The Lecture Hall Takes Shape

"Spark Academy"

The charcoal stick rested on the edge of the stone slab, the ink-black characters bold and vigorous. A few breaths of silence filled the cave Shen Moxin was the first to stand up, her finger lightly tracing the four characters. "This name is good." She adjusted her glasses. "I'll handle the teaching outline. Soul Power perception, basic model, body coordination—three pieces should be enough for the basics."

Lu Yuan nodded. "Mr. Shen will determine the level of difficulty, but he must explain 'why' clearly."

"Understood." Shen Moxin turned around and flipped through the manuscript, her fingertips already tracing chapters in the air.

Mo Chen leaned closer, grinning. "The workshop area is mine. Lighting, ventilation, mechanisms, and all your crazy ideas... interesting." He rubbed his rough fingers. "Where are the materials? Where are the tools?"

"I'll draft the list," Lu Yuan said. "We'll get part of it from Deacon Han. The other part," he looked at Li Wangye, "You handle that."

Li Wangye immediately straightened his back.

"Choose two of the most trustworthy, discreet, and hardworking locals. Clean backgrounds are preferred, and it's best if they don't have any family burdens," Lu Yuan said calmly. "Bring them in to do cleaning and moving. They'll be paid as usual, and food and lodging will be provided. But here's the rule: it's easy to get in, but hard to get out. Once you sign the contract, you have to abide by the rules here—pretend you didn't see what you saw, and pretend you didn't hear what you heard."

"I understand." Li Wangye nodded emphatically. "There are two boys, their Martial Soul are hoes and sickles, their Soul Power is level one or two, they're honest people, and they have an old mother at home."

"Go and get it done. Su Yan, you go with them and show them around the mine shafts, dividing the area into zones. Put the teaching area in the deepest dry tunnel, the living area near the water source, and the workshop area separately with good ventilation. The storage area should be hidden, and the entrance should be disguised."

Su Yan didn't speak, but nodded vigorously, tracing patterns on the side of her leg with her fingers.

Lin Xiao leaned against the stone wall, arms crossed. "What about me? I can't just stay here guarding the door forever."

"Two things," Lu Yuan turned to him, "First, maintain constant vigilance, especially towards the Black Stone Mountain Range. Second," his gaze fell on the faint dark lines on the side of his neck, "The hidden dangers in your Martial Soul can't be delayed any longer. I'll dedicate two hours each day to helping you reorganize your Soul Power circuits. The process will be painful, but it's necessary."

Lin Xiao licked his canine teeth with the tip of his tongue. "Okay. Just don't make me recite."

Finally, it was Lu Qinghe. He leaned against the stone platform, his face sallow but his eyes clear. "Father can't be of much help, but he's good at guarding the gate and supplies."

"Father, your recovery is the priority." Lu Yuan's tone softened. "Once you're feeling better, help Mr. Shen organize the materials, or teach the newcomers the most basic application of Soul Power —your experience of being stuck at a bottleneck for fifteen years is more valuable than many theories."

Lu Qinghe hummed in agreement and said no more.

With clear division of labor, everyone immediately got to work.

The sounds of hammering and moving echoed through the mine tunnels. Mo Chen rummaged through the tunnel, hammering away incessantly. Su Yan and Li Wangye led two awkward teenagers in clearing rubble and dividing the area. Shen Moxin scribbled her manuscript under the Soul Guidance Lamp. Lin Xiao slid out of the tunnel and disappeared.

Lu Yuan used a stone slab to sketch a 3D map of the mine tunnel, marking the risk points in each section. After completing the map, he made a list: wood, stone, metal, soul-guiding components, lighting crystals, medicinal herbs, food...

The list keeps getting longer and longer.

He stopped writing and rubbed his temples. Resources are always the first hurdle.

Three days later, on the rocky slope outside Old Crow Ridge.

Deacon Han arrived alone, tossing over a small cloth bag. "A small gift. It's some wound medicine and tonic powder from the palace, much better than the black market stuff."

Lu Yuan caught it and placed it at his feet. "My reply was also straightforward. Cooperation is possible, but the method needs to be changed."

"Oh? How do I change it?"

"First, the training location will be in the area we control outside the mine shaft; your people are not allowed into the core. Second, the first batch will have no more than five people. Third, the content will be limited to the basic Soul Power manipulation, physical enhancement, and mission adaptability training that I have specified. More advanced theory will not be taught."

Deacon Han stroked his chin. "So what will we get in return?"

"A five-person team, their Soul Power Level might not be high, but their control precision, execution efficiency, and adaptability are more than 30% stronger than others of the same level," Lu Yuan said calmly. "Moreover, the 'methods' they've learned can be replicated and expanded. This is the 'seed' you've been looking for."

"What's the price?"

"A batch of infrastructure materials." Lu Yuan pulled out a list and handed it over. "Timber, stone, metal, soul-guiding components, lighting crystals, common medicinal herbs, grain... to be delivered in three batches. The first batch will arrive within seven days."

Deacon Han glanced at the list, his lips twitching. "Goodness, you want to build a fortress... Fine, we can talk. Anything else?"

"Intelligence." Lu Yuan stared at him. "Detailed intelligence on the Cloud Mist Sect's strongholds, resource locations, patrol routes, and times in the Black Stone Mountain Range. The more detailed, the better."

The wind in the woods suddenly stopped.

Deacon Han casually vanished, and he slowly straightened up. "Young friend Lu, you want this because..."

"Deacon Han said last time that the Inspection Office can turn a blind eye to 'retaliation'," Lu Yuan interrupted him, his voice clear, "I need to know where to throw my punch to hurt the most and be the safest."

The two stared at each other for ten breaths.

Deacon Han suddenly laughed, a dry and complex laugh. "You brat... unwilling to suffer even the slightest loss. Fine, I'll try to get a copy of the intelligence. But let me make this clear beforehand: I can't guarantee its authenticity. You'll bear all the consequences after you take action, and the Inspection Office will absolutely not acknowledge any involvement."

"Deal." Lu Yuan held out his hand.

Deacon Han paused, then gripped the handle tightly. "The first batch of supplies will be delivered to the designated location in five days. Personnel selection will take time; in about ten days, the first batch of five young men will arrive secretly. They are all from collateral branches of the military or are children of commoners, with Soul Power below level ten and clean backgrounds."

"Okay. The training period is tentatively set for three months. We'll discuss further details after three months, based on the results."

"Excellent." Deacon Han gave Lu Yuan a deep look, turned and left, but after a few steps he turned back. "Young friend Lu, you chose your own path, but I hope you don't rush and burn down the bridge."

"If a bridge burns down, we can build a new one," Lu Yuan said. "It's always more reliable than constantly using someone else's bridge."

Deacon Han shook his head and disappeared into the woods.

The supplies were transported to a secluded mountain ravine on the fifth night. Su Yan and Li Wangye, along with two new recruits, worked through the night to move them into the mine tunnels.

With the materials in hand, the renovation progressed rapidly.

Mo Chen, as if injected with adrenaline, used logs and stone slabs to partition off "classrooms" and "dormitories" deep within the mine tunnels. Soul Guidance Lamp were embedded in the rock walls, casting soft light. After the ventilation vents were modified, the damp smell lessened. Workbenches and tool racks were set up in the workshop area, providing a home for Mo Chen's broken parts.

Shen Moxin completed the first batch of basic teaching material manuscripts. The three thin volumes are: "Soul Power Perception and Guidance", "Illustrated Basic Energy Models", and "Nine Forms of Body Coordination". The handwriting is neat and accompanied by simple diagrams, and the organization is clear.

On the evening of the tenth day, five teenagers arrived quietly, led by one of Deacon Han's confidants.

The three, dressed in worn military uniforms, had arrogant expressions and were children of collateral branches of the military. The two, dressed in coarse cloth, had large hands and feet, and curious, uneasy eyes; they were of commoner origin. Their Soul Power fluctuations were weak, with the highest being no more than level nine.

Shen Moxin and Su Yan received them. Shen Moxin solemnly read out three ironclad rules: no inquiries, no private communication, and no infighting. Violators would be expelled immediately. Su Yan silently led them to familiarize themselves with the outer living area, assigned them beds, and explained their daily routine.

For the first few days, the boys were clearly not used to it. The mine tunnels were dark and damp, and the training was strange—they had to sit cross-legged all day to sense the flow of Soul Power, practice coordination in awkward postures, and memorize difficult principles.

One of the soldiers' sons complained, "What kind of rubbish is this training? We might as well go to the drill ground and spar!"

Shen Moxin wasn't angry. She told him to step forward and gestured for Su Yan to demonstrate.

Su Yan released a slight fluctuation of level-two Soul Power. Following a simple structure from the "Illustrated Basic Energy Models," he condensed his Soul Power at his fingertips to form a pale white thread. With a gentle flick, the thread silently disappeared into the rock wall, leaving an almost invisible hole.

"The precision of your Soul Power control determines the upper limit of your Soul Skill's power, and also how long you can last in complex environments." Shen Moxin adjusted her glasses. "What you're learning now isn't 'techniques,' but 'foundations.' Once you have solid foundations, any 'technique' you learn later will be quick and ruthless."

The boy looked at the small hole in the rock wall, then at Su Yan's calm face, opened his mouth but said nothing more.

The changes were subtle and gradual. Seven or eight days later, the first commoner was pleasantly surprised to find that his sluggish Soul Power was flowing more smoothly, while the complaining soldier's son accidentally dodged a pebble that Su Yan had flicked out during a coordination training session. The doubt and laxity in the eyes of the young men were gradually replaced by focus and a hint of excitement.

Lu Yuan would come every two or three days, not to give lectures but to observe, occasionally offering a word or two of guidance. His words went straight to the point, leaving the boys stunned, and they would ponder them for a long time before they understood.

The underground base changed every day, gradually taking the form of a "home" and a "school". The lights were still on late at night, and whispers, breathing exercises, and the occasional soft popping sounds from the Mo Chen workshop intertwined to create a unique rhythm of life.

That afternoon, Lin Xiao returned with a rough hand-drawn map. It marked a valley on the edge of the Black Stone Mountain Range: a small soul crystal mine of the Cloud Mist Sect. On the 7th and 21st of each month, it was escorted by two Soul Elder and five Soul Grandmaster, passing through the "Mute Pass" around 1-3 PM.

The map was placed on the stone slab in front of Lu Yuan.

Below the horizontal line drawn by the charcoal stick, there seemed to be an invisible flame burning Youyou.

However, just as Lu Yuan's finger was about to touch the edge of the map, Li Wangye rushed in and handed over a crumpled piece of paper. It was urgently sent back by Mo Chen through a secret channel; the handwriting was messy and revealed his anxiety:

"Rumors are circulating in the black market that the Cloud Mist Sect may suspect a connection between the 'ruins' and the 'capture.' Suspects include local forces possessing Soul Tool abilities and potentially having private dealings with certain individuals in the Inspection Office. Someone is inquiring about unusual activity near ' Old Crow Ridge.' Be careful."