Red Mountain Academy

The next morning, barely past dawn, with a faint fish-belly white still tinting the horizon, Tang Wulin was woken right on time by his father, Tang Ziran.

Even though he now lived on the Douluo Continent and studied entirely new subjects like soul power and martial souls, the dread of school etched into his bones refused to fade. He had spent over a decade toiling over books in his previous life, only to be reborn in another world and still find himself unable to escape school. The feeling of starting all over again left him inwardly resigned.

Today was the official start of term at Red Mountain Junior Soul Master Academy. From this day onward, he would begin three full years of academy life.

Under the laws of the Sun Moon Federation, all junior and intermediate soul master academies provided free compulsory education. The system closely mirrored the one from his previous world and was easy to understand at a glance. Junior soul master academies offered three years of study, while intermediate academies offered six. After those nine years, anyone wishing to enter an advanced soul master academy had to take a unified entrance examination, equivalent to the college entrance exam in his previous life, with admission awarded on merit to those with outstanding scores. Those whose scores fell short could only pay their own tuition or attend a vocational academy to learn practical skills such as forging, mecha maintenance, and soul tool production.

After hearing all this, Tang Wulin inwardly clicked his tongue again and again, feeling both helpless and rueful. Even in a different world, school followed exactly the same formula.

Tang Ziran escorted Tang Wulin all the way to the academy gates. It was only a few kilometers from home, a very short journey. Only after repeatedly reminding him to pay attention in class and come home on time after school did Tang Ziran turn and head to the workshop for work.

Staff had already been assigned to welcome new students at the gates. The teachers receiving the soul master class were neatly dressed and warm in manner. In every respect, the treatment stood in stark contrast to the deserted, makeshift reception area for the ordinary classes nearby.

The naked disparity was obvious at a glance.

Tang Wulin sighed inwardly, unmoved. In the end, soul power was this continent's most direct yardstick for dividing social classes.

This year's incoming soul master class had only fifteen students in total.

Aolai City had a population of several hundred thousand, an entire small coastal city on the scale of a fourth- or fifth-tier city. Yet after martial soul awakening, only fifteen children had awakened martial souls, possessed soul power, and successfully entered the soul master class.

That alone showed just how rare and precious children with the potential to become soul masters truly were.

Tang Wulin followed the crowd into the classroom and casually chose an empty seat. Before he could take in his surroundings, a plump little boy beside him, with a round, adorable face, leaned over of his own accord and asked curiously:

"Hey, what's your martial soul?"

Tang Wulin turned to look at the classmate who had struck up a conversation.

Before him sat a little boy with a chubby face and a plump figure. His endearingly guileless appearance made him look particularly likable.

Tang Wulin silently formed that impression, then answered truthfully in an even tone, "My martial soul is blue silver grass."

The instant the words left his mouth, the smile vanished from the curious little chubby boy's face, replaced by undisguised contempt and distaste.

"Blue silver grass? So it's a trash martial soul."

He tossed out that mocking remark without another glance at Tang Wulin, then turned straight back to his own seat, having lost all interest in talking.

Tang Wulin remained seated, momentarily taken aback.

So... had someone his own age really just looked down on him that openly?

He sighed softly. In the end, he neither argued nor revealed his hidden twin martial souls and Blue Silver Emperor bloodline. He simply settled quietly into his seat.

Although he had read the original Legend of the Dragon King in his previous life, so many years had passed that most of the finer details of the plot had long since grown hazy.

He clearly remembered the book's central storyline: the eighteen Golden Dragon King seals within his body, the destruction of Shrek Academy, the Spirit Pagoda's secret collusion with the Holy Spirit Cult, and the grand spectacle of the final battle of the five gods. He also knew the destiny that bound him and Gu Yuena across the human and soul beast worlds, and the ending in which the two sacrificed themselves to bring about peaceful coexistence between humans and soul beasts.

But he could no longer remember any of the side stories about everyday growth, the big and small incidents at the academies, or the detailed histories of each classmate.

He remembered only the broad course of his education: Red Mountain Junior Soul Master Academy → Eastsea Academy → finally gaining admission to Shrek Academy.

As for every little incident and unexpected conflict along the way, he had no way of predicting them.

Precisely because of that, from the moment he had crossed worlds and been born, he had quietly made up his mind: he would follow the main storyline as closely as possible and avoid making arbitrary changes.

He knew that the butterfly effect could never be underestimated. A tiny butterfly flapping its wings over the southern seas might raise towering waves capable of destroying heaven and earth in the distant north.

He now bore the Golden Dragon King's seals, harbored hidden twin martial souls, and had origins entangled with the greater affairs of the Divine Realm. His path had already deviated from the original story. If he recklessly altered everyday incidents as well, no one could know what uncontrollable upheavals might arise in the future. He might even send his originally ordained destiny plunging into an abyss from which there was no return.

Keeping a low profile, exercising restraint, and steadily following the main storyline was the safest way to survive for now.

I, Tang Wulin, will win by playing it safe.

Tang Wulin sat quietly in his seat, watching the other fourteen students gather in twos and threes, chatting with fiery enthusiasm.

Everyone was boasting about how impressive their martial souls were and imagining how they would become powerful soul masters, make their way into Shrek Academy, gain fame across the continent, and reach the pinnacle of life.

Listening to their childish, brash boasts, Tang Wulin felt entirely unruffled. He even felt a little like laughing.

The scene was all too familiar. It was just like elementary school in his previous life, where children casually bragged that getting into Tsinghua or Peking University would be easy. Young and reckless, their hearts full of fire, they had no idea how long the road ahead truly was, or that their dreams still lay ten thousand miles away.

As the clamor rose and fell, soft, measured footsteps sounded at the doorway.

A female teacher in the academy's uniform walked slowly into the classroom, her bearing gentle and scholarly.

"Hello, everyone. I'm your homeroom teacher, Lin Ximeng. For the next three years, I'll be teaching you basic soul master theory, general knowledge about martial souls, and subjects related to soul beasts and soul rings."

Lin Ximeng swept a gentle gaze over the class, then gave them their instructions. "Now, starting with the first row, come up one at a time and introduce yourselves. Tell us your name, your martial soul, and your innate soul power rank."