No Useless Martial Souls, Only Useless Soul Scholars!

A student from Mingde Hall had made the ranking,

and the Sun Moon Empire was similarly thrown into considerable shock and discussion,

yet they were equally unfamiliar with the name Ji Juechen.

Under countless gazes,

energy rapidly flowed across the golden scroll, and the image froze on a small, thin figure,

a boy standing at the center of a Martial Soul awakening ceremony, looking no more than six or seven years old,

tightly clutching an utterly ordinary-looking iron sword in his arms.

It was Ji Juechen in his youth.

Standing before him was a stout middle-aged man, who said with some regret,

"Unfortunately, your Innate Soul Power is only Rank 3."

"Even if you can cultivate into a Soul Scholar, your future..."

The awakener said much more,

but Ji Juechen gave no response. His black eyes were icy and profound as he stared fixedly at the Iron Sword Martial Soul in his hands.

Immediately afterward,

the image on the golden scroll accelerated, showing some of Ji Juechen's experiences after awakening his Martial Soul.

The Sky Screen's voice rang out as well:

[What now appears before you is Ji Juechen—the outstanding student of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy, specially approved by the master of Mingde Hall to enter Mingde Hall, a control-type Soul Engineer, and a sword cultivator seen only once in ten thousand years!]

[Ji Juechen's Innate Soul Power was only Rank 3 in his youth, and his Martial Soul was merely the most ordinary Iron Sword, no different from a useless Martial Soul.]

[Yet when he grasped his Martial Soul, there was only one sword in his eyes. From that day onward, he sought to challenge powerful foes with the sword in his hand!]

[At the age of eight, Ji Juechen's Soul Power finally broke through Rank 10. He ventured alone into a Soul Beast forest and obtained his First Hundred-Year Soul Ring through his own strength!]

"!?"

"An eight-year-old Soul Scholar could kill a hundred-year Soul Beast by himself!?"

"Even disciples from great clans would not dare enter a Soul Beast forest on their own..."

Within Shrek Academy,

by the waters of Sea God Lake.

After Huo Yuhao watched Ji Juechen kill the hundred-year Soul Beast in the image, his body suddenly trembled.

His Spirit Eye Martial Soul activated instinctively,

and scenes of hunting Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest flashed through his mind once more.

He had only managed to kill that Ten-Year Wind Baboon because he had the White Tiger Dagger to protect himself.

Yet Ji Juechen had slain a hundred-year Soul Beast purely with his Martial Soul and swordsmanship.

Huo Yuhao could not help feeling puzzled.

They were both peers, both hunting Soul Beasts under the same conditions, yet was the gap between them not far too great?

As Huo Yuhao pondered,

the Sky Screen's voice pulled him back to reality:

[As a sword fanatic, most of Ji Juechen's Soul Skills merely amplified his Soul Power. Yet through the Sword Intent he comprehended himself, he repeatedly defeated powerful enemies and entered the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy.]

[He was not a Soul Engineer, yet he defeated a Level-7 Soul Engineer with pure swordsmanship, shaking the academy!]

[The master of Mingde Hall, Jing Hongchen, valued his talent in Sword Intent and his fighting will. He made an exception and invited him into Mingde Hall, specifically arranging for experts to spar with him so he could continue comprehending Sword Intent.]

"Boom—!!"

The Sky Screen's voice exploded through the minds of all living beings like thunder.

When Ji Juechen joined Mingde Hall, he had only been a Soul King, yet he had defeated a Level-7 Soul Engineer with pure swordsmanship!

What kind of monstrous genius was that?

All living beings were stunned beyond words.

Perhaps not even Shrek Academy could find a second Ji Juechen???

[Beginning cultivation with Rank 3 Innate Soul Power, he continuously comprehended stronger Sword Intent and defeated the strong while weak!]

[In this Sky Screen's assessment, Ji Juechen perfectly embodied the saying: 'There are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Scholars'!]

[Ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Pride Ranking!]

[Ji Juechen's profile has concluded. Rewards will now be distributed!]

"This Sky Screen's assessment is fairly impartial."

Within Sun Moon Royal Academy,

Xiao Hongchen glanced at the Sky Screen and said to Ma Rulong and the others, "Ji Juechen becoming stronger through these rewards will only benefit our Sun Moon Empire."

Meng Hongchen's beautiful eyes also watched the Sky Screen with great interest as she said,

"Once he receives the Sky Screen's reward, the academy will probably be lively again for a while."

Ma Rulong remained silent at her words, his eyes fixed tightly on the Sky Screen as a trace of anticipation flashed through them as well.

[Ding!]

[Rewards for Ji Juechen will now be distributed!]

[Ji Juechen is awarded his natal sword: Xuanyuan!!]

[Ji Juechen is awarded Xuanyuan Sword Intent: Holy Path Judgment!!]

[The Xuanyuan Sword was formed from the power of the Heavenly Dao. Within it lies a world with two sides: on one side are the sun, moon, and stars; on the other are mountains, rivers, vegetation, and trees!]

[Those who wield the Xuanyuan Sword may comprehend further Sword Intent through their understanding of the sword's power!]

[Holy Path Judgment: Invincible Holy Yang Sword Qi! It may grow stronger alongside its wielder!]

The instant the Sky Screen's voice faded,

the image on the golden scroll returned to the plaza of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy.

Energy from the Sky Screen descended,

and golden light swiftly enveloped Ji Juechen. A golden sword-shaped mark also appeared between his brows.

Ji Juechen closed his eyes and continuously sensed the Holy Path Sword Intent granted by the Sky Screen. The long sword Martial Soul in his arms began changing at this moment as well.

Ji Juechen was already surrounded by students, yet none of them dared step forward,

because the Sword Intent pressure released by the Xuanyuan Sword was too overwhelming, forming an invisible defense.

Within the crowd,

a tall, cold and beautiful woman stepped out from among them,

her eyes filled with tenderness as she looked at Ji Juechen.

The woman was named Jing Ziyan.

At the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy, she often followed Ji Juechen around and loved challenging strong opponents. Almost no one in the academy was unaware of her.

To outsiders, Jing Ziyan was also a battle maniac who loved challenging powerful foes.

But the person she truly liked

was the man before her.

"Juechen, congratulations."

Shrek Academy,

inside Sea God Pavilion.

Yan Shaozhe frowned slightly and sighed,

"'There are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Scholars'—that is the motto of our Shrek Academy."

"I never expected those words to be proven true in someone from the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy."

"There are actually such heaven-blessed talents in the Sun Moon Empire. They truly have been favored by the heavens..."

Qian Duoduo, vice dean of the Soul Engineer Department, snorted and said coolly,

"We have not seen those words in Shrek Academy for a long time."

"Even when a student with weak talent wins first place in the freshman examination, your Martial Soul Department is unwilling to grant him even the status of a core disciple."

Yan Shaozhe's expression stiffened slightly, while the several elders present remained silent.

Everyone understood perfectly well

that the student Qian Duoduo referred to was none other than Huo Yuhao, the champion of last year's freshman examination.

A one-ring Soul Scholar had won the freshman examination through outstanding performance and coordination with his teammates,

and his ability was sufficient to surpass those two-ring and three-ring students.

Yet in the eyes of the Martial Soul Department, such talent was not worth cultivating further.

In contrast, Jing Hongchen had discovered Ji Juechen's talent.

Even knowing that he was not from the Soul Engineer Department, he had still invited him into the core hall of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy.

That alone was enough to reveal the gap between the two academies.

Mu En, the master of Sea God Pavilion seated at the head, smiled faintly and said,

"Duoduo is right. It is time for Shrek Academy to make some changes as well."

"We should assess students in more ways and cultivate more outstanding students."

Everyone answered in unison.