"Go ahead, name your price."
Hearing the shopkeeper's words, Huo Yuhao smiled and shook his head.
"Boss, haven't you heard the saying that knowledge is priceless?"
That nearly made the shopkeeper choke on his own breath.
"You—are you messing with me, kid?!"
Seeing the man's irritation, Huo Yuhao quickly raised his hands.
"Hey now, hear me out first, boss."
"As the saying goes, there's more money to be made when we work together. How about this—let me partner with your store. You provide the rare metals, I'll craft the soul tools, and we split the profits. What do you think?"
The shopkeeper furrowed his brow deeply.
"You're just a kid, and you want to talk about partnerships? Why should I trust you with my shop?"
Huo Yuhao gave him a confident smile.
"Well, what if I told you I have a close relationship with the Headmaster of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy himself—the Dean of Mingde Hall, Jing Hongchen?"
The shopkeeper immediately started coughing again.
"Cough, cough! What did you just say?!"
That was a name that carried weight across the entire Sun Moon Empire. A Rank 9 Soul Engineer, Jing Hongchen held status so high that even the emperor had to treat him with deference. To say he was second only to the throne and above all others was no exaggeration.
Seeing the man's skeptical and shocked expression, Huo Yuhao casually shrugged.
"If you don't believe me, that's fine. I'll prove it eventually. But there's no harm in letting me in now, is there? We might just make a fortune. And once my connections are confirmed, wouldn't your shop soar to new heights?"
The shopkeeper rolled his eyes when he heard Huo Yuhao referring to it as "our shop" already. After pausing in thought, he had to admit—the kid wasn't wrong.
"Fine. I'll give you the metals. You make the soul tools. I'll sell them. We split the profit eighty-twenty—I get eighty."
"If it turns out you really are tight with Lord Jing, we can change it to fifty-fifty. But not now. I still don't trust you."
"Hey, hey, come on now! Eighty-twenty? That's robbery!" Huo Yuhao protested.
He argued, wheedled, reasoned, and wore the shopkeeper down until the man finally agreed, very reluctantly, to a seventy-thirty split.
With the agreement made, both of them were—somewhat—satisfied. Huo Yuhao shamelessly asked the shopkeeper to treat him to a traditional Sun Moon Empire dim sum breakfast to celebrate their new business partnership. Along the way, he also learned the man's name: Mu Chen.
Mu Chen was quickly realizing that this kid he'd partnered with was a brazen, sharp-tongued little rascal. And yet, there was something about him—clever, bold, a spark of something great.
After Huo Yuhao left, Mu Chen did some investigating of his own. What he found eased his mind: the kid was indeed the only specially admitted student at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. That alone was enough to make Mu Chen feel like he'd backed the right horse. If this little genius truly took off, the profit margin might be even larger than he'd imagined.
Back at the academy, it was just before eight, almost time for the first class.
As Huo Yuhao walked through the gates, he was practically glowing with anticipation for the rest of the day.
'Free rare metals, free access to a high-end soul tool crafting station, and best of all—professional-grade carving tools!'
'And I still get paid on top of that?! Too good to be true.'
He had been this close to accepting that awful eighty-twenty split. But then he'd thought: 'Am I the kind of guy who just lets others take advantage of me? Absolutely not!' So he'd haggled like a marketplace auntie until he got a better deal.
And what was more, crafting at Mu Chen's shop meant he could hone his skills, practice for future exams, and maybe even sneak some rare metals aside for personal use.
'A win-win. No—a triple win. I don't even know how many wins we're at now. It's a win-fest.'
Excited beyond measure, Huo Yuhao focused on class while counting the minutes till the school day ended.
After Professor Yu Qi's morning lecture, just as Huo Yuhao was getting ready to leave, the teacher called out to him.
"Yuhao, wait a moment."
Huo Yuhao turned around in confusion.
"Yes, Professor?"
Yu Qi cleared his throat.
"Yuhao, you haven't applied for a Soul Engineer qualification certificate yet, have you?"
"I haven't, sir," Huo Yuhao replied honestly.
Yu Qi hesitated a little longer before continuing.
"Well, there's an assessment opportunity in a month. You should try for it."
Then he walked away without another word, leaving Huo Yuhao with a puzzled look.
'That was weird. What was that about?'
There was something strange in the professor's tone—something he couldn't quite place. A hint of unease stirred in his heart, but after a moment, he shook it off.
'Forget it. I've got better things to focus on.'
But in the afternoon, trouble arrived right on schedule.
As he walked back into class with a gloomy expression, Ye Wen, who sat beside him, noticed immediately.
"Yuhao, what's wrong?"
Huo Yuhao plopped into his seat with a sigh.
"A bunch of bored nobodies decided to make my life difficult just because I'm a 'special recruit.' Like characters out of some third-rate novel."
"If it were just one or two, I'd ignore it. But that was the third group already today."
"I swear, who even does this? Someone help me understand."
Ye Wen looked genuinely concerned.
"You didn't get hurt, did you? I've heard rumors about some troublemaker cliques on campus."
Huo Yuhao chuckled.
"Just a bunch of brats. They can't do anything to me. But damn, are they annoying."
Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that something more was going on. The attacks were too organized, too persistent. It wasn't just jealousy—someone was orchestrating this from behind the scenes.
And that meant Huo Yuhao couldn't afford to retaliate recklessly. If he broke school rules and gave them an excuse, it could be exactly what they wanted.
Elsewhere, in the administrative offices of the First-Year Department...
The office of the Director of Academic Affairs.
It was a position known for strict enforcement, sometimes even to the point of overreach. While the academy promoted freedom in most areas, the Academic Affairs Office was a strict exception—regimented, rule-driven, and often unpopular.
Especially its director: Wang Hai.
Wang Hai sat in his lavish office, frowning as he listened to a student report.
"Director, I did as you instructed, but... that kid didn't take the bait."
The student, a known lackey of Wang Hai's, often helped with his more underhanded tasks.
Wang Hai snorted.
"Hmph. I don't know if that boy is just cowardly or has already figured something out."
He had sent those troublemakers after Huo Yuhao himself.
The reason? Petty jealousy.
His own son had terrible soul power and no talent for soul engineering. He couldn't pass the academy's rigorous entrance exam. Worse, Wang Hai had once tried to sneak him in using his position—only to get caught and reprimanded by higher-ups. He'd narrowly avoided being fired.
Now, he'd learned that someone had been allowed in without taking the exam?
'Unacceptable!'
And so, he hatched a plan to discredit Huo Yuhao, to have him expelled.
If the kid retaliated, broke a rule, it'd be easy to frame him. But when that didn't work...
"Heh. Guess I'll have to use my trump card."
The most legitimate way to expel someone? Prove they weren't qualified.
According to academy rules, every student had to qualify as a Level 1 Soul Engineer before advancing to second-year status. Fail, and you were automatically dismissed.
And from what Wang Hai had heard, Huo Yuhao didn't even have a qualification badge yet.
"No soul engineer license. No real demonstrations of skill. What could he possibly do in one month?"
And even if Huo Yuhao did reach the standard?
Wang Hai had ways of manipulating results behind the scenes.
"You can go now. And since you failed the task, don't expect your little 'reward.'"
The student clenched his fists but lowered his head.
"...Yes, Director."
He had no background, no talent—only this corrupt little position he'd clawed his way into. He couldn't afford to lose it.
Back in his chair, Wang Hai poured himself a drink.
"Huo Yuhao, don't blame me for being ruthless. What, are you gonna become a Level 2 Soul Engineer in three months? Hah!"
It was impossible.
In his mind, the game was already won.
And to celebrate what he considered a sure thing, he poured himself another glass.
(End of Chapter)
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