Astral Pet Store

“No need to thank us.” The young man shook his head. “You’re a student of the Heaven Path Institute, and so was the prince of the Rain Clan you killed. Besides him, there are other students that come from the Rain Clan, and all of them hate you. However, justice and fairness are always ensured in this place; no street fights are allowed.

“We will not protect you if you kill a prince of the Rain Clan while breaking the rules. Do you understand?”

“Got it.”

Su Ping nodded.

The young man seemed satisfied. “You are already qualified to graduate, considering the time of your enrollment and your current strength. We haven’t really taught you much; you grew too fast. You may graduate anytime you want, or you can choose to stay in the institute as a mentor.”

Su Ping shook his head. “I want to further my studies in the institute. There’s still too much I haven’t learned yet; I don’t think I can teach anyone.”

“Too much modesty is just arrogance,” the young man reminded him with a smile, “Working as a mentor is truly a waste of time for you. The institute plans to appoint you as a special student; after all, you being on the Chaos Talents Rank qualifies you for such an identity.

“However, considering your current strength, the special student status is probably not enough. I intend to present you as a candidate to become the Dao Child!”

“The Dao Child?”

Su Ping felt dazed. Such an identity was clearly superior to being a special student.

“Indeed. A Dao Child is like a prince in other clans. Or according to human ways, a seed!” The young man smiled. “They’re the most outstanding students of the Heaven Path Institute who would receive all resources unconditionally. All elders are at the Dao Children’s disposal, and would be obliged to answer questions and help the Dao Children as long as they’re not training in seclusion.”

Su Ping was stunned.

That identity seemed to be unbelievably high!

Wouldn’t the Dao Child be the most favored in the Heaven Path Institute?

All the elders… They were all God Emperors, and they would be at his service?

“Don’t be happy just yet. It’s just a candidacy; it would be up to you whether you can pass. In my opinion, it shouldn’t be a problem; after all, you said that you can fight God Kings. I hope you weren’t bragging…” said the young man with a smile.

Su Ping scratched his head, while thinking that the elder was acting overly friendly.

“I’ll do my best,” said Su Ping.

He would naturally try his best to fight for such a status.

It wasn’t just for himself, but also for all humans in the Archean Divinity.

If he did become a Dao Child, he would probably receive the Institute’s protection, and the human clan wouldn’t have to worry for his safety anymore.

As things stood, it was impossible for humans to fight the Rain Clan just yet. There wasn’t an Ancestral God level cultivator among humans yet!

“All right. I’ll inform the other elders soon; just go back and wait for updates. A decision should be made in a day or so,” said the young man, “Prepare yourself until then; the competition won’t be easy.”

“Okay.”

Su Ping nodded and looked at him. He cupped his hands and said goodbye once he saw that the elder didn’t have anything else to say.

He left the temple, while finding the whole situation surreal. The guy was quite friendly and approachable, while the whole Institute treated him warmly too.

There’s probably more than one Ancestral God in the Heaven Path Institute; otherwise they wouldn’t dare to offend the Rain Clan so easily. Su Ping left the palace with glittering eyes.

“Kid…”

Back in the palace—the young man chuckled as he watched Su Ping leave. “If you do become a Dao Child, I’ll be able to return that human being’s favor.”

He wasn’t a god, but a beast in the Archean Divinity. He once received the help of a low-level human cultivator, although the man had already died many years before. Still, he always remembered the favor and treated humans in a friendly way. He volunteered to meet Su Ping because he wanted to see if that genius was truly capable of leading humankind to prosperity.

Su Ping returned to the temple where he lived.

He asked her maid about the Dao Child status. She became much more excited than him upon learning that he would compete for the title, and readily told him everything she knew.

To Su Ping’s surprise, there was not one, but three Dao Children in the Heaven Path Institute.

There were always three spots!

Furthermore, the Dao Children weren’t fixed; a fourth person qualified for the position could elbow out one of the three.

However, such replacement rarely happened

—

After all, every Dao Child received abundant resources; being eclipsed despite all the privileges could only mean that their replacement was a much more talented genius.

So this is how it goes: I have to compete with other candidates first and then beat a Dao Child; then I’ll be awarded the identity… Su Ping was enlightened. He asked about the Dao Children’s combat ability. He was delighted to find out that-even though the maid didn’t know much-she was certain that the Dao Children weren’t God Emperors.

That made sense; any God Emperor was a giant in the Archean Divinity. They were rare even in high-ranked clans, and were unstoppable except to Ancestral Gods.

Such existences would have no need for the Dao Child status.

If I become a Dao Child… I’ll be able to ask one of the elders to drag the Demigod Burial back to the Archean Divinity so that they can return home… thought Su Ping, remembering Heather and the other Superior Gods.

Half a day passed in the blink of an eye.

Not a day had passed when Su Ping received notification that he was going to take the Dao Children trial.

“So soon?”

Su Ping was shocked to see the white-robed old man who had fetched him before; their efficiency exceeded his expectations.

The old man sized him up, even more surprised. He learned from his master that the student he had met in the morning was going to compete for the Dao Child position!

The rules of the Heaven Path Institute were fair; the ones capable would go up!

There were no racial discriminations; whoever showed more talent and capability would receive appreciation and resources!

Therefore, the Dao Child competition was open all year around; whoever felt up to par could issue a challenge.

With an elder as his endorser, Su Ping had undoubtedly won the qualification as a challenger.

The cute maid clenched her fists and cheered for him, “Keep it up!”

Su Ping smiled and left with the white-robed old man.

They didn’t go to the Toad Fish Palace they had visited earlier. They instead went to an even more splendid castle.

The place turned out to contain a universe where three suns were floating, which were actually three wondrous birds. Su Ping found them familiar, and felt that something was wriggling in his blood. He narrowed his eyes, although the dazzling sunlight couldn’t blind him. He saw that the three birds were golden; they looked like Golden Crows, but weren’t real.

They carry Golden Crow auras; I wonder what birds they are. Su Ping’s eyes glittered.

The two of them reached the square in front of the palace, where eight people of different genders, ages and races were standing. Some had boar heads, while others had eagle’s heads.

The eight turned to look at the new arrivals, showing varied expressions when noticed how Su Ping looked

“A human being.”

“Humph. This human wants to challenge a Dao Child?”

“Since when do humans think that one of them can aspire to become a Dao Child of the Heaven Path Institute?”

“Good thing that I’m here. He cannot possibly pass me!”

Some were angry; they seemed unhappy about Su Ping’s challenge.

Su Ping raised his eyebrows when he sensed their hostility, but then relaxed after gauging their levels. Luckily none of them were too strong.

“They are all Dao Child candidates, and they all belong to high-ranked clans. Don’t feel offended,” said the white-robed old man telepathically with a friendly attitude.

He knew his master had always favored humans, so he also extended goodwill to their race.