Selling Venom

Lu Shi took a stroll around and tried to leave the Small World.

With a thought, the scene before him changed again. When he opened his eyes, he was back in Dorm Seven, still sitting cross-legged on his bed.

Everyone was asleep.

After stretching, he lay down and went to sleep as well.

Soul Masters could replace sleep with cultivation, and high-level Soul Masters could cultivate for months without sleeping. But he was only a low-level Soul Master for now, so sleep was still important.

The next morning was the opening ceremony. As expected, the principal's speech took the longest. He needed no amplification device; with Soul Power in his voice, people five kilometers away could hear every word clearly.

It lasted a full half hour.

Once the speech ended, the students went about their business.

The noble students had all sorts of things to do, whether enjoying themselves or cultivating. After all, they lacked neither social connections nor resources.

After not seeing one another for an entire holiday, the commoner students had endless topics to talk about.

Work-study students had it much worse.

Compared with the other students, work-study students had a harder time. Besides their usual cultivation, studies, and sleep, they had to spend a great deal of time cleaning the academy.

If they were caught neglecting their work or slacking off, the lightest punishment was a wage deduction, while the harshest was expulsion.

It was extremely strict.

Tang San was responsible for the garden south of the training field, earning ten Copper Soul Coins a day.

After the ceremony, he went alone with a broom and other tools to clean it.

Xiao Wu had originally been assigned to work with him, and the two of them should have cleaned together. But now, no one knew where Xiao Wu had run off to.

He could only do it alone.

It was fine. Once Xiao Wu returned, he would tell her that he had already cleaned it for her. She would definitely be touched!

Maybe she would even move her bed back!

Thinking of that, Tang San immediately felt full of energy. He repeatedly used Purple-Rank Demon Eyes and Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, easily spotting every place that needed cleaning and swiftly sweeping it spotless.

Near noon, he was finally able to rest, sweat beading across his forehead from exhaustion.

After hurriedly eating, he rushed to find Yu Xiaogang.

He had not forgotten what Lu Shi said last night.

As long as he got the truth from Yu Xiaogang, he could return to the dorm and thoroughly slap Lu Shi in the face.

He arrived at Yu Xiaogang's office in the academic affairs building, knocked, and entered.

"Teacher, last night..."

His voice came to an abrupt stop. Directly ahead of him, Yu Xiaogang was sprawled over a black desk, sleeping heavily.

The square desk was piled with books and ancient texts, all rummaged through in a mess. They had been neatly arranged yesterday, so it was obvious he had done this last night.

Tang San had always respected his teachers. How could he disturb his teacher while he was sleeping?

Of course he could not.

He quietly stepped closer and saw an open book at the corner of the desk. It described a Soul Beast called Poison Vine from the Soul Hunting Forest. Beside it lay another book recording snake-type Soul Beasts.

A glance over the books on the desk showed that they were all about "Blue Silver Grass," "plant-type Martial Souls," "poison," and "Martial Soul Mutation."

Teacher...

Tang San was deeply moved. His eyes even reddened slightly, and he was nearly in tears.

There was no need to think about it. His teacher must have worked late into the night to find a suitable Soul Beast for him.

Just as he turned to leave, Yu Xiaogang woke from his haze. The moment he opened his eyes, he saw his disciple beside him.

Tang San hurriedly explained, "Teacher, I came to verify something, but seeing how exhausted you were, I was about to leave. I did not expect to disturb you."

Yu Xiaogang stood up, looking invigorated. He did not care about such trivialities and waved his hand. "Little San, I researched all night and finally found the most suitable Martial Soul combination for you!"

"Poison!"

"You are best suited to absorb poison-attribute Soul Rings!"

"Every Soul Ring for your Blue Silver Grass must be a poison-attribute Soul Ring, so that different poisons can form a terrifying compound toxin!"

In the forest behind the academy.

Lu Shi lay atop a huge boulder, planning for the future.

Although he was now a Soul Master and could receive one Gold Soul Coin in subsidy each month, it seemed like a lot, but it was nowhere near enough for his future expenses.

Setting aside all the miscellaneous things, it would not even be enough to buy Whale Rubber and Soul Power Crystals, much less cover his daily meals.

Whale Rubber was used to improve one's physique. Its true effects would not be discovered until ten thousand years later. At present, it was merely used as an aphrodisiac for wealthy people. Supply was steady and demand was limited, so it could only be called somewhat expensive.

Soul Power Crystals could assist meditation and improve cultivation efficiency. Even the worst ones cost ten Gold Soul Coins, while the expensive ones were outrageously priced.

He could not skimp on daily meals either. He was at the age when he was growing, and he was a Soul Master as well, so he needed to eat well. Every meal had to include Soul Beast meat, or his nutrition would not keep up.

He had to find a way to make money.

Students had only a few ways to earn money:

Become a blacksmith's apprentice.

It took a lot of time and paid poorly.

Gather medicinal herbs in the forest.

Fights between students were unavoidable, and injuries were normal. They could gather herbs such as Mugwort and Dragon's Blood Vine and sell them.

Fight in the Soul Arena.

As long as someone wanted to fight, the Soul Arena welcomed them. Watching high-level Soul Masters soar through the skies and move through the earth was certainly enjoyable, but watching low-level Soul Masters slaughter each other was quite entertaining too.

It was like an elephant watching two ants fight to the death.

"Money... money..."

If he wanted to make money, things related to Soul Beasts were definitely the most profitable.

Soul Beasts...

Didn't I happen to have one on me?

Lu Shi suddenly thought of Pokémon drops. Pokémon dropped items after battles, and he could make money by selling them.

Battling was definitely not an option. The Soul Hunting Forest had been established by the empire, and wanton hunting of Soul Beasts was forbidden there. The Star Dou Forest was possible, but if a one-ring Soul Master brought a four-hundred-year Soul Beast there, it was hard to say who would be hunting whom.

But he could try obtaining drops.

The Mandala Snake was best known for its speed, venom, and savagery. He would test its venom.

With a thought, the Mandala Snake appeared out of thin air.

Hiss! Hiss!!

"Mandala Snake, spray venom at that tree."

Lu Shi pointed at the tree two meters away.

After hearing him, the Mandala Snake immediately opened its mouth, revealing snowy-white fangs. In an instant, tyrannical dark-purple venom sprayed forth and spread into a thin mist that clung to the trunk.

The little insects crawling on the trunk had no time to escape. Their bodies immediately stiffened before being corroded away.

The snake venom had a powerful numbing effect and destroyed the nerves. Even Hundred-Year Soul Beasts could not withstand it, much less tiny insects.

The instant it sprayed the venom, Lu Shi noticed that the Soul Power within its body had decreased.

"Good. Mandala Snake, come back."

Just as suddenly as it had appeared, it disappeared again.

The snake venom remained.

That meant he could sell the snake venom for money, at the cost of only a little Soul Power!

That made things easy.

To ensure their own safety, it was not uncommon for Soul Masters and even commoners to coat their weapons with poison.

The Mandala Snake's venom happened to be fiercely toxic and extremely effective.

At the same time, snake venom could also be used in medicine.

There was no need to worry about finding buyers.

Without further hesitation, Lu Shi immediately went to the market to buy bottles.

In the end, he selected two wide-mouthed porcelain bottles and several dozen small white porcelain bottles.

He summoned the Mandala Snake again and had it open its mouth. He fitted the two large bottles over its fangs, and as the venom flowed out, the bottles filled up.

Two bottles filled to the brim!

The price was that the Mandala Snake had been thoroughly drained, without even a single drop left.

After dividing the venom into small bottles, Lu Shi took them to the market to sell.