Little Root Academy Part 2

In the evening sun, a little boy who was only 6 years old had finished changing into his new school uniform, after making a new friend. This new friend was the first child his age that he had met besides the few children in his village.

Ye Guiying had finished changing, leaving his old clothes folded neatly on his bed. The uniform was already ironed well, so there were no creases to be seen. The dark uniform fit him very well, making him look drastically different from the old rags he has been wearing before.

After changing, his stomach felt empty as if a piece of him had been taken away. His stomach growled as he left the dorm room led by Xia Jingyi. The two little boys wore their new uniforms and left the dorms to have dinner.

Ye Guiying hadn't explored Little Root Academy yet, so he didn't know where anywhere was. Xia Jingyi lent him a map of the campus that he had obtained earlier and memorized, as Ye Guiying followed the lead and read the contents of the map.

After a few minutes, he had memorized every location on the map, as well as the rough distance to each location. Putting the map away, he eventually arrived at the dining hall with Xia Jingyi. Even though the school term hadn't begun yet, the dining hall would be open for the students who lived on campus to enjoy the meals.

The menu was very large, with all kinds of dishes from many places. Everything was free for the students since their parents had paid for them to be able to attend. In actual fact, the fees they paid weren't nearly enough for the facilities, food, and dorm rooms, as well as education. The Spirit Hall themselves sponsored a majority of the fees, allowing many children no matter their background to attend. Those who came from greater backgrounds, however, were exempted from this benefit since their families could afford it.

Inside the dining hall, there were many free tables, enough to fit the entire school within and still have space for everyone to move about. They found a table, as they went up to the counter to choose what they wanted to eat. Xia Jingyi had already decided, while Ye Guiying was still undecided.

The meals he ate at home were simple and the variety was very little, only being slightly changed up so that it wouldn't be boring. Since the menu was so large, Ye Guiying didn't know what to eat, there were over a hundred different items on the menu! After pondering for a bit more, he finally decided on a dish that was filled with meat, rice, vegetables, and soup. It was a very balanced meal.

Since there were so many items, he could go through all of them within the next five years, he would never get bored of the menu even if he were to repeat the menu a few times. Settling down, he waited for the food with Xia Jingyi sitting across from him.

Despite looking like a very cold person, Xia Jingyi was actually quite nice. His given name quite matched him. In his seat, Ye Guiying looked around and memorized the interior of the dining hall, after all, he would come here for three meals a day for the next five years.

Soon, his meal arrived on his table, as saliva started dripping from his mouth. Before he ate, he thanked the person bringing him the meal, as he began to eat immediately. Xia Jingyi also started eating his meal very shortly afterward.

Once they finished their meal, Ye Guiying and Xia Jingyi left the dining hall and explored the campus. Even though the campus was very large, it didn't take them too long to visit every location. When they finished, they both returned to their dorm room for the night.

******

Inside his room, Ye Guiying had finished taking a bath. His hair was still wet, and steam came off his body when he exited. He quickly changed after being nude for a few moments and sat on his bed while Xia Jingyi went in to have his bath.

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Ye Guiying very quickly cleared his thoughts and entered his little world within his mind. There, he flew towards the Tree Spirit which only came to life when he approached it and communicated with it.

While this was happening, Xia Jingyi had finished taking his bath. He noticed a thin golden light enveloping Ye Guiying's entire body, which was brimming with life. He didn't know what it was exactly, but he knew that this roommate of his was special. Even from where he came from, he had never seen nor heard anything like this happening before.

"He will be strong." Xia Jingyi thought. He didn't mind, since they would spend the next five years together. If he had a strong rival, he would be able to grow as they both grew from their rivalry.

Xia Jingyi finished his bath and sat on his bed to cultivate as well. Within moments, a pitch-black aura surrounded his entire body. His white hair moved about in a frenzy, while the rest of his body was perfectly fine. If one were to be watching, they would see that his hair color was constantly changing from white to black, and black to white endlessly.

Inside his mind, Ye Guiying opened his eyes. The Tree Spirit made him feel as lively as ever, and he also felt that he was getting closer to it. He turned around and flew off far into the distance, looking at the large red-gold Sword Spirit in the far distance, Ye Guiying flew towards it. It took him a while, but he eventually made it. When he got close, the Sword Spirit reacted to him.

It started shaking, as its shape suddenly started changing. The red-gold light around it shone ever more brightly, as the circular part of the Sword Spirit Split off and became a Shield Spirit. Ye Guiying's second Spirit was not a Sword Spirit, but rather, a Sword-Shield Spirit!

It could split off and become both, or change form to become either a Sword or a Shield Spirit, that was more powerful when combined. Such a thing was unheard of within the entire annals of history in the Douluo Continent. He then realized that his father was right. Such a thing shouldn't be revealed to the public until he was strong enough to protect himself. His mother also reminded him not to add any Spirit Rings to this second Spirit, which he had agreed to.

He would only reveal his Tree Spirit in which everyone believed is extremely weak, and even on the same level or worse than Blue Silver Grass! The Sword-Shield Spirit quickly combined together and formed a Shield Spirit.

It was a very interesting shape. The Shield Spirit was a diamond, with two sharp edges at the top and bottom. The two edges on the side slightly resembled the wings of a bird, and the design was exquisite, unlike anything he had ever seen before. Any resemblance to the Sword Spirit was almost non-existent, except for the wing-like edges on the side.

Looking at the Shield Spirit, the edges seemed a little unusual. He got closer and realized that if he willed it, the Shield Spirit could open up the hidden components on the edges, which could be used to attack!

Soon, the Shield Spirit transformed back into a Sword Spirit with a circular shape around the handle. The Sword Spirit's shape was also unusual. The edge was sharp and straight and became slightly thinner in the center. There was also a red line running down through the middle of the sword.

From where he was, he could sense a peculiar sensation coming from the Sword Spirit, it was very different to the feeling he got from the Tree Spirit, but they both felt similar in that they felt familiar. Of course, this was because both Spirits were his own, otherwise, he wouldn't be feeling such a sensation.

Soon, he left the little world in his mind and opened his eyes, as he realized that it was already morning. The new school term would begin in two days, starting from the beginning of a new week, students who commuted to the Academy would start arriving at the Academy starting from today, and all be there before the end of the break.

Opening his eyes, Ye Guiying felt relaxed as he looked around. He saw that the room was empty and that he was the only one inside. Getting up, he made his bed before heading into the bath to wash his face and go to the toilet. When he finished, Ye Guiying had spent a bit of time already, so he went to the dining hall for breakfast.

Leaving his room, he locked the door and made sure to check three times before he left. Outside the dorm room, he could see a few male students who were new students just like he was. He was never an outgoing person, he wouldn't go out of his way to make friends with everyone unless they greeted or approached him first.

Soon, he left the dorms and arrived in the dining hall. Finding a table for himself, he quickly chose something from the menu and seated himself. Looking around, there were quite a few students back already. Many of them were from different grades and already had friend groups. Soon, his food arrived in which he finished pretty fast. Once he finished his meal, he returned his plates and left the dining hall.

******

The school term hadn't begun yet, he was born with Innate Full Spirit Power at Rank 10 with dual Spirits. He had a Spirit Ring already, while he couldn't add any Spirit Rings to the second one. The school term would soon begin, in which he would be assigned a class to spend for the next year. He would also have a teacher for the first time, giving him many new experiences.

Around Little Root city, there was a forest filled with Spirit Beasts, called the Littledou Forest. There, various kinds of Spirit Beasts ranging from 10 - 100,000 Year Spirit Beasts could be found. Of course, the stronger ones of 10,000 Years and above were hidden away in the deeper parts. Only those that were 1000 Years or so and under would be found in the outer area of the forest.

He still had permission to leave the school grounds, since the school term hadn't begun yet. Ye Guiying decided to head to Littledou Forest, which wasn't too far away from the City. It would only take a few hours on foot, and give him plenty of time to explore the outer area and return to school grounds.

After a few hours, Ye Guiying finally arrived at the entrance of Littledou Forest. For a child his age, this was extremely dangerous, and even Spirit Masters above Rank 20 would still be careful around the outer areas.

Nobody was around to stop him from entering, the entrance was wide open for anyone to enter, only a sign that read, 'Do not enter' could be seen, but even the sign itself was broken and barely readable.

Walking through the entrance of the Littledou Forest, Ye Guiying was being extra careful when he entered and looked around. He didn't sense anyone or anything around him, but just in case, he prepared to summon his Spirits at any time. Nobody knew him, even if someone was in the forest, so if he revealed his Sword-Shield Spirit on its own, nobody would take too much notice of him, besides for his very young age.

Soon, the surroundings of the entrance of Littledou Forest started changing. It was no longer just thick trees and bushes, instead, strange mushrooms and other plants he had never seen or heard of before were right around him. He didn't approach them, since he didn't know what was safe and what wasn't, randomly touching or approaching something unknown such as wild plants were sometimes even more dangerous than approaching a Spirit Beast.