Yu Longyue instinctively held the soul communicator away from his ear.
It was too loud.
A moment later, he spoke into the soul communicator:
"Why do you have to send me to Shrek Academy and have the Sea God Pavilion Master teach me? Dad, wouldn't it be the same if you taught me? Or is all that bragging you do about being just as badass as the Sea God Pavilion Master a load of crap?"
The voice on the other end paused, then erupted in thunderous fury:
"If I didn't have a pile of damn clan business waiting for me, I'd personally throw you onto Sea God Island and teach you myself afterward. But the problem is, I don't have the time, so I can only leave it to Yun Ming."
"Besides, can you find a better cultivation environment than Sea God Island? With your talent, if you cultivated there, reaching Limit Douluo by twenty wouldn't be a problem."
"But I don't need to be in such a hurry to cultivate." Yu Longyue raised a hand to pick at his ear, looking casual. "Dad, all you ever do is tell me to cultivate and get stronger, but what's the goal of getting stronger? What's it for? I'll get stronger sooner or later anyway. You said it yourself: it's only a matter of time before I become a Limit Douluo. So why should I be in such a hurry?"
He was already strong enough, with not only great talent, but also the best starting point and background.
His father was a rank 99 Titled Douluo, a Four-Word Battle Armor Master, and the patriarch of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, someone who stood on equal footing with Sea God Pavilion Master Yun Ming.
On top of that, the clan had a whole bunch of Titled Douluo and Three-Word Battle Armor Masters.
If anyone crossed him, he could just go up and beat them. If he couldn't beat them himself, he could call his dad over.
Wherever he went, having a good dad was what mattered most anyway. Why work so hard?
Sometimes, after a lifetime of hard work, you only discovered in the end that you were still worse off than someone with a good dad.
By the time his father grew old, he reckoned he would already be a Limit Douluo, and it would be his turn to care for his parents.
Yu Longyue made a careful calculation based on his cultivation speed.
Even if he ate and drank to his heart's content every day, spent his time playing and carousing, and became a playboy, he was guaranteed to be a Limit Douluo by twenty-five.
That made him even less inclined to hurry.
Having great talent really was like using a cheat. He had practically cleared the game of life already.
At that thought, Yu Longyue said irritably:
"Can't you let me have a good childhood? From my Martial Soul Awakening until now, even when I'm away from the clan, you've had Uncle Song teach me theory and practical combat. I haven't even had a proper chance to relax."
In his previous life, he had toiled as a miserable wage worker, staying up late and working overtime on a 996 schedule every day. His boss had kept dangling grand promises in front of him, and he had ended up devoting himself body and soul to the company, only to be left with a whole host of health problems.
When he finally settled down for a vacation and stayed up late reading a novel, he suddenly dropped dead after finishing it.
That had only strengthened Yu Longyue's resolve. Since he had finally become a disciple of a great clan in this life, he was definitely going to enjoy the life of the wealthy, going wild and having fun however he pleased.
He had plenty of money anyway, and he could travel wherever he wanted. In short, he had one goal: eat, drink, and have fun!
Eat the most expensive food, travel to the most meaningful and worthwhile places, enjoy all the wonderful things in the world, and pick up the most beautiful women.
Enjoying himself came first; cultivation was secondary. He had barely made any effort and was already a Soul Ancestor at nine, so what was the rush?
Would hurrying for a little while really let him ascend to heaven on the spot?
Yu Longyue's words, however, left his father silent.
"Dad?"
Yu Longyue was puzzled. All he had done was say he wanted a better childhood, so why had his dad gone quiet?
"Three years, right? Fine. But after three years, you have to go to Shrek. That's the bottom line, understand?" His father's voice suddenly softened, losing its earlier temper.
"Okay, okay, no problem." Yu Longyue agreed at once.
The later he could go, the better. He hadn't had enough fun yet.
"But even if you're the young clan master, you're also a direct member of the clan." His father's voice turned serious in an instant. "When direct members break clan rules, their punishment is doubled. And since you're the young clan master, it's tripled. For these three years, the clan won't reimburse any of your expenses. On top of that, your monthly allowance is being cut entirely. You'll get only a thousand Federation Coins a month. Figure it out yourself. Unless you go to Shrek Academy right now, there's nothing to discuss."
"Huh?"
Yu Longyue was dumbfounded.
How was he supposed to enjoy life without money?
A thousand Federation Coins? Was he supposed to live on the northwest wind?
Yu Longyue thought for a moment.
If his family wouldn't give him money, he would just earn it himself.
After a little thought, he had an answer.
"How about this, Dad? I have an idea. Don't bother giving me the thousand Federation Coins a month. Transfer two million Federation Coins to my account first."
"No way."
Seeing that his father was getting impatient, Yu Longyue added:
"Hold on, Dad, hear me out. What I mean is, I can turn those two million Federation Coins into at least twenty million within three years. If the clan won't give me money during those three years, I'll earn and spend my own, and have plenty to eat and wear. What do you think?"
"Oh?" His father immediately became interested. "Double two million Federation Coins in three years? You? How old are you, and you already want to make money like other people? You've been pampered since you were little. Do you know how hard money is to earn?"
"Isn't that because you all say I'm a child prodigy?" Yu Longyue smiled until his eyes narrowed. "Besides, with only a thousand Federation Coins a month, I might as well take nothing. You have to give me a chance to earn my own living."
His father was silent for a while, then agreed.
"Consider it a chance to learn in advance how to run a household and how to budget carefully in daily life, and about hardships beyond just firewood, rice, oil, and salt. I'll transfer you two million in a moment. This will count as one of your tests. If you don't reach your goal, what people in the clan have to say won't be pleasant."
Yu Longyue ignored that and continued:
"I heard that the company our clan controls in Eastsea City has the lowest revenue. How about this? I'll run it."
"Sure. I'll sit back and crack sunflower seeds while I see just what my little prodigy can accomplish, haha."
After a hearty laugh, his father hung up the soul communicator.
"Uncle Song, I'm finished. Thank you for waiting here." Yu Longyue returned the soul communicator to Uncle Song with a polite smile.
"It was no trouble. It's my job. But your relationship with the clan master is as good as ever, young clan master. If word got out, I imagine most people would envy you." Uncle Song bowed slightly to Yu Longyue. "Please wait a moment, young clan master. The clan master has assigned me the details of a task."
"Then I'll take Na'er to school first."
Yu Longyue checked the time. Na'er had already gotten up and washed by now.
After a simple but hearty breakfast with her, he took her to school. At Yu Longyue's side, Uncle Song said softly:
"Young clan master, the clan master has agreed. There are two million in this card, and the company's details have been sent to your soul communicator."
Yu Longyue gave them a quick look and nodded, somewhat satisfied.
How could he double two million Federation Coins within three years and pass the clan's test?
Simple. He had been in Douluo Dalu III: The Legend of the Dragon King for nearly ten years, and as someone who had transmigrated from the modern world, Yu Longyue had discovered a way to make a fortune.
The technology in Douluo Dalu III: The Legend of the Dragon King was advanced, and the internet had reached a certain scale, but online entertainment lagged far behind the modern world.
There were certainly many Soul Masters in Douluo Dalu III: The Legend of the Dragon King, but that also meant there were even more ordinary Soul Masters and citizens without Soul Power.
If Yu Longyue brought over most of the popular novels he had read in his previous life and adapted the outlines of their power systems into a Soul Master system, they would be just right for satisfying the hearts of the vast numbers of ordinary Soul Masters and ordinary people without Soul Power who had failed to become powerful Soul Masters.
Then he could build platforms for short and long videos, giving wage workers access to lots of information after work and during their breaks. In particular, he could turn things like contests between powerful Soul Masters into livestreams and videos on those platforms.
He would establish an outright monopoly on online entertainment and develop it to the level of the modern world in his previous life.
How much money would that make?
Yu Longyue could hardly imagine it.
Turning two million into twenty million within three years was only a conservative estimate.
If it worked, he would not only create a highly lucrative industry for the clan, but also have the clan master's position practically secured. What was more, it would make everyone recognize his abilities right away.
His strength and talent were certainly beyond doubt, but becoming clan master required greater consideration of other aspects.
Having money meant more connections, relationships, and resources. When the time came, wouldn't dealing with Tang San be easy?
He wouldn't need to use his own strength against Tang San. Instead, he could use his social standing to block Tang San's path to recovering his power.
That would turn it straight into hell difficulty.
Even if he pushed Tang San too far, Tang San would only kill those people in society, not him. If it could use up Tang San's divine sense, that would be even more perfect.
Even if that path didn't work, there was still Huo Yuhao's.
When the Abyssal Sage King was killed by his parents, Tang San probably wouldn't even have reached Titled Douluo, making it more likely that Huo Yuhao would kill him.
There would be no need for Yu Longyue to step in and finish him off, reducing the danger.
After weighing the pros and cons, Yu Longyue lifted his chin and looked away from the stack of documents. He had already chosen a puppet to represent him, someone who could let him lie back and make money behind the scenes.
"Since I've made up my mind, let's do it."