In the following days, Xu Yang followed his class schedule, spending the time outside of necessary lessons and cultivation in the library, searching for knowledge that caught his interest.
After nearly a week of searching, he found several books that piqued his interest, particularly on the topic of Soul Tool manufacturing. Although the books were incomplete, they contained valuable inheritances. While he couldn't craft a level nine fixed-mounted Soul Tool cannon, creating a level two or three Soul Tool ray wouldn't be a problem.
"As expected of the royal family—they even have Soul Tool inheritances!"
Excited, Xu Yang tucked the books away and planned to return to study them. However, one thing puzzled him: why were Soul Masters on the continent so averse to Soul Tools, with so few inheritances?
He had searched the library for seven days before stumbling across these four books tucked away in a corner. The books were tattered and had wormholes in them. This demonstrated just how little the continent's Soul Masters valued Soul Tools, prioritizing personal strength over technological advancement.
But to Xu Yang, these two things didn't conflict. Soul Tools could enhance one's strength and even serve as a life-saving trump card, ensuring personal safety.
He once asked Ning Fengzhi why the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, an auxiliary sect, didn't study Soul Tools. For auxiliary Soul Masters, Soul Tools should have been the best supplement to their combat ability. Unfortunately, Ning Fengzhi didn't have the resources, as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School didn't possess the inheritance for Soul Tools. There were a few Soul Tools, but no one was willing to spend the time disassembling and researching them.
"With the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's appraisal abilities, I shouldn't lack materials for studying Soul Tools!"
"I'll need to stock up on some materials next time I visit."
As Xu Yang thought about the precious gems and metals stored in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School's vault, he smiled. As Ning Fengzhi's disciple, he couldn't touch the valuable Soul Bones in the vault, but there were plenty of materials he could use freely.
Just as Xu Yang was daydreaming about the future—where he could summon countless Soul Tool rays from the sky—Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling arrived.
"Xu Yang, there's a teacher named Qin Ming who came to the class today. He's looking to select members for the next Heaven Dou Second Team to participate in the Soul Master Competition two years from now. He asked us to call you over!" Dugu Yan said, cutting straight to the point.
"Oh!" Xu Yang replied nonchalantly. Truthfully, he wasn't interested in this year's Soul Master Competition. The reason was simple—his strength wasn't enough. Even if he was selected for the school team, he would most likely end up as a substitute and wouldn't get a chance to play.
In two years, even if he was a genius, he would only be at most a thirtieth-level Soul Elder. With the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, maybe he could reach the low thirties, but he wouldn't be qualified to compete.
He was more interested in the next Soul Master Competition, and the one after that. Competing with other genius Soul Masters was something he wanted to prove himself in. As for the one after that, he was curious to see how Tang San would fare.
"Don't you want to participate in this year's Soul Master Competition?" Dugu Yan asked, surprised by Xu Yang's attitude.
"Even if I participate, what's the point? With our strength, we'd just be substitutes and wouldn't get any actual playtime. At most, we'd sit in the audience and watch the competition, gaining experience for the next one."
This wasn't just a practice at Heaven Dou Royal Academy—many large, prestigious Soul Master academies did the same. The goal was to prepare students for the intensity of the Soul Master Competition and help them gain experience for the future.
The number of substitute members would be substantial.
"Hmm, that's true." Dugu Yan nodded in agreement, but then stared at Xu Yang with a narrowed gaze. "So, what's your plan?"
"Of course I'll participate!"
Xu Yang's response was somewhat unexpected for Dugu Yan. Hearing his earlier reply, she thought he wasn't interested in the selection. Just as she was about to ask why, Xu Yang explained: "It's a great opportunity to learn, and I can also observe the level of my peers. Why not?"
"So, let's go! We don't want to keep the teacher waiting!"
Hearing this, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling exchanged a look and rolled their eyes. They hadn't expected him to be the type of person who would think like this.
At the training grounds for the Heaven Dou Team, dozens of Heaven Slight-grade students had already gathered. These were the top students from each class, all with Soul Power at level twenty-three or higher, eager to show their strength.
Among them were Yu Tianheng and Osler, who were in the same class as Xu Yang, Shi Mo and Shi Mu, the brothers from the Xuanming Sect in Class Two, and Yu Feng from Class Three. These were all elite students Xu Yang had come to know after arriving at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, and they were also former members of the Royal Fighting Team.
A teacher in his twenties stood in the center of the training ground, observing the students. He was looking for a group of elite individuals to form a team to compete in the next Soul Master Elite Competition.
As for why not the next competition, it was because the teacher for the next batch of students wouldn't be him—it would be a Soul Emperor-level teacher from the original Heaven Dou Royal Academy. This was why he had come to the Heaven Slight-grade class to select students; if he had wanted, he could have gone to the Heaven Dou class to find suitable candidates for the competition.
In the short time he had been there, he had already selected several promising students. He was considering Yu Tianheng as the team captain, but he also thought about Xu Yang, who had defeated Yu Tianheng. However, Xu Yang had skipped classes since arriving and didn't follow the rules, making him seem like a poor choice.
Before long, Xu Yang and Dugu Yan arrived. Seeing them, Yu Tianheng's expression darkened slightly. He hadn't expected to lose—especially not to Xu Yang, who had only just arrived and even had a thousand-year Soul Ring. But in the end, he had lost, and the defeat had been thorough. He couldn't help feeling frustrated.
Xu Yang didn't think too much about it. He flashed Yu Tianheng a big smile and then stood at the back of Class One's line, casually chatting with Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling.
He hadn't forgotten the real reason he had come to Heaven Dou Royal Academy: to find Dugu Bo through Dugu Yan and then retrieve the Immortal Herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Dugu Bo's reputation outside the sect wasn't great—many even considered him a bad person. But this man kept his word and was deeply loyal to his own people, stepping up when needed.
He had risked his life to save Tang San countless times, even sacrificing himself in the end. While Tang San had saved his life by curing his poison, how could favors be repaid endlessly? Even disregarding all the times he saved Tang San, the Immortal Herbs in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well were enough to repay that debt.
It's not that Dugu Bo didn't know the value of the Immortal Herbs—he certainly did. As the Poison Douluo, his expertise in poison was as great as his skills in medicine. Even if he didn't know every herb, he understood the importance of the Immortal Herbs.
After all, anyone who could reach the rank of Titled Douluo wasn't a fool.
But even so, he had been willing to continue helping Tang San after Tang San retrieved the Immortal Herbs.
From this, it was clear that Dugu Bo was someone worth befriending.
PS: Read advance chapter at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin