Ma Xiaotao: I'm going to watch?

"Wait... by that logic, you're already a Level 3 Soul Engineer?!!" Ning Cong's eye twitched wildly. This fellow's talent was already on par with a certain person from ten thousand years ago. The only difference lay in his character.

He suddenly noticed what he had overlooked.

Just how terrifying was someone who could make a Level 3 Soul Tool on his very first attempt at using a workbench, relying on an extremely streamlined book? And that was without even mentioning that he was just as much a genius at cultivation.

"Here's to a happy partnership."

Lu Cheng smiled.

"Here's to a happy partnership..." Ning Cong's eyes shone.

In the blink of an eye, the school term began.

Lu Cheng was assigned to the new Class One. His homeroom teacher was an elderly, white-haired man who took a laid-back approach as he coasted toward retirement. Apart from teaching, he rarely concerned himself with anything else. He was nothing like the fiendishly fierce Zhou Yi, which suited Lu Cheng perfectly.

He had never needed guidance.

He was merely retracing the road he had already traveled.

After revealing his talent for Soul Tools to Ning Cong, he also set aside some time to enhance his Spiritual Power and make low-level Soul Tools to sell to his classmates. Fire-attribute ray weapons and Level 2 and Level 3 Milk Bottles proved quite popular.

The former did somewhat worse, with most buyers being Soul Tool Department students, while the Level 2 and Level 3 Milk Bottles sold like hotcakes. After all, they were still something awaiting exploration on the original continent. In the original story, a Level 4 Milk Bottle had appeared at the Star Luo Empire's auction house and was ultimately bought by Huo Gua for twenty-five thousand Gold Soul Coins. Its manufacturing process was not particularly mysterious. He Caitou had outright said he could make one too; it was simply a little troublesome.

And this also showed that the continent did not reject Support System Soul Tools like Milk Bottles, and indeed had an urgent need for them...

By making Soul Tools in assembly-line batches, Lu Cheng accumulated his first pool of funds. In just three months, he earned nearly two hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, while also building a good reputation among the new students. Even quite a few senior outer courtyard students began coming to him one after another to commission Soul Tools.

This was far more profitable than selling grilled fish.

Three months passed in a flash, bringing the first round of freshman assessments.

Lu Cheng's strength also rose by two levels in succession, reaching rank twenty-six. What puzzled him somewhat was that, during this time, he had done his utmost to display his talent, trying to get Shrek Academy's powerhouses to notice him. Yet although Du Weilun still behaved extremely warmly when they met again, Lu Cheng could clearly sense a trace of falseness hidden in his smile.

He did not believe that this Martial Soul Department director had not mentioned the matter to Yan Shaozhe. His earlier visit to the Soul Tool Department building had been an indirect provocation and a probe aimed at the Martial Soul Department. He had wanted to give Yan Shaozhe a sense of urgency and force him to come forward sooner.

But the result went against his wishes.

Yan Shaozhe had never sought him out at all.

Then he would probably have to distinguish himself during the freshman assessment, or, if all else failed, seek help from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.

The new Class One.

An amiable old man with snow-white hair and beard walked into the classroom and smiled at the students. "I'm sure you're all very clear about forming teams for the freshman assessment. I'll respect your wishes, but the prerequisite is that you must have one Power Attack System member and one Control System member. Don't mess around. If you're all Power Attack System, or all Control and Support System, your team will be unbalanced."

"Class monitor, bring me the list in a little while."

"Yes, teacher," a burly boy stood up and replied.

The old man looked around with a smile, then leisurely left again.

Shrek City.

Inside a hotel.

Lu Cheng had his head lowered as he sucked on a straw, the watermelon juice in his glass gradually nearing the bottom. Across from him, Ning Cong was enthusiastically planning their "championship victory."

"Old Lu, you're ranged, so you can act as both Control System and Support System. I'm support, and Xue Ling'er is Power Attack System. We'll sweep through the inner courtyard, unrivaled under heaven!"

Ning Cong could not hide his smile. Soul Bones still held a certain attraction for him, especially ones supplied by Shrek Academy. When the time came, he would take one and Lu Cheng would take one. As for Xue Ling'er, he would pay her some compensation himself...

This girl had followed him since childhood. He could not mistreat her either.

"Whatever Young Master says, Ling'er will do." The girl beside him, dressed in a light green long gown, smiled. Her gaze remained on Ning Cong the entire time.

Just like Ning Tian and Wu Feng, every core disciple of the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect would be assigned a disciple from a branch family or an affiliated sect. The requirement was that they be an attack-type Soul Master with sufficient talent.

This Xue Ling'er was Ning Cong's "Dao protector."

"I have no objections. Winning the championship would naturally be best..." Lu Cheng said with a light laugh.

Huo Gua would join Shrek Academy in one year, and the Continental Soul Master Tournament would take place in two. Before that, he had to possess enough fighting strength to squeeze into the reserve team. Setting aside saving Mother Jiang, he was determined to obtain resources that could boost his fighting strength, such as the Soul Bones awarded for winning the championship.

"Tsk, you're too modest." Ning Cong's gaze held a hint of admiration. "A rank twenty-six ranged archer with spiritual support abilities-you alone are worth two people. Even against the current favorite, Team One... I'm confident we can win."

Team One was the only team in the entire freshman year with a Soul Elder. The other two members were also solid mainstays at ranks twenty-three or twenty-four, making them the championship favorites in the eyes of many teachers.

But Ning Cong had truly witnessed Lu Cheng's strength for himself.

With his Sun-Shooting Bow, a top-tier fire-attribute Martial Soul, his fighting strength was not the slightest bit inferior to that Soul Elder's.

As long as Xue Ling'er could hold the front line, there would not be much of a problem.

"..."

Lu Cheng opened his hand and stared blankly at the jade hairpin in his palm.

He had not expected hairpins of the same design... to be sold in Shrek City too. He had hesitated for a long time before buying one. A bell hung at the end, producing a pleasant sound whenever it moved.

"Snap~"

After a long silence, Lu Cheng closed his hand and put the jade hairpin into his storage Soul Tool diamond ring. "Let's go to the practice grounds and work on our coordination. We can familiarize ourselves with the arena ahead of time."

"Xuan Zi, that Martial Soul is his eyes, after all, a Body Martial Soul..." Yan Shaozhe said, his gaze somewhat hesitant.

"Rank twenty-three, ten years old. His talent is decent enough." Holding a gourd in one hand and pouring wine into his mouth while gnawing haphazardly on a chicken leg in the other, Xuan Zi scratched his fluffy hair and said indifferently, "But unfortunately... I've never heard of any top expert from the Body Sect whose Martial Soul was their eyes. Besides, the true essence of a Body Martial Soul lies in mutation, a Martial Soul Second Awakening. If he can't achieve that, it means those eyes are utterly useless..."

"Perhaps going to the Soul Tool academy to become a Soul Engineer and research Soul Tools with Qian Duoduo and the others would be quite good."

"Yes..." Yan Shaozhe pondered for a moment and nodded slightly.

He had finally been unable to hold back and had planned to recruit the boy ahead of time, so he had come to ask Xuan Zi's opinion. Yet the latter's answer coincided with what he subconsciously felt.

Reason told him this was a genius, and that he would regret not recruiting him, but his feelings kept belittling Lu Cheng.

Now that he had found "solace" from Xuan Zi, he nodded slightly and thought no more of it.

After Yan Shaozhe left, however, Xuan Zi touched his left eye. For some reason, his eyelid began twitching wildly.

"How strange... why do my eyes hurt whenever I see that boy?"

Sea God Island.

Yan Shaozhe watched Ma Xiaotao training like a madwoman and sighed softly. Ever since this child had undergone a Martial Soul Second Awakening in a dream, she had seemed possessed, desperately searching for that fellow named Lu Cheng. It had already become something like an inner demon.

If that inner demon was not broken, there would probably be serious trouble.

He raised his hand and shattered the Phoenix True Body that was venting its fury wantonly across the target range with a slap. The flames around Ma Xiaotao stalled, and all her Fire of Essence Sun withdrew into her body. She looked toward Yan Shaozhe with some astonishment.

"Teacher, you're here?"

"If you keep training like this, I'm afraid you'll drive yourself mad," Yan Shaozhe said helplessly. "As it happens, the outer courtyard is holding its freshman assessment tomorrow. Go watch in my place. I'll count it as one of your inner courtyard graduation missions, and it'll be a chance for you to relax."

"I..." Ma Xiaotao was reluctant and was just about to decline.

"Right, there's a boy named Lu Cheng. Go have a look..." Yan Shaozhe hurriedly interrupted.

He really had just remembered that the boy was also called Lu Cheng.

"Well, all right..." Ma Xiaotao nodded somewhat helplessly.

Over the past two years, the academy had found countless fake Lu Chengs to fool her. From her initial agitation, excitement, and anger, she had now grown somewhat numb.

PS: Starting tomorrow, there will be three chapter updates every day.