"I don't want to go to the Demon Spirit Master Beginner Class. I want to go to the Beginner Warrior Class." Chang Ping shook his head.
There was no Ning'er in the Demon Spirit Master Beginner Class. He wasn't going there.
One of his reasons for coming to Saint Orchid Academy was to save this girl, who was about to become a sacrifice to her family's interests.
"The Beginner Warrior Class? You want to become a warrior?" Ye Sheng immediately tried to talk Chang Ping out of the childish idea. "What good is becoming a warrior? The higher you climb, the harder it gets to cultivate. You have to take very precious heavenly treasures to improve. Are you rich?"
"Do you know how many Demon Spirit Coins it takes, at a minimum, to raise a Black Gold One-star warrior?"
Chang Ping shook his head.
Ye Sheng held up five fingers.
"Five hundred Demon Spirit Coins?" Chang Ping asked innocently.
"Five hundred million Demon Spirit Coins!" Ye Sheng rolled his eyes at him. "Only the Three Great Peak Families can afford that much. Is your family one of them?"
Chang Ping shook his head.
"In that case, I'd better give up on becoming a warrior and focus on becoming a Demon Spirit Master," Ye Sheng advised sincerely. "Demon Spirit Masters can slowly improve their cultivation just by meditating. They don't rely much on medicine, so they're perfect for commoners like you."
Judging by his shabby clothes, he was obviously no noble. What noble family had a kid who went around carrying a battered straw hat?
"Let me tell you, Demon Spirit Masters are the most powerful profession in the Glory City. At the same level, warriors are no match for them. Warriors are also less useful on the battlefield. A warrior can only kill one enemy at a time, while a Demon Spirit Master can kill a whole group."
Ye Sheng suddenly slapped Chang Ping on the shoulder and said mysteriously, "Did you know? If you become a Gold-ranked Demon Spirit Master, you can earn a noble title and your own territory. But Gold-ranked warriors don't get that perk."
He had to admit, the kid was built pretty solidly. Judging by the hardness of his muscles, his strength must already be over a thousand.
No wonder he wanted to become a warrior. His martial talent was astonishing too.
"So, what do you think? Do you still want to go to the Beginner Warrior Class?" Ye Sheng let go of Chang Ping's shoulder and asked with a smile.
After hearing all that earnest advice, the kid should know what to choose—unless he was an idiot.
To Ye Sheng's surprise, Chang Ping said he still wanted to go to the Beginner Warrior Class.
Ye Sheng panicked. What was the point of all that talking if the young master hadn't listened to a word?
"Please don't get upset!" Chang Ping said with a laugh, cutting off Ye Sheng just as he was about to blow his top. "I may want to go to the Beginner Warrior Class, but I don't want to become a warrior. I'm not stupid. If I can become a Demon Spirit Master, why would I become a common warrior?"
"I have my own reasons for wanting to go to the Beginner Warrior Class. I can't tell you what they are just yet. But I promise you that at the end-of-term test in two months, I'll have raised my Soul Force to a hundred and transfer to the Formal Demon Spirit Master Class."
Saint Orchid Academy had three types of classes: the Beginner Class, the Formal Class, and the Genius Class.
The Beginner Class was like elementary school, the Formal Class like middle school, and the Genius Class like a top middle school.
Since Chang Ping had made that promise, Ye Sheng had nothing more to say.
He led Chang Ping out of the testing room and into the instructors' dormitory area, then asked the dorm supervisor for a key to a luxurious single room.
"Uncle Ye, isn't this a bit much?" Chang Ping snatched the key from the dorm supervisor and stuffed it into the pocket of his blue shorts.
Ye Sheng smiled awkwardly. "It's fine. You're a genius!"
"But if your Soul Force hasn't reached a hundred in two months, I'll take the key back and make you move into the students' dormitory!"
"I guarantee I'll get it done!" Chang Ping declared confidently.
Ye Sheng nodded. "Right, once you've unpacked, go to the General Affairs Office and pay your tuition. I have things to take care of, so I can't stay with you."
"Even geniuses have to pay extra tuition?" Chang Ping was stunned.
"Of course!" Ye Sheng rolled his eyes. "If you don't pay tuition, how are we supposed to pay the instructors?"
"People should learn to be content." Ye Sheng patted Chang Ping's sturdy shoulder and turned to leave.
Ye Sheng stepped into the air as if he were walking up invisible stairs. Before long, he had flown out of Chang Ping's sight.
Watching the old man's retreating figure, his sleeves fluttering in the breeze, Chang Ping stood there stunned for a long time.
So cool!
"Stop staring, genius! The Dean's already gone! Come with me. I'll show you to your dorm." The dorm supervisor brought Chang Ping out of his daze.
"How can he fly?" Chang Ping asked the dorm supervisor as they walked toward the dormitory.
"Technically, he floats!" the chubby dorm supervisor explained, walking with his hands behind his back. "If you can cultivate to become a Black Gold One-star Demon Spirit Master, you'll be able to float in the air like the Dean. It won't last long, though—just one or two incense sticks."
"Only when you reach the Legendary Demon Spirit Master realm, like Lord Ye Mo, can you fly in the air for a long time." The dorm supervisor suddenly stopped and turned to Chang Ping. "There's one way you can fly as a Silver-ranked Demon Spirit Master: fuse with a Flying Spirit."
"But Flying Spirits are incredibly expensive. Even a Bronze-ranked one costs hundreds of thousands of Demon Spirit Coins—the same price as a Silver-ranked spirit. Do you have that kind of money?"
Chang Ping shook his head.
He had two hundred thousand Demon Spirit Coins in his Space Ring, but he wasn't about to blurt that out. He knew better than to flaunt his wealth.
"In that case, just take it one step at a time and cultivate properly. Don't think about taking shortcuts." The dorm supervisor pointed ahead. "See the number on the door? The room marked '521' is yours. Go on in. I'll leave you to it."
521? What a silly room number!
After watching the dorm supervisor leave, Chang Ping took out his key, unlocked the door, and entered his dorm.
There was a round table, a round stool, a cabinet, a bed... The room was sparsely furnished but very clean, without a speck of dust. The dorm supervisor must have cleaned it often.
When he opened the window on the back wall, he saw a small pond. Beneath the emerald-green lotus leaves, he could just make out one or two little fish.
Chang Ping raised his eyebrows. He was a little worried frogs would make a racket when it rained and keep him awake at night.
If they dare disturb my sleep, I'll toss a grenade in there and blow them all up!
After closing the window, Chang Ping left the bare-bones dorm. He asked the chubby dorm supervisor for directions, then jogged toward the General Affairs Office.
He couldn't wait to see Ning'er.
The sun blazed overhead.
Ye Sheng hurried into the City Lord's Mansion.
"Lord Ye Shuo, Chang Ping is a once-in-a-century genius. We absolutely can't let him slip away!"
Ye Shuo was the second-in-command of the Snowy Wind Family and the City Lord's right-hand man.
Unless something especially important came up, he handled most affairs.
Ye Shuo was much older than Ye Sheng. His hair, eyebrows, and beard had all turned white, cascading down like a waterfall and almost completely covering his face.
Yet his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, gleaming with a soul-piercing light, as if he could see through any plot or scheme.
"Keep him safe! In a few days, once I've cleared out the Dark Guild's hidden bases in the city, I'll go to Saint Orchid Academy in person."
Meanwhile, Chang Ping had arrived at the General Affairs Office, where he ran into a major problem.
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