Chapter 2

I left the Spirit Hall, feeling the corners of my mouth lift. My mother was waiting outside, a mix of anxiety and hope on her face.

"Lin, how did it go?" she asked, barely containing her excitement.

"It went really well. I'll tell you what happened when we get home, it's a surprise." Hearing this, she seemed a bit more relaxed.

"Well, since you said it went well, I'll make your favorite pork stew with potatoes."

On the way home, my mother couldn't stop talking about the opportunities that would open up for me if I became a very powerful Soul Master.

When we entered our house, Mom seemed to be full of expectations and anxiety, so I raised my right hand and recalled how I felt when I used my martial soul for the first time. I manifested my martial soul. "I awakened a martial soul called Poké Ball, Mom. Also, I have innate full soul power," I said with much joy.

Her eyes looked very confused upon seeing the form of my martial soul for a moment. But after I mentioned I had innate full soul power, I could see the happiness she felt from the big smile she showed for a moment.

"Are you serious?" she asked with slight doubts and great joy.

"Yes, even the person in charge of the Spirit Hall for awakening martial souls in the village said I could join the Spirit Hall."

I could see she was about to cry with happiness. "But since I am a filial son, I told him I wouldn't join because I promised Father that I would join Nuoding Academy."

When she heard what I said, it was as if I had dropped a bomb because her expression of happiness changed to one of distress. Before grabbing my shoulders, she said seriously:

"Please tell me this is a joke." She looked at me intently, but despite that, I just shook my head slightly.

"The Grandmaster of the Spirit Hall must still be in the village. Let's go find him and tell him you'll join the Spirit Hall." Honestly, I don't care whether I join the Spirit Hall or not. I like them much more than Tang San because they are a great organization that gives everyone the opportunity to change their fate. But my appreciation only applies to some leaders who implement these rules, like Bibi Dong. Still, I think the current Spirit Hall is full of corruption and political fights, which I don't like much. So, I prefer a much quieter environment to focus on cultivating.

"Mom, I don't think it's a very good idea. I've heard there's a lot of corruption and abuse of power in the Spirit Hall." When I said that, I felt a bad premonition.

Ouch!

My mom hit me on the head with her knuckles, which hurt quite a bit. After all, she's a level seventeen Soul Master. Even though she doesn't have much talent, she's still a Soul Master with a ring.

"Idiot, you live in an almost completely isolated village and don't even talk to the other kids. Who the hell would tell you that information? And how would you know about corruption and abuse of power at your age without having experienced the world?" I felt like an idiot for saying that. Maybe the age of my body is affecting me more than I thought.

"A little bird told me." I could see how my mom got angrier than she already was upon hearing my answer, but she sighed before calming down.

"Alright, you win. You'll go study at the Nuoding Academy, and we'll ask your father to help you get a soul ring."

"Thank you, Mom. I love you very much!" I thought she would soften a bit with my response, but she gave me a death glare.

When I entered my room, I jumped out the window into the garden. Then I started climbing a big tree nearby. It's amazing the amount of vegetation all around the place.

I still don't know how it works. Will I be able to capture soul beasts like Pokémon if I throw the Poké Ball at them? Or will they be captured when I absorb their soul ring? These doubts keep bothering me. I looked at the cat that always comes looking for food. If I remember correctly, it's a soul beast of just over ten years, so it wouldn't be worth capturing.

Although, for some reason, it has never attacked me, even though it's a bit hostile to Mom because it tries to scratch her when she gets too close. Maybe my martial soul makes soul beasts less hostile to me.

Wait a minute, now that I think about it, there's a very powerful rabbit near the Nuoding Academy. Depending on how my martial soul works, I might have the chance to capture a rabbit and thus have my own hundred-thousand-year-old Pokémon.

I almost slapped myself. I feel like a hypocrite. Right now, that rabbit is not very different from a human girl. So, I think I'm being a bit cruel wanting to take away its freedom. Besides, I shouldn't do it near Tang Hao.

Suddenly, I saw a person approaching the house and starting to knock on the door.

I went back through the window and went downstairs. My mother had opened the door, and the person who had come was Ru Hei.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Can I talk to you about your son's future?" I walked until I was next to Mom.

"Alright, you can come in." Mom invited him in.

The sight was very strange, seeing the member of the Spirit Hall sitting at the same table as me.

"I would like your son to join the Spirit Hall. He has a great future, and the Spirit Hall will give him many resources that will allow his talent to flourish to the fullest."

"I'm sorry, but my son has already decided to go to the Nuoding Academy," Mom said, as if there was no room for negotiation. I was worried Ru Hei would take action and attack Mom, but to my surprise, he just seemed a bit disappointed.

He sighed before saying, "Alright, I won't insist on him going to the Spirit Hall anymore, but in return, I would like to make you an offer." An offer?

"What kind of offer?" Mom asked with many doubts about what Ru Hei had said.

"I want your son to be registered as a soul master with a soul power of level 8. I don't ask this without any compensation. I will give you ten gold coins." My mom didn't seem very convinced by the 'offer' Ru Hei mentioned.

"Why would you ask for something like that?" I asked naively.

"It's nothing special. It's just that if my superiors find out I couldn't convince an innate full soul power, I will be severely punished and demoted, which would be a real headache and humiliation." Now I understand his reason for asking for such a strange request, and it seems Mom thinks the same.

"Alright, we accept your offer. Can you issue the certificate?"

Ru Hei started taking out the soul master certificate and a scholarship for the Nuoding Academy, along with a bag with some gold coins.

"Well, that's it. From today, we've never seen each other," he said before leaving the place.

"Mom, can I keep some of the gold coins?" I asked, hoping to have some money to spend.

"Sure, you can keep them all. Your father earns five times more than this amount of money without even working." That brief response left me in shock.

"Is Dad a Soul Elder?"

Mom went to the kitchen, and I followed her. "Yes, his soul power is level thirty-one, and he's one of the teachers at the Nuoding Academy. Although he doesn't teach many classes, he's one of the teachers who help students hunt their second ring to graduate." Mom started serving the food that was already ready.

"I thought he was at most a Soul Grandmaster. Why do we live in such an isolated place then?" I felt uncomfortable, as if my entire short life had been a lie.

"Because since you were a baby, you were very bothered by the noise of people and easily stressed out. A doctor told us it was caused by great stress, so this place surrounded by vegetation and fewer people was the most suitable place for your growth. That's why I left Nuoding City with you." Now that I think about it, I remember something like that. But who would blame me? Besides speaking another language, everyone talked so fast that all I understood were completely random sounds with no purpose, and that gave me headaches and a lot of stress.

"Alright. So, are we going to the Nuoding Academy tomorrow?"

"No, we will go immediately after eating." Isn't that too sudden?