Shen Feng let out a breath and awkwardly scratched his head. "I used all my Soul Power to make just one slash. In a real fight, I can only use it as a trump card."
Shen Rui shook his head. "You managed to unleash a Soul Elder's attack with the power of a Soul Master. What more do you want?"
"Besides, your Soul Ring has two uses: boosting your power and attacking from a distance. You didn't lose out."
"Remember, greedy people never meet a good end. Don't be so obnoxiously humble."
Ling Na covered her mouth and giggled, then took a crystal ball from her Storage Soul Tool and held it out to him.
"Come on, let's check your Soul Power and see how much that eight-hundred-year-old Purple Thunder Sword Bamboo boosted you."
Shen Feng grinned, put away the Leiming Blade, and placed his right hand on the crystal ball.
As the crystal ball glowed softly, a spark lit in Ling Na's eyes. "Not bad! You awakened your Martial Soul less than a week ago, and you're already level twelve, almost thirteen."
Shen Rui was smiling, too. "That's not surprising. An eight-hundred-year-old First Soul Ring is already comparable to the Second Soul Ring in the best Soul Ring Configuration. It even surpasses the Third Soul Ring of many Soul Elders with white rings."
"That enormous surge of Soul Power let Xiao Feng advance two levels. It's no wonder he's nearly level thirteen."
Flender chimed in, "Innate Full Soul Power means an extremely fast cultivation speed, especially for a Battle Soul Master. Xiao Feng could very well reach level twenty before he's nine and level thirty before he's twelve."
"Tsk, tsk. That kind of talent is truly outrageous."
When it came to Shen Feng's talent, everyone had plenty to say, though most of it was speculation.
After all, Shen Feng was the only Battle Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power any of them had ever met. Most of their theories were just talk and had little real value.
By the time Shen Feng finished absorbing his Soul Ring, it was already evening. Since traveling through the Star Dou Forest at night was extremely dangerous, they decided to stay one more night and set out again the next morning.
That night, the four of them lit a bonfire in a cave on the cliffside.
After a simple meal, Ling Na took a book from her Storage Soul Tool and read it with interest by the fire.
"Mom, what are you reading?"
The book Ling Na was reading looked rather old, and its pages had yellowed. She turned each page carefully, as if afraid of damaging it.
Shen Feng was certain they didn't have a book like that at home. It had most likely come from the belongings of the dried-corpse senior.
Ling Na glanced at Shen Feng. "This? I got it from that senior's belongings."
"It seems to be a travelogue. It describes all kinds of local customs, dangerous places, Soul Beasts, plants, and so on. It's full of strange things, and who knows whether any of them are true."
"Senior Flender has seen a lot, so he let me have it. He said reading it might broaden my horizons."
Flender immediately objected. "I never said it would broaden your horizons. The things in there are so exaggerated that they're hard to believe."
"It claims there are more than a dozen Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Forest, and even Soul Beasts far beyond a hundred thousand years old. How could that be possible?"
"If the Soul Beasts really had that much power, how could we humans have so much room to survive? Those Soul Beasts would have wiped us all out long ago."
"I'd say some ancestor made most of it up. It's just a tall tale meant to fool us descendants."
"My advice is to read it if you like, but don't take anything in it as fact."
Flender's words made Shen Feng's heart jolt. He suddenly thought that the book in Ling Na's hands might be the greatest treasure they had found on this trip.
He hurried over to Ling Na and eagerly leaned in to read the page.
The first thing he saw was an illustration of a giant bear that filled an entire page. It had a massive body, dark golden fur, and sharp claws. It bared its teeth, drawn so vividly that it seemed ready to leap off the page.
Ling Na glanced at Shen Feng. "Xiao Feng, do you like what's in this book?"
Suppressing his excitement, Shen Feng said, "I do. The illustration looks so lifelike. Could I take a look, too?"
Shen Feng had already recognized it: the creature in the picture was almost certainly a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. Even if it wasn't, it was definitely one of the world's rarest and most powerful bear-type Soul Beasts.
The book was definitely genuine—and a remarkably precious read. Flender simply didn't know what he had.
Ling Na smiled and handed him the book. "Here, have a look."
"But don't read for too long. We still have to head back first thing tomorrow morning."
Shen Feng nodded distractedly. "Okay, Mom."
After a casual reply, Shen Feng immersed himself in the book by the light of the bonfire.
As he kept turning the pages, he was deeply shaken by what he read.
The book had been written three thousand years ago. It described not only the powerful Ferocious Beasts in the core region of the Star Dou Forest, but also a great many exotic flowers and plants, as well as customs and events from the past.
Shen Feng also found something even more exciting in the book: Immortal Herbs.
That was right—the very Immortal Grade Herbs found in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. They could change a person's innate potential and had all kinds of extraordinary healing effects. They were the perfect panacea for anyone heading out into the world—and a must-have for anyone looking to cheat their way to success.
Shen Feng found thirty-six kinds of Immortal Grade Herbs in the book, sixteen of which came with detailed instructions on how to harvest and use them.
Such essential knowledge made him lose all track of time as he read. Only when the cave brightened with the first glimmer of dawn did he reluctantly tuck the precious book into his Soul Tool. Then, with a beautiful dream, his thoughts wandered peacefully far away.
"Xiao Feng, Xiao Feng, wake up. It's time to go."
Early the next morning, Ling Na's voice woke Shen Feng from a dream about hot-potting Immortal Herbs.
He rubbed his eyes and staggered to his feet. "What is it, Mom?"
Ling Na glared at him. "Were you up late reading that travelogue last night?"
Shen Feng paused, then grinned and held up his fingers, leaving only a tiny gap between them. "I stayed up just a little longer."
Shen Rui said crossly, "Sit cross-legged and circulate your Soul Power through your whole body, all the way to your limbs. It'll quickly get rid of your fatigue."
"But that only treats the symptoms, not the cause. Use it in a pinch, but don't let it take the place of sleep."
"The Star Dou Forest is dangerous everywhere. Don't ever do this again."
Shen Feng nodded firmly. "Yes, Dad. I won't next time."
A short while later, Shen Feng woke from his meditation. The four of them left the cave on the cliffside and headed out of the Star Dou Forest.
Everyone had gained a lot from this trip into the Star Dou Forest.
Shen Feng had obtained an eight-hundred-year-old Purple Thunder Sword Bamboo Soul Ring, raised his level to twelve and nearly thirteen, and gained an extremely useful Soul Skill.
Shen Rui had hit the jackpot, finding a ten-thousand-year-old left leg bone while exploring the cave first.
Ling Na had done well, too. Flender had graciously given her a precious travelogue that was worthy of being passed down through the family.
Flender was happy as well. The dried-corpse senior had left behind quite a lot of junk, most of which was no longer usable because of its age.
But Flender was a true businessman. At the very least, the little shop he ran in Suotuo City would have enough stock for a while.
He just didn't know which unlucky soul would fall into his hands and get thoroughly fleeced.
They hadn't gone very deep into the Star Dou Forest to hunt a Soul Ring for Shen Feng. By midday, they had already made it out.
Now that Shen Feng was a One-Ring Soul Master, he could begin his Soul Master training despite his young age.
To build up his stamina, they didn't rent a carriage this time. They made the entire journey on foot.
A week later, the four of them finally covered five hundred kilometers and reached the edge of a small village. In the distance, they could see the massive city rising above it: Suotuo City.
"Shen Rui, Ling Na, Xiao Feng, Shrek Academy is not far south of Suotuo City. It's close by. Why don't we stop there and rest?"
The Star Dou Forest lay five hundred kilometers southeast of Suotuo City, while Shrek Academy was two kilometers south of the city.
Flender said it wasn't far, and he was right.
Shrek Academy was just on the other side of the village.
After giving it some thought, Shen Rui nodded. "All right. Then we'll trouble you, Senior."
Flender grinned slyly and waved his hands. "No trouble at all. Come with me."
Following Flender into the village, they saw that it was small, with only about a hundred households—much smaller than Shuiyun Village, where Shen Feng had grown up.
Perhaps it was because the village was closer to Suotuo City. Anyone who could afford to had moved into the city.
As the four of them walked along, it seemed every villager knew Flender. Nearly everyone who saw him greeted him.
Flender didn't put on airs as a Soul Master around ordinary villagers. He smiled and waved back to everyone who greeted him.
After passing through the center of the village, they reached a corner on its western side. Flender suddenly stopped. "Welcome to Shrek Academy, everyone."
Shen Rui froze and looked around. There were still houses nearby, and nothing about them looked different.
"Shrek Academy? Senior, are you sure? Where's the academy?"
Flender chuckled. "No, I haven't got it wrong. This is Shrek Academy."
"Look over there. It's written clearly on the sign."
The three of them looked where Flender was pointing. On a wooden arch not far away, they saw a battered, almost rotted sign bearing the words "Shrek Academy."
Before the academy's name was a green, humanoid monster's head. It looked ugly yet oddly cute. After staring at it for a while, they even found it rather distinctive.
But Shrek Academy's minimalist style immediately made Ling Na reconsider.
How could this be a Soul Master Academy? The wooden arch was even less grand than the gate to Shuiyun Village, and the buildings inside looked less tidy than the Spirit Hall in the village.
It was less an academy than part of the village. The biggest difference was that its name was a little longer. Most villages only had three characters on their archways: "XX Village."
"Um, Big Crazy, Xiao Feng, shouldn't we head back? This place doesn't look like a proper academy."
Shen Rui silently nodded. "I agree."
Shen Feng covered his mouth to hide a laugh, keeping his eyes fixed on Flender to see how he would handle this.
Flender was getting anxious. He had gone to all the trouble of luring them here. How could he let them leave at his doorstep?
"Everyone, everyone, don't rush. There's no need to rush."
Flender moved with astonishing speed. He flashed in front of Shen Feng's family and blocked their way.
"Let's go in and have a look first. Let me play the host. If you still don't like it, you can leave afterward."
"After hunting Soul Rings together, you can't deny me even that little courtesy, can you?"
Shen Rui and Ling Na looked at each other and saw the same hint of amusement in one another's eyes. Shen Rui sighed. "All right, then. Let's go in and have a look."
Flender beamed. "That's more like it! Come on, come on. I'll call over the others at the academy so we can celebrate together."
"Xiao Feng, there's a boy here two years older than you. He also has Innate Full Soul Power. I'll introduce you two later, all right?"
Shen Feng smiled. "Sure, Dean. I haven't met any other Soul Masters with Innate Full Soul Power."
Once they passed through the gate of Shrek Academy, all they saw were simple wooden buildings. Many of them were damaged, with large holes in their roofs and walls.
Flender smiled awkwardly. "Well, Shrek Academy has too few students to afford the repairs."
"And there are only six of us at the academy, counting me. We wouldn't fill the buildings even if we built more, so we just let the place fall into disrepair."
"But the interiors are in decent shape. At least they're still good enough to live in and host you."
Worried that Shen Feng's family might see the state of Shrek Academy and decide to leave after all, Flender, usually so proud, became rather humble and kept explaining himself.
What he didn't know was that Shen Rui and Ling Na had never planned to leave.
Either of Shen Feng's Twin Martial Souls or his Innate Full Soul Power would bring great trouble if exposed in a crowded Soul Master Academy.
Don't be fooled by how Tang San and Xiao Wu had lived together in peace for six years at Notting Soul Master Academy. That had all been thanks to Tang Hao, who had tirelessly worked alone for two thousand days and nights, no matter the weather.
The Douluo Continent had never been a peaceful place.
Shen Rui smiled faintly. "You're worrying too much, Senior. Since we've come in, we have no plans to leave anytime soon."
"That's right. We should at least see how your academy teaches before deciding. With those three conditions in place, you won't stop us from leaving afterward, will you?" Ling Na added.
Flender was delighted. "Of course not, of course not. Please, come in."
Since Shrek Academy was old and run-down and rarely had visitors, there were hardly any clean, tidy rooms inside, apart from a few teachers' dorms and a student dormitory.
With no other choice, Flender brought Shen Feng's family to his principal's office—or, rather, the place where he and his old friends chatted and joked around.
"Please wait here for a moment. I'll go bring the others over so we can all introduce ourselves."
Shen Rui cupped his hands. "Go ahead, Senior."
After Flender left, Shen Rui stood by the window, his expression shifting slightly.
"Nana, do you think it was the right decision to come here?"
Before you continue