Before long, Huo Yuhao followed Zhou Yi to the teachers' office.
Zhou Yi immediately spoke to him in a firm tone. "Huo Yuhao, I'm not someone who likes to waste words. I'm very curious about your martial soul. During the running test earlier, you didn't display it to assist yourself."
"I've already asked the students who supervised your assessment. Among the first-year students of Class One, the most outstanding martial soul is Wang Dong's Goddess of Light Butterfly, followed by your spiritual-type martial soul, the Spirit Eyes."
"The student in charge of your test gave you a very high evaluation. Can you tell me what your first soul skill is?"
Huo Yuhao frowned slightly. "Teacher Zhou, that question seems a bit inappropriate."
"A soul skill is a soul master's most important ability. Except for those famous inherited martial souls and soul skills known to the public, most people's soul skills are private."
"If that's what you want to ask, then I'm sorry, but I refuse to answer."
Of course, Huo Yuhao couldn't explain that he had already used his martial soul, but Zhou Yi simply couldn't perceive it.
Zhou Yi's tone didn't change much, and she continued speaking.
It was common sense among soul masters not to pry into another person's soul skill. Though as a teacher, she could inquire, she couldn't force an answer.
"Fine, if you're unwilling to say, then so be it. The real reason I called you here is that I hope you'll consider joining our Soul Engineering Department."
Zhou Yi spoke directly. After all, a spiritual-type martial soul,especially one that was a body martial soul,was rare. She had already heard Fan Yu praise him repeatedly.
Now that there was such a good seedling in her class, Zhou Yi thought it was only natural to recruit him into the Soul Engineering Department.
After all, Huo Yuhao's foundation was weak. With only a twelfth rank of soul power, in the genius-filled Shrek Academy, he wouldn't achieve much in the Martial Soul Department. It would be better to switch paths.
"You should know your own situation," she said. "Though your martial soul is special, your foundation is poor. Twelve ranks of soul power show your innate level isn't high. Rather than competing in the Martial Soul Department, why not consider the Soul Engineering Department?"
Huo Yuhao shook his head. "Sorry, Teacher Zhou. I'm not interested in that. You should ask someone else."
Join the Soul Engineering Department? That's insane, he thought. If I really wanted to study that, why wouldn't I go to the Sun and Moon Empire? Who knows if Shrek's soul tool curriculum isn't filled with outdated or even sabotaged knowledge?
Besides, with my current strength, I don't have spare time to study soul tools. And even if I did, I wouldn't follow the normal steps of a soul engineer.
If I really want to learn soul tools properly, I should wait until my spirit power and cultivation are stronger. The stronger my spiritual power, the greater my advantage in that field anyway.
Zhou Yi's expression cooled a little but she didn't insist. She merely nodded.
At the moment, Huo Yuhao's value was that of a promising combat-type soul master, but his innate power was too low to be worth special attention.
He didn't show the same potential as in the original timeline, where his spiritual detection was a priceless ability. There was no need to force someone uninterested to study soul tools.
"Alright, then you may go," Zhou Yi said. "But think about it. Tang Ya and Bei Bei once proposed combining hidden weapons with soul tools. They lacked talent in that field, but as a spiritual-type soul master, you might succeed."
Huo Yuhao nodded. "Goodbye, Teacher Zhou." Then he left the office.
As he walked, he thought, I almost forgot about the soul tool I have on me. I haven't studied it yet. Though its origin is suspicious, it's still a fifth-level soul tool. I should take a closer look when I get back.
If soul circuit formations can be inscribed on metal, could they also be shaped through spiritual power, perhaps even used like soul skills themselves?
And what about those "invincible shields" from the story? If I could channel soul tools' one-time abilities directly through soul power, wouldn't that be far more practical than researching soul ring combinations?
Soon, he finished eating in the cafeteria and returned to his dorm. Wang Dong was already there, apparently waiting for him.
"Huo Yuhao, what did that perverted old hag want with you?" Wang Dong asked curiously.
"You talk too much," Huo Yuhao said, lying down casually. "Before class I asked you what kind of person you thought Zhou Yi was. Have you figured it out yet?"
Wang Dong bit her lip and said, "Cruel? Unreasonable?"
Huo Yuhao sighed. "She wasn't wrong about one thing,you really are an idiot."
"You must come from a big clan or sect, right? Didn't they teach you anything? Listen carefully. I'll only say this once. How much you understand is up to you."
"You must've heard about Zhou Yi's reputation at school."
"A strict, excellent teacher? One-fourth of her students make it into the inner court? Praised by all her students? Sounds right, doesn't it?"
Wang Dong nodded. "Yeah, what's wrong with that? Sure, she's expelled a few people, but,"
"But you're about to say they were expelled for breaking rules, right? Then tell me, who made those rules?"
"The school's regulations? Or hers?"
"That one-fourth admission rate sounds great, but check the number of students she's expelled,you'll find it's far higher than any other teacher's."
"When you analyze both figures together, you'll see that her so-called strict teaching doesn't produce better results. It's worse."
"In truth, her teaching isn't about educating,it's about punishment."
"As a teacher, shouldn't her real duty be to help lazy or weak students improve and become outstanding?"
"Zhou Yi's approach solves that problem in the simplest way,she just expels them. Then they can't drag down her statistics. Of course the inner court admission rate looks high."
Wang Dong suddenly realized why something had felt off about Zhou Yi's reputation, even though she couldn't pinpoint it before.
"But to be fair," Huo Yuhao continued, "you can't blame her entirely. She's not that smart,just mean and narrow-minded."
"Do you really think Zhou Yi could get away with this if Shrek didn't allow it? She's just a reflection of the academy itself."
"Her behavior is only a microcosm of the whole institution. A Soul Emperor sounds impressive, but on the continent, that's nothing special."
"Inner court disciples,have you ever wondered how many of them truly want to stay in Shrek? How many actually remain and dedicate themselves to the academy?"
"Remember, the first requirement to enroll in Shrek is a recommendation from a city lord."
"If a student has such a connection, their background must be significant. Would those powers let them stay here forever?"
"And if they have no background, don't you think those same city lords would recruit them, or marry them into their families to strengthen bloodlines?"
"In the end, it's all the same. To enter the inner court, talent is only the first condition."
"What's the second?" Wang Dong asked quickly.
"Loyalty to Shrek,at least no disloyalty. They must sincerely accept Shrek's ideology."
"That's Zhou Yi's true role."
As he spoke, Huo Yuhao quietly activated his Spirit Eyes. Outside the dormitory, a blindingly bright figure reacted faintly.
"The academy doesn't stop Zhou Yi because her methods work. Even if she drives students away, they still admire Shrek in their hearts, blaming only themselves,or her,never the academy."
"As for new students, Shrek never lacks them. Even if an entire year's class were expelled, they could just recruit another batch of geniuses."
"And geniuses don't really need good teachers. The path of a soul master is just cultivation and soul hunting,in the end, it's all about resources."
"Shrek sits beside the Star Dou Forest and has centuries of stored resources. Combine that with its thousand-year prestige,how hard is it to polish a few talents into shining stars?"
"Most nobles and sect disciples come to Shrek to gain prestige or build networks, not to study. That's Shrek's real purpose."
"Only an idiot like you would think everyone comes here to learn."
"If sects have inherited martial souls passed down for millennia, even if that soul were a pig, it would have evolved into a king among pigs by now."
"So what can Shrek really teach them? Soul ring combinations? Resource management?"
Huo Yuhao sighed, lying back. "After that class, you should've realized Zhou Yi's teaching is a disaster,rigid, lifeless. Follow her, and you'll just become another her."
He stopped there.
Wang Dong, impatient, demanded, "Come on, finish what you're saying!"
"Of course," Huo Yuhao chuckled, "you'll become a true Shrek loyalist. Anyway, I'm going to nap. Figure it out yourself."
He turned over and pulled up his blanket.
He'd said enough. The rest, Wang Dong needed to understand on her own. Only what one comprehends by oneself truly belongs to them.
Seeing this, Wang Dong ground her teeth in frustration, glaring at Huo Yuhao's back.
Outside, basking in the afternoon sun, Mu En squinted lazily in his recliner.
"What an interesting boy," he thought. "He sees things clearly. Shrek lacks students who can think that way. To sustain the academy, passion alone isn't enough,wisdom matters too."
"As for that girl from the Clear Sky Sect,she's a bit foolish, but talented. Let's see what the sect is planning."
"And let's see whether that sharp-tongued boy has potential worth Shrek's investment."
The leisurely noon soon passed. Tang Ya and Bei Bei later came looking for Huo Yuhao, but Wang Dong fended them off, claiming he was resting after Zhou Yi's punishment.
"Working? No way, not in this lifetime," Huo Yuhao thought. He had no intention of wasting time selling grilled fish.
If necessary, he could sell the fifth-level soul tool, the White Tiger Dagger. A third-level soul tool could fetch thousands of gold soul coins; a fifth-level one could easily sell for over ten thousand.
And since the dagger was well-crafted and usable by low-level soul masters, it could fund his living expenses for years at Shrek.
As for it being Huo Yun'er's only keepsake,Huo Yun'er wasn't dead. Only by becoming stronger could he save her.
If he failed, then keeping a memento would be meaningless. Using it to gain strength was the better tribute.
Though he said he was napping, Huo Yuhao was actually in his spiritual sea, analyzing the White Tiger Dagger's construction and the principles behind its activation as a fifth-level soul tool.
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