Chapter Seventeen: Enrollment (Part One)

To be honest, having been disturbed by too many humanoid star clusters, Qin Ming almost had a stroke when he saw the soul rings on Chen Ming’s body.

He had initially thought Chen Ming was just another braggart with a weak mind, but who would have expected he was the real deal?

Was the main reason he tolerated those humanoid creatures really just due to the orders of the three Soul Combat Committee members?

Although this was an important new campus, the primary reason was his desire to find children with exceptional talent to nurture!

“Truly, a second-ring soul after a thousand years, an eleven-year-old 23rd-level Great Soul Master—a genius, a genius among geniuses!”

“Chen Ming, being admitted to the Royal Tian Dou Academy is definitely the right choice. Talent like yours is rare across the entire continent. Only our Royal Tian Dou Academy has the ability to cultivate you.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, Chen Ming, could you briefly describe your two soul skills? No need to be too explicit; a general description will do. If it’s inconvenient to say, we can skip this topic for now.”

“There’s nothing inconvenient about revealing my soul skills…” Chen Ming looked somewhat puzzled by Qin Ming’s sudden excitement but calmed himself and proceeded quietly with the formalities.

Soul skills are the secret of a Soul Master, but except for a few, most soul skills are quite recognizable. Even if one doesn’t know their exact names or which soul beast they were derived from, their types can at least be identified.

Chen Ming’s two soul skills were the kind anyone could remember at a glance. Their release methods and effects were crystal clear—impossible to hide once activated.

In the coming years at the academy, Chen Ming felt it was futile to conceal his soul skills, so he openly described them, though he did hold back some details regarding their effects.

“My first soul skill is called Poison Cloud Technique; it creates a cloud of poison. The second is Poison Explosion Technique, which detonates anything infected by my poison, including the poison cloud from the first skill. However, each use requires a brief preparation time, and I can only use it five times a day.”

“A poison-attribute Soul Master, with a first skill that covers a wide area capable of control or damage, and a second that detonates the first skill…” Qin Ming’s eyes lit up as he spoke. To him, this combination was exceptionally outstanding.

Although Chen Ming’s enrollment records hadn’t been fully registered yet, Qin Ming had already decided to recommend this prodigy to the three committee members for placement into one of the two battle teams at the Royal Tian Dou Academy for further training.

“Xiao Ming, are you really only eleven years old this year?” Qin Ming suddenly asked.

“Yes, I am. Haven’t you received my birth registration and the awakening certificate issued by the Soul Hall when I awakened my martial soul?” Chen Ming replied.

“Right… right…” Qin Ming said, though he felt a bit embarrassed inside.

Normally, individuals with innate soul power above level seven have special notations in their admission records, but for some reason, Qin Ming had checked Chen Ming’s files repeatedly and found no such special records. He was still unclear about Chen Ming’s exact innate soul power level.

“Xiao Ming, are you married? Or perhaps engaged?” Although this question seemed intrusive, in the Douluo Continent, it was a realistic inquiry.

Due to the continent’s low productivity, marriages happen early, and with soul power accelerating maturity, it’s common for commoners to marry at twelve or thirteen, sometimes even younger. While noble families marry later, engagements at such ages are frequent.

Qin Ming’s question was unexpected but reasonable.

“I’m neither married nor engaged. My goal is to become the world’s greatest Soul Master. Women are just a distraction.”

“Of course, except for rich women,” Chen Ming quietly added in his mind.

“….” Seeing Chen Ming’s serious expression, Qin Ming wanted to tell him he was a bit extreme, but recalling the many students at the academy who caused trouble over love affairs, he suddenly thought Chen Ming’s attitude wasn’t bad at all.

Why had Qin Ming reached where he was today? Was it simply due to his talent or a mutated martial soul?

That was only part of it. More importantly, in this world full of infatuations, Qin Ming had remained single since birth. Not entirely devoted to cultivation, but at least he spent most of his time honing his skills, without the mess caused by romances or secret crushes. That was the real reason for his strength.

“Phew…”

“Xiao Ming, may I call you that? You can call me Teacher Qin or simply Teacher. Your talent is extraordinary, but with my current ability, I cannot decide your future cultivation path at the academy. We need to go to the committee, where the three members will make that decision.”

“As long as you show your true strength, I personally believe you will join a battle team at the Royal Tian Dou Academy within a few years and eventually participate in the Elite Tournament of the continent’s advanced Soul Master academies—a competition regarded as the pinnacle for young Soul Masters.”

At this, Qin Ming grew somewhat excited. He came from the Slake academy, which didn’t even qualify as a low-level Soul Master academy. When the tournament began, he couldn’t even buy a ticket to the stands.

Though Qin Ming never mentioned it, this was a sore spot in his heart. He always believed his talent and strength were not inferior to those geniuses on stage, but for various reasons, he never got a chance to showcase them.

Since becoming a faculty member at the Royal Tian Dou Academy, Qin Ming had paid special attention to its two battle teams and recently even applied to lead one, partly to make up for the regrets he harbored for so many years.

Chen Ming didn’t know what was on Qin Ming’s mind. He just saw the other’s excited expression and, after some thought, felt Qin Ming wouldn’t do anything to harm him. So he agreed to Qin Ming’s request to take him to meet the three committee members.

After leaving the room, Qin Ming didn’t rush off immediately with Chen Ming. Instead, he went to another room to find his assistant, explained the situation, handed over some tasks, and only then led Chen Ming deeper into the Royal Tian Dou Academy, heading toward the offices where the three committee members worked.