Marde's Questions

Ding-ding-ding.

The bell signaling the end of class rang.

Shi Quan did not get up immediately. Only after carefully finishing the last few pages of the book in his hands did he slowly rise. Looking at the now-empty Classroom, he picked up the book and walked out toward the Library.

He had borrowed these books before last semester's break. More than a week had already passed since school resumed, and only now had he finished them.

"Headmaster, I'm here to return some books."

Shi Quan gently knocked on the Library door and peeked inside. Only after spotting Marde did he enter.

Marde smiled and asked, "Were the books difficult to understand this time?"

Shi Quan smiled, scratched his head, and shook it. "Not really. I was delayed for a while when I went home, so it took me a little longer."

Looking at the bright young Shi Quan, Marde stepped forward and took the books from his hands. He affectionately patted Shi Quan's head and said gently, "Child, I have two questions for you. Can you answer me honestly?"

Shi Quan looked up into Marde's slightly clouded eyes. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Please ask, Headmaster. I'll tell you the truth."

"Good child." Marde nodded approvingly, led Shi Quan to sit down nearby, and then asked, "Child, your Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul should be a mutated Spirit Soul, correct?"

Shi Quan nodded. "Yes, Headmaster."

"May I take a look?"

"Of course, Headmaster."

Shi Quan raised his right hand and summoned his Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul.

"What powerful vitality." The light in Marde's eyes brightened as he looked at the emerald-blue Blue Silver Grass in Shi Quan's hand. The seriousness on his face instantly eased, and a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

As the saying went, amateurs watched the excitement, while experts saw the details.

Marde was no less versed in Spirit Soul Theory. The life aura emanating from Shi Quan's Blue Silver Grass was rich and gentle. Such a Spirit Soul could never be an evil Spirit Soul, and Shi Quan could not possibly be an Evil Spirit Master. Once he confirmed that, the tension in Marde's heart eased considerably.

Shi Quan was not surprised by Marde's sudden questions. After falling out with Tang San, how could Tang San's personality allow him not to take precautions? In Shi Quan's view, Marde's questioning was certainly connected to Tang San and Yu Xiaogang.

Shi Quan had long prepared for this. Ever since his Spirit Soul Mutation had been completed, he had discovered that he could alter how his Spirit Soul's attributes manifested by infusing it with Inner Force. For example, when he infused only Yang Attribute Inner Force into his Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul, the Spirit Soul's Life Attribute would be enhanced while its Devouring Attribute would be concealed. The reverse was true as well.

Thus, even in the face of questioning and investigation, Shi Quan remained completely calm.

"I was right. The direction of your Spirit Soul Mutation should be life, correct?" Marde exclaimed in surprise. From what he could sense, Shi Quan's Blue Silver Grass possessed far greater vitality than ordinary Blue Silver Grass. With such a mutation, he should not have had merely Level One Innate Soul Power.

"Yes, Headmaster."

Seeing Shi Quan's composed and unyielding expression, Marde liked him even more. He asked again, "Child, can you tell me your current Soul Power Level?"

"My Soul Power Level?" Shi Quan murmured softly. He put on a deeply thoughtful expression, paused for a long time, then revealed a determined look. "Headmaster, I should already be at Level Seven or Eight."

"What?" Marde shot to his feet, tightly gripping Shi Quan's shoulders as he asked word by word, "Shi Quan, you said your Soul Power is already at Level Seven or Eight?"

"That's right, Headmaster."

"Don't resist." Marde's brows furrowed as the Soul Power within him surged into Shi Quan's body. When he sensed the rolling flow of Inner Force within Shi Quan, his expression became somewhat vacant. He muttered, "Not Level Seven. It's Level Eight! And his Soul Power is even far purer than that of ordinary people."

Shi Quan relaxed after hearing Marde's muttering. The only thing he had been unsure about was whether someone probing his Soul Power Level would discover the anomaly within his body. Judging from Marde's reaction, he had not noticed anything unusual about Shi Quan's Inner Force and had only found it purer than normal Soul Power.

Only after a long while did Marde come back to his senses. He asked gravely, "Was your Innate Soul Power really only Level One?"

"It should have been. Isn't that what was written on my Spirit Soul Certificate?"

After hearing Shi Quan's answer, Marde could not help falling into deep thought. It was impossible for someone with innate Level One Soul Power to cultivate so quickly—unless they were an Evil Spirit Master using some special devouring method to leap from Level One to Level Seven in just a single year.

Yet whether judging from Shi Quan's Spirit Soul or his Soul Power, Shi Quan could not possibly be an Evil Spirit Master.

That left only two possibilities. Either there had been an error during the examination, and his Innate Soul Power had been higher than Level One, or Shi Quan possessed some special cultivation method that allowed his Soul Power Level to rise so quickly.

Naturally, Marde leaned toward the first possibility. Yet he had never heard of Spirit Hall's testing ever making a mistake. After much consideration, Marde decided to confirm it and asked, "How do you cultivate?"

This time, Shi Quan did not answer directly. Instead, he asked, "Headmaster, what do you think are the characteristics of Blue Silver Grass?"

"The characteristics of Blue Silver Grass?" Marde froze for a moment. "What characteristics could Blue Silver Grass have? It grows everywhere? It is highly adaptable? It has abundant vitality?"

"That's right. Vitality." Shi Quan moved his fingers, and the Blue Silver Grass in his hand bloomed with a faint blue radiance. It affectionately coiled around his arm. "There are countless Blue Silver Grass plants across the continent. Blue Silver Grass can survive in nearly any environment, and that relies on its tenacious vitality. Wildfires cannot burn it all away; when spring winds blow, it grows anew. That describes Blue Silver Grass. Tenacious life is the defining trait of Blue Silver Grass."

"Indeed." Marde nodded.

Shi Quan raised his head and looked directly at Marde. "Headmaster, in the past, we humans were weak. Before Spirit Beasts, humans were as fragile as Blue Silver Grass. Yet through our own efforts, we spread across the continent with our strength and became the continent's dominant force. Blue Silver Grass likewise stood out among countless plants and spread to every corner of the continent. In my view, Blue Silver Grass is very much like us humans."

"It really is." Marde was stunned. It was difficult to imagine that a seven-year-old child could hold such thoughts.

"Though Blue Silver Grass is common, its vitality and resilience surpass those of ordinary plants. My Blue Silver Grass may be called mutated, but in my view, it is more like an awakening—an awakening of its own power. Humanity rose through awakening Spirit Souls. The awakening of Blue Silver Grass's Life Attribute is, in my view, a sign of its rise. Humans have their emperors, and every Spirit Beast race has its own Beast King. Then does Blue Silver Grass have its own emperor? Can my Blue Silver Grass become the emperor of the countless Blue Silver Grass plants across this continent?"

As Shi Quan spoke, an intense brilliance burst from his eyes.

After hearing Shi Quan's words, Marde stood frozen in place. He had actually seen such immense ambition in the eyes of a seven-year-old child.

"The emperor of Blue Silver Grass?" Marde felt his throat go dry.

Marde himself did not know whether this path was viable, but neither did he wish to crush Shi Quan's confidence. After recovering, he asked again, "Child, do you understand how difficult this path will be?"

Shi Quan smiled. "Headmaster, I think I have already found my own path. Isn't my Soul Power Level proof enough?"

"What? You found it?"

Even as the headmaster of an academy, Marde lost his composure upon hearing Shi Quan's words. His shocked voice rang throughout the entire Library.

Marde continued asking in disbelief, "How did you do it?"

Shi Quan did not answer. He merely looked quietly at Marde.

Only then did Marde realize that he had misspoken. A child as clever as Shi Quan naturally knew what should and should not be said. The fact that he had revealed his entire direction to Marde already proved his trust.

To ask for further details would be like prying into another Spirit Master's Spirit Abilities, one of the greatest taboos among Spirit Masters—let alone asking about a cultivation method.

Marde smacked his own forehead again and said ruefully, "I was too rash."

Shi Quan shook his head. "It's all right, Headmaster. If possible, I hope you can keep my secret, especially from Yu Xiaogang."

When Shi Quan mentioned Yu Xiaogang, Marde's expression became somewhat awkward. He understood that Shi Quan had likely guessed already. "Good child, don't worry. I won't tell anyone your secret."

Only after Marde agreed did Shi Quan say, "Thank you, Headmaster. Actually, my rapid cultivation is not much of a secret. It is closely related to my Spirit Soul Mutation.

"My Blue Silver Grass has far greater vitality than ordinary Blue Silver Grass. While studying it, I discovered that the powerful life force within the Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul could resonate with other Blue Silver Grass under certain circumstances. This resonance is very strange. It allows me to sense the fluctuations of life from nearby Blue Silver Grass.

"Guided by those fluctuations, my Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul can absorb part of the life aura from the surrounding Blue Silver Grass. After absorbing this life aura, the Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul becomes stronger. At the same time, under the influence of my Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul's aura, the nearby Blue Silver Grass does not wither. Instead, it becomes even more vigorous, forming a mutually ascending cycle.

"That is why, as my Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul is nourished by vast amounts of life aura and grows stronger, I can feel my talent growing as well. The speed at which my Soul Power increases has also risen greatly."

"So that's how it is! A Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul can actually resonate with Blue Silver Grass plants. The two can nourish and strengthen each other, and it can even improve Spirit Soul Quality. Could other Spirit Souls achieve effects similar to Blue Silver Grass? Whether they can or not, the mere fact that Spirit Soul Quality can be improved would be enough to shake the entire Spirit Master World. This discovery is most feasible for those with plant-type Spirit Souls..."

Marde's face was filled with fervor as he fell into a near-frenzied state, muttering to himself without pause.

Shi Quan quietly watched from the side without interrupting. He understood the value of what he had just said to a Spirit Soul scholar.

Everything he had said had been deliberately devised based on a scene from the original story, and he truly could achieve similar results.

When Tang San's Blue Silver Emperor awakened in the original story, countless Blue Silver Grass plants offered their life force to help Tang San awaken the Blue Silver Emperor. After the awakening succeeded, the Blue Silver Emperor in turn used its higher-grade life aura to nourish those ordinary Blue Silver Grass plants.

The life aura of Shi Quan's Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul naturally could not yet nourish other Blue Silver Grass on its own. However, combined with Yang Attribute Inner Force, the Life Attribute of his Blue Silver Grass would become even stronger and could nourish other Blue Silver Grass. The nourished Blue Silver Grass would likewise feed a certain amount of life energy back into his Blue Silver Grass. Over time, it was possible for his Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul to transform into a Blue Silver King or even a Blue Silver Emperor.

"Shi Quan, do you know how great an impact your discovery could have on the Spirit Master World?" After coming back to his senses, Marde excitedly gripped Shi Quan's shoulders.

Shi Quan shrugged helplessly. "Headmaster, my situation is only a special case. This method of mine cannot be widely applied. One reason I can resonate with them is that Blue Silver Grass is naturally weak and easily forms connections. On top of that, my Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul awakened its Life Attribute, allowing it to subdue those Blue Silver Grass plants. It is nearly impossible for other Spirit Souls to establish connections with plants like themselves."

"Indeed." Marde nodded and gradually calmed down. Most plant-type Spirit Masters possessed plant Spirit Souls derived from Plant Spirit Beasts. Spirit Beasts and Spirit Masters were natural enemies, so they could not possibly form a connection like Shi Quan's. Moreover, forming a connection was merely the foundation; getting both sides to cooperate and nourish each other's growth was far from easy.

Just as Shi Quan had said, he was a special case. Only the unusual traits of basic Blue Silver Grass could produce such a mutually ascending cycle.

"Headmaster, you should understand my situation now. May I apply to stop attending classes? The class material is useless to me anyway. If you have time, could I study under you for a while?"

Since Tang San and the others had already approached Marde, Shi Quan could use this opportunity to further reduce his interactions with Tang San and Xiao Wu. After all, Tang San had the Clear Sky Douluo behind him. Although Titled Douluo had their own pride and rarely lowered themselves to kill the weak, Tang Hao was hard to predict. If he discovered that Shi Quan had the ability to seize his son's Blue Silver Emperor, one strike of his hammer would probably leave not even ashes behind.

As the saying went, more friends meant more paths. Shi Quan would certainly reveal his Blue Silver Grass Spirit Soul Mutation and the special cultivation method he had prepared eventually. Telling Marde now would not affect the bigger picture. Building a good relationship with Marde brought only benefits, and within the academy, Marde could serve as one of his protectors, making his actions more convenient.