Dawn was just breaking.
Outside the gates of Nuoding Academy.
Several simple horse-drawn carriages stood ready.
The horses were ordinary draft horses.
The carriage canopies were drab gray.
But they were sturdy enough.
Wang Sheng, Zhang Tiedan, and the other reserve team members had arrived early.
They circled the carriages excitedly.
Touching this.
Looking at that.
To them.
Getting to leave Nuoding City for somewhere bigger.
Was an enormous event.
"Quiet down, everyone."
Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang's voice rang out.
He wore a neat gray martial outfit.
And carried a small bundle on his back.
His expression was as stern as ever.
His gaze swept over the excited children.
"Check your luggage."
"Dry rations."
"Water."
"Essential supplies."
"Don't leave anything behind."
The children hurried to check their little bundles.
Tang San and Xiao Wu walked over side by side.
Tang San looked calm.
But anticipation showed in his eyes.
Xiao Wu skipped along.
With a blade of grass between her lips.
Looking this way and that.
"Why aren't we leaving yet?"
She was a little impatient.
Grandmaster looked into the academy.
"We're waiting for Ling Feng."
He had barely finished speaking.
When Ling Feng appeared at the far end of the academy's main path.
At an unhurried pace.
Walking into the morning light.
He carried only a simple travel pack.
Much as he had when he left Holy Soul Village.
But his bearing was completely different.
The subdued stillness from back then was gone.
Replaced by a restrained sharpness.
Like a blade resting in its sheath.
He reached the gates.
And paused.
He raised his head.
And looked at the old plaque bearing the words "Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy."
His gaze swept over the familiar courtyard walls.
The training grounds.
The classroom building.
System.
He called silently in his mind.
Check in.
[Ding! Host detected at the gates of Nuoding Academy.] [Commemorative location check-in before departure successful!] [Reward: Soul Power refined and stabilized, with a slight increase to the peak of level 15!]
A gentle yet pure current of power.
Instantly flowed through his entire body.
Nourishing his meridians.
The Soul Power vortex in his dantian spun more steadily.
And became more condensed.
The slight sense of instability left by his earlier rapid advancement.
Vanished completely.
His condition reached its best.
The peak of level 15.
Toward level 20, when he could obtain his second soul ring.
He had taken another step.
As water flowed, the channel formed naturally.
Ling Feng clenched his fists.
Feeling the abundant strength within his body.
Good.
Just in time.
"Brother Feng!"
Wang Sheng ran over.
"You're the only one we're waiting for!"
Ling Feng nodded.
And walked toward the carriage.
Grandmaster glanced at him.
"You're in good condition."
He keenly sensed that Ling Feng's presence had become steadier.
Ling Feng murmured an acknowledgment.
And said nothing more.
"Get in."
Grandmaster directed them.
"Ling Feng, Tang San, Xiao Wu, ride in the first carriage with me."
"Wang Sheng, the rest of you ride behind us."
"Stay quiet on the road."
"Conserve your strength."
Everyone boarded as instructed.
The carriage compartment was small.
And a little cramped.
The wooden seats were hard.
But no one complained.
Xiao Wu leaned toward the window.
Peering outside curiously.
Tang San closed his eyes to rest.
Regulating his breathing.
Ling Feng sat near the door.
His gaze calm.
Grandmaster counted everyone one last time.
Once he confirmed that everyone was there.
He nodded to the driver.
"Set off."
The driver flicked his whip.
"Hyah!"
The draft horses began to walk.
The wheels rolled over the bluestone paving.
Making a rumbling sound.
The procession slowly began moving.
Out through the academy gates.
And onto Nuoding City's main street.
The streets were quiet in the early morning.
The shops had not opened yet.
Only a few early risers were about.
Watching the little convoy curiously.
Wang Sheng and the others were in the carriage behind them.
Unable to resist discussing things in low voices.
"How big is Suotuo City?"
"It must be ten times bigger than Nuoding City!"
"I heard the Soul Masters there are all really powerful!"
"What's there to fear? We have Brother Feng!"
Their voices held longing.
And a barely perceptible trace of nervousness.
Ling Feng's carriage was quiet.
Xiao Wu grew bored of the street scenery.
And began yawning too.
Tang San still had his eyes closed.
As though cultivating.
Grandmaster looked at Ling Feng.
Unable to resist reminding him again.
"Ling Feng."
"You're the captain."
"Once we reach Suotuo."
"Stay calm when something happens."
"Observe more."
"Listen more."
"The powers there are as tangled as roots and branches."
"It's not like Nuoding."
Ling Feng looked at him.
"I know."
His tone barely wavered.
Grandmaster opened his mouth.
Wanting to say something more.
But in the end, it became a soft sigh.
He knew.
Ling Feng had his own ideas.
This child.
Had deep thoughts.
He was strong.
Perhaps...
He really could make a name for himself.
The carriage passed through the quiet streets.
Before long, it reached Nuoding City's gates.
The gatehouse was dilapidated.
The guards at the gates dozed with spears in their arms.
The convoy passed through without trouble.
It drove out of Nuoding City.
And onto the dirt road outside.
The road was uneven.
The carriage began to jolt.
Xiao Wu swayed from side to side.
She nearly bumped into Tang San.
Tang San opened his eyes.
Helplessly, he steadied her.
Ling Feng sat firmly.
As though nailed to his seat.
Through a gap in the swaying window curtain,
he looked back.
Nuoding City's outline grew smaller and smaller in the morning light.
Blurrier and blurrier.
The walls.
The houses.
At last, they shrank to a black dot.
This little city.
The place of his rebirth.
Here,
he had endured endless mockery under the label of "Trash Martial Soul."
Here,
the system had activated.
The Clear Sky Hammer had stunned everyone present.
Here,
his hammer had shaken the academy.
And earned him the name "Nuoding One Hammer."
There had been humiliation.
There had been glory.
It was like a small pond.
And he, a hidden dragon,
would enter the sea in the end.
When I return next time,
what will it look like?
Ling Feng's gaze pierced the distance.
As though he could see the future.
The faintest curve lifted the corner of his mouth.
His low voice,
amid the carriage's jolting and clamor,
rang out clearly.
It carried an unquestionable certainty.
"When I return next time."
"I will make this Nuoding City."
"A whole new world!"
As his words fell,
the carriage instantly fell silent.
Xiao Wu forgot to sway.
Tang San's gaze sharpened.
Even the driver up front
felt an inexplicable chill down his back.
Grandmaster gave Ling Feng a long look.
This child...
His ambitions are far from small.
Nuoding City...
The sky above it may truly be about to change.
The carriage followed the dirt road.
Toward the southeast.
Toward the broader heartlands of the Balak Kingdom.
Toward the bustling great city named Suotuo.
It sped away.
The wheels churned up dust.
Swallowing the road behind.
And spreading over the road ahead.