Enrollment

Xuan Qing began cultivating according to the Chaos Yin-Yang Canon. He sat cross-legged on the altar and followed the cultivation method's prescribed route.

Soul Power surged toward him from all around. After just one night, he could already feel the Soul Power in his body had grown noticeably.

That was still because he hadn't cultivated for very long. His Innate Soul Power limited his speed; he'd cultivated for one afternoon and a third of the night.

That was his limit. If he cultivated any longer, his meridians felt as if they were about to burst.

At this rate, he could definitely break through to the next level in a month at most. Little Qilin's cultivation speed was half his.

Xuan Qing shook his head, banishing those thoughts.

"Sleep! Sleep!"

Xuan Qing was so tired he could barely keep his eyes open. He left the space and collapsed into bed.

When he woke the next morning, the sky was already bright. Xuan Qing quickly made some rice porridge, gulped down a few mouthfuls, then packed his things and set off.

As he passed the village chief's house, he saw the chief in the courtyard. "Uncle, I'll come back on the weekend when I have time."

The village chief nodded. "Be careful on the road. Come back if anything happens."

Xuan Qing waved, slung his small bundle over his shoulder, and set off. Half an hour later, he arrived at Tianyuan City.

The city's name was certainly interesting, because less than three hundred meters behind it was, in fact, a heavenly abyss.

The chasm was frighteningly wide; the other side was at least two hundred meters away. A swaying suspension bridge stretched across the middle.

It was said that the bridge had been barely put together with the help of a flying-type Soul Master at the Soul Saint level.

But Xuan Qing didn't need to cross that bridge. With his fear of heights, his legs would probably turn to jelly the moment he stepped onto it.

He breathed a sigh of relief, entered the city, and asked for directions to the academy. Before long, he found Tianyuan Primary Soul Master Academy.

He went straight to the dean of studies' office.

Xuan Qing politely knocked on the door. "Hello."

A voice came from inside. "Come in."

Xuan Qing pushed open the door and went in. A woman in her forties sat inside.

The woman looked up at him. "You're the child Little Li referred, right? My surname is Meng. Just call me Director Meng."

Xuan Qing nodded.

Director Meng looked him over, then took a form from her desk drawer.

"You don't have to pay tuition. Your village's work-study student spot is still yours. But if you want to live in a dorm by yourself, you'll have to pay."

She lowered her voice.

"One Gold Soul Coin per semester. Just don't tell anyone, all right? This benefit is only for you because you're one of our own."

Xuan Qing was delighted. He'd been worrying that if he lived in the communal dormitory, he wouldn't be able to enter the space and cultivate.

He said at once, "I'd rather live by myself. Too many people make too much noise, and it's hard to cultivate."

Director Meng smiled and nodded. "That's true enough. The work-study students come from all walks of life, and they all share the same dormitory."

"Even the regular dormitories have at least four people. With your talent, if you cultivate well, you might reach Soul Grandmaster by the time you graduate. It'd be a shame if you picked up bad habits from them."

Xuan Qing nodded. "If there's nothing else, I'll head to the dormitory."

Seeing that he was about to leave, Director Meng called after him.

"Wait. Since you're living alone, you're exempt from work-study duties, too. As long as you don't tell anyone, nobody will know. But if you do tell anyone..."

She gave Xuan Qing a meaningful look.

Xuan Qing immediately understood. "Did you say something just now?"

Then he turned and left.

Director Meng smiled behind him, knowing that the boy was a clever one.

Xuan Qing found his dormitory and pushed open the door. It was completely bare; apart from a wooden bed frame, there was nothing inside.

He pursed his lips and went back out to buy some things. After wandering around the city, he found a general store. The owner was a smiling, chubby man.

"Boss, how much for a set of bedding and some daily necessities?"

The boss's eyes shifted. "Ten Silver Soul Coins."

Xuan Qing chuckled. "Boss, do I look like a fool? Be honest. I'm going to be here for six years, after all."

The boss didn't get angry at being found out. He chuckled twice.

"Five Silver Soul Coins. The quality of our goods is guaranteed. If anything breaks within six months of normal use, I'll replace it."

"Now that's more like it."

Xuan Qing paid, picked up the things, and left. Finding an empty corner, he focused his mind and put everything into the space.

Then he went to a street stall and bought some food. On his way back to school, he saw no one around, so he secretly stored a large rock by the roadside in the space, wanting to test the Qilin Seal's power.

Back in the dormitory, Xuan Qing closed the door and immediately entered the space. Little Qilin flew out from his chest.

"Let's test your new abilities."

He had Little Qilin try to accelerate the flow of time. A nine-colored glow rose around its body.

The air around them seemed to warp, but after only three seconds, Xuan Qing felt completely drained.

The flow of time had sped up for only an instant. After his Soul Power recovered, he opened the Space Gate again.

He went through the Space Gate and came out again. Although it had moved him directly over a hundred meters, he was drained once more.

Xuan Qing slumped to the ground, panting heavily.

"Damn! That takes way too much energy."

But at least he'd figured out the cost of using the Space Gate and accelerating time.

"These two things may be life-saving skills, but I can't afford to use them."

After resting for a while, Xuan Qing focused his mind, and the Qilin Seal appeared in his hand.

He smashed it down on the rock with all his strength. A deafening boom rang out!

The rock shattered. The pieces that hadn't broken apart outright crumbled into powder.

Xuan Qing's eyes widened. "That power... If I caught someone off guard with this, even a Titled Douluo couldn't take it to the head, could they?"

Unfortunately, all he could do with it was use it like a brick. He made do with some of the dry rations he'd bought at noon for dinner, then went to sleep.

The next morning was the opening ceremony. Xuan Qing listened drowsily on the square, barely able to stay awake.

In class, the teacher covered only the most basic knowledge. After listening all morning, Xuan Qing felt it was utterly pointless.

After school, he went to see Director Meng. She was looking through files, and seemed a little surprised to see Xuan Qing.

Xuan Qing didn't beat around the bush. "Director, I'd like to apply for independent study."

Director Meng furrowed her brow. "Why? Are you having trouble keeping up with the lessons?"

Xuan Qing answered honestly. "I'm not having trouble keeping up. They're just too easy. I can study ordinary knowledge on my own, and the academy can't teach me any of those truly profound, exclusive insights anyway."

Director Meng stared at him for a while, then finally sighed. "All right. But you'll have to take an assessment every month. If you fail even once, you'll attend class like everyone else."

Xuan Qing agreed with a nod. From then on, his life settled into a routine.

He went to the library to read in the mornings, cultivated in his dormitory in the afternoons, and familiarized himself with Little Qilin's abilities at night.

He discovered that he could use Little Qilin's abilities, too, and they worked exactly the same. He just wasn't proficient yet.

On weekends, he returned to his shabby little house, got a good night's sleep, and stopped by to see the village chief.

The days passed one after another, and half a year slipped by in the blink of an eye. Xuan Qing's life was monotonous, even a little dull.

Director Meng couldn't understand how he'd stuck with it—until the day of the end-of-term assessment.

She personally tested Xuan Qing's Soul Power. The crystal ball's light climbed higher and higher before finally settling at the ninth-level mark.

Director Meng nearly sprang out of her chair. "Level nine? You advanced four levels in half a year? How did you do it?"

Xuan Qing gave her a vague answer. "I've been trying to improve the basic meditation method. It's dangerous, but it really is faster."

Director Meng drew a deep breath. She knew how difficult it was to improve a meditation method.

Many people had tried, but few had succeeded. Yet once someone did, the result was undoubtedly the method best suited to them.

"Be careful."

In the end, that was all she could say.

Even after Xuan Qing left, Director Meng was still stunned.

"That boy's walking a tightrope. But if he succeeds, his future achievements will be limitless."