Rich Second-Gen's Twelfth Day

The days passed one by one. After finishing their round-robin battles, eleven-year-old Dai Mubai successfully reached level thirty and could obtain his third soul ring. Before him, Oscar and Tang San had also broken through level twenty, while Ma Hongjun and the others were close to breaking through as well—just one final push away.

During the final combat class, Master announced that they would be heading to the Star Dou Great Forest together to obtain soul rings.

"Awesome!" All eight of them cheered in unison. Even the usually composed Tang San wore a smile. They could finally go on a trip, though the Star Dou Great Forest was hardly a place for fun.

At noon the next day, they set out for the Star Dou Great Forest by carriage under Flender, Zhao Wuji, and Master's lead. Once they reached the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest, they would leave the carriage at a carriage depot for a storage fee.

The journey was filled with laughter and chatter, with Ning Rongrong and Ming Sui supplying snacks. Dai Mubai quietly slipped Zhu Zhuqing a packet of dried bamboo rat meat, a favorite treat among cat-type Soul Masters. Zhu Zhuqing kept a straight face, but her eyes brimmed with laughter, prompting Oscar and Ma Hongjun to whistle. The girls, who had been watching Dai Mubai with auntie smiles because they favored Zhu Zhuqing, began making faces at the two boys after seeing their weird expressions. Before long, it turned into a full-scale brawl.

Tang San, who had somehow been dragged into it: What are they even doing?

Zhao Wuji knocked on the carriage wall outside, and the noise inside instantly died down. Xiao Wu glared at Ma Hongjun. Ning Rongrong helped Ming Sui rub the arm Oscar had bumped into. Tang San expressionlessly searched his Soul Tool for ointment. Oscar stared at the sky and ground, not daring to look at anyone. After realizing their little exchange had been completely exposed, Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing both turned bright red.

The world fell silent.

Originally, the boys sat on one side of the carriage and the girls on the other. Now, to prevent another fight, Dai Mubai, Tang San, and Zhu Zhuqing—the three least likely to start trouble—decided to separate the remaining little monkeys. After much shifting around, Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing ended up sitting opposite each other, while Tang San sat with Ming Sui.

Dai, Tang, Ming, Ning

Zhu, Ma, Wu, Oscar

After rearranging the seats, everyone felt a little awkward. Fortunately, A'tu had assigned them homework before they left, so they all took it out and worked on it together. If someone did not know an answer, they could always exchange—copy—answers.

The carriage became lively again.

"Dai Laoda, why doesn't the Dark Gold Flame Snake have a metamorphosis stage during its growth period?" Oscar asked.

"It has a Bloodline Talent." Dai Mubai casually answered while scribbling nonsense for a short-answer question. What kind of questions were these? What did it mean, how many steps did it take to kill a Man Faced Demon Spider? Just smash it with soul skills until it died.

"Then what's the side effect of Purple Nether Grass attracting soul beasts?" Oscar asked again.

"The scent Purple Nether Grass gives off makes soul beasts feel hungry, so naturally, the side effect is that they become more violent." Dai Mubai's pen flew across the paper as Xiao Wu answered this time.

The girls were generally top students and quickly finished their homework. Every time Dai Mubai made up a line, he scratched his head, and fallen Tiger Fur had already appeared on the carriage floor. Oscar was still racking his brains over what Earth Dragon Beast meat could be used for besides eating. Although Tang San did not say much, he worked on his homework while flipping through his notes. He was the only student who took notes. Ma Hongjun had always had many questions he could not answer before, yet this time, he somehow finished early too.

Seeing Tang San gradually grow agitated beside her, Ming Sui pushed her homework toward him.

Tang San's eyes lit up, then his brows furrowed. He picked up his notes and began marking them as he compared them against Ming Sui's answers.

Ning Rongrong saw Ma Hongjun looking down on the other three boys and wondered why he had suddenly changed. She winked at her girlfriends, and the other three immediately understood. Ming Sui spoke to him, Xiao Wu grabbed his hand, Zhu Zhuqing snatched his homework, and in the end, the exercise book landed in Ning Rongrong's hands.

What met their eyes was Ma Hongjun's distinctive handwriting.

Fill in the blanks.

The Luo Luo Beast is a soul beast beloved by people across the continent. Besides its food value, it can also be used for , , and . Ma Hongjun's answer: braising, deep-frying, steaming.

When encountering an Aquatic Soul Beast in the wild, one should immediately . Ma Hongjun's answer: skewer it and roast it.

By this point, Ning Rongrong was laughing so hard she could barely breathe.

Xiao Wu took it and continued reading.

Clouds follow dragons, winds follow tigers. The sign of a fox-type soul beast appearing is . Ma Hongjun's answer: a coat.

Multiple-choice questions.

Given that the terrain in a certain area is high in the east and low in the west, with a river flowing through it as shown below, which of the four caves should one watch out for Mist Shadow Beasts? The options were the four caves in the diagram.

Ma Hongjun's answer: A, B, C, and D—all of them.

A certain soul beast has a father with a light attribute and a mother with a wind attribute. What is the probability that this soul beast has dual attributes? The four options were 0, 25%, 50%, and 75%.

Ma Hongjun did not choose any of them and wrote in 100% himself.

Short-answer questions.

Ma Hongjun had answered the question that was troubling Dai Mubai—how many steps it took to kill a Man Faced Demon Spider—without any inner turmoil.

Answer: I can't beat a Man Faced Demon Spider, so I'll just run.

Briefly discuss the relationship between soul beasts and humans.

Answer: Protect soul beasts. Constantly killing soul beasts is not advisable. We should find substitutes for soul rings. If we can't find any, then don't cultivate for now. Eat first.

It started out rather righteous before turning unserious again.

Dai Mubai could no longer write. His tiger paws had gone limp from laughing, and he could not hold his pen. Zhu Zhuqing did not laugh aloud, but bite marks had appeared on her lips. Oscar's pen tore through his homework paper, so he would have to start over. Xiao Wu seemed to see the scene of Ma Hongjun being beaten by his own mother. Ning Rongrong was laughing so hard she could not speak properly. Ming Sui laughed herself onto Tang San's shoulder. Tang San had been smiling happily enough, but the moment he felt the weight on his shoulder, a strange sensation rose within him. Ming Sui then laughed herself over to the other side, leaning against Ning Rongrong. Once the weight left his shoulder and he could no longer feel that tingling itch, Tang San felt even more unsettled.

Ma Hongjun's face was redder than Phoenix Flame.

"Hurry up and redo it. Teacher A'tu will really get angry," Xiao Wu urged. Her own mother was very gentle, but she dared guarantee that upon seeing this homework, her mother would definitely beat Ma Hongjun up. In any case, she could beat him too.

Little Ma dejectedly rewrote his homework.

That night, they did not reach the next town and could only camp outdoors. They found an open area that was fairly safe.

The children set up camp while the teachers stretched their limbs. Dai Mubai transformed his hands into beast claws, ran to the side, and felled a tree with two swipes before splitting it into firewood. Ma Hongjun started the fire, then pitched tents with Dai Mubai. Tang San, Ming Sui, and Xiao Wu went out together to find game. Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong helped Oscar grill meat and cook. Everything was orderly.

After listening to them make noise all day, Zhao Wuji's ears finally got some peace, and he began enjoying life while demanding to order dishes. Oscar had spent quite some time in the kitchen. As a Food System Soul Master, he was truly gifted, and the dishes he made already had a hint of Teacher Shao's touch.

There was grilled meat, wild fruit, and the dried provisions they had brought along. The gathering group also returned with wild vegetables and mushrooms, which they used to make soup. They had a hearty feast.

After dinner, Dai Mubai volunteered to keep watch, but everyone rejected him. In the end, they decided to take turns in pairs and drew lots to determine the order. Flender and the others watched them discuss it among themselves and were fairly satisfied.

The tent was large enough for all eight of them, but the eight who could never settle down began arranging where everyone would sleep. Dai Mubai said he would take the first watch and had to sleep on the outer edge, so Ning Rongrong, who was paired with him, also had to sleep on the outer edge. Ma Hongjun and Zhu Zhuqing had the second watch, so they each took the second outer positions. Oscar and Xiao Wu had the third watch, so they took the third outer positions. The middle positions naturally belonged to Tang San and Ming Sui, who had the final watch.

Tang San felt that tingling, itchy sensation from noon returning. Dai Mubai and Ning Rongrong had already gone out to stand watch, so the rest of them needed to sleep quickly to ensure they had enough energy when it was their turn.

Tang San forced himself to sleep, but his mind was in a mess. Ming Sui had already begun breathing evenly, clearly asleep, which only made his own restlessness stand out more.

Reciting the notes from today's marked common knowledge lesson in his head, Tang San gradually fell asleep. His dreams were strange and fantastical, but he slept well. When he woke, it was almost time to take over the watch.

Tang San nudged Ming Sui, and the young girl woke without much effort.

The two quietly got up and left the tent, letting Oscar and Xiao Wu return to rest.

It was nearly dawn, and mist was rising. Tang San added several pieces of firewood to the bonfire, stirred the flames, and had Ming Sui sit closer.

Ming Sui yawned and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. She took a kettle from her Storage Spirit Tool, hung it over the campfire to heat for a while, then took out a fresh cup and poured Tang San a cup. "Drink up, Cousin."

It was lemongrass water. Tang San was slightly stunned the moment it entered his mouth. This was one of his rare personal favorites.

Ming Sui chuckled. "I saw that you liked drinking it during the New Year reunion dinner last time, so I brought some along. There's mist now too, so having something warm will feel nice."

Though, as Soul Masters, this little mist should not affect them at all, Ming Sui, formerly a doctor, always felt that drinking something warm was better for her.

"Holy Spirit Village grows lemongrass too." Tang San opened up as he watched Ming Sui grimace after taking a sip of the lemongrass water.

"People who grow it generally don't like drinking it?" Ming Sui asked curiously.

"Lemongrass has a strange flavor, but overall, it's still sweet. The children of Holy Spirit Village like it a lot. And because it grows abundantly there, children are allowed to steep it in water and drink it during the lemongrass harvest season." Tang San took another sip.

Ming Sui watched him intently, and Tang San continued, "But I never drank it as a child. Father didn't grow it, and the farming tools he forged were traded for grain. We couldn't waste them on things like this. The first time I drank it was at the village chief's home. I went to deliver some farming tools, and the village chief offered me a cup."

By this point, Ming Sui's eyes were full of pity. Oh no, Cousin is so pitiful. Second Uncle is way too unreliable. When we get back, I have to tell Mother—and I need to find out what else Cousin likes to eat.

Tang San drank the lemongrass water sip by sip, added another piece of firewood, and watched as the mist gradually dispersed. The eastern sky was beginning to pale.

Dawn was coming.