Before the age of twenty-four?
Everyone knew that even someone as exceptional as Sea God Tang San hadn't become a Titled Douluo until he was twenty-five.
Yan Shaozhe's meaning was already abundantly clear.
What's more, he had staked his position as Shrek Academy's dean and a Sea God Pavilion Elder. That put his wager far beyond the little bet he and Qian Duoduo had made.
"Shaozhe, are you saying this boy is even more talented than Sea God Tang San, one of the first-generation Shrek Seven Monsters?"
The old man lying in the shadows at the innermost part of the room asked softly.
"Yes, teacher!"
Yan Shaozhe answered respectfully.
"Bullshit!"
Xian Lin'er slammed her hand on the table and leaped to her feet. "Yan Shaozhe, stop putting on this act!"
"Don't think you're the only one willing to stake your position. Dean Qian and I can also vouch for Jiang Yang with our positions as Soul Tool Institute dean and Sea God Pavilion Elders. We'll make him a Level 9 Soul Engineer before he turns twenty-three!"
"If we can't do it, we'll both resign, and never set foot in Shrek again!"
"That's right!"
Qian Duoduo immediately chimed in.
Although Xian Lin'er's terms were harsher, and the penalty for failure far harder to accept,
he had always understood the principle that fortune favored the bold.
If they really managed to cultivate a Level 9 Soul Engineer, perhaps even the greatest Soul Engineer on the continent, it would be an unprecedented boon both for him and for Shrek!
For a matter this important, he naturally wouldn't hesitate to stake everything!
From the day he'd given Jiang Yang a million Gold Soul Coins as living expenses for his first year, Qian Duoduo had already made up his mind.
"Outrageous!"
"This is the Sea God Pavilion, not a marketplace!"
"Sit down! Or the three of you can get out right now!"
Only after Elder Lin's rebuke
did the three finally quiet down and take their seats.
However,
it was obvious that Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and Qian Duoduo had locked horns.
None of them would back down.
And although Elder Lin had managed to silence the three, she had no way to resolve such a thorny conflict.
This was the first time since the Sea God Pavilion's founding that there had been such a serious internal dispute.
Even if the dispute was well-intentioned, with everyone acting in Shrek's best interests,
who could say it wouldn't turn into a vicious rivalry if they failed to handle it properly?
These three were powerful Titled Douluo, especially Xian Lin'er and Yan Shaozhe, who were Super Douluo.
If they really broke into open conflict, the blow to Shrek Academy would be nothing short of devastating.
"Have you all finished?"
"Then it's my turn."
"Don't threaten to quit at the drop of a hat."
"A peerless genius, one we might not see for ten thousand years, has appeared in Shrek. That's a good thing. Don't turn it into a disaster in the end."
"Look at you. When I'm gone a hundred years from now, how can I feel at ease leaving Shrek in your hands?"
At the words of the old man on the reclining chair,
Yan Shaozhe immediately rose and bowed deeply to him. "I'm sorry, teacher!"
Xian Lin'er and Qian Duoduo also stood and bowed to the figure. "Elder Mu, you honor us too much."
"Tell me, while Jiang Yang was studying in your Soul Tool Department these past few days, did he neglect his Martial Soul cultivation?"
As soon as Mu En finished speaking,
Dean Qian Duoduo promptly replied with respect:
"No. Since classes haven't started yet, Jiang Yang spent nearly the entire day with us. But the fact that he earned his Level 2 Soul Engineer badge after just two days certainly proves his frightening talent for making Soul Tools!"
"At first, I was worried that studying with us would cause Jiang Yang to neglect his Martial Soul cultivation."
"But I soon put that concern aside. I had someone keep an eye on what he did at night."
"I never expected that after going back, he'd take a quick bath, eat a little, then sit down to meditate and cultivate, using that in place of sleep."
"We all know how grueling it is to replace sleep with meditative cultivation, so there's no need to elaborate. Nearly everyone here went through that process. But to be blunt, at Jiang Yang's age, could we have done the same—and done it as well as he does?"
That was true.
Everyone knew that working hard at cultivation led to good results.
But how many people could actually endure the hardship of that effort?
Spending all day learning new things, then going home and immediately consolidating his cultivation at night—
how many people could handle going nonstop, twenty-four hours a day?
"What level is his Soul Power now?"
Cai Mei'er, who had said little until then, spoke up. She was the Martial Soul Department's vice dean and usually taught in the Inner Court.
She hadn't planned to get involved in the argument,
but when she saw a boy who was not only exceptionally talented, but also willing to endure such hardship,
her heart skipped a beat.
What an extraordinary prospect!
"The day before yesterday, I had him tested. He was at Level 34. He was Level 33 when he enrolled."
Qian Duoduo answered proudly.
Now, even the Sea God Pavilion Elders, who had grown somewhat immune to geniuses, couldn't help giving Jiang Yang a thumbs-up.
His talent, character, and future potential all deserved the word "peerless."
"What does it mean to be peerless?"
"To stand above one's generation, unmatched beneath the heavens!"
"I think this promising boy should stay in the Martial Soul Institute. He's reached this level by cultivating only at night. If he trained all day, Shrek might really produce a Titled Douluo at the age of twenty-four."
"If he stays in the Martial Soul Department, I'm willing to be his mentor and teach him one-on-one."
"Why not just let the boy choose for himself?"
"Besides, if we're talking about breaking the rules, your Soul Tool Department was the first to break them when you tried to snatch a new student from the Martial Soul Department as soon as he enrolled."
The moment Xuan Zi said this,
Yan Shaozhe and Cai Mei'er immediately brightened.
Rules aside,
Xuan Zi hadn't personally taken on a disciple in a long time.
The value of personal instruction from a Level 98 Super Douluo was nothing short of extravagant anywhere on the Douluo Continent!
Would Jiang Yang really turn him down?
The Sea God Pavilion Elders knew the answer all too well.
Of course,
if Jiang Yang had heard that, he'd have been at a loss for words.
Who didn't know the name of the Holy Spirit Cult's Supreme Elder, Taotie Douluo Xuan Zi?
Whoever he took on as a disciple died. Who'd dare let him teach them?
What if he were a causal-law weapon?
Why was there only one well-known senior sister left in the Inner Court now, Zhang Lexuan?
Where had all the Inner Court geniuses of her generation gone?
Hard to guess.
"Elder Xuan, as an Elder, how can you so blatantly take the Martial Soul Department's side? That's not fair!"
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