Ikehira's Plan, The Surprise Kiss

Chapter 95 Ikehira's Plan, The Surprise Kiss

Chi Ping spent three years traversing most of the human settlements on the continent, collecting enough soul power for the Tree of Life to sprout. If this soul power were used for soul masters to cultivate and absorb, it could probably create a team of peerless Douluo.

This is also the fundamental reason why the goddess of life chose Ikehira.

When the seed of the Tree of Life was able to sprout, the Goddess of Life bestowed a divine decree.

He will bless the ancient tree with new life.

Life's blessings are generous; when Ikehira receives a blessing, the land he inhabits and the people on that land will receive great benefits.

Chi Ping extended invitations to everyone who knew about the Life Trial, including Bibi Dong and Qian Daoliu from the Spirit Hall, and Xue Qinghe from Heaven Dou City. Except for Dugu Bo.

However, with only 3 days left before the results of the godhood assessment are due, Chi Ping has yet to receive a reply to the invitation he sent out.

……

The back mountain of the academy, Yaoshan, was the place Chiping chose to receive the ceremony.

The tall man-made forests stand in neat rows, like soldiers on guard.

The land under the forest is divided into different areas based on factors such as temperature, humidity, sunlight, and soil quality. Different medicinal herbs are planted in each area, and some medicinal herbs are also planted together.

This was designed by reliable scholars and experts. It works with mycelium to adjust soil fertility, which can maximize the growth of medicinal materials. After seven years of optimization, it is now very perfect.

Shrek Academy has never cooperated with any force, nor has it accepted any assistance from any force. This has never happened before, and it will never happen again. This is the very foundation upon which Shrek Academy was founded!

However, running an academy requires a lot of money. Teachers' salaries, maintenance and upgrading of teaching equipment, maintenance of the simulated training environment, students' meals, and so on all require a large amount of gold soul coins.

Chi Ping set the tuition for Shrek Academy at ten gold soul coins per year for the middle school and twenty gold soul coins per year for the university. This is really not expensive for a soul master. It's even possible to pay on credit, as long as the background check goes smoothly.

Tuition fees have never been Shrek Academy's main source of income; in fact, they are only a drop in the ocean.

For the previous seven years, Shrek Academy relied almost entirely on this medicinal mountain for its livelihood.

"But the profits from the medicine mountain have their limits. In the previous seven years, the academy was not fully enrolled in any grade; there were few students and few teachers. A medicine mountain could not only supply the students with nutritional supplements but also keep the academy running and even generate a surplus. But that's not possible now. There are nearly a thousand students across the seven grades. It's difficult for the output of the medicine mountain to generate a surplus."

Ma Hongjun touched the tree beside him.

When the academy was built, in addition to the engineering team that was hired, the teachers and students in the academy also helped with their work.

He also planted several trees on the medicinal mountain.

"So, Brother Ping, you're going to research soul tools to increase the academy's revenue?"

Chi Ping was setting up the venue; he planned to clear an open space first, and then decorate it.

Ma Hongjun and six others assisted him. They also chatted together.

Chi Ping nodded. "We have considered that."

"Pingzi, your decision is quite successful." Dai Mubai's eyebrows twitched, and he seemed to be in a good mood. "With the communicator's ultra-long-range communication capabilities, I doubt many people will refuse."

Ning Rongrong and Oscar wholeheartedly agreed.

Tang San said, "This can already be considered a strategic-level soul tool."

Dai Mubai went even further, saying, "From the emperor's perspective, having a device that allows him to remotely contact his ministers at any time is something he would acquire at any cost. The most important aspect of governing a country is mastering the situation within its territory, and distance is the biggest obstacle. And a communication device undoubtedly solves this problem."

There was one thing Dai Mubai didn't say: it would be even better if the Star Luo Empire could completely control this communicator. In this era, if instant communication could be used in the military, it would be a complete game-changer for the enemy.

But it's clear that Ikehira won't agree.

Ning Rongrong asked curiously, "Brother Ping, how much do you plan to price the communicator? I think five to ten thousand gold soul coins would be appropriate."

From a businessman's perspective, Ning Rongrong's offer was undoubtedly fair.

Chi Ping looked at the group of people discussing and said with some helplessness, "Is it possible that I didn't intend to make a profit by selling communicators? I have more than one type of soul tool technology. Other soul tool technologies are also very useful, such as space compression technology and armed puppet technology."

A portion of the technology of the Longyuan submarine was analyzed.

When he brought back a thousand base stations from Gengxin City, he used space mycelium to seal and shrink the mountain-sized instruments before putting them into a storage soul guide and taking them away.

Everyone was stunned.

Chi Ping could tell from their expressions that they had absolutely no concept of the extreme speed of soul tools. "Just think of it as some very useful technology."

Everyone understood.

"It would be such a waste not to sell such a good communicator," Dai Mubai said regretfully.

Chi Ping shook his head. "It's not that I don't want to sell, it's just that I don't plan to sell it for such a high price. Besides, the current communication system doesn't satisfy me. The base stations process information too slowly, and the terminal functions are too limited."

Once I've perfected this system and reduced the cost of the terminal to a level that ordinary Soul Masters, and even ordinary people, can afford, then it will be time to promote it.

I think it'll be ready to launch when each terminal only costs ten Gold Soul Coins.

Dai Mubai asked in confusion, "I understand that Soul Masters need communicators because they're constantly on the move, but what do ordinary people need them for?"

Chi Ping sighed, "Mu Bai, don't underestimate the wisdom of ordinary people! I want to build a platform based on terminals. People from all over the world can communicate on the platform. It's not enough to just involve Soul Masters. How many Soul Masters are there on the continent, and how many ordinary people are there? The wisdom of the masses should not be ignored."

"Whatever makes you happy," Dai Mubai said dismissively.

Everyone continued working.

Hey~

The portable terminal rang, and Chi Ping casually turned it on.

[Wei Qihong - Class of 2643 - Gatekeeper: Dean, a Soul Saint is looking for you. His identity cannot be confirmed. He has been placed in the reception room.]

—Soul Saint?

Chi Ping frowned. He couldn't recall ever having any connection with any Soul Saint.

—Could it be a representative of the Spirit Hall? It's not the Pope or Qian Daoliu...?

Chi Ping had considered that it might be Xue Qinghe, but he thought it was unlikely. Xue Qinghe could easily prove his identity even without the Crown Prince's appearance; any token would suffice.

"What's wrong?" Dai Mubai asked.

"A Soul Saint has come to visit, I must go and see him," Chi Ping replied as he spoke.

[Chi Ping - Dean: Received, will be there in one minute.]

Dai Mubai frowned. "Can you handle it? Do you want Zhu Qing and me to accompany you? If we use our Martial Soul Fusion Technique, we can put up a fight against a Soul Saint."

"No problem. Although I haven't obtained my seventh spirit ring yet, ordinary spirit saints are no match for me," Chi Ping said confidently. In fact, with the spirit tool device on his left arm, Chi Ping could briefly contend with spirit douluos.

Dai Mubai was still worried and insisted, "Let us follow along, just in case."

"Alright."

So Chi Ping teleported Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing to the lotus pond at the school gate, dropped them off, and then went to the school gate alone.

……

Shrek Academy's reception room is right next to the marble door. The interior is simply furnished, with a door and a small window facing south towards the outside of the school. There is a desk in front of the window where the security guard works.

Wei Qihong is a student in the second graduating class of Shrek Academy and is currently in the sixth grade of the middle school. The job of gatekeeper is a part-time position he found. Shrek Academy intentionally sets aside some less important positions specifically for students to do part-time work, which serves to help them develop their interpersonal skills.

Wei Qihong was writing something in his work log, looking very focused. But if you took a couple of steps closer, you would notice that the pen in his hand was still a small distance from the paper, and his eyes were involuntarily glancing to the left, only to immediately look away again. He wanted to look, but dared not look.

So beautiful!

She was an extremely beautiful woman.

She looked to be around twenty years old, with skin as white as snow and eyes as bright as stars. She wore a long, gold, palace-style jumpsuit, seemingly woven from gold thread, its style both ancient and elegant. A gold stand-up collar protected her long, slender, snow-white neck, and her long, golden hair was simply tied into a ponytail.

Elegant and noble, with a commanding presence!

Simply sitting there is already the center of the world.

She held a golden communication terminal with feather patterns, looking at it quietly, her alabaster-white fingers gently tracing its surface.

Ga~

Door bolt friction.

"Dean!" Wei Qihong stood up.

The woman looked up at Chi Ping, who was walking in through the door, and a slight smile appeared on her lips.

Ikehira's appearance is not particularly handsome; he would only score 7 or even 6 out of 10. However, he has a gentle and tolerant temperament, which adds one point to his appearance.

"Sit down!" Chi Ping gestured for Wei Qihong to sit down, then looked at the woman.

The woman's beauty momentarily stunned Ikehira, but he quickly regained his composure.

The woman noticed this and felt somewhat discouraged. She had dressed up carefully, but it hadn't done anything to help.

Chi Ping's gaze quickly fell on the terminal in the woman's hand.

This was a gift from him to Xue Qinghe. Back in the Crown Prince's residence, Xue Qinghe had privately mentioned that he liked light gold and feather patterns. However, such decorations could not be found in the Crown Prince's residence. The reason for this was that he did not want his preferences to be known by others.

Chi Ping laughed.

Xue Qinghe wouldn't entrust the terminal to someone else, so the girl in front of him is his "Qinghe" brother.

Thinking back to what he had seen at the Spirit Hall two years ago, Chi Ping suddenly understood some things.

He bowed respectfully and said, "Perhaps I should say, Miss Qian, it's been a long time!"

Qian Renxue's beautiful eyes flickered slightly. "How did you know?"

"I had a brief encounter with Senior Qian Daoliu, the Grand Elder of the Spirit Hall. Your auras are very similar."

She stored the terminal in her storage soul tool, bowed slightly, and said gently, "That's my grandfather. My name is Qian Renxue. You can call me Xue'er."

Chi Ping felt as if a thousand ants were crawling all over his body.

His best friend suddenly turned into a woman and acted like a little girl in front of him, which made him feel very uncomfortable.

"clear……"

Qian Renxue glared.

Chi Ping changed his address, "Xue... Miss Qian! I'll take you into the academy."

Qian Renxue knew that her identity change was too drastic and Chi Ping could not accept it immediately. Moreover, she had an even bigger plan to carry out, so she did not dwell on it too much.

She followed half a step behind Chi Ping, and the two entered Shrek Academy together.

On the path in front of the lotus pond, Chi Ping, speechless, said, "Your change... is quite significant."

Qian Renxue smiled gently, "This is how I truly look. Do I look good?"

"It's not a matter of whether it looks good or not, but rather the change..." Chi Ping hesitated, "I can't quite describe it."

Qian Renxue took three steps and stopped Chi Ping in front of him.

Chi Ping was about eight feet tall, and Qian Renxue was no shorter; their eyes were level.

One was surprised and puzzled, the other was determined and resolute.

Intuition issued a warning, and Ikehira subconsciously took a half step back.

Qian Renxue grabbed Chi Ping, pressed her body close to his, tilted her head slightly, and then... kissed him.

!!!

The shock came from three directions.

Chi Ping, Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing.

(End of this chapter)