The next day, at noon.
Zhou Qiubai sat cross-legged against a tree, holding a pile of sunflower seeds as he watched ahead. Three girls from Skywater Academy were locked in battle with a hundred-year Water Baboon.
This had been Shui Bing'er's deliberate arrangement. She said it was to let the lower-year students gain practical combat experience, while Zhou Qiubai only needed to stand by and ensure nothing went wrong.
Being able to slack off was naturally a good thing, so Zhou Qiubai immediately agreed to watch from the side.
It had to be said, Skywater Academy was indeed impressive. They even danced while fighting, calling it tactical coordination. It wasn't that there was no coordination at all—it was that he couldn't see any coordination whatsoever.
Besides, their opponent was a baboon!
It wasn't even a Soul Master, so those confusing movements of theirs had no effect at all.
"Water Curtain!"
"Ice Spike!"
"Water Flow!"
The girls' cries rang out one after another as all manner of water-element Soul Skills blossomed across the clearing.
The Water Baboon charged left and right, forcibly taking several attacks before finally falling unwillingly beneath the frenzied barrage.
Watching the battle that had lasted nearly a quarter of an hour, Zhou Qiubai secretly shook his head.
If it had been him, he could have taken its life within three moves. But these academy-trained Soul Masters placed greater emphasis on displaying and coordinating their Soul Skills. There was nothing wrong with that, and at least it looked good, didn't it?
Shui Bing'er walked over from the side, her pale blue hair flowing in the wind. "Mr. Zhou, thank you for the effort. This should be the last Spirit Beast we need to hunt."
Zhou Qiubai nodded. "We got lucky. The soul-hunting trip was originally expected to take two days, but we finished it in a day and a half. I should be the one thanking you."
That was not flattery.
Water-element Spirit Beasts were already scarce in the outer region of Star Dou Forest. It was indeed rare to find suitable Spirit Beasts for these students so smoothly.
"How do you plan to proceed?" Zhou Qiubai asked.
After thinking for a moment, Shui Bing'er replied, "First, we'll escort the younger students back to town and get them settled. Then the two of us will move quickly and head for the middle region to hunt my third Soul Ring."
"Sure." Zhou Qiubai readily agreed. "Then we'll leave once they finish absorbing their Soul Rings. If we move fast, we should make it back to the city before dark."
"Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Zhou."
After confirming the arrangements, Shui Bing'er turned to organize the students' absorption of their Soul Rings.
Zhou Qiubai leaned back against the tree trunk and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing. About two hours later, all the students had finished absorbing their Soul Rings. The group packed up and headed toward the town beyond the forest.
As the sun sank westward, the outline of the town finally became faintly visible through the trees.
However, just as the group was about to reach the city gates, a squad clad in platinum uniforms blocked their path.
At the head of the group stood a middle-aged man in his forties with a solemn expression. A Spirit Hall deacon's badge hung on his chest, and eight Soul Masters in identical white uniforms stood behind him.
Shui Bing'er frowned slightly and instinctively stepped forward, shielding the younger students behind her.
"Don't worry," Zhou Qiubai explained. "If nothing unexpected happens, they should be here for me."
Zhou Qiubai turned to Shui Bing'er. "Miss Shui, take them back to your lodgings first. I'll wait for you at the entrance to Star Dou Forest tomorrow morning."
Once the Skywater Academy group had left, Zhou Qiubai slowly approached the people from Spirit Hall. "May I ask why you are looking for me?"
The middle-aged deacon looked Zhou Qiubai over, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes. "Zhou Qiubai, correct? Please come with us to the branch hall for a discussion."
Though his tone was an invitation, the meaning behind it needed no explanation. Zhou Qiubai did not refuse and simply followed them.
Spirit Hall branch hall, meeting room.
Zhou Qiubai and the middle-aged deacon sat facing each other across a long table.
The deacon waved away the others, leaving only the two of them in the room.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Luo Sen, deacon of the Spirit Hall branch in Suolunke City." The middle-aged man spoke first, his voice low. "I invited you here today to confirm something. I heard that you have condensed Soul Power?"
The moment he heard that, Zhou Qiubai understood. Most likely, the group he had released had passed the information on to Spirit Hall.
But this worked out well. He could use this chance to prove his identity.
Zhou Qiubai explained, "Indeed. Over the years, I was fortunate enough to figure out a few methods and can condense a small amount of Soul Power. It's just that cultivation is extremely difficult, and my progress has been slow."
Luo Sen stared into Zhou Qiubai's eyes. "May I examine you? After all, it was Spirit Hall that awakened your Martial Soul back then. If we truly overlooked something, we should give you an explanation and retroactively issue the Soul Master subsidies you were owed all these years."
"Of course." Zhou Qiubai calmly extended his left hand.
Luo Sen likewise extended his right hand, and their palms met.
A stream of Soul Power flowed into Zhou Qiubai through his arm and circulated along his meridians.
Zhou Qiubai's heart stirred. Spirit Hall had come to investigate him without a word, so there was naturally no need for him to make things easy for them.
Zhou Qiubai directly began circulating his cultivation technique, greedily absorbing the Soul Power Luo Sen injected into him. Luo Sen, meanwhile, assumed Zhou Qiubai's talent was too poor and his meridians were blocked, so he gradually increased the flow of Soul Power.
After a while, Luo Sen's face gradually turned pale, and fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead.
"How is it?" Zhou Qiubai asked with concern. "Is there some problem?"
"N-no problem." Luo Sen forced out a smile. "You have indeed condensed Soul Power. There must have been some error during your awakening back then, and it wasn't detected in time. I'll have someone process your Soul Master certification shortly, and the subsidies owed to you over the years will be issued as well."
"There's no rush for that." Zhou Qiubai hurriedly waved his hand.
Luo Sen nodded and continued, "Mm. Although you started late, your talent is still decent. Are you interested in joining Spirit Hall?"
"Thank you, Deacon Luo, but I've grown used to living freely. I'd be more comfortable remaining a free Soul Master in the forest."
Seeing that Zhou Qiubai's attitude was firm, Luo Sen did not press further. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he saw Zhou Qiubai out of the branch hall.
Once Zhou Qiubai disappeared around the street corner, a subordinate emerged from the shadows. "Sir, what about the azure Soul Ring?"
The warm smile on Luo Sen's face instantly vanished. "It isn't a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. That information was probably fabricated as well. A useless Martial Soul that can barely cultivate isn't worth Spirit Hall making such a fuss over. Approve his subsidies, make a record, and report it. Let the important people worry about the important people's affairs."
Meanwhile, inside Star Forest Tavern.
Huang Tianzong had his arms around two subordinates, raising a wooden cup and pouring liquor down his throat. His face was flushed red.
"Hahaha! That brat is dead this time!" Huang Tianzong shouted, spraying spit everywhere. "An azure Soul Ring? Pah! Let's see how he explains that!"
"Big Brother is wise! Once Spirit Hall takes action, that brat definitely won't get away with it!"
"Exactly! That brat didn't even bother asking around about our reputation!"
Suddenly, the flattering voices came to an abrupt stop.
Huang Tianzong, his drunken eyes hazy, unhappily shoved the subordinate beside him, who had suddenly gone stiff. "Drink! Why did you stop drinking?"
At that moment, a calm voice came from behind him. Zhou Qiubai sat down beside Huang Tianzong and said, "How about I have a few drinks with you?"