An Unorthodox Soul Sage

"Teacher, there are already new students?" Jodio asked casually as he followed Flender.

"Yes. Does that surprise you?" Flender asked.

"Not really, Teacher. I just like being first. First to arrive, first in ability, first in status—only first place suits me. It's what I'm meant for." Jodio looked toward the low buildings.

After everything he had suffered, Jodio had learned one thing: when it was time to be bold, he had to go all in, like that puffed-up teacher or The Little Panda spreading her arms to scare off an enemy. The bigger the bluff, the less anyone dared make a move, and the more readily they imagined you were something extraordinary. Of course, that only worked if you actually had the skills to back it up. Otherwise, you would end up cosplaying Old Mi Next Door and disgracing yourself.

The bolder he acted, the less those fools would dare bother him. It would save him a lot of trouble. He had spent his whole life being careful, only for Tang the God King to beat him down like some stray by the roadside. If King Crimson hadn't pulled through, he might have died on the spot. Compared with Yoshikage Kira and Diavolo's way of life, DIO and Boss Leader were the ones Jodio ought to learn from!

"I, Jodio Joestar, will become a Douluo star!" Jodio declared with proud confidence, unconsciously striking Giorno Giovanna's classic pose.

The kid's great in every other way. Why does he have to be so cringe? Flender thought.

"Old Zhao! Come meet the new student!" Flender called to the bear of a man sunning himself outside the building.

"Where'd you find this treasure? A blond? You've got all three colors now! Planning to learn painting from Lu Qibin?" Zhao Wuji asked, rising with a hearty laugh.

"This is Teacher Zhao. His Martial Soul is the Vigorous Vajra Bear, and he's a Soul Sage. He's every bit as formidable in a fight as I am." Flender chuckled and ruffled Jodio's golden curls.

"Hello, Teacher Zhao." Jodio gave Zhao Wuji a very proper bow. Courtesy still mattered. Pride and confidence were no excuse for bad manners. As a former Emperor, he had to be perfect in every respect!

"I don't like how you put that, but the kid seems good. Hard not to like him." Zhao Wuji stood and took a closer look at Jodio.

Jodio couldn't imagine many people taller than Zhao Wuji. With those muscles, that little fur cape, and that buzz cut, he would fit right in as a bodybuilder back on Blue Star. Teacher Zhao wouldn't end up on some uploader's hall of shame, would he? Bad news did seem to come out of bodybuilding circles all the time...

"He has Innate Full Soul Power. His Martial Soul seems to be a kind of tool Martial Soul, though it looks more like a beast Martial Soul," Flender said thoughtfully.

"Full Soul Power? Another one?" Zhao Wuji looked at Jodio with curiosity.

"My Martial Soul isn't Silver Chariot. It's the Stand Arrow." Jodio summoned his arrow Martial Soul for the two men to see.

"Stand?" Zhao Wuji asked blankly.

"A Stand is a manifestation of mental ability and Soul Power. Teacher, you can think of it as a Spirit Skill I can control. Other people's Spirit Skills are various moves; mine takes the form of a Stand." Jodio did his best to explain it in terms they would understand. These two were antiques from ten thousand years ago. Martial Soul theory was still rudimentary enough that even Grandmaster had a seat at the table. Ten thousand years later, Huo Yuhao would have understood after a single explanation.

"Say someone has a Spirit Skill called 'Entangle.' My Spirit Skill would turn 'Entangle' into a Stand, then have that Stand perform the entangling. It would still consume my Soul Power, though." Jodio summoned Silver Chariot again as he spoke.

"Ohhh, Owl! This kid ought to study under Lu Qibin. They both love flashy tricks." Zhao Wuji planted his hands on his hips and laughed.

"Your Teacher Zhao's Martial Soul has rubbed off on him a little. Pay him no mind," Flender said, not bothering to argue.

"But you don't have a Spirit Ring yet. How can you use a Spirit Skill? Is it self-created?" Flender asked, stroking his beard.

"A top-tier Martial Soul would never leave its user defenseless. Silver Chariot is an innate ability of mine. Calling it a Self-Created Soul Skill is close enough." Jodio spread his hands.

"Its strength is average, and its stamina and defense aren't much to speak of. Speed is the only thing it really has going for it. But I believe Silver Chariot will astonish everyone someday," Jodio added.

"Well, you can't expect everything. A child capable of creating his own Spirit Skill is already a genius," Flender murmured.

"Did you bring any money? The registration fee is ten Gold Soul Coins, and tuition is a hundred a year. If you really don't have it, that's fine. Just get certified as a Soul Master and pay the registration fee when you can." Flender ruffled Jodio's golden hair again.

Shrek Academy's high fees weren't really about greed. It simply needed money to survive. Spirit Hall only paid Soul Masters below level forty, and the higher their level, the less they received. If this bunch of Soul Emperors and Soul Sages didn't find a way to make a living, they would have to become bodyguards. Of course money mattered to them.

(There was also a version of the story that said level-forty Soul Masters received only ten, and level-fifty Soul Masters received just one.)

When Flender found promising students, he took them in. Oscar and Ma Hongjun both came from common families that would struggle to earn even one Gold Soul Coin a year, yet Flender had scooped them up all the same. How noble of him. Far nobler than that fellow at Hogwarts next door.

"It's not that I have nothing at all." Jodio truly had no money on him. It was a wonder his time-signal watch had survived the space-time passage. His Spirit Bones had been stripped away one after another; how could he expect his Soul Tools to have made it through?

The time-signal watch was something he and Huo Yuhao had made together. Huo Yuhao had designed its Soul Tool components, while Jodio had supplied the time-aspected Soul Power to create it. The back of its case was made of gold. He never thought that detail would come in handy now.

"Forget it. Things are hard enough for a kid. You can owe us for now and pay it back slowly." Flender stopped Jodio as soon as he saw him preparing to take apart the watch on his wrist. They weren't so desperate for money that they couldn't collect it later. If all else failed, he could send Old Zhao to work at a club. A muscular man like him ought to be popular.

"Hey, Owl. There's more to this kid than meets the eye, isn't there?" Zhao Wuji asked Flender in a low voice. A top-tier Martial Soul, top-tier Soul Power, and that bearing? No one would believe he wasn't from a great clan. But why would a great clan send its child here? Which clan was it?

"Who cares? Even if Seven Treasure Glazed Tile sent him, he'd have to take a couple of kicks from me and run ten laps first. I'm good at running too. Worst case, we move somewhere else," Flender replied without a care.

What a scoundrel. Zhao Wuji had never imagined anyone could be so shameless. Then again, the old man had never had much shame. In the future, that old Owl would ask two hundred Gold Soul Coins for a piece of junk yellow crystal.

"Come on. I'll introduce you to your other two classmates." Ignoring Zhao Wuji's complaint, Flender gave him a wave and led Jodio onward.

"Here are the graduation requirements. Reach Soul Ancestor before you turn twenty, or earn a silver badge at the Great Soul Arena while reaching at least level thirty-five, or win the Continental Advanced Soul Master Elite Challenge. Meet any one of those conditions and you can graduate. If you can't meet any of them, then find a way to pay off what you owe and make your own way in the world," Flender explained.

"Fair enough," Jodio replied calmly. Shrek's graduation requirements were a little more humane now than they would be ten thousand years later. He remembered how much Yuhao had suffered just to graduate. If Yuhao had known back then that reaching level forty was enough, he would have been overjoyed.

"If I meet all three, can I stay on?" Jodio asked with a grin and a waggle of his eyebrows.

"Stay and be poor with us old-timers? One of your seniors went off to teach at another school. Isn't that better than staying here?" Flender laughed.

"Once I graduate, I'll make a name for myself. Then I'll come back and make sure you can enjoy life, Teacher. How could a genius's teacher live in poverty? A genius's teacher deserves the best!" Jodio folded his arms with confidence.

"I'll hold you to that." Flender was even happier now. The kid certainly knew how to flatter someone—far better than Oscar and Ma Hongjun.

"Little Oscar! Hongjun! Come entertain the guest—no, come meet your classmate!"

Two children, one chubby and one thin, emerged from the building. They looked curiously at Jodio beside Flender, their thoughts unreadable. Jodio sighed inwardly. The two were cuter in the comic's art style, though the comic and animation styles weren't all that different.

"Jodio Joestar. Male. Six and a half years old. You can call me Boss Jo or DIO-sama." Jodio struck DIO's classic pose again.

"Get to know each other. I'll take all of you Spirit Hunting tomorrow. And Jodio is actually only six years and three months old. Don't let him fool you." Flender waved and walked away, leaving Jodio to grumble inwardly. Did the old man have to tell them everything? What happened to a teacher's discretion?

"I'm Oscar. I just turned eight. My Martial Soul is a sausage, and my Soul Power is level fourteen." Oscar grinned sweetly and shook Jodio's hand.

"Ma Hongjun. Six years and five months old. Phoenix Martial Soul. Level ten Soul Power," Ma Hongjun said, sounding displeased.

"What do you mean, you're the boss? I don't accept that!"

"You don't have to. Just as a king is born to inherit the throne and a phoenix is born to sleep in a parasol tree, I was born to be the boss. You can object all you want. Silver Chariot, show him what you can do!" Jodio summoned Silver Chariot without hesitation.

"Feels like you're taking a dig at me on purpose. I don't like it! Come forth, Phoenix Chariot!" Ma Hongjun spread his arms, summoning flames that clung to his body.

Jodio: ????

←To Be Continued

Information currently available:

Martial Soul: Phoenix (Evil) (Level 10)

Holder: Ma Hongjun

Destructive power: C+, speed: E, range: D, stamina: E, precision: E, growth potential: A

Martial Soul ability: Summons roaring flames and a phoenix-shaped apparition to envelop its user, increasing his attack power and speed. However, this Martial Soul cannot be sustained for long. It is better suited to hit-and-run combat.

As a top-tier Martial Soul, it will evolve as its user's Soul Power grows. If the problem of its evil fire can be resolved, its attributes may rise even further.