First, Yin Zhang settled his lodging.
He found a small inn next to the Spirit Hall and paid five copper soul coins to rent a room for one night. There were better inns in the city, but he was short on money and had no choice but to make do.
After that, he headed into a nearby alley and summoned his martial soul—Charizard.
Although he had stayed in Saint Spirit Village for nearly a week after awakening his martial soul, Yin Zhang already had a fairly good understanding of it.
After all, even before transmigrating, he had been extremely familiar with Charizard.
Charizard was one of the most popular Pokémon. Although it wasn't actually a Dragon-type Pokémon, after becoming his martial soul, it was officially classified as a Dragon-type martial soul.
Anyway, no one in this world knew that Charizard wasn't a true dragon.
So be it—Charizard was a dragon!
"Charizard's claws are hard and sharp enough to tear through steel!"
Yin Zhang activated martial soul possession. He lightly clenched his fists, extended his sharp claws, and slashed at a nearby iron plate.
With just a casual swipe, several deep claw marks—nearly penetrating the metal—were left behind.
"And fire!"
Although he hadn't yet absorbed a spirit ring and only possessed the innate soul skill Dragon Claw, the Charizard martial soul itself could still attempt to breathe flames.
Yin Zhang tried it again, but quickly realized that the flames he produced lacked real offensive power. At best, they were suitable for cooking.
After leaving the alley, Yin Zhang went to a restaurant on the next street to eat.
Since awakening the Charizard martial soul, not only had his formerly weak physique been completely fixed, but his appetite had also increased dramatically.
Bowl after bowl of rice disappeared into his stomach, accompanied by pickled vegetables and the occasional piece of meat.
Only after he was drenched in sweat did Yin Zhang finally feel full.
Just as he was about to call the waiter to settle the bill, a deep male voice came from the next table.
"Excuse me. You're Yin Zhang, right? I'm Yu Xiaogang, a teacher at Nuoding Academy. I'm good friends with Dean Zhang there. How about we get acquainted?"
Who?
Yu Xiaogang?
Yin Zhang turned his head in surprise and saw a middle-aged man standing beside the neighboring table.
The man wore a stiff, awkward smile that made people uncomfortable. With a crew cut and black clothes, he gave off the vibe of a strange uncle.
Yu Xiaogang coughed lightly and added,
"I overheard your conversation with the gatekeeper at the entrance of Nuoding Academy earlier."
Before Yin Zhang could respond, a mechanical prompt suddenly sounded in his mind.
---
[Detected Yu Xiaogang's intention to accept the host as a disciple. Prompt choices triggered:
Option One:
"Grandmaster, please accept my bow!" In the original story, Yu Xiaogang taught Tang San, who later held the dual god positions of Sea God and Asura God. He truly deserves the title of Grandmaster!
→ Choose to become Yu Xiaogang's disciple and become Tang San's senior brother.
Reward: Complete mastery of martial soul theory.
Option Two:
Yu Xiaogang is nothing more than a hypocritical villain, obsessed with fame and reputation. His words and actions are detestable.
→ Reject Yu Xiaogang outright.
Reward: A storage spirit tool with a capacity of ten cubic meters.
Option Three:
Ignore him and wait until school starts. Although the host despises Yu Xiaogang's character, there is no personal grudge.
→ Ignore him completely and wait for enrollment.
Reward: One year of spirit power cultivation (Spirit Power Level +3).]
---
Yin Zhang skimmed the options.
The first option—becoming Yu Xiaogang's disciple—was completely out of the question.
Becoming the senior brother of the future God King Tang San? Just thinking about it made him uncomfortable.
The second option was the classic face-slapping route, but the reward—a ten-cubic-meter storage spirit tool—was nothing special.
Let's check the third option first, Yin Zhang thought.
Ignore Yu Xiaogang?
If he waited until school started, he might run into Yu Xiaogang again and trigger this prompt a second time.
At that thought, a faint smile appeared on Yin Zhang's face.
I choose option three.
---
[Congratulations to the host for successfully making a choice.
Reward obtained: One year of spirit power cultivation (Spirit Power Level +3).
You may now check your personal attributes.
Note: Spirit power cultivation rewards can only be applied within the current major realm. For example, using a +2 spirit power reward at level 29 allows advancement directly to level 31. However, exceeding realm limits is not allowed. A +3 reward at level 29 will still only reach level 31. Multiple rewards obtained within the same major realm are restricted accordingly…]
---
Yu Xiaogang frowned slightly, feeling puzzled.
"Are you listening to me?"
Yin Zhang's expression returned to calm. He glanced at Yu Xiaogang, said nothing, walked straight to the counter, paid the bill, and left the restaurant.
Yu Xiaogang was left standing there, stunned.
"What?"
He couldn't understand it at all.
Ever since he sat down with his bowl of noodles, he had been observing Yin Zhang eat. The kid's appetite was astonishing.
"Made me wait for nothing…"
"When school starts, I'll make him beg me to take him as my disciple!"
In Yu Xiaogang's eyes, his mastery of martial soul theory was unparalleled.
Teaching a six-year-old child would be effortless.
When the time came, he would simply explain the child's martial soul and related theories—surely that would be enough!
"Charizard? What kind of martial soul is that…?"
"I'll look it up when I get back to the academy. Could it be some newly mutated martial soul?"
Frowning, Yu Xiaogang left the restaurant.
---
Early the next morning, Yin Zhang woke up at the inn and headed to the nearby Spirit Hall.
He boarded a carriage with Ma Xiunuo and traveled to the market outside the Soul Hunting Forest, some distance away from Nuoding City.
"Xiao Zhang," Ma Xiunuo reminded him, "when you're outside, most strangers aren't trustworthy. Even though you're young, you must never let your guard down."
Despite his advanced age, Ma Xiunuo's status as the Spirit Hall branch master caused pedestrians to instinctively avoid him.
Yin Zhang nodded.
"I understand, Grandpa Ma Xiunuo."
Although elderly, Ma Xiunuo was a Spirit Ancestor, with cultivation close to that of a Spirit King. Combined with his position, he wielded considerable authority in a place like Nuoding City.
After entering the Soul Hunting Forest, Ma Xiunuo continued as they walked.
"Xiao Zhang, your martial soul is Charizard—a fire-attribute, Dragon-type martial soul."
"Ideally, we should find you a hundred-year Dragon-type spirit beast. If that's not possible, a fire-attribute spirit beast will suffice."
"However, Dragon-type spirit beasts are rare in the Soul Hunting Forest. You need to be mentally prepared."
Yin Zhang understood.
Small spirit beast forests like the Soul Hunting Forest were scattered across the Douluo Continent. They were jointly established by Spirit Hall and the two great empires, but true control rested with Spirit Hall.
That was likely why, in the original story, when Yu Xiaogang brought Tang San here and Tang San asked about the forest's ownership, Yu Xiaogang warned him never to ask such questions in public.