Two Years Later

Han Li sat on his bed, practicing meditation.

Two years had passed...

His changes were not insignificant.

His stature was a head taller than it had been two years ago, and while his features remained youthful, a hint of composure had settled between his brows.

His eyes were calm and profound, and the light that occasionally flickered within them revealed a sophistication far beyond his years.

Han Li was now nine years old.

His soul power had increased steadily through these two years of arduous cultivation, reaching level twenty-seven.

Level twenty-seven was already a staggering figure for a nine-year-old child.

At this age, ordinary soul masters...

Most were still hovering around level ten, and those who could reach level twenty were already considered to have outstanding talent.

His second soul ring was a thousand-year soul ring.

It was one he had cultivated himself using the Heavenly Bottle.

Han Li had absorbed this thousand-year soul ring and gained his second soul skill. It was also a support-type healing skill, but its effects were more than a grade stronger than his first soul skill, Life Liquid.

The second soul skill was named "Light of Life." It could release a pale green halo that enveloped a certain area, healing everyone within its range.

With this soul skill, his endurance in battle was greatly enhanced, and he could even look after his teammates.

At the same time, he had made a trip to East Sea City midway.

At an auction house there, he had purchased a card for the Primary Spirit Ascension Platform, entered it, and upgraded his first soul ring from a hundred-year to a thousand-year ring.

Although this meant spending an extra two million, it was, at the very least, steady.

Han Li saw this very clearly.

Given his physical fitness at the time, it would not have been impossible to directly absorb a thousand-year soul ring as his first.

But the risks of doing so were too great.

If something went wrong, the loss would outweigh the gain.

Therefore, rather than taking risks, it was better to spend a little more money and steadily improve through the Spirit Ascension Platform.

This cost was something Han Li could accept.

His savings had also reached thirty million through his sales at auction houses and other shops in different cities over the past two years.

After all, a thousand-year plant soul beast was more than ten times more expensive than a hundred-year one.

A single thousand-year plant soul beast could fetch a high price of at least ten million at an auction house.

Thus, over the course of two years, the figure in Han Li's bank account had finally broken through the thirty-million mark.

Of course, during this period, he had consistently used the Spirit Pagoda's reputation as a shield for his sales, so no trouble had arisen.

At the same time, he had also graduated from Red Mountain Academy.

Red Mountain Academy was a primary academy that only taught children from the age of six to nine.

During these three years of study, Han Li had completed all the courses prescribed by the academy.

His grades in every subject were at the top of the class.

The teachers at the academy praised him endlessly, though they also felt that this student was a bit too quiet and not very sociable.

The intermediate academy he would attend in the future was, like Tang Wulin's, the East Sea Academy in East Sea City.

East Sea Academy was one of the most prestigious intermediate academies on the east coast of the Sun Moon Federation.

It was located in East Sea City, adjacent to the ocean.

The academy had a long history, a strong faculty, and had cultivated countless outstanding soul masters.

When applying for an intermediate academy, Han Li had considered multiple factors and ultimately chose East Sea Academy.

This was because East Sea Academy was in great need of geniuses.

Therefore, as a genius, he would naturally find it easier to obtain a better cultivation environment and more resources.

And so, after bidding farewell to Mother Dean, Han Li packed his luggage and set off on the road to East Sea City.

Mother Dean stood at the gate of the orphanage, watching Han Li's retreating figure, her eyes slightly reddened.

From the day this child arrived at the orphanage, he had been exceptionally quiet—never crying or making a fuss, never fighting or scrambling for things, and always keeping his own affairs in perfect order.

For over nine years...

She had never seen Han Li cause trouble for anyone.

"Take care on the road."

The Dean Mother said softly.

Han Li turned around, bowed to the Dean Mother, then picked up his luggage and walked away.

The soul guidance train station in East Sea City.

People came and went in a bustling, crowded stream.

Perhaps because he had arrived early, Han Li did not run into Tang Wulin.

He followed the flow of the crowd out of the station.

The air in East Sea City was more humid than in Aolai City, and the sea breeze rushed toward him, carrying a salty, briny scent.

Outside the station, traffic flowed like water and skyscrapers stood in rows. As an important city on the east coast, East Sea City was far more prosperous than Aolai City.

Han Li hailed a vehicle outside the station, gave the name of East Sea Academy, and leaned back against the seat to close his eyes and rest.

The vehicle passed through several bustling streets and, after driving for about forty minutes, pulled up to the entrance of East Sea Academy.

The gate of East Sea Academy was tall and imposing, with the four characters "East Sea Academy" carved into the gray-white stone pillars in a vigorous and powerful script.

Inside the gate was a wide, tree-lined path, with tall plane trees planted on both sides, their dappled shade casting light and shadows across the ground.

In the distance, the outlines of several teaching buildings and training grounds could be seen; the entire campus covered a vast area and possessed a magnificent atmosphere.

Coincidentally...

He had been assigned to the same dormitory as Xie Xie and Tang Wulin.

Han Li received his dormitory assignment sheet at the registration desk, glanced at the names on it, and felt a slight stir in his heart.

Xie Xie, Tang Wulin.

He was no stranger to either of these names.

Xie Xie was one of Tang Wulin's early companions in the original story, a twin-martial soul, agility-type soul master with a tsundere personality.

As for Tang Wulin, that went without saying.

Han Li carried his luggage and found the dormitory.

There were four beds, arranged in bunk style.

He chose an upper bunk by the window, put his luggage down, and began to organize his things.

To avoid being inexplicably assigned to Class Five, when Zhou Changxi and Yun Xiao from the neighboring dormitory came over...

Han Li didn't bother with any polite pleasantries.

He simply gave each of them a punch, suppressing them both immediately.

Although Zhou Changxi was sturdy, he couldn't even stand steady in the face of Han Li's fist.

With a single punch from Han Li, he staggered back several steps, slammed into the door frame, and looked on in utter disbelief.

Yun Xiao was even worse off; his thin frame crumpled to the floor after Han Li's punch, and he clutched his stomach, unable to speak for a long time.

The two youths exchanged a glance, seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

However, Han Li hadn't used heavy force; he stopped at the right moment, just enough to let them know he wasn't someone to be trifled with.

Although Zhou Changxi and Yun Xiao felt aggrieved, they were sensible enough not to provoke Han Li again.

As it turned out, later on, when Tang Wulin was organizing his things...

Xie Xie, who had just arrived, also started acting inexplicably crazy.

At that moment, Tang Wulin was squatting on the floor, organizing the clothes in his suitcase with his back to the door, completely unaware that someone had entered.

Xie Xie pushed the door open and walked in. He scanned the dormitory, his gaze landing on Tang Wulin. After looking him up and down, he walked over to Tang Wulin with an arrogant expression and spoke from a position of superiority.

"Hey."

"You, move to the upper bunk. The lower bunk is mine now."