Chapter 18

The next day, at 6:30 in the morning.

Rong Taotao, who had woken up early, was running around the campus, drenched in sweat. From the sweat on his forehead, it was clear he had been running for a long time.

Rong Taotao hadn't expected that after the tiring journey of the previous day, he could still wake up so early.

On one hand, it was due to his biological clock, and on the other... Rong Taotao always felt that there was something wrong with the midnight snack provided by Songjiang Soul Martial Academy!

Although it was just a boxed meal, the food was really delicious, and it seemed to have some special seasoning. When Rong Taotao woke up in the morning, he felt incredibly energetic.

Even after a day of travel, one might wake up with a sore back and legs, let alone after Rong Taotao had been jolted around in the snow for 8 hours.

Rong Taotao planned to go to the cafeteria later to try Songjiang Soul Martial Academy's breakfast again, to verify whether they had added any drugs to the food...

It was July, a time when college students usually take their summer break. However, due to the special nature of the region, many students had not left the campus but chose to continue practicing the Soul Technique of Snow Realm.

That morning, Rong Taotao ran around the entire school, getting a preliminary feel for the campus environment.

Especially at the horse stable in the southeast corner of the school, Rong Taotao stood there for a long time.

Looking at the rows of large, white Snow Night Surprises, Rong Taotao felt extremely envious.

Other kids who had just graduated from junior high school had already gone to find their soul beasts, but he had been dragged to Songjiang Soul Martial Academy by his sister-in-law. It had been a day since the junior high school graduation ceremony, and he still didn't know where his soul beast was...

Could it be a Snow Night Surprise?

Without a doubt, the majestic and beautiful appearance of the Snow Night Surprise, its intelligence, and its gentle nature made Rong Taotao very fond of it. He was willing to spend the rest of his life with a Snow Night Surprise, using his explosive talent to lead his "True Heavenly Horse" through the world.

However, his father had made a promise to him, offering him a chance to obtain a Cloud Peak soul beast.

While thinking, Rong Taotao ran to the sports field on the north side of the school, and his running pace slowed down again.

The last time he ran to this place, there were many people training outside the Soul Martial Gym, but no one was sparring. Now, on the concrete sparring ground outside the gym, many students were already practicing their skills.

The snow-covered road and the clean concrete ground formed a stark contrast, and Rong Taotao realized that these outdoor sparring grounds must be cleaned every day.

Thus, a clumsy and heroic little bronze figure quietly stood by the roadside, watching the daily sparring of Songjiang Soul Martial Academy students.

Out of the 40 sparring grounds, eight were occupied, and some were even enveloped in wind and snow, making Rong Taotao extremely envious.

In particular, several students were gathered around the edge of one of the sparring grounds.

For daily sparring, this was a rare sight, indicating that the students practicing there must be highly skilled.

The cold wind blew, and snowflakes danced.

The magnificent broadsword, wrapped in frost, cleaved through the layers of wind and snow, colliding with another broadsword that similarly tore through the wind and snow...

Wait a minute?

The more Rong Taotao watched, the more he felt something was off. The skills of these two were indeed impressive, and they looked identical, so they must be twin sisters. But why weren't they using soul techniques? Was it a school rule?

That didn't make sense, as the students in other sparring grounds were using soul techniques, with almost everyone having swirling wind and snow around their feet, wrapping around their bodies and spiraling upward like small snow tornadoes.

Rong Taotao knew this soul technique, called "Snow Dance."

This soul technique was one of the Snow Realm soul techniques that had been deciphered by soul martial scholars and written into textbooks.

In other words, students didn't need to embed soul beads in their bodies; they could directly learn and use this soul technique.

The soul technique "Snow Dance" could increase a soul martial practitioner's movement speed to a certain extent and was one of the essential basic soul techniques for Snow Realm soul martial practitioners.

"Hey, kid." A magnetic female voice came from beside him, with a lazy tone.

"Huh?" Rong Taotao turned his head and saw a woman in a white dress.

In the icy and snowy environment, she was wearing a tai chi suit like those worn by old men in the square.

This white tai chi suit, combined with her charming face, gave her a somewhat ethereal appearance.

Moreover, from her slender figure, it seemed... well, she probably wasn't wearing thermal pants?

Wow, he had encountered a master!

Rong Taotao's attitude was very good, and he said, "Teacher, hello."

The woman looked to be around 27 or 28 years old and was likely a teacher at Songjiang Soul Martial Academy.

In the Songjiang Soul Martial Academy, where the average temperature was -24°C, there was an unwritten rule:

The less you wear, the more powerful you are!

There were only two types of people who wore less: fools and strong individuals.

Regardless of which, they were all impressive...

Given the ethereal aura of this woman, Rong Taotao didn't think she was a fool.

This indicated that her Soul Technique of Snow Realm must be of a high level!

"High school student who sneaked out of Songbai Town?" The woman placed her hands behind her back, her long hair flowing over her shoulders, and she looked at Rong Taotao with a scrutinizing gaze.

"I am... here to participate in the Young Talent Program assessment," Rong Taotao quickly responded.

Songbai Town?

It seemed to be the closest high school town to Songjiang Soul Martial City and a key high school. After all, in this environment, the further north the school was built, the more concentrated the ice and snow attributes of soul power became.

"Oh?" The woman raised an eyebrow, seemingly recalling something, and then nodded slightly. She reached out from her wide sleeve, and on her white, tender palm, there seemed to be something.

Rong Taotao was taken aback.

Two small candies?

This college teacher's way of expressing kindness was quite unique, after all, not every adult carried candies with them...

Rong Taotao looked obediently and reached out to take the candies.

He didn't have any special thoughts; if someone showed him kindness, he would accept it.

"Leave one for me." The woman turned her head to look at the sparring ground and said casually.

Rong Taotao: "..."

Rong Taotao put one of the candies back on her palm.

Then, he opened the packaging and, along with the rice paper wrapping the candy, put it directly in his mouth.

The ethereal woman beside him watched the sparring on the ground intently, crushed the packaging with one hand, put the candy in her mouth, and casually threw the packaging paper to Rong Taotao.

Rong Taotao fumbled to catch the flying packaging paper and then asked, "Teacher, what's your name? Which grade do you teach?"

"If you successfully enroll, I might teach you." The magnetic voice made Rong Taotao feel ethereal too...

Too unique!

With that voice, if she sang "The Love of a Lifetime," Rong Taotao would turn into a monkey, put on armor, hold a staff, and ride the clouds to the west...

No, he had to get on her good side and ask her to record a phone ringtone for him!

He was one of a kind.

While others who saw a teacher from Songjiang Soul Martial Academy would think about learning soul techniques from them, Rong Taotao was thinking about a phone ringtone...

"Are they with you?" The female teacher slightly raised her head and pointed to the twin sisters on the sparring ground with her chin.

"No, I don't know them." Rong Taotao shook his head.

"Then they must be from your year." The teacher's eyes showed a hint of appreciation, looking at the sword and spear clashes on the sparring ground, seemingly satisfied with the quality of the Young Talent Program participants.

"Are they junior high school students?" Rong Taotao was clearly taken aback, his mouth still full of candy, and he turned to look at the twin sisters.

Perhaps it was because of early puberty, but Rong Taotao hadn't noticed it at first. He thought they were college students, which was why he hadn't expected them to not use soul techniques...

The way to distinguish soul martial practitioners wasn't just by their physical development but mainly by their aura.

Clearly, the two on the sparring ground possessed an aura that ordinary junior high school students didn't have. Their fierce attacks, sharp gazes, and powerful fighting spirit had completely fooled Rong Taotao.

If they were really junior high school students, they must have been "killed" in many battles to achieve such a level of realism.

"Crunch, crunch."

The female teacher crushed the candy in her mouth, watching the sparring, and nodded continuously, not hiding her admiration: "Not bad, very good."

"Teacher, I'm pretty good too," Rong Taotao said weakly.

"Oh?" The female teacher turned her head, looking at Rong Taotao with interest, and said, "Do you want to try?"

"Uh..." Rong Taotao scratched his naturally curly hair, looking hesitant, "I don't have a weapon, I don't know how to use soul techniques to create snow tools, and... I don't even have a soul beast yet."

"Ha ha." The female teacher nodded and smiled, showing understanding.

Rong Taotao felt a bit uncomfortable. Should he go and spar with the twin sisters using his bare hands?

Rong Taotao was very confident in his martial arts skills, and the level in the inner vision soul map was clearly marked as "High Rank Two Star."

"Then don't disturb them." The teacher's words made Rong Taotao, who was eager to try, give up his idea.

"What's your name?" The teacher smiled at Rong Taotao, appreciating this boy.

The students on the sparring ground could see that the twin sisters' fighting skills were very high. For Rong Taotao to say, "I'm not bad either," showed that he had a good attitude.

The teacher didn't think Rong Taotao was boasting. After all, the students specially recruited for the Young Talent Program were all geniuses among geniuses.

Rong Taotao answered, "Rong Taotao."

"Huh?" The teacher's eyes widened slightly, and her expression changed instantly. The previously calm and composed face became a bit more serious.

Rong Taotao realized what she was thinking. In fact, throughout his growth, he often encountered such situations.

"Yes, the one you're thinking of, I am her son." Rong Taotao shrugged and admitted it straightforwardly.

The teacher slightly lowered her head, her eyes directly meeting Rong Taotao's, as if trying to see something in his eyes.

After a few seconds, she reached out and placed her hand on Rong Taotao's head: "Go to the sparring hall and ask the student at the gate for a weapon you're good at. Tell them that Teacher Si sent you."

If it were anyone else, Rong Taotao would have turned his head away, but... at this moment, he was intimidated and didn't dare to refuse her hand.

Sometimes, this naturally curly hair was a burden, as people always wanted to touch it.

Teacher Si slightly tilted her head, indicating an unoccupied sparring ground nearby, and said, "I'll wait for you there."

Rong Taotao: "Oh."

For this person who might become his mentor in the future, Rong Taotao didn't dare to refuse and could only respond with an "Oh."

Fine!

I'll show the teachers of Songjiang Soul Martial Academy what I'm made of today!