Yu Xiaogang, you've lost your mind!

After absorbing his soul ring, Ji Hongchen returned to Nuoding City without a moment's delay, ready to have his martial soul tested. At least he could collect one Gold Soul Coin a month.

The Spirit Hall in Nuoding City.

Ji Hongchen walked into the Spirit Hall and saw Su Yuntao, who was on duty that day.

"Hello, Grandmaster Su Yuntao. I'm here for a martial soul test."

Su Yuntao glanced at Ji Hongchen. With his handsome looks and unusual martial soul, Su Yuntao recognized him at once.

"Ji Hongchen? Didn't you awaken your martial soul only a year and a half ago? You're already here for a soul power test?"

Su Yuntao was rather surprised.

After all, Ji Hongchen had started with only half a level of innate soul power, and his martial soul was a mutated trash martial soul. Could he really qualify for a soul power test after just a year and a half?

"Come with me."

Su Yuntao asked no further questions and led Ji Hongchen to the soul power testing area.

"Release your martial soul."

Su Yuntao spoke in an even tone.

Ji Hongchen nodded, but this time, he directly released his Jinghong Sword.

A yellow soul ring appeared around him as well.

"A hundred-year soul ring!"

Su Yuntao froze, then noticed something was off. His gaze settled on the Jinghong Sword, and his tone grew serious.

"Ji Hongchen, your martial soul..."

"Grandmaster Su Yuntao, my martial soul changed after I absorbed my soul ring. I figured it must be what's called an acquired mutation."

Ji Hongchen offered a casual explanation.

Su Yuntao had heard of his "martial soul recasting project." After all, he had personally awakened Ji Hongchen's martial soul back then, so it had naturally left a deep impression.

"I never thought you'd actually succeed."

Su Yuntao sighed in wonder.

Something like this was exceedingly rare; it was his first time hearing of it. But martial souls were inherently miraculous, so ordinary logic could hardly apply.

"Let's test your soul power."

Su Yuntao took out a crystal ball and handed it to Ji Hongchen.

Ji Hongchen placed his hand on it.

As light flickered through the ball, Su Yuntao, who was conducting the test, was once again rather surprised.

"Level twelve soul power!"

Although surprised, Su Yuntao still felt it was within reason. Ji Hongchen had absorbed a hundred-year soul ring, after all, so an increase in soul power was only natural.

Before long.

Su Yuntao finished the soul power test, picked up the prepared Soul Master certificate, and handed it to Ji Hongchen, casually asking a question as he did.

"Ji Hongchen, have you considered joining the Spirit Hall?"

"For now, I just want to finish my studies. But if I get the chance in the future, I'll definitely go." Ji Hongchen brushed him off with a casual reply.

After all, he had no desire to join the Spirit Hall.

Its pope, Bibi Dong, was utterly stupid. Even Titled Douluos gained nothing after serving for years. If he joined, he would only become a stepping stone for someone else.

Not to mention the old shut-ins in the Worship Hall.

They were a bunch of old turtles hiding in the shadows. Even when enemies came knocking at their door, they refused to poke their heads out. They were nothing but ignorant old fossils.

If Qian Daoliu had only acted sooner.

Things would never have ended that way. Besides, Qian Daoliu had barely acted at all in the original story. A level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo, yet he hadn't even cleared the obstacles from his granddaughter's path before sacrificing himself. His death had been utterly wasted. What a joke.

By Ji Hongchen's reckoning.

Perhaps something was wrong with the Qian Family's ancestral graves, causing so many bizarre disasters to crop up in this era.

"All right."

Hearing Ji Hongchen's answer, Su Yuntao could hardly press him further. He could only hand him a Gold Soul Coin. "From now on, you can use your Spirit Hall certificate to collect a Soul Master allowance every month."

Ji Hongchen accepted the Gold Soul Coin.

Then he left the Spirit Hall in Nuoding City.

He returned to Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy.

Classes had just ended.

The moment Ji Hongchen returned, he found Xiao Chenyu waiting there, with quite a few members of their Nuoding Lionpack behind him.

"Old Ji, how did things go with your soul ring?"

Seeing Ji Hongchen return, Xiao Chenyu jogged over to him and asked eagerly.

Ji Hongchen smiled faintly.

His hundred-year yellow soul ring lit up, and the Jinghong Sword floated in midair before him.

"A hundred-year soul ring!"

Xiao Chenyu cried out in surprise, then circled Ji Hongchen before noticing the Jinghong Sword floating beside him.

"This is my martial soul. It underwent an acquired second awakening."

Ji Hongchen offered an explanation.

Understanding dawned on Xiao Chenyu, and excitement spread across his face. "That's great! I knew your theory would work, Old Ji!"

"Haha, I just got lucky."

Ji Hongchen smiled modestly.

Xiao Chenyu waved a hand carelessly, brushing that aside. "Come on, come on! My treat today. Let's head out and have a proper feast!"

Ji Hongchen gladly agreed.

That evening, in the staff dining hall.

Yu Xiaogang sat at a dining table with a despondent expression. He was deeply dispirited, a faint melancholy lingering in his dead-fish eyes.

He felt somewhat hopeless.

Even now, he still had no way to prove his theory.

And ever since Ji Hongchen had publicly humiliated him, he had become the butt of everyone's jokes at the academy, unable to hold his head high.

"Ah, I ought to lower my standards a little."

His original plan had been to take a disciple with innate full soul power to prove his theory correct, but he had yet to encounter a genius like that.

So he simply lowered his standards.

In the future, he would consider accepting a disciple with level nine innate soul power. His requirements weren't high-only level nine innate soul power. Becoming his disciple would be their honor.

Just then.

A conversation reached his ears. It came from two teachers behind him.

"Teacher Wang, have you heard? That student Ji Hongchen's 'recasting project' succeeded! I saw that his martial soul has become a longsword."

"I heard."

"I've seen that student on the training grounds. He practices his swordplay all day long, and he has a solid grasp of martial soul theory, too. He's a promising young talent."

"I'd say he has the makings of a Soul Ancestor!"

"Wouldn't that make him even stronger than the dean? Still, it makes sense. His martial soul theory is impressive, after all."

Everyone was chattering away.

Yu Xiaogang heard every word from behind them. His hand stopped mid-bite, and his expression instantly stiffened.

Once he had made out what they were saying.

Yu Xiaogang could no longer stay seated. He shot to his feet.

It worked!

The "recasting project" developed by Ji Hongchen, that student who had defied him, had actually succeeded? How was that possible? Weren't martial souls fixed from birth?

If they really could be recast...

Then could his Luo Sanpao also...

At that thought, Yu Xiaogang grew wildly excited. Even his breathing quickened. His eyes gleamed as he abruptly reached out and grabbed the teacher behind him by the shoulder.

"Is it true?"

"Did that Ji Hongchen's 'recasting project' really succeed?"

Startled by Yu Xiaogang's sudden actions, the teacher quickly recovered and kicked him away, snapping irritably, "Yu Xiaogang, you've lost your mind!"

"The entire academy knows about it, teachers and students alike. How do you still not know?"

Yu Xiaogang paid no heed to the pain in his body.

He rose excitedly to his feet.

Martial souls could actually be recast! He had to get his hands on this method. With it, he could perfect his ten core theories of martial souls.

He might even expand them into eleven core theories, or twelve. When that happened, who would dare call him, Yu Xiaogang, useless!