Lu Tianyu smiled slightly after hearing the master's words, saying, "The physical techniques I use rely solely on physical strength, so of course there can't be any soul power fluctuations."
The master was slightly taken aback upon hearing Lu Tianyu's words. A soul skill activated by physical strength—was it still a soul skill?
In an instant, the master developed a strong interest in Lu Tianyu's first soul skill, saying, "Six Forms are six soul skills activated by physical strength, right? Show me the next five as well."
Lu Tianyu nodded gently, saying, "Yes, Master, Six Forms - Shave..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Tianyu swiftly took more than thirty steps in place. Suddenly, a piercing sound of wind breaking came from the air, and Lu Tianyu's figure appeared on the open ground six meters away.
"Six Forms - Moon Step..."
Lu Tianyu pushed off with both feet, his body soaring into the air. But after his feet left the ground, he continued to push off the air with force.
"Crack! Crack!"
Two sonic booms echoed in the air, and Lu Tianyu's body had already reached a height of five or six meters above the ground.
"Six Styles: Finger Pistol..."
With that, Lu Tianyu raised his right hand, his index finger extended, and thrust it fiercely at the large tree in front of him as he plummeted towards the ground.
Lu Tianyu's seemingly slender right index finger pierced the hard bark like an iron nail, its tip sinking deep into the even more resilient wood.
"Thud thud thud thud thud..."
In an extremely short time, Lu Tianyu thrust his index finger twelve times, tensing all his muscles and tendons when he was still a meter from the ground.
"Six Styles: Iron Block..."
"Boom..."
Lu Tianyu fell to the ground like a rock from six meters high, his feet sinking deep into the soft soil.
Grandmaster and Tang San, watching Lu Tianyu's series of skills, didn't know where to begin.
After dispersing the iron blocks, Lu Tianyu pulled his feet out of the mud and turned to Tang San, saying, "Little San, the next six forms, Paper Drawing, requires you to attack me before I can demonstrate it."
Tang San glanced at Grandmaster, and only after receiving his confirmation did he approach Lu Tianyu.
Lu Tianyu chuckled, "Little San, unleash all your attack methods! Paper Drawing is said to be able to evade all non-locking soul skills and area-of-effect attacks."
Tang San's lips curled slightly, "Master Lu, Little Yu, you'd better be careful."
As he spoke, Tang San raised his fist and punched at Lu Tianyu, but Lu Tianyu's body dodged all of Tang San's attacks like rapidly reflexing paper.
Lu Tianyu continued to use Paper Drawing, saying, "Give it your all, Little San! I feel like this is far from my limit."
Tang San didn't speak, but the speed of his punches and kicks towards Lu Tianyu suddenly increased.
But no matter how Tang San attacked, even using Crane Control and Dragon Capture, he couldn't touch Lu Tianyu's body.
After about five minutes, the master finally spoke, "Alright, stop, Xiao Yu. Although your six soul skills are all exquisite,"
"Finger Pistol, Paper Drawing, and Iron Block have obvious weaknesses. Their practicality is far inferior to Shave, Moon Step, and Tempest Kick."
Lu Tianyu exhaled a breath of turbid air and said, "So, Master thinks so too? That's why I think I should focus on cultivating Shave, Moon Step, and Tempest Kick."
The master was slightly taken aback after hearing Lu Tianyu's words and said uncertainly, "Wait, Xiao Yu, what do you mean by cultivating?"
Lu Tianyu looked at the master with a smile and said, "Literally, I haven't brought the power of the six styles to their full potential. I still need to spend a lot of time cultivating and improving their power."
"I feel that my six soul skills are more like self-created soul skills. The soul rings only provide me with a way to cultivate soul skills."
In One Piece, there are many people who can use the six styles, some who have just mastered them, and some who have cultivated them to perfection.
Lu Tianyu currently possesses only 600 Dao Power points, barely reaching the threshold to unleash the Six Styles.
Once his Dao Power reaches 2000, the power of the Six Styles will not only increase exponentially but may even spawn numerous new techniques. After
hearing Lu Tianyu's words, Grandmaster hurriedly retrieved his notebook from his soul tool and began diligently recording them. He found Lu Tianyu's proposed soul skill to be very interesting, as it resembled a self-created soul skill that could be cultivated.
When Lu Tianyu withdrew his martial soul, he felt as if all his strength had been drained, collapsing limply to the ground.
Tang San, standing in front of Lu Tianyu, was startled and rushed to his side, asking, "Xiaoyu, what's wrong?"
Lu Tianyu gasped for breath, saying, "I'm just exhausted. After all, I unleashed all the skills of the Six Styles in one go."
Grandmaster, who had already reached Lu Tianyu's side, took out his notebook again after hearing his explanation and began carefully recording.
Tang San gave Lu Tianyu some water and then told him to lie down and rest. Soon after, Lu Tianyu fell into a deep sleep.
When Lu Tianyu woke up, he found himself in his dormitory at the Notting Junior Soul Master Academy. He had no idea how he had gotten back to Notting City.
Trying to sit up, Lu Tianyu found he couldn't muster any strength; even raising his arm felt weak.
At this moment, Lu Tianyu just wanted to curse his spirit for being so useless. He had only used the Six Styles of Body Technique once, but
after dispelling the spirit's possession, he had become a weakling. What was he going to do for his future Soul Master career?
About an hour later, his dormitory door opened. Lu Tianyu struggled to turn around and saw Tang San and a little girl wearing the Notting Junior Soul Master Academy uniform and pink rabbit earrings.
"Senior Brother Lu, you're finally awake! Are you feeling better?"
Tang San breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Lu Tianyu awake and hurriedly went to his side, saying, "Drink some water first, I'll go find you something to eat right away."
Hearing Tang San's words, Lu Tianyu felt a pang of sadness. Since being reborn into the world of Douluo Continent, Lu Tianyu had never treated himself like a child.
Tang San skillfully poured Lu Tianyu a glass of water, then noticed that Lu Tianyu was clenching his teeth, as if he was trying his best to endure something.
"Senior Brother Lu, what's wrong? Did I hurt you?"
Hearing Tang San's words, Lu Tianyu quickly shook his head, saying, "No, I was already injured. Thank you, Xiao San."
At this moment, Lu Tianyu suddenly felt that Tang San wasn't the unfamiliar protagonist he remembered, but a person of flesh and blood.
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Tang San gently shook his head and said, "It's good that you're alright. I don't know what happened to your martial soul, how could it leave such serious aftereffects?"
Lu Tianyu hurriedly agreed, "Who says otherwise? It seems that I still have a long way to go before I can truly master my martial soul."
"Hey, Tang San, what are you doing, a work-study student, bothering with these nobles?"
At this moment, the little girl who had followed Tang San to Lu Tianyu's dormitory spoke up unhappily. Tang San turned his head and said, "Xiao Wu, Senior Brother Lu isn't a noble."
Xiao Wu raised her chin at Tang San and said, "Someone who can live in a dormitory by himself isn't a noble? Look at his dormitory, and then look at our dormitory."
Lu Tianyu couldn't help but say, "When I entered the academy, I paid three silver soul coins for tuition. How much tuition did you pay when you enrolled?"
"What?! Three silver soul coins?! You're so rich!"
Xiao Wu's eyes lit up with gold upon hearing Lu Tianyu's words. She looked at him again with a fawning smile, saying, "Senior Brother Lu."
Lu Tianyu knew exactly what Xiao Wu was thinking. He'd been penniless since paying three silver soul coins last year. He
hadn't even paid his tuition yet this year. "Don't worry, I'm moving to the work-study dorm soon."
"If I want to stay in this dorm, I'll have to pay a gold soul coin. Even if you sold me, I wouldn't be worth a gold soul coin,"
Tang San said, looking at Lu Tianyu. "Senior Brother Lu, the teacher said that after becoming a Soul Master, you can receive a Soul Master subsidy from the Spirit Hall every month. If you register at the Spirit Hall today, you can receive two months' worth."
"A Soul Master subsidy?!"
"How could I forget about the Soul Master subsidy?"
Xiao Wu and Lu Tianyu exclaimed simultaneously after hearing Tang San's words. Of course, Xiao Wu was hearing about Soul Master subsidies for the first time.
Lu Tianyu only remembered this after Tang San reminded him. When he first transmigrated to Douluo Continent, Lu Tianyu had thought about becoming a Soul Master as soon as possible and receiving the Soul Master subsidy.
However, while waiting for Su Yuntao to awaken his Martial Soul, he gradually forgot about it. Now, remembering it, Lu Tianyu excitedly sat up in bed.
Then, a wave of soreness surged through his muscles and tendons, but Lu Tianyu didn't pay much attention to it.
"Little San, thank you. If you hadn't reminded me, I wouldn't have thought about the Soul Master subsidy."
Tang San scratched the back of his head somewhat awkwardly and said, "Actually, it's nothing. My teacher told me all this."
Lu Tianyu tried to get out of bed but found he had no strength to move his limbs.
In his current state, Lu Tianyu wouldn't be able to get out of bed for several days, but missing today would mean missing a month's Soul Master subsidy.
A one-ring Soul Master receives a gold Soul coin subsidy per month, and for Lu Tianyu at his current level, even a copper Soul coin wouldn't be a problem.
"Hey, Tang San, could you help me heal myself with your internal energy? At least so I can register as a Soul Master at the Spirit Hall and get the subsidy."
Lu Tianyu suddenly remembered that Tang San could be considered a half-healer. After hearing Lu Tianyu's words, Tang San nodded in agreement.
However, he looked at Lu Tianyu with surprise. Soul Masters could accelerate the recovery of injuries by activating their Soul Power, but there was no such thing as healing through
internal energy in the Douluo Continent. Tang San took off his shoes, sat cross-legged behind Lu Tianyu, and then placed his palms on Lu Tianyu's back, slowly channeling his own Soul Power into Lu Tianyu's body.
After feeling Tang San's Soul Power entering his meridians, Lu Tianyu calmed down and carefully felt how Tang San was circulating his Soul Power through his meridians.
Half an hour later, Lu Tianyu felt that his sore and weak body had improved a lot, and Tang San withdrew his Soul Power at this time.
Lu Tianyu said softly, "Little San, thanks. I'll treat you to chicken after I receive my Soul Master subsidy."
Tang San's forehead was covered in glistening sweat, indicating that healing others was very mentally taxing.
After hearing Lu Tianyu's words, Tang San simply smiled and shook his head, saying, "It was nothing. I still have a lot to learn from you, Senior Brother Lu."
After what had just happened, Lu Tianyu's impression of Tang San improved considerably. He turned to Tang San, who had put on his shoes, and said, "Call me Brother Xiaoyu or Xiaoyu, I wouldn't dare call myself Senior Brother."
Before Tang San could speak, Xiao Wu said, "Brother Xiaoyu, are you going to the Spirit Hall to register as a Soul Master? Can you take me with you?"
Lu Tianyu looked at Xiao Wu and then at Tang San, saying, "Little San, you've already been to the Spirit Hall."
Tang San nodded honestly, saying, "Yes, I just came back from the Spirit Hall and received a Soul Master subsidy of two gold soul coins."
Upon hearing that she could receive a Soul Master subsidy of two gold soul coins, Xiao Wu's eyes practically turned into coins. She hurriedly urged Lu Tianyu to take her to the Spirit Hall.
Tempted by the money, Lu Tianyu, despite waves of weakness, was dragged by Xiao Wu to the Spirit Hall for a Soul Power assessment.
During the soul power assessment, Lu Tianyu's soul power actually reached level fourteen. His eyes darted around as he hurriedly explained, "I was seriously injured while hunting soul beasts half a year ago."
"I was bedridden for half a year before I could get out of bed, and I only just regained my mobility today..."
The soul master from the Spirit Hall responsible for assessing Lu Tianyu and Xiao Wu's soul power showed a look of understanding after hearing Lu Tianyu's words.
Injuries while hunting soul beasts were commonplace for soul masters; many even lost their lives in the process.
Therefore, Lu Tianyu's soul master status was recorded as six months earlier than Xiao Wu and Tang San's, and he also received six months' worth of soul master subsidies along with the next month's subsidy all at once.
A one-ring soul master receives one gold soul coin subsidy per month, so Lu Tianyu received seven gold soul coins at once.
Xiao Wu looked at her pitiful two gold soul coins in her hand, then at the pile of gold soul coins in Lu Tianyu's hand, feeling as if the world was full of malice towards her.
As soon as they stepped out of the Spirit Hall, Xiao Wu started clamoring for Lu Tianyu to treat her, claiming that it was because she hadn't exposed his lie that he had received so many gold soul coins.
Lu Tianyu, having watched anime, knew that Xiao Wu often had Tang San take her shopping, so he nonchalantly replied, "Sure, treating you to a meal won't bankrupt me."
Xiao Wu suddenly realized she'd missed out on a long-term meal ticket and quickly changed her tune, saying, "No, you have to treat me to meals from now on, or I'll report you!"
Lu Tianyu immediately bristled; this extortion was truly endless.
Honestly, Lu Tianyu was genuinely afraid of the Spirit Hall finding out he had only recently become an Inner Soul Master, so he could only nod and agree, following the bouncy Xiao Wu towards the commercial street of Notting City.
(End of Chapter)