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It was that same evening. On the fifth floor of the boy's dormitory, the air was still.
"Where... am I?"
When Tang Wulin blearily opened his eyes in the empty dormitory, he found himself lying on his bed. He instinctively sat up, his head throbbing, and met Wu Changkong's silent, icy gaze.
"You're awake."
"Teacher Wu, I..." Confusion clouded Tang Wulin's features. He remembered arriving at East Sea Park to begin his evening meditation. How had that led to him waking up in his room?
"Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan brought you back. They said they found you passed out by the roadside," Wu Changkong explained succinctly, his expression unreadable. "You don't remember what happened?"
"I was meditating in East Sea Park... then everything went black. I don't know anything else," Tang Wulin said, shaking his head.
A strange look crossed Wu Changkong's face—a mix of grim silence and lingering shock. He hesitated, then reached into his pocket. "See for yourself."
He produced a soul tool and swiped to a photo. The screen showed East Sea Park, but it was unrecognizable. The lush greenery had been replaced by scorched earth and shattered stone. It was a wasteland of ruins.
"This—!!!" Tang Wulin's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Is this really the park?"
"A battle between peak-level Titled Douluos erupted there today. It was reduced to rubble in minutes," Wu Changkong said. "According to Xie Xie, they found you unconscious at the very edge of the destruction. I thought you were just caught in the shockwave, but now it seems you were right in the heart of it."
He looked at the boy with a hint of amazement. "You have more lives than a cat, brat."
Wu Changkong didn't know it was the protection of a God King, but surviving a Titled Douluo battlefield with nothing but a fainting spell was, in his eyes, a statistical miracle.
"I've checked your vitals; you're physically fine. Since you're awake, return to your schedule," Wu Changkong said. "But be prepared. This weekend, the entire class is heading to a special venue. I expect you in peak condition."
"Old Tang? Are you there?"
On the way back to his room, Tang Wulin's mind was racing. A Titled Douluo battle? He was lucky to be alive, and he knew it had to be Old Tang's doing. But as he entered his dorm and sensed only a hollow silence in his mind, his blood ran cold.
"Old Tang! Answer me!"
No reply. Silence.
Panic set in. Tang Wulin scrambled onto his bed, sat cross-legged, and dove into his spiritual world. He bypassed the towering, terrifying silhouette of the Golden Dragon King and arrived at the spot where the black-robed figure usually stood.
It was empty.
"Old Tang... is gone?"
Tang Wulin jolted awake in the real world, his face pale. Old Tang was his only guide, his only source of knowledge regarding the 18 Seals of the Golden Dragon King. Without him, he was a blind man walking a tightrope over an abyss.
"The seals... can I really carry this burden alone?" He collapsed back onto the mattress, staring at the ceiling in utter despair.
But then, a spark of stubbornness flared in his chest. No. Even without him, I have to live. For my parents. For my future. He forced himself to breathe. For now, he just had to survive the first seal.
"No classes today. We're heading to the Spirit Pagoda."
Saturday morning arrived, and Wu Changkong addressed Class Zero with a rare, faint smile.
"Teacher Wu, are we finally going to the Spirit Ascension Platform?" Wei Xiaofeng asked, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Exactly," Wu Changkong nodded.
"Teacher... what is the Spirit Ascension Platform?" Tang Wulin raised his hand, looking like a lost puppy.
"It's a specialized virtual reality environment created by the Spirit Pagoda. It allows Spirit Masters to battle soul beasts to raise their Spirit Soul's age," Wu Changkong explained. "Xie Xie and Gu Yue's purple rings were achieved through this platform. The academy has secured entry for all of you."
Tang Wulin's eyes lit up. Raise the Spirit Soul's age? That meant he could evolve his ten-year grass soul!
As they boarded the academy car, Tang Wulin nudged Wei Xiaofeng. "Have you guys been there before?"
"Mhm," Wei Xiaofeng chuckled. "The Boss is highly valued by the Pagoda; he gets to go twice a month. The rest of us go less often. Besides the Boss's five-thousand-year soul, the rest of us are all around nine hundred years."
Tang Wulin froze, his mouth hanging open. "Wait... did you just say Xie Xie's Spirit Soul is... five thousand years old?!"
Wei Xiaofeng nodded nonchalantly. Tang Wulin fell into a stunned silence. He looked over at Xie Xie, who was leaning against the window, looking bored. Five thousand years? His own was barely ten! The gap wasn't a mountain—it was a whole different planet.
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