Joy

When that little red sword appeared, the old man found himself involuntarily recalling the carefree days of his youth. The gloom in his heart briefly dissolved, and long-lost happiness filled his chest.

Under the little red sword's influence, the old man's entire body relaxed considerably. Even a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

Noticing the abnormality in his emotions, the old man immediately mobilized his Mental Power to block the Mental Power emanating from the little red sword. That inexplicable joy gradually faded, and only then did he return to normal.

Realizing that everything just now had been the red little sword beside Jiang Yue's doing, the old man's expression became complicated.

With his cultivation, even if he had not actively mobilized his Mental Power, and even though he was not particularly skilled in Mental Power, he should not have been affected by a six-year-old child.

For a moment, the old man did not know what to say. He was extremely shocked that the little red sword could mildly influence him. While he had indeed underestimated Jiang Yue because he was a child, that was still enough to prove how extraordinary the Passionate Sword was.

Only now did the old man finally confirm that Jiang Yue's Passionate Sword was absolutely superior to the legendary Seven Kill Sword. Or rather, the Seven Kill Sword was not even worthy of comparison with the Passionate Sword.

It could already mildly affect him now. What kind of sight would it be when Jiang Yue grew into a Titled Douluo, a Super Douluo, or even a Limit Douluo?

Seeing the old man's expression, Jiang Yue examined the little red sword circling beside him and nodded thoughtfully.

The little red sword beside him had been created by one of the Passionate Sword's innate abilities. That ability was called the Emotion-Transforming Sword!

The Passionate Sword contained the power to influence the emotions of other living beings. Humans had seven emotions: joy, anger, sorrow, contemplation, grief, fear, and shock.

The little red sword before him represented joy among the seven emotions.

Jiang Yue felt an inseparable connection with the Joy Sword beside him. Even without looking at it, he could sense its existence. That was only natural, since the Joy Sword before him was a product formed from his Mental Power.

Holding the Joy Sword in his hand, Jiang Yue repeatedly examined the differences between it and the Passionate Sword. No matter how he looked, though, the only differences were their color and size.

Jiang Yue had no idea how shocking the sight of him holding the Joy Sword was to the old man.

"Th-this... could this be... Mental Power materialization?!"

Mental Power was intangible and formless. Top-tier experts could integrate their Mental Power into their soul skills, greatly increasing their power and even creating Self-Created Soul Skills unique to themselves.

For example, Sovereign's Descent, which Dragon God Douluo Mu En had created himself.

What astonished the old man was that the sword before him was a tangible object that could be held. Skills that transformed one's own power into physical weapons had another name: weapon-type soul skills.

Compared to other kinds of soul skills, weapon-type soul skills were rarer and more powerful. They could fundamentally alter a Soul Master's overall combat style.

Weapon-type soul skills were rare, but given the enormous number of Soul Masters, there were still quite a few examples. The old man had naturally seen many of them. Yet this was the first time he had ever seen a skill that turned Mental Power into a weapon.

The old man was knowledgeable. Combining this with the changes in his emotions when the Joy Sword had appeared, he immediately understood the value of Jiang Yue's skill.

Emotions might sound insignificant, but they were special things that could truly affect a battle—or even a life.

Different degrees of emotion could lead to completely different outcomes. Simply put, a suitable amount of anger could spur someone to greater fighting strength, but excessive anger would expose their weaknesses.

At the same time, the old man understood something else. What Jiang Yue had said about becoming a Control System Soul Master was not impossible. Or rather, if Jiang Yue could turn his other emotions into tangible weapons like the Joy Sword in the future and influence others' emotions, then perhaps a Control System Soul Master really would suit him better than an assault-type Soul Master.

Recalling the scene of the Joy Sword hovering beside Jiang Yue, the old man suddenly thought of a rather serious question.

"Will this ability require you to control several swords at once in the future?"

"Most likely. After all, there's more than just joy among the emotions."

"If it truly is as you say, then you may need to find a way to learn the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Distraction Control Technique."

The old man pondered for a while before finally giving that answer.

Upon hearing the old man's words, Jiang Yue understood what he meant. Without a doubt, this ability would become one of Jiang Yue's important strengths in the future. To master it perfectly, if his Mental Power was insufficient, it would be best to learn a skill.

That skill was the Distraction Control Technique. It was a skill that all Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect members who awakened the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul had to learn. It had no other purpose than allowing a person to divide their attention, thereby reducing Soul Power consumption while using enhancement-type soul skills.

For the Ning family, this skill could save Soul Power and allow them to remain alert to dangers around them in complex situations.

For Jiang Yue, if other emotions became tangible sword blades in the future, this skill would allow him to control several swords at once before his Mental Power became strong enough. That would also be crucial for increasing his combat strength.

Even if his Mental Power was sufficient, the Distraction Control Technique could help him conserve some Mental Power. Not to mention the enormous benefits it would bring Jiang Yue if he mastered it early on.

"The Distraction Control Technique belongs to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It probably won't be easy for me to obtain it, will it?"

Jiang Yue understood the old man's meaning, but he could not help asking anyway.

"Don't be so pessimistic. Maybe someday, a girl from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will fall for you and refuse to marry anyone else, giving you the chance to learn the Distraction Control Technique."

"Hehe, are you telling me to daydream?"

Meeting a Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect disciple whose martial soul was the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda—and one who was an unattached woman—was no different from winning the lottery in the vast Soul Master world.

"If you can't start with the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, perhaps Shrek Academy might also have the Distraction Control Technique."

The old man looked serious. He was not joking.

Shrek Academy and the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had a deep relationship. The Distraction Control Technique was not a truly top-secret skill like Ring Detonation.

It was simply a skill that was less useful to other Soul Masters than it was to Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Soul Masters. Shrek Academy might genuinely have records of it.

Of course, even if it did, it certainly would not be in the Outer Court.

"Shrek Academy?"

Jiang Yue fell into thought. He had no plans for the future. He was alone now, with not the slightest concern holding him back, but that did not mean he would throw his life away for no reason.

The Sun Moon Empire was home to Evil Soul Masters. Calling it a place crawling with Evil Soul Masters would not be an exaggeration. Moreover, Jiang Yue had no intention of wasting his talent learning Soul Tools, and he was not from the Sun Moon Empire. Unless there were special circumstances, the Sun Moon Empire would certainly not be his first choice.

Since he had to choose among the original three Douluo nations, Shrek Academy naturally took priority. Otherwise, his advantage of foreknowledge would be wasted.

Going to Shrek Academy was worth considering, but there had to be a prerequisite: Jiang Yue's age had to be close to Huo Yuhao's. They could not be too far apart in age, or he might as well choose another Academy.

There was also a problem that had to be solved before attending Shrek Academy: a recommendation letter at the city lord level. Without one, he could not enter Shrek Academy. If he encountered a good city lord, obtaining one would be easy. If he encountered a bad one, there was no need to mention the outcome.

There were other methods. The simplest was to stand at Shrek Academy's entrance and shout, "I'm an unaffiliated orphan with Innate Full Soul Power!" Once Shrek Academy verified his identity, it would definitely accept him.

In fact, that method would work for most factions across the continent.

But those were matters for the future. He would think about them later.

Casting his tangled thoughts aside, Jiang Yue put away the two swords in his hands and the Soul Ring behind him, then followed the old man toward the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest.

Maple Leaf City was located on the border between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Sun Moon Empire, though it still lay within Heaven Dou Empire territory. From the city's highest point, one could gaze toward the Sun Moon Empire and faintly see its scenery in the distance.

It was also the city under whose jurisdiction the village Jiang Yue had lived in belonged, though the village was located at the very edge.

Before coming here, Jiang Yue had never known that he was from the Heaven Dou Empire. He had not even known the name of the main city, Maple Leaf City.

Jiang Yue had previously wondered why, despite the presence of Evil Soul Masters during the era of Unrivaled Tang Sect, no one had discovered that the village had been slaughtered by Evil Soul Masters after more than a month.

But now that Jiang Yue knew he was in Heaven Dou Empire territory, and knew that this was the first nation in the original story to be destroyed by the Sun Moon Empire—the one that could not even participate in Clash of Clans—nothing seemed strange anymore.

The Heaven Dou Empire was just that incompetent. It had almost no ability to rally the various sects and factions within its territory, and it was short-sighted as well. If Du Busi and the Body Sect had not become the empire's Guardian Douluo and Guardian Sect, the Heaven Dou Empire would only have fallen even faster.

The old man brought Jiang Yue to the Soul Master Academy located in Maple Leaf City's central district. Although neither of them possessed anything to prove their identities, after Jiang Yue displayed his yellow hundred-year Soul Ring, the principal of this junior Soul Master Academy gladly accepted Jiang Yue.

Although the principal was extremely curious about the identities of this grandfather-grandson pair who had appeared out of nowhere, he was clearly a smart man. He knew that the old man before him was not someone a mere junior Academy principal could afford to offend, so he did not ask further questions.

To this principal, Jiang Yue enrolling in the junior Academy was simply a windfall from heaven.

Shrek Academy's current admission requirement was to reach level fifteen Soul Power before the age of twelve. A genius who had already obtained his first Soul Ring at six was practically guaranteed to enter Shrek Academy.

Even if Jiang Yue did not want to attend Shrek Academy, that would be fine. In the future, he could casually enter any of the continent's top-ranked advanced Soul Master Academies!

In any case, he would be a living advertisement they could show off!

The Maple Leaf City Lord would not stop it either. After all, having a genius enter those academies was one of the city lord's most presentable achievements! It was something he could report upward and request rewards for!

If Jiang Yue graduated from an advanced Soul Master Academy and chose to pledge loyalty to the Heaven Dou authorities, the benefits Maple Leaf City could receive from the empire would be beyond imagination.

After seeing the principal so readily agree to let Jiang Yue enroll and thoughtfully waive six years of tuition, the old man brought Jiang Yue to a secluded place nearby.

Looking at the Academy before him, the old man seemed to recall things from his own youth. He stood there without moving.

Seeing him like this, Jiang Yue had no intention of disturbing him. He simply stood silently beside the old man, keeping him company.

After waiting for roughly fifteen minutes, the old man finally emerged from his memories. He took a bracelet from his Storage Soul Tool and handed it to Jiang Yue.

"Since I'm helping, I might as well help to the end. Consider the things in this Storage Soul Tool a bit of support from this old man. You'll have to live by yourself from now on, so be careful in all things."

"Take this as well. If you truly go to Shrek Academy to study in the future and encounter something you cannot resolve, take this out. I hope you never have to use it."

"All right. I've spent enough time with you. It is time for this old man to leave. I hope that when we meet again, you will already be a powerful Soul Master."

Just as Jiang Yue accepted the bracelet and a uniquely shaped jade pendant from the old man, the old man vanished before his eyes as though he had never existed.

Jiang Yue came to his senses and tried to find the old man, but he could not detect the slightest trace of him. Nothing around him had changed in the slightest.

Once he knew the old man had truly left, Jiang Yue sent his Soul Power into the bracelet the old man had left behind. Everything inside immediately came into view.

The bracelet's space was not small, roughly five cubic meters. In one corner lay a pile of small cloth bags. He took one out and weighed it in his hand, hearing the clinking of metal inside. When he opened it, he found it packed full of Gold Soul Coins, without a single silver or copper coin in sight.

Seeing such a quantity of Gold Soul Coins, Jiang Yue's heart skipped a beat. He immediately returned the bag to the bracelet, then hurried toward the dormitory the principal had arranged for him.

The dormitory assigned to Jiang Yue was the best single room in the Academy. The residents of this dormitory building were mostly wealthy and influential noble children.

After all, in this era, commoners who lived far from a main city, deep in the wilderness, might not even know what their martial soul was.

Even commoners living in the main city had only a minuscule chance of awakening a decent martial soul, possessing Innate Soul Power, and qualifying to embark upon the path of Soul Master cultivation.

After all, martial souls were the ultimate product of bloodline theory. The chances of a martial soul undergoing a beneficial mutation were lower than winning the lottery.

With all those factors combined, while there were still some commoners in most Soul Master Academies, their numbers were extremely small.

Most students who could enter a Soul Master Academy came from families with fairly good circumstances.

Therefore, after seeing a newcomer, the others in Jiang Yue's dormitory building merely gave him curious looks. There was no clichéd scene of villainous noble children blocking his path, only for Jiang Yue to show off and slap their faces.

In the prematurely mature world of Douluo Continent, children were quite good at judging people according to their standing, especially noble-born children like these.

Not everyone was Dai Huabin. How could they all be so brainless?

Only after entering his private dormitory did Jiang Yue take the bag back out of the bracelet. He poured out all the Gold Soul Coins inside and carefully counted them.

One hundred... three hundred... five hundred!

This one small bag contained a full five hundred Gold Soul Coins. There were another nineteen such bags in the bracelet the old man had given Jiang Yue, totaling ten thousand Gold Soul Coins. To the current Jiang Yue, it was an outrageously enormous fortune.

Even with the increased cost of living for ordinary people in the present era, those ten thousand Gold Soul Coins would still be enough to support a normal family for decades.

Yet the most valuable things in the bracelet were not those Gold Soul Coins, but the two golden Crystals, each as large as two adult fists.

This was Whale Rubber!