Su Yang's Plan!

Yu Xiaorou said nothing. Bibi Dong pushed the door open and walked out. The night wind in the corridor rushed toward her. She stopped on the steps, took a deep breath, and straightened her back once more. Bit by bit, the domineering, razor-sharp bearing of the Pope returned to her face.

She strode forward, followed by two Titled Douluo guards. When she reached the academy square, she suddenly stopped. A nearly imperceptible wave of spiritual power spread from between her brows like ripples, silently enveloping the entire Nording Academy.

She was searching.

Yu Xiaorou taught here, and Bibi Dong needed to make sure there were no hidden dangers. Given Yu Xiaorou's temperament, there was no telling when she might offend someone.

Her spiritual power swept through room after room of dormitories, building after building, and every sleeping person beneath the night sky.

They were all ordinary people, low-level Soul Masters, with nothing worth noticing. Just as she was about to withdraw her spiritual power, her consciousness suddenly paused in a work-study student dormitory.

On the bed beside that boy Su Yang, a boy slept sprawled out in all directions, his hair braided into a scorpion-tail braid.

Why did this kid look somewhat familiar? Bibi Dong frowned slightly and searched her memories. But the thought merely flashed through her mind and did not linger for long.

The aura she sensed was clean and pure—just that of an ordinary Soul Master around level ten.

Perhaps he was the child of some old acquaintance. Bibi Dong did not dwell on it any further. She withdrew her spiritual power and strode out through the academy gates.

The carriage rolled away beneath the moonlight. Only after the sound of hoofbeats had completely vanished into the night did a figure emerge from the shadows by the wall.

Su Yang slipped out from behind a corridor pillar, dusted the dirt from his robe, and hurried back to the front of the teaching building. The moment he reached the door, it was pulled open from within.

Yu Xiaorou stood inside. Her expression had returned to its usual calm, as though the conversation from earlier had never happened.

"Come in." She stepped aside to let him enter.

Su Yang obediently walked in. Only the two of them remained in the office. Yu Xiaorou closed the door behind her, and her first words went straight to the point:

"Take out those two booklets and let me see them."

Su Yang honestly took the two volumes from his chest and placed them on the table.

Yu Xiaorou sat down, opened the first booklet, Twin Martial Souls Cultivation Insights, and read it carefully page by page.

She read slowly. Sometimes, she lingered on a page for a long while, her brows knitting slightly before relaxing as she continued. A moment later, she closed the booklet and gave a cold laugh.

"As expected, there's a problem."

Su Yang's heart skipped a beat. "What problem?"

"Bibi Dong is a clever woman. She couldn't possibly fail to see your value. The overall direction of this cultivation method she gave you is correct, but she deliberately planted traps in the details."

Yu Xiaorou opened to one page and tapped a line with her fingertip.

"For example, here—the order in which Soul Power should be circulated for Twin Martial Souls is written as the exact opposite of the normal cultivation method. If you cultivate according to what she wrote, you won't notice anything in the short term. But Soul Power will gradually accumulate and clog your meridians. Once you reach a certain level, at best your cultivation will stagnate; at worst, your meridians will fall into disorder."

A cold sweat nearly broke out on Su Yang's back. No wonder the system showed a favorability rating of negative five.

That old fox had smiled as she handed him a cultivation method, while secretly digging a pit and waiting for him to jump in.

If Yu Xiaorou had not spent more than a decade studying the principles behind Twin Martial Souls cultivation, seeing through the trick at a glance, this thing might really have ruined him.

"What should I do?" Su Yang asked.

"Don't panic." Yu Xiaorou gathered the two booklets and put them away.

"The traps she planted are merely slight deviations in the details. We only need to correct them. It will take some time, though. I'll help you prepare a clean handwritten copy tonight. Come pick it up first thing tomorrow morning."

Looking at Yu Xiaorou's serious, focused face, Su Yang felt an indescribable warmth rise in his heart. There were not many people in this world willing to think of him at every turn.

Yu Xiaorou was one. Xiao Wu was another. He opened his mouth, wanting to ask about what had happened between her and Bibi Dong, but the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down.

That was his teacher's past. If she did not want to talk about it, why should he tear open her wounds?

Yu Xiaorou seemed to see through his thoughts. She glanced at him and said calmly,

"This time, she wasn't lying. The booklet on the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum was probably gathered by Spirit Hall with considerable effort. There are a few minor traps in it too, but they aren't serious. You need to grow stronger as soon as possible. Only when you have strength of your own will you no longer have to act according to other people's moods."

Su Yang nodded solemnly. "Teacher, I understand."

It was already late. Su Yang bade farewell and left the office, walking back toward the dormitory. The moonlight was bright, and insects chirped in waves. He looked up at the star-filled sky, but his mind was spinning rapidly.

He truly needed to speed things up. Bibi Dong had already noticed him. He had muddled through this time, but who knew whether he would be so lucky next time?

Before true powerhouses, his little bit of Soul Power and background were simply not enough.

Six years was neither particularly long nor particularly short. If he really followed the usual path, staying at Nording Academy for all six years before heading out into the world, it would already be too late.

He had to make preparations in advance. Fortunately, he possessed an advantage that others could only dream of—he knew where the opportunities in this world lay.

In the cave beneath the cliff at the back mountain of Holy Soul Village lay a Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor Spirit Bone.

It was a relic left behind by Tang San's mother, Ah Yin. Tang San had not claimed it yet, but if Su Yang got there first, it would become his.

Then there was the Star Dou Great Forest. Dai Mubai, who had undergone a gender transformation, was said to be a genius with the White Tiger Wuhun. If Su Yang could bring him to his side, he might become a dependable ally.

Of course, the most important place was still the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. The treasures hidden there were the finest of all—not only Lovesick Heartbreak Red and the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, but also Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, Infernal Delicate Apricot, Ink Jade Divine Bamboo, Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower... Any one of those immortal herbs was an invaluable treasure.

One of his Martial Souls was now the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. If he could find the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and cultivate there, the results would certainly be twice as good for half the effort.

The more Su Yang thought about it, the more excited he became, and his steps grew lighter. He pushed open the dormitory door and quietly felt his way back to his bed in the dark.

Xiao Wu, sleeping in the upper bunk, was sprawled out in all directions. Drool hung from the corner of his mouth as he mumbled indistinctly,

"Boss... carrots... eat more..." Then he rolled over and resumed snoring.

Su Yang could not help but smile silently. He lay down with his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling. The night breeze drifted in through the half-open window, carrying the fresh, sweet scent of grass and trees.

Su Yang lay in bed, staring at the boards above him, but his mind was anything but idle. Bibi Dong's matter could be considered settled for now, but he needed to think through his next move in this game well in advance.