"Sigh~"
An aged voice rang out.
Xuanzi, munching on a chicken leg with a string of gourds hanging from his waist, stared at Su Wen in surprise.
Before the latter could react, he grabbed Su Wen's wrist, his eyes narrowing as he sensed the soul power within him...
"Huh?"
Xuanzi exclaimed, "Damn, what incredible luck! You guys really stumbled upon a rare treasure."
"I found it! I found it!" Ma Xiaotao said excitedly.
"Alright, go play." Xuanzi gave a perfunctory hum and waved his hand, "Le Xuan, come with me, the rest of you stay put."
Su Wen felt dizzy, and the next moment, he appeared on the canopy of an ancient tree.
It was extremely high up here.
Looking down, through the dense foliage, he could vaguely see the campfire below and Shrek Academy disciples the size of ants.
A moment later, Zhang Lexuan stood gracefully not far away, her academy robes fluttering in the wind, further accentuating her slender figure.
Seeing Su Wen looking over, this senior sister tossed her long hair, revealing a serene smile.
"Child, can you tell me what your martial soul is?" Xuanzi asked with a smile, his tone kind.
"Capturing soul beasts, you can think of it as manipulating soul beasts."
Su Wen didn't hesitate at all.
Since he had decided to join Shrek Academy, the first step was to demonstrate his value and acquire enough resources to strengthen himself.
Although Shrek Academy had many flaws, it was quite loyal to its members, especially in cultivating "core" disciples, where it was absolutely dedicated and meticulous.
Moreover, in the Douluo Continent transmigration genre, there was a deeply ingrained consensus: those who wanted a technologically advanced experience went to Sun Moon Academy, while those who wanted a traditional experience went to Shrek Academy.
The Body Sect was no less protective of its members than Shrek Academy, and their strength was comparable, but unfortunately, he encountered Shrek Academy first, so he could only say they were destined to be apart…
Of course, most importantly, he would most likely be considered one of Shrek's "own people."
Just as he expected, Xuanzi couldn't hide his joy.
A six-year-old child, all alone, was practically a divinely ordained heir to the Sea God Pavilion! As for his ability to control soul beasts, he was even more astonished.
This kind of mental control martial soul, combined with innate full soul power, would definitely secure him a place among the top martial souls.
"Then, would you be willing to join Shrek Academy?"
Xuanzi's voice trembled slightly.
It should be known that Ma Xiaotao, with innate soul power at level nine, was hailed as a genius rarely seen in the academy's history, and another being with innate full soul power was standing beside him—Zhang Lexuan, whom the elders of the Sea God Pavilion tacitly considered the next generation's heir to the Sea God Pavilion, the number one genius of the inner academy.
"I'm willing!"
Su Wen replied without hesitation.
"Hahahaha, good child!" Xuanzi danced with joy.
"However..." Su Wen hesitated.
Seeing this, Xuanzi's smile vanished instantly, and he and Zhang Lexuan dared not utter a sound, nervously watching Su Wen.
"I still need to acquire my first controllable soul beast," Su Wen said, scratching his head.
With Elder Xuan as a top-tier tool, there was no harm in using him.
"Easy! Elder Xuan will personally take you to catch one!"
Xuan Zi patted his chest, secretly relieved: "Don't even mention a thousand-year-old or ten-thousand-year-old beast, even a ferocious beast that has been entrenched in the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest for three or four hundred thousand years, Elder Xuan will still bring it to you!"
"That's not necessary, ten years is enough."
"Ten years? Oh, that's normal, after all, you've only just begun, you still need to hunt for your first soul ring…"
"I already have my first soul ring."
As soon as he finished speaking, the first luminous white soul ring lit up beneath Su Wen's feet.
Xuan Zi was stunned, then flew into a rage: "Who the hell filled Su Wen's first soul ring?! Which little brat did it?" He was about to roll up his sleeves and go down to give him a good beating.
"Myself," Su Wen said.
Xuanzi:
"..."
"It's innate to my Martial Soul," Su Wen explained.
"I see. Well, there's nothing we can do about it then. It's just a pity about the first Soul Ring. A genius like you should at least have a Soul Beast with a maximum age of four hundred years. Sigh..." Xuanzi said helplessly.
"However, it seems I can increase the age," Su Wen clicked his tongue.
"Can increase..What the hell?!" Xuanzi stared at him blankly, and even Zhang Lexuan's beautiful eyes widened.
"As the cultivation of the first Soul Beast I capture increases, the age of my Soul Ring will also increase along with its age," Su Wen said, spreading his hands.
Elder Xuan:
"..."
He and Zhang Lexuan exchanged a glance.
"I think I need to go back and report this to Elder Mu," he said, his throat bobbing as he spoke each word clearly.
...
"Whoosh!"
A green shadow flashed through the forest, leaving only a faint afterimage, causing the trees on both sides to sway.
It roamed freely in this sea of trees, like a ghost.
But the next moment.
The azure figure was gently grasped in a fair hand, and despite its struggles, it could not break free.
"Qingfeng, a bird-like soul beast with extremely fast flight speed. Judging by its wing length, it's about seventeen years old."
Zhang Lexuan slowly opened her hand, revealing a tiny, trembling azure bird nestled in her palm.
Its feathers were entirely pale azure, making it look like a delicate work of art.
"But its abilities are too singular," Su Wen shook his head.
"It doesn't even have an attribute."
Maximizing speed would indeed be incredibly powerful, but it would require a huge investment.
In the initial selection phase, he preferred an all-around soul beast, one that was strong in both offense and defense, and whose speed wasn't too lacking.
This Qingfeng, frankly, was several levels above even the Wind Baboon that nearly killed a god back then—humans at least had the wind attribute, making them highly potential for growth.
Of course, most importantly, there was a line of small print in front of Su Wen:
[Qingfeng Bird, cultivation 17.5 years, no attribute, no potential, no training value]
"Three-nothing soul beasts..."
That's right. Since awakening their martial souls, the attribute panel for detecting soul beasts has also been generated, saving a lot of trouble.
It's like a "humanoid soul beast catalog."
And along the way, most ten-year soul beasts are not much different.
That is, the potential column is not empty, but it is pitifully low.
There's no way around it.
Ten-year soul beasts are at the bottom of the soul beast food chain.
They are either newly evolved from wild beasts or born from other ten-year soul beasts—one day is ten years, a lifetime is ten years.
Their bloodline is firmly locked, unless it's a very few mutated soul beasts...
"Buzz~"
Seeing that the two weren't paying attention to it, Qingfeng's dark eyes rolled, and its figure flew out like a bolt of lightning.
It circled a few times in the air to increase its speed, and then flew towards the sky again.
It didn't dare to stay on the ground for a moment.
Zhang Lexuan slowly lowered her hand, her beautiful eyes watching the emerald green bird fly out of the forest.
She slightly raised her head until its figure was no longer visible.
She clapped her hands with a heroic air and glanced at the stunned Su Wen.
Her beautiful eyes softened slightly; her sternness was reserved for her junior brothers and sisters in the inner courtyard, but with a six-year-old child—she could only overflow with maternal love.
Elder Xuan had gone to the inner courtyard to report. This kind of strategically important individual, barring any unforeseen circumstances, would be a key figure in the academy's future development, even surpassing Ma Xiaotao.
Because this was the outer edge of the Star Dou Great Forest, the danger level was extremely low, and it was very close to Shrek Academy.
At Elder Xuan's speed, a round trip would only take a day, without delaying his journey.
(End of Chapter)