Wu Zhangkong led the two of them to her office.
The office was pitifully small. Wu Zhangkong sat in the only chair and looked at Tang Wulin. "You did reasonably well, but you didn't fully make use of your strengths."
"Your Blue Silver Grass must have mutated, right? It's tougher than most, but does that toughness depend on your Soul Power?"
"Yes." Tang Wulin nodded.
"Your Soul Power is far too weak!" Wu Zhangkong's words were merciless.
"And what's the deal with those two hammers of yours?"
Tang Wulin answered honestly, "Because my Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, and my Soul Spirit is no good either, I thought I might not be able to become a Soul Master."
"So I started learning blacksmithing in elementary school..."
"So you've decided to become a blacksmith?" Wu Zhangkong cut Tang Wulin off. "Remember, you're my student now. You have to make it, whether you can or not."
"Until I decide you're a hopeless waste, you'll do your best to develop as a Soul Master."
"You are never allowed to give up on me!"
Huh? Didn't you just call the two of us hopeless wastes?
Xie Xie's mouth twitched.
After Wu Zhangkong's words fired him up, Tang Wulin rallied and answered, "Yes!"
"Good. As for Xie Xie..."
The moment Wu Zhangkong's gaze fell on him, Xie Xie immediately stood up straight.
"What kind of fighting was that? Control-Type Battle Spirit Masters naturally counter Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Masters, yet you chose to charge straight at him and fight head-on? Give your brain a shake. Is it full of water, or did a fish eat it?"
Wu Zhangkong's icy gaze scraped over Xie Xie like a knife as she fired off one question after another.
Xie Xie shrank his neck under the scolding.
"As an Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master, your strengths are speed, surprise attacks, and maneuvering—not going toe-to-toe."
"The thing a Control-Type Battle Spirit Master fears least is an idiot like you charging headfirst into their control range!"
Xie Xie lowered his head even further, scarcely daring to breathe.
It can't be helped. In my previous life, I was just a freshman. The day I finished the college entrance exams, my brain had already been formatted and reset. I hadn't even gotten into a fight in all three years of high school. How was I supposed to know I'd suddenly transmigrate?
"Still, there's something interesting about your Martial Soul."
Wu Zhangkong interlaced her fingers and rested them against her chin. "Your Light Dragon Dagger temporarily changed during that fight, turning into a Light Dragon Blade. Its force surged, and its edge came fully to the fore. That was a clear case of Martial Soul Evolution."
"Didn't you notice? You're not just suited to agility attacks. You also have a talent for power attacks."
Wu Zhangkong's tone was even, but every word was crystal clear.
Xie Xie jerked his head up, looking incredulous as he pointed at himself with his index finger.
"Power attacks? Me?"
"Teacher Wu, I was just flailing around in a desperate burst!"
"Flailing around can unleash the explosive power of an Attack Type?"
Wu Zhangkong raised an eyebrow, her tone turning cold again. "You have the talent, but you've made a complete mess of using it. The Shadow Dragon Dagger excels at surprise attacks; the Light Dragon Blade excels at breaking through. One is agile, the other powerful. You have both systems."
Xie Xie's head was truly spinning. In the original story, Xie Xie hadn't had any talent for power attacks, had he?
Wu Zhangkong rose and took a step forward, lowering her voice with unquestionable authority:
"Your talent must not go to waste. Other people have only one path to take. You have two."
"Combine the speed of an Agility Type with the explosive force of an Attack Type, and if you use them well, few opponents at the same level will be able to withstand a single blow from you."
Xie Xie was both shocked and delighted. So he really was a natural-born talent?
"Don't think you can get cocky just because you have talent."
Wu Zhangkong saw right through Xie Xie's little scheme and said coldly, "Talent you don't use is worthless. Since you're the strongest in the class, I'm bound to hold you to the highest standards."
"Agile or powerful, swift or breaking through!"
"Those eight words are the core of your training from now on. Understand?!"
"Understood!!" Xie Xie stood tall and puffed out his chest.
"Good. Now, business." Wu Zhangkong sat back down. "Our academy holds a Class Promotion Tournament. Classes at the bottom of the rankings can challenge those above them."
"Here's an example."
"If we beat Class Four, we'll become Class Four. And so on. We can keep challenging our way up."
"So the two of you need to work together and turn our class into First Grade Class One!"
"Until you reach that goal, we'll put you through special training every day!"
"Of course, after you become First Grade Class One, you can keep challenging higher-grade classes. You'll receive a reward for every first victory you earn in a challenge against a higher grade."
"No problem!" Xie Xie declared first, thumping his chest. "First Grade Class One? Consider it done!"
This time, Wu Zhangkong didn't contradict him.
After answering a few more of Tang Wulin's questions, the two of them left Wu Zhangkong's office.
On the way back to the dorm, Xie Xie put his hands behind his head and let out a long breath, his face full of relief. "What a nerve-racking day!"
"Um... Xie Xie!"
Tang Wulin suddenly hurried forward a few steps and grabbed the hem of Xie Xie's shirt.
Xie Xie looked back. "What's up?"
Tang Wulin took a deep breath, then said with utmost seriousness, "I absolutely won't hold you back in the Class Promotion Tournament!"
"That's all?" Xie Xie raised an eyebrow.
Then Xie Xie casually slung an arm around Tang Wulin's neck. "I'm just saying, there's no need to underestimate yourself so much. If we really fought, even Class One would be in for a rough time!"
He wasn't joking. The biggest shot in their East Sea F4 hadn't even made an appearance yet!
Caught off guard by the arm around his neck, Tang Wulin went completely stiff. The tips of his ears flushed an unnatural red, but he let Xie Xie keep his arm around him.
Xie Xie didn't notice anything strange about him and only got more and more worked up as he spoke.
"Besides, your Blue Silver Grass and my Light Dragon Dagger are both mutating and evolving for the better. What do we have to fear from a bunch of Little Scumbags?"
And he had a talent that Xie Xie in the original story hadn't possessed. His Martial Soul had evolved ahead of schedule, and the top-tier Space-Time Dragon Martial Soul was already within reach! What was there to be afraid of?
Xie Xie declared, "I'll fight, fight, fight! I'll kill, kill, kill!"
Tang Wulin answered quietly, "I-I understand... We'll work hard together."
"That's more like it, brother!"
After fooling around for a while longer, Tang Wulin said goodbye first and went to the Blacksmith Association, while Xie Xie chose to return straight to the dorm and meditate.
When Xie Xie felt his Soul Power reach a peak, he suddenly opened his eyes.
In the next instant, the surrounding scenery faded away, replaced by a boundless, crystal-clear expanse of nothingness.
"Is this... my Spirit Sea?"
Xie Xie had barely murmured the words when a soft yet dazzling golden light appeared in front of him.
Within the glow, the tiny silhouette of a dragon slowly took shape.
It was a Light Dragon no bigger than a palm, its entire body formed from pure golden motes of light. Its horns were exquisite, its scales shimmered with iridescent colors, and its bright, dewy eyes brimmed with affection.
The moment the little creature appeared, it immediately fixed its gaze on Xie Xie and let out a tiny, delicate dragon cry, like the soft chime of wind bells.
The next second, the little creature gave a gentle flap of its wings.
With a whoosh, it darted up to Xie Xie and happily circled him several times.
First it nuzzled his cheek with its little head, then it hovered by his shoulder, rubbing its dewy dragon eyes against his earlobe and wriggling against him as if begging for affection.
Xie Xie instinctively reached out his hand.
The little creature obediently landed in his palm, curled its tiny body into a ball, and gently rubbed its head against his fingertips, letting out a soft, contented chirp.
Just then, Xie Xie seemed to realize something, and a string of choice words burst from his mouth:
"Holy crap! You're my Light Dragon Dagger?!"
Before you continue