Martial Soul Iron Ball? No, This is an Ultra Ball!

Late at night, inside a rented room.

The computer screen cast a pale blue glow.

A young man stared intently at the Ultra Ball appearing in the game, muttering to himself.

"If the target captured is an Ultra Beast, then you enjoy a massive catch bonus; otherwise, the catch rate is only 0.1 times."

"Hmm, it's actually quite powerful. I have a whole army of max-level pets right now, so I can just use the Ultra Ball to capture Ultra Beasts. But if I were just starting the game and only had that one single Ultra Ball, I probably wouldn't even be able to catch the most common pet."

"That would make the game pretty hard to play!"

The young man mocked himself without a care. The game he was currently playing was the type where you capture spirits or pets, raise them to become increasingly powerful, and then use them to battle and defeat strong enemies to ultimately achieve the game's goals or ideals.

After all, he was already at the very pinnacle of the game; he was no longer a novice, and he would never encounter a situation like that again.

Unless—

The young man suddenly felt sleepier and sleepier, his brain growing heavier and his vision blurring. After a difficult struggle, his eyelids finally gave up and closed without a shred of backbone.

Douluo Continent.

Six years later.

Notting Academy.

"Lin Hui, do not continue to make mistake after mistake!"

In the classroom, Yu Xiaogang was flushed with anger, the veins on his face bulging and his breathing becoming rapid. The turmoil and shock within him could not be calmed for a long time.

As the man revered as the Grandmaster in the academy, this was the first time he had ever been questioned by someone else.

What's more, this person was only a six-year-old child!

How could a six-year-old child dare to deny the meticulous research he had conducted on Martial Souls for so many years? This was experience he had exhausted his reputation and heart's blood to summarize from the precious archives of the Spirit Hall!

For the sake of his own face, Yu Xiaogang continued.

"Your Iron Ball Martial Soul is inherently heavy; its defensive power is already sufficient. What you should do now is seek out an assault-type spirit beast as your first spirit ring. Only then can you achieve a balance of offense and defense!"

"And I have already scouted such an assault-type spirit beast for you—the Thunder Shock Tiger in the Hunting Forest is perfect for you."

"Only by taking the Thunder Shock Tiger as your first spirit ring can you win at the starting line of the spirit master's path. Otherwise, one wrong step leads to another, and you will be wrong at every turn!"

Standing straight, Lin Hui asked back, neither humble nor pushy.

"May I ask, Teacher, does every Martial Soul in this world have to follow a fixed growth path?"

"Take the Soft Bone Charm Rabbit Martial Soul, for example. Its characteristics are surprise attacks and charm. For a Martial Soul with such traits, besides the assault system, the agility-assault system is also very suitable. And when choosing different spirit master paths, the spirit rings one hunts are naturally different."

"In my view, it is true that the ordinary Iron Ball Martial Soul is inherently heavy, but relying solely on the Martial Soul's own defense, this level of defensive power is far inferior to defensive spirit skills. If one were to choose an offensive spirit ring, it would contradict the nature of the Martial Soul itself, making it difficult for both offense and defense to reach their peak. It would quickly become mediocre."

"In that case, it would be better to choose a defensive spirit ring to first push defense to the extreme, which could be considered forming one's own characteristics."

"Of course, this is only for an ordinary Iron Ball Martial Soul." Lin Hui knew his Martial Soul only looked like an iron ball, but in reality... However, he was merely debating the choice of growth direction for the Martial Soul with Yu Xiaogang.

Xiao Wu, sitting next to Tang San in the classroom, pricked up her ears the moment she heard "Soft Bone Charm Rabbit," her previously lazy face suddenly perking up.

"Soft Bone Charm Rabbit? Why are they talking about me? But what he said seems to have a point..."

Hearing Lin Hui's rebuttal, Yu Xiaogang became even more furious.

"I have been researching Martial Soul theory for decades, and the Ten Core Competitiveness Theories of Martial Souls were proposed by me. Could it be that I know less than a mere child like you?"

"The Iron Ball Martial Soul lacks attack power; this is its shortcoming. If you do not compensate for its weakness, a spirit master with such a Martial Soul will never be able to establish a foothold in the spirit master world!"

"If it weren't for your homeroom teacher, Mr. Li, asking me for help, I wouldn't bother giving you pointers on the path of a spirit master."

"You haven't eaten as much salt as I have eaten rice. I am not going to harm you. Listen to me, and you can still be saved. Otherwise, as a rare spirit master with innate full spirit power, you will go astray!"

"If you are willing to listen to me, I might even consider taking you as my disciple."

Yu Xiaogang truly could not fathom the reason for the child before him to refute him. He had already conceded in terms of momentum, and with the temptation of becoming his disciple, surely the boy should have softened his stance by now.

After all, he was a youth with innate full spirit power. Although his Martial Soul was a bit trashy, with his own guidance, he would certainly be able to stand at the pinnacle of the spirit master world in the future.

He had already taken Tang San as a disciple, and adding this boy would mean two disciples with innate full spirit power.

Among these two, surely one of them would be able to make a name for himself and prove that his theories were correct!

Of course, it was only a month after the start of the term that Yu Xiaogang learned there was another child with innate full spirit power at Notting Academy, which was why he wanted to take this opportunity to extend an olive branch. He never expected his suggestion to be refuted the moment it was proposed.

"What? He can actually be taken as a disciple by the Grandmaster of the spirit master world?" Some students among the crowd let out sounds of surprise. After all, they were still young and inexperienced, so they still held a blind belief and even respect for the "Grandmaster" of the spirit master world.

From the tone and expression of that person, it was clear he thought this was a monumental stroke of good fortune.

But how could Lin Hui not know Yu Xiaogang's little scheme?

Coming to offer an apprenticeship only after finding out he was a spirit master with innate full spirit power—didn't that clearly show he was only interested in his aptitude?

And his later famous quote, "There are no trashy Martial Souls, only trashy spirit masters," was simply a load of nonsense that even he himself didn't believe.

To put it bluntly, he just didn't think a disciple with ordinary aptitude could truly be cultivated into a talent.

But if someone with excellent aptitude can succeed even without you, then what is the purpose of you being a teacher?

"I appreciate your kindness, Grandmaster. But I still stand by my views. As for not being able to be your disciple, then so be it."

Lin Hui refused quite casually. Although he did not intend to deliberately provoke Yu Xiaogang, his tone—as if he were tossing aside a worthless radish—deeply stung Yu Xiaogang's pride.

"You..." Yu Xiaogang's face turned green with rage. "It has been proven effective by countless people that the Iron Ball Martial Soul should follow an offensive path. How dare you deny the experience of those who came before you!"

"You are just a boy who hasn't even grown his feathers yet; what right do you have to refuse to follow the path of your predecessors!"

"Do you really think you are so clever?"

"Do you truly believe you are any different?"

Even though Yu Xiaogang was a middle-aged man and a teacher at the school, Lin Hui's gaze did not waver.

"Treating the head when it hurts and the foot when it aches will only cause an ordinary Iron Ball Martial Soul to quickly descend into mediocrity. Only by strengthening its own characteristics and pushing one aspect to the extreme can it have a chance to compete with top-tier Martial Souls."

After Lin Hui finished speaking, many students below revealed expressions of sudden realization.

"That's right, the Iron Ball Martial Soul is a typical trash Martial Soul. If it is cultivated without any distinct features, wouldn't it be completely crushed by top-tier Martial Souls in every aspect?"

"By strengthening its own characteristics and pushing one aspect to the extreme, it might be possible to exert an effect that surpasses top-tier Martial Souls in certain situations or even in team battles."

Seeing that most of the students present were beginning to agree with Lin Hui's opinion, Yu Xiaogang's expression grew even uglier. He said, almost through gritted teeth:

"So, you are planning to hunt a defensive Spirit Ring for yourself?"

Lin Hui said with a calm expression, "For an ordinary Iron Ball Martial Soul, strengthening its defensive traits with the first Spirit Ring is indeed best. But my Martial Soul is not an ordinary Iron Ball Martial Soul. I have my own path to walk, and I might even create a seventh category outside the six major categories of Spirit Masters."

Possessing the experience of his past life, he knew that although his Martial Soul looked like an iron ball, it was actually an Ultra Ball capable of capturing Ultra Beasts!

To become a Summoning-type Spirit Master with no precedent!

In the history of Spirit Masters on the Douluo Continent, this would absolutely be an earth-shattering existence.

"Hahaha," Yu Xiaogang laughed instead. "What shameless boasting!"

"You, wanting to question my decades of research results?"

"Questioning the experience of generations in the Spirit Master world?"

"And creating some seventh category?"

"Don't be so damn ridiculous!"