Exposed

"If all of you believe Battle Armor Masters are merely that, then you are all gravely mistaken." Shen Yi said.

'Wasn't the period over?' 

"Battle Armor Masters are completely different from Mecha pilots," Shen Yi firmly stated. 

"A Mecha pilot puts clothes on their person, but a Battle Armor Master puts clothes on their martial soul because at their core, they are still soul masters. This is the fundamental difference between the two. Let me emphasize this. One-word battle armor masters are simply the beginning. Only at two words, when you're one with your armor and it becomes an extension of your body and martial soul, are you truly considered a Battle Armor Master."

'Then just call that the one word Battle Armor instead of two word Battle Armor.'

"It is for this reason that you must fuse your battle armor with your martial soul first. They must resonate with each other, attract each other until they become whole."

"There are four levels of Battle Armor: one-word, two-word, three-word, and four-word Battle Armor."

"Four levels may not seem like much, but the gap between each one is immeasurably deep. If you want to become a Battle Armor Master, you must pick a secondary profession relating to building the armor. At the moment, the most efficient professions are Mecha Maker and Mecha Designer. Mecha makers carve circuits into their Battle Armor, easing the fusion of Battle Armor and martial soul. Designers create battle armor that perfectly complements their martial soul as you know yourself better than anyone. I suggest you all choose one of these two. Of course, you're all free to choose to become a Blacksmith or a Mecha Mechanic instead. Blacksmithing is both demanding and strenuous, and forging armor is much more difficult. However, it is the most appropriate profession for creating powerful battle armors."

"Not one person can reach the peak of all four professions, so choose wisely. Don't forget that you also need others to help you finish creating your armor, so consider how to best earn contribution points in order to commission them. If their work is good, I suggest befriending them and helping each other out. Personal relationships is a part of one's strength too."

"The strength your Battle Armor can exert depends on your compatibility with it. Perfect unity can boost your power by twenty soul ranks."

"The requirement to become a one-word battle armor master is five soul rings and the third rank in your second profession. Not only that, the metal must be thousand refined, the design drafted by a grandmaster designer, and the armor assembled by a grandmaster maker. Its compatibility rate must be at least sixty percent, and at least nine pieces of armor are needed for it to be considered battle armor."

'Now I am firmly regretting my choice of not learning a secondary profession. Just a bit though. Gaining money was the way to go!'

'I wasn't a designer. Then it's between mecha maker and blacksmith.'

Blacksmithing was something I haven't tried before. I should at least try it, maybe I am a one in a thousand genius.

Let's try both and then I will choose the easier one later. Because no matter how better an occupation is once Shrek gets destroyed, only my personal strength could help me.'

'On that, do I even need a secondary profession. What would Wulin do for me then?"

*Few days later*

Fan Lin was enjoying his life in Shrek. He had already moved to the working students dormitory and become a working student for it. The situation of the dormitory didn't matter to him that much since he spent most of his nights training outside in the forest. Most of the time he fell asleep there after training. Yup, unceremoniously fell asleep whenever he was to tired as he didn't give a damn about using cultivation to ward off his fatigue and such.

None of the working students had seen him in the past days, or since he came. To begin with, they may not even be informed that he lived in the dormitory with them.

The food in the cafeteria was far better than both the Shining Moon Academy and The Eastsea Academy. The cafeteria made many Vegetarian dishes for him at a slightly higher cost as well. His appetite was higher than others but since he paid for the food, the chef was more than happy to serve him.

The contribution points, he exchanged them from the students at a rate of 100 alliance coins to 1 contribution points in the various associations. Now he had more than three million contribution points in his students account and these were just spare change.

'Money has lost its value.'

The boundless training area was the place that he used the most. Training there was far faster for him than training anywhere else due to his evolved Blue Silver Energy Grass and his first Spirit Soul ability. He was a vaccum sucking every drops of soul energy in the boundless hall. With that, he was able to increase one whole level in just 7 days, or at this rate, 10 levels in 70 days.

'Obviously not.'

He had now reached level 27 Soul Grandmaster rank. Now he just needed to continue his daily routine and he would able reach level 30 in less than a month without any internal combustion or bombing.

I won't be called a masochist anymore!

That's how broken the first spirit rings ability had become, but even then, the faults still remains, he would die if he didn't channel the excess energy in his body and his Spirit skill was still an active one. He needed to activate it whenever he needed to and he could not deactivate it before the energy gained from the food has been fully absorbed by him leaving little to no extra energy behind.

Since he was cultivating in an energy rich environment, his food consumption needed to le lessened as the energy requirements had be fulfilled. 

If he didn't though, he would blow up.

He also couldn't keep his Energy Body skill activated for most of the time at Shrek since using soul power on the campus without permission wasn't allowed. Now if he ate more but stopped his first Spirit Soul ability when he still hasn't gotten rid of the energy absorbed through the food, the energy, with no control will burst in him. 

All in all, his death rate has increased if he continued on his previous routine. Hence he scrapped that. Now he ate like the traumatized orphan he was in Glorybound orphanage.

As the days passed, the class representative was chosen. Guess who could it be. Hint: it was still the same as in the novel.

Although all seven representative positions were occupied, there were only four representatives: Class president and forging representative Tang Wulin, vice-president and designer representative Gu Yue, vice-president and mechanic representative Wu Siduo, and lastly, maker representative Luo Guixing.

'Unnecessory fodder.' 

Fan Lin thought while looking at the four of them. He had withdrawn his name from the competition since there was not much to gain and he didn't know anything about his secondary profession.

'I didn't lack wealth and I don't have time to waste on babysitting kids.'

I am learning Mecha Designing by the way. It was the most easiest among the secondary profession and was just like making traps, at least for now. It wasn't the designing that I thought it was. Along with my ultra high spirit power, it was like re-walking in a park that you always used to bury things.

And now I just need information on the workings of this academy so that I can safely leave it when the destruction happens. Can't let any stupid protagonist development act ruin my life.

Plus I remembered that all the teachers and the Current Head of the school died in it.

Hmmm😑.

They were the peak strength of the academy and they died. What could have happened? 

So I fixed an appointment with an information broker to get information on the workings of the Shrek Academy and Shrek city.

Life in Shrek is good for now as my Soul Abilities are helping me in everything but till when. Considering this is all my punishment, I obviously won't have a smooth sailing life ahead of me.

{Who knows, maybe you don't want a peaceful life?}

If you are weak, Information is power.

If you are strong, Information is power.

Currently, I lie in an area between them, neither weak nor strong.

*On the appointment day/ The next day*

I went to the bar to meet the broker. It was a rustic bar just outside the academy. I heard it's a good bar since many people visited it but there are none.

Fan Lin looked at the empty bar with not a single customer in it. He peered at the pathway outside and noticed that the people seem to be avoiding this place.

'Suspicious'

"Prepare to leak everything if I don't contact you in an hour."

I called my bookkeeper and ordered.

I would generally not do this but considering where I am, being cautious is good. I know the things that I have done. Are they good? I will let you decide.

I went inside and into the only room where a person sat. He looked like a middle aged man in his fifties. But a single look and it was quite obvious that he hasn't lost much of his handsomeness.

'Shady adult.'

"Hi Sir, are you the one who will provide me my intel?" I asked the man on full alert.

"Fan Lin, 13 years old, Blue Silver grass martial soul, level 27 Soul Grandmaster, possess a mutated second soul ring and massacred 61 cities' triads, death count 120,045. Current location: Shrek Academy, is a working student and lives in their dorm."

'I knew it.'

"Nice to meet you kid. I want you to work for me?" Said the man as if it was already decided.

I was a little terrified, except the thing that I was terrified of wasn't the man, it was a sudden reminiscent of someone that shook me to my bones. l I tried my best to not show it on my face.

'He knows about me. Where did the problem occurred? I thought it would at least take half an year. It hasn't even been a month.'

"I refuse" Fan Lin replied while deep in thought. His reply stunned the Old Man who began to stare at his face.

"Do you even know who you are refusing to?"

"I don't care." Fan Lin raised his head from his thoughts and replied calmly while matching the gaze of the Old Man.

"You dare! Do you think that I will allow you to get out of this room alive?" Replied the Old Man indifferently.

"You will" Fan Lin's voice also had his return of his usual apathetic tone as he proclaimed to the Old Man. If he was going down, then so will the world.

"Oh. How?" The Old Man was amused though. He didn't think that Fan Lin could be a threat to him. They were leagues apart.

" If I do not get out of here alive and well today. Then in just an hour, my men will expose all the files on everthing that I have collected in the past 7 years. Whether it's Spirit Pagoda, Shrek Academy, Tang sect or the federal government, all of you have your fair share of dirty little secrets, things which even the evil sects would praise you for . Even if you appeared as white as a blank paper to the outside world, you all have things that you should rather remain hidden."

"I don't know who you are and personally I don't care. But will you be able to keep everything together once things get out? There are many people who are good, who just want a normal life, righteous ones to lower criminals; there are people who want attention, people who dislike it; and finally there are people who want to appear as good and righteous in front of the masses, like the Eagle faction's and the federal military, you know."

"What would happen to them. What would they do? What can you all do? That would be a thing to wonder. So I dare you to kill me right and I will wait for you in hell while watching this world burn to cinders."

"Who are you kidding kid? You are just bluffing." The Old Man sneered at me.

"Try me. Why are you afraid then. It won't take much effort. Kill me and the truth shall surface in your reality."

"You are just a sick killer. How can I trust you?" [Old Man]

"I planned the massacre of hundreds of thousands of people. I amassed their wealth. What do you think I did with that money?"

"Did you really not think that I would not prepare any back doors for me. If just spending a few Billions can guarantee my life then why wouldn't I spend it? I don't lack money but I only have a single life."

"Plus I prepared it as a leverage in case I am threatened and as my final revenge in case I am killed. So even if I am killed by you today, you will be joining me shortly after Sir. Everyone will be. But I will make sure to wait for you only."

Fan Lin replied with a smile on his face. Arrogance was flowing in his mind as guilt started to recede a bit. Not a good omen.

The man frowned and became silent for a few seconds.

I looked at him and decided to leave. Waiting anymore could lead to him finding any unknown loopholes in my words. He had already lost the verbal battle long ago, now he wasn't any threat.

The man didn't react to my departure. As I predicted.

I slowly got out of the room and my back was drenched, the sudden memory of the captain really scared me to death.

After getting to a distance, I sped up and rushed for the Academy since there was nothing else to do.

I had become careless since I came to Shrek since it is safe but If it was really safe then it wouldn't have been destroyed in the first place.

Should I create better poisons just in case? I do have a bit of my memories restored...

No. Never.

"*Get out of the way*"

I have a way to become strong and if I would have been cautious in my actions then I would not have been found out.

Let's not leave the academy till I at least have a better leverage against the strong.

But no matter how many leverages I have, once I met an unreasonable person, I would definitely die.

Stupid me.

*Get out of the way!*"

Should have prepared a bit more instead of cultivating.

A sudden wind caressed Fan Lin as he was lost about what things he could do to safeguard his life and interests.

He never liked listening to others, not until he wanted to.

*"Get out, forget it. Gu Yue, you change the course of the tornado."*

The wind caressing him became stronger with leaves and dust getting on his clothes.

"What the-"

I exclaimed as my attention finally came to my surroundings and towards the mini tornado that contained leaves and dust that was just a few centimetres away from me.

I waved my hands while using my second Spirit Soul ability - Crystallokinesis to create two walls and clap the tornado in them.

"I really need to start paying attention to my surroundings."

This past few years of being alone has either given me lost sense or my mind doesn't give any importance to everything else except me.

'Whatever'

Fan Lin looked at the Gu Yue who was looking at his direction with complain in her eyes.

"Why haven't you been listening to us when we for the past three times?"

Xie Xie said to Fan Lin while running towards him.

Fan Lin looked towards him and then the few people behind him.

'Not today. I already have a bad mood. So definitely not today.'

He turned back and went out of their sights as soon as he can.

Xie Xie looked at the running back of Fan Lin and whispered," Did he got scared of Gu Yue? Why did he ran away?"

Xie Xie knew that he was strong but not enough to make others change their way from just a single glance.

So either it could be the Class President Tang Wulin, or the Winner of the competition that happened to decide the Class President, Gu Yue.

So he returned to his friends to tell them about the student he just saw running.

"He was fast on his feet though. But I still don't understand why did he run after he saw you?"

Xie Xie exclaimed while looking at Gu Yue.

"Who cares."

Gu Yue cooly answered and ignored Xie Xie.

....

Character Intel.

Wu Sidou

Another side character that helps the Protagonists in the earlier half. Has no other purpose than that.

Bookkeeper.

A secret information broker that keeps all the information that Fan Lin had acquired from all his killings.

A really trustworthy person to Fan Lin and a cannon fodder preparator.

Would die but never betray Fan Lin, not because of him but due to her own nature.