Waste Spirit? You Just Don't Know How to Use It!

The series of actions just now left Yan in the room, as well as Xie Yue behind him, in silence. The two of them looked at each other, as if wondering what to say next.

Yan suddenly spoke up, walking right up to Hu Liena, a hint of embarrassment leaking from the look in his eyes.

"Well... Nana, you're pretty close with the new little junior brother, right? I... I was wondering about your lava route, you see..."

"Get in line! That wasn't your tune just a moment ago. Little junior brother already promised me, he's going to help me first!"

At that moment, Xie Yue also suddenly spoke up:

"Nana, actually, I want to hear about the modifications for the twin blades right now. Um... I can pay in soul gold coins!"

Hu Liena grew thoroughly flustered.

"Brother, how can even you try to steal him? No way, he promised me! Right, little junior brother?"

Gu Changsheng looked at the three people before him, a sudden urge to smile rising in his heart. The Golden Generation of Spirit Hall, who were originally destined to walk toward regret in the future, were now arguing loudly in the archives because of a single sentence from him. He knew this was just the beginning; the fate he wanted to change wasn't just Hu Liena's, but that of the entire Spirit Hall.

Yet right at that moment, a soft voice suddenly came from outside the gate.

"It seems you are getting along quite well!"

As the great doors were pushed slowly open, Bibi Dong was seen standing at the entrance of the archives. Her gaze swept past Xie Yue and Yan, finally landing on Gu Changsheng.

"Gu Changsheng, do you really think you can guide the Golden Generation of Spirit Hall?"

Having him train the Golden Generation sounded somewhat unbelievable. After all, the child before her was only six years old and didn't even have a first spirit ring. Yet the scene that had just played out forced one to admit that this little junior brother truly was different from ordinary people.

Gu Changsheng raised his head and looked at Bibi Dong before him.

"Greetings, Your Holiness the Pontifex. If it is merely pointing out specific issues, I believe I can do it. But if it comes to truly training them, I might need more materials and opportunities for experimentation."

Bibi Dong's eyes flickered slightly.

"Experimental opportunities?"

Gu Changsheng nodded and continued speaking.

"A martial soul cannot be built on rank alone. If the direction is wrong, the higher the talent, the greater the waste."

But the moment he finished speaking, a soft chuckle came from behind him.

"Ha, a six-year-old tot talking so big."

Everyone turned to look and saw an elderly man in a black robe walking in from outside. He was lean and dry with sharp eyes, carrying the sternness of someone used to standing proud for years.

Hu Liena at the side widened her eyes and involuntarily blurted out:

"Vice Principal..."

The grey-robed elder at that moment also bowed in salute to Bibi Dong.

"Greetings, Your Holiness the Pontifex!"

Finally, his gaze immediately shifted to Gu Changsheng before him, his eyes turning deeply profound and his tone carrying a trace of chill.

"This old man heard that a six-year-old genius came to our Pope Palace, one who can see through martial souls, and now he even wants to guide our Golden Generation. I really want to see just what kind of skills he actually has."

Gu Changsheng did not speak, while Hu Liena at his side offered a soft reminder:

"He is Yan Xiu, the vice principal of Spirit Academy."

At that moment, he understood completely. The vice principal had clearly come looking for trouble, evidently displeased that a newly awakened child was suddenly overshadowing the training system the academy had built over so many years.

While everyone remained silent, Yan Xiu continued speaking.

"Your Holiness the Pontifex, training spirit masters is not child's play. The developmental directions of martial souls have long been summarized by generations of predecessors. It is certainly impressive for a child to be able to discern a trace of martial soul aura."

"However, if the training of the Golden Generation is disrupted by such issues, I fear it would be improper, and the losses might well outweigh the gains."

Yan stood to the side watching without speaking, and Xie Yue was likewise silent; only Hu Liena frowned slightly.

"Dean Yan, little junior brother really did spot the flaws in each of us just now, and he even let me turn defeat into victory."

Yan Xiu cast a look of slight contempt toward Hu Liena and said indifferently:

"Nana, your talent is high, but your experience is shallow. Some things sound fresh, but that doesn't mean they are useful."

Suddenly, he turned his head back toward Gu Changsheng and asked with the posture of someone superior:

"Gu Changsheng, this old man asks you: you say that if a martial soul's direction is wrong, it wastes talent. But what about ordinary martial souls? Those without top-tier quality, without strong bloodlines, and without innate soul power!"

"Can you change those?"

Every single word struck toward Gu Changsheng. He knew he could not avoid this today, so he could only raise his head and give a firm response:

"I can!"

A single word caused the entire archives to instantly fall silent. Yan Xiu at the side also laughed—not out of joy, but laughed in anger.

"Ha, utterly ignorant of the heights of heaven and earth. Good, then this old man will give you a chance! Someone, go call Shi Shan in here."

Seeing this, Bibi Dong did not speak. Instead, she sat down on a nearby chair and gently rested her scepter to the side, seemingly waiting for something.

After about a few minutes, a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy walked in. The boy's build was somewhat thin and he wore the standard academy uniform. Looking at the big figures before him, he was clearly rather nervous.

"This is my student, named Shi Shan. His martial soul is a short wooden stick, with innate rank three soul power. He has cultivated for seven years, and his current soul power is rank eight."

"The academy has given him resources and teachers, but the upper limit of his martial soul stops right here. If you truly have the ability, tell this old man how such a martial soul can be changed?"

Shi Shan's complexion turned somewhat pale. Being brought out in public to prove one's mediocrity was comfortable for no one. Yet he didn't dare refute it at all, because the Pope was here, and because his own reality was precisely that.

The next second, the look in Gu Changsheng's eyes suddenly turned resolute. He took a step forward as the Myriad Heaven Book opened deep within his soul, the light at his right hand blooming slowly.

[Target: Shi Shan
Martial Soul: Short Wooden Stick
Innate Soul Power: Rank 3
Current Soul Power: Rank 8
Surface Judgment: Low-grade tool martial soul
Deep Analysis: Wood fibers possess high toughness and plant affinity. Long-term erroneous hardening has led to a decline in martial soul vitality.
Complementary Direction Available: Iron Vine Staff.
Effects: Possesses binding, force-dissipating, and auxiliary armor-breaking skills.
Do you wish to consume analysis points to generate a martial soul completion imprint?]

At that instant, Gu Changsheng's eyes flickered slightly. So this was the analysis he truly needed. The next second, the corners of his mouth curved up gently.

"This senior brother's martial soul is not a trash martial soul."

As soon as those words came out, Shi Shan jerked his head up. This was the first time he had ever heard anyone say such a thing.

Dean Yan furrowed his brow.

"You brat really just open your mouth and talk nonsense. Isn't this a trash martial soul?"

"It was simply trained into trash by all of you!"

The moment those words dropped, Dean Yan's expression instantly darkened, and the hearts of everyone else around skipped a beat. Hu Liena couldn't help but look toward Gu Changsheng.

"Little junior brother, some things can't be said randomly."

Yet Gu Changsheng remained standing in place, appearing completely confident as he continued:

"The short wooden stick is not a pure tool martial soul; it has plant-type attributes. You kept making him reinforce its hardness, pursuing the ability to strike like an iron rod. But wood's strongest trait has never been hardness!"

"Then what is it?"

"It is toughness, growth, and force dissipation."

Yan Xiu shook his head slightly and replied coldly:

"It sounds nice, but a martial soul is whatever it awakens as. A short wooden stick is a short wooden stick; how are you going to turn it into vines?"

Gu Changsheng glanced sideways and pressed both hands onto Shi Shan's shoulders.

"Why not?"

The next second, the Myriad Heaven Book materialized, its dark gold pages instantly flipping. A streak of faint golden light flew straight out from the book and landed squarely between Shi Shan's brows.

[Consumed Analysis Points: 10
Martial soul completion memory generated.
Duration: One quarter of an hour.]

The next instant, Shi Shan's body trembled violently. He felt as though his martial soul had been awakened by something; for the first time, the short wooden stick that had lain dormant within his body for years emitted a warm sensation.

"Release your martial soul now!"

Shi Shan instinctively raised his hand, and an ordinary wooden stick appeared in his palm. It was grayish-brown and completely unremarkable, looking no different from before.

Seeing this, Yan Xiu sneered and was just about to speak when his smile froze directly. On the surface of the short wooden stick, fine cyan patterns unexpectedly emerged. Those patterns looked like vines, yet also resembled fascia. In a flash, both ends of the short wooden stick extended slightly, and a layer of dark gloss appeared on its surface. At that moment, it was no longer a piece of wood, but resembled a living iron vine!

Shi Shan widened his eyes in disbelief.

"Is... is this my martial soul?"

Gu Changsheng continued slowly:

"Try pouring your soul power into it. Don't think about hitting people; think about how to bind the opponent."

Shi Shan hurriedly followed suit. The next moment, the tip of the short wooden stick actually split to produce a slender vine shadow, fiercely darting toward a wooden rack at the side. With a snap, the vine shadow wrapped around a corner of the rack. Though it lasted for only a single breath, that one breath was enough.

"The martial soul... really changed?"

Shock painted Yan Xiu's face, the expression locking in place completely. As the vice principal of the spirit cultivation academy, he understood better than anyone what this meant. A low-grade martial soul judged to have no future had bloomed with a second form right in Gu Changsheng's hands. This was utterly explosive.

When Bibi Dong saw this scene, a distinct change occurred in her gaze. She had seen countless geniuses and countless mutant martial souls, but she had never witnessed anyone like Gu Changsheng who could directly and briefly complete the direction of a low-grade martial soul.

Yet Gu Changsheng seemed to have forgotten everyone's skepticism as he looked earnestly at Shi Shan.

"Remember the feeling you just had. In the future, don't practice treating it like a club; learn toughness and control. For your first spirit ring, you'd best choose a vine-beast type, and avoid power-type spirit beasts."

Shi Shan's gaze went blank for a moment, after which his eye rims grew red. Before he turned thirteen, everyone told him his martial soul was no good, his talent was no good, and he had no hope. But today, a child even younger than him told him it wasn't that he was no good, but that they had taught him wrong. How could he not be stirred?

At that very moment, he abruptly lowered his head and bowed low at the waist.

"Thank you, junior brother!"