"You have a real talent for Soul Tools. I never thought that old Yan would send me such a promising student."
Wang Yan was thrilled to hear this. If Huo Yuhao could earn this man's favor, then even if he failed to reach Level 20 by his second year, he wouldn't be expelled.
As vice dean of the Soul Tool Department, Qian Duoduo had that kind of influence.
Qian Duoduo said, "It's a pity his Soul Power is still too low. Even a Soul Engineer can't have too little Soul Power. Without enough Soul Power to support them, they can't become a high-level Soul Engineer."
Wang Yan said, "Dean Qian, he has a rare Body Martial Soul. Perhaps he'll even undergo a Second Awakening in the future."
A Second Awakening was indeed important for a Body Martial Soul, but unfortunately, Shrek didn't have the ability to make that happen.
For that, they would have to turn to the Body Sect.
Qian Duoduo suddenly heard a voice transmission. "How about this? Come see me once a day. There are a few senior fellow disciples here. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask them. I have something important to take care of now!"
After speaking, Qian Duoduo hurried off at a breakneck pace.
Although he hadn't secured a promise, he had at least been given an opportunity.
Huo Yuhao was satisfied, too.
"Teacher Wang, what's Dean Qian going to do?"
Wang Yan had an idea what could make Qian Duoduo so anxious, but he couldn't be sure. "Important people have their own concerns. We just need to take care of our own business."
Knowing too much or too little was both worse than knowing just enough.
Wang Yan looked in the direction Qian Duoduo had gone. "Could it be that Ji Siyuan's talent is already so extraordinary that it warrants a Sea God Pavilion Meeting?"
The elders took their seats in the Sea God Pavilion.
Mu En was still lying back in his chair at the head of the table.
With Qian Duoduo's arrival, the Sea God Pavilion Meeting officially began.
Mu En waved a hand, asking Yan Shaozhe to preside over the meeting, since he was the one who had called for it.
"I called this Sea God Pavilion Meeting primarily because of one of our freshmen, Ji Siyuan. He has an Ultimate Martial Soul!" Yan Shaozhe couldn't hide his pride.
These old hands knew all too well what an Ultimate Martial Soul meant.
"Are you sure, Shaozhe? What kind of Martial Soul does he have?"
Verifying the information was the most important thing.
A false alarm would be a joke.
"I might mistake some other Ultimate Attribute, but his is Ultimate Fire. There's no way I could be wrong. His flames are far hotter than Xiaotao's. I think that even if Xiaotao either gave up her Evil Fire or embraced it, her flames still wouldn't be hotter than his."
Ultimate Ice meant absolute cold. Ultimate Fire meant absolute heat.
Over the years, Yan Shaozhe had studied flames extensively.
He himself possessed a light-affiliated flame.
It wasn't Ultimate, but it was still powerful.
Even he could feel the difference.
Xuan Zi wiped his greasy paws. "What's his Martial Soul? If we know that, won't it be easier to judge?"
Yan Shaozhe could only smile wryly. "His Martial Soul is the Geocentric Red Lotus. I've never heard of it."
"Geocentric Red Lotus?"
Their preconceived notion of lotuses still held sway. Though puzzled, they understood. The world was full of strange things, and unusual Martial Souls were bound to exist.
"An unfamiliar Martial Soul may well be the result of a mutation. Who are his parents?"
"I don't know. I didn't ask." Yan Shaozhe said, "Elder Xuan, haven't we strayed a little from today's topic?"
Xuan Zi said, "Aren't we here to discuss this kid?"
"No. We're here to decide what kind of treatment he should receive."
Lin Huiqun said, "Though the situation has become more urgent, haven't we had policies in place for Ultimate Martial Souls all these years? You have the authority to decide this. Give him some of the resources first, then we can discuss a more detailed plan."
Yan Shaozhe said, "There's something else I'd like to report to the elders before we decide on his treatment."
Everyone looked at Yan Shaozhe, waiting for him to explain.
"He didn't awaken his Martial Soul at six. He awakened it a few days ago. Bei Bei and Tang Ya can confirm this."
The others understood at once. This was about his Soul Power Level, right?
"So he used the Tang Sect's admission slot?"
Qian Duoduo suddenly sensed that something was off.
"No. He didn't use the Tang Sect's slot. His roommate, Huo Yuhao, did. He himself was admitted through the regular process."
Only then did Qian Duoduo realize what had seemed wrong. Huo Yuhao was the one who didn't meet the admission requirements and had used the Tang Sect's slot.
He leaned back, thinking he'd figured it out, then suddenly realized something was still off.
"Don't our admission requirements stipulate at least Level 15? He only just awakened his Martial Soul. How did he reach Level 15?"
One by one, the elders doubted whether this could be true. "Impossible. Even with Innate Full Soul Power, awakening couldn't bring someone all the way to Level 15. Unless he used all sorts of pills to raise his Soul Power, in which case his foundation would be unstable. That would be a problem."
They soon came up with a plausible explanation.
But Yan Shaozhe immediately refuted it. "He didn't use any pills, and his First Soul Ring is a Thousand-Year Soul Ring. I strongly suspect his Innate Soul Power exceeds Level 10!"
Surpassing Level 10 was beyond anything they could imagine. The only reasonable explanation they could come up with was that Bei Bei and Tang Ya were helping him stage a deception.
"That's impossible. Even an Ultimate Martial Soul could never exceed ten levels of Innate Soul Power. No Martial Soul can do that."
"No, actually, one can."
There was no need to say more. Everyone understood why Yan Shaozhe had called the meeting.
Xuan Zi said, "If it's true, then he's certainly worth giving better treatment."
Behind it all lay just two words: becoming a god.
Even the Ultimate Douluo could be slain, but a god was beyond all possibility!
The last time someone became a god was so long ago that people no longer believed anyone could ascend to godhood.
Yan Shaozhe said, "And Ji Siyuan has clearly stated that he won't stay at Shrek."
That made things difficult.
If he wouldn't stay, there was no need to give him top-tier treatment. They could just treat him like anyone else.
Mu En, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up. "Bei Bei has already told me. His Innate Soul Power really did exceed Level 10. I've also felt his flames. They are indeed Ultimate Fire, and they're the most powerful I've ever encountered in my life."
Though the others were surprised that Mu En knew about Ji Siyuan, they trusted his judgment.
"If you want to bet on his potential, then don't concern yourselves with whether he'll choose to stay. That's something to consider when thinking about his limits."
After saying that, Mu En still didn't give them a definitive answer.
With this old man gone, who else could make the final call?
No one was willing to make that decision.
A god-ranked Martial Soul didn't mean its owner was certain to become a god.
Mu En looked at them and shook his head. "We at Shrek have been powerful for so long. Have you all forgotten that we're an academy, not a true power? What makes an academy strong? It's having students everywhere in the world!"
"I've looked into the boy's character. He's no treacherous, ambitious sort. Give him resources in stages. We can provide basic resources like Red Flame Fruit and Whale Rubber. Then make a plan for what comes next. Don't let him lose heart."
"Yes, Teacher."
Mu En had made the arrangements, so there was nothing more to discuss. They only had to follow them.
Yan Shaozhe said, "Teacher, Zhou Yi, the head teacher of his class, was suspended and ordered to reflect after beating a student. Wang Yan took over her classes for now. Do we need to make any adjustments?"
Mu En said, "No. After the Freshman Assessment and class assignments, I'll have Lexuan become his head teacher. She probably won't be teaching him for long anyway."