Soul Planning Hall

"Brother Xun, what did Director Long want with you?"

"Nothing."

Lin Xun plopped down onto the bed, his tone flat, though he looked a little dead inside.

Xie Xie and Yun Xiao exchanged a glance. Both could tell he was in a bad mood, so they tactfully chose not to press him.

Lin Xun turned to Zhou Changxi. This fatty was usually the chattiest one, yet today he had not said a word, keeping his head lowered as if lost in thought.

But thinking about it, Zheng Tao had put him through hell on the training field earlier, only for Wu Changkong to save him afterward. With his emotions rising and falling so wildly, it was normal for him to be quiet.

"Zhou Changxi."

Zhou Changxi raised his head.

"What's going on with you? Are you really that short on money?" Yun Xiao asked bluntly. "How much can errands possibly earn? You took so many jobs, even accepting work from someone like Zheng Tao. Why?"

Zhou Changxi's lips moved, but no words came out.

Xie Xie cut in, "Yeah, I've wanted to ask for a while. Your family may not be rich, but it shouldn't be bad enough for you to work this desperately, right? And you said earlier that your mom was sick. Couldn't she just go to a federal hospital? Aren't federal hospitals free?"

Zhou Changxi gave a bitter smile and shook his head. An exhaustion that did not belong on someone his age showed on his chubby face.

"Young Master Xie, you don't run a household, so you don't know how expensive life is. It's not that simple. You've definitely never been to a federal hospital."

Xie Xie froze. "My family has dedicated healing-type soul masters, so I really haven't. What's wrong? Isn't free healthcare a federal benefit?"

"It is free," Zhou Changxi said. "But do you know what 'free' means? Waiting in line. When my mom registered at the federal hospital, the wait was three months.

Three months.

This isn't a cold. She can't wait three months. The doctor said that if it dragged on any longer, there was no guarantee she'd survive."

The dormitory fell silent.

"Then go to the emergency room!" Xie Xie said anxiously. "Surely the emergency room doesn't make you wait in line too?"

"You can go to the emergency room." Zhou Changxi's voice grew even heavier. "There's no waiting there, but you have to pay the full amount. Examination fees, surgery fees, hospitalization fees, medicine—it all adds up to over a hundred thousand federal credits. How could my family possibly have that kind of money?"

Yun Xiao set down his book and pushed up his glasses, speaking softly. "So that's how the federal hospital system works. Free healthcare means waiting in line. Before your turn comes, you either endure it yourself or pay for emergency treatment. The poor wait in line to die, while the rich pay to buy their lives."

"More or less." Zhou Changxi lowered his head. "The federal legislators say it's to conserve public medical resources and prevent abuse. Everything they say is right, anyway. They don't have to wait in line when they get sick. They have their own private healing-type soul masters."

Xie Xie opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but swallowed it back down.

Only today did he learn that free healthcare at federal hospitals came with a three-month wait. For the poor, three months meant either losing everything or waiting to die.

Lin Xun had remained silent the entire time. Leaning against the headboard, his violet eyes gazed at the chandelier on the ceiling, his expression calm.

He had lived through three eras and seen too much of this sort of thing. It had been this way twenty thousand years ago, ten thousand years ago, and a hundred years ago.

Dynasties had changed, martial souls had developed, and soul technology advanced with each passing day, but the essence of Douluo Continent had never changed.

Lin Xun was not the saintly sort. Although he was not short on money, he could not simply hand Zhou Changxi enough to solve everything.

Still, they were roommates. Since they had this chance to cross paths, he could at least offer him an opportunity.

"Zhou Changxi, do you know about the Soul Planning Hall?"

Zhou Changxi nodded blankly.

The Soul Planning Hall was an organization established around the same time as the Spirit Pagoda ten thousand years ago. The Spirit Pagoda handled selling soul spirits, while the Soul Planning Hall handled planning. After a soul master bought soul spirits, how they should be matched, how they should cultivate, and which direction they should develop in were all planned out by the Soul Planning Hall.

How far a soul master could go, choosing soul spirits was only the first step. The real key was how they walked the road afterward.

Choosing the wrong soul spirit would, at worst, reduce one's combat strength. Choosing the wrong direction, however, could leave someone stuck at a bottleneck for the rest of their life.

If Tang San had absorbed a ten-year Solitary Bamboo back then, there probably would not have been a Sea God Tang San. There would only have been a God of Pole Vaulting.

And now, the Soul Planning Hall was also a top-tier organization no less prestigious than the Spirit Pagoda. It had simply always kept a low profile, and most of those it served were soul master families.

The Spirit Pagoda's clientele encompassed the entire soul master population, while the Soul Planning Hall had far higher requirements. In Donghai City, for example, only families like Xie Xie's and Xu Xiaoyu's had even a slight chance of getting in.

Even so, most soul masters still longed to have the Soul Planning Hall plan their paths. That was not only because its soul master planning was excellent, but also because the Soul Planning Hall had close ties to the Spirit Pagoda to a certain extent.

If it helped plan a soul master's path, it could also obtain many soul spirits that ordinary soul masters could not acquire directly from the Spirit Pagoda.

Xie Xie asked in confusion, "Brother Xun, what does this have to do with the hospital? It doesn't seem like it can solve Zhou Changxi's problem."

"It can't solve it directly." Lin Xun shifted the subject. "But you can apply to become an apprentice at the Soul Planning Hall."

Zhou Changxi lifted his head, his chubby face filled with bewilderment.

Xie Xie also froze for a moment, his mouth moving faster than his brain. "Brother Xun, you're joking, right? What kind of place is the Soul Planning Hall? It's a top-tier organization on par with the Spirit Pagoda!

How many soul master families in Donghai City have fought tooth and nail to get in without success? Even someone with Xu Xiaoyu's family background might not get a recommendation slot. Zhou Changxi only has one ring, and his martial soul is ordinary. That'd be really difficult."

"Yeah, Brother Xun." Zhou Changxi scratched his head. "People look down on me even when I run errands. How could a place like the Soul Planning Hall possibly want me?"

"Don't you know that the Soul Planning Hall holds charitable events every year?" Lin Xun said lightly from against the headboard. "Helping struggling families awaken soul spirits for free and so on—you've heard of that, haven't you?"

Xie Xie nodded. "I have. My family even donates to their charity fund every year."

"There's something else you probably don't know. Every branch of the Soul Planning Hall in every city sets aside five to ten apprentice positions each year specifically for children from poor families. They don't look at talent, soul power rank, or family background. They only look at two things. First, whether the family's circumstances are genuine and whether they truly face hardship. Second, character."

Lin Xun paused slightly at that point.

In truth, the Soul Planning Hall had begun as a prototype he founded twenty thousand years ago. It had not been well-known then, merely taking in part of the foundation left behind after the Spirit Hall was destroyed.

That was also where the name came from.

Like the public welfare policies mentioned earlier, they had all originated from the original Spirit Hall before being further refined.

At the beginning, Qian Renxue had taken the lead alongside him, but under the two great empires at the time, they could only develop steadily. It was not until ten thousand years ago, when Lin Xun took charge of the Soul Planning Hall once more, that it regained its fame and established its direction for development.

It was also because of his relationship with Huo Yuhao that the two organizations became closely connected.

A hundred years ago, he became the master of the Soul Planning Hall again, so he was still well acquainted with its current policies.

Yet as he thought of this, memories of the past inevitably resurfaced.

Among that group from twenty thousand years ago, the ex-girlfriend who had left the deepest impression on him was Xue. But in the end, the world had changed beyond recognition.

Zhou Changxi abruptly stood up, his chubby face flushing red with excitement. But he soon hesitated again, his lips trembling. "But... but how could a place like the Soul Planning Hall possibly want someone like me...?"

"What kind of person are you?" Yun Xiao raised her eyes at him. "You saved someone at the inn entrance, risking Zheng Tao's retaliation. You would rather take the blame yourself than reveal that junior girl's name. Plenty of people more talented than you couldn't compare to that kind of character."

Xie Xie had already leaped to his feet and grabbed Zhou Changxi by the arm. "Exactly! What you did at the inn—I'm not even sure I would've dared to do it. You were afraid of damaging that junior girl's reputation, so you'd rather let people slander you than say anything. That kind of character absolutely qualifies."

Zhou Changxi's eyes reddened, but this time he held it in and nodded forcefully.

"Don't worry." Lin Xun chuckled. "There's no harm in trying. What if you get selected?"

Although he had changed bodies now and had no way to prove his identity, much less obtain any special privileges, he still knew the Soul Planning Hall's rules and systems well enough. Helping Zhou Changxi get selected might not be a problem.

After all, Zhou Changxi truly did meet some of the Soul Planning Hall's requirements.