down on his bed and quietly watched Little Ant explore this novel world. He could not help smiling. At that moment, a special feeling arose in his heart, completely different from being alone.

"Little Ant, from now on, we are family."