Enrolling Again

December 30.

After ten days of traveling, Zhang Yang finally arrived at Spirit Hall Academy, accompanied by his father.

Spirit Hall Academy stood outside Spirit City, built on its own hill. Including the lake at the foot of the hill, the academy's grounds were no smaller than Spirit City itself.

Of course, this was also a tradition on Douluo Continent.

To create a wider variety of Mimicry Cultivation Environments, high-level Soul Master academies generally occupied vast areas. They were often built by mountains and beside water, with particularly high demands on their surroundings.

Building outside a city gave them vast natural environments for free. With only a little modification, these could become excellent Mimicry Cultivation Environments. It was, one could say, a very economical choice.

At the foot of the hill, Zhang Lingyue had the carriage stop. He then set off up the mountain on foot with Zhang Yang.

But the two of them had barely gone a few steps when someone stopped them.

"Hold it. This is Spirit Hall Academy territory. Unauthorized visitors are forbidden to enter."

The two men blocking the way were middle-aged, with stern faces. They wore white robes, each with a fist-sized character, "Soul," on the chest.

This was the standard attire of Spirit Hall stewards, marking them as Soul Masters directly under Spirit Hall.

"Gentlemen, I'm Zhang Lingyue, a senior bishop at Heding City Martial Soul Branch Hall. I've brought my son to enroll. Here's his admission notice."

As he spoke, Zhang Lingyue flipped his right hand and handed over Zhang Yang's admission notice.

One of the men took the notice and inspected it before nodding. "We were informed that a child would be coming to register sometime in the next few days."

"But new students must be accompanied by the bishop who issued their admission notice. Wait over there."

With that, one of the men circulated his Soul Power and sprinted into the academy.

About the time it took to burn a stick of incense later, a purple figure came speeding from the distance. After a few quick flashes, he was right in front of them.

At a glance, Zhang Yang recognized the newcomer as Bishop Sanders, whom he hadn't seen in over half a month.

"Bishop Sanders."

Everyone present bowed to Bishop Sanders, including Zhang Lingyue.

There was no helping it. Starting today, his son would be studying under the man's watchful eye. When the situation was stronger than you, you had to bow to it.

However, Bishop Sanders didn't dare put on airs either. He raised a hand and returned Zhang Lingyue's greeting. "Bishop Zhang Lingyue, it's been many days. I hope you've been well."

After the two sides exchanged greetings, it was time for Zhang Yang and Zhang Lingyue to part.

Zhang Lingyue patted Zhang Yang's shoulder and said earnestly, "Study hard here and train diligently. Listen to your teachers, understood?"

"Okay, Dad. Be careful on your way home, too. Give Mom my regards when you get back."

"Mm."

Zhang Lingyue nodded and squeezed Zhang Yang's shoulder once more, then turned and strode away without hesitation.

The father and son didn't shed tears over their farewell. It was plain and simple.

After bidding Zhang Lingyue goodbye, Bishop Sanders led Zhang Yang slowly up the slope, introducing him to the details of Spirit Hall Academy along the way.

Backed by Spirit Hall, Spirit Hall Academy was naturally well funded, and its buildings were especially luxurious. Countless buildings with histories spanning a thousand years nearly covered the entire little mountain.

Of course, as a key part of a Mimicry Cultivation Environment, Spirit Hall Academy's landscaping was also exceptionally well done. Lush flowers, grass, and trees could be seen everywhere.

What was more, rare flowers and plants from different seasons and regions somehow bloomed together in the same flower beds and gardens.

Clearly, Spirit Hall Academy had spared no effort to achieve this.

What's more, these rare flowers in bloom looked remarkably harmonious.

Clearly, the varieties of flowers and plants, where they were planted, and even their growth rates had all been meticulously planned by experts.

Yet despite all the care poured into the scenery, there wasn't so much as a sign or guide to point it out.

It seemed that, to Spirit Hall Academy, none of this was worth boasting about.

Yet it was precisely this disregard that showed the true depth of a top academy like Spirit Hall Academy.

Likewise, Spirit Hall Academy's faculty was also among the best on the entire continent.

The academy's dean had traditionally been the reigning Pope.

Of course, since His Holiness the Pope was busy with affairs of state, the academy's daily operations were decided by the Education Committee, which consisted of seven red-robed bishops at the Soul Douluo rank.

Beneath the Education Committee, black-robed bishops served as the main leaders of the academy's various departments, as well as the senior teachers in the upper division.

Below them were department supervisors and teachers at every grade level, all of whom were purple-robed bishops.

That's right. Every teacher at Spirit Hall Academy was a Soul Master at the purple-robed bishop level.

Below them was a large staff corps made up of yellow-robed and white-robed stewards.

That's right. Everyone in Spirit Hall Academy belonged to Spirit Hall and was a Soul Master—including the gatekeepers, the street sweepers, and the kitchen hands chopping vegetables.

Even Heaven Dou Royal Academy and Star Luo Royal Academy, backed by their empires, couldn't match this kind of Soul Master staffing.

After all, Soul Masters held such lofty status. How could they possibly take jobs like sweeping the streets?

But this was Spirit City, the holy land of Soul Masters.

In Spirit City, countless Soul Masters worked as waiters, cleaners, and the like, just for the chance to remain in this holy land of Soul Masters.

And as the school that cultivated the future backbone of Spirit Hall, Spirit Hall Academy naturally had the means to assemble an entire staff team of Soul Masters.

Following Sanders and listening to his explanations along the way, Zhang Yang truly broadened his horizons.

Half an hour later, Dewey led Zhang Yang into the Administration Building and up to the Academic Affairs Office on the third floor.

"Director Lin, this is Zhang Yang, sent over from Heding City. Here's his admission notice. Could you please help him complete the enrollment paperwork?"

The man addressed as Director Lin wore a purple outfit as well, along with gold-rimmed glasses. A mild smile played on his face. "Zhang Yang? Oh, the child whose Innate Soul Power is only level one."

"Innate Soul Power... level one?" Everyone in the office looked surprised.

It wasn't strange that they were surprised. Since its founding, Spirit Hall Academy had never admitted a student with such poor talent.

With talent that poor, how had he managed to enroll? Was he the child of some important figure?

"That's right." Sanders nodded and patted Zhang Yang's back, signaling for him to step forward.

Director Lin nodded, pinched Zhang Yang's palm, then felt his wrist. "Around six and a half years old. The age checks out."

Director Lin pulled a yellow crystal ball out of a desk drawer. "Let's test your Soul Power for the records."

A yellow crystal ball was used to test Soul Power levels between eleven and twenty. It was more than adequate for testing Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang said nothing. He simply held out his hand and tested his Soul Power.

The yellow-robed staff in the office couldn't help turning their eyes toward him.

A faint yellow glow lit up inside the crystal ball. It wasn't especially dazzling, but it was clear.

"Hmm?" Director Lin narrowed his eyes at the crystal ball. "A little over level twelve, but not quite thirteen."

"Hiss, level thirteen? At six and a half..." The stewards in the room all sucked in a sharp breath, making a great contribution to global warming.

One steward murmured, "With cultivation talent like this, even Innate Full Soul Power wouldn't be any better, would it? Was his Innate Soul Power really only level one?"

Everyone had the same question in mind, but they kept their mouths shut and said nothing.

Their eyes, however, kept drifting back to Zhang Yang's face.