A Jar of Spring Never-Old, a Spring That Never Ages Through a Thousand Years

"Brother Lin Ye, the dining hall is right here. Let's go in for breakfast."

Early the next morning, Lin Ye and Ning Rongrong arrived at the dining hall after finishing their morning training.

Opening the door, Lin Ye saw someone already seated inside.

Ning Rongrong pulled Lin Ye over to sit beside her and greeted Zhu Zhuqing. "Morning, classmate Zhu Zhuqing. You're up too."

Zhu Zhuqing glanced at them, merely nodded, and answered softly, "Mm."

She really was cold.

Shrek's breakfast was exceedingly simple: cheap plain rice porridge and steamed buns. After just a couple of bites, Ning Rongrong could barely bring herself to eat any more.

"Rongrong, try some of this."

Lin Ye took a jar out of his storage soul-tool ring.

As he unscrewed the lid, a fragrant aroma immediately wafted out.

Catching the scent, Ning Rongrong looked over in surprise. "What's that? It smells so good!"

"Authentic Spring Never-Old."

Spring Never-Old?

Ning Rongrong looked at Lin Ye curiously, and even Zhu Zhuqing could not help looking over.

Using a spoon, Lin Ye scooped some from the jar into a bowl.

The pickled greens in the bowl were a glossy greenish brown, dotted with vivid red flecks of chili.

"Isn't... isn't that just pickled vegetables?"

"Hey, these aren't ordinary pickled vegetables. Let me give you some." Lin Ye smiled and spooned some into Ning Rongrong's bowl.

Ning Rongrong paused, then picked up her spoon and tasted some. Her eyes immediately lit up. "It's delicious! So fragrant!"

"Spring Never-Old with plain porridge and steamed buns is no ordinary treat." As Lin Ye spoke, he pushed the bowl toward Zhu Zhuqing.

Somewhat surprised, Zhu Zhuqing turned to look at Lin Ye, only to find him smiling at her.

"Want to try some?"

"Mm."

As though drawn by an unseen force, Zhu Zhuqing nodded, picked up a clean spoon, and took a small spoonful from the bowl.

The stalks were crisp and tender in her mouth. With a crunch, she bit down, and their savory juices immediately seeped out, tantalizing every taste bud.

Watching the two girls, Lin Ye found his thoughts drifting back to his other life.

"Master, what's this? It smells so good." The boy looked at his bowl and asked curiously.

"Spring Never-Old," the gray-haired woman answered calmly.

"Spring Never-Old?" Hearing that, the boy glanced at the vegetable garden outside the window.

The mountains were bitterly cold, blanketed in white snow. All the other vegetables had been damaged by frost, yet one alone remained green in the garden, standing proudly against the snow and ice.

Spring Never-Old, a spring that never aged...

In empty mountains, none came calling; few sparrows trod the frosted road.

A lone sword sent pure snow flying; close-striking fists danced in the northern wind.

Proud bones defied the vain mortal world; a loyal heart lay sealed in ancient scrolls.

A jar of Spring Never-Old, a spring that never aged through a thousand years.

Perhaps, just as the poem said, his master, an immortal dwelling deep in these mountains, was like this Spring Never-Old...

"Little Ye, hurry up and eat. You still have to practice afterward."

The gray-haired woman's words interrupted the boy's thoughts.

"Yes, Master."

"Brother Lin Ye?"

Ning Rongrong's voice pulled Lin Ye out of his memories.

"What is it, Rongrong?"

Ning Rongrong pointed toward the entrance. "They're here too."

Lin Ye turned to look and saw Tang San and the others walking through the door, with a fat boy now accompanying them.

The moment Ma Hongjun entered and saw Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, his eyes fixed on them, and he could not help swallowing.

Dai Mubai nudged him with an elbow and said quietly, "Behave yourself. Keep your evil fire under control."

"What? Boss Dai, are you making another move?"

Hearing that, Dai Mubai elbowed him again. "Shut up and go eat."

Seeing that they were about to sit down, Lin Ye immediately put the lid on the Spring Never-Old and discreetly returned it to his storage soul-tool ring.

Xiao Wu sat beside Tang San, and the others took their seats as well.

"Oscar's sleeping in again."

Dai Mubai shook his head helplessly, then looked around, cleared his throat, and said, "Looks like everyone's here. We'll be living and studying together for a while, so let's get to know one another first."

"Let me introduce this fatty first. He's another student at our academy, Ma Hongjun. His martial soul is a barnyard—no, a phoenix."

Hearing that, Ma Hongjun paused in the middle of stuffing a steamed bun into his mouth.

You were about to say barnyard chicken, weren't you, Boss Dai?

A phoenix?

Everyone glanced at Ma Hongjun, and an image involuntarily sprang into their minds.

An outrageously fat bird flapped its wings, waddling comically along the ground, unable to get airborne no matter how hard it tried...

"Pfft..." Ning Rongrong could not help laughing.

"Boss Dai, I heard a new student burned off all of Teacher Zhao's hair yesterday. Who was it?" Ma Hongjun asked.

At that, Dai Mubai turned his gaze toward Lin Ye.

"Him. Lin Ye, twelve years old, a rank thirty-nine Soul Elder."

"Rank... what?"

Ma Hongjun looked at Lin Ye in astonishment.

Rank thirty-nine at twelve? Was he cheating?

"Lin Ye, there's something I'd like to ask. Your martial soul is clearly a sheet of White Paper, so why did it turn into a sword yesterday?" Tang San asked.

Lin Ye merely answered in an even tone, "Nothing but a little trick."

A little trick? Was that something a human being should say?

No one had ever heard of a martial soul like White Paper transforming into a weapon.

"Wait, Tang San, did you say his martial soul is White Paper?" Ma Hongjun asked, staring at Tang San in shock.

Tang San nodded. "Yes."

"Well..."

Ma Hongjun was speechless. Wasn't that a trash martial soul much like Tang San's?

Since when could trash martial souls cultivate so quickly and become so powerful? He had thought Tang San was the only exception.

Next, Dai Mubai told Ma Hongjun everyone's names and martial souls.

Once the introductions were finished, Dai Mubai said, "We'll be cultivating together from now on. We're all teammates, so there's no need to be so formal with names."

"Even with the five of you newcomers, our academy only has eight students altogether. Oscar and Fatty call me Boss Dai because I'm a little older."

"You can just call me Mubai. Call Ma Hongjun Fatty, and as for Oscar, you can call him Little Oscar or Uncle Big Sausage."

"Tang San, how about I call you Little San from now on?"

Tang San nodded. "Then I'll call you Boss Dai."

Dai Mubai turned his gaze toward Lin Ye and the others.

"I'm full." Zhu Zhuqing put down her spoon, stood up, and prepared to leave.

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing leave, Lin Ye no longer wanted to stay either, so he grabbed two steamed buns and pulled Ning Rongrong to her feet.

"We're full too, everyone. We'll be going."

As the three left, the others exchanged bewildered glances.

"Boss Dai, what's with them...?"

Dai Mubai shook his head.

He understood Zhu Zhuqing's reasons, but he had no idea why Lin Ye had left.

"Boss Dai, since we're new here, tell us about the academy's rules," Tang San said.

"Lin Ye, I hadn't even finished eating. Why were you in such a hurry to leave?" Ning Rongrong could not help asking as they walked.

Lin Ye said, "We're going to leave sooner or later anyway. There's no need to get too close to them."

Get close to Tang San and his bunch?

Ha, what a joke. Even without the mission to plunder their fortune, Lin Ye had no desire to become their sworn brother.

"Better to be Xiao Yan's lackey than Tang San's brother."

Before he had begun traveling through the worlds, that had been a view shared by most people in his own world.

Although somewhat exaggerated, it was a conclusion drawn from comparing the two stories.

Lin Ye glanced at Zhu Zhuqing, who was walking ahead.

Winning Zhu Zhuqing over was only the first step. Once he had done that, he had many more plans targeting Shrek.

"Heh, Tang San, let's wait and see."