Chapter 2: Planning and Research.
Feeling a powerful suction coming from the crystal ball beneath his palm, Shi Yi felt a familiar warmth surge through his body, flowing down his arm from his palm and into the crystal ball.
In an instant, the crystal ball lit up with a faint glow.
The young man seemed to be expecting this and wasn't overly surprised.
"Not bad, with first-level innate soul power, you can become a soul master," the young man whispered to Shi Yi, his entire demeanor seemingly shifting.
The other children cast envious glances at Shi Yi upon hearing this. Shi Yi smiled heartily. As long as he possessed soul power, everything would be possible. At least he had earned his own ticket to the world of Douluo Continent.
Shi Yi also bowed politely to the young man and said, "Thank you, Master Soul Master."
Seeing Shi Yi's expression, the young man assumed that Shi Yi was imitating Li Changshou. He couldn't help but smile and said, "Now that your soul power has awakened, you can attend the Junior Soul Master Academy."
The young man took a piece of paper from a package and issued Shi Yi a certificate of awakening. Only with this certificate could Shi Yi attend the Junior Soul Master Academy.
Soon, the young man handed the completed certificate to Shi Yi and gently instructed, "You must keep this certificate. Only with this certificate can you enroll as a work-study student at the academy. The academy only recognizes certificates, not people. The nobles don't have time to retest your soul power."
Shi Yi also carefully put the certificate away. Tang San's encounter with the doorman in the original novel explained everything.
After the ceremony, the children slowly left, their faces filled with disappointment. The young man also began to pack up, preparing to head to his next stop. Shi Yi remained, helping the young man gather the black stones on the ground. He called out softly, "Master Spirit Master."
The young man raised his head slightly to look at Shi Yi. Seeing Shi Yi helping him clean up, he felt a surge of affection. He whispered, "Anything else?"
"I'd like to ask you, with my Spirit Master certificate, can I enroll in the Notting City Junior Spirit Master Academy?" Shi Yi asked softly.
The young man wasn't surprised, as many had asked the same question before, most seeking refuge with relatives. While they could become Spirit Masters, many low-level Spirit Masters still had to make ends meet.
The young man nodded slightly and said, "If it's just Notting City, then yes, but you can't go to cities outside of Fasno Province."
A hint of joy flashed in Shi Yi's eyes. Although he didn't know which timeline he was in, he still wanted to try his luck with Tang San. The reason was simple: his only advantage in this world was his familiarity with the plot.
Fate is first, luck is second, feng shui is third, good fortune is fourth, good deeds are fifth, study is fifth.
Reputation is sixth, appearance is seventh, respect for the gods is eighth, friendship with noble people is ninth, and health is ten.
This is what the dean of his previous life told him, and he has always remembered it. He had achieved some success in his previous life because of these things.
His fate in this world is still not very good, but it is not bad either. At least it has surpassed most people who cannot cultivate.
What happens next depends on his own actions. If he can follow the protagonist, how can the feng shui be bad? As for the person's quality, Shi Yi did not care. At least with the protagonist, he would be safe. Most importantly, he still lacked a very important thing: knowledge. Cultivation is also a science.
Although Yu Xiaogang's knowledge was not very good, it did not prevent him from visiting the Spirit Hall and seeing much more of the world.
At least he was much better than him, a modern person who had no experience in cultivation. At least that was the case at this stage. Shi Yi would rather go to the Spirit Hall Academy, but his strength did not allow it.
Shi Yi thought, holding the six stones he had collected in his palm, handed them to the young man. The young man smiled and took the formation stones from Shi Yi.
"Well, it's time for me to go to the next village. Junior College is about to start. If you're going to Notting City, you'd better hurry. The journey won't be easy for a child like you," the young man kindly reminded Shi Yi.
Shi Yi nodded, feeling a little impatient. As a person who had traveled from modern civilization, he had never experienced what it was like to cultivate. He was also very excited about his martial spirit. He knew it was a potential mutation, after all, he had seen Pokémon.
With this in mind, Shi Yi was also eager to return home. He hadn't had time to study his martial spirit yet, and he needed to plan his future path.
Shi Yi and the young man went out together. As soon as they stepped out, they were greeted by Li Changshou with a nervous look on his face.
"Master Soul Master, I heard from the children that Xiaoyi has awakened his soul power. Is there something wrong?" Li Changshou asked the young man.
The young man shook his head and said, "It's okay, kid, you're quite sensible. Come pack up with me. It's getting late, so I'll be leaving now."
Li Changshou breathed a sigh of relief and bowed slightly to the young man, saying, "Thank you for your help, Master Soul Master." The young man nodded and strode out of the village.
After seeing the young man off, Li Changshou's kind gaze slowly fell on Shi Yi and whispered, "Congratulations, Xiao Yi. It's been a long time since a Soul Master appeared in our village."
"Thanks to you and the uncles for your help, Xiao Yi wouldn't be alive today," Shi Yi said softly.
Hearing this, Li Changshou slowly raised his hand and gently rubbed Shi Yi's head. "Good boy..."
He then took Shi Yi's hand and said, "Come with Grandpa. Grandpa has prepared something for you. It's time for you to leave the village."
Shi Yi allowed the old man to lead him, suppressing his urge to study his martial spirit. He looked up at the slightly haggard face, and a warm feeling welled up in his heart. He clearly remembered that in his previous life, when he was admitted to university, the dean gave him a thousand yuan and applied for various subsidies for him.
Soon, Li Changshou led Shi Yi to his courtyard and saw a middle-aged man. Shi Yi recognized him as Li Changshou's son, Li Yi.
Shi Yi quickly greeted him, "Uncle Yi."
"Little Yi," Li Yi looked at Shi Yi with a warm expression.
Shi Yi was now a delicate and graceful young man. The villagers said that Shi Yi would be the most handsome young man in the area when he grew up. Who could refuse such a delicate and polite child?
"Xiaoyi, go prepare a package for Xiaoyi and get some extra food," Li Changshou said to his son.
"Food? Is Xiaoyi going on a long journey?" Li Yi asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Today, the Soul Master came to awaken the children's martial spirits, and Xiaoyi awakened his soul power," Li Changshou explained simply.
Li Yi's face flickered with surprise upon hearing this, but after a moment's reflection, it seemed almost natural. "Xiao Yi has been very clever since childhood, a promising young talent. Congratulations! I'll pack some things for you right away."
With that, Li Yi headed back to the house. Li Changshou, holding Shi Yi's hand, slowly sat down in the courtyard.
"Xiao Yi, it's spring plowing season now, and Grandpa can't leave. Our village is close to the city, and the official road is just outside. Grandpa won't take you into the city," Li Changshou said softly to Shi Yi.
Shi Yi nodded, unsure how to explain his trip to Notting City. "No need to bother. I'll go to the city tomorrow with the uncles and aunts who are coming to the market."
Li Changshou nodded, reflecting on his thoughts.
"Once you're in the city, you must learn your skills well. Xiao Yi is so smart, he's sure to achieve great things." Li Changshou looked at Shi Yi kindly.
As he spoke, Li Yi emerged from the house, carrying a large package, almost half the size of Shi Yi.
"Take it. It's nothing valuable. This is all I can do for you." Li Yi handed the package to Shi Yi.
The moment Shi Yi took it, he heard a faint metallic creaking inside and bowed slightly to Li Yi.
Seeing this, Li Yi quickly helped Shi Yi up and said, "Silly boy, we're all family, why are you being so polite to me?"
Shi Yi stared at the package in his hands, lost in thought. This kind of situation was actually something he was best at handling. After years of working in society, he certainly knew what he should say. But when he first received the thousand yuan, he said nothing, just as he did now. He simply left quietly.
Once he was successful in his work, he would save some and donate it to the orphanage. He would often bring gifts to the children and the director of the orphanage, because he felt from the bottom of his heart that words of gratitude were merely expressions of gratitude, not genuine gratitude.
After chatting with the father and son, Shi Yi slowly left.
Soon he returned to his home, a small wooden house built for him by the villagers Li Changshou had helped gather. It wasn't large, just one simple room, perfectly adequate for a child like him.
Shi Yi sat on his bed, recalling the feeling of awakening his martial spirit. He slowly raised his right hand, and with a thought, an ant appeared.
Shi Yi stared at the ant in his palm, gently stroking it with his left finger. The long antennae moved, and a strange feeling, unlike anything he'd ever experienced, filled his heart.
If Shi Yi had to describe it, it felt like a blood connection with the ant in his hand, or perhaps a telepathic connection. He seemed to vaguely sense the spirit's emotions, though it wasn't quite there.
"I don't know what to call you, so why not call you Little Ant?"
"Can you eat?" Shi Yi whispered. He wanted to understand if his martial spirit truly possessed all the characteristics of a living being.
If it truly possessed all the characteristics of a living being, could it also possess the potential for autonomous growth like a spirit beast?
The ant naturally didn't understand Shi Yi's words, but it could sense his confusion.
Shi Yi watched the ant fluttering in his palm and slapped his head with his left hand. "I'm crazy! Even in a fantasy world, it's impossible for it to understand human language so quickly."
"Ants eat a lot, right? Let's see if it can eat."
With this in mind, Shi Yi scooped a little bit of his leftover rice porridge with his fingertips and placed it in his palm.
Understanding Shi Yi's meaning, the little ant circled around the morsel, but didn't take a single bite, as if to say, "Just give me this stuff?"
Shi Yi watched the little ant circling around the morsel, his eyes filled with anticipation, but he couldn't understand what it meant.
Seeing Shi Yi staring at him without moving, and sensing Shi Yi's anticipation, the little ant reluctantly ate a little bit with disdain.
Seeing the little ant eating, Shi Yi's eyes flashed with excitement. This meant the little ant could actively absorb energy from the heavens and earth, something most spirits couldn't achieve.
Shi Yi remembered Yu Xiaogang's words, "The body and the spirit are like twins, but the body is dominant. Cultivating the spirit, allowing it to grow alongside the body, is the best way to treat our brothers."
Shi Yi believed this statement to be true, and it applied to most spirit masters, but not Yu Xiaogang himself. If a spirit possessed exceptional intelligence and could function like a normal living being, then it wouldn't be a question of dominance, but rather a true balance between the spirit and the spirit master.
With this thought, Shi Yi suddenly understood why Yu Xiaogang couldn't break free from his innate limitations. Yu Xiaogang had always emphasized one-sided cultivation for spirit masters.
Yin alone cannot thrive, and Yang alone cannot thrive.
With Yu Xiaogang's meager half-level innate soul power, solely emphasizing individual soul cultivation wouldn't be enough to help Luo Sanpao, who possessed the bloodline of the Golden Holy Dragon, evolve. If he had full innate soul power, he could use his powerful talents to nourish his own martial soul, awakening its bloodline. This is why a soul master's martial soul constantly changes as they cultivate.
Since soul masters can eat, sleep, and cultivate, why can't living souls like Luo Sanpao and Xiao Yi, like spirit beasts, gradually increase their bloodline power through plunder and devouring, strengthening it even more powerfully? Isn't that how the three Thousand-Tier Ant Kings of the Star Dou Great Forest came about?
The more Shi Yi thought about it, the more excited he became. He even wanted to leave the village and begin his soul master journey.
"I don't know what time period in the original novel I'm in now."
Shi Yi gently placed the little ant in his hand on a nearby table. A new question arose in his mind: could the little ant, in a normal environment, without food, possess the ability to independently channel the free energy of heaven and earth?
This question will take time to prove. If a spirit can truly absorb the free energy between heaven and earth, coupled with extremely high intelligence, and meeting these conditions, then living spirits may even possess the ability to meditate and cultivate independently.
This world has specialized mimicry training environments for spirits of different attributes, and the power of spirits increases in suitable environments. This demonstrates that spirits are affected by their environment. Shi Yi believes that long-term release is undoubtedly much more powerful than constant internal storage.
Shi Yi slowly lay down on his bed, quietly observing Xiao Yi exploring this new world. A smile crossed his face. At this moment, Shi Yi felt a special feeling, a feeling completely different from being alone.
"Xiao Yi, from now on, we will be family."
(End of Chapter)