"Teacher Yin Shu, I'm here to awaken my Martial Soul again."
Inside the room, Yin Shu sat at a table near the entrance. Seeing Mo Li come in, he smiled and said, "How many times has it been this week? Don't tell me you're just here to look around again."
Mo Li's face was full of helplessness. "I can't get out of it this time. Sister Erlong's right behind me. There's no way I can run."
Yin Shu paused in surprise, then laughed.
As the teacher in charge of Martial Soul Awakening this month, he naturally knew that Mo Li didn't want to awaken his Martial Soul.
But Mo Li had grown up at the academy, and with his connection to Liu Erlong, Yin Shu had been puzzled but had turned a blind eye and hadn't pressed him.
Mo Li was lively by nature and often caused trouble around the academy, so the teachers both worried over him and adored him.
Across the entire academy, the only person who could make him behave so obediently was probably Dean Liu.
"If I hadn't come, would you have shown up here on your own?"
As soon as Liu Erlong entered the room, she heard Mo Li pouring out his grievances to Yin Shu. So as she passed him, she casually gave him a not-too-hard smack on the head.
"Ow!"
"Dean!"
Yin Shu stood up and respectfully greeted Liu Erlong.
Liu Erlong nodded slightly. "Teacher Yin Shu, you don't need to handle this one. I'll awaken his Martial Soul myself."
"Yes, Dean." Yin Shu smiled and stepped aside.
"Get in there already."
Liu Erlong turned and glared at Mo Li, signaling for him to stand in the array in the middle of the room.
Mo Li pursed his lips, but under Liu Erlong's increasingly stern gaze, he obediently walked over.
"Are you ready?" Liu Erlong asked.
"I'm ready."
Liu Erlong swept her hand through the air. Fiery red Soul Power surged out of her body, and the array on the floor activated in an instant.
Six golden rays rose from the array and shone on Mo Li, forming a shimmering golden veil of light that completely enclosed him.
Mo Li's eyes were half-closed. He felt a warm current move through every limb and bone in his body, as if he were soaking in warm water.
Before long, the room grew increasingly hot, and Mo Li began to react inside the array.
As Liu Erlong and Yin Shu watched in astonishment, countless wisps of black flame suddenly sprang from Mo Li's body and gradually wrapped around him.
The sudden change caught the two onlookers completely off guard.
Just then, the churning Nether Flame began to rapidly draw inward, gathering behind Mo Li's head and forming a black egg.
With each breath Mo Li took, the ghostly light on the egg's surface flickered, as if something were being born inside it.
A few seconds later, a fine crack suddenly appeared across the eggshell.
"Caw—!"
A clear, strange cry rang through the entire primeval forest.
At that moment, every student and teacher inside and outside the academy heard the cry's peculiar notes. Their faces filled with shock. They had never encountered such a strange phenomenon, and a wave of uproar immediately swept through the crowd.
At the same time, the black egg behind Mo Li seemed to have reached its limit, its ghostly light billowing within the array. The next instant, black light burst apart as a pair of wings wreathed in shadowy flames snapped open, scattering the surrounding darkness and revealing the Martial Soul's true form.
It was a small bird, entirely black, gracefully stretching its body amid the dark flames.
Its head was held high, radiating an innate mystery and pride. Every feather along its body seemed to burn, giving off a wild, ancient aura.
"W-what kind of Martial Soul is that?"
Yin Shu's gaze had gone blank. He stared fixedly at the Martial Soul behind Mo Li.
He and Liu Erlong were the two people closest to Mo Li. In the instant that cry rang out, he had felt an immense pressure—clear as day.
And after Mo Li's Martial Soul appeared, the feeling only grew stronger. The aura radiating from the mysterious black bird made even his own Martial Soul tremble.
"What a powerful Martial Soul!"
Liu Erlong's gaze sharpened as she looked at the bird wreathed in black flames. Incredible.
It wasn't just Yin Shu's Martial Soul that reacted. Even her Fire Dragon Martial Soul stirred faintly, though with her strength, she was naturally able to suppress the change in her own Martial Soul.
But this undoubtedly meant that Mo Li's Martial Soul was far superior to hers!
Mo Li slowly opened his eyes. The moment his Martial Soul hatched, he had felt an indescribable connection form between his body and something else.
Curiously, he turned around. The next moment, his face showed the same stunned expression.
"What kind of bird is that?"
Looking at the little black bird on his shoulder, which wasn't much bigger than his palm, Mo Li couldn't help frowning.
He had clearly come to awaken his Martial Soul only after breaking through the first level of the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Art. How had this happened?
Could his instincts have been wrong, causing his Martial Soul Awakening to be incomplete?
Mo Li looked helplessly at the little black bird perched on his shoulder. He could feel the strange bond between them. This was his Martial Soul.
His mouth twitched, but in the end, he reluctantly accepted the truth.
The little black bird looked rather frail, but the Douluo Continent was full of opportunities. It might still evolve someday.
Looking at Mo Li and the bird, Liu Erlong finally couldn't hold back her question. "This is certainly unusual. I've never seen a Martial Soul awaken like this. Do you feel unwell anywhere?"
Mo Li shook his head. He didn't feel uncomfortable at all. On the contrary, his constitution had improved considerably. Compared with before his Martial Soul Awakening, he felt much more refreshed.
"But..."
Mo Li looked at the black bird on his shoulder again. The black sparrow looked back at him, and the two stared at each other for several seconds.
"How did I awaken the Nine Nether Sparrow Martial Soul? That's not even a species from this world, is it?"
A strange expression appeared on Mo Li's face. He vaguely felt that his Martial Soul had something to do with the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Art in his sea of consciousness.
But whatever the case, the Martial Soul Awakening was already complete. There were no returns...
With a thought, Mo Li recalled the Nine Nether Sparrow into his body. The heavy pressure in the room faded, though the air still held a trace of scorching heat.
Only then did Yin Shu finally come to his senses. He hurriedly brought the blue crystal ball used to test Soul Power over to Mo Li, completely forgetting to worry about whether he was acting undignified.
"Quick, let's test your Soul Power!"
Mo Li nodded and placed his hand on the crystal ball.
Buzz!
The moment Mo Li's palm touched the crystal ball, dazzling light burst forth. It shone so brightly that it nearly stung the eyes of all three people present!
"This..."
"T-this is... Innate Full Soul Power!"
Staring at the astonishing sight before him, Yin Shu seemed unable to tear his gaze away from Mo Li. His breathing unconsciously grew heavier.
What did Innate Full Soul Power mean?
As long as nothing went wrong with Mo Li's cultivation, becoming a Titled Douluo in the future was practically a certainty!
Yin Shu wasn't the only one stunned by the sight. Liu Erlong wasn't as overwhelmed as he was, but her gaze remained fixed on the brilliantly glowing crystal ball.
Only after a long while did she recover from her shock. Then, indescribable relief and pride welled up in her heart.
"Dean, our academy really has produced an extraordinary genius." Yin Shu's voice trembled, and his breathing was heavy.
"Good!"
Liu Erlong slowly uttered a single word, and the stone hanging over her heart quietly settled.
Before this, she hadn't been without worries. If Mo Li really couldn't become a Soul Master, she could still protect him and give him a peaceful life. But a life like that would ultimately lack too much excitement.
Now Mo Li's talent was plain to see: Innate Full Soul Power and a mysterious Martial Soul. Even she fell far short of him. Mo Li's future was destined to reach far beyond hers.
Thinking of this, she felt both relief and pride, along with a touch of complicated emotion.
"What's wrong, Sister Erlong? I have full Soul Power. Aren't you happy?" Mo Li noticed the subtle change in Liu Erlong's expression and asked with concern.
Liu Erlong shook her head slightly, then reached out her long finger and flicked Mo Li on the forehead. With a sigh, she said, "Of course I'm happy. I just never expected you to have Innate Full Soul Power. It feels like a dream."
"If it feels like a dream, I don't mind helping you wake up."
"You cheeky brat." Liu Erlong rolled her eyes at him, then turned serious. "I've never seen your Martial Soul before, but judging by its aura, it's definitely no ordinary Martial Soul. It seems like some kind of Mutated Martial Soul."
Earlier, Liu Erlong had searched her memory for every Martial Soul she knew, but she couldn't find any information about Mo Li's.
She had brought Mo Li back from the outskirts of Heaven Dou City, and there was no way to find out what his parents' Martial Souls were. She could only guess that he had awakened some unknown Mutated Martial Soul.
Judging by his Innate Full Soul Power, it was undoubtedly an extremely powerful positive mutation.
"Even you haven't seen one like it, Sister Erlong?" Mo Li asked, feigning surprise. "Then can we give it a name?"
"Whatever you like. I doubt anyone else has seen one either."
"Then from now on, I'll call her the Nine Nether Sparrow."
Seeing how excited Mo Li was, Liu Erlong couldn't help smiling. She quickly composed herself and reminded him, "Having good talent is certainly a good thing, but if you want to go far, you can't do it without diligent cultivation."
"So I've decided: you don't need to go to a junior Soul Master Academy. They can't teach you there. Starting tomorrow, I'll personally guide your cultivation."
"Huh?"
"What do you mean, 'huh'?" Liu Erlong glared at him with exasperation. "With talent this good, not getting straight to cultivating would be a complete waste of time."
Mo Li grimaced. He hadn't planned on going to a junior Soul Master Academy anyway, but he had been looking forward to properly studying the mysteries of the first realm of the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Art, which he had just broken through.
Seeing Mo Li's troubled expression, Liu Erlong relented. "You're hopeless. Fine, I'll give you three days to do as you please. In three days, I'll take you to obtain your First Soul Ring."
"Sister Erlong is the best!" Mo Li said happily.
Three days would be enough for him to get a preliminary grasp of the mysteries of this first realm.
"Nine Nether Sparrow... Undying Bird..."
And then there was the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Art hidden in his sea of consciousness. The origins of all these things were no small matter.
It seemed that in this life, there was no way he could be an ordinary person.
Although Liu Erlong repeatedly warned him not to get carried away or grow arrogant, ever since he had revealed his astonishing talent, the pride in her eyes and the smile at the corners of her mouth had become impossible to hide.
Before leaving, Liu Erlong sternly told Yin Shu to keep Mo Li's talent a secret so as to avoid unnecessary trouble. After giving him a few more instructions, she prepared to leave.
Now that Mo Li had awakened his Martial Soul, she needed to carefully plan the training he would receive from then on.
"Sister Erlong, where are you going?"
"That's none of your business." Liu Erlong's voice was light as she answered without looking back.
Watching Liu Erlong walk away, Mo Li took a deep breath, then smiled freely.
Having lived a second life, he would cherish what he had now, grow strong enough, and protect everything he cared about.
"Sister Erlong, wait for me!" Mo Li followed her out.
"Goodbye, Teacher Yin Shu."
Yin Shu smiled and nodded, standing at the doorway to watch them leave. Only after their figures disappeared from sight did he let out a heavy sigh.
After seeing Mo Li's talent, he had almost asked to personally teach him how to cultivate. After all, having a student with Innate Full Soul Power was an immense honor. But in the end, he held his tongue.
For one thing, Liu Erlong had already decided to guide him herself. For another, Yin Shu knew his own limitations. His experience and strength were nowhere near enough to train Mo Li; doing so would only bury his talent.
He would never act against his conscience and do such a thing.
Besides, Mo Li would surely become a member of the academy someday. That was enough.
At that thought, Yin Shu smiled again. He had a strong feeling that because of this young man, the academy's future might embark on a glorious path unlike anything it had ever known.