The days passed busily, and the day to enter the academy soon arrived. During this time, Han Qiu had broken through his limits twice more.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
Han Qiu and Tang San came to the center of the village, each with a small bundle slung over his shoulder.
Today was the day they would set off for Nuoding City.
Many of the villagers from Holy Soul Village stood behind them.
"Little Qiu, Tang San, once you two get to Nuoding City, don't forget our Holy Soul Village, all right?"
"And once you're in Nuoding City, don't forget to come back and visit often. Holy Soul Village will always be your home."
An uncle stepped forward, carrying a basket of fresh fruit, and held it out to the two boys.
"All right, Uncle Zhang." Han Qiu waved a hand and smiled. "It's not as if we're going far. Nuoding City is only half a day's journey away. Why are you acting like we're parting for life and death?"
"Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy teaches plenty of basic knowledge, such as the history of this continent, introductions to the various kinds of Martial Souls, and the basics of Soul Beasts. The course lasts six years. If you still haven't achieved anything by the time you're twelve, you'll have no choice but to become ordinary Soul Masters and make a living at ordinary trades. All of this is closely tied to the quality of your Martial Soul. But you two needn't worry. You both have Innate Full Soul Power, so as long as you hunt down Soul Rings of your own, you can officially become Soul Masters. Even if your Martial Souls are a little inferior, don't lose heart."
Along the road, Old Jack spoke as he walked, telling Tang San and Han Qiu about Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy.
"As for intermediate Soul Master academies, the knowledge they teach is much more advanced than what you learn at a junior academy."
Old Jack told the two boys what he had managed to find out ahead of time, so they wouldn't be completely in the dark when they arrived at the academy.
"But graduating from an intermediate Soul Master academy is much harder." Old Jack held up two fingers and said solemnly, "You have to cultivate to level twenty, obtain your second Soul Ring, and earn the title of Soul Grandmaster before you can graduate!"
Han Qiu listened attentively beside him.
To tell the truth, when I read the original Douluo Continent novel, I skipped most of this sort of background information. I just thought it was uninteresting padding, so I only skimmed the key plot points, and I'd long since forgotten many of the details.
But now that he was in this world himself, he found these details quite interesting to hear.
"You only have to reach level twenty to graduate from an intermediate academy?" Tang San looked surprised.
"That doesn't sound too hard," Han Qiu said with a nod. When his Soul Power had been tested, he had discovered that his innate Soul Power was not at level ten, but level twenty. He simply lacked Soul Rings, so he couldn't fully unleash his power.
"Easy? You little rascal!" Old Jack raised a hand and lightly knocked Han Qiu on the forehead. "How could it be that simple? You have Innate Full Soul Power, so you can ask an academy instructor to help you hunt down a Soul Beast and obtain your First Soul Ring. But for your Second Soul Ring as a level-twenty Soul Grandmaster, you have to kill a Soul Beast with your own hands!"
"Soul Beasts are terribly dangerous. Who knows how many ordinary Soul Masters have been injured or even lost their lives while hunting for Soul Rings? You think that's easy? Only the children of nobles, with family Soul Masters accompanying and protecting them, are much safer. Fighting a Soul Beast with nothing but your own strength-this hurdle alone has stopped countless Soul Masters."
Han Qiu pursed his lips, curiosity stirring in his heart. He had never seen a Soul Beast before, and he very much wanted to know just how strong they were and how they compared to Soul Masters.
Then his thoughts turned, and a strange idea popped into his head: I wonder what Soul Beast meat tastes like. Is it much different from ordinary wild game?
He grumbled inwardly that even after six years in this world, he still couldn't change his deep-rooted love of good food. How had his thoughts drifted to food without him even noticing?
"Grandpa Jack, if there are junior and intermediate academies, are there also advanced Soul Master academies?" Tang San wasn't letting his thoughts wander like Han Qiu. Full of curiosity, he asked the question.
"Advanced Soul Master academies?" Old Jack was momentarily taken aback, then let out a long sigh. "Those aren't places commoners like us can dream of entering. Getting admitted is harder than ascending to heaven. There are only two advanced Soul Master academies in the entire Heaven Dou Empire, and they take in fewer than a hundred students each year. Noble children claim most of the spots. But any Soul Master who graduates from one of them is a talent the various powers will compete to recruit. The empire will even grant them a noble title."
Nobles. Han Qiu smiled faintly. The structure of this world was much like the Middle Ages of his previous life, with a rigid system of nobility still in place.
In his mind, advanced Soul Master academies were like the top schools of his previous life. Their entry requirements were frighteningly high, and ordinary people could only gaze at them from afar.
"Advanced Soul Master academies..." Tang San murmured, longing stirring in his heart. He very much wanted to see one for himself.
"Even if you're lucky enough to get into an advanced Soul Master academy, graduating is by no means easy," Old Jack continued. "On a Soul Master's path of cultivation, a single Soul Ring alone has held countless people back. Without family support or a powerful force backing you, you have to hunt Soul Beasts for Soul Rings while also devoting yourself to cultivation to grow stronger. Ordinary people can hardly imagine how difficult that is."
"Some people are born at an advantageous starting point, with everything in place. They have everything others can only wish for from the moment they're born. But we commoners have to endure hardship at every step forward."
Old Jack slowly shook his head. Though he was only a village chief with a limited outlook, his heartfelt words touched Tang San deeply, and even Han Qiu was filled with countless reflections.
It wasn't just Douluo Continent. Hadn't the world in his previous life been the same?
Han Qiu pondered silently. In his previous life, he had done everything he could and only just managed to scrape together a down payment on a home.
Some people were born with abundant resources in their hands. They didn't have to risk their lives for them, and they possessed wealth and resources that ordinary people could hardly attain even after years or decades of effort.
The Upper Three Sects of Douluo Continent were just like that, with deep foundations passed down through generations.
What countless young people spent their whole lives chasing was merely the starting point others were born with. Without resources, connections, or status, even if they gave everything they had, they could only look up from afar, their hearts full of envy.
After sharing some basic knowledge, Old Jack said no more. What he knew was limited, after all. He could only tell the two boys these most basic things; they would have to slowly explore and discover the rest for themselves in the days to come.
By the afternoon, the three of them had reached Nuoding City.
Han Qiu had hardly ever visited Nuoding City before. Before his memories awakened, he had just been a country boy. People had looked down on him the first time he came, and after that he hadn't bothered coming back to invite more unpleasantness.
But things were different now. Not only had he awakened the memories of his previous life, he also had a system at his side. He couldn't help walking with his spirits high.
He looked around. There were plenty of pedestrians in the streets, and the roads were much smoother than those in the countryside.