Idle Chat Under the Night Sky

Zi Buyu manipulated the Flowing Water Flying Shuttle, pouring her soul power into it.

The next moment, the Flowing Water Flying Shuttle, which had been resting on the ground, shuddered before transforming into a streak of light and vanishing from the spot at a speed almost impossible to track.

Even when Li Changsheng opened his eyes, he could only see darkness before him, while an inexplicable sense of vertigo assaulted him from all directions.

Looking at its exterior, the Flowing Water Flying Shuttle resembled a water droplet. At the tail of the droplet was a massive soul power propulsion device, but due to its rigorous structure and perfect construction, the device looked quite similar to the steam trailing behind a drop of boiling water.

Inside the cabin, once the Flowing Water Flying Shuttle had ascended to an altitude of about ten thousand meters, the atmosphere around them changed.

As his vision gradually returned, Li Changsheng opened his eyes and could clearly see that the entire cabin was slightly cramped, yet it featured expensive leather lining, and soft, non-glaring lights illuminated the space.

The most peculiar part was the floor beneath their feet.

The floor was completely transparent. Naturally, this was due to the material; this special substance appeared dark and unremarkable at an altitude of ten thousand meters below, but once they reached this height, it became as clear and crystalline as a water droplet.

Of course, from the outside, even at ten thousand meters, it maintained its original appearance.

Li Changsheng slowly opened his eyes, surprised to find that the sensation felt quite similar to riding an airplane in his past life.

"So fast..."

Traveling beneath a starry black curtain, they would find a star to use as a reference point, only to surpass it in the blink of an eye.

Shen Yueliang, however, did not seem particularly curious; she sat there, recovering the soul power she had just expended.

Up ahead, Zi Buyu was controlling the direction of the Flowing Water Flying Shuttle while maintaining a steady flow of soul power. This did not seem to trouble her at all; on the contrary, with the long night ahead and no time to read, she began chatting with Li Changsheng and Shen Yueliang instead.

"What are your thoughts on the Pre-Education Academy's curriculum this semester?"

Li Changsheng and Shen Yueliang exchanged a glance, their eyes reflecting a hint of confusion. After a moment of silence, Li Changsheng spoke up: "I don't have many thoughts on it. It's just a pity that we haven't had many opportunities to spar with others over the past six months. I enrolled in the Pre-Education Academy because I heard its teaching system was a complete replica of Shrek Academy—fostering growth through combat—but it feels no different from an ordinary soul master academy now. Of course, the foundational knowledge we've gained is quite substantial."

This was Li Changsheng's intuitive assessment.

It was true; over the past six months, he had barely engaged in any real combat. His sessions with Shen Yueliang were merely spars, and although he always lost, he was certain that if he truly utilized his methods, he could kill a Great Soul Master like Shen Yueliang, who was in her twenties, in a single strike.

His Genesis Book martial soul was formidable—so formidable that it made Li Changsheng want to exclaim that it was a monster.

At first, he thought that whatever he shouted, the Genesis Book would manifest as an attack, but later, he slowly realized the truth.

Shouting was incomplete; the attack only became truly perfect when he exerted effort to visualize the scene within his mind.

However, the more perfect the scene, the greater the consumption of soul power.

After Li Changsheng completed the task of becoming a Level 1 Soul Tool Master, the age of his first soul ring increased by one hundred years.

Only then did Li Changsheng understand why the God of Wisdom had previously said he could attach soul rings to the Genesis Book as he pleased.

Shen Yueliang also spoke up: "I actually think it's quite good this way."

Zi Buyu nodded from the front, saying listlessly: "Actually, thousands of years ago, the original intention behind establishing the Pre-Education Academy was to benchmark it against the Spirit Hall of ten thousand years ago. Of course, it wasn't about the Spirit Hall's tyranny, but rather a desire to gather the world's geniuses, recruit them, and cultivate them earlier. After all, the window for a soul master's rapid growth is quite short. But cultivating geniuses is easier said than done. In fact, people like you could be thrown directly into Shrek Academy."

Zi Buyu was Li Changsheng and Shen Yueliang's instructor, and she was well aware of their talents and martial souls; she could only describe them as unprecedented.

She had also heard of Shen Yueliang, who had awakened her martial soul in a town near the Far North. She had entered the Pre-Education Academy without any examination and became the Dean's student. For some reason, however, after the Dean helped her obtain two soul rings, he stopped paying attention to her, though he did arrange for Zi Buyu to instruct her.

It was said that at the very beginning, people from Shrek Academy had come to recruit Shen Yueliang directly to study and be cultivated there. After all, an innate soul power of level twenty, unheard of in ten thousand years, was enough to shock everyone. But later, for some unknown reason, the matter was never mentioned again, only that after graduating from the Pre-Education Academy, she could enter the outer courtyard of Shrek Academy's martial soul department without an examination.

Li Changsheng remained silent. One must eat a meal one bite at a time, and besides, the talent he displayed wasn't actually that astonishing, given his age.

If it weren't for the fact that they were on break, such behavior would likely not have been permitted.

Afterward, Zi Buyu brought up the subject of the Star Dou Great Forest.

She didn't say much, only telling Li Changsheng and Shen Yueliang that they wouldn't actually be setting foot inside the Star Dou Great Forest.

The reason was simple: it was truly dangerous.

Moreover, Zi Buyu was a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse. If she were to step in rashly, it might provoke a backlash from powerful soul beasts or even trigger a beast tide—something even Shrek Academy feared. That was why there was a regulation prohibiting Titled Douluos from causing slaughter.

"By the way, Yueliang, why is your second soul ring a thousand-year one?"

Only then did Li Changsheng remember that he still had many questions and doubts he hadn't asked Shen Yueliang.

For instance, how were the two of them able to use a martial soul fusion skill? And it seemed as if Shen Yueliang had known about it in advance.

Zi Buyu didn't speak either; she seemed somewhat curious as well, but since this was likely a secret that couldn't be shared among soul masters, she had never asked.

Shen Yueliang tilted her head, looking somewhat bewildered. "With an innate soul power of level twenty, isn't it normal to attach a thousand-year soul ring?"

Hearing this somewhat naive answer, Li Changsheng nearly coughed up blood.

Normal?

It was anything but normal!

But what could he use to refute her?

He really couldn't. He wasn't someone with innate level twenty soul power, so how could he know whether absorbing soul rings was truly that much easier?

"Also, didn't the five of you go to Spirit Soul City to recruit that son of the Clear Sky Sect? Why haven't I heard of him at the Pre-Education Academy? Did he not come?"

Li Changsheng asked out of curiosity.

Why did he ask these questions? Naturally, to pass the time, and because he wanted to know—and Shen Yueliang would always answer him.

Shen Yueliang clearly thought for a moment. "I seem to have some impression of him. It seems he was taken back to his sect and didn't enroll in the Pre-Education Academy. In all likelihood, he will apply to Shrek Academy before he turns twelve, right?"

Zi Buyu, who was in front, also spoke up. "I actually know about this. I heard that the son of the Clear Sky Sect didn't awaken the Clear Sky Hammer, but rather a rare female-exclusive martial soul, the Radiant Goddess Butterfly. Of course, not many people know about this martial soul. Since it wasn't the Clear Sky Hammer, he was sent back to the sect. However, I speculate that he most likely has twin martial souls—no, not most likely, it should be certain."

It was that Wang Dong!

Li Changsheng instantly connected the two.

The rest of the journey was somewhat uneventful. Li Changsheng didn't find it easy to bring up the matter of the so-called martial soul fusion skill, so he prepared to find a time to ask about it later.

Afterward, as dawn approached, they arrived at a fairly large forest on the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest and landed gracefully.

Li Changsheng and Shen Yueliang then entered this forest, which bordered the Star Dou Great Forest and was considered part of it, together with Zi Buyu.

The moment they stepped inside, Li Changsheng's Sign-in and Clock-in System displayed a notification.

Star Dou Great Forest Exploration Progress: 1%