Disdainful

Aizen clicked his tongue in amazement as he looked at the soul ring beneath Ulquiorra's feet.

"He gained a soul ring without hunting a Soul Beast. Why does this feel a little like the reincarnation of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?"

"Could it be that this Douluo Continent sees Ulquiorra's Black Winged Great Demon as the reincarnation of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, so as long as he meets the requirements, he can automatically obtain soul rings?"

"What is your First Soul Skill?" Aizen asked.

Ulquiorra immediately lit up his first soul ring. The Black Winged Great Demon behind him merged into his body, and a pair of black wings grew from his back. He wore a white full-length robe and a helmet with two horns. His black nails became long claws, while his hair seemed to grow longer and the tear marks beneath his eyes became deeper and thicker. Then he raised his right hand and pointed forward.

Soul Power gathered at his fingertip.

Cero!

Biu!

A tiny Cero shot from his fingertip and shattered the chair in the bedroom!

Aizen's mouth twitched. That was the only chair in the room!

Originally, Ulquiorra slept on the chair at night while he slept on the bed.

Now that the chair was broken, was Ulquiorra supposed to sleep in the bed with him?

Impossible. Absolutely impossible!

He cursed Ulquiorra viciously in his heart.

"Not bad. This soul skill is quite good. But the chair is broken, so it seems you'll have to make do with sleeping on the floor tonight. You won't blame me, will you?"

Ulquiorra shuddered and walked over to the chair. Picking up the broken pieces, he said, "I'm sorry. I'll fix it, Lord Aizen!"

Aizen smiled faintly. "It's all right."

Ulquiorra hurriedly searched everywhere for tools, wanting to repair the chair immediately. As he searched, he said, "I'll fix the chair right away!"

Aizen stepped forward, lifted Ulquiorra's chin, and said softly, "I already said it's all right."

Ulquiorra's pupils widened. He swallowed and nodded.

Aizen returned to his bed. Looking at the silent Ulquiorra, who continued fixing the chair, he shook his head.

"Little U has already broken through to become a Soul Master. Why haven't I?"

He looked at Ulquiorra's status panel.

Name: Ulquiorra

Race: Human (Can transform into Hollow)

Age: Six

Level: Level 11 Soul Power

Martial Soul: Black Winged Great Demon

Skill: Cero Slash

Yet his own was...

Name: Aizen

Race: Human (Can transform)

Age: Six

Level: Level 10 Soul Power

Martial Soul: Zanpakuto (Kyoka Suigetsu)

Skills: Complete Hypnosis, Kido Spells Number One through Twenty-Nine.

Just then, Aizen suddenly felt as though something had shattered, as if some kind of restraint had been broken.

His status panel changed to...

Name: Aizen

Race: Human (Can transform)

Age: Six

Level: Level 19 Soul Power

Martial Soul: Zanpakuto (Kyoka Suigetsu)

Skills: Complete Hypnosis, Kido Spells Number One through Twenty-Nine.

Looking at the updated panel, Aizen smiled.

Interesting!

So he had broken through the restrictions of soul rings? He only needed to increase his Soul Power?

Fine. This was very Hogyoku!

Aizen slept somewhat restlessly that night. Soft knocking sounds kept reaching his ears.

Ulquiorra was still repairing the chair. To avoid disturbing Aizen's sleep, he did not dare use much force.

Even now, he had not finished fixing it.

The next day, Aizen looked at the chair covered in patches and smiled faintly. He stroked Ulquiorra's smooth hair.

"Not bad!"

Having received praise from Lord Aizen, Ulquiorra, with dark circles beneath his eyes, was as happy as a child.

Time flew by, and soon it was the opening day of Notting Junior Soul Master Academy.

Jack took Tang San, Aizen, and Ulquiorra to Notting City together.

This was what Aizen and Ulquiorra had agreed upon with Spirit Hall. Before joining Spirit Hall, they would only attend a neutral academy.

Along the way, Jack talked a great deal with Tang San. Ulquiorra listened with great interest from the side, while Aizen stared ahead without shifting his gaze.

It seemed that no one could shake his determined eyes.

Because of Aizen and Ulquiorra's exceptional talents, Spirit Hall directly covered their tuition and living expenses, using it as a way to build a good relationship with them.

Grandpa Jack also received a considerable reward from Spirit Hall because of this. It seemed Su Yuntao had received a corresponding reward as well.

Spirit Hall had given Ulquiorra and Aizen so much money in exchange for only two promises.

When joining any faction, Spirit Hall would be their first choice.

And when they achieved something in the future, they would help Spirit Hall once.

Aizen readily agreed, and Ulquiorra did not refuse either.

No one could say what the future held.

This amount of money was not much to Spirit Hall. It was simply a form of venture investment.

As they traveled through Notting City and gradually approached Notting Junior Soul Master Academy, Aizen saw the towering arched gate and knew they had arrived.

This hideously built gate was the entrance to Notting Academy.

Though the gate was shabby, the gatekeeper was arrogant and overbearing.

As they arrived at the entrance, the young gatekeeper immediately blocked the four of them.

"What are you doing here? Is this a place country bumpkins like you can come to? Get lost!"

The young man's eyes were filled with disdain, even disgust.

Jack was furious. He immediately took out the token given by Spirit Hall and said, "Open your dog eyes and look at what this is! A Spirit Hall token! These two are Soul Master students personally selected by Spirit Hall. How dare you block their way? Aren't you afraid of losing your job?"

The young man nearly died of fright when he saw the Spirit Hall token and hurriedly apologized.

"I failed to recognize greatness. I deserve to die. Please come in, all four of you!"

Bowing deeply, the young man led the four of them into the academy. He even acted as a guide, introducing them to the history of Notting Academy.

Once he started talking, his mouth would not stop. He spoke endlessly, doing his utmost to earn their forgiveness.

"Mm, this is far enough. Little Aizen and Little U, study well here. In the future, you must become powerful Soul Masters and bring glory to Holy Soul Village once more! And you too, Little San. Study hard and don't disgrace Holy Soul Village!"

After giving all his instructions, Grandpa Jack left the academy, humming cheerfully as he headed back to the village.

The three wandered around the Soul Master Academy when they suddenly encountered a middle-aged man of average height and slightly thin build, around forty or fifty years old.

Whenever they met him, the people around them called him Grandmaster.

Aizen narrowed his eyes slightly. So this was Yu Xiaogang?

He looked ordinary enough. Tossed into a crowd, he would not make a ripple. Looking at pretty girls was far more pleasant!

Ulquiorra kept his gaze fixed on Lord Aizen and did not care about any Grandmaster.

Tang San, on the other hand, glanced over.

Yu Xiaogang walked up to them, looked at the three, and asked, "Are you three the students in this class with Innate Full Soul Power?"

Aizen and Ulquiorra ignored Yu Xiaogang completely. The awkward Tang San sighed and answered, "Yes!"

After confirming it, Yu Xiaogang's love for talent was stirred, and he wanted to teach Aizen and Ulquiorra.

Without even thinking about it, Aizen directly refused!

His outward reason was, "A strong person is often born in the abyss of blood and fire. Only life and death are the best teachers. Everything else is but passing clouds!"

Ulquiorra's reason was even simpler. "The path Lord Aizen walks is the path I will walk."

As for Tang San, he looked speechlessly at the two of them. He did not immediately agree to Yu Xiaogang's offer, instead beginning to talk with him.

The general topic was some basic knowledge about Martial Souls.

Failing to take Aizen and Ulquiorra as disciples disappointed Yu Xiaogang somewhat, but the more he spoke with Tang San, the more he felt Tang San was also quite good.

When he finally discovered that Tang San was a genius no less talented than Aizen and Ulquiorra, he was overjoyed.

He even felt that Aizen and Ulquiorra were too arrogant, and that their future achievements could never surpass Tang San's.

In the end, Yu Xiaogang took Tang San away from Aizen and Ulquiorra.

Aizen merely gave a disdainful chuckle.

"You think you're worthy of teaching me?"

He looked at his latest status panel.

Name: Aizen

Race: Human (Can transform)

Age: Seven

Level: Level 29 Soul Power

Martial Soul: Zanpakuto (Kyoka Suigetsu)

Skills: Complete Hypnosis, Kido Spells Number One through Thirty-Nine.

He had reached Level 29 at such a young age!

This was all thanks to the system's words: collect souls.

At first, Aizen did not know what collecting souls meant.

Later, he attended the funeral of someone in the village and discovered that whenever a person died, their soul would overflow.

And Aizen could absorb that soul.

After absorbing souls, Aizen's Soul Power could be strengthened!

After discovering this, Aizen was extremely happy. Spirit Hall's funding had also arrived at just the right time.

So for a period of time, Aizen deliberately wandered everywhere, searching for fresh souls.

After so much effort, combined with his own cultivation, his level had directly reached Level 29!

However, the further he progressed, the slower it became.

Aizen felt that ordinary souls were too weak. Perhaps the souls of strong people would be better.

He could now even summon a second character and a second template.

Ulquiorra had also reached Level 19, but Aizen was gradually pulling ahead of him.

At the registration desk, Aizen directly requested to stay in Dormitory Number Seven. His stated reason was:

"Hardship is the path that brings one closer to strength!"

His real reason was:

"It would be fun to bully Tang San and Xiao Wu."