Lin Mo carried his fairly light luggage and walked alone along Nuoding Academy's main road.
Sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves of the trees lining the road, scattering dappled spots of light.
Occasionally, younger students hurried past on their way to class, bringing a little noise, but quiet soon returned.
He did not look back as he walked toward the academy gates, step by step.
He showed his graduation certificate to the two middle-aged gatekeepers. Although their eyes held some confusion, they respectfully handed it back and opened the gates for him.
They, too, had heard of the reputation Lin Mo had earned at Nuoding Academy lately.
But some confusion remained in their eyes. Like Wang Sheng, they had never imagined that Lin Mo would choose to graduate so early.
Lin Mo gave the gatekeepers a slight nod, then stepped through Nuoding Academy's familiar gates.
Standing outside the academy, he looked back one last time at the junior Soul Master Academy where he had spent almost a year.
The outline of the main teaching building, the edge of the sports field, a corner of the dormitory building... everything seemed familiar, yet was gradually receding.
Here, he had raised his Soul Power Level to ten, found Charmander again, obtained his first Soul Ring, and officially become a Soul Master.
This was the starting point of his path as a Soul Master.
But a starting point was, in the end, only a starting point.
His gaze passed over the academy walls toward somewhere farther away.
A new journey was about to begin.
Lin Mo drew a deep breath, his eyes becoming resolute once more.
He lingered no longer, turning and striding down the street toward the outskirts of the city.
His steps were steady, his shadow stretching long in the sunlight.
Soul Emperor Village was not too far from Nuoding City, and Lin Mo traveled at a good pace. Before darkness had fully fallen, he had safely returned to the vicinity of the village.
To Lin Mo's slight surprise, he encountered no other villagers along the stretch between the village entrance and the village chief's home.
Pushing open the courtyard door and returning to familiar surroundings, Lin Mo immediately spotted the village chief sitting in his courtyard, working on a task in the last scraps of light.
At the sight of Lin Mo, a trace of surprise could not help appearing in those cloudy eyes.
"Xiao Mo? Why are you back at this time?" The village chief set down his work and rose to greet him, his tone puzzled.
"When I went into the city a while ago, I heard Nuoding Academy wasn't on break yet."
Lin Mo smiled, took the luggage off his back, and set it aside. "Grandpa Chief, I came back early."
He paused, then continued, "I've already graduated from Nuoding Academy. The dean approved it himself."
As he spoke, he carefully took the two documents from inside his clothes and held them out to the village chief.
"This is my graduation certificate, and this is my recommendation letter for admission to an intermediate academy."
The village chief froze for a moment, but instinct still prompted him to reach out and accept the two sheets of paper Lin Mo offered.
He looked down at the letter, then up at Lin Mo, momentarily dumbfounded. His mind still had not caught up.
"Graduated? That... that can't be right, can it?" the village chief murmured reflexively. "Don't you have to study at a junior Soul Master Academy for six full years before you can graduate?
"You've only been there a year, even counting every last day..."
But soon, when he saw the playful smile on Lin Mo's face, a thunderclap flashed through his mind. As though something had occurred to him, he asked in a slightly trembling voice.
"Could it be... Xiao Mo, have you already become a true Soul Master?"
At that, Lin Mo nodded firmly. "Yes, Grandpa Chief. I'm a true Soul Master now."
As his words fell, Lin Mo willed it with a thought. Red light flashed, and Charmander immediately emerged from his body, landing steadily beside his feet.
At the same time, a bright yellow Soul Ring appeared beneath Charmander's feet, revolving around it in a steady rhythm and giving off a soft yellow glow.
The village chief's eyes flew wide. He stared unblinkingly at Charmander and the yellow Soul Ring beneath its feet, his entire body completely frozen this time.
He instinctively raised a hand and rubbed his eyes, beginning to wonder whether they were playing tricks on him.
"What's this?" The village chief pointed at Charmander, even his voice changing pitch. "Wasn't your Martial Soul... an egg?
"What is this Soul Beast with fire coming out of its tail? And are those yellow halos beneath his feet Soul Rings?"
He felt as though his brain could not quite keep up. Lin Mo and the strange creature beside him, bearing a single Soul Ring, were undoubtedly challenging everything he knew.
This was vastly different from the scattered scraps of knowledge he had picked up about Soul Masters.
Seeing the village chief's confusion, Lin Mo reached out and stroked Charmander's head. Charmander comfortably nuzzled his palm.
He slowly began to explain, "Grandpa Chief, your eyes aren't deceiving you. This is my Martial Soul. I call it Charmander. It hatched from that Martial Soul egg I had before."
Then he added, "After enrolling, I never slacked off in my cultivation. Not long ago, through hard work, I managed to raise my Soul Power Level to ten with a little luck;
"Then I was fortunate enough to catch the dean's attention. He personally took me to the Soul Hunting Forest and helped me obtain this hundred-year Soul Ring, the one best suited to Charmander."
Listening to Lin Mo's account, the village chief stood utterly dazed, his mouth slightly open, unable to close it for a long while.
He had never imagined that the villagers' private joke back then-"Maybe Lin Mo's egg will hatch something"-would actually come true!
What shocked him even more was Lin Mo's cultivation speed.
Other children might spend six years cultivating and still fail to reach level-ten Soul Power and become Soul Masters.
But Lin Mo? From awakening his Martial Soul until now, it had only been a year at most. Not only had he broken through to level ten, he had even obtained a hundred-year Soul Ring as his first Soul Ring.
His cultivation speed was simply frightening!
Only after a long while did the village chief come back to his senses.
He drew a deep breath, trying hard to calm his excitement, and the look in his eyes as he gazed at Lin Mo grew incredibly complicated.
"Good... good boy!" The village chief patted Lin Mo's shoulder firmly, his voice catching slightly.
"Grandpa Chief, I can stay in the village for about half a month this time," Lin Mo said.
"Heaven Dou City is too far from Nuoding City. I have to leave early, or I might miss enrollment at the intermediate academy..."
Hearing Lin Mo's words, the village chief could no longer control his emotions, his voice carrying a tremor.
"Our Soul Emperor Village... our Soul Emperor Village has finally produced another Soul Master!"
He looked at Lin Mo, his eyes full of pride. "Xiao Mo, in the future... you'll definitely surpass that Soul Emperor ancestor of ours!
"When he was your age, he wasn't nearly as impressive as you!"
Before long, Soul Emperor Village held a celebration livelier than any it had ever seen.
The village chief personally presided over the celebration, and nearly all the other villagers attended as well.
Meanwhile, upon hearing that Lin Mo had become a Soul Master in just one year, every villager was utterly astonished.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
Lin Mo had packed his luggage long ago. There was not much, only some dry rations and changes of clothes.
But on the morning of his departure, Lin Mo firmly dissuaded the village chief from accompanying him to Heaven Dou City.
Heaven Dou City was unlike Nuoding City; the journey was extremely long.
He was, after all, a true Soul Master now. In terms of stamina alone, he was far better off than the village chief, an elderly adult.
During the preceding half month, Lin Mo had found an excuse to use his Soul Power and the bloodline power controlled by his second Martial Soul to help regulate the village chief's body.
Judging by Lin Mo's limited medical knowledge, the old man's health was quite good, considerably better than that of others his age.
But naturally, he could not compare with Lin Mo, who had already become a true Soul Master.
"Grandpa Chief, there's no need to see me off." Lin Mo shouldered his luggage and smiled. "I've already asked around and learned the route to Heaven Dou City, and I've already contacted a merchant caravan heading there in advance. I'll go to Nuoding City to meet up with them shortly.
"Don't worry. Once I get there and settle in, I'll find a way to send you a letter."
Looking at Lin Mo, the village chief could not help falling into a brief daze, but in the end, he merely patted Lin Mo's shoulder.
His eyes reddened, and he nodded heavily. A thousand words became a single sentence: "On the road... be sure to take care!"
"Yes, I know," Lin Mo replied.
He took one last look at Soul Emperor Village, where he had lived for six years, and at the village chief standing at the entrance, waving again and again.
Then he turned, stepped forward, and set out on the journey to Heaven Dou City.