Huo Yuhao from The Peerless Tang Sect is incredibly talented.

After igniting the prototype and Bei Bei petitioned the ancestor, these matters were temporarily no longer relevant to Huo Yuhao.

Let the bullets fly for a while.

After all, storms take time to brew, and actions take time.

Just wait.

During the waiting period, Huo Yuhao was not idle. As usual, he went to the market at four o'clock in the morning to buy vegetables and prepare them. Then he led Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong to practice martial arts in the morning. During class, he asked Tianmeng Ice Silkworm to create a clone. It seemed that he was still there, but in fact he had been gone for a while.

They skipped school to conduct social surveys outside of school, investigating street gangs and vegetable vendors' intermediaries.

After Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao finished class, they continued to train the two of them. In the evening, they went to the Soul Guidance Department to collect resources, do work, and do private jobs until the early hours of the morning.

When it was the three of them's turn to be on duty for the Martial Soul Awakening, they would do it, and their days were very fulfilling.

"Hey, don't laugh, have you noticed something? There are so few people awakening their martial souls lately?"

Looking at the deserted people outside the door, and recalling the bustling scene when she first arrived, Xiao Xiao felt that the change was huge. Looking through the martial spirit awakening records of the past few days, she felt that these past few days were very strange. Why are there so many fewer people?

"There are definitely fewer people." Wang Dong leaned against the door frame, crossed his arms, and glanced outside. The streets were deserted. "And don't you find it strange—the people who came today all looked disheveled and had a certain odor about them."

At this point, Wang Dong couldn't help but pinch his nose, his face full of disgust.

"It seems that really is..." Xiao Xiao put down the notebook, turned to look at Huo Yuhao who was tidying up the Awakening Spheres behind the table, and said, "Don't laugh, what do you think is going on?"

Huo Yuhao picked up the water glass on the table, took a sip, and spoke slowly.

"It's nothing. Some people don't want their business to be stolen, so they resort to some underhanded methods, like spreading rumors."

His words were full of disgust.

"Rumors?" Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong asked in unison.

"Hmm." Huo Yuhao put down his water glass, his gaze passing over the empty street in front of the door, landing further away, on those people who had been robbed of their future.

"They say there's a problem with the Awakening Spheres in our mutual aid association. Children who come here to awaken their martial souls lose a portion of their innate soul power. Those who could originally awaken level three innate soul power can only awaken level one, or even level zero, here."

"They also said that our Awakening Sphere was made by an evil soul master, and that it has some kind of soul-absorbing array engraved inside, which will drain the child's soul power and send it to the evil soul master for those people to use for cultivation."

"What else awakens here that will prevent it from absorbing soul rings in the future?"

"There's no such thing as an awakened martial soul having a short lifespan. There are just too many rumors."

There are countless rumors, and there's bound to be one that suits you.

"People actually believe this kind of rumor?" Xiao Xiao's eyes widened in disbelief.

A demonic soul master made this? This is Shrek City! And absorbing innate soul power? That's pure nonsense. Xiao Xiao has never heard of any soul tool that can preserve soul power.

After all, in Xiao Xiao's understanding, soul tools cannot store soul power; once soul power is input into a soul tool, it is used directly.

Xiao Xiao, after all, came from Douluo Continent and did not understand how far soul tools had developed. Moreover, Shrek Academy did not teach soul tools to freshmen.

"Why don't you believe me?" Huo Yuhao's tone remained calm, as if he were discussing the cafeteria's dishes today.

"The people who say this have power and influence. They can stand on the street and have a louder voice and a more prestigious status than us. They don't need everyone to believe them; they just need to scare those who are undecided. Fear is enough. A parent might not completely believe the rumor, but they'll think—what if it's true? What if their child could have awakened level three soul power, but ended up with level one? Wouldn't that be a loss of two levels? Even if the possibility is only 10%, they wouldn't dare to gamble."

"And Xiao Xiao, you must understand that there is a stubborn disease in this world called 'foolishness,' and many people suffer from it."

Speaking of this, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but recall some outrageous but widely circulated rumors.

To make an atomic egg, you have to cut off the egg; dihydrogen monoxide is highly toxic; quantum shampoo.

Huo Yuhao could only shake his head at this, saying nothing. Those who believed it probably hadn't even properly studied their junior high school textbooks.

The thought of having to educate these kinds of people in the future, and having a bunch of people asking all sorts of stupid questions about the Void Realm, made Huo Yuhao feel dizzy.

Fortunately, the latter was in charge of extraordinary wisdom. "So..." Xiao Xiao looked down at the few records on the roster, and then thought of the Awakened Ones who had been looking disheveled these past few days, and suddenly understood something.

"So the people who are still willing to come these days are all those who can't even afford to gamble like this. Even if the rumors are true, and the child drops from level three to level one, it's still better for them than spending a gold soul coin to get a proper awakening point."

"One gold soul coin," Wang Dong repeated the number in a low voice, suddenly feeling the death power within her body starting to stir again. She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging anger. "Is it just this one gold soul coin that makes these people prefer to believe rumors rather than believe us?"

"No." Huo Yuhao shook his head. "It's because of this one gold soul coin. Someone would rather ruin us with rumors than let us continue. Those three city management officers last time were just the tip of the iceberg; the real mastermind is behind it all. But..."

At this point, Huo Yuhao stretched and said, "Senior Bei Bei has already made his move."

In the inner city of Shrek City, in front of a building with a sign that reads "Tax Service".

Beibei stood at the building entrance with a team of inspectors dressed in black uniforms, the token in his palm gleaming with a pale golden light.

The inspection team was hastily assembled by Moon from the teachers at Shrek Academy.

"The inner city tax bureau archives, from the year of Bingwu to the year of Renzi, all financial documents related to the allocation of funds for martial soul awakening must be sealed up, not a single piece of paper is to be missing." Beibei's voice was not loud, but it had an undeniable sense of pressure.

The inspection team members filed in, and a moment later brought out three accountants with livid faces.

The crowd grew larger and larger across the street. Beibei noticed that after seeing the accountant being taken away, several figures quietly slipped out of the crowd and quickly disappeared into the depths of the alley.

"Follow those guys." Bei Bei whispered to her deputy beside her, then turned around, faced the crowd of onlookers, and raised the token that Elder Mu had given her high.

"Sea God Pavilion Order—Thoroughly investigate the corruption case surrounding Martial Soul Awakening! Anyone with clues can report directly to the Supervision Team. A substantial reward will be given for verified leads!"

A buzz of discussion erupted from the crowd. Some looked surprised and doubtful, some whispered among themselves, and a few elderly people watched the token in Beibei's hand from afar, their eyes gradually reddening.

Meanwhile, in a side hall of the Sea God Pavilion at Shrek Academy.

Two long tables were placed facing each other, separated by a tea tray.

Qian Duoduo and Xian Lin'er sat on one side, and Yan Shaozhe on the other. The water in the teapot had just boiled, and wisps of white steam rose, but no one was in the mood to pour tea.

Yan Shaozhe picked up his teacup, blew on the tea leaves floating on the surface, and said in his usual calm and gentle tone, "Vice Dean Qian, Dean Xian, what brings you to the Sea God Pavilion today?"

Qian Duoduo was most annoyed by Yan Shaozhe's aloof manner. In the past, he might have gone through a few roundabout ways with him, but today he didn't even bother with an opening remark and simply pushed a document across the tea table.

"The ignition of the ultimate fire was completed yesterday. The prototype was successfully ignited, and the fire core operated stably for fifteen minutes." Qian Duoduo's tone was as calm as if he were reading a cafeteria menu, but there was an undisguised sense of pride in his eyes.

Yan Shaozhe, now it's your turn to beg us.

"Dean Yan, to be honest, this test run revealed a small problem."

Yan Shaozhe paused slightly in his teacup. He had known Qian Duoduo for decades and knew that this vice dean of the Soul Guidance Department always spoke with hidden meaning; if he said "a small problem," there was probably a huge hole behind it. He calmly took a sip of tea, waiting for what Qian Duoduo would say next.

"The burning of the ultimate fire itself is not a problem. The fire core is stable, the temperature is up to standard, and the purity is sufficient." Qian Duoduo counted on her fingers one by one, her tone as relaxed as if she were haggling with a vegetable vendor. "However—to maintain the gravitational binding field of the fire core, it requires the soul power output of a Title Douluo level to operate stably."

He paused, then pointed to himself and then to Xian Lin'er sitting next to him: "How many Title Douluos are there in the Soul Guidance Department? Just the two of us."

"And then?" Yan Shaozhe put down his teacup, his smile remaining unchanged.

"And then—we held on for a quarter of an hour, almost dying of exhaustion in the core module." Qian Duoduo's tone suddenly became candid. He leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees, as if confiding in an old friend. "Dean Yan, you have no idea. Once that gravitational field was activated, soul power leaked out like a floodgate opening, completely uncontrollable. In all my years, I, Old Qian, have never experienced being drained dry. Dean Xian was a bit stronger than me, but he only lasted a few more minutes."

Yan Shaozhe's smile faded slightly. He had already guessed what Qian Duoduo was about to say.

Sure enough, Qian Duoduo's next words hit him right in the face.

"That's why I've come to you for help. There are many Title Douluos in the Martial Soul system. Lend us a few to take turns maintaining the gravitational binding field. We don't need many, just five or six will do. We can work in two shifts, each shift lasting two to three hours. This way, the Ultimate Flame can operate stably for a long time, maximizing everyone's interests."

"Vice Dean Qian," Yan Shaozhe put down his teacup, leaned back slightly, and adopted a slightly apologetic posture, his calm and gentle tone unchanged, "I understand your thoughts. But as you know, the Title Douluos of the Martial Soul Department each have their own responsibilities—some have to teach students, some have to cultivate in seclusion, and some are often away on missions. It's indeed not easy to allocate manpower. Title Douluos aren't like cabbages; you can't just pick a few whenever you want."

Want me to find a Title Douluo to help you? No way!

"Oh?" Qian Duoduo's smile widened, so much so that Yan Shaozhe found it a bit dazzling. He leaned back in his chair and slowly said, "Since Dean Yan's side is short-handed, let's put this plan on hold for now. I'll ask the Douling Empire later to see if they're interested in cooperating."

"After all, the Heavenly Sun Douluo of the Douling Empire is only one step away from the Ultimate Flame in his martial soul. If he has the opportunity to observe the Ultimate Flame, I'm sure he would agree."

Yan Shaozhe's expression changed, and a crack finally appeared in his composed smile.

"Vice Dean Qian, you can't say that." Yan Shaozhe's tone remained gentle, but a hint of barely perceptible anxiety lingered within it. "The development of the Ultimate Flame was ultimately completed within Shrek Academy, and the technological achievements should rightfully benefit our own faculty and students first. It's not appropriate to share it with outsiders, is it?"

"What's inappropriate?" Xian Lin'er put down her teacup and coldly replied. Her phoenix eyes were fixed on Yan Shaozhe, and her tone was three points harder than usual.

"Our Soul Guidance Department has so few resources every year, when did you start to think it was inappropriate? Why is it that when we want to borrow a few people, it's all inappropriate? Is your Martial Soul Department so precious?"

Yan Shaozhe's lips twitched. That hit the nail on the head—over the years, the Martial Soul Department had indeed been hogging the resources of the Soul Guidance Department.

"I'm not saying we won't lend it." Yan Shaozhe adjusted his posture, lowering his stance slightly, but his words still carried a veiled meaning. "What I mean is, since we're going to cooperate long-term, there needs to be a set of rules. The Title Douluos have contributed by maintaining your gravitational field, right? Since they've contributed, there should be some corresponding treatment, such as a reasonable arrangement regarding their use of the Ultimate Flame training room—"

"Dean Yan," Qian Duoduo's smile suddenly vanished, and she said seriously, "that's where you're wrong."

"Dean Yan, you come from the Martial Soul Department, so you must know the effects of the Ultimate Flame better than I do. Dean Yan, if you think the Ultimate Flame is useless, just say so. I'll take the data away immediately, and from now on, the technological achievements of the Soul Guidance Department will never be associated with the Martial Soul Department again. We'll sever all ties."

"I remember your disciple is also fire-attribute, but her martial soul defect can only be resolved by evolving to the ultimate fire."

Even Xian Lin'er was taken aback by these words. She knew Qian Duoduo was assertive today, but she didn't expect him to be this assertive.

Yan Shaozhe's expression finally changed.

Born into the Martial Soul system, he understood the significance of the ultimate fire better than anyone else, and that ordinary fire-attribute soul masters, after years of exposure, might not necessarily be unable to evolve into the ultimate martial soul.

Whoever masters the ultimate fire holds the key to the future cultivation of fire-attribute soul masters. The Soul Guidance Department isn't here to beg the Martial Soul Department; they're here with this key to ask Yan Shaozhe: Will you open this door or not?

If you open the shop, you'll need to send people out. If you don't, I'll find someone else.

Qian Duoduo saw the change in Yan Shaozhe's expression and smiled again. This time, her smile was much gentler, completely harmless, a stark contrast to her earlier threatening demeanor.

"Dean Yan, I know you're in a difficult position. The Martial Soul Department is a large and complex organization, and it's indeed not easy to allocate several Title Douluos. How about this—I don't need five anymore, three will do. The three Title Douluos will take turns, and I'll try to keep the daily gravity field maintenance time under six hours. We'll use the soul power storage device to cover the rest of the time. However…"

He deliberately dragged out the last syllable, picked up his teacup and took another sip before slowly continuing, "Since these Title Douluos have come all this way, we can't let them come for nothing. I'll give you Spirit Masters a 20% discount on the time you spend cultivating next to the Ultimate Flame."

"20% off?" Yan Shaozhe's expression was priceless, like he'd just swallowed a sour lemon and was too embarrassed to spit it out, his face contorted in discomfort. "Qian Duoduo, your Ultimate Flame relies on the efforts of the Martial Soul Department to maintain it. You want our people to provide manpower and pay for it themselves?"

"Dean Yan, look at what you're saying." Qian Duoduo still had that smiling face. "This Ultimate Flame is a technological achievement of the Soul Guidance Department. You know how many resources, how much time, and how much manpower and materials we invested to create this flame. The Title Douluo are here to maintain the gravitational field, so this part is considered a collaboration—therefore, I'll give you a 20% discount on the cultivation fee. If you don't want to pay, that's fine too—these Title Douluo are here to help, and I'll pay them their wages using the Ultimate Flame cultivation room hours."

Yan Shaozhe's eyes twitched violently twice, and he tried hard to suppress his voice: "Cultivating outside of work hours?"

"Then let's each do their own thing." Qian Duoduo winked at Yan Shaozhe, counting on her fingers, "The Soul Guidance Department is responsible for technical maintenance and equipment updates; that's already a significant expense. The Title Douluo helping maintain the gravitational field is your job; but if they want to use the Ultimate Flame for cultivation, that's a separate service, and charging for it is justified. Dean Yan, we've both managed accounts before; let's keep things separate. You understand that, right?"

Yan Shaozhe remained silent for two seconds.

"I remember," Yan Shaozhe slowly began, deciding to change tactics and temporarily set aside the debate over profit distribution, first clarifying the technical feasibility. "You yourselves said that maintaining the gravitational field with this Ultimate Flame requires a Title Douluo. So how are you going to build the training room? You can't expect Title Douluos to be used as power banks in the training room, can you? You don't even have a training room, and you're already talking to me about charging fees. Isn't that a bit premature?"

Qian Duoduo had been waiting for this very question. He was waiting for Yan Shaozhe to be forced to ask it.

"The most difficult problems, the technical issues of creating and binding the ultimate fire, have long been solved. The training room can be built within a week. The only problem is the lack of a titled Douluo. Once the person arrives, it will be ready to use."

The question was thrown back to Yan Shaozhe.