It was five in the morning the next day, and the sky had yet to fully brighten.
Zhu Shen climbed out of bed, washed up quickly, and stepped outside. When he passed Tang San's room, the door was already open, and the bed was neatly made. Tang San had gone downstairs long ago.
That kid was even more eager than he was.
When Zhu Shen reached the clearing behind the dormitory, Tang San was already there warming up. He finished a set of punches, each strike cutting through the air with force. Though he was young, his movements were crisp and precise.
"Teacher." Seeing Zhu Shen approach, Tang San lowered his guard.
"Up this early?"
"I'm used to it," Tang San said. "Back home, I had to get up at this time every day to work the forge."
Zhu Shen nodded. Though Tang Hao had been a wreck, he had never neglected Tang San's basic training. Smithing trained the body and endurance, while Hidden Weapons trained precision and control. Tang San had built a solid foundation in both.
"Run ten laps first to warm up." Zhu Shen pointed to the edge of the clearing. "One lap is about two hundred meters, so ten laps makes two kilometers."
Without a word, Tang San turned and started running.
Watching him go, Zhu Shen wondered how he could fleece the kid today. The system's rewards were too tempting to pass up.
Tang San had completed two laps by the time Wang Sheng came panting over, followed by seven or eight other children.
"Tea... Teacher..." Wang Sheng braced his hands on his knees, gasping. "Sorry, I'm late."
"You're not late. It's only six." Zhu Shen glanced at the sky. "Go warm up. Ten laps."
"Ten laps?" Wang Sheng's eyes widened.
"Got a problem with that?"
"N-no problem!" Wang Sheng gritted his teeth and called to the children behind him. "Come on, come on, let's run!"
The children ran after Tang San. A few of the younger ones were already out of breath after two laps, but when they saw Tang San still running, they were too embarrassed to stop. They gritted their teeth and kept going.
Zhu Shen stood at the edge of the clearing, watching the children.
There were seven work-study students in Wang Sheng's group. Including Wang Sheng and Tang San, that made nine in all. The youngest was six, the same age as Tang San, while the oldest was only ten. Their Martial Souls were all over the place, some Beast Martial Souls and some tool-type Martial Souls, but every one of them was ordinary.
The children had average talent and poor foundations, but at least they were willing to work hard. None of them slacked off during the laps. Even after finishing, when they were panting like dogs, no one asked to stop.
Once everyone had finished, Zhu Shen had them line up.
"My name is Yu Xiaogang. Starting today, I'll teach you how to cultivate." Zhu Shen swept his gaze over them. "Those who want to learn can stay. Those who don't can leave. But I'll make one thing clear: my training is grueling. If you can't take it, leave now."
The seven children looked at each other, but no one moved.
"Good. Then let's begin." Zhu Shen walked up to the first child. "What's your name, and what's your Martial Soul?"
"Tea... Teacher, my name is Li Erniu, and my Martial Soul is a shovel." The little boy spoke timidly, his voice barely audible.
"A shovel?" Zhu Shen laughed. "That's a fine Martial Soul. You'll have an easy time digging holes to bury people."
Li Erniu stared at him blankly, not knowing what his teacher was talking about.
Zhu Shen went down the line, asking each child about their Martial Soul and noting its characteristics. Most had ordinary Martial Souls: hoes, sickles, wooden sticks, and even one that was a rock.
When he reached the last child, Zhu Shen paused.
She was a little girl with two pigtails tied like ram's horns. Her face was smudged with dirt, but her eyes were bright. She took half a step back and said quietly, "Teacher, my name is Xiao Lian, and my Martial Soul is... is a dandelion."
"A dandelion?" Zhu Shen's eyes lit up. "Show me."
The little girl hesitated, then held out both hands. A puff of white fluff drifted from her palms, bobbing along until a breeze scattered it.
"Ha ha ha ha!" Several boys doubled over laughing.
Xiao Lian blushed and lowered her head, her eyes brimming with tears.
Zhu Shen turned and smiled at the boys who were laughing. "What are you laughing at? You think your Martial Souls are so impressive?"
Li Erniu raised his hand. "Teacher, my shovel can dig!"
"What good is digging?" Zhu Shen rolled his eyes. "A dandelion can fly, scout, and scatter poisonous powder. What can your shovel do? Dig holes, and then dig some more."
Li Erniu was stunned.
Zhu Shen crouched down and looked at Xiao Lian. "Do you know what a dandelion can do?"
Xiao Lian shook her head.
"Dandelion seeds can fly. The wind can carry them far away. Just imagine: when you're fighting, you scatter a handful of seeds, and your opponent can't even open their eyes. Add a little poison to them, and the other side will drop like flies." Zhu Shen grew more excited as he spoke. "The seeds can also act as scouts, drifting over to the enemy and checking things out. Isn't that better than a shovel?"
Xiao Lian raised her head, her eyes brightening. "Really?"
"Of course." Zhu Shen patted her head. "But first, you have to train hard. If you slack off, a dandelion is just a weed. If you train well, a dandelion can kill."
Xiao Lian nodded hard.
The boys who had laughed fell silent.
Zhu Shen stood up and clapped his hands. "All right, we've met everyone. Now the real training begins."
He walked to the center of the clearing and had the nine children form a circle.
"I don't care what you've learned before. From now on, forget all of it and start over." Zhu Shen said, "The first step in a Soul Master's cultivation is building a foundation. If your foundation is weak, you'll amount to nothing."
"First, circulating Soul Power."
Zhu Shen explained the route Soul Power followed through the meridians. It was a basic cultivation method he had exchanged through the system, and it was far better than the common methods used across the continent.
The children listened attentively, though a few clearly didn't understand.
Zhu Shen wasn't in a hurry. He taught them one by one, guiding them by hand. He sent Soul Power into their bodies and led it along the route once, helping them remember the sensation.
When he got to Xiao Lian, Zhu Shen found that her meridians were much narrower than the others', making it difficult for her Soul Power to circulate. But her Soul Power was pure, as light and airy as dandelion seeds, carrying a fresh, clean scent.
"How did you cultivate before?" Zhu Shen asked.
"I... I didn't know how." Xiao Lian said softly, "No one ever taught me. I only knew how to release my Soul Power, and then it was gone."
Zhu Shen sighed. That was the reality for work-study students: no money, no resources, and no one to teach them even the most basic cultivation methods. Awakening a Martial Soul was already a stroke of luck, let alone learning how to circulate Soul Power.
"It's all right. Your teacher will teach you." Zhu Shen patiently guided her Soul Power, leading it through her meridians little by little. Xiao Lian winced in pain, but gritted her teeth and stayed quiet.
By the time it had completed one circuit, Xiao Lian was drenched in sweat, but she looked much more relaxed.
"Did you remember it?"
"I did." Xiao Lian nodded. "Thank you, Teacher."
"No need to thank me. Just keep practicing."
He spent the entire morning teaching them.
At noon, Zhu Shen sent Wang Sheng to the dining hall to fetch food, and they all ate in the clearing. The meal was poor—plain rice with pickles—but the children ate with gusto, and no one complained.
As they ate, Wang Sheng edged closer and asked quietly, "Teacher, do you really think a dandelion can fight?"
"What, you don't believe me?"
"It's not that I don't believe you..." Wang Sheng scratched his head. "It just sounds a little far-fetched."
Zhu Shen smiled. "Do you know what Tang San's Martial Soul is?"
"No."
"Blue Silver Grass."
Wang Sheng paused. "You mean that Blue Silver Grass growing all over the place?"
"That's right." Zhu Shen pointed at Tang San. "His First Soul Ring is a Ten-Year Lone Bamboo, and his Soul Skill is pole-vaulting. How strong do you think Blue Silver Grass and a Lone Bamboo can be?"
Wang Sheng shook his head.
"Then have him show you."
Tang San set down his bowl and flicked his right hand. A two-meter-long Lone Bamboo appeared out of thin air. He leapt forward and grabbed it with both hands. The bamboo bent into an astonishing arc, then sprang forward with a whoosh.
Wang Sheng's vision blurred. Tang San was already ten zhang away.
"Holy shit!" Wang Sheng was so shocked that he dropped his chopsticks.
The other children stared too, dumbfounded.
Tang San walked back, his expression calm. "And that's only a ten-year Soul Ring."
Wang Sheng swallowed and turned to Zhu Shen. "Teacher, I want to learn that too!"
"Build your foundation first." Zhu Shen rapped him on the head. "You can't even circulate your Soul Power properly. What are you thinking about pole-vaulting for?"
Wang Sheng rubbed his head and grinned.
The afternoon training focused on physical conditioning.
Zhu Shen had Wang Sheng find a pile of rocks, large and small. He told the children to pick up rocks according to their strength and carry them around the clearing. When they couldn't go on, they could set them down, rest, then keep going.
It was the clumsiest method, but also the most effective.
By the end of the afternoon, all nine children were exhausted and staggering. Li Erniu flopped onto the ground and refused to move. Zhu Shen kicked him back up. "Walk two laps to cool down, or your legs will be killing you tomorrow."
Li Erniu groaned, crawled to his feet, and limped off.
Xiao Lian held up surprisingly well. Though her face had gone pale with exhaustion, she never once asked to stop. Zhu Shen took note and gave an approving nod to himself. She looked weak, but there was a stubborn streak in her bones.
At dusk, Zhu Shen sent them back to rest, telling them to continue the next day.
After the children left, only Zhu Shen and Tang San remained in the clearing.
"Teacher," Tang San suddenly said, "is there something wrong with the dean?"
Zhu Shen glanced at him. "Why do you ask?"
"This morning, when we went to the teaching building, I saw the dean talking to someone in a dark red outfit. The aura on that person was very similar to the three Evil Soul Masters in the Soul Hunting Forest."
Zhu Shen frowned. "Are you sure?"
Tang San nodded. "The effects of Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew are still active, so I saw clearly. There was a dark red emblem embroidered on the person's sleeve. It looked like an eye."
Zhu Shen fell silent for a moment.
It seemed Su Nuo's connection to the Evil God Temple ran deeper than he'd thought. And the person Tang San had seen was very likely the "Blood Shadow" Snake Undying had mentioned before he died.
"Xiao San, don't get involved in this for now," Zhu Shen said. "Your job is to cultivate and get stronger as soon as possible."
"But..."
"No buts." Zhu Shen cut him off. "You only have one Soul Ring right now. Going up against those people would be suicide. Once you're stronger, I'll take you with me to fight them."
Tang San fell silent for a while, then nodded.
"By the way." Zhu Shen pulled a piece of emerald-green Soul Bone from inside his robes and handed it to Tang San. "This is the reward the system gave me yesterday: a Ten-Year Lone Bamboo Right Leg Bone. Including the three from before, you have four now."
Tang San took the Soul Bone, hesitating. "Teacher, I just absorbed one yesterday..."
"One more never hurts." Zhu Shen pressed the Soul Bone into his hand. "Absorb it. I'll keep watch."
Tang San sat cross-legged and pressed the Soul Bone to his right leg. A green light shone, and it soon melted into him.
This absorption was even faster than the previous ones. It was over in less than a quarter of an hour.
Tang San stood and moved both legs. "My right leg's strength and resilience have improved, and I have better control over plants, too."
He focused his mind and lightly stamped his right foot. Several weeds beside him shot up in an instant, wrapping around a nearby rock. The weeds tightened until several pale marks appeared on the stone.
"Not bad." Zhu Shen nodded. "Once you've gathered all seven, the effect will be even more terrifying."
"Teacher." Tang San dismissed his Soul Skill and hesitated. "There's something I'm not sure I should tell you."
"Go ahead."
"This afternoon, during training, I noticed someone watching us from far away." Tang San pointed toward the teaching building. "Behind a fourth-floor window. They watched for a long time."
Zhu Shen narrowed his eyes.
The fourth floor was where the dean's office was.
"I understand." Zhu Shen patted his shoulder. "You did well. If you notice anything unusual again, tell me right away."
"Yes."