Graduation

Zhang Tieniu gave his friend beside him a resentful look, then raised an eyebrow and asked suggestively, "Hehe, what did you think of the twin sisters? Weren't they a feast for the eyes, no matter how you looked at them?"

Looking at Zhang Tieniu's clownish expression, he felt that the honest, simple friend who had left such a deep impression on him had vanished, leaving only a lecherous clown behind.

"Tieniu, have you forgotten what we went through at Tianhu Academy these past three years? If you don't want to be bullied, the only way is to work hard at cultivation and raise your Soul Power Level. Once you have strength and status, won't women and money be yours for the taking? We're still in the golden period for cultivating Soul Power, so don't let a woman's love hold back your cultivation."

Su Tianyu was puzzled. Before the age of twenty-five, Soul Masters on the Douluo Continent did not cultivate their Soul Power diligently, knowing only how to flirt and fall in love. Some even skipped their daily Soul Power cultivation altogether and went straight to sleep.

After Soul Masters awakened their Martial Souls at six, their bodies and minds were at their peak until the age of twenty-five, making that the fastest and most efficient time to cultivate. Once they passed twenty-five, their Soul Power cultivation speed dropped sharply with age. After sixty, raising their Soul Power became very difficult.

"All right, I understand."

Zhang Tieniu recalled his past experiences, and the clownish smile gradually faded from his face. His eyes burned like torches as he resolved to cultivate diligently and reach level twenty to become a Soul Grandmaster as soon as possible.

"Come on, Tieniu. Lead the way."

Su Tianyu glanced at Zhang Tieniu beside him and saw him sneakily watching a couple kissing in the garden, a hint of longing in his eyes. Su Tianyu knew his words had probably gone in one ear and out the other, and that Zhang Tieniu would forget them in a few days. It seemed the nobles at the academy hadn't oppressed him hard enough.

Among the common people of the Douluo Continent, it was normal to marry and have children in their teens. Soul Masters, after being baptized by Soul Rings, often developed physically well beyond their actual age, and their desire for the opposite sex was only stronger.

Zhang Tieniu was only a few months away from turning sixteen, so it was perfectly normal for him to fantasize about the opposite sex. As for what he ultimately chose, that was none of Su Tianyu's business.

The two crossed the square and left through the academy gates. Before long, they arrived at a snack street in Heaven Lake City.

The snack street was brightly lit at night, each cart hung with Soul Tool lamps. Under their soft, cool-toned light, the carts displayed a dazzling array of goods in all varieties, most of them food. The owners stood at their stalls, loudly calling out to customers.

Zhang Tieniu led Su Tianyu onward until they reached the end of the commercial street.

There stood a rustic, open-air shop, with several redwood tables and chairs set outside. It wasn't large, but business was booming. Several groups of customers sat eating beef noodle soup, enjoying great mouthfuls of the food, while quite a few people queued outside the shop.

Seeing the crowd outside, Zhang Tieniu turned to Su Tianyu with a smug smile.

"I told you the beef noodles here were really good. Look how many people are still lining up outside. You have to queue just to get a bite."

With that, Zhang Tieniu cut into the line and quickly reached the owner, who was busy cooking beef noodles, and called out.

"Uncle Wang, two bowls of beef noodles for me, with a fried egg in each."

Not long after the two sat down at a redwood table, Uncle Wang brought over two steaming bowls of beef noodles as they chatted. The broth was rich and full-bodied, the portions of beef generous, and a fried egg with a runny yolk sat on top of each bowl. The aroma rising from the noodles whetted their appetites.

For Su Tianyu, who often ate Soul Beast meat, an occasional meal like this had a distinctive taste of ordinary life.

The two wolfed down the beef noodles, and before long their bowls were empty. Both let out deeply satisfied burps.

When it came time to pay, the beef noodle soup was reasonably priced at just one Silver Soul Coin per bowl. Su Tianyu paid for Zhang Tieniu's noodles along with his own. Having just received three thousand Gold Soul Coins, he naturally thought nothing of such a small sum.

(P.S.: In this book, one gold coin is exchanged for one hundred silver coins, and one hundred silver coins for one thousand copper coins. The currency system in the original work is a little messy, so the author has recalculated it here.)

After dinner, the two headed straight back to the academy for their daily Soul Power refinement and cultivation.

Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, two months had passed. It was time for the Heaven Lake Intermediate Academy graduation ceremony again.

After attending the graduation ceremony, Su Tianyu went to the office in the teaching building and submitted his application for graduation to the dean.

"Have you decided which advanced academy to attend?" Dean Zhang asked Su Tianyu evenly.

"Not yet. Dean, is there an academy you'd recommend? Very few advanced academies in the empire admit commoner Soul Masters, and I don't know which one to apply to," Su Tianyu said helplessly with a shrug.

In the Heaven Dou Empire, academies like Blazing Fire Academy and Skywater Academy generally admitted only students with fire and ice or water attributes, respectively. As for Divine Wind and Thunder Academy, they were both family-run academies, so he naturally wouldn't apply to them.

"Hmm, many of the empire's famous advanced Soul Master Academies rarely admit commoner Soul Masters. But you can still try the advanced academies in the kingdoms. Because the kingdoms operate under a feudal system, few are like Heaven Dou Royal Academy, which admits only noble students. They turn no one away; as long as your talent is good, they'll certainly accept you." Dean Zhang gave him the best answer.

"Thank you, Dean!" After bowing his thanks, Su Tianyu tactfully withdrew from the office.

He returned to the dormitory and packed his belongings. After saying goodbye to Zhang Tieniu, he carried his luggage out of the academy.

Standing alone with his luggage before the academy gates, Su Tianyu looked back at the scenery inside, his heart filled with emotion.

When he had first arrived at Tianhu Academy, he had been no more than a One-Ring Soul Master, with no combat strength to speak of, and could only win using the Mysterious Heaven Skill's fighting techniques. Now, as he left, he had the strength to defeat a Soul Elder.

He was only nine and a half now, yet he had already caught up with Tang San's cultivation progress. He believed that as long as he worked hard enough, he could catch up with even the greatest talent.

After just one nostalgic look at the academy where he had spent nearly three years, Su Tianyu walked toward Heaven Lake City without looking back. Next, he had to wipe out the baron's Wang Family. This battle was not to be taken lightly; he would use all his strength to bring their tangled feud to a complete end, so that his thoughts could flow freely.

Su Tianyu made his way into the city and headed to its western district, where the baron's residence, home to the Wang Family, was located.

Before him stood a luxurious mansion occupying as much as thirty mu of land. A wall over three meters high rose from either side of the gate, separating the entire residence from the outside world like a dividing line between commoners and nobles.

"A mere baron's residence, the lowest rank of nobility, is already so lavish and grand. I really can't imagine how magnificent the residences of viscounts and higher-ranking nobles must be."