Seeking an Education Is Hard

"It went very smoothly. I obtained my first Soul Ring, and now I'm officially a Soul Master."

As for what had happened during the process, Tang San saw no need to mention it.

"That's wonderful. Congratulations, Tang San."

"I'm so jealous! Innate Full Soul Power is amazing. I wish I could reach level ten and become a Soul Master someday too."

"Congratulations!"

Amid the chorus of congratulations, Xiao Wu's expression looked very unnatural, with a faint trace of resentment.

But Tang San was drowned in the congratulations and did not notice at all. As for everyone else, there was even less chance of them noticing.

Tang San becoming a Soul Master motivated the others even more. Some of them took Tang San as their goal and trained twice as hard.

Then, one morning not long after, Wang Sheng's cry rang through the entire Seventh Dormitory, startling everyone awake.

Chu Zhao and Tang San, who were returning separately from outside, nearly thought something had happened.

As it turned out, Wang Sheng had broken through to level ten and was so excited that he started shouting wildly.

"I broke through!"

"I reached level ten!"

"I'll be a Soul Master soon!"

For Wang Sheng, whose Innate Soul Power had only been level one, this seemingly small step from level nine to level ten represented nearly six years of hard work. It would also be a major step in his life—he was about to become an official Soul Master.

"Congratulations!"

"Congratulations, Brother Wang! You're incredible!"

"Our dorm is about to have another Soul Master. Let's see who still dares mess with us! Hahahaha!"

Everyone was happy for Wang Sheng, while Wang Sheng himself was so thrilled he could barely tell which way was up.

When Chu Zhao came in, he actually lunged at her, intending to give her a bear hug.

In the end, though, he hugged Tang San instead, whom Chu Zhao had pushed in front of her.

"Boss! Thank you so much! You were the one who told me that human potential is limitless. You influenced me to train hard, and that's why I was able to break through to level ten so quickly."

After taking the opportunity to hug Tang San, Wang Sheng looked at Chu Zhao again and spoke with deep gratitude.

Wang Sheng had thought it would take him at least another half year to break through to level ten. He had never expected to reach level ten in less than a month after school started. He credited all of it to Chu Zhao and was deeply grateful to her.

"This doesn't really have anything to do with me. You were simply hardworking enough. Congratulations on successfully joining the ranks of Soul Masters."

Chu Zhao did not think she had provided Wang Sheng with any help. Everyone could see how diligently she trained. Some chose to train alongside her, while others chose to play around. Those were all their own choices.

"I still have to thank you."

Although Chu Zhao said that, Wang Sheng remained extremely grateful to her. He even thumped his chest and made a promise.

"From now on, I'll be your little brother forever. Whatever you tell me to do, I'll do it. If you tell me to go east, I'll never go west!"

No one took a teenager's impulsive promise to heart, but time would prove it.

After Wang Sheng obtained a Ten-Year Soul Ring with the help of the academy teachers—

Time seemed to have hit fast-forward, and the semester was soon coming to an end.

What awaited Chu Zhao, Tang San, and Xiao Wu, the three new students, was the holiday they had waited a year for.

But what awaited Wang Sheng and the other two Seventh Dormitory students was another matter they had no choice but to face.

"What? You're leaving?"

Xiao Wu's voice was a little shrill. Over the past year, Wang Sheng and the others had been quite useful to her, helping buy meals and clean up every day. She had grown used to it, and their leaving would really take some getting used to.

"Yes. The three of us have completed six school years and have to leave the academy."

Wang Sheng's tone was filled with reluctance as well, but he had no choice but to leave.

"Are you going to an Intermediate Soul Master Academy?"

Tang San and Chu Zhao asked.

"I'm already a Soul Master, so I could go to an Intermediate Soul Master Academy. But the two of them don't have Soul Rings yet, so they can't. And I can't go either. The tuition is too expensive."

He had finally worked so hard to become a Soul Master, only to be forced to stop because the tuition was too expensive and abandon the path of further study. Wang Sheng's disappointment practically overflowed.

"How expensive is the tuition at an Intermediate Soul Master Academy? Don't they have work-study students there?"

Chu Zhao pressed for details. The original story had not mentioned this, and she was only a first-year student herself, so she did not know much about it.

"No. The yearly tuition is five Gold Soul Coins, and that doesn't include other expenses."

For Wang Sheng, five Gold Soul Coins was truly a difficult amount.

Although he was now a Soul Master and could receive a subsidy of one Gold Soul Coin every month, he had only received ten months' worth so far, and those ten Gold Soul Coins apparently were not in his possession.

Wang Sheng's living conditions had not changed at all. He still used that patch-covered blanket, and he still ate only the cheapest meals every day.

"I remember you deliberately saved money before. Where did your savings go?"

This time, Wang Sheng did not answer Chu Zhao's question. He merely lowered his head and remained silent.

Another roommate, who was close to Wang Sheng and was also graduating from Notting Academy, answered in his place.

"Brother Wang's savings were all taken to help support the family. He doesn't have them himself. Brother Wang's father said he was afraid Brother Wang would spend it recklessly, and that it would be safer for him to keep the tuition. But—Brother Wang, stop pulling me! I'm going to say it! Your father did something like that, and I'm not even allowed to talk about it?"

After breaking free of Wang Sheng's attempt to stop him, his voice grew even louder!

"Brother Wang's father became addicted to gambling and gambled away all the tuition Brother Wang had saved! Otherwise, Brother Wang could have gone to an Intermediate Soul Master Academy if he kept living frugally! It's all his father's fault! If it weren't—"

"Hu Zi! He's my father!"

Wang Sheng raised his voice to cut off his friend's endless complaints, then repeated, "He's my father..."

Rather than trying to convince others, he was trying to convince himself.

He also resented having such an irresponsible father.

He did not ask for much help from his father, but at the very least, his father should not hold him back.

"Ah! How could this happen? Your father went too far!"

Xiao Wu spoke indignantly. She had no concept of money, and she originally wanted to search her pockets to see whether she could lend Wang Sheng some money, only to find them empty.

Then she remembered that she spent every coin she had and had even borrowed some money from Tang San.

Thinking that Tang San was usually frugal and was probably the wealthiest person in the dorm, she immediately looked at him and began pleading sweetly.

"Tang San, you should have quite a lot of money on you, right? Could you lend Wang Sheng some Gold Soul Coins?"

Listening from the side, Chu Zhao subconsciously frowned. Xiao Wu meant well, but the words still made her uncomfortable.

Setting those stray thoughts aside, just as she was about to say something, she heard Wang Sheng refuse first.

"No need. Gambling is a bottomless pit. Even if I scrape together this year's tuition, what then? There still won't be any next year. I can't keep borrowing money from all of you every year."