Lin Yan pushed open the wooden door to Dorm Seven, and a smell that was not particularly pleasant but full of the signs of daily life greeted him. The dormitory was quite spacious but simply furnished, with dozens of beds arranged inside. Seven or eight children around the same age were playing and roughhousing.
At the sound of the door opening, the children all turned their eyes toward him. The tallest of them, a muscular boy who looked eleven or twelve, sized Lin Yan up. Seeing his plain clothes and simple bundle of belongings, he walked over and spoke in a somewhat routine tone:
"A new work-study student? I'm Wang Sheng. My Martial Soul is the War Tiger, and I'm a future Battle Soul Master. I'm also the boss of Dorm Seven. According to our rules, newcomers have to show their strength, so you have to fight me. If you win, you'll be the dorm's boss." Wang Sheng planted both hands on his hips, looking like a little grown-up.
The other children gathered around with interest, clearly accustomed to this.
Lin Yan set down his luggage and answered calmly, "Understood. Then please give me some pointers, Wang Sheng." He was already wearing weights, and he took them into account as he moved. He had no intention of revealing his full strength now, nor did he want to draw attention by becoming the boss.
"Good! You've got guts!" Wang Sheng gave a low shout, faint fluctuations of Soul Power rising from his body. Though weak, they were indeed considerably stronger than those of an ordinary child. He suddenly lunged forward, driving a fist straight at Lin Yan's face with a rush of wind, looking rather imposing.
Lin Yan shifted his feet slightly, sidestepping with apparent clumsiness. The faint metallic scraping of his weights was covered by the wind from Wang Sheng's punch. He raised his hand to block, deliberately moving half a beat too slowly and letting Wang Sheng's fist graze his arm, making it look like a close call.
The two exchanged several moves. Lin Yan controlled the pace throughout, presenting himself as an ordinary work-study student with slightly greater strength and decent reflexes, but little Soul Power and insufficient combat experience. Occasionally, he barely managed to block or dodge Wang Sheng's attacks, but most of the time he was on the back foot, struggling to fend off blows from every side.
Finally, after Lin Yan stumbled "carelessly," Wang Sheng seized the opening and planted a fist on his shoulder. Lin Yan went with the blow, staggering several steps backward before steadying himself and cupping his hands. "I lost. You really are formidable, Wang Sheng."
Having won the bout, Wang Sheng was in an excellent mood. Though he felt this newcomer was a little slippery, he had won in the end.
"Right, what's your Martial Soul?" Wang Sheng only asked then.
"My Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass," Lin Yan answered.
"Blue Silver Grass can have Innate Soul Power too?" Wang Sheng and the students around him all looked shocked.
"I was lucky enough to have Innate Soul Power, but only half a rank. I don't even know whether I'll ever become a Soul Master in this lifetime." Lin Yan pretended to look somewhat dejected.
Seeing Lin Yan like this, Wang Sheng probably felt pity for him and offered some comfort. "You're still pretty impressive. With only half a rank of Innate Soul Power, you could still hold your own against me."
"My family's poor, and I often helped with the work at home, so I built up some muscle. Since you haven't obtained Soul Rings yet, I can still spar with you. Later on, I'm afraid I won't be able to hurt you even if you stand there and let me hit you." Lin Yan sighed, pretending to be particularly downcast.
Hearing this, Wang Sheng said no more on the subject. Instead, he patted his chest and said, "It's fine! From now on, I'll look out for you in Dorm Seven! You can sleep in that empty bed over there, beside mine." He pointed to a bed near the door.
"Thank you." Lin Yan nodded, picked up his luggage, and walked toward the bed.
Lin Yan secretly stifled his laughter, thinking, They really are children. All I had to do was show a little weakness to stir up their sympathy. Children really are easy to fool.
Lin Yan walked over to the bed and had just finished laying out the bedding he had brought when the dormitory door was pushed open again. This time, it was Tang San who entered.
Tang San swept his gaze around the dormitory, saw Lin Yan, who had just finished making his bed, and gave him a slight nod of acknowledgment. Lin Yan returned it with a faint nod.
Perhaps because Lin Yan had come first, Wang Sheng and the others did not mock Tang San's Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul this time. Instead, they were a little surprised to see another person with a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul.
Soon, after Wang Sheng explained Dorm Seven's tradition to Tang San, the two began to fight. The outcome held no suspense. With the Mysterious Heaven Skill and the Tang Sect's secret techniques, Tang San easily defeated Wang Sheng and became Dorm Seven's new boss.
Just as Tang San finished receiving the other work-study students' admiring looks and was about to choose a bed, the dormitory door was abruptly pushed open once more.
A clear voice came from outside. "Is this Dorm Seven?"
Hearing the voice, Lin Yan looked toward the doorway and saw a pretty little girl standing there. She was not tall and wore pink clothes, with a long scorpion braid hanging past her hips. Her large eyes were especially bright as she curiously surveyed the room.
So this is that hundred-thousand-year-old hooligan rabbit. I have to say, she's even cuter than the novel described, Lin Yan could not help thinking.
The students in the dormitory were all boys. The sudden appearance of a girl at the door left every one of them dumbfounded.
Seeing that no one responded, Xiao Wu looked up at the Dorm Seven sign again, then introduced herself with a smile. "Hello, everyone. I'm Xiao Wu. Wu as in 'dance.'"
What followed was another battle for the position of dorm boss.
Lin Yan sat on his bed with his back to them, quietly sorting through his already meager belongings and turning a deaf ear to the commotion behind him. He knew the outcome and had no intention of getting involved.
Sure enough, before long, the sounds of fighting stopped. Xiao Wu had become the dorm boss, just as she wished.
Just then, a teacher walked in from outside and asked, "Are there any new work-study students? Step forward for a moment."
Hearing this, Lin Yan hurriedly rose, while Tang San and Xiao Wu stood up at the same time.
"Which one of you is Tang San?"
Tang San hurriedly stepped forward. The teacher handed him the bedding Grandmaster had asked him to deliver, then said, "I'm the teacher in charge of work-study assignments. My name is Mo Hen. You can call me Teacher Mo. Lin Yan, Tang San, Xiao Wu, you're first-year work-study students. From now on, you'll be responsible for cleaning the garden south of the sports field..."
After explaining a few things they needed to keep in mind, Mo Hen left.
Lin Yan hurriedly ran out after him.
"Teacher Mo."
Mo Hen turned at the sound of his voice and saw that it was Lin Yan.
"Lin Yan, is there something you need?"
"Teacher Mo, is there any work available in the library? I'd like to work there."
"There is, but you've already been assigned to clean the garden. It wouldn't be easy to change that."
"That's all right. I can take on an extra job at the library."
"But that would take up a lot of your time, leaving you no time to cultivate. You should still prioritize your studies and cultivation," Teacher Mo advised.
"It's all right, Teacher Mo. I only have half a rank of Innate Soul Power. Even if I work hard my whole life, I might never break through rank thirty. I thought I might as well learn more theoretical knowledge. Being able to stay at the academy as a teaching assistant later would be the greatest good fortune I could ask for."
Hearing Lin Yan put it that way, Mo Hen let him have his way.
"All right, then. Once you finish cleaning the garden each day, go straight to the library. Ask the librarian about your specific duties. It pays five copper coins a day."
"All right. Thank you, Teacher Mo."
After that, Lin Yan returned to Dorm Seven. By then, Tang San's and Xiao Wu's beds had already been pushed together.
At the sight, Lin Yan merely shook his head. Tang San, that old uncle, would not even leave a little loli alone.