Martial Soul, Open!

"Extraction successful."

"Extraction point: Heding City Academy-Classified"

"Duration: 00:60:35"

"Loot: 2329853"

"Total defeats: 18"

Returning to the real world, a pale blue light screen popped up.

9>>>10-->10>>>11

200EXP↑

17932/18000-->132/0

Zhang Yang let out a long breath. Finally, level 10. He could obtain his first soul ring.

As for the "132/0" in the experience column, Zhang Yang understood its meaning after a brief thought.

When a martial soul has yet to obtain a soul ring, meditation cannot increase the martial soul's level, but the gains from cultivation are still retained.

Once a soul master obtains a soul ring, these accumulated gains will manifest.

Just like these 132 experience points; although they were useless for now, once Zhang Yang obtained his soul ring and automatically leveled up to 11, these 132 points would be added to his level 11 experience bar.

Before level 10, the experience bar increased by 1000 points per level. He wondered how much it would increase by after level 11.

Forget it, whatever. At least he was level 10 now.

Level 10 at 6 years and 5 months was no different from having Innate Full Soul Power at 6 years and 5 months.

So thought Zhang Yang.

Of course, this was just Zhang Yang's wishful thinking.

On Douluo Continent, there was an insurmountable chasm between having level 9 innate soul power and Innate Full Soul Power.

Take Oscar, who had Innate Full Soul Power and became the continent's first food-type Titled Douluo, prompting the inheritance of the Food God to descend upon him, hoping Oscar would inherit his godhood.

And what about Ning Rongrong? She had level 9 innate soul power, and her martial soul evolved from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda into the legendary Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, making her the undisputed number one support-type tool martial soul in the world.

And the Goddess of Nine Colors? Her stance was: unless you reach level 99 Limit Douluo, I have no need to choose you.

That was the gap.

However, what did any of that have to do with Zhang Yang?

Zhang Yang was destined to walk a path different from all other soul masters on Douluo Continent.

He would not accept the inheritance of a godhood, but rather prove his path through sheer power.

Cultivate to level 100, ignite the divine fire, condense a godhead, and become a god naturally.

Of course, that was a matter for the future.

For now, Zhang Yang intended to find something to eat and fill his stomach.

At 11 PM, Zhang Yang walked out of the dormitory building and headed toward the school gate.

According to academy regulations, students were forbidden from leaving the dormitory after 9 PM, let alone going to the Hotel Street outside the school to eat.

But rules are rigid, while people are flexible.

Zhang Yang had his own argument: who was he? His father was Zhang Lingyue.

Looking across the entire Heding City, there were few who could overshadow old Zhang.

The duty teacher didn't dare let Zhang Yang go hungry, so he first took some snacks from the cabinet, hoping to find a compromise.

But Zhang Yang didn't like the seasoned dried meat, so the duty teacher had no choice but to accompany Zhang Yang out of the academy to forage.

With the duty teacher's escort, Zhang Yang successfully walked out of the academy gate and arrived at the Hotel Street.

Walking through the bustling crowd of the Hotel Street, the duty teacher grew increasingly suspicious: "Hey? Student Zhang Yang, we've walked quite far past the Hotel Street already. Is the shop you like still not here yet?"

"Almost there, almost there, teacher. Don't be so agitated." Zhang Yang, harboring his own little secrets, casually placated him.

"Was I agitated?"

Zhang Yang chuckled. After walking for a few more minutes, he finally stopped and said, "Teacher, we're here."

Looking at the grand, brightly lit gate before him and the imposing stone lions on either side, the duty teacher finally realized he had been played by this six-and-a-half-year-old first-year soul master.

Ignoring what the duty teacher might be thinking, Zhang Yang stepped forward, pounded the door knocker hard, and shouted, "Shouzhuo, Shouzhuo, Space Gate!"

Zhang Yang knocked with force, and the gatekeeper Liu Shouzhuo was quick to respond.

Liu Shouzhuo had just emerged from the gatehouse with a look of annoyance when he heard Zhang Yang's call.

Recognizing Zhang Yang's voice, Liu Shouzhuo didn't even have time to straighten his clothes; he tightened his cotton-padded jacket and hurried to open the gate.

"It's the young master! You aren't..." Liu Shouzhuo began with an instinctive tone of concern, then looked up and saw the duty teacher behind Zhang Yang. His words faltered, and he immediately pivoted: "You are..."

"This is our academy's duty teacher. I could only come out because he accompanied me. Shouzhuo, take the teacher to the side room for tea, and have the cook prepare a few dishes for me. I haven't eaten all day."

With that, Zhang Yang didn't care what Liu Shouzhuo or the duty teacher thought; he walked through the gate and headed straight for the main house in the back.

In the main bedroom, Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing were fast asleep in bed when a set of hurried footsteps approached from afar, quickly stopping right outside the door.

"Knock, knock, knock." Zhang Yang rapped on the door before pushing it open directly: "Dad, Mom, I'm home."

Inside the room, Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing had already woken up the moment the door was knocked; after all, they were Soul Masters who had licked blood off the edge of a blade.

However, having been roused in the middle of the night, they were still groggy when Zhang Yang burst into their bedroom, radiating a chill.

Zhu Ranqing caught sight of the person entering the room by the faint moonlight, and her spirits were instantly lifted.

"Oh, my son."

Zhang Yang had been enrolled in school for exactly three months. At the beginning, Zhu Ranqing would go to the school to check on him from time to time.

But as she realized that Zhang Yang was adapting quite well to communal life and had never cried or clamored about being "homesick," coupled with Zhang Lingyue's insistence, she hadn't visited as frequently.

Zhang Yang dove into Zhu Ranqing's arms, his icy body making her shiver: "Son, why are you back? Did something happen? Is someone bullying you?"

Zhang Lingyue, off to the side, didn't speak; he merely glanced up at the clock on the wall—it was 11:30 PM.

"Is someone in the dormitory bullying you? Tell Mom who it is, and Mom will stand up for you," Zhu Ranqing asked with concern.

Zhang Yang lifted his head from Zhu Ranqing's embrace: "No, it's just that I have some happy news to tell you, Mom."

"Oh, that's good. Come on, son, tell Mom, what's the happy news?" Hearing that he hadn't been wronged, Zhu Ranqing finally set her mind at ease.

"It's my soul power," Zhang Yang said happily. "Mom, my soul power has leveled up."

"Really? My son is so amazing." Hearing this, Zhu Ranqing happily cupped Zhang Yang's little face and kissed him vigorously.

Beside them, Zhang Lingyue's brain began to calculate rapidly.

Zhang Yang had awakened his Martial Soul at the end of June; today marked exactly five months.

Five months to go from level 1 to level 2 was considered a normal speed.

By the time he graduated from the sixth grade, reaching level 10 and obtaining his first soul ring wouldn't be a problem.

Zhang Yang laughed upon hearing this: "Mom, then take a guess, what level is my soul power now?"

It was a very silly question, but Zhu Ranqing, doting on her son, played along enthusiastically: "Let me guess, my son should be... level 2, right?"

Zhang Lingyue watched helplessly as his wife teased their silly son.

"Wrong." Zhang Yang laughed, slumping into Zhu Ranqing's arms as he held up both palms to show her: "It's level 10."

"?"

"?"

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing exchanged glances, first filled with confusion, then bursting into laughter simultaneously.

"Hahahaha... you silly boy, where would level 10 come from? Your Innate Soul Power was level 1, so leveling up means 1+1, which is level 2. How could it possibly be level 10?"

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing clutched their stomachs, laughing until tears streamed down their faces.

Zhang Yang wasn't angry; instead, he said smugly: "I know that leveling up from Innate level 1 soul power makes it level 2, but I was level 9 before I leveled up today, not level 1."

"Ha... huh?" The laughter of Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing came to an abrupt halt.

Zhang Yang continued: "My soul power was level 9 during the day, and I didn't level up until 11 PM tonight. Level 9 leveling up to level 10—that's correct."

"?"

"?"

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing's eyes were filled with bewilderment.

"Dad, Mom, look."

As he spoke, Zhang Yang broke free from Zhu Ranqing's embrace, stood on the bed, and looked down at them: "Martial Soul, manifest!"

Lord M14, carrying a biting aura, appeared in Zhang Yang's hand, and at the same time, soul power erupted from his entire body.

"!"

"!"

The expressions on Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing's faces shifted.