boyutpedia Chapter 3: Work-Study Student Quotas
Chapter 3: Work-Study Student Quotas
"Good! You are both good children!" For decades, Elder Jack had escorted countless children from the village to the Awakening Ceremony. He had been full of hope many times, but very few of the children were able to become Soul Masters. His hopes turned into disappointment time and time again.
The old man who had been guarding the village for countless years knew better than anyone just how difficult it was for an ordinary person to become a Soul Master. He had seen the unwilling and disappointed expressions on the faces of countless children after failing to awaken their Soul Master abilities.
Ning Yuanshan and Tang San actually possessed innate full soul power! At this time, Old Jack, who was just an ordinary person, did not yet understand how terrifying innate full soul power was, but he blindly believed that these two good children would have a bright future.
However, their excitement and joy were fleeting. The old man and the two young men slowly walked back the way they came, and the further they went, the more dejected Old Jack looked. Ning Yuanshan had already guessed that the village chief was worried about the fact that there was only one work-study student position in the village. But Ning Yuanshan didn't offer any words of comfort. Although he was one of the powerful transmigrators from various worlds, he had been born into the Douluo World as an orphan. What could he do? Ning Yuanshan was also full of worries.
"Tang Hao, Tang Hao!" Old Jack stood in front of the blacksmith's shop, holding the hands of his two children, his face full of worry. Regardless of who the spot was given to, the good news of the successful awakening of the martial soul still needed to be shared with the children's parents.
"Sigh... Xiao Ning's parents passed away early, which puts her at a disadvantage in times like this..." Old Jack was still concerned about the shortage of work-study student positions.
"Tang Hao! Good news! Xiao San has successfully awakened his martial soul... Hmm... Although his martial soul is a bit weak, just the common Blue Silver Grass martial soul, he has innate full soul power! He still has great potential!" Old Jack knew that Tang Hao was a carefree and irresponsible person, and not exactly loving towards his son, so he focused on the "innate full soul power" to praise him. He was afraid Tang Hao would dislike his son's awakened martial soul, so he added, "Xiao San is one of only two children from our Holy Soul Village in all these years to become a Soul Master. Besides, what kind of martial soul one awakens is due to parental inheritance, so don't blame Xiao San... If you have to blame someone, blame your own low-quality martial soul..."
Old Jack was so focused on comforting Tang Hao that he didn't notice the flash of displeasure and coldness in Tang San's eyes when he pointed out Tang Hao's faults. Tang San also subtly withdrew his clasped hands from the father's.
"In short, if Xiao San can obtain a spirit ring and study at the junior academy in Notting City for a period of time, then in the future, he will definitely become a person of high status... but..." Old Jack paused mid-sentence, his words becoming hesitant and mumbled, as if he had some unspeakable secret.
Indeed, Village Chief Jack really didn't know how to broach the subject. How could he explain to Tang Hao that there was only one work-study student spot? Both Ning Yuanshan and Tang San were good children, and both had the potential to become Soul Masters.
Studying at the Soul Master Academy costs Soul Coins that even the entire Holy Soul Village couldn't afford. Deep down, Old Jack hoped that Tang Hao would give up his work-study spot to Ning Yuanshan, since Ning Yuanshan had no relatives or friends, while Tang Hao was a skilled blacksmith.
"But Tang Hao is so muddle-headed and hasn't saved any money over the years. He's always neglected his own son, so why would he spend money to send his mistress to school?"
While Village Chief Jack remained silent in thought, Tang Hao also fell into a daze.
"Blue Silver Grass, it's actually Blue Silver Grass." Tang Hao murmured to himself, then suddenly raised his head, his eyes flashing with a resolute light that Tang San had never seen before. Tang Hao's voice was deep and hoarse, as if his words carried the weight of a thousand pounds, and he slowly said, "No, Xiao San is absolutely not allowed to go to the Soul Master Academy..."
Upon hearing Tang Hao's words, Ning Yuanshan suddenly felt a sense of relief. After realizing that he possessed considerable talent in soul power, he couldn't help but have a dark idea.
That is to seize Tang San's opportunities, replace him, and attempt to cultivate into a dual god himself. Some netizens in the past believed that if Tang San couldn't become the Sea God and Asura dual gods, it might not necessarily be a bad thing for the entire continent.
If Tang San had stayed in Holy Soul Village...
"You...you...you're out of your mind! Do you know what innate full soul power means? Xiao San only needs to obtain one soul ring to become a soul master, why won't you let him go!" Old Jack's face turned bright red, veins bulging on his neck, he almost roared. His anger towards Tang Hao had reached its peak.
"My mistress went to the Soul Master Academy, what am I going to do? Starve to death? Who's going to cook for me? Besides, what can he possibly cultivate with a useless Blue Silver Grass martial soul?"
Old Jack, filled with boundless rage, continued to roar, "Our Holy Soul Village only has one work-study student spot; in some places, it's even one spot for two or three villages! Do you know how precious that spot is?! You just gave it up so easily? Tang Hao! You don't care about your son's future at all! You don't deserve to be a father!"
"Grandpa Jack, please don't be angry. I still won't go to the Soul Master Academy. Dad is right, Blue Silver Grass is just a useless martial soul. I won't be able to learn it even if I go to the Soul Master Academy. Thank you for your kindness." Tang San's tone had become somewhat cold.
Village Chief Jack had never lost his temper with Tang Hao like this before. Although his words were harsh, they all came from the bottom of his heart; he simply loved and hated Tang Hao deeply. However, the angrier Old Jack became, the deeper Tang San's dissatisfaction with him grew.
Ning Yuanshan couldn't bear to see the kind and amiable Village Chief Jack so open and honest with the Tang family only to be met with indifference. Moreover, the situation seemed to be developing in a positive direction, so Ning Yuanshan felt he could add fuel to the fire. Although kicking someone when they're down seemed somewhat despicable, Ning Yuanshan couldn't care less.
As members of Holy Soul Village, the work-study spot didn't naturally belong to Ning Yuanshan. However, Ning Yuanshan had no choice, while Tang San was different. Tang Hao could afford to send his son to school and could also teach him himself. Even if Tang Hao was powerless, Tang San could raise funds for his studies through his own abilities or skip the academy process and establish himself in the Soul Master world.
Faced with the temptation of becoming a Soul Master, Ning Yuanshan was indeed anxious. If he missed this opportunity to enroll in Notting, he might be stuck in Holy Soul Village for the rest of his life.
"The Junior Soul Master Academy operates on an academic year system and only admits children whose martial souls have just awakened. If I can't enroll successfully, I won't even be able to become a Soul Master." Ning Yuanshan also possesses level ten soul power and only needs to obtain a soul ring to become a Soul Master, but his "Airdrop Box" martial soul currently lacks any combat capabilities, and there are no Soul Masters in the village who can assist him in hunting soul beasts. His finances are also insufficient to support his studies or recruit mercenaries to assist him in hunting soul beasts…