Douluo: A Fake God in Peerless

The familiar structure of the soul tool surfaced in his mind.

"A third-level Ice Array, a third-level soul power reflux array, a third-level enhancement array, and a third-level reinforcement array..." Su Luoheng recited the names of the core arrays one by one.

With each name he spoke, the old man's expression shifted, for every array he identified was perfectly correct.

"..."

"There are two more arrays I haven't seen before, but I can draw them for you if you need." Su Luoheng withdrew his spiritual power, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and looked at the old man with a calm gaze.

Analyzing a third-level sword-type soul tool was a significant drain on his soul power, especially since this particular sword was quite unique.

"No need."

The previous answers had already proven his ability; there was no need to verify one or two more arrays.

The old man took a deep breath and looked at Su Luoheng with fervent eyes. "Little one, your soul skill is practically tailor-made for a soul master!"

"Thank you for the praise, Teacher."

Su Luoheng offered a humble smile; he had achieved his goal.

He had decided to showcase the special capabilities of his soul skill the moment he chose to join the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.

While talent was important for becoming strong, one could not do without the cultivation and resource allocation of a powerful organization.

To receive the academy's priority cultivation, he naturally needed to demonstrate corresponding potential. His mother had once evaluated his first soul skill from the perspective of a soul master, bluntly stating that with the ability of Analysis alone, even if all his subsequent soul skills were useless, he would still be guaranteed priority cultivation at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.

Although there was some exaggeration in that, the power of the weapon-analysis soul skill was undeniable. Thus, his first soul skill was the best stepping stone at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, and he had never intended to hide it since he chose this institution.

It seemed the results were quite good.

It was just a pity for this teacher...

Looking at the still-shocked old man, Su Luoheng felt a twinge of guilt.

He tentatively called out.

"Teacher?"

"Kid, congratulations on passing both the soul master and soul master tests."

The old man took a deep breath, suppressing his inner excitement, and handed Su Luoheng a Sun Moon Badge. "From now on, you are a freshman at our Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. This is our school badge and also your proof of enrollment. Take it to the back; someone there will guide you through the admission procedures."

"Thank you, Teacher."

Su Luoheng nodded in thanks and took the badge.

At the same time, the old man waved his hand, and the barrier shielding the space vanished. The candidates behind only saw Su Luoheng receive the badge symbolizing his success and, amidst envious gazes, pin the token to his chest.

"Alright, little one, hurry to the back and register." The old man's kind smile stunned the candidates behind him, making them start to doubt reality.

One moment he was as gentle as a spring breeze, the next he was stern and humorless.

Was this differential treatment?

"By the way, little one, tell me your name."

"This junior is Su Luoheng."

Su Luoheng replied, suddenly remembering he was still holding the soul tool.

"Teacher, your soul tool."

It had to be said, this was absolutely the sword-type third-level soul tool with the most core arrays he had ever seen! Generally, a standard third-level soul tool only required about ten core arrays to be constructed, but this one had a full seventeen—it was almost on par with a fourth-level soul tool.

Just as he was about to return the soul tool to the old man, the other party waved him off.

"Keep it. Although this Ice Cold Sword is a third-level soul tool, I modified several of its arrays, so its combat power is no less than a fourth-level one. Consider it a reward for your performance just now."

"Su Luoheng, right?"

"Senior, this—"

Su Luoheng was slightly surprised. One had to know that third-level soul tools had a wide market, and one of this quality would cost at least three thousand gold soul coins. Was he just giving it away?

"Enough, hurry along. I still have work to do. Who is next?"

The old man waved his hand impatiently and resumed the assessment.

"Thank you, Senior."

Seeing this, Su Luoheng bowed to show his gratitude.

As he turned to leave, the old man also turned his head. He watched Su Luoheng's departing figure with deep eyes, a triumphant smile flashing across his face as he muttered, "Su Luoheng... Little one, I never give my things away for free. It won't be long before we meet again."

How could he not be tempted by such an outstanding little one?

"Teacher, this... this is my martial soul."

"Take it and go to the back to report."

Coming back to his senses, the old man glanced at it casually and tossed over a badge. The martial soul was barely passing, but since he was in a good mood, he let him through.

"Thank you, Teacher!"

Hearing this, the nervous youth was overjoyed, quickly taking the badge and thanking him repeatedly.

At the same time, on the other side, Su Luoheng had already completed his enrollment registration.

He had also received two sets of school uniforms, a student handbook, a campus map, a dormitory key, and a series of daily necessities; the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy was never stingy when it came to the treatment of its students.

Guided by a fourth-year senior, Su Luoheng headed toward the area designated for freshman dormitories.

During the academy's recruitment period, any student who participated in assisting the staff received a daily stipend, so many students volunteered for the task.

The senior responsible for guiding Su Luoheng was named Zhen Reqing.

True to his name, he was very enthusiastic in his attitude, spending the entire journey conscientiously introducing the academy to him.

"Junior, take out your map; let me teach you how to use it first."

Zhen Reqing teased, "Our Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy covers quite a large area. If you get lost, you'll have quite a bit of walking to do."

"Understood, thank you, Senior Zhen."

Su Luoheng nodded with a smile and took out the map provided by the academy.

Though called a map, it was actually a circular soul device, which went to show how the Sun Moon Empire's soul technology was slowly changing every little detail of daily life.

"Junior, look at the button under the Map Device. Just press it gently like this, and our academy's map projection will appear before you."

As he spoke, Zhen Reqing demonstrated, and sure enough, a projection appeared before their eyes.

In the projection, the hexagonal architecture of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy was displayed. While the hexagon didn't look large from this perspective, it was actually comparable in size to a medium-sized city. There were many buildings scattered throughout the academy, but there was even more open space.

"Our Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy is mainly divided into three major areas: the teaching area, the dormitory area, and the testing area. The testing area occupies the largest portion; as you can see, Junior, two-thirds of the area is designated as the testing area, and the central region is Mingde Hall. Behind that is the teaching area, which has a total of twelve teaching buildings. The dormitory area is located behind the teaching area, and it has many facilities prepared for the students..."

While listening to Zhen Reqing's introduction, Su Luoheng also tried to activate his own map.

Compared to the detailed models and route maps of the dormitory and teaching areas, the testing area appeared much rougher, showing only the main roads, with more than half of the area left blank. Naturally, there were corresponding buildings and routes there, but they were not accessible to ordinary students.

He had heard Senior Zhen explain that these Map Devices were for the use of students in grades one through six.

As for Mingde Hall, it was for the academy's teachers and those of higher status; he guessed that only certain areas of Mingde Hall were unlocked.

Su Luoheng looked at a small red dot in the dormitory area, lost in thought, and asked, "Senior Zhen, these two red dots should represent me, right?"

Zhen Reqing nodded and explained, "Junior is correct. This is exactly the function of the Map Device I wanted to highlight to you. As long as we are within the academy grounds, it can provide us with real-time positioning. Furthermore, if we drag the red dot to our desired destination, it can even plan a route for us."

Upon hearing this, Su Luoheng understood in an instant!

Isn't this just a simplified version of GPS navigation? He was all too familiar with this!

After a few attempts, Su Luoheng quickly mastered how to use the Map Device.

After explaining the Map Device, Zhen Reqing began to talk about freshman matters.

"Our academy's recruitment lasts for half a month, and there are three days left until it closes. Once the time is up, class assignments will be arranged, and classes will begin at the same time as the other grades. Looking at the trend this year, there will likely be nearly a thousand first-year students, requiring at least thirty classes."

Su Luoheng suddenly asked, "Senior Zhen, I heard from the recruitment teacher that the freshman assessment starts when?"

"Assessment?"

Zhen Reqing was stunned for a moment, then patted his head and realized, "Junior must be talking about the freshman placement assessment? That is an assessment arranged uniformly for freshmen after recruitment ends. At that time, students will be assigned to classes based on their performance. In previous years, they have started from Class One and gone down the line. If there are freshmen with exceptional talent who have reached the level of a First-Class Soul Master, they can be admitted directly into the second grade."

"Of course, such cases are rare; there are only about thirty or forty like that per year."

"Senior Zhen, when will the assessment begin?"

"Junior doesn't need to worry about that; it won't start until all freshmen have enrolled. When the time comes, teachers will be responsible for notifying you."

Zhen Reqing had not wasted his four years at the academy; he was able to provide detailed answers to almost all of Su Luoheng's questions.

From their conversation, Su Luoheng learned a great deal.

For instance, regarding freshman entrance assessments, year-end assessments, the Soul Master Innovation Competition, and more—the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy had created various competitions with generous prizes to stimulate the students' enthusiasm.

Through their conversation along the way, Su Luoheng gained a better understanding of the academy.

As they talked, Zhen Reqing led Su Luoheng to the dormitory area. Looking around, it was filled with high-rise buildings; a rough count revealed over a dozen, with even the shortest ones standing at about forty meters tall. In addition to these, there were some two-story villas that looked extremely luxurious in their exterior decoration.

Soon, the two stopped in front of a high-rise building.

Zhen Reqing said, "Junior, this is your freshman dormitory. During the time before classes start, you can rest in your room or walk around the campus to familiarize yourself with it. Our academy has many good things that are rarely seen even in the Sun Moon Empire. Just remember the location of this building so you don't take a wrong turn."

"Thank you, Senior Zhen. But how are the dormitories in our academy assigned?"

"The dormitories for students in grades one through five are all double occupancy. Every time you advance to a new grade, you can change dormitories, though you can also choose not to. Once you reach the level of a Fifth-Class Soul Master, you are eligible to apply for your own independent dormitory—those are the shorter buildings over there, only about twenty meters tall."

"As for..."

At this point, Zhen Reqing paused, looking toward the villa area in the distance with envy.

"As for those dormitories over there, they are prepared for Mingde Hall students. It is said that every villa is meticulously furnished and equipped with a full set of soul devices to assist in cultivation. It is rumored that cultivating there for one day is more than twice as fast as cultivating outside."

One could tell from Zhen Reqing's tone just how much ordinary students yearned for Mingde Hall.

"Mingde Hall..."

Su Luoheng also looked toward the villa in the distance, though his eyes were filled with unwavering determination. He would certainly succeed in entering Mingde Hall, and for him, that was not the final destination.

"Alright, Junior, you can head back to your dorm now. If you have any questions in the future, feel free to find me; I'm in room 703 of the No. 4 dormitory building behind us." Having delivered the new student to the dormitory building, Zhen Reqing's task had come to an end.

"Thank you, Senior."

Su Luoheng offered a grateful smile before turning and walking toward his own building.

Watching Su Luoheng disappear into the entrance of the dormitory building, Zhen Reqing looked toward the distance once more, lingering for a long time before finally withdrawing his gaze and murmuring softly.

"I really want to enter Mingde Hall..."

He then gave a self-deprecating smile; given his talent, it was nothing more than a dream.

For the vast majority of students at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy, it was a dream that remained distant and unattainable. One had to realize that eighty percent of soul engineers were eliminated just in the transition from a first-level to a fifth-level soul engineer, and that was merely to qualify for the Mingde Hall assessment.

Among the remaining students, only the best of the best were selected to join Mingde Hall. Out of the thousand students who enrolled together, only a mere handful would eventually make it in.

For the average student with ordinary talent, such odds were indeed an extravagance and an unreachable dream.

Yet, even knowing this, people would always have dreams.

On the other side, Su Luoheng had already entered the dormitory building.

As the Sun Moon Empire's soul guidance technology developed rapidly, it was gradually shifting from military use by soul masters toward civilian life, and the various high-rise buildings were a prime example of this. To facilitate movement between floors, the building was equipped with soul-guided elevators similar to the ones from his past life. The two looked much the same, with the only difference being that one was powered by soul power while the other relied on electricity.

The location of the soul-guided elevators was quite prominent; one could see the five elevators lined up side-by-side the moment they stepped through the main entrance.