"Hello, I'm here to report." Wang Linchi arrived at the classroom for the Soul Aspect and Soul Seed program at Qinghe Academy.
The classroom was clean, spacious, and well-lit, without any clutter or rundown objects, nor was it treated differently just because it catered to an unpopular major.
Only a middle-aged man was sitting inside. He gave Wang Linchi a once-over before speaking, "You're Wang Linchi, right? Potential 4, quite impressive, but it's a pity your Soul Resemblance is of the generic kind."
"My name is Liu Shen; I'm the teacher for this program. You're not here to embellish your credentials, are you?"
The man leafed through the documents Wang Linchi handed him. They contained Wang Linchi's profile, including his household registration information, Soul Resemblance condition, family circumstances, and so on.
Fortunately, all the information was up-to-date. Wang Linchi had spent 6,000 Yuan to change his registration to city resident, and it was a good thing he had done so in advance.
During these past two days, he had not only worked on his residency status but also inquired about the teachers of the Soul Aspect and Soul Seed program.
This wasn't exactly secret information. He had managed to dig up quite a bit about Liu Shen, who was from a collateral branch of the city's Liu Family.
Liu Shen had a slightly greedy personality and average abilities. He was often dismissive of people from outside the city, helping them only if he was in the mood. Conversely, he treated those from within the city based on their family background, showing favor to those from prominent families. For someone like Wang Linchi, however, he would stick to official procedures, neither deliberately creating difficulties nor offering preferential treatment.
"Inside the city" naturally referred to city residents, while "outside the city" meant those whose household registration was in county towns or villages.
Knowing this, Wang Linchi felt somewhat relieved he had made that decision.
Liu Shen wasn't actually a teacher for this specific major; one could even say he knew nothing about the subject matter. He was primarily there for administrative purposes. The program didn't have a dedicated instructor yet, though there were books available for self-study.
The Soul Aspect and Soul Seed program, along with other unpopular majors at Qinghe Academy, served as stepping stones for the children of prominent clans and orthodox sects whose Soul Resemblances were life-type or generic. These students would enter the academy but couldn't enroll in combat-focused programs because their Soul Resemblances were unsuitable.
However, they could first enroll in the Soul Aspect and Soul Seed program and then, through some maneuvering, eventually transfer into combat-focused programs.
This way, appearances were maintained.
This situation wasn't unique to the Soul Aspect and Soul Seed program; other unpopular majors operated similarly. Consequently, Liu Shen was responsible for several such programs, not just this one.
The students in these majors were mostly enrolled in name only; they actually attended classes in the combat-focused programs.
Liu Shen had waited for Wang Linchi specifically because Wang Linchi was the only student genuinely intending to study this major, not just to embellish his credentials.
"No, no, not at all. My parents are in this line of work, so I thought I'd see if I could follow in their footsteps. If I happen to have a talent for it, the pay is much better than being a clerk," Wang Linchi quickly offered the excuse he had prepared.
Liu Shen nodded. "Mm, good. You have ambition."
He didn't mention the consequences of failure because he knew it would only mean a loss of about thirty Yuan. In Liu Shen's eyes, Wang Linchi didn't really have much of a future.
However, Liu Shen wouldn't deliberately go out of his way to cause trouble for him. After their meeting today, barring accidental encounters, they likely wouldn't see each other again until graduation.
"I must tell you in advance, our academy doesn't have an instructor for this program. If you want to learn, you'll have to teach yourself."
"The good news is, it's quite flexible. There are no assessments, and you don't need to report at specific times. Whether you come to the classroom or not is up to you."
"And rest assured, all the program's textbooks in the academy are available to you. The collection is quite comprehensive and is updated annually with materials from the Sky Capital."
Liu Shen spoke plainly: he wouldn't be involved any further. Wang Linchi would have to rely entirely on himself for his studies and everything else.
As for attendance, Liu Shen would turn a blind eye. Since he wasn't fulfilling all his duties as a teacher, he couldn't very well demand Wang Linchi to sign in daily. As long as Wang Linchi didn't cause any trouble, it would be fine.
"No problem, I'll follow your arrangements, Teacher Liu." Wang Linchi knew this was the best possible outcome; he had actually been more worried that Liu Shen might simply dismiss him.
Freedom, comfort... no matter how he looked at it, this was a good thing.
"It's good that you understand. So, are you planning to choose your Soul Kind now, or will you wait until graduation?" Liu Shen asked.
He was only asking as a matter of procedure; he wasn't particularly concerned about it.
"There's no need for you to make a second trip, Teacher Liu. I'll choose now." It had always been Wang Linchi's plan to research Soul Resemblances and Soul Kinds, and that would be impossible without the aid of a corresponding Soul Kind.
"Mm, good. Then I'll get the list, and you can choose." Liu Shen showed no displeasure. After all, this was part of his duties. Though a bit greedy, he wouldn't deliberately create problems over such a thing. If it escalated, he could probably handle Wang Linchi, but it would be an unpleasant hassle for himself too.
Besides, what Wang Linchi would be choosing was academy property, public assets; Liu Shen had no reason to feel put out.
Seeing this, Wang Linchi hurriedly moved closer and subtly passed over the previously mentioned Soul Kind· Flash Technique. "Teacher, I have this Soul Kind at home that I don't need. How about you hold onto it for me for now, and perhaps you could... assist me a little?"
Liu Shen was startled at first. He then looked deeply at Wang Linchi before saying, "I know your family is facing difficulties. I will certainly help where I can."
With that, he accepted the Soul Kind· Flash Technique.
An ordinary-grade Soul Kind was worth 1,000 Yuan. This wasn't much to Liu Shen, whose monthly salary was already that amount.
Still, who wouldn't like a freebie? And what he would give Wang Linchi was from the academy's public funds anyway.
Therefore, he swapped the list he was holding for another and handed it to Wang Linchi.
Wang Linchi quickly accepted it. He had inquired before; normally, students like him were given a list of ordinary-grade Soul Kinds. Only those from collateral branches of major powers or children born of concubines could obtain better Soul Kinds through connections.
This list was filled with Excellent-grade Soul Kinds.
The difference in quality between Soul Kind grades was enormous.
Ordinary-grade ones had only one attribute or effect; for example, Flash Art could only produce a flash of light.
Excellent-grade ones possessed two attributes, two effects, or a combination of one attribute and one effect.
Excellent-grade ones, by extension, possessed up to three effect attributes.
Therefore, their values also differed: an ordinary-grade Soul Kind was worth 1,000 Yuan, an Excellent-grade one (with two attributes/effects) was 10,000 Yuan, and an Excellent-grade one (with three attributes/effects) soared to 1,000,000 Yuan.
Qinghe Academy also possessed the higher-tier Excellent-grade Soul Kinds, but those weren't something he could obtain. To receive an Excellent-grade one of the lower tier was already considered very good.
"Thank you for your help, Teacher. If I have the chance in the future, I'll definitely repay you," Wang Linchi said this courteously. Paying for a service and still talking about repaying a favor...
Liu Shen was also quite satisfied with Wang Linchi's words. "Just focus on making progress. That's better than anything."
He, too, was merely being polite.