Lesson 1: Seek Within

After that!

Boom!

Another three years passed!

The sea of flowers before Shrek Academy bloomed once more. Jodio had always been fond of it. Though it had once been deliberately withered, it had since been replanted.

"Heh. Oscar, I admit your Spin Technique is underhanded. But what if I told you I'm about to use my full strength? How would you stop me then?"

Dai Mubai stood amid the flowers with Martial Soul Possession active, speaking with wild arrogance. A food-type Soul Master was no match for him; even a combat Soul Master would struggle to withstand a single blow! At level 39, he had nothing to fear. He was already half a step from becoming a Soul Ancestor. Who among Soul Elders could so much as ruffle a hair on his head?

"Hmph, Dai, don't boast too soon. Your Tiger's Might beats my Super Big Sausage in strength and speed, but your precise control of Soul Power is far worse!" Oscar struck a pose, extended a finger, and pointed at Dai Mubai.

"My steel ball can knock you down with ease, Dai Mubai. Come closer if you don't believe me." Oscar pinched the blue steel ball between his fingers and advanced.

"You have no idea what you're talking about! Oscar! Today I'll show you how the last to move can strike first!"

Dai Mubai unleashed his third Spirit Skill, White Tiger Vajra Transformation. His body swelled to more than twice its size, while his skill, strength, and defense all doubled. Power surged through him as though he had strength to spare. Buoyed by the Spirit Skill, he felt the flames of victory calling to him, urging him to defeat Oscar.

"This is my Tiger's Might! Its strength and defense are beyond what ordinary Soul Masters can withstand! Oscar, die!"

Oscar showed no panic in the face of the attack. His expression was part indifference, part icy disdain, and mostly mockery. With apparent ease, he hurled the blue steel ball. It traced a perfect arc through the air, spinning toward Dai Mubai like a Golden Spin, and slammed into his arm with enough force to twist it out of shape!

"Gah! Oscar! You're asking for death!" Dai Mubai roared.

"Soul Power rotation, 3,900 horsepower! Black Tiger Takes the Heart!"

"Hmph! Dai Mubai, you had your chance to settle this nicely! Have you never heard of respecting your seniors? Today I'll make you crawl out of this flower field on your knees! Like a child in tears after a loving father takes a belt to him! Like a student whose teacher has struck his palms with a broom handle! Like a kitten frozen still when its mother grabs it by the scruff! Like a leopard cub hiding motionless in the grass after spotting a lioness!"

"Spin rotation, 3,600 horsepower! Conductive Spin!"

Oscar swiftly threw another steel ball. It grazed the first as they passed, exchanging a vast amount of energy in that instant. The returning ball replenished Oscar's Soul Power, while the new one carried the transferred energy into Dai Mubai. It struck with even greater force, leaving Dai Mubai's chest tight and giving him the sinking feeling that things had taken a bad turn!

"Heh! Oscar, you slipped up! Draining Soul Power and landing a heavy blow? For an assault-type Soul Master, that's just another day!"

"Hey! You two! What are you playing at?"

A lazy voice interrupted their fight. A huge blue hand descended from the sky, followed by Jodio himself. The hand caught the trunk of a tree beside the flower field to anchor him, and he swung onto a branch, landing steadily. He looked down at them with an imperious air and open curiosity.

"Oh! Boss Jo! Finished Spirit Hunting?"

"Boss Jo! What new Stand did you get?"

The two promptly stopped fighting. Flexing his wrist and rubbing his chest, respectively, they walked toward Jodio. He hopped down from the tree with a cheerful grin and stretched his limbs, feeling wonderfully refreshed.

"My new Spirit Skill should, in theory, solve Little Ma's Martial Soul problem. In theory, mind you. I still don't know whether its repair effect works on Martial Souls. If it doesn't, we'll have to go with plan B," Jodio said with a smile.

"Why might it not work?" Oscar asked.

"Because I can fine-tune my repair ability according to what I want. I'm not sure whether that fine-tuning has a limit. If it doesn't, we're set!" Jodio explained.

"Besides, if plan A fails, there's plan B. If plan B stalls, there's even a plan C, though that one would take a long time. I'd have to master the Radiant Technique again," Jodio said confidently.

"Anyway, what were you two fighting about?" Jodio asked.

"He doesn't respect his seniors!"

"He doesn't respect the strong!" Oscar and Dai Mubai accused each other in unison, both looking furious. Jodio only found it funny. Laughing, he tucked a head under each arm as he had years ago and grinned down at them.

"Well, Brother Oscar! Brother Dai! There you are!"

Ma Hongjun's hearty voice came from above. Oscar and Dai Mubai looked up, panting, just in time to see him glide down with needless flair. He landed smoothly in the flower field and set a patch of blossoms alight. Both onlookers immediately put on expressions of eager anticipation. Hmph. Let's see how long you stay Boss Jo's favorite now!

At the sight of the burning flowers, Jodio's face immediately darkened. Ma Hongjun, mortified, hurried to stamp out the flames before they could spread—or before he fell any further out of favor.

"Ma Hongjun, how's your third Spirit Skill? Did you find one you liked?" Oscar asked, straightening up with a pleased smile. At last, all four of them were Soul Elders. Now they could say that with pride.

"My third Spirit Skill is Phoenix Nebula Split. Once activated, it boosts my speed and Spirit Skill damage by thirty-three percent and puts me in an 'unstoppable' state for three seconds." Ma Hongjun smoothed back his hair with practiced ease.

"Pfft. That's it? Sounds worse than my White Tiger Protective Shield," Dai Mubai mocked.

"In a hurry? I haven't told you the second half. During those three seconds, I can make one targeted melee attack that ignores a defensive Spirit Skill. The level of defense it can bypass depends on my Soul Power Level!" Ma Hongjun said with a grin.

"Bullshit! That doesn't give you the right to steal the name Phoenix Nebula Split! My White Tiger Nebula Split sounds far more impressive! Boss Jo said the original Nebula Split was created by Soul Masters with tiger Martial Souls! You plagiarist!" Dai Mubai cursed.

"Hey! Don't you know how to respect your seniors? I've taken you on so many missions. Can't you let your big brother have the name? Keep arguing and I'll take your dendrobium too!"

"All right, enough arguing." Jodio made a weary, calming gesture. They were raising a racket, and he wanted to test his fourth Spirit Skill, not stand around listening to the three of them bicker.

"Boss, that lesson you mentioned before—what was it?" Oscar suddenly asked.

"You used to talk about those lessons all the time. You kept saying I'd completed the first one, but I don't think you ever told me what its lesson was," Oscar explained.

"Oh, that!" Jodio tilted his head toward the sky. He really hadn't gone into it when he taught Oscar. If he remembered correctly, Lessons 1 through 4 had been Gyro's own conclusions. Jodio had already done his teaching, building Oscar's confidence and drilling the techniques into him. What else could he sum up? What other insight could he offer?

"This will do." Understanding gradually dawned on Jodio. He took Oscar's steel ball, held it in his palm, and slowly set it turning in a Golden Spin.

"Lesson 1: Seek Within!"

"Yes. Seek within," Jodio said in earnest.

"As a wise person once said, the weak seek strength outside themselves; the wise seek it within. Oscar, the power of the human mind knows no bounds. Your will and your sense of self can lead you to every answer. So seek within!"

"If I seek within, can I find a girlfriend?" Ma Hongjun asked, his eyes shining.

"Fantasizing again? About an aloof girl with aqua-blue hair, an Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, and eyes only for you?" Jodio asked.

"It's not a fantasy! There might even be two of them! I'll take on ten!" Ma Hongjun raised his hand and shouted.

"Get lost! You're talking nonsense! Go be crazy somewhere else!" Jodio laughed and kicked Ma Hongjun away.

A crushing pressure suddenly swept through Jodio's heart, and the External Soul Bone on his back grew faintly warm. He looked up at the sky again, his expression turning grave. He sensed something out of the ordinary.

"The Divine Realm's been cut off. Looks like he's getting impatient too. Hmph. Then let him come."

Jodio was unafraid. From the moment he had returned alone to ten thousand years in the past, he had been prepared to fight to the death. This battle was a pure zero-sum game. Victory belonged only to those willing to use everything at their disposal, to those willing to act without holding anything back! Tang the God King's initial hesitation—his fear of being discovered by the gods of the present—had been his greatest mistake. He had let Jodio survive two divine-power attacks and grow stronger. Now it was his turn to suffer.

At the thought, Jodio could barely suppress his grin. He looked beyond the academy at the gathering crowd of applicants and felt a spark of amusement. Come on, Tang the God King. It's time we met and saw what countermeasures you prepared for your younger self ten thousand years ago.

"Now that the Kindling has been gathered, let the fire burn. Let it burn."

← To be continued

(End of volume)

Break down~~ break down~~~~ yes, I go! (The JoJo Part 4 ending preview voice)

Preview: The curtain rose and the story entered its main plot. Jodio's confrontation with Tang San was about to begin. The temporal pincer attack would intensify, and their clash of ideas would deepen. What would happen next? Look forward to Volume Two: Academy Tide!

Oh, I want you, I don't know if I need you~~

But, oh, I'd die to find out~ (Lyrics from the Part 4 ending theme)