After "pacifying" his teacher Yun Ming, Kong Xuan left his Sea of Consciousness.
Yet the delight on his face remained hard to dispel. Even though Kong Xuan was already trying his utmost to control it, the corners of his mouth were harder to keep down than an AK.
He had told Yun Ming that he had received a God King's inheritance, but he knew that the benefits he had truly obtained were probably beyond anything a God King's inheritance could compare to.
The Chongming Bird that had merged into his body was the reward for clearing the first chapter of the Black Myth game, "Joy of Seeing," one of the six relics.
Enhancing his vision was merely its most basic ability. Its true function was to strengthen Kong Xuan's own foundations.
And this was only the beginning. As his cultivation rose in the future, the other relics in the game would unlock one after another.
Once Kong Xuan had merged with them, he would have no need for any deity's inheritance. He could rely entirely on his own strength to become a god at rank one hundred!
The Ruyi Golden Cudgel in his Sea of Consciousness was no mere decoration, either. A treasure like this absolutely surpassed the so-called Super Divine Artifacts of the Douluo World.
With Kong Xuan's current strength, he naturally could not use it yet, but after merging with "Joy of Seeing," he had gained one opportunity to wield it.
Although it would come at a price, it also gave Kong Xuan unprecedented confidence!
Ever since learning that he had transmigrated to the Douluo Continent during the Peerless Tang Sect era, Kong Xuan had felt deeply insecure. After all, netizens called this the period when God King Tang's control over the Douluo Continent was at its strongest.
Ten thousand years earlier, Tang San had yet to become a god; ten thousand years later, the Divine Realm had run off. Either was better than the present!
That was why Kong Xuan had previously kept his head down and cultivated, not daring to go out and show off.
In particular, there were certain resources he knew about that he coveted but did not dare set his sights on, for fear of drawing God King Tang's attention and then being hit with a Blue Silver Grass Entanglement!
But things were different now. Even if he only had the power of a single strike, Kong Xuan already had the courage to make some plans.
If God King Tang really dared to step into the fray, he could get a taste of the Ruyi Golden Cudgel's weight!
Over the past two years, Kong Xuan had also gathered some information and gained a rough idea of where he stood in the timeline.
Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen were now ten years old and had already begun to distinguish themselves at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
Kong Xuan was two years younger than them, while Huo Yuhao was three years younger. In other words, Kong Xuan was one year older than Huo Yuhao, the protagonist of this era.
At present, Huo Yuhao should have awakened his Spirit Eyes martial soul only a year ago and still be suffering mistreatment at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion.
There were still nearly four years before Huo Yuhao would obtain his million-year first soul ring at eleven. Whatever plans Kong Xuan had, he had plenty of time.
Indeed, once he had gained some confidence, Kong Xuan immediately set his sights on Huo Yuhao. Huo Gua's fortuitous opportunities were simply too tempting!
Kong Xuan had little interest in the million-year soul beast, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. After all, he did not need soul beasts to bestow soul rings on him, and his martial soul did not have the mental attribute.
What truly interested him was Electrolux, the Holy Necromancer, Scourge of the Undead!
As he imagined the future, Kong Xuan fell asleep without realizing it.
Even then, the corners of his mouth remained lifted, as though he were having a wonderful dream.
Yet late that night, an office in the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy remained brightly lit.
Through the window outside, two figures could vaguely be made out inside the office.
Located on the third floor of the academy's main building, the office was not luxurious, yet every part of it reflected the precision and efficiency of the Sun Moon Empire's premier soul engineer academy.
The soul guidance lamps inside cast a pure white glow, illuminating the entire office as brightly as day.
Ren Jun sat behind a broad metal desk, tapping his fingers lightly against its surface.
Three translucent soul tool screens hovered before him, densely listing information about some students.
He appeared to be in his thirties. His resolute face was unsmiling, and his exceptionally sharp eyes gleamed with a shrewd, complicated light.
Although he had learned quite a bit about the Sun Moon Empire's soul tools over the past few days, whenever he used these unfamiliar new devices, their convenience and practicality still left him considerably shaken.
"Are these all the students recruited for the Soul Master Class this time?"
After a quick glance at the headcount revealed only twenty-odd students, Ren Jun could not help asking.
Opposite him was a portly middle-aged man, none other than Lin Jiayi, the dean of studies at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
At his question, Lin Jiayi smiled. "This Soul Master Class is also something of an experiment. Besides, we're following the principle of quality over quantity, so there are only twenty-five students."
A trace of a sneer appeared on Ren Jun's face. "It seems you've also realized the gap between yourselves and the original Douluo Three Kingdoms when it comes to Soul Master cultivation. But catching up now won't be easy!"
Faced with Ren Jun's faintly mocking tone, Lin Jiayi was not angry in the slightest. Still smiling, he said, "Teacher Ren, since you've accepted our invitation, please stop regarding us with hostility as someone from the Heavenly Soul Empire."
"Of course. I simply haven't quite adjusted yet."
Ren Jun also forced an awkward smile onto his face. "But what I just said is still the truth."
Lin Jiayi's smile faded, and he said earnestly, "That's precisely why we invited you, a powerhouse from Shrek Academy, to serve as the Soul Master Class's homeroom teacher!"
Kong Deming's order two years ago for the Sun Moon Empire's soul engineer academies to begin awakening martial souls for local children of the appropriate age free of charge had only been the beginning. A series of plans had followed.
At first, although many academies carried out the order, they did not actually support the decision in their hearts.
But as time passed, quite a few children with excellent talent really did emerge, giving them the motivation to continue the awakenings.
The Soul Master Class was another of Kong Deming's experiments!
These soul engineer academies had originally had Soul Master Classes as well, but like Shrek Academy's Soul Tool Department, they received little attention.
Moreover, the practical-control Soul Engineers trained in those classes focused primarily on using soul tools. They simply did not need to make the tools themselves, while the cultivation of their own martial souls remained secondary.
The Soul Master Class being established now, however, was based on martial soul cultivation, and thus lacked teachers who could teach it.
Faced with this situation, the Worship Hall discussed the matter for a while before finally deciding to "poach" talent!
If the Sun Moon Empire had no good teachers, they would "dig" them out of the original Douluo Three Kingdoms!
The war fought when the continents collided several thousand years ago had indeed left many people from the original Douluo Three Kingdoms deeply hostile toward the Sun Moon Empire.
But this was not wartime, after all, and not everyone had such a strong sense of national allegiance.
Thus, under the Sun Moon Empire's powerful "offensive"-giving money to those who wanted money and resources to those who wanted resources-they really did poach quite a few teachers!
And among them, the one Kong Deming valued most was Ren Jun.
Not only because Ren Jun had the highest cultivation among these teachers, but also because, of these several hundred people, he was the only teacher who had come from Shrek Academy!