Shrek Academy! Best Buddies!

Flender took Fu Wen straight home. By then, dusk had settled.

As soon as he pushed open the door, a mouthwatering aroma wafted over.

"You're back? Go wash your hands and come eat!"

A man's voice came from the kitchen.

Fu Wen poked his head in and saw Shao Xin.

He was Shrek Academy's food-type Soul Master, a Six-Ring Soul Emperor whose Martial Soul was Sugar Bean.

He was also an old friend of Flender's.

At this point, he hadn't yet reached the Soul Saint rank.

"Uncle Shao, what brings you here today?"

Fu Wen greeted him with a smile.

"That rascal Xiao Ao's been asking about you, so he sent me to see when you'd be coming to the academy."

Shao Xin came out carrying a dish. When he saw Fu Wen, his eyes lit up.

"I heard you awakened your Martial Soul today. How did it go?"

"Not bad."

Fu Wen answered modestly.

"Not bad? Ha ha, the kid's just being humble!"

Flender burst out laughing beside him.

"Innate Full Soul Power, level ten! His Martial Soul is a Mutated Sea Crocodile! His First Soul Ring is over four hundred years old! And his Soul Power shot straight up to level thirteen!"

"What?!"

The plate nearly slipped from Shao Xin's hands.

He stared at Fu Wen, eyes wide, as if he were looking at a monster.

"Innate Full Soul Power? And he gained three levels all at once?"

"Old man, you're not pulling my leg?"

"Why would I lie to you? Come on, Xiao Wen, show Uncle Shao your Soul Ring."

Flender looked unbearably smug.

Fu Wen could only release his Martial Soul.

A Yellow Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet, and the Divine Crocodile Phantom appeared behind him.

Though Fu Wen deliberately kept that primordial aura in check, it still made Shao Xin's heart skip a beat.

"This... this Martial Soul..."

Shao Xin took a deep breath, suppressing his shock.

"Old man, you've struck gold."

"Of course!"

Flender pushed up his glasses, looking as if his tail were about to stick straight up into the sky.

"All right, all right. Enough showing off. Let's eat."

Shao Xin rolled his eyes at Flender, then turned and went back to the kitchen to bring out the rest of the dishes.

Fu Wen washed his hands and sat down at the table.

There was no denying it: Shao Xin was an excellent cook.

His Martial Soul might be Sugar Bean, but his cooking was far tastier than any Sugar Bean.

"By the way, what level is Xiao Ao now?"

Fu Wen asked as he ate.

"Level nineteen, almost twenty."

Shao Xin replied.

"That kid's Martial Soul may not be much, but he works very hard at cultivating."

"His cultivation talent, with Innate Full Soul Power, is progressing faster than I expected."

"Yeah, Xiao Ao's always been hardworking."

Fu Wen nodded.

Oscar was two years older than him and had awakened his Martial Soul two years ago.

With Innate Full Soul Power at level ten, he was now level nineteen. That was already very fast.

It was a pity that food-type Martial Souls couldn't fight on their own—or perhaps the people of this world simply hadn't developed their potential fully.

"When are you planning to go to the academy?"

Shao Xin asked.

"Tomorrow, I think."

Fu Wen considered it.

"I just awakened today, so I'll rest for the night and head over tomorrow."

"All right. I'll be waiting for you at the academy."

Shao Xin smiled.

"Xiao Ao's over the moon now that he knows you're coming."

Fu Wen smiled, feeling a little eager himself.

Come to think of it, he and Oscar really were close.

They were both orphans adopted by Flender and had grown up together.

They weren't brothers by blood, but they were closer than real brothers.

After eating his fill, Fu Wen helped Shao Xin clear away the dishes. He chatted with Flender for a bit, then went to take a bath.

The hot water ran over him, and Fu Wen closed his eyes in contentment.

So much had happened today.

He had awakened his Martial Soul, inherited the China Divine Crocodile, hunted a Bone-Splitting Giant Crocodile, absorbed his First Soul Ring, and shot straight up to level thirteen...

For anyone else, that would have taken at least several months, if not a whole year.

He'd done it all in a single day.

"Is this what it means to be a transmigrator?"

Fu Wen smiled, turned off the tap, dried himself, and changed into clean clothes.

He returned to his room and closed the door.

It was small, with a bed, a desk, and a wardrobe.

Simple, but clean.

Fu Wen sat cross-legged on the bed, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

The formula for the Innate Divine Crocodile Art surfaced in his mind.

"Take the Divine Crocodile as your foundation and heaven and earth as your furnace..."

"Temper the soul, temper the body, temper the spirit..."

"Cultivate all three together, and only then will you follow the Great Dao..."

Fu Wen silently recited the formula and focused inward.

Soul Power flowed slowly through his dantian, like a sleeping river.

Following the path laid out by the Innate Divine Crocodile Art, he guided Soul Power out of his dantian.

Humm!

His Soul Power stirred.

It crept along a route it had never taken before.

The route was strange. Rather than following the usual meridians, it passed through every corner of his body.

Starting from his dantian, it sank into his legs, surged up into his chest, split off toward his arms, then finally gathered at his spine and shot straight into his brain.

After one circuit, Fu Wen felt as though he'd been soaked in warm water. His whole body felt pleasantly warm.

But that was only the beginning.

On the second circuit, the Soul Power flowed a little faster.

Fu Wen could feel it seeping into his muscle fibers.

The sensation was odd, as if something were taking root and sprouting within his muscles.

It tickled and tingled, but didn't hurt.

On the third circuit, his Soul Power began to penetrate his bones.

This circuit was far more difficult than the first two.

Bones were hard, and getting Soul Power inside them took greater force.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Fu Wen's forehead, and his brow furrowed slightly.

But he didn't stop.

The fourth circuit, the fifth, the sixth...

Each one was more difficult than the last, but also went deeper.

His Soul Power was like an invisible carving knife, engraving something into his bones.

Fu Wen didn't know what it was, but he could feel his body changing.

The change was subtle, but it was real.

After who knew how long, Fu Wen finally completed the ninth circuit.

Whoosh!

He let out a long breath of stale air and opened his eyes.

Night had fallen outside.

The moon hung in the sky, spilling silvery light over everything.

Fu Wen moved his body.

Crack! Crack!

His bones made crisp sounds, like beans popping in a pan.

"Hmm?"

Fu Wen froze.

That sound... it was louder and more frequent than during his cultivation that afternoon.

He lowered his head and looked at his arm.

There was no visible change, but he could feel that his arm was a little stronger than before he cultivated.

"It's already working this fast?"

Fu Wen was surprised.

How long had he been cultivating?

All told, about an hour.

And after just one hour, he could already feel a clear difference?

The Innate Divine Crocodile Art was even more terrifyingly fast than he'd imagined.

Fu Wen clenched his fist, feeling the power surging through him.

"At this rate, it won't be long before I break through to level fourteen."

His heart burned with excitement.

But he soon calmed down again.

In cultivation, nothing was more dangerous than impatience.

Haste made waste.

Steady progress was the right path.

Fu Wen took a deep breath, settled his emotions, and closed his eyes again.

He continued cultivating.

This time, he didn't chase speed. Instead, he focused on the quality of his Soul Power.

With every circuit, he did his best to make his Soul Power purer and more condensed.

It slowed him down considerably, but the results were better.

Time passed, second by second.

The night grew deeper and deeper.

In Fu Wen's room, only the steady sound of his breathing could be heard.

A faint glow shimmered over his skin.

It was energy spilling out as Soul Power coursed rapidly through his body.

The glow was so faint that it was almost impossible to see without looking closely.

But the aura around him grew stronger and stronger.

If Flender had been there, he would have been stunned.

Fu Wen's aura was steadily rising.

It wasn't fast, but it was rising all the same.

And this was only his first day of cultivation!