NOVEL WEB Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Time
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If Yu Xiaogang's future disciple Tang San hadn't possessed the Xuantian Skill, there's no way he would've awakened with full innate soul power. In fact, his twin martial souls might have been stillborn altogether.
Tang Hao had neglected Tang San from a very young age, spending his days drowning in alcohol. Once Tang San learned to walk, he even had to cook and take care of his own father.
Tang San grew up severely undernourished—likely even suffering from malnutrition. It was only because of the Xuantian Skill that he began cultivating early, compensating for his lack of physical development. Without it, Tang San would've been ruined by Tang Hao's neglect.
It was precisely because Tang San had the cheat-like Xuantian Skill that he could begin absorbing soul power early, replenishing his body's missing nutrients, and ultimately awaken with full innate soul power.
As for whether the Xuantian Skill could enhance one's natural talent—Ye Lan didn't think so. In his view, Tang San's full innate soul power was simply the result of having Tang Hao, the Clear Sky Douluo, as a father, and a 100,000-year soul beast turned human as a mother.
Tang San inherited both their gifts from birth. The Xuantian Skill only made up for the postnatal deficiencies.
If the Xuantian Skill really could make ordinary people awaken with full innate soul power, then Tang Sect would've ruled the continent long ago.
But the truth was that, even ten thousand years later, the Tang Sect had declined so much it needed the Sea God's grand design just to rise again. So Ye Lan didn't think much of Tang San's cultivation technique.
Even if the Xuantian Skill's speed of cultivation could rival the very best on the continent, Ye Lan had no intention of rushing to fawn over Tang San for it. After all, appearances matter—both for trees and for people.
Ye Lan would never sacrifice his pride. More importantly, he didn't even like Tang San. To him, Tang San was nothing more than a hypocrite, hiding behind outdated sect rules.
Yu Xiaogang's voice interrupted Ye Lan's thoughts: "Level 3 innate soul power is still enough for cultivation. I hope you become a Soul Master soon."
He then closed his eyes and pretended to nap.
Ye Lan put away the pass token and didn't bother with Yu Xiaogang any further. He didn't need Yu Xiaogang's guidance, nor did he intend to become his disciple. Instead, Ye Lan took a different path—one Yu Xiaogang would never see.
Before long, he arrived at the Academic Office inside the teaching building. The new student reception was handled by a man in his sixties, assisted by two young aides who helped manage miscellaneous tasks.
Though Nuoding Academy was only a primary soul master academy, it was still a cradle for nurturing soul masters. As such, its management was very well organized. Children typically awakened their martial souls at the age of six. Some, like Ye Lan, came from remote rural areas—so remote that some of the kids couldn't even read.
Therefore, primary soul master academies were responsible not only for guiding students in cultivation but also for educating them in basic knowledge and looking after their daily needs.
After listening to the elder's many instructions, Ye Lan slowly began to accept the life of an academy student. His calm expression and mature mindset stood in stark contrast to the other children, who were still clinging to their parents with teary eyes.
The elder looked at Ye Lan's composed demeanor and smiled approvingly. "If everyone were like you, my job would be a lot easier. Here's your student ID. You're registered as a work-study student. You'll be in charge of cleaning the academy gardens and athletic fields. That'll earn you 20 copper soul coins a day—more than enough to cover your living expenses."
The currency system in Douluo Continent included gold, silver, and copper soul coins. One gold soul coin equaled 100 silver soul coins, which equaled 10,000 copper soul coins. One copper coin was roughly equivalent to 2 RMB in modern terms. (The original novel's currency system is inconsistent—sometimes 100 copper equals 1 silver, sometimes it's 10. Prices are all over the place: a carriage ride costs 5 silver, while a boxed lunch goes for 2 copper. So we're using a simplified standard here.)
Ye Lan wasn't short on money. The work-study arrangement had been suggested by Su Yuntao, who wanted Ye Lan to learn self-reliance. Ye Lan didn't object—after all, it was just sweeping up leaves. A simple job he could finish easily. In fact, the pay for work-study students at the academy was better than that of manual laborers outside.
After picking up daily necessities at the campus store, Ye Lan carried a large bundle of items and arrived at the student dormitory before sunset.
His room was in Dorm Seven, the work-study dorm at Nuoding Academy.
Burdened by the large bundle blocking his view, Ye Lan squeezed through the doorway and caught sight of an empty bed from the corner of his eye. He quickly made his way over and began organizing his bedding.
Just then, a hearty voice called out, "New work-study student?"
Ye Lan looked up and saw a burly boy, clearly a year or two older than himself, standing nearby. The boy had a round face, bright eyes, and stood half a head taller than Ye Lan—probably around eight years old.
"Yes, I'm this year's work-study student. Just call me Ye Lan," he replied.
"I'm Wang Sheng! My martial soul is the Battle Tiger. I'm gonna be a Battle Soul Master one day!" Wang Sheng declared proudly. Then he added, "What's your martial soul?"
"Just Blue Silver Grass. My innate soul power is level 3." Ye Lan wasn't interested in competing, so he responded indifferently, not reacting to Wang Sheng's obvious attempt at bragging.
"Blue Silver Grass can be used to cultivate? Whatever! No matter what kind of grass you've got, you still have to fight me. I'm the boss of Dorm Seven! If you beat me, then you're the new boss. That's the rule here." Wang Sheng flexed his arms and showed off his muscles.
A group of boys behind him—probably his little sidekicks—started cheering loudly, saying Wang Sheng could knock out a Blue Silver Grass soul master in just a few moves.
Ye Lan remained utterly unfazed by the commotion. Instead, he raised both hands and pretended to surrender.
"You win, Wang Sheng. I have no interest in being the dorm boss."
Ye Lan had no time to play children's games about who was in charge. Cultivation was the real priority. Then, in a light tone, he asked, "Wang Sheng, how old are you this year?"
"Tch, boring." Wang Sheng retracted his competitive tone and replied, "I'm eight years old this year, and my soul power is already at level 7! Why do you ask?"
"Nothing," Ye Lan replied casually.
Though his words were calm, Ye Lan's mind was already calculating Tang San's age. Wang Sheng was five years older than Tang San, and two years older than himself. That meant Ye Lan was three years older than Tang San!
Ye Lan let out a quiet sigh of relief. Good. He had caught up with the main storyline of Douluo Dalu. He even had a few extra years of development time compared to the original protagonist. But since his innate soul power was only level 3, calling it "development time" was a stretch—it was more like "catch-up time."
Three years weren't nearly enough to close the gap with Tang San's innate soul power. He needed to find a way to earn money, plan for acquiring whale glue, and improve his cultivation method.
As Ye Lan considered these various plans, he continued chatting with Wang Sheng, gradually learning more about the academy's routines and the common conflicts with noble students. Ye Lan didn't comment on those disputes, but Wang Sheng confidently declared he would look out for him.
Ye Lan glanced at the self-proclaimed boss Wang Sheng, who was clearly enjoying the role. He didn't have the heart to dampen the boy's enthusiasm.
Then, Ye Lan stood up and announced, "Tonight's dinner for Dorm Seven is on me. Eat up, everyone—my treat."
When it came to dealing with a bunch of little kids, Ye Lan was more than experienced. After all, the next few years would be spent living together in the same dorm. A friendly and harmonious atmosphere was always better than the alternative. A good environment could influence cultivation progress. Besides, Ye Lan knew he'd need Dorm Seven's help covering for him in the future—Nuoding Academy had strict supervision, and random inspections were frequent.
(End of Chapter)