After returning to the dormitory, since it was still early, Zhu Ziyang took a shower and then sat by the bedside reading, not in a rush to begin cultivating.
Cultivation shouldn't be rushed. Too much is as bad as too little. Zhu Ziyang had always understood the balance of work and rest, the importance of relaxation and tension in harmony.
"... Dragon God Douluo Mu En, the 260th Headmaster of Shrek Academy, Rank 99 Ultimate Douluo, martial soul Light Holy Dragon… Mu En was born into the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, a descendant of Yu Xiaogang, one of Shrek Academy's founders… awakened the Light Holy Dragon martial soul at the age of six, born with full soul power… reached Soul Grandmaster at age eight… reached Rank 69 by age eighteen… later led Shrek Academy to victory in the All-Continent Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament… broke through to Titled Douluo at thirty… reached Rank 98 at fifty… attained Rank 99 Ultimate Douluo at seventy, and is hailed as the strongest figure in Shrek Academy's ten thousand year history..."
He was fully immersed when a sudden knock came from the door.
Zhu Ziyang blinked in surprise, a trace of confusion on his face. He set down the copy of A Concise History of Shrek Academy's Headmasters and got up to open the door.
To his astonishment, it was Jiang Nannan.
"Nannan!" Zhu Ziyang was caught off guard. "Why are you here on the boys' floor?"
"Hehe, I asked around. The school only forbids boys from going up to the girls' floor, but it never said girls can't come down to the boys' floor!" Jiang Nannan giggled as she walked in on her own, casually glancing around his dorm.
"What's this? Thinking of moving in to live with me?" Zhu Ziyang teased with a grin, remembering their time at Anyang Academy—he and Jiang Nannan had lived together for three years.
"I'd like to, but the school won't allow it," Jiang Nannan said cheerfully as she naturally sat on Zhu Ziyang's bed.
"Once we enter the inner courtyard, we'll be able to live together again." Zhu Ziyang sat beside her, wrapped an arm around her slim waist, and gently pulled her into his embrace.
The girl let out a silver-bell-like laugh as she nestled into his arms.
After a brief moment of affection, Jiang Nannan sat up and said, "Ziyang-ge, where are your dirty clothes? Give them to me."
"Alright." Zhu Ziyang didn't hesitate. He got up and handed over his uniform. Back when they were staying at Anyang Academy, she often washed his clothes for him. Jiang Nannan was a very capable girl.
She took the clothes and didn't linger. "I'll head back now."
"Okay. Don't cultivate too late tonight. Remember to get some sleep," Zhu Ziyang reminded her.
"I will!" she replied sweetly and then left his dorm.
Zhu Ziyang watched her figure disappear down the staircase before closing the door and returning inside.
After she left, he read for a while longer before climbing into bed and beginning his cultivation.
He closed his eyes, sat cross-legged on the bed, breathing steadily and calmly. His mind quickly entered a state of perfect stillness.
His consciousness instinctively entered his spiritual sea. Above the sea, Electrolux's gray soul orb remained as quiet as always, and the silver crystal also floated silently without any movement.
After surveying his spiritual sea, Zhu Ziyang began to circulate the Great Light Mantra, drawing his soul power from his middle dan tian and guiding it through the meridians and acupuncture points throughout his body.
When the flow of soul power reached his right eye's acupoint, that strange feeling returned once again. Zhu Ziyang was perplexed—this sensation was unusual, as if something was incubating there.
It had started after the sacrifice of the Dragonwolf. Initially, it frightened him. But later, he realized it wasn't harmful. On the contrary, it was nourishing his eye.
Ever since this sensation appeared, Zhu Ziyang became aware that some kind of transformation was happening in his right eye. It seemed to be forming a connection with his spiritual sea. Though the progress was slow, it was extremely stable. Even if he didn't intentionally guide it, the connection steadily grew.
He had a hunch—once his right eye's acupoint fully linked with his spiritual sea, the transformation would complete, and he would finally understand what was happening.
At the current pace, Zhu Ziyang estimated it would take about one to two months to finish.
He stopped paying attention to the eye and focused on his cultivation.
——
Morning.
Zhu Ziyang woke up, sat up, got out of bed, got dressed, washed up, and then left the dorm.
At the entrance, the old man was still the same, lounging lazily on his rocking chair. Yu Beibei was already standing there too, looking conflicted about something. When he saw Zhu Ziyang approaching, his expression shifted, and he smiled and nodded in greeting.
Zhu Ziyang didn't mind the change. He smiled in return and began reading his book again.
Jiang Nannan and Tang Ya didn't keep them waiting long. They soon came downstairs.
After regrouping briefly, they split up—Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan went for their usual run, while Yu Beibei and Tang Ya headed to the cafeteria for breakfast.
——
After breakfast, the morning classes began.
Class Four's morning session was a soul master theory class. The teacher was a middle-aged man, and while the material was more advanced than what was taught at Anyang Academy, it wasn't much more difficult. It was still mostly foundational knowledge—such as the nature of soul power, the age of soul rings, and how to judge martial souls.
After all, these first-year students were mostly at the level of junior academy graduates. Apart from a few gifted individuals, most couldn't grasp anything too advanced.
When class ended, Zhu Ziyang and his friends went to eat lunch. Afterward, Jiang Nannan and Tang Ya returned to the dorm to cultivate. No one knew where Yu Beibei went. As for Zhu Ziyang, he rented a training room in the battle arena district to practice martial soul control and his scythe techniques. Since he didn't take afternoon naps, he figured he'd use the nearly four hours for combat training.
Training rooms in the battle arena weren't cheap. Each hour cost ten gold soul coins—an expense most students couldn't afford. As a result, most preferred to find a quiet spot on campus to practice their skills or martial soul. The academy didn't forbid it, but required them not to cause significant damage—any serious destruction would require tenfold compensation. Therefore, aside from upperclassmen, very few lower-year students were willing to rent training rooms. Their cultivation levels were too low to do any real damage anyway.
Zhu Ziyang had confidence in his scythe techniques, which was why he chose to rent a training room. Otherwise, he wouldn't want to throw away thirty to forty gold soul coins just to help the academy earn money.
The First Style: Two Forms Rotating Slash.
The Second Style: Ninefold Chain Slash.
The Third Style: Crescent of Death.
The Fourth Style: Four-Direction Defence.
The Fifth Style: Primordial Convergence.
Zhu Ziyang executed the Zhu Clan's Five Scythe Techniques one after another. The golden scythe shimmered with agility, at times slashing, other times stabbing. One mysterious movement flowed into another with his actions, before vanishing again—only to be internalized into his muscle memory, steadily refining his technique.
The First and Third Styles—Two Forms Rotating Slash and Crescent of Death—were difficult to progress in without mastering the fusion of light and death. For now, he could only alternate between light energy or death energy, unable to channel both at once.
The Second and Fourth Styles—Ninefold Chain Slash and Four-Direction Defence—leaned more toward technique. Currently, he could only unleash four consecutive strikes with Ninefold Chain Slash due to limitations in his strength and physical endurance. If he pushed himself, he could reach five. Four-Direction Defence was already nearing perfection.
As for the final style, Primordial Convergence, he was able to fuse either his first and second soul skills or his second and third. His second soul skill, Light Blessing, was a buff ability that enhanced his strength and the scythe's sharpness. Whether fused with the first or third skill, it had high compatibility. Rather than calling it a fusion, it was more accurate to say this was simply the natural effect of an amplification skill. Until he achieved the true fusion of light and death, this style would likely remain at its current level.
(End of Chapter)
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