Chapter 7: Tang San’s Arrival

One year and three months later.

Atop a small peak behind Notting City, buffeted by fierce winds, a child clad in a teal outfit sat cross-legged. A faint teal glow shimmered around his body, clearly indicating he was deep in meditation and cultivation.

After a long while, as dusk settled, the child opened his eyes and exhaled deeply. “Finally, my soul power has reached level 10. Next, I can hunt for my first soul ring.”

This child was none other than Mo Hui. Over the course of just over a year, his soul power had surged from level 3 to level 10.

Such rapid progress was unexpected even by Mo Hui himself. Generally, a soul master born with level 3 soul power might only advance two levels in a year, but Mo Hui’s growth was nearly triple that pace.

There were many reasons behind this swift rise, but the main ones were as follows.

First, Mo Hui’s diligence in cultivation. Apart from eating and studying, he spent almost all his time meditating and cultivating—at least twice as long daily as other students.

Second, Mo Hui had studied the relationship between the excess energy absorbed by Bobo after feeding and the body’s capacity to endure soul power, refining this unique method of enhancement.

Because it closely resembled how soul masters absorb soul rings, Mo Hui named it the Soul Ring Absorption Simulation Method.

A year of practice had given him an extraordinary familiarity with the sudden influx of energy within his body, which would aid him in absorbing soul rings.

Third, through his studies over the year, Mo Hui gradually optimized Bobo’s meditation technique. Now, this version improved cultivation speed by 20% compared to the original, rivaling the meditation techniques naturally possessed by soul masters at levels four or five.

The final factor was his current environment.

The Mimicry Training Ground was a cultivation method from the original tale, designed to simulate environments similar to one’s martial soul to accelerate growth.

At first, Mo Hui believed places with many birds were best suited for Bobo, so he trained at several chicken and pigeon farms.

But after a few days, he found the effect was minimal at best.

After much experimentation, Mo Hui finally determined Bobo’s attribute: wind!

In fact, Mo Hui should have realized sooner. In the Pokémon world, Bobo’s type was Normal and Flying, and flying naturally corresponded to wind in the Douluo Continent.

Upon discovering this, he found his current location, where the wind was strong. Training here boosted his meditation efficiency by 20%.

“I should head back now, or the city gates of Notting will close,” he said.

Rising to his feet, Mo Hui activated his soul power and sprinted toward Notting City.

---

As a border military city, Notting naturally had a curfew. If Mo Hui didn’t return before the gates shut, he would have to spend the night outside the city.

Mo Hui felt helpless about this. After all, he was merely seven years old, and the darkness outside was quite dangerous for him. Otherwise, he could have stayed longer to cultivate and advanced even faster.

Thanks to his soul power, Mo Hui’s physical abilities were now on par with an adult, allowing him to swiftly return to Notting Academy.

Upon arrival, he immediately shared the news of his breakthrough to level 10 with Mo Hen.

“What! You’ve already reached level 10 soul power!?” Mo Hen was shocked but also somewhat unsurprised.

He and the teachers and students at the academy had witnessed Mo Hui’s relentless effort over the past year. Not only had he completed all the coursework for the sixth grade, but he had also read most of the books related to martial souls.

In their eyes, Mo Hui was an undeniable genius with a terrifying work ethic.

In all their years of teaching, they had never seen a student who sacrificed sleep entirely to cultivate soul power at night. Even the most hardworking work-study students still slept six to seven hours daily.

But Mo Hui did not. Over the past year, he had scarcely slept. He was either learning or meditating.

The teachers couldn’t help but sigh: if only all students were like Mo Hui, they wouldn’t have some still unable to graduate by sixth grade. Three years would suffice for these children to become soul masters!

The only regret was that level 3 innate soul power was still somewhat low; otherwise, becoming a Soul Saint or even a Douluo Spirit would not be a mere dream. The thought of someday reaching Title Douluo was even imaginable.

“Yes, Uncle Mo Hen, I’m already at level 10,” Mo Hui nodded.

If he had a system or similar aid, he could have taken it easy. After all, many resource issues could be resolved with such systems, allowing him to focus solely on cultivation.

But without one, he had to showcase his talent and prove his worth to attract attention and investment.

Only when others saw him would Mo Hui receive sufficient resources.

Given the current circumstances, Mo Hui could not afford to play the fool. Without external resources, pretending might eventually make the act real.

Thinking of this, Mo Hui envied Xiao Yan. With Master Yao’s alchemy expertise as a side skill, resource problems were easily solved. He could comfortably cultivate until reaching Title Douluo before making a grand return.

“Alright, I understand. With new students arriving these days, the teachers are busy. In a couple of days, I’ll gather a few teachers to help you hunt soul rings in the Soul Hunting Forest!” Mo Hen said after calming his thoughts.

---

After a while, Mo Hen sent off his inquisitive nephew. Watching Mo Hui’s retreating figure, Mo Hen murmured, “My nephew’s future achievements may well surpass our imaginations!”

---

The next afternoon.

“Xiao San, that’s Notting Academy. You must obey the teachers and never leave the academy without permission. When the semester ends, Grandpa Jack will come to pick you up,” Old Jack said, looking toward the academy gates nearby.

Tang San nodded and, led by Old Jack, approached the gates of Notting Academy.

As soon as they reached the gate, a young guard stopped them. “What are you doing here? Is this a place for country bumpkins like you?”

Seeing Old Jack and Tang San’s shabby clothing, the guard’s eyes flashed with disdain and contempt.

Old Jack hurriedly smiled apologetically. “Young man, we come from Saint Soul Village. This boy is our village’s work-study student for this year. What procedures do we need to complete?”

“Another work-study student!?” The guard’s face changed upon hearing those words, vividly recalling the scene of Mo Hui more than a year ago.

“Do you have proof? Let me see it.”

Because of Mo Hui’s precedent, the guard’s tone softened as he took the certificate from Old Jack. But upon reading it, his expression grew strange.

“Blue Silver Grass, full innate soul power? This must be fake.”