Yu Xiaogang

Lan Si looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man holding a Soul Master certificate, gently leading a child into the room.

The middle-aged man appeared to be around the age of forty or fifty, of medium height, slightly thin, with an ordinary appearance, thick lips, a buzz cut, and a face adorned with stubble, giving him a somewhat dispirited look. 

However, he maintained a faint smile on his face, indicating that he felt quite good at the moment.

Like the middle-aged man, the child's appearance was also quite ordinary. He looked about five or six years old, wearing a coarse linen outfit and had a wheat-colored complexion. Perhaps due to malnutrition, despite being of similar age to Lan Si, he looked very small and was half a head shorter than Lan Si.

While Lan Si was sizing them up, they were observing him as well. From Director Su, they had heard that Lan Si's soul power had already reached the ninth level. Could it be that this child, who appeared tender and beautiful, was a genius with innate soul power at the ninth level?

The middle-aged man placed the Soul Master certificate on the table and said to Director Su, "Director Su, this is a part-time student sent by Holy Soul Village this year; please help him with the registration."

Director Su smiled and said, "Isn't this Master Yu? What brings you here? It's a rare visit. Come, have a seat."

As he spoke, Director Su was about to signal for someone to bring in chairs.

Master Yu glanced at Lan Si to his side, hesitated for a moment, shook his head, and said to the child, "You register here by yourself; I'll come find you later."

The child observed Master Yu's expression and, though he did not understand why Master Yu was particularly concerned about Lan Si, he nodded and respectfully said, "Goodbye, teacher."

Listening to the conversation, Lan Si finally confirmed that these two were Yu Xiaogang and Tang San.

"You've become a disciple of Master Yu?" Director Su looked at Tang San with a somewhat strange expression.

Tang San frowned and said, "Is there something wrong with that?"

Director Su shook his head repeatedly and expressed with some regret, "No, it's just a bit unexpected for Master Yu to take on students. Please wait a moment, I'll register this student first."

Tang San nodded slowly, standing quietly to the side.

As Director Su put Tang San's Soul Master certificate under Lan Si's, he smiled at Lan Si, saying, "Lan Si, your innate soul power on the certificate clearly states it's level five; why did the test show it as level nine? Can you tell me, so I can correct it if the Spirit Hall made a mistake?"

Lan Si shook his head and delivered the explanation he had already prepared: "Director, the registration above is correct. I awakened my Soul Master a few months ago, and the reason my soul power increased to level nine is due to studying meditation with a kind Soul Master during this time."

Upon hearing this, Director Su understood. However, to elevate soul power by four levels in just a few months was already extraordinary talent.

He softened his gaze and said, "Lan Si, I've already registered your information. However, since you aren't a part-time student, you'll need to pay five golden soul coins as tuition each year. Of course, in return, you'll enjoy much better living conditions and can have a single room with two to three people."

Lan Si nodded thoughtfully for a moment and suddenly said, "Director, I'd like to pay a bit more; could I have a single room?" His cultivation method was quite unique, and when it approached a breakthrough, green arcs of electricity and icy white flames would surround him, which was too exaggerated to be known by outsiders.

"Well..." Director Su hesitated a bit, as there had never been such a precedent since the establishment of Nuoding Academy. But considering Lan Si's outstanding talent, he still agreed.

"Alright, I can apply to the principal for a separate dormitory for you, but you'll have to pay two golden soul coins annually to the academy. For now, you can stay in the part-time student dormitory. It's in Building No. 7. Here is your academy uniform." As he spoke, Director Su took out a package from under the desk.

"Thank you, Director." Lan Si gladly accepted. Not revealing his wealth, Lan Si symbolically reached into his clothing and took out seven golden soul coins from the soul guide device in his sleeve.

His parents' soul guide contained hundreds of golden soul coins. Seven golden soul coins each year were manageable, especially considering that when he became a Soul Master, he could receive subsidies from the Spirit Hall every month, so he didn't have to worry about money in the short term.

After receiving the items from Director Su and thinking that he might need to secretly rely on Tang San's meteor shower technique in the future, Lan Si nodded at Tang San, acknowledging him, and then left the administrative office.

Seeing Lan Si walking away, Tang San didn't pay much attention, thinking he was just a privileged second-generation with good upbringing, and turned to finish his registration with Director Su.

Just a short distance from the administrative office, Lan Si was unexpectedly stopped by a person he did not expect.

"Uncle, is there something you need?" Lan Si calmly looked at Yu Xiaogang.

Noticing that Lan Si, unlike other newcomers, wasn't afraid of him as a great Soul Master, Yu Xiaogang nodded repeatedly, feeling increasingly pleased. 

Not arrogant, not impatient, and calm in handling things; he was indeed a good seedling.

"You are Lan Si, right? I just heard Director Su from the administrative office say you have innate soul power at level nine. Can you show me your martial spirit?"

According to Yu Xiaogang's theory, innate soul power is proportional to the quality of the martial spirit; the higher the innate soul power, the higher the quality of the martial spirit.

Lan Si had innate soul power at level nine; although it couldn't compare to Tang San, who had twin martial spirits and innate full soul power, he could still be considered an extraordinary genius worthy of this theoretical master's guidance.

After all, his theories had yet to be put into practice; he needed a case study for Tang San to serve as practical experience.

Lan Si felt a bit speechless inside; this guy clearly had his sights set on him. He promptly said, "Master, you've misunderstood. My innate soul power is only level five. I awakened my martial spirit early and encountered a kind Soul Master who taught me meditation, which helped raise my soul power to level nine. If you don't believe me, you can ask Director Su."

Upon hearing that Lan Si's innate soul power was only level five, Yu Xiaogang's face immediately darkened, losing his previous amiable demeanor. In his mind, level nine innate soul power was the threshold for accepting students, while level eight would only allow him to give simple guidance.

Level five innate soul power? Dream on if you want to receive theoretical guidance from this master.

"Alright, if there's nothing else, you can go." Yu Xiaogang waved his hand impatiently and turned to leave. He needed to think about how to get closer to Tang San's master-disciple relationship. It seemed Tang San hadn't prepared bedding and food, which he could use as an angle of approach.

This was indeed a good opportunity.

Watching Yu Xiaogang's departing figure, Lan Si sneered internally. The more insecure one is, the more arrogant they become; with innate soul power at level half, he was now looking down on someone with innate soul power at level five.

Too lazy to deal with him, Lan Si took a step forward and continued toward the dormitory arranged by Director Su. Until he got the single room approved, he still needed to stay there for a night.