Arriving in Ming Capital [Please Recommend, Invest, and Follow!] / The Wonders of the First Soul Skill [Please Recommend, Invest, and Follow!]

Su Luoheng silently repeated the words in his heart a few times, then flicked the coin into the air.

His gaze followed the coin as it rose and fell.

The coin spun through the air, then finally landed with a crisp ting, and Su Luoheng clapped his hand over it on the table.

Sun Moon or Shrek?

Su Luoheng slowly lifted his palm. The coin had landed heads up.

"Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy..."

Su Luoheng put the coin away, silently repeating the name in his heart.

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy was indisputably the number-one Soul Engineer Academy on the Douluo Continent. Within its walls stood the holy land that every Soul Engineer yearned to visit: Mingde Hall.

Although going to Sun Moon wouldn't do much to improve his Soul Master abilities, there was no doubt that his talent would be put to full use there.

Only there could he encounter Soul Tools that represented the true standard of the continent. And given the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy's attitude toward talent, as long as he demonstrated enough potential, he would surely be taken seriously.

But every gain came with a loss.

Since he had already handed the choice over to the coin, there was no need to second-guess himself and waver.

Su Luoheng had a feeling that the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy would be a good choice for his future. Once he had made up his mind, he felt a wave of relief. For once, he didn't meditate, but instead lay down in bed and went to sleep like a normal person.

Meanwhile,

Su Junran and Ye Lan were also trying to guess what little Luo Heng would choose.

"Junran, where do you think our son will go?"

Su Junran answered without hesitation. "Either Shrek Academy or the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. I don't think he's likely to choose any of the other Soul Master academies."

"Which one do you think is more likely?" Ye Lan asked curiously.

"I couldn't say." Su Junran shrugged, then asked in turn, "Which Soul Master academy do you hope Luo Heng will go to?"

"If it were up to me, Sun Moon would be better. He'd certainly be able to make better use of his talent there. But... Shrek Academy is just too famous. What's more, you did mention it to him."

At that, Ye Lan suddenly turned to Su Junran, her eyes full of reproach. "Did you do that on purpose? Are you trying to make our son go to Shrek?"

Su Junran smiled without confirming or denying it.

Unhappy, Ye Lan shot him an annoyed look, then gave him a few thumps.

"Lan'er."

"Hmm?"

"Actually, I'd like our son to go to Sun Moon too. It's safer there than in the Heaven Dou Empire."

"Junran, you still want to..."

"Lan'er, you know what I'm like."

"I'll go with you when the time comes."

"Good."

"..."

Ye Lan nestled gently against Su Junran's chest, a flicker of emotion passing through her phoenix eyes.

Chapter 13: Arriving in Ming Capital [Please Recommend, Invest, and Follow!]

The next morning.

The family of three sat around the table, eating breakfast.

"Luo Heng, have you decided which academy you want to go to?" Su Junran set the bowl of porridge he had served in front of Ye Lan, then turned to Su Luoheng and casually asked.

Ye Lan didn't say anything, but she too watched him attentively.

"I want to go to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. I've thought it over, and the path of cultivation as a Soul Engineer suits me better." As he spoke, Su Luoheng set down his chopsticks and looked earnestly at his parents.

A flicker of emotion crossed Su Junran's face. He glanced at Ye Lan, and their eyes met.

They both looked rather surprised.

They had only mentioned it casually the night before. They hadn't expected little Luo Heng to actually choose the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.

"Dad, Mom, what do you think?"

"The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy really is more suited to you."

Su Junran came back to himself and casually picked up a piece of greens. "But I'll say it again: even if you become a Soul Engineer, don't forget that your Martial Soul is the foundation of a Soul Master's strength."

"Mom supports you too, but don't forget your dad's warning," Ye Lan replied gently.

"Mm, I understand." Su Luoheng knew the weaknesses of Soul Engineers well. His abilities as a Soul Master didn't have to be outstanding, but they absolutely couldn't be a weak point. That was the only way he could go further.

"And one more thing—"

Before Su Junran could finish, Ye Lan interjected.

"All right, hurry up and eat. We'll talk about the rest after breakfast."

"Mm."

Father and son exchanged a glance, then both bent their heads and dug into their food with strikingly similar enthusiasm.

Ye Lan withdrew her gaze with satisfaction.

"..."

Halfway through the meal, Su Junran paused and said thoughtfully, "Dear, I remember admissions at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy have already started, right?"

"Mm, they started yesterday." Ye Lan nodded and took a small, graceful sip of her porridge.

Su Junran furrowed his brows and said solemnly, "I remember admissions at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy have already begun. That means we're short on time. How about we set out this afternoon?"

"Do we have to go so soon?" Su Luoheng asked, momentarily stunned, a chicken leg between his teeth.

"Although Maple Leaf City borders the Sun Moon Empire, it's still some distance from Ming Capital, where the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy is located. And the Sun Moon Royal Academy only accepts applications for five days. If we arrive late, you'll have to wait until next year."

"Admissions are only open for five days?"

"Mm, only five days."

Ye Lan looked at Su Junran, who was speaking with a perfectly straight face, her eyes filled with doubt.

Since when has the Sun Moon Empire only had five days of admissions? Did they change the schedule?

"Junran..."

"Ahem!"

Before Ye Lan could speak, Su Junran coughed twice and cut her off. "Son, hurry up and pack as soon as you're finished eating."

"I'll go pack right now!"

At that, Su Luoheng immediately grew anxious. He hurriedly wolfed down a couple more bites, then bolted out of the dining room.

Soon, the clatter of packing came from the back room.

In the dining room,

unable to hold back her doubts, Ye Lan turned to him and asked, "Junran, I remember the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy's admissions lasted half a month. Did they change the schedule this year?"

"No, it's still half a month."

Su Junran nodded and continued to leisurely sip his soy milk.

"Dear, the soy milk's a little sweet today."

"Don't change the subject!" Ye Lan shot him a look with her beautiful eyes. "Then why did you lie to our son?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to tease him a little," Su Junran said with a smile.

"You..." Ye Lan's lips twitched as she shook her head helplessly. "You're still just the same as ever."

"The same how?"

"Always picking on people!" Ye Lan glared at him.

"How is that picking on him? I'm helping our son grow... Besides, I'm not exactly lying to him. I really am planning to set out this afternoon." Su Junran smiled faintly.

"Why go so early?"

Seeing that her husband wasn't joking, Ye Lan grew curious.

A sharp glint flashed in Su Junran's eyes. He lowered his voice. "The sooner we get our son sent off, the sooner I can take care of those matters."

"This time, don't leave me behind!" Ye Lan gripped Su Junran's arm.

Seeing how serious his wife was, Su Junran gave a bitter smile and rubbed his nose. "Don't worry. I definitely won't this time. Hurry up and eat. Help our son pack his things in a bit."

"That's more like it~"

Satisfied, Ye Lan drew back.

The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy was located in the Sun Moon Empire's capital, Sun Moon City, also known as Ming Capital.

Although minor conflicts between the various nations were happening constantly, the overall situation remained peaceful. As a result, the great empires had not placed strict restrictions on travel by their citizens and merchants.

This was especially true of cities along the borders of the various empires.

The couple had originally planned to personally escort Su Luoheng to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. However, something came up along the way, so little Luo Heng had to travel to Ming Capital with a merchant caravan instead.

Although Su Luoheng was still young, he was already a One-Ring Soul Master.

Besides, the Soul Ancestor leading the caravan was an acquaintance of Su Junran's, so the couple felt fairly confident leaving him in their care.

Before he left, his father told him the correct admissions dates. If it weren't for the two bottles of pills and two Gold Soul Coin vouchers prepared in his ring, Su Luoheng would have given his father a piece of his mind.

Anyway, with his mother there, he'd be the one who got hurt.

He might not be a match for his father, but someone else could certainly keep him in line.

Time flew by.

After a total of five days on the road, Su Luoheng finally arrived in Sun Moon City, the capital of the Sun Moon Empire.

As the Sun Moon Empire's economic, political, and cultural center, he knew the capital would be far more prosperous and expansive than other cities. Yet the moment he saw Ming Capital with his own eyes, Su Luoheng realized that he'd been far too conservative in his expectations.

That aside,

the city stretched out as far as the eye could see. Even by the most conservative estimate, it covered at least five times the area of Maple Leaf City.

Its prosperity was beyond anything Maple Leaf City could rival, too.

They were still on the outskirts of Ming Capital, yet the crowds were already streaming by like a surging river.

The streets bustled with people coming and going. It was a lively sight.

"So this is Ming Capital..."

Su Luoheng couldn't help murmuring under his breath, his bright eyes filled with astonishment.

"What do you think, Luo Heng? Pretty stunning, isn't it?"

"Mm."

Seeing Su Luoheng's expression, the middle-aged man beside him, with his resolute face and regular features, smiled. "That's right. I was just like you the first time I came to Ming Capital."

"Uncle Wang, you've traveled all over. Haven't you seen any other city that can compare to Ming Capital?" Su Luoheng asked curiously.

"In terms of prosperity, Shrek City would count. But no other city can compare to it in size, because Ming Capital has no city walls."

Chapter 14: The Wonders of the First Soul Skill [Please Recommend, Invest, and Follow!]

Once the conversation turned to Ming Capital, Wang Chen seemed to have thrown open the floodgates, and he began explaining with great enthusiasm.