Black, Truly Black

According to custom, every child undergoing martial soul awakening must offer a substantial fee to the soul master in charge, euphemistically called an awakening fee.

Bai Cai knew that in the era of Martial Soul Hall, commoners relied on the organization for awakening. The two great empires, Heaven Dou and Star Luo, spared no effort in recruiting soul masters, yet treated the common folk at the bottom of the social ladder like beasts of burden.

The plot of the first Douluo series was relatively simple, and Bai Cai still remembered several details. Martial Soul Hall provided subsidies to low-level soul masters. In the auction houses of the Heaven Dou Empire, they sold female slaves with mutated martial souls, and even greeters and maids. In the conflicts between Heaven Dou and Star Luo, the majority of those who died were commoners conscripted into the army and low-level soul masters.

From the perspective of a commoner soul master, the three members of the original Shrek Seven Devils were undoubtedly returning kindness with ingratitude. Ma Hongjun came from a commoner background; Oscar came from a commoner background; Tang San, with his father hiding his identity, was effectively a commoner as well.

Who treated commoners with kindness? Martial Soul Hall.

Who helped them awaken their martial souls for free? Martial Soul Hall.

Who provided heavy subsidies to low-level soul masters before they reached the Soul Ancestor rank? Martial Soul Hall.

It is laughable that if Martial Soul Hall had not helped the peach-eyed Oscar awaken his martial soul for free, given his family background of selling tofu, Ning Rongrong would never have even glanced at him. Without the subsidies from Martial Soul Hall, the little fatty Ma Hongjun wouldn't even have been able to afford the price of a prostitute.

And what of Tang San? How much money did he actually earn from blacksmithing? The Gold Soul Coin subsidies provided by Martial Soul Hall were all converted into hidden weapons and poisons to harm others. The board crystal and refined gold for the Dragon Whisker Needle cost hundreds of Gold Soul Coins; how many years of sleepless, tireless blacksmithing would it take to save that much?

Regrettably, even with such disgust for Tang San's actions, the awakening fee could not be avoided, and the best soul master academy remained the rotting, decrepit Shrek Academy.

In this era of continental turmoil, if one wished to master their own destiny and protect their parents and village, they had to go to Shrek Academy to cultivate and learn the knowledge of soul masters.

With an Innate Soul Power of level five, unless Bai Cai cultivated diligently day and night until the age of twelve, any attempt to enter Shrek Academy would undoubtedly be a pipe dream.

Huo Gua was able to enter Shrek because he had a special admission quota from the Tang Sect, exempting him from tuition and miscellaneous fees. Bai Cai's home was destitute, his parents were farmers; how could he afford the exorbitant tuition of Shrek Academy?

If Bai Cai possessed an Innate Soul Power of level six, seven, or even eight, Shrek would certainly be willing to reduce his tuition and arrange for him to be a special student, like a working student.

If his Innate Soul Power were only level four, three, or even lower, Bai Cai would never even consider Shrek Academy. He would join the soul master academies of the various empires or a soul master sect, develop cautiously, and try his best to avoid Huo Gua to ensure his survival.

Unfortunately, the Innate Soul Power heaven granted Bai Cai was neither more nor less than exactly level five. If he worked hard, he could touch the threshold of Shrek Academy's entrance. If he relaxed and fell into depravity, joining the ranks of low-level soul masters, he would at least be an elite monster or a minor boss.

In the village, the lights were dim. For a child who had awakened a martial soul, even if they had no Innate Soul Power and could not become a soul master, their parents would still celebrate for them.

In the distance, in the pitch-black night sky, the stars twinkled. The elders said that powerful soul masters turned into stars after death to protect the Douluo Continent.

"Ralts, Ralts!"

Unofficially translated as a perception beast, the psychic loli Ralts climbed onto Bai Cai's left shoulder.

"As expected, I can't hide anything from you." Bai Cai stroked Ralts's blue hair.

Even the Grandmaster's trash martial soul, Luo Sanpao, could understand the Grandmaster's commands. As an emotion Pokémon with high intelligence, Ralts could naturally perceive his mood.

At this very moment, fate extended two paths: one leading to the ordinary, warm lights of a thousand homes, and the other leading to the deep, distant starry sky.

In reality, there was only one path, wasn't there?

Bai Cai smiled, and Ralts clapped her hands, celebrating Bai Cai's choice.

"Then, let's work hard together!"

"Ralts!"

"Hey, time to eat!" The young woman, holding a large white radish, looked smug as she began to show off her precious son. "Look at you all, so what if he has level five Innate Soul Power? Doesn't he still have to listen to me obediently?"

Farnos Junior Soul Master Academy was affiliated with Farnos City. The dean was named Anuoji, a level 46 Soul Ancestor whose martial soul was a Violent Bear, possessing immense strength.

Most of the students recruited by the academy were commoners; the noble students of Farnos City generally did not cultivate here.

The quality of martial souls among noble children was generally higher than that of commoners, and their Innate Soul Power was also higher. The long-established Five Elements Academies, high-level soul master academies guaranteed by the imperial family, academies run by powerful sects, or Shrek Academy—proper noble children all cultivated in the aforementioned institutions.

The students recruited by Farnos Junior Soul Master Academy generally had an Innate Soul Power not exceeding level four, and their martial souls were relatively weak.

In fact, boys and girls with an Innate Soul Power above level four and excellent martial soul quality already met the hard requirements for joining the Five Elements Academies or soul master sects.

After all, geniuses with an Innate Soul Power exceeding level five were rare. Looking across the Star Luo Empire, apart from the imperial family, Duke White Tiger, a few hereditary nobles, and certain sects that could produce them steadily, commoner soul masters rarely possessed an Innate Soul Power above level five.

For an Innate Soul Power above level four, the greedy, rotting nobles—as ravenous as gluttonous beasts—were already willing to pay a price to recruit them, and female soul masters were often more sought after than males. Inheriting a martial soul was no easy task; the higher the parents' soul power, the higher the offspring's Innate Soul Power tended to be, making it easier to inherit a powerful family martial soul.

Of course, Farnos Junior Soul Master Academy was about to welcome a genius—a commoner genius with level five Innate Soul Power. Innate Soul Power could not entirely determine a person's achievements. However, the higher the Innate Soul Power, the faster the cultivation speed, the higher the ceiling, and the greater the probability of becoming a powerhouse.

With level five Innate Soul Power and a special martial soul, such an excellent commoner genius was willing to attend Farnos Junior Soul Master Academy, and Dean Anuoji was grinning from ear to ear.

Hearing rumors that the student's family was poor, Dean Anuoji instructed the dean of students overnight to waive all tuition and miscellaneous fees, arrange a single dormitory, and create a warm and harmonious atmosphere in the academy.

If the genius student, after graduation, were recruited by the imperial family or other sects and, out of gratitude for Dean Anuoji's care, were willing to invest a large amount of Gold Soul Coins to build and give back to their alma mater, that would be even better.

"You must be Bai Cai, truly a talent of exceptional appearance." The dean of students was all smiles, almost fawning. "My youngest daughter is exactly your age, why don't we..."

It was excessively realistic, even appearing somewhat absurd. Bai Cai had lived in a village since childhood and had not experienced a society where strength was supreme, making it difficult for him to fend off the dean of students' sugar-coated bullets.

In fact, in the original The Unrivaled Tang Sect, the level of recruitment Jiang Nannan faced was even more severe than what Bai Cai encountered from the dean of students.

On one hand, as a female soul master, Jiang Nannan's Innate Soul Power was conservatively estimated to be above level seven, perhaps even reaching level eight or nine. On the other hand, Xu Sanshi's mutated Black Tortoise martial soul required a girl with extremely high Innate Soul Power and excellent martial soul quality as a sacrifice to awaken perfectly.

If not for the pressure of making a living and the influence exerted at the soul master level, coupled with her mother's serious illness, how would Jiang Nannan have been willing to sell her body and engage in social maneuvering?

If Martial Soul Hall had still existed, if nothing else, based on her extremely excellent aptitude, Martial Soul Hall would definitely have been willing to do its best to take care of Jiang Nannan.