Please support the novel with your power stones, it motivates me. Thank you!
Chapter 56: The First Day of School
For Bai Chen, this was undoubtedly excellent news.
A genius is called a genius because they improve far faster than ordinary people.
Bai Chen was already a genius.
Now, on top of that, he effectively possessed twice as much time as everyone else.
At this point, it could no longer be described as talent—it bordered on monstrous.
In fact, the surprises he had gained during this single day were the second greatest rewards he had received since arriving in this world six years ago.
Of course, such surprises couldn't happen every day.
After that, Bai Chen's life in the Douluo III era gradually settled into a steady routine.
Every three days, he would enter the Spirit Ascension Platform, devouring soul beasts to increase his soul power and acquire new abilities.
Every week, he would enter the Battle Soul Hall time space and spend half a month there refining his techniques.
Soul tool knowledge.
Forging techniques.
The Pharmacopoeia and Poison Manual.
The soul skills he had obtained from the Spirit Ascension Platform.
Although he couldn't cultivate normally in that space, there were so many things to learn that he never felt as though he had too much time.
As his teacher in the forging field, Zhen Hua had also learned about the Battle Soul Hall space from Zang Xin.
Because of that, he began assigning Bai Chen increasingly difficult forging tasks.
Yet none of those challenges troubled Bai Chen.
Every task Zhen Hua assigned was completed perfectly.
Outwardly, Zhen Hua maintained his composure.
But internally, he was practically overjoyed.
Aside from training, Bai Chen's daily life had also stabilized.
Not long after he joined the Tang Sect, Xu Xiaoyan and Xu Xiaoyu left Heaven Sea City and returned to their own city.
During their stay, they had grown quite close to Na'er.
When they departed, Na'er even seemed a little reluctant to see them go.
She appeared to have taken Xu Xiaoyan as a role model, subconsciously imitating her behavior.
As a result, Na'er's previously withdrawn personality improved dramatically, becoming far more cheerful and open.
She had become very attached to Bai Chen as her older brother.
Bai Chen, for his part, indulged her quite a bit.
As long as he didn't have urgent matters, he would always make time to accompany her.
Just as Bai Chen's life in the Douluo III era settled into a rhythm…
The version of him living in the Douluo II era reached an important day.
It was the opening day of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy.
"Bai Chen."
Ning Tian pushed open the door of the soul tool laboratory and reminded him,
"It's time. Let's head to the square."
"Whew—"
Bai Chen put down the forging hammer in his hand and exhaled slowly.
During the days leading up to the semester, neither he nor Ning Tian had wasted time.
Having never interacted with soul tools before, Ning Tian bought several introductory books and began studying under Bai Chen's guidance.
Bai Chen himself had devoted most of his time to forging.
Using knowledge he had learned from the Douluo III era, he forged his first Thousand-Refined metal in this era and turned it into a pair of forging hammers, performing a blood sacrifice on them.
The resulting effect wasn't as powerful as the ones in Douluo III.
But it was still an excellent ability.
Whenever he infused the hammers with soul power, their weight would triple instantly.
Just like the nature of his Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff martial soul, the effect was simple and brutal.
No fancy tricks.
Just raw stat amplification.
With the help of these hammers, Bai Chen could already be considered a Level 4 blacksmith by Douluo III standards.
If Zhen Hua ever discovered this, he might become so excited he'd faint on the spot.
Seeing that Bai Chen had finished forging, Ning Tian walked over and handed him a set of clothes.
"Change your clothes. You're drenched in sweat."
"Thanks."
Bai Chen smiled at her, took the clothes, and quickly went into a side room to change.
Time truly was a powerful thing.
When they had first arrived at the academy, Ning Tian had been somewhat awkward around him.
But now that awkwardness had completely disappeared.
The two had gradually grown accustomed to living together.
Strangely enough, when interacting with Bai Chen, Ning Tian showed none of the arrogance typical of a noble lady.
Sometimes Bai Chen even wondered if she had mixed up their social statuses.
But honestly, her personality made life far easier.
"Alright, let's go."
After changing, Bai Chen returned to the lab and gestured for Ning Tian.
"Mm… okay…"
She responded, but didn't move immediately.
Instead, she stared at him with a slightly wandering gaze.
Bai Chen leaned closer.
"What's wrong? Is something off about me?"
Ning Tian hesitated before asking,
"Bai Chen… have you gotten taller?"
"Huh?"
Only then did Bai Chen realize that Ning Tian seemed shorter in his field of vision.
Of course, she hadn't shrunk.
He had simply grown taller.
Bai Chen shrugged and laughed.
"That's normal. I've been forging intensively lately."
"I exercise my whole body every day. Early physical development is pretty normal."
In truth, the reason he had become so enthusiastic about forging in this era wasn't just about improving his technique.
It was because he had discovered something:
Forging was strengthening his body.
The most direct way to strengthen the body was through exercise.
And forging—requiring full-body exertion—was one of the best physical training methods for soul masters.
Combined with his martial soul awakening, the latent physical potential in Bai Chen's body was being unlocked at an astonishing speed.
Compared to a month ago, his physical strength had clearly advanced to another level.
"Come on. It's the first day of school. We can't be late."
Bai Chen casually grabbed Ning Tian's hand and led her out of the laboratory.
At that moment, the academy square of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy was already filled with children.
Today was the opening ceremony for the Young Masters Class freshmen, so most of the children gathered there looked quite young.
Standing at the very front of the square was Lin Jiayi, quietly waiting.
Ding-ding-ding—
The bell rang.
Lin Jiayi cleared his throat twice.
Strangely, although his cough wasn't loud, every child in the square heard it clearly.
The previously noisy crowd quickly quieted down.
Lin Jiayi smiled.
"Children, first of all, welcome to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy."
"I am the Academic Director, Lin Jiayi."
"If you encounter any problems in your lives here, you can always come find me."
Faced with these children—each representing enormous potential profits—Lin Jiayi's attitude was extremely enthusiastic.
He delivered an energetic speech, kindly explaining the rules and important matters for the upcoming semester.
Once he finished, he waved his hand.
"I believe everyone now has a general understanding of the academy's rules."
"Next, please follow me."
"Before classes begin, we'll start with a physical assessment test."