Chapter 8: New Student Admission

After hearing Beibei's introduction to the teacher, Zhou Yi, who would be teaching him, Huo Yuhao was greatly surprised, "Senior Brother, can the academy really allow a teacher to act like this?"

Beibei whispered, "Although Teacher Zhou Yi is strict, she is truly a good teacher. No one who has been promoted from her class has ever said a bad word about her. Her strictness mainly lies in her high demands on students and her harsh teaching methods. However, almost a quarter of the students she has taught and promoted have entered the Inner Academy. This ratio is among the best in the entire academy. This time, it's because the incident was too big that Teacher Zhou was demoted to the new student grade. But as long as you work hard and excel, you will only benefit from her guidance."

Huo Yuhao sighed in relief, "I see. Teacher Xiaoya, Senior Brother, you two are busy. I'll go back to the dormitory first."

Beibei smiled slightly, "Alright, Teacher Xiaoya and I are also going for the promotion test. If we pass, we will both be promoted to the fourth grade. I live in Dorm 316. If you need anything, come find me there."

Beibei and Tang Ya indeed had a lot to do. Tang Ya was eager to obtain her third soul ring to pass the fourth-grade promotion test. After promotion, they would have even more responsibilities. Huo Yuhao had once gone to the Star Dou Great Forest alone and obtained a soul ring, showing a strong ability to take care of himself, so they didn't worry about him.

Walking through the white new student building and the yellow second and third-grade buildings, Huo Yuhao saw the dormitory building. The dormitory building was quite large, with four colors—white, yellow, purple, and black—representing the different grade levels. It was six stories high.

Huo Yuhao came to the entrance of the white building, where an old man sat. The old man wore gray clothes, and the wrinkles on his face could crush a dozen flies. His eyes were yellow and droopy, and he looked like he was on his last breath. The sunlight fell on him, and he seemed to be comfortably half-lying in his chair.

Huo Yuhao approached and respectfully said, "Grandpa, hello. I'm a new student, here to check into the dormitory. Do you need to check my new student badge?"

The old man, without lifting his head, extended his trembling right hand and said in a hoarse, low voice, "Show me your badge and dormitory key."

Huo Yuhao quickly handed them over.

The old man waved them in front of his eyes and then returned them, "Go on. Dorm 108 is the third room on the left on the first floor. The fourth floor and above are for girls, and you are not allowed to go up there. If you are caught, you will be expelled."

"Thank you." Huo Yuhao bowed to the old man again before entering the dormitory building.

The old man remained in his original position and muttered, "A rare polite child."

As he spoke, a few more new students passed by, but they didn't notice the old man by the door and walked in directly. The old man didn't stop them, just sitting there drowsily.

Following the old man's directions, Huo Yuhao quickly found his dormitory. The student dormitory was a long corridor with dormitory doors on both sides, each with a number. The interior of the dormitory building was quite old, having been used for many years. There were communal bathrooms at both ends of the corridor.

Using the key to unlock the door, a musty smell rushed out. Huo Yuhao quickly stepped aside and waited a moment before holding his breath and rushing in to open the window. The room hadn't been occupied for over a month and was covered in dust.

While the room was airing out, Huo Yuhao took a look at the dormitory's layout. The dormitory was small, about ten square meters, with two beds taking up most of the space. There was also a table and two metal wardrobes, a light on the ceiling, and several metal protrusions on the walls. Beibei had told him that the light was a simple soul conductor that required soul power to activate, and the metal protrusions were where the soul power was injected.

After a short while, the musty air in the dormitory was finally cleared. Huo Yuhao looked at the small space with an indescribable excitement. From today, this would be his dormitory for the next year. It seemed he would have a roommate. He decided to clean up first.

As the saying goes, poor children grow up fast. Although he was from a duke's mansion, Huo Yuhao's life had been even harder than that of a commoner. He bought a basin and a used cloth from the student supplies store with his limited money and immediately started cleaning the dormitory.

In just half an hour, with the help of his Spirit Eyes, all the dirty corners were cleaned, leaving the room spotless. Although everything in the dormitory was still simple, it now had a fresh atmosphere. Huo Yuhao didn't plan to buy bedding. A wooden bed was enough for him, as he was dedicated to his cultivation.

Feeling a bit hungry, he asked about the location of the cafeteria and bought the cheapest bowl from the student supplies store before heading to the cafeteria.

Each grade had its own cafeteria, located behind the dormitory area. When Huo Yuhao entered the new student cafeteria, he was surprised. There were few people, making it seem very spacious. There were no tables or chairs, just an open space with a sink for washing hands and utensils on one side. Inside were windows for buying food, each with a price tag. There were eight windows, with different dishes and prices, from the cheapest on the right to the most expensive on the left.

There were no places to sit in the cafeteria? The sign at the entrance also said that food and drinks were not allowed to be taken out.

After a brief surprise, Huo Yuhao bought the cheapest meal from the rightmost window. It was stir-fried vegetables and white rice. Despite being the cheapest, he found it very delicious. Just having food was already great, and it was cheap, costing only two copper coins. With a monthly income of one gold coin, he could save and have enough for food.

While eating, Huo Yuhao noticed that the most expensive meal at the leftmost window was priced in gold soul coins, which he could hardly imagine.

After quickly finishing his meal, Huo Yuhao returned to the dormitory. As the saying goes, the early bird catches the worm. He was aware of the gap between himself and other students and knew he couldn't waste any time.

Sitting cross-legged on the hard wooden bed, Huo Yuhao soon entered a meditative state to cultivate the Profound Heaven Art.

Although his cultivation speed was still far behind Beibei and Tang Ya, he had made significant progress compared to himself. After switching to the Profound Heaven Art, he could feel improvement every day, which was much better than before. After a few days of cultivation, his originally impure soul power had been completely transformed into Profound Heaven Art. One of the benefits of the Profound Heaven Art was that it nourished his meridians during cultivation. Although the benefits were not yet obvious, Beibei had told him that long-term persistence would improve his constitution.

Huo Yuhao had already planned his schedule. Every morning, he would cultivate the Purple Extreme Demon Eye, then spend an hour practicing Crane Catching Dragon, Ghost Shadow Tracing Steps, and the Profound Jade Hand, as well as some grappling techniques taught by Beibei. The rest of the time, except for meals, would be spent cultivating the Profound Heaven Art.

Soul power was the foundation of a soul master, and he needed to spend more time cultivating the Profound Heaven Art.

"Hmm, this cultivation method is really good and quite suitable for your current situation. You humans are truly capable!" Just as Huo Yuhao entered a meditative state, his vision turned white, and Tianmeng Ice Worm's voice echoed, bringing him to his spiritual sea.

"Brother Tianmeng?" Huo Yuhao called out in pleasant surprise.

Tianmeng Ice Worm's lazy voice responded, "Your body has changed a lot in the past few days, and you've made a good start. Your body's endurance is gradually increasing. Not bad, not bad. The abilities you are cultivating are quite suitable for you, especially the meditation method and the eye training. I can feel the four skills I gave you. Practice them often, especially the last skill, which can be combined with your eye training. It should have a good effect and give you a basic offensive soul skill. It's better than I expected."

"Brother Tianmeng, I will work hard." Hearing Tianmeng Ice Worm's voice again confirmed to Huo Yuhao that his fusion with the million-year soul beast was not a dream.

Tianmeng Ice Worm said, "I'm sleepy and will sleep for a while. Just continue cultivating as you are. When you need your second soul ring, I will wake up. By then, the ice attribute soul power I gave you should be able to become your main soul power, leading to a qualitative leap."

"Brother Tianmeng, can I still find you if I need to?"

Tianmeng Ice Worm said, "If you encounter an insurmountable danger, I will help you. Don't worry. I can only live if you live. Sleep... "

The white light faded, and Huo Yuhao woke up from his meditation. He was surprised to find that it was already completely dark outside. He had been cultivating for at least three hours, and his Profound Heaven Art seemed to have made a bit more progress.

It was evening, and he was a bit hungry, but the cafeteria was likely past mealtime. Fortunately, he still had a few pieces of dry food in his bag. After eating them with some water, Huo Yuhao continued his cultivation.

In the morning, after absorbing the mystical power of the rising purple qi, Huo Yuhao returned to his room to practice the few Tang Gate techniques. He was only just beginning to learn these techniques and wasn't focusing his main energy on them, just practicing a little.

After finishing, the sky was already bright. After washing up, Huo Yuhao went to the cafeteria to buy food. Upon arriving, he looked worried. Since cultivating the Profound Heaven Art, his appetite had increased, and his body needed more nutrition, but he had no money. His tuition had already been paid by his senior brother, and he didn't want to ask Beibei for more.

Fortunately, breakfast was simple and cheap. Huo Yuhao bought a few eggs and a bowl of porridge, spending three copper coins this time. It was enough to supplement his nutrition. He suddenly realized that the prices in Shrek Academy were higher than outside.

"Junior Brother, you can't skimp on food. Lack of nutrition is no good. The school has some jobs you can take to earn a living." Beibei appeared beside Huo Yuhao.

"Senior Brother." Huo Yuhao called out in pleasant surprise. So far, he only knew Tang Ya and Beibei in Shrek Academy.

Beibei said apologetically, "I didn't give you money directly to help you learn to be self-reliant. Combat ability is just part of your strength. A person's strength also includes many comprehensive abilities, the most important of which is the ability to survive in any situation. Do you understand?"

"Senior Brother, you've already helped me a lot. I understand. I still have a few silver coins, and I'll take some jobs after school starts."

Beibei patted his head, "I'll go first. Remember, you can earn more money, but you can't skimp on food. You need nutrition."

Huo Yuhao followed Beibei out of the cafeteria, deciding to follow his senior brother's advice and treat himself to a better lunch today.

Walking back to the dormitory building, just as he reached his dormitory door, Huo Yuhao found it open. He was surprised at first but then realized that his roommate must have arrived.

At that moment, a young man walked out of the room and was also surprised to see Huo Yuhao.

The young man was handsome, with fair skin and large, uniquely pale blue eyes. His neat short hair was the same color, and his appearance was even more striking than Beibei's, making him the most handsome person Huo Yuhao had seen of his age. They were about the same height and age.

"Who are you?" Huo Yuhao asked instinctively.

The young man glared at him, "Move."

"Oh." Huo Yuhao quickly stepped aside. The young man walked past him but stopped a few steps away, turning to look at him, "You're in this dormitory too, right? Since you cleaned the dormitory so well, I'll let you stay with me for now. Remember these rules: First, no bringing people back to the dormitory; second, no walking around naked; third, no snoring at night; fourth, don't disturb me; fifth, you are responsible for cleaning the dormitory, but don't touch my bed. Got it?"

Seeing the young man's haughty attitude, Huo Yuhao felt a surge of anger, "Why should I listen to you?"

The young man snorted, "If you don't listen, I'll throw you out. Don't believe me? Try it."

Huo Yuhao, who had been bullied in the duke's mansion, couldn't stand such arrogance and said coldly, "Try it, then. Let's go outside."

Seeing his unyielding attitude, the young man smiled. His smile was beautiful but filled with disdain, which only fueled Huo Yuhao's anger.

"I don't even know your name." The young man asked disdainfully.

Huo Yuhao replied sternly, "Shouldn't you introduce yourself first before asking for someone else's name?"

The young man said indifferently, "I'm Wang Dong."

"I'm Huo Yuhao."

Wang Dong smiled and suddenly approached Huo Yuhao, "Good. I think your name will soon disappear from Shrek Academy. Come on, idiot." He turned and walked out.

Huo Yuhao clenched his fists tightly and followed, determined not to be bullied, especially by someone who would be his roommate for at least the next year.

(End of Chapter)