Huo Yuhao from The Peerless Tang Sect is incredibly talented.

"First, open the virtual realm."

Huo Yuhao began to instruct everyone on how to operate the equipment.

See that magnifying glass icon in the upper right corner? Tap it.

Everyone's consciousness entered the virtual realm, watching Huo Yuhao's actions through screen sharing. Xiao Xiao was the first to find it, lightly tapping her fingertip on the screen.

A simple search box popped up, with only one line of small text at the bottom: Enter any question you want to know.

Huo Yuhao casually typed a few words into the search box: Five-Year Plan: Nationwide Martial Soul Awakening.

Dozens of results popped up on the screen instantly, each labeled with its source, update time, and credibility rating.

At the very top is an official document from the "Tian Dou City Internal Affairs Department," which details the timetable, budget, and implementation progress of the first phase of mutual aid associations in various regions.

"Select any result to ask follow-up questions." Huo Yuhao clicked on the official document, and a small window popped up on the right side of the screen. He typed in: Progress around Shrek City.

In an instant, the answer was revealed. A table, arranged by village and town name, with each row marked with the number of people "awakened/should be awakened," the responsible mutual aid branch, and the main difficulties currently encountered.

"It will integrate all relevant documents, data, and execution reports, and give you the answer directly, instead of giving you a bunch of links to flip through yourself." Huo Yuhao glanced at everyone present.

"Before starting a mission, if you encounter something you don't understand, search for it first. Enter the name of the village you want to go to, and it will tell you how to get there, how many school-age children there are, and whether anyone has taught there before. It can even tell you what local specialties are available and where the nearest rest stop is. If you do your homework before you set off, you won't be completely clueless when you arrive."

"But that's a story for later. Our current task is to collect all this information."

"Of course, if you don't know how to do it, you can click on the bottom corner and ask God. God will tell you how to do it and guide you."

Xiao Xiao excitedly tried it out on her own virtual body, and after a few breaths she exclaimed in amazement: "Wow, the Divine Inquiry can even help me point out my future development path."

Wang Dong stared intently at the virtual realm, his fingers flying across the screen, his brows furrowing and relaxing intermittently, clearly having found quite a bit of information.

"Alright, stop playing around." Tang Ya stood up, holding the small box she had received from the delivery guy that afternoon, and walked to the front of the long table. She placed the box on the table, signaling everyone to be quiet.

"The items have arrived. Distribute the resources," she said simply, then placed her palm on the soul guidance array on the top of the box.

A gentle blue light rippled from beneath her palm, the magic circle patterns lit up one by one, and the box emitted a soft hum.

Immediately afterwards, a pill emerged from a groove on the side of the box. It was perfectly round, with a faint silver-gray sheen on its surface, and a refreshing medicinal fragrance immediately filled the air.

"Special edition Replenishing Pill," Tang Ya picked up the pill and placed it on the table. The box then spat out a second and a third pill in a steady rhythm, each one accompanied by a crisp "click."

"Each person takes three pills per month. Take them before cultivation. The medicinal power is as strong as the Soul Ascension Pill, and there is no drug resistance. However, the medicinal power is constant. It can reliably advance one level for those below the third ring, but only if you can digest it. It is much weaker than the ordinary Yuan Replenishing Pill on the market. It is specially supplied to low-level Soul Masters like us."

"Everyone line up, place your hand on the box, and input your soul power. The base will record your soul power characteristics, and then the resources each month will be automatically allocated to you. You won't need to line up anymore to collect them; just come to the box and input your soul power, and it will recognize who you are."

Everyone lined up as instructed. Xu Sanshi was the first to place his hand on the box, and a blue light swept across his palm. With a click, the box dispensed three pills. He took them, smelled them, and his eyes lit up: "Good stuff! The fragrance of these pills is even purer than the ones I buy at home."

Jiang Nannan followed closely behind, then Xiao Xiao, then Wang Dong, and then the other members of the mutual aid society. Each person received three specially supplied Qi-replenishing pills; some opened one on the spot to examine it, while others carefully put it into their pockets.

"Don't rush to pack up." Tang Ya clapped her hands. "There's still something else."

She took out a dozen or so spheres one by one from the hidden compartment on the side of the base plate. Each sphere was about the size of a fist, milky white in color, and smooth like ceramic. They were surprisingly light to the touch.

Finally, she took out a headband, made of metal, with several rice-grain-sized crystals embedded inside. It looked no different from an ordinary soul tool.

"These two items were just delivered by the Soul Guidance Research Institute of Heaven Dou City."

Tang Ya held up a sphere. "Awakening Martial Soul Device. The method of use is very simple—have the child of the appropriate age hold the sphere with both hands and hold it for three breaths. No awakening array is needed, no high-level Soul Master is needed to guide it, and no ritual is required. This sphere will automatically guide the soul power within the child's body to complete the awakening. A sphere can be used continuously fifty times before it needs to be recharged by a Soul Master."

Then Tang Ya took out a headband, "This one is even more interesting—come on, Xu Sanshi, put it on."

"Why me?" Xu Sanshi instinctively shrank back.

"Guess?" Tang Ya smiled and handed the headband to him.

Xu Sanshi reluctantly took the headband, examined it carefully over and over to make sure there were no hidden mechanisms or weapons, before cautiously putting it on his head. The moment the metal ring touched his forehead, the crystal inside glowed with a soft blue light.

"How are you feeling?" Tang Ya asked.

Xu Sanshi blinked: "It's alright, it's just a little cool... and my mind feels a bit blank."

Xu Sanwan's tone became slower than usual, as if he was trying to organize his thoughts.

Then his gaze was suddenly drawn to the soul coin on the table. He reached out to grab it, but stopped halfway, staring at his finger for a full three breaths, muttering, "This is shiny."

Jiang Nannan couldn't help but chuckle softly. Xu Sanshi's demeanor was a stark contrast to his usual shrewd and worldly-wise nature.

Tang Ya squatted down, looked Xu Sanshi straight in the eye, and waved five fingers in front of him: "Xu Sanshi, I have a question for you. What is thirty-five divided by five?"

Xu Sanshi frowned and thought for a long time, then confidently raised his head and answered in a loud voice, "Sixty-one!"

The conference room was silent for three full breaths before bursting into laughter. Xiao Xiao covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking with laughter, while Bei Bei supported her forehead with her hand, her shoulders also twitching slightly.

Even Wang Dong couldn't help but chuckle, turning his head away, but the corners of his mouth were clearly turning up.

Tang Ya stood up and removed the headband from Xu Sanshi. The blue light went out, and Xu Sanshi's expression went from blank to clear in less than a breath. He looked at the laughing crowd around him, then at Tang Ya, his face unusually embarrassed: "What...did I just say?"

"You said thirty-five divided by five equals sixty-one." Tang Ya patted his shoulder and placed the headband on the table. "This headband will temporarily lower the wearer's intelligence level to the average level of a six- or seven-year-old child. Tian Dou City developed it so that every member of the mutual aid association who goes to teach in rural areas can personally experience—what level of comprehension the children you are going to teach are at."

The laughter gradually subsided.

Tang Ya's tone became serious: "You are all the pride of Shrek Academy. Xu Sanshi comes from a prominent family, and even if you all come from poor families, you have at least awakened your soul power and are able to study at Shrek."

"But what kind of children did you face when you went to teach in rural areas? They were children who had never left their villages, children who couldn't even count to twenty, children who thought Tiandou City was in the sky. What you take for granted might be heavenly to them."

"Three times five equals seven. Do you think this needs to be taught? Yes. Not only does it need to be taught, but it also needs to be taught repeatedly, in different ways, such as counting on fingers, counting beans, or drawing a lever. Today, by wearing this headband, you at least know one thing—when you ask a child what three times five equals and he answers sixty-one, he is not stupid; he is just still young."

Xu Sanshi remained silent for a moment, then reached for the headband on the table and examined the intricate magic array patterns. He didn't speak, but the embarrassment he had shown before was gone, replaced by a thoughtful seriousness.

Tang Ya retreated to the window and gave the podium to Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao walked back to the front of the long table, his gaze sweeping over everyone present. The warm yellow light shone on his face, and his expression was even more serious than when he was talking about the five-year plan.

"Sister Tang Ya just explained how to teach, now I'll tell you—what to do after I'm done teaching."

He picked up the milky-white Awakening Sphere from the table, held it in his palm so that everyone could see it clearly.

"When you go to teach in rural areas, the first step isn't teaching literacy, arithmetic, or even calisthenics—it's awakening. When you arrive in the village, gather all the school-aged children together and let each of them grasp this ball. There are only three possible outcomes of awakening: no soul power, low innate soul power, or high innate soul power. How you handle this will directly determine whether these children can continue on their path in life."

He held up one finger.

"The first type is awakening without soul power. Don't sigh, don't show disappointment. Children are very sensitive; if you purse your lips even slightly, they'll feel that their soul awakening is a tragedy." His tone became exceptionally serious. "Tell them that not having soul power doesn't mean there's no hope in life. The compulsory education schools in Tiandou City don't only accept soul masters; children from ordinary families can also go to school. Literacy can make you an accountant, arithmetic can make you a businessman, and writing can make you a clerk. Becoming a soul master is one path, but not the only one. You must make this your mantra and say it to every child without soul power."

He extended his second finger.

"The second type is those with low innate soul power—level one, two, or three. This is the most troublesome. Because these children have soul power, but not much. Their cultivation progresses slowly, they are easily discouraged, and they are more likely to be criticized by their family and those around them for having so little soul power."

"What you need to do is give him hope. Tell him about the mutual aid society's stipend system, how much cultivation resources he can receive each month, and that even if his innate soul power is low, as long as he persists in cultivation, he might not be much worse than those geniuses in ten or twenty years. Do the math for him: one level of soul power can advance two levels a year, so in ten years it's level twenty. Level twenty is a Great Soul Master, and a Great Soul Master can find a decent job in any city. Show him the numbers; they're more convincing than his parents' sighs and lamentations."

He held up his third finger.

"The third type is high innate soul power—level six or above. This type is the easiest to overlook because everyone thinks, 'This child can succeed without any intervention.' But quite the opposite. Children with high innate soul power are the most dangerous. They've been praised throughout their village, with people patting them on the head and saying, 'Genius! Genius!' wherever they go, but when they enter the city academy, they find themselves only average, or even at the bottom—this disparity can crush them. So when you encounter a child with high soul power, you should actually give them a warning." His voice deepened. "Tell them that level six soul power is a once-in-a-century genius in the village, but in Shrek City, it's a dime a dozen. What they need is to guard against arrogance and complacency, suppress that pride, and transform it into real, diligent training."

Huo Yuhao put down the Awakening Ball, put his hands behind his back, and his tone changed from serious to calm: "Now that we've talked about Awakening, let's talk about one last thing—radio calisthenics."

He took a roll of paper from his pocket and spread it out on the table. Nine groups of little figures were drawn on the paper, each group performing a different action. The lines were simple but the postures were distinct, and the key points of each step were marked next to them. Some were bending over to touch the ground, some were raising their arms and leaning back, and some were in a horse stance with punches thrown. The movements were simple and unadorned, and looked completely devoid of any fancy tricks.

"This set of exercises has nine sections, each with eight beats. The movements are very simple; you can remember them after watching them once. But I want each of you to learn them and then teach them to every child who has completed their awakening."

"This set of exercises is not for fighting; you could say it has little practical value in combat."

Huo Yuhao paused and glanced at everyone's reactions. "But its function is to stretch muscles and bones, improve blood circulation, and cultivate physical coordination. For children who have just awakened their martial soul, their bodies have not yet adapted to the load of soul power flowing through their meridians. Persisting in doing this exercise every day can reduce the probability of them being injured due to blocked meridians in the early stages of cultivation, and it can also help those who were born with zero soul power to develop soul power over time."

"More importantly, it's about cultivating habits." Huo Yuhao tapped the diagram on the table with his finger. "Do a set of exercises every morning. It may seem unrelated to cultivation, but it reminds you to do the same thing every day—persistence. In the cultivation of Soul Masters, comprehension is talent, and resources are external forces, but what truly sets people apart is persistence. This set of exercises is their first lesson in learning persistence and self-discipline."

He pushed the diagram to the center of the table, indicating that everyone could come forward and take a closer look.

"Alright, that's enough about the important stuff." Huo Yuhao picked up his water glass from the corner of the table, took a sip, and his tone shifted from serious to casual. "Sister Tang Ya, shouldn't we start the mutual aid association's mission this time?"

Tang Ya unlocked the mission in the mutual aid group.

[Long-term mission: Awaken martial spirits for civilians for free. Adults receive 10 Holy Coins for each awakening, and children under 10 years old receive 100 Holy Coins for each awakening.]

"Wang Dong, you stay here and take charge of resource allocation and logistics."

Wang Dong suddenly looked up, his brows furrowed: "Why am I the only one left behind?"

"Because your death power is still out of control, although the gloves can provide some protection, you'll be teaching children in rural areas. If one of the children accidentally touches your exposed skin, we can't afford the consequences." Huo Yuhao met her gaze, his tone calm but brooking no argument.

"You stay at the academy to continue your soul power control training. Once you can stably control the power of death and prevent it from leaking out and corroding living beings, I will assign you to the next batch of volunteer teaching assignments first."

Wang Dong gritted her teeth, wanting to retort, but couldn't find any words to refute it. She looked down at her dark purple gloves and fell silent.

"There's one more thing to note," Tang Ya added, flipping to the next page of the task allocation sheet. "Fifteen Awakening Orbs have arrived in Tiandou City. Everyone should take one and try them out. If you encounter any problems you can't solve, don't try to be brave; contact the Mutual Aid Association immediately."

The night was dark.

Huo Yuhao stood alone in front of the long table, slowly rolling up the diagram of radio calisthenics and tying it with a thin string.

The evening breeze blew in through the window, making the papers rustle softly.

He looked up and gazed out the window. The lights of Shrek City spread out in the night, and the occasional bark of a dog could be heard from the distant streets.

He thought he would start with these villages and these dozen or so Awakening Spheres.

To make God into man is to make man into God; to make God walk like man is to enable man to walk like God.