Three Rings! (Time to Get Hyped!)

Xuan Water Pill.

Over twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins.

Xu Sanshi probably had never imagined that he would lose. He was a genius himself and so much older; by common sense, there was no way he could lose to a new student. Could a teenager in his teens possibly fail to beat a five- or six-year-old child?

That was why he had put up such a large wager—because, in his eyes, the outcome of this battle had never held the slightest suspense.

As for those twenty thousand-plus Gold Soul Coins...

An Zhen could not understand what went through the mind of someone with terminal simp syndrome and a love-addled brain. Perhaps Xu Sanshi had genuinely been grateful to him for helping him find his direction.

The card was unregistered, a debit card rather than a credit card. Most of the students present had been captivated by the battle at the time. Some might have noticed the Xuan Water Pill used as a wager, but information about this debit card did not seem to have spread.

An Zhen walked to the counter and bought the Soul Ascension Pill, accompanied by the silent Young Miss and Wu Feng.

"An Zhen, congratulations. You're one step closer to three rings."

Whatever she was feeling, the Golden-Haired Young Miss's face held sincere blessings.

"I should be thanking Ning Tian for inviting me today. Otherwise, I wouldn't have run into something like this."

They browsed two more floors, glimpsing just the tip of the iceberg of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's deep foundations, before returning to the academy.

"Feng Mei went back to get something."

An Zhen left together with Wu Feng.

"You looked beautiful today."

An Zhen's gaze moved away from her little feet clad in black stockings.

"Pervert."

The Red Dragon Girl's expression was icy and full of disdain. Then she asked, "Where did you get the money?"

Wu Feng did not want An Zhen getting close to her Young Miss.

But neither did she want to watch her Young Miss become sad because her plan had failed.

"Xu Sanshi gave it to me, along with the Xuan Water Pill. Ning Tian apparently didn't find out about it," An Zhen explained.

"You figured it out?"

A trace of gravity flashed through her crimson eyes.

"..."

The young man sighed helplessly. "Wu Feng, it was so obvious. Don't treat me like an idiot."

"Then why didn't you accept?" The Red Dragon Girl planted her hands on her hips and questioned him angrily. To her, her Young Miss was the most perfect person in the world.

She was a little like a loyal puppy guarding her master.

An Zhen found it rather cute.

"Perhaps because she didn't offer me what I wanted."

"What he wanted?" Ning Tian murmured softly.

She was not surprised that he had seen through her intentions.

Because it had been obvious.

But everyone was civilized, so naturally they could not speak so bluntly. This sort of thing depended on mutual willingness.

Wu Feng nodded, only to see her Young Miss's gaze fall upon her black-stockinged calves.

After returning, An Zhen immediately took the Soul Ascension Pill.

Its effect, which could raise a Three-Ring Soul Elder by one level, directly pushed him from over level twenty-five to the threshold of level twenty-seven.

"Too bad I can only take one. Otherwise, I could try copying it with the Virtual World."

A hint of regret showed amid the young man's satisfied expression.

This kind of pill was refined from many precious herbs. Taking more would indeed still have an effect, but it would produce pill toxins and affect one's potential, which was why only one could be consumed. If he refreshed his state using the Virtual World, however, the cultivation gained would be refreshed away along with the pill toxins.

The Virtual World's refresh either involved storing a state beforehand, or using one's thoughts in the Virtual World to clean away dirt and the like from one's body, then refreshing that cleaned-up state outward.

"It still has to be immortal herbs—heavenly treasures."

He wanted them.

But he could not get them.

During the two rest days, An Zhen and the other two seemed to have been infected by Huo Yutong's diligence. Aside from going out to set up their stall, they spent nearly all their time cultivating in the dormitory.

The wonderful weekend passed.

Dormitory, cafeteria, classroom, stall.

A four-point routine.

The reputation of Newbie Class Nine's class monitor who slept during lessons spread.

The new students who had originally thought An Zhen had gotten in through the back door fell collectively silent when they came to Class Nine and saw Class Nine's notes.

Everyone knew that the class monitor of Newbie Class Nine had not only beaten up an upperclassman on the first day of school, but was also a born grind machine, capable of meditating while attending class.

Good grief, were they supposed to live at all?

No one knew about the boys' dormitory, but according to an unnamed first-year girl, the proportion of girls using meditation instead of sleep at night had reached a terrifying 98%. The students' attentiveness in class had also improved drastically. The culture of grinding had spread from Newbie Class Nine to the entire first-year cohort, and even showed signs of spreading from the first years to the upper grades.

Two months later.

One lovely noon.

Before the dismissal bell rang, under Wu Feng's gaze, a Golden Yellow Soul Ring lit up. Waves of Soul Power spread out from the black-haired youth.

"Finally, level thirty."

Joy appeared in his pitch-black eyes, impossible to hide from his handsome face.

The students of Newbie Class Nine: (┯_┯)

They were numb.

This was cheating. Grinding was one thing, but he was using hacks to grind.

"Congratulations, An Zhen."

Mu Jin stood at the podium with a delighted expression. Two Soul Elders, and they were even on the same team. Combined with An Zhen's previous accomplishments, she could practically see the title of freshman assessment champions falling into her hands.

Zhou Yi, I've definitely won this time.

"Students, you must all strive to learn from An Zhen. The third and fourth Soul Elders in our class may be among you."

"Yes."

The students looked as though they were on the verge of tears.

The dismissal bell rang.

After updating his notes, An Zhen walked up to Mu Jin. "Teacher, I'd like to take the afternoon off to absorb a Soul Ring."

"Hm? An Zhen, have you decided what kind of Soul Ring you want? Is one afternoon enough?"

"I have. They sell it right here in Shrek City."

Mu Jin was a little worried. This was a super genius, after all. She could not let him be ruined by a momentary oversight on her part.

"Can you tell your teacher about it in more detail?"

The students were highly curious.

After all, their class monitor had displayed overwhelming combat strength, while his martial soul remained incredibly mysterious.

"A 1,700-year-old Soft Bone Rabbit. I bought it from a hotel. What's left over can be made into Spicy Rabbit Head and barbecue."

There would be a Soul Ring, and food too.

The students: ...

Mu Jin: ?

Wait, he was absorbing a Soft Bone Rabbit's Soul Ring?

Mu Jin nearly felt as if the sky had collapsed.

Ning Tian and Wu Feng exchanged a glance, both seeing the utter confusion in the other's eyes.

"Actually, my martial soul has no particular requirements for Soul Beasts. As long as the age is sufficient, it's fine. My soul skills are naturally derived from my martial soul itself; Soul Rings merely serve to help me break through."

"Really. My first Soul Ring was also from a Soft Bone Rabbit."

It was delicious.

"I'll give you an answer during afternoon class."

Gently rubbing her brow with her fingers, she needed to report this matter to Director Du.

"That's fine. I approve it." A middle-aged man with short forest-green hair had appeared at the classroom door at some unknown point.

"Thank you, Director Du."

An Zhen hurried away in excitement.

"Director, this..."

Mu Jin did not quite understand.

"Teacher Mu, as teachers, we need to place more faith in our students. When it comes to an unknown martial soul, he may understand it better than either of us," Du Weilun explained. In truth, he was merely following the headmaster's instructions—do not interfere with An Zhen's choice of Soul Rings.