Black and Shadow Moon

"This is the room for you work-study students. Find a bed for yourself—this will be your home for the next few years."

The academy teacher led Xu Wenlong to the work-study students' dorm and said to him.

Xu Wenlong looked inside. It was a fairly large room, beds crammed together, pretty much the same as the dorms he'd had in high school and college.

Xu Wenlong picked a bed—one against the wall. He had to sleep with a wall at his back, or he couldn't fall asleep.

He started unpacking his luggage. Though he called it luggage, there wasn't much to speak of.

Learning from past experience, Xu Wenlong had brought his own bedding and all his daily necessities.

So he didn't have to worry about missing anything—he'd basically emptied his whole home. Not that his home had much to begin with, bare as it was.

Wind Sand Town wasn't big. Honestly, not many people enrolled in Wind Sand Town Junior Soul Master Academy each year.

That's because every city in the Heaven Dou Empire was basically responsible for handling the qualified students from its own jurisdiction each year.

Since Martial Soul Hall handled soul awakening for both empires, the batch with the best talent each year was usually sent straight to Martial Soul Hall. Those with middling talent also had to follow Martial Soul Hall for a better future.

Innate Soul Power from 10 to 7 counted as good talent—direct admission. Innate Soul Power from 6 to 4 was the middle tier, and they'd only have a future with Martial Soul Hall.

Those with Innate Soul Power level 3 or below had to find a junior academy on their own.

As for whether the Heaven Dou Empire worried about that? Laughable. This wasn't modern society—noble bloodlines were real.

The Heaven Dou Empire only needed to control the major sects and great clans.

As for the commoners? Laughable. Didn't the original novel show that even talents like Shrek's were looked down on and kicked out of Heaven Dou Royal Academy because of their status?

Just like the old Beijingers. Don't even mention it—their dads already suffered all the hardship when they followed the Heaven Dou Empire into the pass. What were you smelly out-of-towners worth?

That was the biggest difference between Heaven Dou and Star Luo. One played the breeding game, the other was like old Beijingers. How was a tunnel-digger supposed to fight someone playing the breeding game?

Honestly, this was the root sickness of the entire Douluo Continent. Ninety-nine percent of people didn't have good martial souls—they could only hope for mutation, and even then, they had to hope it was a good mutation.

A good martial soul didn't guarantee high Innate Soul Power. Then, with a bad status at school, you'd be looked down on. Tsk, tsk, tsk. It wasn't easy to get by.

Just look at Heaven Dou Royal Academy's team.

Captain Tian Yuheng—need I say more? Upper Three Sects, Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.

Vice-captain Dugu Yan—need I say more? Her grandfather was Dugu Bo, a Titled Douluo.

Member Ye Lingling—Ning Rongrong herself said that if her martial soul could be mass-produced, it would crush the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It could be called the number one support martial soul.

The first three all had inherited martial souls, all famous. The last four were really just trash.

Two Black Tortoise Turtles—suspected to be from some Heaven Dou Empire clan, but no detailed background was given. Plus, their performance was so lackluster no one cared.

One Osler, one Yu Feng—both agility attack types. Xu Wenlong's verdict: tickling.

Looking at the lineup: two tanks, two scouts, one warrior, one support, one control.

The support could only heal. The scouts had no damage. The tanks protected the control and support.

So in a team fight, it was just the warrior Tian Yuheng doing all the work.

Sure, that might be a bit unfair, but Heaven Dou Royal Academy really was weaker than the other teams in the original novel.

You didn't dare mess with Martial Soul Hall. You couldn't beat the four Element Academies. The Star Luo Empire team, your equal in name, would also be a tough fight. Plus, they got beaten by Shrek before they even ate the Immortal Herbs—that's why they looked so pathetic.

Though they really were pathetic.

Thinking it over, Xu Wenlong had a plan. Martial Soul Hall was untouchable. The original novel didn't detail Star Luo Empire, so who knew what they were like. The four Element Academies only recruited their own attribute.

The Upper Three Sects and Lower Four Sects, except for Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, also only recruited their own faction.

That left only the Heaven Dou Empire. Xu Wenlong would summon more people, enroll in Heaven Dou Royal Academy, and kick those four deadweights off the team.

Then, during the competition, he'd shock everyone by announcing he was from the Great Shocker Organization. That would send his Great Shocker points skyrocketing!

Xu Wenlong gradually laughed out loud.

But he quickly shut his mouth. Laughing for no reason—wasn't that just being an idiot?

Xu Wenlong looked around. There weren't many people. Wind Sand Town was small, with a small population.

Population was the key to strength. More people meant more geniuses, even if the ratio was low.

Xu Wenlong lay on the bed, eyes closed as if resting, but actually opening the Great Shocker System to see who he could dispatch.

He first clicked on Kamen Rider Black's page.

As for Black, Xu Wenlong felt calm. Sure, the protagonist Minami Kotaro had looks, aura, and physique comparable to Xu Wenlong's, but aside from not being able to henshin, Xu Wenlong wasn't much different.

As for Black Sun, Xu Wenlong had to say—for those who complained about Black Sun's incomplete plot—the director had guts.

Just the fact that during filming, the Japanese Server Male Gun killed that guy, and they still dared to air it after filming, was impressive.

And the ending, where the cop pressed his knee on the monster's neck while the monster said it couldn't breathe—Xu Wenlong found it hilarious.

As for the characters to summon, Xu Wenlong had already decided. Black's Minami Kotaro was a must. No other reason—that sudden "something amazing happened" was real causality.

As for Shadow Moon, Black's Shadow Moon had great characterization and suit design, but the human form left little impression.

On the other hand, Xu Wenlong didn't have a strong impression of Black Sun's Minami Kotaro, but he really liked Black Sun's Shadow Moon actor.

Sure, the character's motives were ridiculous, but the actor's performance, movements, looks, and transformation sequence—Xu Wenlong genuinely liked them.

"Then it's settled!"

Xu Wenlong long-pressed the data for Shadow Moon from Kamen Rider Black and dragged it into the folder for Shadow Moon from Kamen Rider Black Sun.

"Merge successful!"

Miss Izu's voice came through again. Xu Wenlong's settings had taken effect.

As Xu Wenlong envisioned, Minami Kotaro would remain unchanged—same appearance and personality as in the original, still Kamen Rider Black, also known as Eclipse.

But for Shadow Moon, he would use the backstory from Kamen Rider Black—the mechanical-style Shadow Moon who duels Minami Kotaro to become the Creation King. However, his appearance and personality would follow the template of Shadow Moon from Kamen Rider Black Sun.

As for the Shadow Moon from Kamen Rider Black, Xu Wenlong didn't have much of an impression. His screen time was minimal, and the actor appeared less than half as often as the suit.

And as for Minami Kotaro from Kamen Rider Black Sun, Xu Wenlong thought, Captain, go call your teammate over and use that invincible Neo-Ou Power!