Chapter 304: Yue Zhengyu

"This has nothing to do with having a backbone," Tang Wulin said. "Today's meal has already been paid for."

Yue Zhengyu was taken aback by this fact. "Tomorrow then."

Gu Yue made a grim expression, eyes narrowed and face pinched. "We won't accept food from someone as dishonest as you."

At the sound of her words, Yue Zhengyu's smile widened. "Then what if I were an honest person? It embarrasses me to say this, but please take care of me in the future. I went to the administration earlier and had my working student application approved."

Yuanen's brows arched when he heard this, his eyes instantly locking on to Yue Zhengyu.

With a smirk, Yue Zhengyu met Yuanen's glare head-on, not at all fazed.

This guy actually became a working student?

Dread creeped into Tang Wulin's heart as he imagined their future as working students.

"I'm done eating." Yuanen stood up with his food tray and left, not sparing the group another glance.

At his departure, Yue Zhengyu beamed as if he were proud of an accomplishment. "Now I can enter the dormitory for working students too. If that girl is there, I'll definitely find her!"

"You! You're such a senseless person!" Xie Xie said, nostrils flaring in irritation.

"How am I senseless?" Yue Zhengyu demanded.

"How could you be anything but senseless to go to such lengths to find one person? Especially since the enforcer already said she isn't an evil soul master. Even if you find her, what do you think is going to happen?" Xie Xie stared at Yue Zhengyu with eyes of ridicule.

"How could a Fallen Angel soul master not be an evil soul master?" Yue Zhengyu fired back, unconvinced. "I'll definitely dig up proof that she is! And by that time, she won't have any way to cover it up. Just you wait and see."

After speaking, Yue Zhengyu also stood up to leave. But Tang Wulin raised a hand to stop him.

"Wait a minute," Tang Wulin said.

"What do you want?".

Tang Wulin smiled. "Remember when you bought that drink shop? Well, we were there too and witnessed everything. I have some questions I want to ask you."

"You guys were there? Oh! I think I remember you now. You were sitting at the table next to me, right? So what do you guys think? Didn't that girl seem like an evil soul master?"

"We're unrelated to that matter," Tang Wulin cut him off. "What I wanted to ask you is this: since you're so rich, does that mean you have a lot of contribution points too?"

Yue Zhengyu straightened his back with pride. "How could my Holy Angel clan be lacking in contribution points? In fact, we have a lot of businesses on campus. We have no shortage of points."

Unflinching, Tang Wulin said, "Then do you need any metals forged? I'm a blacksmith, and I'm sure you know how poor us working students are."

"You're a blacksmith? What can you forge?" A hint of disdain crept into Yue Zhengyu's voice.

Tang Wulin paid it no mind, a smile sliding across his mouth. "See for yourself." He revealed his fourth-rank blacksmith's badge, waiting for Yue Zhengyu to examine it.

As a member of the Holy Angel clan, it was natural for Yue Zhengyu to recognize the badge for what it was. He was instantly struck stupid. "Y-you're a fourth-rank blacksmith?"

"Yeah." Tang Wulin nodded. He didn't dare proclaim himself a fifth-rank blacksmith before obtaining his fifth-rank badge.

"How old are you?" Yue Zhengyu felt shivers coursing down his spin, hairs springing.

"Thirteen."

"What? Working students really are monstrous! Are you all new students?"

"That's right! What about you? How old are you?" Tang Wulin asked.

"I'm fifteen and a second grade student," Yue Zhengyu answered. "But I had to spend all of my first grade in seclusion with my clan, so I haven't attended classes until now."

Puzzle pieces began falling into place in Tang Wulin's mind. So that's why he didn't recognize Yuanen even though they're in the same grade!

"I'll come find you when I need things forged in the future!" Yue Zhengyu shot out of his chair like a rocket, a giant grin plastered on his face. "But you're still just at the fourth rank, so keep on working hard! Blacksmiths are only truly amazing once they reach the fifth rank."

As Yue Zhengyu finally departed, Xie Xie watched his shrinking back with discontent eyes. "Boss, that guy is way too arrogant! Why are you trying to get closer to him?"

Tang Wulin responded with a wry smile. "Since he's a working student now, we're standing on even ground with him. Besides, just think of how many contribution points we can milk from someone that rich."

"What are the plans for tonight?" Xie Xie bounced from his seat, the previous topic already forgotten. Still unfamiliar with Shrek Academy, they were filled with curiosity.

"I need to report to the local Spirit Pagoda branch," Gu Yue said.

A thought struck Tang Wulin like a stray lightning bolt. "The rest of us also need to report to the Tang Sect. But first thing's first, we must find Teacher Wu.""

"Can't we look for him after tomorrow's class? Let's go have some fun tonight," Xie Xie said eagerly.

Tang Wulin shot him a stern look, face drained of anything less than serious. "We may have passed the entrance exam, but that doesn't mean we can slack off. The competition here is fierce. A single mistake could leave us behind in the dust. Don't forget, Shrek Academy emphasizes the importance of secondary professions since we need them to become battle armor masters. Because we have to be personally involved with at least one part of the battle armor creation process, we must spend our free time practicing our professions. Xie Xie, curb your playfulness for now. In fact, you should all join the associations of your respective professions and begin climbing to the next rank with their support."

Both Xu Xiaoyan and Gu Yue were mecha designers, and Xie Xie was a mecha maker. Of the three, Gu Yue had advanced the furthest, already at the second rank. The other two were still stuck at the bottom. So, there was actually a silver lining to them missing the fifth trial during the entrance exam.

Xie Xie deflated like a balloon. "Alright then. Let's go join an association first."

He understood just as well as Tang Wulin did that time waited for no one!

Taking in Xie Xie's look of resignation,Tang Wulin sighed in his heart. He knew without a doubt their hardships at Shrek Academy had just begun.

From then on, Tang Wulin cultivated, went to eat dinner, and immediately returned to the dormitory, not letting a second go to waste. He was beginning to fall into a routine now. He attended classes in the morning, spent two hours forging in the afternoon, then utilized every spare second cultivating. He wasn't anxious to enter the spirit ascension platform since all of their spirit souls had been saturated with spirit energy. Soul power cultivation was his number one priority now. He needed to reach rank 30 as soon as possible and obtain his third soul ring. When that time arrived, he could attempt to spirit refine once more.

A single success in spirit refining did not mean he had a complete grasp of the process. He still needed to practice and refine his skill.

What set fifth-rank and fourth-rank blacksmiths apart were that fifth-rank blacksmiths only needed to present their identification to accept spirit refining jobs, and they bore no consequences in the event of failing to forge a metal.

These were the advantages of being in the fifth rank, which made sense in light of spirit refining's enormous rate of failure. If blacksmiths had to guarantee the success of a spirit refining, no one would want to be one.

This was why Yue Zhengyu had said blacksmiths only became formidable at the fifth rank. By then, one could accept commissions while using those requests to practice spirit refining.

Back in Eastsea City, Tang Wulin had saw that the minimum reward for spirit refining was ten times that of thousand refining. His eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him; it was actually ten times!

Although Tang Wulin wasn't familiar with Shrek Academy's inner-workings, he found it safe to assume the same rate existed here as in Eastsea City. After all, spirit refined metal was the foundation of two-word battle armor. Tang Wulin was convinced that two-word battle armor masters were rare in the outer court. As such, the entire outer court should be his potential customers.

In order to break the next Golden Dragon King seal, not to mention purchase items to assist his cultivation, Tang Wulin would have to farm contribution points bit by bit.It was a cycle of working and cultivation that continually fed back into itself.

The order of things was important. As long as Tang Wulin had a clear-cut plan, he would know what to focus on in each stage as he progressed.