"Thanks for your help, senior. See you again."
"That's right. We're bound to see each other again." Zhang Lexuan smiled sweetly.
Ji Siyuan let out an "Oh." "Why are you so sure?"
"Because I'm your new homeroom teacher. I just won't take up the post until after the Freshman Assessment. So, junior, you can call me 'teacher' in advance."
As Ji Siyuan stared at her, dumbfounded, Zhang Lexuan returned to the Inner Court.
"What on earth was that all about?"
Tang San said, "She seems pretty good. At least she's much better than that masked woman." He hadn't even remembered Zhou Yi's name.
"She's strong and good-natured, but she can be tough when she needs to be. She's also stricter than the current teacher, Wang Yan. If she stays with you until graduation, she'll definitely be better than those two."
Clearly, Tang San and Ji Siyuan both knew there was no way they'd follow the usual path.
"Whatever. Let's go back to the dorm and get some rest. Tomorrow, I'll find Xu Sanshi and practice my Soul Skill."
"You're in such a hurry to get back to the dorm that you're even skipping dinner. You haven't changed your ways; you're just thinking about your prey, aren't you? She's a girl disguised as a boy. Do you really need to worry about someone running off with her?"
"Uncle!"
"One day apart feels like three autumns. Your uncle's said too much. Go on, then. Maybe there's already another boy in your dorm."
Ignoring Tang San's laughter, Ji Siyuan dashed toward the dormitory.
Outside the dormitory, Mu En caught him.
"Why are you running so fast? This old man isn't going to eat you."
"You old—no, senior, why are you still here?"
Mu En often showed up outside the dormitory, sitting there for reasons no one could guess.
As usual, Ji Siyuan moved Mu En to a spot where the sun could reach him.
"All set, senior. Now you can enjoy a lovely sunbath."
Mu En used his Soul Power to turn his wheelchair toward him. "You've got time to joke around with an old man like me. Looks like you got yourself a pretty good Soul Skill. Why not show me?"
"This?"
"Yes, right here. Don't worry, I'm here. Nothing will go wrong."
As the academy's rising star, Mu En was deeply invested in Ji Siyuan's growth.
He watched Ji Siyuan leave and return to the dormitory every day, sensing the changes within him.
He had also looked through a vast amount of records and conducted investigations in person.
Even so, he still couldn't figure out exactly what Ji Siyuan's Martial Soul was.
Going deep into the earth was even less possible. Humans simply couldn't reach the planet's core.
And even if Mu En went, there was no guarantee he'd find a Geocentric Red Lotus.
The birth of a Geocentric Red Lotus was a miracle in itself. It couldn't be replicated.
With no other choice, he could only treat it as an Ultimate Martial Soul for now.
"Could I stop being human for once?"
"You want to hit an old man like me? Fine, go ahead." Mu En cheerfully agreed to Ji Siyuan's request.
A Soul Grandmaster could never beat a Titled Douluo, no matter what.
Ji Siyuan summoned his Martial Soul, and his two Thousand-Year Soul Rings blazed brilliantly. Apart from using special secret techniques to improve them, no one could start out with two Thousand-Year Soul Rings. He was the first.
"Second Soul Skill, Blazing Fire Lotus!"
Flames erupted beneath Mu En and formed a red lotus. A pillar of fire shot skyward.
It burst from the earth and surged toward the heavens.
It had a knockback effect and tremendous power.
"Excellent Soul Skill. Even among Thousand-Year Soul Skills, its power is top-tier. With your Ultimate Fire, you'll be practically invincible among three-ring Soul Masters."
Ji Siyuan wasn't entirely satisfied with that assessment. "I already beat Dai Huabin, and he has three rings."
"Do you really want to compare yourself to him?"
The words struck him like a bolt of enlightenment. Beating a three-ring Soul Master with one ring was a fine achievement, but his opponent had been Dai Huabin—a man who didn't deserve to be compared to him in the first place. How could he be pleased about that? He should treat it as an ordinary feat.
With enough talent, almost anyone could beat Dai Huabin across a level gap. Ji Siyuan had been at level eighteen back then. Even with the gap, that victory didn't prove much.
He should be comparing himself to the great figures of history, not the weakling Dai Huabin of today.
"Thanks, old man."
"Mm. Remember to train hard. I'm going to rest now."
"Sure."
"Put me back where I was!" Every time Ji Siyuan chatted with him, he moved him somewhere else. It put Mu En in a bad mood.
"Don't you have Soul Power? Do it yourself."
Mu En laughed and scolded him a couple of times as he watched Ji Siyuan rush into the dormitory.
"Damn, chatting with an old man really wastes time."
It had only cost him a few minutes, but Ji Siyuan still felt annoyed.
He reached the dorm room.
He pushed open the door. "I'm back."
Tang San said, "Oh, there really is another boy here."
Seeing someone with pink-and-blue hair in the dorm, Ji Siyuan had the same thought at first.
Then he realized it was probably Wang Dong.
"It should be Wang Dong'er."
Tang San looked puzzled. "Why 'should be'?"
"Because I'm not sure either."
The two talking inside heard him and immediately turned around.
"Welcome back, Siyuan."
"Look who finally decided to come back." The person in their dorm was Wang Dong'er.
"What's going on? Why are you in our dorm? Isn't this the boys' dormitory?"
Wang Dong'er said, "I came to talk to you and Huo Yuhao about the Freshman Assessment, but you weren't here. So I could only talk to him."
"The Freshman Assessment? Isn't that a month from now? Why are they bringing it up so early?"
The Freshman Assessment was supposed to take place three months later, with students assigned to classes afterward.
It was an old tradition. Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi had told him several times that he had to take first place; the rewards would be excellent.
And the better the new students were, the better the rewards would be.
This year's freshman class was undoubtedly the best yet. The rewards were sure to be generous.
There was no point leaving a reward unclaimed.
Wang Dong'er said, "Hmph, who knows? The teacher just announced in class that the rules are different this year."
"Different? How?" Ji Siyuan had heard rumors, but he didn't know any of the details.
Wang Dong'er said, "I can't explain it clearly. Let Huo Yuhao tell you."
Huo Yuhao said, "There are three stages. First, we form our own teams, with three people to a team. If we haven't formed a team and submitted it by one week before the assessment begins, the school and teachers will assign us to teams. The second stage is a small-scale melee. Three teams compete at once, and the winning team advances to the next round. It continues until six teams remain.
"Finally, there's a large-scale melee in the finals to decide the champion team."
They hadn't completely abandoned the old three-person team format, since the Soul Fight Tournament had battle formats like two-two-three.
But this was completely different from the usual three-on-three matches. The whole thing would use a melee format.
With this setup, even the strongest team might not advance if everyone ganged up on them. Unless they were overwhelmingly stronger than the rest.
"Good timing. I'll team up with you two. Don't tell me you've already found someone else."
Huo Yuhao said, "Among our year, you two are the only ones I know well."
Ji Siyuan was much the same. The only other person he knew was Dai Huabin, whom he'd fought.
Putting him on a team with Dai Huabin would just be tormenting him.
There was no way he'd do it.
"Hey, don't tell me someone reserved you for their team while you were out?" Wang Dong'er asked Ji Siyuan.
"Then it's settled—we're a team!"