area51novel Chapter 11 Hearing Rumors Upon Enrollment: Tang Hao's Stigma Spreads Throughout the Land
Chapter 11 Hearing Rumors Upon Enrollment: Tang Hao's Stigma Spreads Throughout the Land
Jinfeng City, a small city in the southern part of the Barak Kingdom, is only 300 miles away from Soto City, one of the two main cities of the kingdom, but they are worlds apart.
There is no Soul Arena here, and the Spirit Hall only has a branch here. The middle-aged Lister who went to Zhuhe Village three months ago to awaken his Spirit was born here.
Above the sky, a sword shadow streaked across the heavens, lingered for a few moments, and then landed outside the city.
The two figures then walked towards the city gate tower.
One person had waist-length white hair and a face that resembled that of a young man, yet appeared inexplicably ancient; the other was a child with little expression.
Crowds thronged in front of the city gate. It was the time when the morning market was open, and many merchants were bringing in goods from outside the city. There were so many carts that people had to queue up for inspection.
There were only a handful of people on the sidewalk.
As they approached the city gate, a child's voice called out to them, stopping them in their tracks.
"Brother Zhang Xun?"
Looking back, the little girl was clinging to the back of the truck, smiling brightly and waving her little hand to attract attention. Then, an old man also peeked out and looked over.
It was the old village chief Zhang Zhuming and Zhang Susu who came to register.
"Xiao Feng? What a coincidence! Banzi, you can go ahead by yourself. We'll get to the city gate soon, so we won't follow you in the carriage."
Upon seeing that it was Zhang Xun, he quickly got up, pulled the little girl off the oxcart, and got off.
"Alright, sir, please take care with Susu." The lean middle-aged man at the front of the car nodded with a smile.
He is Zhang Susu's uncle, named Zhang Ban. He has no innate soul power, and his martial soul is the small bamboo whip he uses to drive cattle.
The two waited for them to catch up before continuing towards the city gate.
The old village chief could tell at a glance that the person beside Zhang Xun had an extraordinary air about him and was a person of great status. Moreover, he was with the village's genius, so the boy must be lucky to have such a connection with him.
So he started talking quite animatedly.
"This person looks familiar, what's your surname?" His slightly hoarse voice carried a sense of vicissitude.
"My surname is Chen. I inquired about this child's master from you in the village before."
As she spoke, Chen Xin gently patted Zhang Xun's shoulder.
Zhang Susu was startled by this action and, somewhat timid, hid behind the old man, not daring to speak, but just listening quietly.
"Oh, I remember now." The old village chief suddenly realized, grinning and revealing a mouthful of white teeth as he looked Chen Xin up and down.
"I wanted to ask you this last time, young man, how come you have all white hair at such a young age, and it's so long? Is it easy for you to manage it?"
Faced with this man who was only fifty years old and called him "young man," Chen Xin was so embarrassed that he didn't know how to respond for a moment.
Seeing this, Zhang Xun chuckled and coughed twice to defuse the situation.
"Ahem~~ Grandpa Village Chief, Grandpa Chen is already over seventy years old."
Upon hearing this, the old village chief's eyes widened instantly, and he looked him up and down in surprise.
"Seventy? How do you maintain your youthful appearance, brother?"
The atmosphere among them immediately became much more cheerful, and Zhang Susu also came out to ask Zhang Xun about his martial spirit.
In fact, Zhang Xun had already started teaching some of his peers to cultivate long ago, around the age of four.
Unfortunately, in this world where talent is everything, many children don't even have a sense of Qi. Only Zhang Susu has some talent, but she can only barely master the Small Heavenly Circuit and breathing meditation techniques.
It now appears that those who can sense Qi possess innate soul power.
Unfortunately, the child didn't like quiet, and his talent was somewhat lacking, so his progress was very slow. Therefore, he couldn't concentrate on cultivation at all, and only reached the third level of innate soul power when he awakened.
Now it seems she understands how important what Zhang Xun taught her was, and she asks questions about things she doesn't understand.
In the blink of an eye, we arrived at the doorway.
The city gate guards only collect tolls from passing merchants, so many guards are on the other side, while only one person is on duty here, who glances at the passersby and lets them through.
The Jin Feng City Primary Soul Master Academy is located in the city center, and the Spirit Hall is right next to it, so it's a place you have to pass by.
Upon arriving at the plaza in front of the Spirit Hall, the group discovered a large crowd gathered near the notice board next to the main gate, making a loud commotion.
The disorganized speech was mostly like that.
Words like "traitor," "madman soul master," "how did this guy do that?" and "dared to attack even soul beasts" were used.
Zhang Xun and Chen Xin had good hearing, and when they exchanged a glance, they both saw curiosity in each other's eyes.
So they went together to see what kind of strange news it was.
The notice board was written in large characters, making the text easily visible at a glance.
To protect their soul beast, disciples of the Clear Sky Sect injured a Title Douluo who was completely unprepared.
The writing is concise, clear, and logically sound, demonstrating a strong understanding of journalism.
It has now been determined that Tang Hao of the Clear Sky Sect colluded with spirit beasts, violating human ethics and natural law by mating with them. The Spirit Hall, in the name of the Angel God, has listed him as a traitor to humanity, and his crime deserves to be punished.
Anyone who provides information about the whereabouts of a criminal and whose information is verified will receive a reward from the Spirit Hall: 10,000 gold spirit coins and a ten-thousand-year-old inner spirit ring to help with the hunt.
We urge the Haotian Sect to hand over the criminal Tang Hao and the soul beast to set the record straight. If they harbor the criminal, they will be punished as accomplices!
……
Below is a list of the cities Tang Hao has visited and the foolish things he has done, mostly involving killing deacons and bishops of various levels in the Spirit Hall.
Some were civilians killed to avoid revealing their whereabouts. Most of these deaths were determined afterward based on the condition of the remaining flesh. Some even included simple illustrations and portraits of Tang Hao himself.
"How does this guy manage to fuse with a soul beast without any fear?"
After reading the first two lines, Zhang Xun didn't react for a moment, his head full of question marks, and he expressed the same doubts as everyone else.
He had wandered around the Star Dou Great Forest and hadn't seen a single good-looking soul beast. Even his third brother was afraid, yet this brave man dared to draw his sword and fight.
Looking down, the curiosity vanished without a trace.
The record was full of solemn achievements. In fact, if it was just about fighting back against the strong because of love, Zhang Xun might have thought this guy was a true man of character.
But the number of kills calculated below is conservatively estimated to be in the thousands. They kill wherever they go, and what about last-hitting minions? The killing spree is too much, so much that it feels a bit unreal.
It's unclear whether Zhang Xun fabricated the story intentionally to smear someone's reputation, or whether he truly was a serial killer.
However, this behavior dealt a severe blow to the sect's reputation, and the Haotian Sect's prestige among the people was completely ruined from that point on.
The Spirit Hall played its hand well. Regardless of whether things are as stated in the announcement, it has secured the legitimacy of its actions, meaning it has a just cause.
Looking back one more time, his name is Tang Hao. I remember him; it seems like that's the name of the protagonist's father.
As for spirit beasts, both the female lead and the protagonist's father's wife are transformed spirit beasts. So, liking spirit beasts is a family tradition?
Now that this has happened, does that mean the plot is about to begin? When was the protagonist born again?
After thinking for a while, Zhang Xun really couldn't remember his birth year. After all, he had only glanced at his first life in bits and pieces to pass the time. Who would be so idle as to scrutinize every word and remember everything?
"Grandpa Chen, do you know this person? Is he really a serial killer?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Xin nodded and then shook his head. He squinted, seemingly looking down on the other person's behavior in the text.
"Tang Hao, one of the Twin Stars of Haotian, is the most outstanding disciple of the current generation of Haotian Sect, the top sect among the three upper sects, and also the son of the sect leader. I have heard that he is arrogant and has a fiery temper, but I don't know about his bloodthirstiness. That is too easy to cover up, and it is hard to determine the truth of what is below."
As for how to cover it up, everyone can understand the term "perfect infiltration." Since everyone is dead, naturally no one will know who did it.
"Let's go. Don't get involved in this kind of thing. Even I can't afford to offend the Clear Sky Sect and the Spirit Hall."
Chen Xin's words were full of apprehension.
If his two elders, his father Chen Jianjun and grandfather Chen Xun, were still alive, that would be fine. With both of them at level 98, he could roam freely across the world. Unfortunately, now he is all alone.
The group didn't linger and turned to leave, as their only purpose today was to enroll in the school.
Jin Feng City Junior Soul Master Academy
Looking up, the entrance was luxurious, with a single marble carving and the college's name in large, gleaming gold lettering inlaid on the stone archway.
Nothing of the sarcastic incidents often seen in books happened at the gate. The gatekeeper simply looked at the Martial Soul certificate calmly, then pushed open the door to let people in.
It also pointed out where new students should go to complete the enrollment process.
The village chief, who was used to smiling obsequiously, was flattered by the gesture. He kept expressing his gratitude, but when he turned around, he found that the other three had already walked far away along the stone path.
The area is not large, consisting of three buildings: one for dormitories, one for teaching, and one for administrative affairs. In addition, there is a square in the center facing the main gate, with a statue in the center, which fills the entire area.
The overall architectural style leans towards the West, giving the small campus a rather luxurious feel.
With such a campus environment, Zhang Xun could only sigh in his heart that it was worth the money.
The tuition for a junior Soul Master Academy is not considered expensive for Soul Master families. It costs ten gold soul coins for six years, which is affordable for most Soul Master families. However, for ordinary people, this price is not very friendly.
If Chen Xin hadn't come along, Zhang Xun could have raised his tuition by selling bamboo rats. But there are no "what ifs" in life; once something happens, it's inevitable.
Thus, Zhang Xun's long-awaited systematic learning of martial spirits and various courses finally began.