Master of Nine Stars

”Pine Soul Soul Martial University’s Roster for the Outer League Freshly Released! Participants Spark Controversy.”

”Another Batch of Young Talent! The Pine Soul Soul Martial Great God Squad Is Ready to Go. Check Out These Handsome Guys and Beautiful Gals—See If Any of Them Are Your Type?”

”Ranked matches are about to begin in all of Huaxia’s divisions. Pine Soul Soul Martial University is the top dog among the Outer Region’s universities and has been the reigning champion for many consecutive seasons. Their latest competition roster has caused widespread public debate.”

Rong Taotao lay on his hospital bed, absorbing Soul Power while scrolling through the news on his phone.

’Damn it...’

Unsurprisingly, his Weibo account was getting bombed again...

The reason? It was, of course, because he and Gao Lingwei, as students from the Junior Class, had snagged the precious spots to represent Pine Soul Soul Martial in the competition.

Although it had been a long time since Pine Soul Soul Martial had won the national championship, they were always a top contender in the Outer Region Division’s ranked matches.

Whether it was the solo, duo, or trio events, some student would always carry the school’s banner, leading Pine Soul Soul Martial to the number one spot in the Outer Region rankings.

The Outer Region Division covered three provinces and the Eastern Five Alliances of Da Meng Province. It was full of strong competitors like Starfield High School and Ocean High School. However, thanks to an overwhelming advantage in pure Talent, Pine Soul Soul Martial almost always came out on top in the biennial ranked matches.

For Rong Taotao and Gao Lingwei to qualify to represent Pine Soul Soul Martial, they had to have placed first at some stage of the internal selections...

Putting aside the national competition for a moment, just in terms of the Outer Region ranked matches, Rong Taotao’s team was at least at the level of a top-eight contender.

And that was where the problem arose!

Who was Gao Lingwei? The high school champion of the Outer League? Fine, you’re a badass, exceptionally talented, I’ll give you that.

But who are you, Rong Taotao? A Junior Class student?

You...

Has Pine Soul Soul Martial become completely shameless just to burnish the reputation of its Junior Class program and show society how successful it is?

Just a few days ago, Pine Soul Soul Martial had slapped the title of ”Creator of a New Soul Skill” on that Junior Class student, Rong Taotao.

And now they were forcing him to represent the university in the Outer Region competition?

What the hell...

The online ”Roast Rong Taotao” festival had officially begun again.

It was no exaggeration to say that the comments section on Rong Taotao’s Weibo was a hater’s paradise.

Especially after the official roster was released and the university’s official Weibo account tagged @Nourishing People. At that point, it didn’t matter how star-studded the rest of Pine Soul Soul Martial’s Class of 2011 contestants were. They were all pushed aside... The spotlight was now fixed solely on Rong Taotao.

”Looks like I’m a celebrity now,” Rong Taotao muttered, rubbing his cheek against the Snowball Cat’s little head.

”Meow~”

”WOOF!” The Cloud Dog squeezed in, rubbing its head hard against Rong Taotao’s neck, looking jealous as it tried to curry favor with its master.

”Hmm?” Rong Taotao’s finger paused on the screen. Was this a breaking news exposé?

”Who Exactly Is Rong Taotao? Today, This Reporter Will Give You the Inside Scoop...”

Rong Taotao raised an eyebrow and clicked on it curiously.

”Who is Rong Taotao? Where does he come from? This reporter was also surprised, so today I’ll take you on a journey to find out.

Rong Taotao attended Xindanxi No. 1 Middle School. According to online sources, he awakened a full six Soul Slots at his graduation ceremony, a once-in-a-blue-moon genius. On the day of the ceremony, he was scouted by a teacher from the Pine Soul Soul Martial admissions office to participate in the Pine Soul Soul Martial Junior Class program, and was admitted into the Junior Class with an outstanding second-place finish.

An insider has revealed that during the once-in-16-years invasion by the Snow Realm Army, Rong Taotao seems to have acquired a magical treasure. In his subsequent campus life, Rong Taotao used this treasure to defeat a Soul Captain. Any guesses who that Soul Captain was?

Gao Lingwei! Surprising, isn’t it? According to a Pine Soul Soul Martial Student who wishes to remain anonymous, Rong Taotao nearly killed Gao Lingwei with that treasure. It’s truly terrifying to think about.

In the distant, bitterly cold Snow Realm, Rong Taotao’s reputation is quite significant. He is the Night Watchman of the Pine Soul Soul Martial Arts Hall and a well-regarded young scholar in the field of New Soul Skill research.

But all these halos pale in comparison to Rong Taotao’s true identity. This reporter has learned that Rong Taotao is very likely the son of a certain Soul General from the Outer Region!

From this perspective, Rong Taotao’s achievements today are deeply connected to his powerful family background.

This is the story of Rong Taotao’s rise. I hope this carefully compiled article has answered your questions.”

Rong Taotao smacked his lips. The fact that he was the descendant of a Soul General wasn’t much of a secret. It was because of this title that people had always looked at him a little differently growing up.

’But that Lotus Petal...’

’Ah, forget it. Plenty of students saw me when I was absorbing the Lotus Petal and when I used it. I couldn’t hide it even if I wanted to, and there’s no need to. After all, I’ll have to use it again in the future.’

’So... if you all know I’m the descendant of a Soul General, will you go a little easier on me when you’re cursing me out?’

Curious, Rong Taotao opened his Weibo.

”Whoa~” Rong Taotao couldn’t help but let out a soft gasp.

”What’s wrong?” Gao Lingwei’s voice echoed in his mind again.

Rong Taotao: ”Ah, haha, I’m famous again. Can you believe one of my Weibo posts has over 70,000 comments?”

Gao Lingwei comforted him, ”Don’t look. They won’t have anything good to say. After all, the two of us appearing on the roster shatters the public’s expectations. It’s only normal for us to be questioned.”

”Yeah, yeah, I get the logic...” Rong Taotao replied while reading the comments.

”What a disgrace to the family! To think a famous general’s descendant would be such a charlatan who deceives the world for fame. You dishonor your family name!”

”Heh, I was wondering how Gao Lingwei could team up with you. Turns out you’re just some rich kid, huh?”

”Looking at it this way, Gao Lingwei is just sucking up to the powerful. It’s paid off, too. She didn’t just get a spot in the Junior Class, she’s now representing the entire university. Haha! How glorious! People struggle for four years to achieve their goals, but all you had to do was pick a good teammate, eh?”

”Wait, I’m thinking... are you all stupid? If Rong Taotao really had no skill and only got in because of his family background, wouldn’t a few matches in the Outer League completely expose him?”

”Exactly! If he really got in through connections, that’d be a moronic move, wouldn’t it? What’s in it for him? To go out and make a fool of himself? Not only would he be outing himself, but he’d also be dragging Pine Soul Soul Martial down with him for a public execution?”

”Ever since I got flamed online for saying 0.8 x 0.5 = 0.4, I’ve stopped arguing with anyone on the internet...”

”LMAO, it’s obviously 0.04, okay!?”

”...”

”All of you, shut the hell up. The video of the Pine Soul Soul Martial selection match is out. Are you blind? Go watch it yourselves! A bunch of morons.”

Seeing that comment, Rong Taotao paused. He clicked on the official Weibo account of Pine Soul Soul Martial University—one of only two accounts he followed—and sure enough, he saw the selection match video.

You have to understand, in all its history, Pine Soul Soul Martial University had never released footage of its internal selection matches. But for Rong Taotao’s sake, the school had actually edited and posted a video. It seemed... with so much happening recently, the university probably couldn’t withstand the pressure from public opinion anymore.

And that fight was absolutely brutal!

Rong Taotao was stunned watching it. ’Holy cow...’

’When did I become such a badass? Grabbing someone’s wrist and forcing their own combat knife into my body?’

”Hiss...” Rong Taotao couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath as a dull ache started up again in his lower abdomen.

Rong Taotao almost didn’t recognize himself. ’So from a spectator’s point of view, I’m actually that intense? That explosive?’

The comments below were also filled with cursing.

But this time, they weren’t cursing at Rong Taotao. Most of it was just exclamations:

”HOLY F*CK... what... what is this?”

”Two lunatics, holy shit. Are these still students? It’s just a qualification spot, do they really need to go that hard?”

”Which past competition hasn’t had injuries or even deaths? Don’t treat them like regular university students. They’re trained to the standards of professional athletes. The only thing in their heads is winning.”

”A bunch of ordinary people living in their comfortable little world. This is what the Soul Martial Artists who are usually so pleasant to you are really like. Haha, maybe now you’ll know your place. Just because they don’t start a fight, don’t you dare push your luck.”

”There’s a reason the Soul Martial Law is so strict.”

”I’ve decided, I’m going to be Rong Taotao’s number one fan! Nobody stop me! He looks so well-behaved, but he’s so explosive when he fights! He’s to die for...”

Seeing the public opinion of him shifting, Rong Taotao felt a little better. He thought for a moment, picked up his phone, and opened the camera.

”You two little guys, look at the camera,” Rong Taotao said.

”Yip?”

”Yip?” The Cloud Dog and Snowball Cat, who had been tumbling and playing by his pillow, both lifted their heads, tilted them, and looked up at Rong Taotao’s phone.

On the screen was the sight of Rong Taotao lying on his pillow, his naturally curly hair a little messy. The Cloud Dog was nestled against the Snowball Cat on the pillow, a happy smile on its face, its little tail wagging back and forth.

The Snowball Cat was also craning its neck curiously. Its beautiful, azure eyes stared at the grinning Cloud Dog on the screen, and it also broke into a goofy smile. ”Woof~”

”CLICK.”

Rong Taotao nodded in satisfaction. He took the photo, composed a Weibo post, and... sent it.

At the same time, in the hospital room across the hall, the phone by Gao Lingwei’s pillow buzzed.

Gao Lingwei casually picked up her phone. She usually had notifications silenced for most messages. ’Maybe it’s a message from my parents?’

Gao Lingwei’s heart tightened. ’Do they know I’m injured?’

She unlocked the screen, only to see that someone she had on special notifications had sent a Weibo post.

Gao Lingwei instantly let out a sigh of relief. She opened Weibo and looked at the photo of the beautiful cat, the adorable dog, and the person with a goofy grin.

”Nourishing People

Just now via Daogu C8500

Not dead. The story continues.

[Image]”

The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, and a small sense of pride swelled in her heart. Her long, slender fingers tapped gently on the screen. It was a lingering side effect of living in the Martial Arts Hall for so long; for a moment, she had completely forgotten that there was no Evil Boss Si in the university hospital.

Her comment was just two words: ”Keep going.”