Forming the Teams

Since Zhi Lin had personally brought Lu Yang to the classroom, he attracted plenty of attention the moment he arrived. Class was still in session, though, so everyone merely glanced his way.

After a brief self-introduction, Lu Yang took the seat the teacher had arranged for him. Although this was not his first time attending classes at a Soul Master Academy, he still felt some anticipation about what an advanced Soul Master Academy would teach.

Before long, however, he began to doze off. It was not that the teacher's material was useless, but that the teachers Qian Renxue had found for him after he came to Heaven Dou City had already taught him all of it.

Sitting behind him, Dugu Yan had a clear view of Lu Yang's head bobbing in class. She understood perfectly well why he was like this, since she had long since learned everything being taught too.

The moment class ended, the drowsy Lu Yang perked right up. Before he could stand, however, a slender arm looped around his neck and tucked his head straight under its owner's armpit.

"You little brat! You were coming to the academy, and you didn't even tell me beforehand!"

Quite a few students in Heaven Dou Class One froze at the sight. Which of these children from noble families did not know who Dugu Yan was? The title Poison Douluo alone ensured that no one in the academy dared provoke her.

"Yanzi, let me go!" Lu Yang struggled a few times, but Dugu Yan kept her arm locked around his neck.

Left with no choice, Lu Yang grabbed at the soft flesh of her waist a few times.

Even through her clothes, Dugu Yan felt the tickling at her waist. Her grip loosened, and Lu Yang seized the chance to break free.

"I wasn't planning to start school this early either. How old do you think I am? My family arranged it, so there was nothing I could do." Lu Yang rolled his neck before explaining himself to the disgruntled Dugu Yan.

"Hmph, fine, you pass." Dugu Yan gave a little snort. "Lingling will be enrolling in a few days too. Then we can all attend class together."

"That would be nice, though I think my senior sister might not like it," Lu Yang said with a smile.

"What's there to be afraid of? With us around, how could anyone bully Lingling? If anyone dares, I'll poison them flat!" Dugu Yan said fiercely.

As she spoke, she swept her gaze over the surrounding students, seemingly treating them as people who would bully Ye Lingling. They all shivered and discreetly edged farther away.

Only one tall figure standing at the back of the crowd watched Lu Yang and Dugu Yan chatting so casually with a slight frown.

This was Yu Tianheng, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's legendary king of setbacks. His performance in the original story had not actually been particularly outstanding. He simply had a scumbag of an uncle and was that uncle's brainless fan, so he was often treated as a speed bump and trampled straight over.

Logically, Yu Tianheng should have joined Thunder Academy, which the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had established, or perhaps Blue Tyrant Academy, which the clan supported. But because the clan wanted to draw Dugu Bo over to its side, it had sent him, one of its candidates for clan heir, to Heaven Dou Royal Academy so he could get close to Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan was Yu Tianheng's objective, so he paid particular attention to Lu Yang, who had only just arrived yet was already on good terms with her. However, he had yet to learn Lu Yang's background, so he could hardly make trouble for his new classmate outright.

With Dugu Yan around, Lu Yang's days at Heaven Dou Royal Academy were not too dull. Moreover, only a few days after he enrolled, Ye Lingling was sent to the academy too.

Just as Lu Yang had expected, Ye Lingling was indeed very uncomfortable when she first enrolled. Without Dugu Yan and Lu Yang keeping her company, her days certainly would not have been easy.

The days passed like this, and in the blink of an eye, the time came for the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament.

This tournament was held in the Star Luo Empire. The team from Spirit Hall Academy took the championship, crushing every opposing team like a gale sweeping through rotten wood and securing the title outright.

Spirit Hall's dominance also left the two great empires increasingly uneasy. As emperors, Xue Ye and Dai Tianlin knew very well that Spirit Hall's ambitions went far beyond merely keeping the two empires in check and managing the Soul Master World. The time had simply not yet come, which was why Spirit Hall's ambitions remained concealed.

To avoid the worst outcome, their own fists had to be big enough to leave covetous eyes no opening. Yet Emperor Xue Ye of the Heaven Dou Empire had truly reached the point where his will exceeded his strength.

The Heaven Dou Empire had once been powerful and prosperous, far beyond anything the present Star Luo Empire could match. Now, however, the development of the two countries had taken markedly different turns. Without Spirit Hall keeping them in check, a great war between them would probably have erupted long ago.

If the two countries went to war, the loser would very likely be the Heaven Dou Empire. That realization left Emperor Xue Ye scarcely able to eat or sleep in peace.

Yet his health had long been deteriorating by the day under the slow-acting poison Qian Renxue had administered, leading to the Heaven Dou Empire's current state of deeply entrenched troubles that were all but impossible to reverse.

The outcome of this Soul Master Tournament also had some impact on Lu Yang and the others. Determined to do something more for the Empire in his twilight years, Emperor Xue Ye ordered Heaven Dou Royal Academy to form a team for the next tournament and channel the Empire's resources into its training.

This was precisely what Meng Shenji and the others wanted, so the formation of two teams at Heaven Dou Academy was immediately put on the agenda.

However, Meng Shenji and his two colleagues misplaced their trust in Qin Ming, the young Soul Emperor. Mistakenly believing that Shrek Academy, where he had studied, truly possessed some unique teaching philosophy, they gave him the position of leader of Heaven Dou Team One.

Naturally, team members were selected from Heaven Dou Academy's Heaven Dou Grade classes. Lu Yang, Dugu Yan, and Ye Lingling were all on the list.

But when Lu Yang learned that Qin Ming would be the team leader, he was utterly unwilling to join. Running without using Soul Power was a training method he had used before awakening his Martial Soul. Now that he was already a Soul Master, how much use could such training possibly be?

In Lu Yang's view, Qin Ming's teaching ability might not even measure up to Yu Xiaogang's. Although the two were much of a muchness, at least Yu Xiaogang knew to make his students carry stones to add some weight and squeeze Tang San and the others to their limits.

Because of Qian Renxue, however, Lu Yang could only join the team for now. Once training began, he could simply find an excuse to leave. In any case, Qian Renxue had her own purpose in winning him over. If she really intended to let him suffer under Qin Ming, that would prove that her efforts to recruit him amounted to no more than that.