The Sea of Consciousness now held only Lin Xiu and Lin Fan. The others were either resting or off taking care of their own business.
"Fan." Lin Xiu hurried forward, his voice gentle but carrying a faint, barely perceptible note of reluctance. He called out to Lin Fan, who was about to turn and leave.
Lin Fan stopped and turned halfway around, a trace of confusion in his eyes as he looked at him. "What is it?"
"Here's the thing." Lin Xiu gathered his thoughts. "Golden Spear Tigers were basically extinct by the Dragon King era, so I was wondering if we could use your era to turn one into a Soul Spirit, then send it over to my side."
The moment Lin Fan heard this, he understood what the guy was planning. "You're trying to exploit a time BUG this way, then give Ano the best possible Soul Spirit."
"Exactly." Lin Xiu nodded.
It was an amusing experiment, to say the least. As long as Lin Fan remembered what they'd said today, his future self would definitely follow through. Soul Spirits were a matter of the soul and could be transmitted through the Sea of Consciousness. And the few of them were all the same person, sharing the same Sea of Consciousness.
What's more, they were people from the past. Changing the future was actually incredibly simple, and there would only ever be one beneficiary: Lin Nuo!
Lin Nuo finally agreed. "I understand. Leave it to me."
"Then thanks."
"No need to thank me. We're just souls split apart by the river of time. Sooner or later, we'll merge." After saying this, Lin Fan turned and left the Sea of Consciousness.
After watching Lin Fan leave, Lin Xiu soon returned to the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters. He was getting ready to set out for Shrek Academy, too.
Honestly, the thought of crossing paths with Yun Ming's era made him a little excited. If he stepped on the future number-one powerhouse on the continent to advance, would he change the future of Ano's timeline?
He was genuinely curious.
Only, if he did this, Ano would have to shoulder some responsibilities in the future.
Lin Nuo: "?"
During the Peerless Tang Sect era, in the Sun Moon Empire, Lin Fan had already woken from his nap. Looking at the Soul Tool teacher before him, who was fuming, he said helplessly, "Teacher, sorry. I was exhausted from studying Soul Tools yesterday."
"Hah! Then go stand at the back!" The teacher was so angry that this was all he could say. There was no helping it—Lin Fan was a genius with Innate Full Soul Power, a treasure in the Sun Moon Empire and a future Level-9 Soul Engineer in the making.
Why hadn't the people from Ming Capital come yet?
Lin Fan said nothing. He picked up his notebook and pen from the desk, went to the back, and stood there. Then he slowly opened the notebook and wrote down what Lin Xiu had just said.
Time was the biggest BUG. They existed in the past—that was Lin Nuo's greatest trump card.
As for Soul Tool knowledge, he seemed to have five other external brains. His ability to learn was astonishingly fast. He only needed to glance at the Soul Tool knowledge on the blackboard to understand it instantly.
Or rather, this basic knowledge was already useless to him.
He started twirling his pen, looking forward to the Sun Moon Empire's higher-ups bringing him to the capital to meet the important people there.
The teacher at the lectern watched Lin Fan start twirling his pen and was so angry he wanted to curse. In the end, he held it in. That was how geniuses were: their privileges were plain to see. Besides, he knew perfectly well that what he taught was garbage, not worthy of the genius's attention.
In the end, he was simply too incompetent.
He was completely unworthy of teaching a genius like this.
The classroom door was suddenly shoved open. A tall figure strode in, bringing a biting chill with him and abruptly cutting off the teacher's lecture. In a hard voice, he asked, "Who is Lin Fan?"
The moment the words fell, the classroom fell silent.
Standing at the back, Lin Fan heard his name and stopped twirling his pen. He raised his eyes and replied in a calm, even voice, "That's me."
The man's gaze swept over Lin Fan, then suddenly darkened as it landed on the teacher at the lectern. His voice carried unmistakable displeasure. "Why did you make him stand there for the lesson?" His gaze was sharp as a blade, his unspoken accusation plain: He's a genius with Innate Full Soul Power. How dare you treat him like this?
The teacher froze under that gaze. An immense pressure crashed over him, making his chest feel tight. The explanation on the tip of his tongue wouldn't come out, not even a single word. His face went pale, and his heart turned cold. He had a vague feeling that he was about to lose his job today.
Just as the teacher stood there at a loss and the classroom's atmosphere grew heavier, Lin Fan spoke up, his voice clear and firm. "It's not the teacher's fault. I was getting sleepy earlier, so I asked to stand at the back and wake myself up."
Hearing this, the man's tense expression eased a little. He nodded slowly, his tone softening as he said, "I see. Come with me. Old Kong is waiting for you."
At this, a glimmer flashed across Lin Fan's previously placid eyes, along with a hint of surprise.
His Martial Soul talent had actually caught the attention of Old Kong, one of the Sun Moon Empire's highest-ranking figures. That was far beyond what he'd expected.
The man led Lin Fan into an empty classroom. An elderly man who looked to be in his sixties or seventies was sitting inside. When Lin Fan walked in, he gestured for him to take the seat opposite.
Lin Fan didn't stand on ceremony. He sat across from Kong Deming, the foremost figure in the Sun Moon Empire.
"Innate Full Soul Power, a Body Self Martial Soul, and an orphan. I never expected to find someone like you in such a remote place," Kong Deming said first, looking at Lin Fan.
A Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power was a prized treasure in the entire Sun Moon Empire. Barring any surprises, he was practically guaranteed to become both a Titled Douluo and a Level-9 Soul Engineer.
When Kong Deming first heard that Lin Fan had Innate Full Soul Power, he'd planned to let Jing Hongchen claim the credit. But the moment he heard it was a Body Martial Soul, he knew he had to take this child under his own wing.
Right now, the only things that stood out about the little guy were his Martial Soul and Innate Full Soul Power. But his future value would be enormous—he might even help foster cooperation between the Empire and that sect.
Hearing Kong Deming's words, Lin Fan asked, "Senior, do you think my status is too low for me to go to the Sun Moon Empire's capital?"
"If so, then I'll have no choice but to go to the Body Sect."
Kong Deming had been thinking about how to cultivate Lin Fan in the future. Hearing this, he panicked at once. "Oh, little guy, that's not what I meant! I was just astonished that such a genius could come from a place like this. I couldn't be happier."
"I see. Then I misunderstood." Lin Fan nodded. In truth, he'd only been testing Kong Deming's attitude toward him.
If the attitude was good, he could start Plan A. If not, he'd move on to Plan B. He'd already planned out these paths for his life.
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