Douluo Continent.
Heaven Dou Empire, Fasinuo Province, Nuoding City.
In the cafeteria of Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy, Lin Yi stared at the black, hard thing in his hand and fell into deep thought.
[Was this a steamed bun or a rock? They were making me eat this at only six years old?]
Tang San, who was quietly chewing on a steamed bun in the corner of the cafeteria, suddenly noticed several people around him choking at the same time.
Xiao Wu, seated across from him, coughed until her face turned red.
Wang Sheng beside him directly spat out what was in his mouth.
"What's wrong?" Tang San put down his steamed bun, his brows slightly furrowed.
"Nothing." Xiao Wu waved her hand, though her eyes involuntarily drifted toward the other end of the cafeteria.
A black-haired little boy sat there, currently wrestling with the steamed bun in his hand.
And she seemed to have heard that little boy's Heart Voice.
Not only that.
It seemed that everyone except Tang San could hear it.
Tang San said nothing and continued eating with his head lowered.
He felt that the cafeteria's atmosphere was a little strange today, but he could not put his finger on what exactly was strange.
Lin Yi had not noticed the commotion over here at all.
He had transmigrated to Douluo Continent six years ago. There was no system, no cheat. He had finally managed to enter this so-called Soul Master Academy, only for the food to break his spirit all over again.
[At least this is a Soul Master Academy. Work-Study Students are people too. Could they give us something edible?]
[Oh, right, I remember now. In the original story, Work-Study Students were treated badly. A cheater like Tang San could improve his meals by making money through his family's blacksmithing, but ordinary people could only eat this stuff.]
[Forget it, I'll make do. I should receive my first month's subsidy in a few days. Then I can go outside and buy meat buns...]
"Hehe."
This time, Xiao Wu could not hold back and laughed aloud.
"Xiao Wu?" Tang San looked at her in confusion.
"Nothing, nothing."
Xiao Wu suppressed her laughter, her eyes sparkling. "I just suddenly thought... meat buns really do taste better than this."
Tang San was even more confused.
Where were there any meat buns?
Lin Yi struggled through half a steamed bun and sighed.
[Come to think of it, Tang San and Xiao Wu should have been enrolled for quite a while by now, right? They might even be in this cafeteria.]
[Let me look... that little girl with the rabbit-ear hair accessory and the black-haired little boy across from her—that's them.]
Xiao Wu suddenly straightened her back, her little hand unconsciously touching the accessory in her hair.
Rabbit ears. That description was rather fitting.
Tang San noticed Xiao Wu's odd behavior and followed her gaze, meeting Lin Yi's eyes just as he looked over.
The two locked eyes for a second.
[Tsk, he looks much more ordinary in person than in the anime. And he can still win the favor of so many beauties? As expected, a protagonist's halo is unreasonable.]
Upon "hearing" that, Xiao Wu could not help covering her mouth and laughing.
Tang San frowned slightly and asked curiously, "Xiao Wu, what exactly are you laughing about?"
"N-Nothing." Xiao Wu tried hard to calm herself. "I just think some people may look ordinary, but they're actually very impressive."
Her words came out of nowhere, leaving Tang San utterly baffled.
Lin Yi withdrew his gaze and continued battling the remaining steamed bun.
[Forget it. It has nothing to do with me. I just want to muddle through until graduation, then stay far away from the protagonist group and avoid getting involved in all those fighting-and-killing plotlines.]
[If Tang San wants to fight Spirit Hall, let him fight it. If he wants to become a god, let him become one. Just don't drag me down with him.]
The cafeteria suddenly fell silent for a moment.
The cafeteria aunt serving porridge trembled, giving someone an extra half-scoop.
Several teachers in the corner exchanged glances.
Wang Sheng swallowed and cautiously glanced at Tang San.
Become a god?
Fight Spirit Hall?
Was that not a little too much information?
Tang San frowned.
He felt that the way everyone looked at him had become strange, as if they knew some secret that he did not.
"Xiao Wu, is there something on my face?" he could not help asking.
"Huh? No." Xiao Wu blinked and casually asked, "It's just... Tang San, do you have any dreams for the future?"
Dreams?
Tang San froze for a moment, memories of the Tang Sect flashing through his mind.
After a moment, he said solemnly, "I want to become a powerful Soul Master and stand at the pinnacle of this world."
[Well, there's the cringe declaration. Still, he really did achieve it.]
[It's just that after becoming a god, he got rather unreasonable, using those so-called rules to restrain others while ignoring them himself...]
Xiao Wu: "..."
She suddenly felt that the steamed bun in her mouth no longer tasted good.
She had never expected the person sitting across from her to be that sort of person.
Seeing that Xiao Wu's expression was off, Tang San asked again, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just think your dream is quite grand," Xiao Wu said stiffly.
Lin Yi finally finished the steamed bun, gathered his dishes, and prepared to leave.
[Sigh, I still have to attend theory class later and listen to Yu Xiaogang brag.]
[What Grandmaster? Isn't he just a theory-plagiarizing freak? He pieced together other people's research and packaged it as his own work.]
[Though I can't blame him entirely. His Soul Power Level can't rise, so he had to find something to do to pass the time, right?]
[Oh, right. I remember that in the original story, he didn't teach classes. What the heck is going on??]
Clang.
The sound of a pot falling to the floor came from the cafeteria kitchen.
Several teachers stood up almost simultaneously, their expressions more colorful than the last.
Yu Xiaogang?
Theory plagiarism?
There was too much information. They needed time to digest it.
Tang San watched everyone's reactions, his frown deepening.
Something was wrong.
Something was definitely wrong.
These people had to be hiding something from him.
Lin Yi had no idea how great a stir his Heart Voice had caused.
He left the cafeteria, still calculating the days ahead in his mind.
[Work-Study Students have to work too, cleaning and such. But I remember Tang San soon turned things around through his family's blacksmithing.]
[Should I get on good terms with him and mooch a few meat buns first?]
[Forget it. I won't get involved. I should keep a low profile. Anyway, I have that secret. As long as it isn't exposed, I should be able to protect myself.]
A secret?
What secret?
Xiao Wu pricked up her ears, her eyes blinking rapidly.
It was not just her. Aside from Tang San, nearly everyone in the cafeteria was secretly watching Lin Yi.
Or rather, waiting for what he would say next.
Yet Lin Yi said nothing more, disappointing quite a few people.
Tang San finally realized where the problem lay.
Everyone's attention was focused on that little boy preparing to leave the cafeteria.
"Who is he?" Tang San asked Wang Sheng in a low voice.
"A newly arrived Work-Study Student," Wang Sheng replied quietly. "His name is Lin Yi. He enrolled three days ago, and his martial soul is..."
He paused, seemingly trying to remember. "It seems to be an auxiliary-type martial soul, but I'm not sure exactly what it is."
Though Tang San could not hear the Heart Voices, he could see everyone's reactions.
That Lin Yi was definitely not simple.
He stood and walked toward Lin Yi.
"Hello, my name is Tang San. I'm also a Work-Study Student."
Lin Yi froze for a moment and turned to look at the protagonist of the original story before him.
[Holy crap, he came to find me on his own? What's going on? According to the plot, shouldn't you be ignoring worldly matters and focusing on developing your relationship with Xiao Wu?]
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