Is It Really Just Blue Silver Grass? The Possibility of Martial Soul Advancement; Gu Yue vs. Zhang Yangzi

" Tang Wulin..."

"Too amazing! You're an absolute genius!"

Xie Xie couldn't help exclaiming in admiration. Sure, the other guy had beaten him up earlier, but so what?

That was then, and this was now. They said a fight could make people friends, and the other guy hadn't held it against him. How could he hold it against him? Besides, the other guy now...

Was seriously cool!

"No, I'm just good at taking advice."

Tang Wulin smiled and shook his head. He wasn't the impressive one—his big brother was. Without him...

He'd be nothing.

He'd wanted a Datura Snake Soul Spirit at first, but it was only because of his big brother's advice that he'd chosen the plant-type Azure Vine instead.

"That's pretty interesting."

"No wonder you recognized him as a genius."

Watching Tang Wulin's performance, Wu Changkong glanced at Lu Li beside him and remarked with a sigh.

His combat skills were still immature. When he had the Blue Silver Hammer in hand, he mainly relied on brute force to get the job done. Still, there was no denying that his Soul Skill was almost perfectly suited to him.

Blue Silver Has Spirit seemed to increase the grass's toughness and strength. It was a Soul Skill Wu Changkong had never seen before.

"His Blue Silver Grass is a beneficial mutation. There's a chance it could develop into the Blue Silver Emperor in the future. With proper training, he has the potential to become a top-tier healer."

Lu Li chuckled and spoke slowly.

The moment he finished speaking, the system's voice rang out in his mind once again:

[During your first class at the academy, you discovered that your classmate Tang Wulin, whose Martial Soul is only Blue Silver Grass, was dominating the battlefield. You were surprised and stunned by his existence]

[Long-Term Quest 1: Is It Really Just Blue Silver Grass?]

[Dear Host, Tang Wulin is the Son of Destiny of this era and the possessor of the Golden Dragon King Bloodline. Becoming his friend will bring you great benefits]

[Current Quest: Become an important person in Tang Wulin's heart and get him to open up to you. This is certainly difficult, but it is also an opportunity for you to seize a tremendous chance]

[Becoming Tang Wulin's confidant and friend, and sharing positive growth experiences with him, will bring you great benefits. This will also be one of your long-term quests]

[Quest Reward: Bloodline concentration increased]

[Note: Tang Wulin is someone who always repays kindness. The helping hand you extend today will earn you the best help in the future]

"..."

Hearing the system's voice, Lu Li's calm expression concealed a surge of excitement. He was practically rubbing his hands together in anticipation. If Wu Changkong hadn't been beside him, he would have been grinning from ear to ear.

Listen to that! What had he just heard?

A long-term advancement quest, with more to come. No, that wasn't the important part. The important part was the reward!

What did an increase in bloodline concentration mean?

His Golden Holy Dragon King Martial Soul was already the strongest known dragon-type bloodline. Even among the Dragon Clan, it was probably second only to the Nine Great Dragon Kings, and no weaker than Di Tian.

That casual mention of an advancement might not seem like much, but to him it wasn't just a step forward. It was a stepping stone to God Rank!

Would he become one of the Nine Great Dragon Kings? Or perhaps...

As he looked toward Tang Wulin, there was no eager anticipation for a promising junior in his eyes—only a feverish fascination with the quest reward.

Wulin! You see me as your big brother, so we're definitely going to be good friends—and good friends who grow together!

He didn't know how long it would take, but considering he'd given Tang Wulin a Soul Spirit, helped him learn forging, and spent more than half a year with him in Aolai City...

It probably wouldn't take long!

"Oh, Tang Wulin could become a top-tier healer?"

"That means he has a lot of potential."

Beside him, Wu Changkong quietly responded to his comment. But just imagining a Blue Silver Grass Soul Master advancing into a Blue Silver Emperor made it obvious that this wasn't something one could achieve through years of steady progress alone.

Still, if Lu Li thought it was possible, then it probably was.

"But..."

"You said earlier that he's a blacksmith, right?"

Wu Changkong suddenly thought of something and asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, he was born with divine strength."

Lu Li laughed heartily. He was in a particularly good mood, and nodded at once.

"Hmm...?"

"That makes him a handful."

Wu Changkong pondered for a moment. A healer with a Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul wasn't frightening. What was frightening was...

That he could whip out a hammer and hit you with it at any moment.

Seeing how awkward Wu Changkong looked, Lu Li couldn't help finding it amusing. He was already in a good mood, after all.

It seemed that seeing the smiling, cheerful Sky Ice Wu Changkong again was only a matter of time.

Oh, right.

His Martial Soul advancing was only a matter of time, too~

"..."

"That Tang Wulin really is a monster. Controlling his Blue Silver Grass with spiritual power to turn it into a hammer—his spiritual power has to be at least at the Spirit Connection Realm. You could even classify that as a Self-Created Soul Skill."

From nearby, Zhang Yangzi watched Tang Wulin's performance and murmured in amazement.

Spiritual power at the Spirit Connection Realm was far beyond what ordinary people could reach.

As he spoke, he couldn't help looking at his good buddy Wang Jinxi, who wore a bitter expression.

Even with his Soul Grandmaster cultivation, Wang Jinxi had less than a hundred points of spiritual power and was still stuck at the Spirit Origin Realm!

"Yangzi, it's not just his spiritual power."

"Simply forming a hammer wouldn't let him block a Power Attack System Soul Master like that. His Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul is probably far beyond anything we expected."

Wang Jinxi's eye for detail was clearly sharper, and he spoke slowly.

And maybe it was just his imagination, but he felt that the person in front of him...

"Aren't you two making this sound way too mysterious? Is it really worth making such a fuss over?"

"It's just Blue Silver Grass, isn't it?"

Wei Xiaofeng looked at them with disdain. Sure, the two of them had more potential than he did, but all this caution didn't look like the behavior of a genius with innate ninth-rank Soul Power at all.

Had they never heard that overwhelming strength could overcome a hundred techniques?

Someone like Tang Wulin? He could take on ten of him!

"..."

Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi said nothing. They just looked at him as though he were an idiot. Even if it was only Blue Silver Grass, hadn't it produced Sea God Tang San? Anything was possible.

"Next."

"Zhang Yangzi versus Gu Yue."

Just then, Zhang Yangzi's name was called. His opponent was none other than the strongest student in the class, Gu Yue.

"I'm up."

"Going up against her is a little nerve-racking."

A serious expression crossed Zhang Yangzi's face.

A genius with Innate Full Soul Power wasn't scary. Eastsea City had someone with innate tenth-rank Soul Power, and he'd heard that the guy was still only at the eighteenth rank. An opponent like that wasn't scary—in fact, it was a little ridiculous.

But Gu Yue was different.

"I'm Zhang Yangzi. My Martial Soul is the Dark Phantom Eagle. I'm a twenty-second-rank Control System Soul Grandmaster."

Zhang Yangzi stepped forward first. After introducing himself, he immediately released his Martial Soul.

A dark light instantly coalesced, and a pair of black eagle wings nearly two meters wide appeared behind him. They spread open with a snap, their feathers standing on end and glinting coldly like metal.

A phantom Dark Demon Eagle with a sharp beak and talons appeared behind him. An aura of darkness flowed through the air, displaying his cultivation as a twenty-second-rank Soul Grandmaster.

A top-tier Soul Beast with a darkness attribute: the Dark Phantom Eagle!

P.S. Wang Jinxi and Zhang Yangzi are familiar characters from Dou San, originally two of the Shrek Seven Devils. Later, after falling out with the Third Young Master, they left Class Zero on the grounds of "Martial Soul incompatibility."

And one more bizarre excuse gets added to the list (pensive).