Chapter 23: The Academy’s Trash Noble

The next morning, Tian Lin put on the uniform of Heaven Dou Royal Academy, grabbed his student ID, and stepped out of his dormitory. To be fair, the Heaven Dou Royal Academy had a decent sense of aesthetics. Not only was the academy itself beautifully constructed, but the uniforms were also quite stylish. Combined with Tian Lin's youthful, handsome face, which still carried a hint of childishness, he attracted a lot of attention from older female students as he made his way across campus. "Hey, look at that little guy! He's so cute. Is he one of our schoolmates?" "He must be. Look, he's wearing our academy's uniform." "But isn't he too small? Has he even been weaned yet?" "You can't say that! Maybe he's just short for his age. He could be older than he looks—like a dwarf or something." All kinds of discussions reached Tian Lin's ears without restraint. These so-called nobles didn't even bother to lower their voices or speak discreetly. Instead, they openly gossiped right in front of him. They had no sense of noble etiquette. Tian Lin ignored them and headed straight to his assigned classroom. According to his student ID, he was placed in Heaven Low-Class Three, which happened to be Zhou Yan's class. It wasn't class time yet, so the students were busy fooling around. No one was sitting quietly to cultivate. When Tian Lin entered the room, many students looked at him with surprise. Because Heaven Dou Royal Academy assigned students by their power levels rather than their age, the students in this class varied widely in age. The oldest were around seventeen or eighteen, while the youngest were only eleven or twelve. "Hey, little guy, are you here to find someone?" a female student asked as she approached him. "No, I'm here to study. Look, this is my student ID." Tian Lin showed his ID, and only then did the students realize that this little boy was their classmate. "Hahahaha—" Someone suddenly burst into laughter, and soon the entire class was roaring with laughter. Then, a mature-looking boy walked over and sneered, "Where did this little brat come from? Did you fake a student ID? Do you think Heaven Dou Royal Academy is a place for you to play around? Get lost!" "This ID is real. It was personally issued to me by the elders," Tian Lin said calmly, directly invoking the name of the elders. Sure enough, the boy hesitated for a moment. A student ID issued by the elders? Could this boy have some kind of significant background? After all, the Heaven Dou Royal Academy was known for harboring hidden dragons and crouching tigers, and not everyone could be provoked. Of course, by hidden dragons and crouching tigers, he was referring to their backgrounds, not their actual strength. "Hey, kid, who are your parents? What's your level?" the boy asked smartly, opting to gather information first. If Tian Lin claimed to be one of the elders' illegitimate sons or the child of powerful soul masters, he'd back off immediately. "My father is a village warehouse manager, a level-20-something Soul Master. My mother is an ordinary rural woman with no soul power," Tian Lin answered honestly. Hearing this, the boy sighed in relief. A commoner background? Then there was no need to ask further. This student ID must be fake because one of the academy's entry requirements was to come from a noble family. Anger followed his relief. "You little brat! A mere commoner, daring to fool me with a fake student ID? What 'personally issued by the elders'? Do you even know who I am? I'm Aldo, the leader of this class and the son of the Grand Duke of the Balak Kingdom! Even someone like me doesn't qualify for a personal audience with the elders. Who do you think you are?" The Balak Kingdom was a vassal state of the Heaven Dou Empire and had a relatively strong military. Aldo was likely sent here as part of some political exchange, similar to Yu Tianheng and Tian Lin's situation. With such a background, it wasn't surprising that he ended up as the class leader. However, Tian Lin didn't care about the background. He valued strength more. "If I may ask, how old are you, and what's your level?" "Hmph. I'm eighteen years old and a level-24 Attack System Soul Master. Impressed, kid?" Aldo boasted. "Eighteen years old and only level 24? No wonder you've never met the elders!" Tian Lin shook his head and walked directly to an empty seat, sitting down without paying Aldo any further attention. But while Tian Lin didn't want to bother with him, Aldo wasn't about to let it go. Tian Lin's words had infuriated him. "You little brat! What did you just say? I'll teach you a lesson today!" Enraged, Aldo activated his martial soul—a sunflower. This was a well-known noble martial soul from the Balak Kingdom, considered one of the best among plant-based spirits. Unfortunately, such a good martial soul was wasted on someone like him. "First Soul Skill: Falling Petals!" Aldo's hundred-year soul ring glowed as he unleashed several sharp petals, which shot toward Tian Lin. "A hundred-year soul skill? Is that it?" Tian Lin smiled faintly. Without even standing up, he extended a single hand and used his finger like a sword. "Third Form: Misty Rain on the Xiaoxiang River!" Tian Lin's finger struck each petal precisely, deflecting them all in just a few seconds. Then he mocked, "Got any stronger soul skills? Show me." "Y-You little...! Fine! Second Soul Skill: Floral Storm!" Floral Storm was much stronger than the previous skill. A whirlwind of petals surged toward Tian Lin. This time, Tian Lin couldn't simply rely on his finger. Instead, he summoned his magic sword. Still, he didn't use any soul skills or the Seven Killing Sword Technique. Instead, he continued to use defensive moves from Third Form: Misty Rain on the Xiaoxiang River. The result was the same. All the petals were sliced apart by the magic sword. Before Aldo could react, Tian Lin suddenly stood up and thrust his sword toward him. Aldo was so terrified that he froze, unable to move. The sword stopped less than a centimeter from his neck. "This move is called 'Moonlight Reflects on the Cold River.' What do you think? Against someone like you, I don't even need to use soul skills," Tian Lin said disdainfully as he withdrew his sword. At this point, many students began to believe Tian Lin's claim. His student ID might have been issued by the elders. He had defeated the class's strongest student, Aldo, without even using a soul skill. Was this even human? He had to be some kind of monster. Aldo, however, was unwilling to accept defeat. Unable to swallow his pride, he even considered rallying his lackeys to gang up on Tian Lin. Just then, a furious voice came from the doorway. "Enough! What are you all doing?" Zhou Yan entered the room, her face filled with anger. "Aldo, if you want to fight, go to the Soul Fighting Stage. Don't you know fighting is forbidden in the classroom? And you even used two soul skills against a new junior? Impressive, very impressive." "I'll be reporting this to your parents. As punishment, you'll run ten laps around the academy after class today." Zhou Yan, who admired Qin Ming, had completely adopted Qin Ming's teaching methods. Running laps was a classic punishment from Shrek Academy. Aldo's face turned ashen. The Heaven Dou Royal Academy was massive. Ten laps would probably leave his legs completely useless. Worse still, reporting to his parents? He could already picture the combined beating he'd receive from his parents when he got home. Glaring at Tian Lin with hatred, Aldo thought, It's all this brat's fault.