By noon, Grandpa Jack finally led Su Ming and Tang San to Nuoding Academy in Nuoding City.
When Grandpa Jack tried to take them inside to handle the enrollment procedures, they were immediately stopped by a gatekeeper.
The gatekeeper, seeing how poorly dressed Tang San and Su Ming were, decided to make things difficult for them, seemingly just for the sake of it.
The gatekeeper barked, "Stop! What do you think you're doing here? Nuoding Academy isn't a place you can just enter as you please!"
Su Ming was speechless. This was exactly like in the original story. What was wrong with this gatekeeper's brain? The academy was filled with working students, mostly commoners, with only a few wealthy students. Why was he picking on them?
Grandpa Jack's face changed slightly, but he quickly smiled and said, "Sir, these two children are this year's working students from our village. Here are their recommendation letters."
The gatekeeper arrogantly took the two letters and looked at them. One was for a child with innate level-seven soul power and a Wood Element martial soul, while the other was for a child with innate full soul power!
This startled the gatekeeper. But when he saw that the one with innate full soul power had a Blue Silver Grass martial soul, he found it suspicious.
For some reason—perhaps out of jealousy—he wanted to make things harder for them. Why should these two poor boys have such good talent?
The gatekeeper turned to Grandpa Jack and said, "There's only one recommendation letter for a working student. What's going on here? And as I recall, a village only gets one working student spot, right?"
Grandpa Jack patiently explained, "This year, our village had two very talented children, so I requested a second recommendation from a soul master of Wuhun Hall, hoping Nuoding Academy would make an exception and grant another spot."
Su Ming sighed to himself. As expected, this small chance event happened. The gatekeeper in the original story was always this arrogant.
In Tang San's mind, this gatekeeper had already found his path to death!
Su Ming couldn't help but wonder whether this incident would cause Tang San to hold a grudge against Grandpa Jack, and maybe even against him as well.
The gatekeeper arrogantly declared, "That won't do. Our academy only accepts students with official working student letters. As for the other one, take him back. The authority of that Wuhun Hall soul master isn't high enough!"
Grandpa Jack was furious. "That soul master is from Wuhun Hall! How can you say that?"
Meanwhile, Tang San stood quietly, staring at the gatekeeper, a flash of light passing through his eyes. He also glanced at Grandpa Jack and Su Ming, though his thoughts were unclear.
Su Ming noticed this, of course. Thanks to the Sharingan he received from the system, even though he hadn't activated it, his perception had improved.
Moreover, Su Ming's attention had been focused on Tang San the whole time, so it was impossible for him to miss this.
While waiting, Su Ming decided to start writing in his journal.
He knew he'd get into the academy without a problem. As for Tang San, as the protagonist of this world, would getting into the academy really be hard for him?
Not to mention that the so-called "theory master" would soon arrive, and even if he didn't, Su Ming was certain that Tang Hao was lurking nearby!
[Guys, can you believe it? We're actually being stopped by the gatekeeper!]
As soon as Su Ming's journal updated, the female characters started reading it, eager to see the latest development.
[If it were just me, I'd show the gatekeeper the recommendation letter and easily get in. But there's also Tang San. For some reason, the gatekeeper refuses to acknowledge Su Yuntao's letter.]
[Even though Su Yuntao isn't that high-level, he's still backed by Wuhun Hall. A mere gatekeeper shouldn't dare to provoke him. Where's he getting his courage from? Is it from a singer named Liang Jingru?]
The female characters didn't know who Liang Jingru was, but they were all shocked. This gatekeeper had some nerve! Normally, a gatekeeper at a primary soul master academy was just a regular person with no soul power. Where did he get the audacity to act like this?
At the very least, he should let them in and leave it up to the school leaders to decide. Did he have a death wish?
[As for Tang San, as expected, he's quietly watching the gatekeeper while tightening his right hand. Based on what I know about him, Tang San has already developed a murderous intent. In his mind, the gatekeeper has found his path to death!]
[If I'm right, there's a hidden weapon in Tang San's right sleeve, a sleeve arrow, which he probably made for self-defense. He likely has other hidden weapons, like steel needles, in his pocket.]
[After all, in his previous life, Tang San was from the Tang Sect, an organization known for its expertise in hidden weapons and poison. While he doesn't have any poison yet in this world, his family is a blacksmith's household, so crafting simple hidden weapons would have been easy.]
[The sleeve arrow is considered a low-level hidden weapon in the Tang Sect, easy to make but still deadly. A surprise attack could kill even a level-twenty soul master.]
[Now, since the gatekeeper won't accept Su Yuntao's letter, Tang San has not only been watching the gatekeeper but has also glanced at Grandpa Jack and me. I know we're both on his list now.]
[In Tang San's mind, he's probably thinking, 'My talent is greater than Su Ming's. Why would Grandpa Jack favor him and not give me the working student spot?']
[But he hasn't considered that he's hiding his Clear Sky Hammer martial soul. Even with his innate full soul power, his martial soul appears to be Blue Silver Grass, which is considered a trash martial soul. It's only natural that people would think my Wood Element martial soul has more potential.]
As A Yin read this, she became excited. Finally, Su Ming was talking about Tang San again. She hadn't expected that in his previous life, Tang San belonged to a sect focused on hidden weapons and poison.
A Yin didn't doubt Su Ming's words. Even though she no longer had her former strength, she was still the Blue Silver Emperor and could sense the outside world through the Blue Silver Grass.
During the past six years, she had paid the most attention to Tang Hao and Tang San.
Although she found Tang Hao's daily drunkenness hard to watch, she assumed he was drowning his sorrows out of guilt for failing to protect her.
Because of this, A Yin had always believed she had made the right choice by falling in love with him.
As for Tang San, he had always been obedient and considerate, taking good care of Tang Hao and even using materials from home to create things A Yin had never seen before. She assumed these were the hidden weapons Su Ming mentioned in his journal.
Originally, A Yin thought Tang San was just precocious or exceptionally gifted, far ahead of other children his age.
But now, it seemed clear—Tang San wasn't her son at all! Inside his body was the soul of a man in his thirties!
However, A Yin still held a sliver of hope. Maybe, like Su Ming, Tang San was reincarnated and only recently awakened his past-life memories. There was still a chance!