Time to Burst Some Gold Coins!

That afternoon, Class One, which had been quiet until then, suddenly received another visitor who caused a minor stir.

The visitor was none other than Ma Xiaotao, who had already recovered as usual.

After learning that she had come to find Lin Yan, the boys at the door, who had approached to probe her intentions with unspeakable little thoughts in their hearts, instantly regressed to their ancestors and let out a chorus of wails.

Damn Lin Yan!

You deserve to die!

Ignoring everyone's varied reactions, Lin Yan understood at once. The one here to burst gold coins for him had arrived!

He slowly walked to the door, looked at the expressionless Ma Xiaotao, and said flatly, "Let's go."

Without waiting for her reaction, he turned and headed forward.

The journey passed in silence. A day later, Lin Yan once again saw Yan Shaozhe, whose complexion did not look particularly good.

Though Lin Yan did not know how Yan Shaozhe had placated Wang Dong'er yesterday, judging by his expression, he must have paid quite a price—and most likely out of his own pocket.

When Yan Shaozhe saw Lin Yan enter, he gathered his emotions and said with a smile, "Little Lin, you're here."

Lin Yan likewise smiled brightly. "Good afternoon, Dean."

Perhaps he truly was not in a good mood, because Yan Shaozhe did not beat around the bush. He went straight to the point. "Little Lin, let's get down to business. Let's discuss suppressing Xiaotao's Evil Fire."

Lin Yan turned and glanced at Ma Xiaotao. She had remained quiet and well-behaved throughout this meeting, without causing trouble or making a fuss. It was clear that she was still unconvinced, but under Yan Shaozhe's orders, she had evidently chosen to compromise and cooperate.

Retracting his gaze, Lin Yan faced Yan Shaozhe directly, his expression growing slightly more serious as he began his performance.

With a solemn look, Lin Yan immediately cut off any thought Yan Shaozhe might have had of getting something for free. "Dean, let me make the unpleasant part clear first."

"Using the Emperor Flame Seed Splitting Technique comes at a tremendous cost to me as well."

"Each time I split off a seed flame, it damages my Martial Soul Origin. If I could not rely on refining Origin Flame to repair that damage, I would never have agreed to help with this."

"But even if the damage can be repaired, repeatedly using this secret technique will slow my martial soul's evolution. So if the Dean cannot agree to my conditions today, then don't blame me for refusing to help."

Once he finished speaking, Lin Yan quietly watched Yan Shaozhe, waiting for his reply.

Naturally, what he had just said was only half true.

When the Emperor Flame Seed Splitting Technique had first been created, it had indeed damaged the Martial Soul Origin. But after discovering that flaw, Lin Yan had long since begun working on a solution and eliminated the defect.

By now, using this secret technique was as simple to him as eating or drinking. It no longer cost him anything at all.

But Lin Yan naturally would not tell Yan Shaozhe that. Otherwise, how would he name his price?!

Was he supposed to say, "Hey, old man! Bend over for me! I'm here to burst your gold coins!"

Under Lin Yan's fixed stare, Yan Shaozhe's heart twitched. He had wanted to wave the banner of morality again and talk to Lin Yan about the spirit of dedication.

But when he remembered the boy's scheming nature, then saw the posture that seemed to say, Say one word of bullshit and I'll turn around and leave, he could only abandon the idea resentfully.

Yan Shaozhe forced out an even more strained smile and began crying poverty without any energy. "Little Lin, tell me your conditions first. I won't hide it from you. Though I'm the Dean of the Spirit Department, my pockets are actually quite empty. I'm truly not wealthy!"

A miser would cry poverty all day even while sitting atop a mountain of gold. Lin Yan was naturally unmoved.

Still, acting was acting. Though Lin Yan had never received formal training, he knew a thing or two.

He immediately softened his tone and said gently, "Don't worry, Dean. I understand your difficulties too. I only have three simple little requests. As long as you agree, I'll definitely help!"

Under Yan Shaozhe's suspicious gaze, Lin Yan slowly revealed his "little requests."

"First, one of my friends has now broken through to rank forty and needs to go to the Far North to obtain a Spirit Ring. I hope you can arrange for an expert of at least Soul Douluo cultivation to accompany us."

After hearing the first condition, Yan Shaozhe froze. He had not expected Lin Yan's request to be so simple!

Had he really misunderstood Lin Yan?

Was he actually a considerate "good student"?!

Most importantly, Lin Yan's first request did not even require Yan Shaozhe to pay out of pocket. Was it really a big deal for the dignified Dean of the Spirit Department to send a Soul Douluo on an "official assignment"?

Thus, Yan Shaozhe immediately agreed, afraid Lin Yan would change his mind.

Lin Yan nodded without any change in expression and continued, "As for the second condition, it isn't difficult for you either, Dean."

"I've always placed great importance on tempering my body, so I need long-term medicinal meals to nourish it. But I'm a little short on funds right now. Sigh!"

As though he had seen through Yan Shaozhe's concerns, Lin Yan promptly added, "Of course, don't worry. What I need isn't some peerless treasure. Most of the medicinal meal recipes only require ordinary herbs and some thousand-year and ten-thousand-year soul beast meat."

As he spoke, Lin Yan took out a "cookbook" from his Storage Soul Tool and handed it to Yan Shaozhe.

After accepting the "cookbook" and flipping through it, Yan Shaozhe found that it was indeed as Lin Yan had said. He immediately waved a hand and agreed decisively. "That's easy. I'll instruct the cafeteria to handle this later. While you're in the Outer Courtyard, all your medicinal and food expenses will be charged to my account."

Only after Yan Shaozhe finished speaking did Lin Yan seem to remember something. Smiling, he added, "Oh, right, Dean. My appetite is... just a tiny little bit huge."

Yan Shaozhe did not think much of it. In his eyes, no matter how much a Soul Elder like Lin Yan ate, how much could it possibly be?

Little did he know that however generous he felt today, he would regret it just as deeply when he saw Lin Yan's first month of "food expenses."

Lin Yan's third Spirit Ring was already more than seven thousand years old, far surpassing the fourth Spirit Rings of ordinary Soul Masters.

That meant Lin Yan's physical strength had already surpassed that of most Battle Soul Ancestors. After absorbing his third Spirit Ring, he could even hold his own against some Soul Kings who were not power attack types!

The reason he had forged such a body was the blood and vitality cultivation method he had begun exploring and creating from the very start of his cultivation—the Body Forging Art!

Moreover, after repeated refinement and optimization throughout his cultivation, his Body Forging Art had now evolved from version 1.0 to version 2.3.

However, the accompanying problem was that the resources required for cultivation had skyrocketed.

As for the medicinal meal recipes he had just given Yan Shaozhe, they had been tailored specifically for himself according to the characteristics of his cultivation method.

He had not studied medicine for all these years for nothing. In his previous life, long illness had made him into a doctor, and he had read countless traditional Chinese medical classics.

In this life, he had integrated the traditional Chinese medical theories from his past life with the local medicine of Douluo Continent, combining and innovating them. On the path of medicine, Lin Yan could modestly boast that he "knew a little."

As the saying went, medicine and martial arts were inseparable. Delving deeply into medicine had not only allowed Lin Yan to control his body more precisely, but the theoretical foundation it provided had also been indispensable to creating the Body Forging Art, which combined nourishment and training.

After hearing Lin Yan's first two "little requests," Yan Shaozhe only felt that the youth before him was highly teachable and knew how to understand his "difficulties."

Oh! Sea God above!

Look! What a good child who knew how to think of "others"!

Then, at Yan Shaozhe's smiling gesture, Lin Yan continued, "Dean, my final condition is that I want reading access to the Library Pavilion of both Shrek's inner and Outer Courtyards, as well as all the Soul Guidance Arrays on the Soul Guidance Department's side!"

The moment those words fell, Yan Shaozhe's brows furrowed.