Martial Soul Theory

Zhou Yi gave them a quarter of an hour to change. However, aside from Bai Cai and Wang Dong, no one took longer than ten minutes.

Bai Cai had waited for Wang Dong in vain, then headed to the public bathhouse at the end of the hallway, which delayed him.

When the quarter-hour was up, Zhou Yi arrived at the Freshman Class One classroom right on time. Silently counting the heads, she saw that all ninety-one remaining students were present. Zhou Yi said with a hint of satisfaction, "Class begins now. The vast majority of you honestly completed the running assessment, which basically satisfies me."

"Before we officially start, Huo Yuhao, stand up."

"Teacher Zhou." Huo Yuhao, sitting next to Bai Cai, stood up quickly, his back straight as a rod.

Zhou Yi said coldly, "State your Soul Power Level."

Among the students at Shrek Academy, a hierarchy of discrimination exists. At the bottom of this chain are usually commoner soul masters with low Soul Power Levels and poor backgrounds, as the probability of such students graduating successfully is extremely low.

In the middle of the chain are either geniuses among commoner soul masters or those with ties to minor nobility and various martial soul sects; the latter make up the vast majority.

At the top of the chain are individuals like Xu Sanshi, the young sect master of the Black Tortoise Sect; Bei Bei, the grandson of the Dragon God Douluo; and Ning Tian of the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect; or Wang Dong, the apple of the Clear Sky Sect's eye.

Of course, both Bei Bei and Wang Dong were hiding their true identities; Wang Dong had even enrolled as an ordinary soul master.

Huo Yuhao knew that once he revealed his Soul Power Level, it would certainly invite mockery from his classmates.

The rule of the soul master world is that the strong are respected; a student with a poor background and low Soul Power Level would inevitably be severely ostracized.

However, could he refuse Zhou Yi's decision? Or attempt to hide the truth from a six-ring Soul Emperor?

"My Soul Power Level is eleven," Huo Yuhao said respectfully.

Upon hearing Huo Yuhao admit his Soul Power Level was only eleven, expressions of doubt appeared to varying degrees in the eyes of the students, with the exceptions of Bai Cai and Wang Dong.

Bai Cai remembered this part of the plot. Wang Dong was lost in thought, wondering what he was pondering.

It is common knowledge that the minimum entrance requirement for Shrek Academy is reaching a Soul Power Level of fifteen before the age of twelve. Since Huo Yuhao's Soul Power was only eleven, why was he able to pass the Shrek Academy admissions assessment?

Most students were filled with doubts, while a small number found it intriguing. The strange gazes of the entire class converged on Huo Yuhao, who had stood up on his own.

"That's right, Huo Yuhao's Soul Power is only eleven. I know you are all curious as to why Huo Yuhao was able to pass the academy's assessment."

"After I tell you, no student is permitted to use this as a reason to make things difficult for Huo Yuhao before he is eliminated."

"Huo Yuhao is a specially invited student of the academy. He does not need to pass the assessment to enter; this is the only privilege of a specially invited student. If he cannot complete the learning tasks assigned by the academy, he will be eliminated just the same."

"Alright, sit down." Zhou Yi nodded to signal him.

"Thank you, teacher." Huo Yuhao bowed gratefully. Zhou Yi had made him state his Soul Power Level clearly to protect him!

Zhou Yi smiled, her wrinkles resembling orange peel, then turned to the blackboard and raised her hand to write the characters for "Attack" and "Defense," circling each one.

"I know that many students are very dissatisfied with my teaching methods, yet you dare not defy a six-ring Soul Emperor."

"However, once you become high-level soul masters, you will naturally understand my intentions. As for other matters, I cannot be bothered to explain."

"You must recognize the two words circled on the blackboard. The content of today's second lesson is the attack and defense of a soul master."

"Since ancient times, soul masters have been divided into many categories based on the focus and inclination of their own martial souls, including Power Attack, Agility Attack, Support, Food, Control, Defense, and so on."

"Some soul masters take unconventional paths and blaze new trails, while others follow the rules and proceed step-by-step; there are countless ways of cultivation."

Zhou Yi summarized the classifications and types of soul masters, then suddenly called out, "Bai Cai, please answer. Which types are good at attacking, and which types lean toward defense or support?"

Bai Cai stood up calmly and, after a moment of thought, said, "Soul masters good at attacking are good at attacking, and soul masters leaning toward defense lean toward defense."

"A glib, meaningless answer." Zhou Yi frowned. "Unsatisfactory."

"Teacher Zhou, please listen to the rest of my answer," Bai Cai said indifferently.

"Oh?" Zhou Yi raised an eyebrow. "I'll give you one more chance."

Bai Cai took a deep breath and explained, "Attack, defense, and support are not suitable as standards for dividing soul master types; it would be better to classify them as three inclinations of combat style."

"Some Power Attack soul masters are not necessarily good at frontal assaults and are better suited for counter-attacks. Some Defense soul masters are good at area defense and are better suited to act as support. Some Support soul masters lean toward weakening the enemy or controlling them, becoming the vanguard of battle, their actual role being the same as a Power Attack or Agility Attack soul master."

"Soul masters with turtle-type martial souls usually attach defense-type soul rings; however, the Eagle Turtle, Crocodile Turtle, and Black Tortoise—these three turtle-type martial souls—have extremely strong attack attributes and secondary defense attributes, making them perfectly capable of being Power Attack soul masters."

"Vine-type martial souls usually attach control-type soul rings; however, vine-type martial souls like the Ghost Vine or Thorn Vine lean more toward weakening the enemy and defensive counter-attacks, and could be called team-defense soul masters."

Teachers at the Farnos Junior Soul Master Academy almost never checked Bai Cai's martial soul theory homework because his grades in the subject were excellent; by the first semester of his second year, his homework format had already turned into research papers.

In the second semester, Bai Cai was advised to withdraw because the content of his papers was too profound; the knowledge level of some teachers was relatively low, making it difficult for them to grade his work or even judge whether his conclusions were correct.

Of course, most soul master academies do not care about grades in cultural courses at all. Knowing how to distinguish the type and age of a soul beast and choosing a suitable soul ring is enough to be a qualified soul master.

In layman's terms, apart from graduates of Shrek Academy, most graduates of soul master academies only remember the common sense of soul masters, such as how to choose a future development direction based on the characteristics of their martial soul.

Bai Cai had even thought deeply about what the basis for classifying soul master types was, and whether that basis actually matched reality.

"Very good!" Zhou Yi praised him, a rarity. "Power Attack, Agility Attack, Defense, Control, Support—the five-category system used ten thousand years ago has many errors and omissions. Some soul master academies and sects still use these ancient methods to train soul masters."

"Shrek Academy recruits from all over the continent. Upon entering the academy, freshmen must reverse their previous concepts of martial souls and soul masters as quickly as possible."

"Of course, the original angle of this was the blurring of attack and defense caused by the development of Soul Tools." Zhou Yi applauded. "Although your answer did not touch upon the part about Soul Tools, your foundation in martial soul theory is quite solid."

"However, the main goal for the next three months is to pass the freshman assessment. Only after passing the assessment will we conduct differentiated teaching according to martial soul classification and soul master development tendencies."

"Alright, that's it for the morning session. I suggest you have a good lunch; physical training begins in the afternoon."

"Also, Bai Cai, Huo Yuhao, I will be waiting for you in my office."