Beginner Alchemy

Hearing Li Han's answer, Mo Hen nodded and took out a key, handing it to him.

"Then I'll leave the library's cleaning to you. You must clean it every day and never slack off. This is the key to the library. Keep it safe."

"Yes, teacher."

"I'll take you to the library first so you can familiarize yourself with the place and your duties.

"Then I'll take you to the Work-Study Students' dormitory. The others inside are Work-Study Students just like you. There are seven of them in all.

"You should get along well and not cause trouble."

"All right, teacher."

Mo Hen stood up and led Li Han toward the library.

"Ding! Congratulations, host, on becoming Elder Mo's nominal disciple. Check-in successful. You have received Beginner Alchemy."

Li Han: "???"

No way. Did anyone surnamed Mo count as Elder Mo?

And that was enough to check in successfully?

Still, given the situation, he really was Teacher Mo Hen's student.

It did make a little sense.

Forget it. Even if the system had mistaken the person, the reward was real, and that was what mattered.

Li Han was used to this sort of thing. It was nothing.

Beginner Alchemy appeared in his mind, along with several pill recipes.

"Yellow Dragon Pills and Golden Marrow Pills are the most suitable for me at this stage.

"Their main ingredients are Polygonatum and Golden Marrow Ganoderma. I wonder if this world has them."

Few people on the Douluo Continent knew the art of alchemy. If he wanted to find these ingredients, he would have to rely on himself.

"These herbs usually grow in places rich in spiritual energy.

"On the Douluo Continent, the Soul Beast Forest is definitely the place with the richest spiritual energy.

"But going there now would be suicide.

"My earliest chance will be when I break through to level ten and go to the Soul Hunting Forest to hunt for a Soul Ring.

"If I try to buy them, well, I'm a Work-Study Student. There's no way I can afford them."

For a moment, Li Han was caught in a dilemma.

He wasn't Han Li. He didn't have a Little Green Bottle to hasten the growth of medicinal herbs, so alchemy was a real problem.

But alchemy was an untapped field in the Douluo World, and the Soul Beast Forest was full of materials for making pills.

As long as he had the strength, alchemy wouldn't be a problem in the future.

"If nothing else works, I'll just have to wait for now. I'll make plans after I break through to level ten."

Thinking this, Li Han arrived at the library.

Mo Hen briefly explained how things worked, and Li Han nodded repeatedly to show he had memorized it all.

Afterward, Mo Hen took him to Dorm Seven.

"That's Dorm Seven up ahead. Go on in by yourself. I have other things to take care of."

After saying this, Mo Hen turned and left.

Li Han didn't try to stop him. He simply pushed open the door to Dorm Seven.

The door swung open, and everyone, who had been busy with their own things, looked over.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Li Han, a new Work-Study Student this year. I'm glad to be your classmate."

Li Han spoke softly, his tone neither humble nor arrogant, showing no sign of emotion.

"Hello! I'm Wang Sheng, a fifth-year Work-Study Student and the current boss of Dorm Seven. Welcome to Dorm Seven."

Wang Sheng warmly stepped forward to greet him.

Li Han nodded slightly, thinking to himself, Wang Sheng is only in fifth grade? Then Tang San and Xiao Wu should enroll next year. I'm a year older than them.

I wonder whether Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang is at Nuoding Academy at this time.

Wang Sheng carefully looked Li Han up and down, then said, "According to Dorm Seven's rules, every newcomer has to show off their strength.

"If you can beat me, you can become the boss of Dorm Seven and lead us against those noble students, so they won't bully us."

Hearing this, Li Han raised an eyebrow.

Be the dorm leader?

He wasn't interested.

Anyone who'd been to school knew that being dorm leader meant all responsibility and no authority. It was a huge hassle.

As long as no one picked on him, Li Han didn't want to stick his neck out and invite trouble.

"I just awakened my Martial Soul. I'm definitely no match for you," Li Han said quickly.

"That's all right. We can spar and get a feel for each other's strength."

Wang Sheng swept his right hand through the air and continued, "Come on, activate your Martial Soul!"

With a low shout, the phantom of a fierce tiger appeared behind him.

It radiated an imposing aura, like a tiger in its prime.

"Wang Sheng, an eighth-rank Soul Warrior of the Power Attack System. Martial Soul: Battle Tiger!"

A Martial Soul battle!

This was a first for Li Han, and he was genuinely tempted.

In that case, he'd give it a try.

"Fine," Li Han replied softly, taking up a fighting stance.

"You're not activating your Martial Soul?" Wang Sheng frowned.

"My Martial Soul can't be used in actual combat right now."

"That's fine. Just show it to us. We're all dormmates."

"All right."

Seeing Wang Sheng insist, Li Han knew he couldn't refuse.

Besides, they'd be attending classes together from now on. There was no way he could keep his Martial Soul hidden.

Li Han extended his right hand, and Heavenly Thunder Bamboo appeared once more in his palm.

"Martial Soul: Heavenly Thunder Bamboo."

"Heavenly Thunder Bamboo? Isn't that just Lone Bamboo? It's a typical third-rate Trash Martial Soul."

Zhao Shan, one of the Dorm Seven roommates, burst out laughing. His words were laced with mockery.

"Yeah. And isn't it way too small? It's not even big enough to use as a dagger, is it?"

Another roommate, Sun Ting, joined in, sneering.

The Heavenly Thunder Bamboo was less than three centimeters long. It really was easy to overlook.

"We're all Work-Study Students. Don't talk like that," Wang Sheng said, cutting off their mockery.

As the boss of Dorm Seven, he had some authority. Zhao Shan and Sun Ting pursed their lips at his words and said no more.

"Li Han, don't mind what they said. I think your Martial Soul is pretty good."

"Thank you."

Li Han nodded slightly, not particularly bothered.

They were all children under ten, after all. He wasn't about to stoop to their level.

"Then I'm coming at you!"

Wang Sheng looked at Li Han and took up a fighting stance.

Li Han nodded slightly.

The next moment, Wang Sheng lunged at him. He really did look just like a fierce tiger.

Li Han narrowed his eyes and locked onto Wang Sheng's figure in an instant.

Smoke-Drifting Steps!

Li Han had no intention of surrendering outright. He wanted to test the power of Smoke-Drifting Steps.

He had only just acquired this martial art and wasn't very proficient yet, but it was more than enough to handle Wang Sheng's attacks.

Smoke-Drifting Steps made the user's movements seem like smoke, their path impossible to predict.

It excelled at short-range dodging, sudden strikes, and evasion, making it ideal for assassination and escape.

It also required nothing but physical stamina to use, making it an extremely practical movement technique that was subject to no restrictions.

Wang Sheng swung his tiger claws, swiping at Li Han again and again.

A series of red claw-shaped shadows appeared in the air, carrying a hint of menace.

Li Han's pupils contracted. He stepped into Smoke-Drifting Steps and narrowly dodged the phantom claws.

"Hm?"

Wang Sheng was a little surprised, but immediately pushed off with his foot, turned his body, and kicked at Li Han.

Li Han used Smoke-Drifting Steps again. His body flickered to the right, easily avoiding the attack.

After two attacks in a row missed, Wang Sheng sensed something was wrong.

But he thought that if his level-eight strength couldn't take down a newcomer, he'd never live it down.

So Wang Sheng immediately launched an even more ferocious attack.

His fists and claws struck in turn as he unleashed his full strength.

After all, Wang Sheng had studied at Nuoding Academy for more than four years. He had far more combat experience than Li Han.

Li Han kept dodging with Smoke-Drifting Steps. His stamina drained quickly, but at the same time, he grew more and more proficient at controlling the technique.

Seeing the two of them fight for so long, Zhao Shan and Sun Ting swallowed in astonishment.

"This new kid is amazing. He's actually kept up with Boss Wang Sheng for this long."

"Yeah. Boss Wang Sheng hasn't hit him even once."

"How can a Trash Martial Soul like Lone Bamboo be this strong?"

In an instant, Zhao Shan and Sun Ting's earlier contempt for Li Han gave way to a measure of wariness.

Li Han felt that he'd practiced enough. He immediately stopped dodging.

When Wang Sheng punched at him, he crossed his arms in front of himself to block.

He wanted to see how strong a level-eight Soul Warrior's strike was.

Boom!

Li Han was knocked backward several steps by the punch, and his arms tingled slightly.

"Not bad. But it's still within what I can handle. Looks like the difference between level eight and level six isn't that great."

Li Han quickly calculated to himself, then pretended to look hurt.

"Ow! That hurts! I'm done, I'm done. Dorm leader, you're too strong. I'm no match for you."