"Beast Martial Soul: Soft Bone Rabbit. Innate Soul Power: Level Seven. Very good."
"Little one, would you like to join our Spirit Hall?"
"Uncle, I'd like to study at a Soul Master Academy first."
"Our Spirit Hall has its own Soul Master Academy, too."
"..."
Only after much cajoling did Jiang Jiu manage to send Blind Douluo on his way. He sensed the Soul Power surging through his body, his eyes flickering.
This was Su Yuntao, after all. With anyone else, he might not have gotten off so easily.
It was just that his Innate Soul Power was neither here nor there...
"I have to go to Nuoding Academy. Three months should be enough to make some preparations."
Jiang Jiu had already heard from Su Yuntao about a boy with Innate Full Soul Power but a Trash Martial Soul. He now had a clear idea of the timeline.
As a transmigrator, he could only say that the past six years hadn't exactly gone smoothly.
Do whatever it took to get into the Shrek Seven Devils. As long as he could become a god, who needed a bicycle?
Living forever mattered more than anything.
Three months later, at Nuoding Academy, Jiang Jiu finished registering and headed to Dorm Seven just in time.
With Innate Soul Power at Level Seven, nearly Level Seven and a half, six years of hard work would give him a good chance of getting into Shrek Academy.
But the problem was that his Martial Soul was Soft Bone Rabbit.
Not that there was anything wrong with the Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul.
After three months of repeatedly practicing Martial Soul Possession and cultivating his Soul Power, Jiang Jiu was fairly satisfied with his Martial Soul. It wasn't as weak as he'd imagined.
It was just that Xiao Wu was already here, which meant that, objectively speaking, he could only rank below her.
There was no way he could outdo Xiao Wu, who had Innate Full Soul Power. And on top of that, Xiao Wu had her Soft Technique, a special skill that didn't come built into the Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul.
Faced with the possibility of failing to shine at Shrek Academy and getting cut from the roster, Jiang Jiu had no choice but to take a crooked path.
The key to becoming a god still lay with Tang San. He'd better get on good terms with him first.
Among Jiang Jiu's belongings were his core gear—the Patchwork Robe—and a small forging hammer.
These were part of the preparations he'd made over the past three months. Of course, he had a few other things, too.
As he neared Dorm Seven, Jiang Jiu slowed his pace.
First impressions mattered a great deal when dealing with people.
Dorm Seven had an unwritten rule: the senior students gave every newcomer a "welcome."
No matter what, Jiang Jiu couldn't fight Tang San. Getting labeled "weak" would be a real hassle, especially when it came to making a first impression.
As the saying went, don't show off your true abilities too readily, or people would find out you had no abilities at all.
Though he hated to admit it, he really couldn't beat Tang San right now. He couldn't beat Xiao Wu, either, and even Wang Sheng would be a tough opponent.
Jiang Jiu could only afford to lose to Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu's Soft Technique would make the outcome less obvious, with a bit of a "first-meeting kill" to it.
Losing to Xiao Wu's Soft Technique would make Jiang Jiu's apparent strength seem to fluctuate within a certain range. After all, his Soul Power Level was right there for everyone to see—and he was already at Level Eight.
"Sniff... sniff..."
The dormitory had quieted down, but Jiang Jiu noticed that the little girl who was supposed to enter Dorm Seven and show off her skills had appeared behind him. She edged closer, little by little, her small nose twitching repeatedly.
"Mm, you smell so nice!" Xiao Wu, her hair tied into a scorpion braid, blurted out.
Jiang Jiu leaned his head back and took two steps away.
"You smell nice, too."
"Hehe, thanks." Xiao Wu didn't press closer this time, but her gaze remained fixed on Jiang Jiu. Her bright, lively eyes seemed to be pondering something.
"By the way, my name is Xiao Wu. Wu, as in 'dance.' What's yours?"
"Jiang Jiu."
Jiang Jiu gave a brief reply.
When he'd said Xiao Wu smelled "nice," he hadn't been making small talk, nor was he literally referring to the girl's scent. It was a strange kind of attraction that even made the Soul Power inside him stir more actively.
Is this a Mimicry Cultivation Environment?
For a Beast Martial Soul, a Mimicry Cultivation Environment was an animal similar or closely related to one's own Beast Martial Soul.
Nothing could be more compatible with his Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul than a hundred-thousand-year-old giant white rabbit—even if that giant white rabbit had taken human form.
It wasn't just the likes of Xiao Wu, who had only recently taken human form. Even if Ah Yin had completed her transformation, a Blue Silver Grass Soul Master who bonded with her would still see his Soul Power cultivation speed increase dramatically.
Has the plan changed?
Stick with Xiao Wu, and reaching Level Thirty at twelve wouldn't be a dream.
Meanwhile, on Xiao Wu's end:
As a "new human" transformed from a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, she needed to be exposed to human presence to keep making progress in her cultivation. All human settlements were Mimicry Cultivation Environments for transformed Soul Beasts like her.
But to Xiao Wu, Jiang Jiu's "human presence" was especially strong—or rather, his unique "human presence" matched her needs perfectly.
He's a little shy, too? Just wait till I 'take him down'! Xiao Wu pumped her fist inwardly. Her entry into the human world had gone so smoothly that she couldn't help feeling delighted.
The two of them, each with their own thoughts, entered Dorm Seven together.
"Is this Dorm Seven?"
Xiao Wu's clear voice rang out, interrupting Tang San, Wang Sheng, and the others as they chatted in the dormitory.
The group of work-study students looked toward the door, their eyes going wide.
There stood two pretty little "girls" in the doorway.
One had black hair and brown eyes, with long hair tied into a scorpion braid that fell to her waist. Her adorable face was rosy and tender.
The other had medium-length golden hair, clear lake-blue eyes, and fair skin. The only pity was that, unlike the first girl, she didn't have a sweet smile on her face.
The appearance of the two left the work-study students in Dorm Seven dumbstruck for a long while.
Just looking at their faces, they seemed to belong to a world entirely different from theirs.
"Can boys and girls share a dormitory here?"
Tang San was the first to react. He quietly asked Wang Sheng, the more experienced student.
But after Wang Sheng explained that junior Soul Master Academies didn't separate students by gender, he urged Tang San to give the two newcomers a welcome.
Jiang Jiu watched as Wang Sheng kept prodding Tang San until he had no choice but to get up and walk over.
Tang San showed his youthful, even nervous side at that moment.
The right way to fight was to drag a genius into a field he wasn't good at.
Clearly, Tang San had no idea how to deal with girls at the moment.
By the time he reached Shrek Academy, he might not have become an old hand, but his tolerance in that regard would have changed completely.
"Hello, I'm Tang San. W-well, it's like this..."
"Our Dorm Seven has a rule: new work-study students have to show us their Martial Soul and their abilities."
"So, um, as Dorm Seven's monitor, I'd like to spar with you two."
Tang San carefully chose his words, mindful of how they might come across, doing his best not to sound like he was picking on girls.
"You sure?"
Xiao Wu hadn't yet let herself run wild, and had planned to keep up her image as a sweet, naïve little girl. She hadn't expected to find a fight waiting for her as soon as she arrived. How wonderful!
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