As night slowly fell, Huo Yuhao's mental strength finally recovered, and he prepared to leave the library.
The outer courtyard library of Shrek Academy was open around the clock, but even so, few ever visited.
Time to head back. Once I'm in the dorm, I'll organize the books I scanned earlier, see if there's anything of value in them. Hopefully not all of it is trash, he thought, though his expectations were low.
After all, his brief skim through the materials had shown just how chaotic Shrek's archives were—especially those "revised" texts compiled between ten thousand and three thousand years ago.
Few contained any real insights on cultivation or martial souls. Even the spirit beast data was patchy and obviously stitched together from random sources.
Shrek's research style, it seemed, had inherited Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang's legacy—borrowing from everywhere, patching together half-baked theories, and calling it "innovation."
Still, Huo Yuhao wasn't disappointed. His goal was the entire library. Even a pile of junk held traces of gold—if he dug deep enough, he'd find something worthwhile.
When he returned to the dorm, his eyes instinctively glanced toward Wang Dong's side. It was still a mess—tidied on the surface, but everything was piled haphazardly underneath.
Wang Dong herself was nowhere to be seen. Huo Yuhao didn't care where she'd gone. He lay on his bed and allowed himself to fall asleep.
His consciousness soon drifted into his spiritual sea, where the Tianmeng Iceworm was snoring loudly.
Unbelievable, Huo Yuhao thought, amused. He's actually sleeping and still circulating spirit power automatically to aid my cultivation.
He didn't interfere. As long as Tianmeng kept his end of the bargain, he could laze around however he liked.
While my he body sleeps… it's time to sort things out inside my sea of spirit.
With a gesture, all the information he'd absorbed earlier turned into countless floating books surrounding him. Each represented one of the works he had memorized from the library.
Within the spiritual sea, every thought could take form. Knowledge itself could be shaped into tangible constructs—books, scrolls, diagrams.
Useful knowledge here, worthless garbage there, he murmured, sorting them quickly.
He categorized the texts, extracting fragments of relevant theories from piles of nonsense. The books flipped open by themselves, glowing words lifting into the air and swirling around him like constellations.
When each was stripped of its valuable data, the useless remnants were sealed and banished to the deepest layers of memory—never to bother him again.
Good. Now for reorganization.
He gathered what remained—organizing by utility and frequency. Observation and analysis texts were prioritized, as they could help him compare what his Eye of Truth perceived with existing martial soul phenomena.
This would, in turn, improve his mastery of the Eye's deeper functions.
Alright. Let's test something next.
A few phantom figures appeared before him—replicas of those he had fought or studied closely: the exam proctor, Beibei, Tang Ya, and the food-type Zhao Haochen.
He selected Beibei. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's martial soul was well-documented—an ideal reference.
During martial soul possession, aside from soul power circulation, there's something else—tiny particles or energies flowing alongside it… forming the transformation.
Every soul master has them, but their arrangements differ by martial soul and attribute.
My current spirit power isn't strong enough to replicate transformations that deep.
After several failed simulations, he gave up on reproducing the possession process itself.
But I can mimic the soul skill.
He had tried before—recreating Beibei's Thunder Dragon Claw using his own soul power. The result's form and function matched, though the power was about thirty percent weaker due to lacking the true martial soul resonance.
Still, the ability to manipulate condensed lightning freely, shaping it outside the body, was valuable.
Lightning can interlink and draw itself together… could the same method control other elements?
He'd tried using pure mental force before, but it always dissipated quickly.
The difference is that spirit power-based skills use outside elements cooperation. Spirit power guides and anchors the external elements. That's why it lasts longer and hits harder.
All night, he experimented—adjusting energy structures and mimicking various elements.
The results were promising but limited. Without a proper elemental affinity, his constructs only achieved half the Thunder Dragon Claw's power and carried faint traces of other elements' traits.
Still not enough. But this path works. Maybe each element has its own structure pattern—I just need to find them.
Satisfied, he withdrew from his spiritual sea. If I can eventually build my own soul skills from scratch, even forming self-generated rings might not be impossible.
When he awoke, daylight had already crept through the dorm window.
Wang Dong had just gotten up too, humming softly with an uncharacteristically good mood and a faint smile.
"Morning," she said brightly, waving.
Huo Yuhao only nodded and left the room without a word.
The only thing worth worrying about here is staying unnoticed. Better arrive early before Zhou Yi starts picking targets.
He ate quickly in the cafeteria, then went straight to class. He was among the first to arrive. Soon, the room filled—students chatting in small groups, already forming cliques.
Huo Yuhao sat toward the back, quiet and observant. Wang Dong entered a few minutes later, trailed by several admiring girls.
She didn't approach him this time, just found a seat elsewhere.
When the bell rang, the classroom door opened, and an elderly woman with streaked white hair stepped in.
Her eyes were cold, her presence suffocating. Within seconds, her silent aura silenced the room.
"I am Zhou Yi," she rasped, her voice grating like a cracked gong. "Your homeroom instructor. I don't know how many of you will survive my class. Because here, in my class, garbage does not pass. I train monsters, not idiots."
A murmur of resentment rippled through the students, though a few—those who had heard of "Old Witch Zhou"—immediately straightened up, avoiding her gaze.
"Alright," Zhou Yi said sharply. "All of you who've been in fights since registration—stand up!"
Silence. No one moved.
After a long pause, her lips curled. "Pathetic. Don't you know Shrek's motto? Those who don't dare cause trouble are trash. Every one of you—outside!"
"Run around the Shrek plaza one hundred laps within an hour. Anyone who fails—expelled."
It was pure tyranny, but it was how Zhou Yi established dominance. She didn't care if it seemed cruel—fear was the best leash.
The entire class erupted in disbelief, but Zhou Yi's pressure crushed their protests instantly. A Soul Emperor's aura smothered the room; no student could resist.
One by one, they filed out.
Huo Yuhao watched coldly. Ridiculous… but this world only respects strength. She can act like this because she's strong—and we're weak.
In this world, being weak means being wrong. No exceptions. But strength isn't eternal. No one stays on top forever.
He followed the others out, joining the running line on the training plaza.
Beside him, Wang Dong whispered, "Hey, Huo Yuhao, you okay? You're only rank twelve—you really think you can run all hundred laps? If you can't finish, they'll expel you. Want me to help?"
She grinned. "Oh, right! Teacher Tang agreed to let me join Tang Sect yesterday. We're sect mates now! If I'm older, you'll have to call me senior brother. Want me to help you, little junior? The old witch didn't say we couldn't help each other!"
Huo Yuhao gave her a long, expressionless stare—and said nothing.
A chill crept down Wang Dong's spine. She turned slightly and caught Zhou Yi's eyes glinting behind them, amusement and warning mixed in her gaze.
Only then did Wang Dong realize the woman had heard everything.
She glared at Huo Yuhao in frustration, though he had no idea why. What's wrong with this girl now? he thought helplessly.
The run began. One lap, two, three…
While the others quickly tired, Huo Yuhao kept a steady pace. His body was weak, but his continuous spirit power circulation sustained him easily.
Where others had to burn energy to restore stamina, his inner flow never stopped—Tianmeng's assistance made his recovery nearly limitless.
While his classmates slowed to gasping crawls, he was still near the front of the pack, breathing evenly.
Zhou Yi's sharp gaze followed him, faint interest flickering in her eyes.
Strange kid. Tang Sect special recruit, low spirit power, yet running so easily… Is it his martial soul? Or something else given by that Sect?
Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao quietly activated the Eye of Truth again—tracing the flow of soul power in those around him, recording every rhythm and cycle.
Each movement, each pulse, each fluctuation became another data point toward perfecting his own cultivation method.
(End of Chapter)