Heaven Dou Academy's architecture tended toward the imposing and magnificent, and the Academic Affairs Office was a typical example. Its walls were built from great blocks of bluestone, and its overhanging eaves were covered in golden glazed tiles.
Every time Fang Lin came during the day, those damn tiles dazzled him.
He entered the hall, where a palm-sized silver octagonal disc lay quietly on a stone table. He picked it up and channeled Soul Power into it, and a mass of information appeared:
Blood Spirit Body-Tempering Medicinal Bath, 8 credits per portion. Bone Strength Body-Tempering Medicinal Bath, 15 credits per portion. One-cubic-meter bracelet Storage Soul Tool, 800 credits. 500-year-old Soul Beast meat (200 jin), 100 credits. 1,200-1,500-year-old top-grade Soul Beast Soul Ring credits. Iron Essence, 10 credits per kilogram. ...
Fang Lin's gaze lingered, and he muttered to himself.
"Iron Essence... ten credits per kilogram. Even converted into Gold Soul Coins, it's cheaper than at the blacksmith shops in Heaven Dou City."
A hundred refinements made steel; a thousand refinements made essence. Iron Essence was the limit of ordinary iron.
It was compact and dense, and armor forged from it could even defend against attacks from Soul Masters above level forty. The Heaven Dou Empire had a Black Armor Army made up entirely of Soul Elders, and their full suits of iron armor were all forged from Iron Essence.
Fang Lin didn't need a full suit of iron armor, only inner armor, bracers, and leg guards. They would provide protection and also serve as evenly distributed weights, making them more effective and convenient than his original iron blocks.
"Teacher, can the Iron Essence be made into bracers, leg guards, and inner armor to my specifications?"
The gray-robed Soul Master resting with his eyes closed in the corner opened them at the sound and said blandly, "Yes. Pay an extra ten Gold Soul Coins or spend ten credits."
"I'll use credits. I want fifty kilograms: twenty for the inner armor, twenty for the bracers, and ten for the leg guards."
"And I'll also take a hundred portions of the Bone Strength Body-Tempering Medicinal Potion."
Fang Lin currently carried around sixty jin of weight, wearing it practically all the time except when meditating or sleeping. The new equipment would weigh nearly twice as much as his current load, and even after he broke through to Soul Elder, he could use it for a long time.
The gray-robed Soul Master took Fang Lin's credit card and brushed a hand over the silver bracelet on his wrist. A pile of bundles wrapped in yellow kraft paper appeared on the table.
"You can come back for the items you want made in seven days. If there's nothing else you want to exchange for, we'll settle the credits."
Fang Lin put the potions into his Storage Soul Tool ring, filling nearly a third of its space. He still had to store the finished inner armor and bracers, along with some miscellaneous items. A one-cubic-meter Storage Soul Tool was starting to seem inadequate.
The price of Storage Soul Tools rose by almost a thousand Gold Soul Coins per cubic meter. Tools larger than ten cubic meters were rarely seen on the market, most being passed down or given away within families.
Fang Lin browsed for a while and found only one necklace Storage Soul Tool with four cubic meters of space. It cost 3,600 credits.
He couldn't afford it.
Fang Lin looked farther down the list and found no other suitable Storage Soul Tools, but at the very end, he spotted an unusual item.
"Soul Crystal, 500 credits apiece. Can greatly increase Soul Power cultivation below the Soul Ancestor level."
Fang Lin's gaze sharpened. Apart from the Mimicry Training Ground, he had never heard of anything that could directly increase a Soul Master's Soul Power. And a treasure comparable to a top-grade Immortal Herb was actually this... cheap?
Could there be some side effect?
Puzzled, Fang Lin asked the gray-robed Soul Master.
"Teacher, does this Soul Crystal really have that effect?"
The gray-robed Soul Master gave a chuckle, his expression indifferent.
"Soul Crystals do increase Soul Power, but they leave impurities in your meridians, affecting your future cultivation. Breaking through bottlenecks later becomes even harder. If a Soul Grandmaster uses two or three, he'll never get past Soul Elder in his lifetime. Originally, they could only be exchanged for with merit in the imperial army. The idea was to quickly increase the combat strength of low-level Soul Master soldiers whose talent and resources limited their progress. Now, though... they're specially prepared for certain people."
The gray-robed Soul Master's tone carried disdain and mockery.
After a moment's thought, Fang Lin understood who he meant by "certain people." Heaven Dou Academy had both elites and trash. Some noble students who had no desire to improve or whose talent was abysmal wanted to increase their levels quickly, so naturally there was demand.
Even if the price was getting stuck at Soul Elder and being unable to graduate, they didn't care.
That also explained something Fang Lin had long wondered about: how Yu Xiaogang, with only half a level of Innate Soul Power, had cultivated to level twenty-nine in his twenties. That was faster than many people with Innate Soul Power of level one or two. Knowing he would struggle to break through to Soul Elder, he had rapidly increased his Soul Power Level.
"Wait, cultivated to level twenty-nine..."
Fang Lin froze and repeated the words a few times.
If Yu Xiaogang had used Soul Crystals to cultivate to level twenty-nine, then later broken through his previous bottleneck after taking an immortal-grade medicinal herb and gone on to reach Soul King, that meant the Immortal Herb had completely eliminated the effects of his earlier Soul Crystal use.
A light suddenly went on in Fang Lin's mind. He had a vague feeling that these Soul Crystals might come in handy.
"Teacher, I'd like to exchange for two Soul Crystals."
Fang Lin had spent 2,010 credits on the potions and Iron Essence, and he still had to save some to buy Whale Rubber later. He could only afford two.
The gray-robed Soul Master seemed to know Fang Lin, even his age and Soul Power Level. He frowned and spoke in a scolding tone.
"Nonsense! At your age, you can normally cultivate to at least Soul King, yet you want to pull up the seedlings to make them grow? I'll have your teacher give you a proper talking-to."
If the winner of this Heaven Dou Tournament were ruined on his watch, the education committee would probably come looking for trouble.
Startled by the sudden, harsh scolding, Fang Lin made an excuse, saying they were for his elderly father at home. Only then did the gray-robed Soul Master's frown ease, and he agreed to make the exchange.
Of his remaining credits, Fang Lin kept 500 and exchanged the rest for Gold Soul Coins at a one-to-one rate, enough to secure the piece of thousand-year Whale Rubber at Begonia Studio.
By the time he returned to the dormitory, it was completely dark. As he passed Dugu Yan's room, it was still pitch-black.
Lying on his bed, Fang Lin went over his fight with Yu Tianheng that day.
Although he had won in the end, the fight had also exposed his shortcomings when facing a beast Soul Master with powerful Soul Skills. He lacked a way to deal with energy attacks of that kind. Battles between Soul Masters could not be limited to the body and physical strength; there were also all sorts of strange lightning, flames, poisons, and more.
Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan, Tang San, Dai Mubai...
As Fang Lin thought, one name after another flashed through his mind.
Though Yu Tianheng and the others were less talented than Tang San and Xiao Wu, they were still in a class of their own. In the future, they would reach at least Soul Saint or Soul Douluo. The further they went, the wider the gap between them and someone with level-five Innate Soul Power would become...
Outside the window, the evening breeze swept through the leaves with a rustle.
Fang Lin suddenly sprang up from the bed and slapped himself.
"Why am I thinking so much? I'll break through to Soul Elder first. What the hell is worrying going to do?"
He sat cross-legged, and Soul Power flowed through the meridians throughout his body. Before it had completed even one cycle, a brief, crisp knock sounded at the door.
"Knock, knock-knock."
Fang Lin ignored it at first. After a pause, the visitor knocked again.
Did that kid forget his key?
Fang Lin got up and opened the door, but the person knocking wasn't Yu Feng. It was Dugu Yan, who had been gone for a day and a night. She stood prettily in the doorway in a short, dark green qipao with a subtle pattern, her snow-white arms showing beneath its sleeves.
Was Dugu Bo finally coming?
That was Fang Lin's first thought. He stuck his head out and looked around, but there was no one behind Dugu Yan.
That's not right. Could it be he didn't believe what I said?
Fang Lin frowned unconsciously.
Dugu Yan took in his expression. With a smile that wasn't quite a smile, she guessed what he was thinking.
"My grandfather went to find me a Soul Bone. He'll be back in a month at the latest."
Fang Lin breathed a sigh of relief, then grew curious. "Your grandfather is a Titled Douluo. Does it really take him that long to get an ordinary Soul Bone?"
Poison Douluo was on good terms with the Heaven Dou Imperial Family. Soul Bones were precious, but sparing one for Dugu Yan shouldn't have been difficult.
Dugu Yan shook her head. "There was a Thousand-Year Soul Bone available, but Grandpa thought it was too young, so he wanted to try his luck in the Star Dou Great Forest."
"Your grandfather really does treat you well." Fang Lin clicked his tongue in amazement.
Not satisfied with a Thousand-Year Soul Bone, Dugu Bo was naturally trying his luck with one at least ten thousand years old. Apart from Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, the chance of a Soul Bone appearing was only one in a thousand, or even lower. There was no telling how many Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts Dugu Bo would have to slaughter to obtain a suitable one.
"Since your grandfather isn't back, what did you come to see me for?"
"First, to let you know. Second, to keep an eye on you for my grandfather, so you don't run off."
A smile curled Dugu Yan's lips as she casually tucked her hair behind her ear.
In the darkness, the breeze brushed past in gentle gusts, lifting her hair to reveal her fair neck.
Keep an eye on me?
Fang Lin instinctively let out an "Ah," a strange feeling rising in his heart.
He felt sure that Dugu Yan and her grandfather had discussed something he didn't know about.