A Young Man with a Plan

In the Soul Tool Experimental Zone.

Xu Tinglan tightened his grip on the Soul Guidance Ray in his hand as Ink Soul Power surged from his body and flowed into the drive core.

The Soul Tool charged at an astonishing speed.

A white light flashed at the muzzle.

Golden light lit up on the silver-haired youth's powerful legs. He stomped hard against the ground, attempting to use the recoil to evade the Soul Tool's lock-on.

His expression changed.

A troublesome resistance, like the rolling waves of the sea, spread across his body.

His initial burst of speed was affected and greatly reduced.

In that brief delay, Xiao Hongchen could only watch helplessly as the Soul Power ray slammed toward his abdomen!

He had no choice but to take out a Soul Guidance Protective Barrier, and a soft white glow lit up around him.

The Soul Power ray struck it like a stone hitting water, sending ripples across the barrier's surface.

Both of them withdrew from their Martial Soul Possession states.

The ink-wash-colored tide vanished as well.

"How did that feel?" Amusement flickered through Xu Tinglan's eyes.

Although his First Soul Skill had not been particularly useful when he first acquired it, with the support of a Soul Tool now, its ability to threaten opponents had increased greatly.

"That really surprised me." Xiao Hongchen walked over.

He clicked his tongue.

"I was just about to dodge when I realized that the faster I moved, the greater the resistance became. Your Soul Skill is seriously disgusting!"

Xu Tinglan smiled and looked at the Soul Tool in his hand.

"But I had always lacked offensive methods before."

The silver-haired youth's lips curled upward.

"That's fine. You won't lack them in the future. Welcome to the world of Soul Tools."

At Meng Hongchen's suggestion, Xu Tinglan bought another Communication Soul Tool.

It felt cold in his hand and was silver-white all over, slightly larger than a phone from his previous life.

Its functions were limited to basic communication and timekeeping, and its range was restricted as well. It could only be used near Sun Moon Academy.

It was not cheap, costing him eight thousand Gold Soul Coins, but it worked quite well.

Time passed quickly.

Today was the first day of classes.

Sun Moon Academy differed from Shrek. It did not divide grades according to students' ages, but according to their Soul Engineer ranks.

Although Xiao Hongchen was a new student, he attended third-year classes.

According to him, if he could break through to the fourth rank in a month, he could attend fourth-year classes.

There was no need to waste a year.

After finishing breakfast, Xu Tinglan arrived at Class One, First Year.

Half the spacious classroom was already occupied. Everyone wore pure white uniforms embroidered with Sun Moon patterns.

He and Jiang Nannan found seats in the middle.

Only when the bell rang did Xu Tinglan shift his gaze away from Soul Guidance Core Array.

A woman around thirty entered through the door. Wearing a teacher's uniform and holding a book, she hurried to the podium.

The woman patted her chest and murmured, "Good thing I wasn't late."

"Xuan Xingyue. That is my name."

She cleared her throat, smiled, and looked over every student.

"For our first class, we won't discuss Soul Tool knowledge. I want to ask everyone: in your opinion, what direction will Soul Tools develop in going forward?"

As soon as the question was raised, whispers broke out below.

"It seems everyone has their own thoughts. Would anyone like to stand up and share their views with us?"

In an instant.

The classroom fell silent enough for a pin drop to be heard.

Xu Tinglan rested his chin on his left hand and studied the first-year homeroom teacher.

A thought suddenly flashed through the youth's mind.

She had introduced herself as Xuan Xingyue?

Could this woman be Xuan Ziwen's younger sister?

He understood that benefactors did not simply appear out of nowhere unless you stood out from the crowd and proved yourself different.

And now was the moment to show what he could do.

The youth raised his hand.

Xuan Xingyue's eyes lit up, and she gestured toward him.

"This student, please answer."

Xu Tinglan had just risen to his feet and had not yet spoken when he heard someone behind him say, "Show-off."

The voice was not loud, but it was loud enough for him to hear clearly.

Under everyone's gaze, Xu Tinglan calmly turned around and looked at the person who had spoken.

He looked down at him with an icy expression.

Their eyes met.

The red-haired youth quickly shifted his gaze away and looked guiltily to the side.

"What is it, student?" the teacher asked.

Xu Tinglan withdrew his gaze and did not take the minor incident to heart.

Someone who did not even dare meet his eyes was merely a passerby in his life.

"Nothing. Just a bug."

After saying that, he continued.

"I have two predictions for Soul Tools: gigantification and miniaturization."

As soon as he said this, the students in the class all showed curious, puzzled expressions.

Xuan Xingyue's red lips parted slightly as she stared at the twelve-year-old boy in astonishment.

"The most direct way to increase power is to enlarge the Core Array and increase the amount of Soul Power injected."

"Perhaps Soul Tools hundreds of meters in size might even appear..."

"And future fleets may not necessarily sail on the sea. They may also sail through the sky above us."

The youth spoke confidently and eloquently.

"Correspondingly, individual equipment will move toward miniaturization."

"Using the least amount of Soul Power to achieve a qualitative transformation of energy through complex array structures. Such as Soul Tool Armor worn on the body..."

"And my ultimate expectation for miniaturization is Human-Tool Unity. Soul Tools will be integrated into a Soul Master's body like Soul Bones."

Xu Tinglan finished speaking.

The whispers in the classroom grew louder. Some students scoffed and accused him of indulging in wild fantasies.

How could fleets possibly sail through the air?

Soul Tools were clearly made of metal. How could they possibly fuse with the body?

The homeroom teacher drew a deep breath and asked solemnly, "May I ask whether you entered the wrong class?"

The class erupted in laughter.

They thought the teacher was also mocking this new student for daydreaming.

Xu Tinglan was not affected in the slightest by his surroundings. His emotions remained steady.

"I am a new student of Class One, First Year."

The woman asked again.

"Then who was the teacher who taught you before?"

Xu Tinglan shook his head.

"I did not have a teacher. Everything I said just now was my own speculation."

This time, quite a few of his peers could no longer hold it in. Their gazes toward him became strange.

Xuan Xingyue nodded and thought to herself.

That made sense.

If he had a teacher, how could he possibly be in the first year?

Xuan Xingyue walked to the side, cleared her throat, and looked at the youth encouragingly as she said,

"Come to the podium and write your name on the blackboard."

Xu Tinglan pushed back his chair and walked to the front.

He wrote his name in the very center of the blackboard.

The strokes were sharp and powerful.

That beautiful handwriting alone left a profound impression on every student present.

"Good!" Xuan Xingyue applauded.

"From now on, you'll be our class monitor."

"Huh??"

The students below widened their eyes in disbelief.

Had they not just been laughing with the teacher at this wild dreamer?

How had things changed in the blink of an eye?

He had become the class monitor of Class One?

Was this a joke?!

A silver-haired girl wearing a hat sat in the last row.

She lowered her body, her face flushed as she stared excitedly at the youth standing on the stage.

Her wine-red eyes sparkled like stars.

She murmured in awe, "He's way too handsome."