Several days later, when the work-study students saw Tang San in the cafeteria, they hurriedly greeted him and called him over to sit with them.
"Tang San, how did things go with your Soul Ring?" Ling Yu asked.
Tang San looked embarrassed, recalling Yu Xiaogang's explanation on the way back: "I originally wanted to find you a hundred-year Soul Beast. After all, you're malnourished and scrawny, so a hundred-year one would be the safest choice. It wouldn't have been difficult with my abilities, either."
"But I never expected to run into such a ferocious Soul Beast. Don't worry. When it's time for your second ring, I'll have my friend come along. He's your headmaster, a Soul Ancestor."
"Pretty well. A Mandala Snake around four hundred years old." Tang San scratched his head.
"Four hundred years!" His words instantly stunned the work-study students, filling them with envy.
"So Grandmaster is that powerful in battle!" Ling Yu "marveled."
"Yes, we misjudged Grandmaster. Tang San, I apologize." Wang Sheng hurriedly bowed as well.
"It's fine, it's fine. Teacher doesn't mind these things." Tang San's expression darkened a little.
"By the way, I'll take over the cleaning starting tomorrow." Suddenly remembering their agreement before his Soul Hunting trip, he quickly changed the subject.
"Oh, that..."
"Sister Xiao Wu beat Xiao Chenyu, the boss of the noble students, so we don't have to do our work-study duties anymore. He's arranging for people to do them," Wang Sheng explained.
"That happened?" Tang San was surprised, though he understood once he recalled Xiao Wu's fighting ability.
"Sister Xiao Wu also got a hundred-year Soul Ring and registered as a Soul Master. Tang San, you should go soon too. It's almost the end of the month-don't miss out on a gold coin," one of the work-study students said.
"Really? Who helped Xiao Wu get her Soul Ring?" Tang San now understood the value of a hundred-year Soul Ring. At least here, they were quite rare.
"That, we don't know." Everyone shook their heads.
Time was like a wild donkey; in the blink of an eye, the school year was ending. Director Su looked over the group Soul Hunting lists submitted by each class, and one name particularly surprised him.
"Ling Yu, seven years old, Martial Soul: soul."
Just as Director Su was marveling at his cultivation speed, a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in!"
A handsome boy in a clean school uniform walked in. It was none other than Ling Yu, whom Director Su had just been praising.
"What is it?"
"Hello, Director Su. I'd like to ask about the group Soul Hunting trip." Ling Yu bowed.
"I saw your name. You're on the list."
"It's not about the list."
"Hmm?" Director Su raised an eyebrow.
"I'd like to ask whether the school could help me obtain a hundred-year Soul Ring."
Hearing this, Director Su pondered for a moment as he looked at the handsome boy before him. He knew there had been geniuses in the past whose Innate Soul Power was low, yet whose cultivation progressed rapidly:
"What kind of Soul Beast do you want?" In the end, Director Su decided to check the type of Soul Beast first. If it wasn't too much trouble, there would be no harm in obtaining a hundred-year Soul Ring as an investment.
Ling Yu took the information he had prepared from his pocket and handed it over.
"These are the Soul Beast types and locations I asked about in the town by the Soul Hunting Forest. We might encounter them along these routes."
Director Su took it and glanced through it. He found that none of the Soul Beasts were particularly troublesome, and the selected routes weren't dangerous either.
"I can authorize choosing one of the routes you marked, but encounters with Soul Beasts depend on chance, not wishes. If we don't find one, I'll still help you obtain another Soul Ring around a hundred years old. I hope you won't resent the school."
"I won't. Thank you for your support, Director Su. I won't forget your kindness." Ling Yu bowed in thanks.
"Go back and prepare your supplies." Director Su waved a hand.
Soon, the day of the Soul Hunting trip arrived. After assembling in the auditorium and hearing the precautions, everyone boarded the carriages and set off for the Soul Hunting Forest.
"I hope I can luck into a hundred-year Soul Beast... Then I'd feel more confident about getting into an intermediate academy." Sitting in the carriage, Wang Sheng was rather bored and tried to chat with the others. In the past, the school had generally helped hunt Soul Beasts several decades old as opportunities arose, but occasionally students lucked into weak hundred-year Soul Beasts.
"Even Boss Xiao only has a white ring a few decades old. Stop dreaming." Liu Long had never gotten along with Wang Sheng. Although Xiao Chenyu had told them not to provoke the work-study students, he still felt somewhat resentful.
"By the way, Ling Yu, what kind of Soul Beast suits your Martial Soul?" Wang Sheng ignored him and looked at Ling Yu instead. His roommate cultivated far too quickly; after just one year here, he had already reached the same level as him.
"That depends on the teachers' arrangements and my luck."
"I see. I hope I can get an offensive ability," Wang Sheng said with a sigh.
"I hope I can get the ability to fly or accelerate," Ling Feng, whose Martial Soul was a swallow, suddenly said.
"I hope I can get an offensive ability too." Liu Long, whose Martial Soul was a long staff, wasn't about to be left out either. Every rank-ten Soul Scholar found it hard to resist the longing for Soul Rings and Soul Skills.
Watching their smiles, Ling Yu fell into thought. This is where the difference between commoners and nobles lies. With equal talent, commoners with no one to safeguard their path can only prioritize offensive or life-saving abilities, while nobles can consider enhancement-type Soul Skills, or even the possibility of evolving their Martial Soul's attributes and bloodline.
Only geniuses with high Innate Soul Power can consider the configuration of all nine Soul Rings.
They arrived outside the Soul Hunting Forest the following morning. After the teachers checked the students' supplies again, the headmaster and Director Su led everyone into the forest.
"Headmaster, there's an eighty-year Dappled Cat ahead," Director Su reported upon returning from scouting.
"Good. A speed-type suits Ling Feng."
"Let's go!"
The group hurried to the Dappled Cat's location. Faced with the headmaster's Soul Ancestor strength, the Dappled Cat was soon gravely wounded, and Ling Feng absorbed its ring.
The students were all eager to try. Starting today, they would become esteemed Soul Masters and receive a stipend from Spirit Hall, which they could collect even without cultivating.
During this time, faint traces of blood drew several Soul Beasts over, but the headmaster and the others intimidated them into leaving.
Absorbing a Soul Ring requires not only defeating a Soul Beast, but also having someone stand guard.
At the level of a hundred-thousand-year Soul Beast, no wonder sacrifice comes with the convenience of a magnetic field. Otherwise, absorption alone would take a day or two. The thought stirred in Ling Yu's mind.
Two hours later, Ling Feng stood up, and the group moved on again. Over the course of the day, only five students obtained Soul Rings.
As the sky darkened, everyone found a place to camp. After arranging the night watch schedule, they began gnawing on dry rations and went into their tents to rest in preparation for their shifts.
In the middle of the night, Ling Yu and Wang Sheng were shaken awake.
"What is it?" Ling Yu was somewhat groggy.
"The Soul Beast you wanted has appeared. It's fighting another Soul Beast. The headmaster has already gone over." Director Su stood before them, speaking in a low voice.
At these words, Ling Yu immediately perked up. Wang Sheng looked at him with some envy, then wondered why he had been woken too.
"The one fighting it is a hundred-year Gale Wolf. Wang Sheng, it's yours."
In an instant, Wang Sheng's eyes widened, and he stumbled over his words. What he had casually mentioned earlier had actually come true. "I... I... Thank you, Director Su."
"Don't wake the others. Let's go!"
The two followed Director Su out of the camp, and the teachers standing watch outside pointed them in the right direction.
They soon reached the headmaster. A four-hundred-year Spirit-Devouring Bat with a torn wing and a giant wolf lay on the ground, barely breathing, the ground thick with the smell of blood.
A Spirit-Devouring Bat's age was easy to identify, mainly by looking at its tail. Every ten years, it grew another short segment, and the flesh of each segment could be clearly distinguished.
The headmaster's expression grew solemn, and he motioned for Ling Yu and Wang Sheng to hurry over. Under Director Su's protection, the two swiftly swung their blades and killed the Soul Beasts.