New Student Competition Begins

Ning Keke and Shui Wuyue also spotted Qian Yuling and walked straight over to her. Ning Keke spoke first. "Yu Ling, did you obtain your third soul ring?"

Qian Yuling nodded. "Yes."

Ning Keke immediately said, "A Soul Elder at seven years old, Yu Ling, you're incredible."

Qian Yuling stuck out her tongue. "You're not bad either, Ning Keke. A Soul Grandmaster at nine."

Shui Wuyue chimed in, "Both of you are geniuses. It's awkward for an ordinary person like me, okay?"

A glint flashed in Ning Keke's eyes. "Yueyue, a ten-year-old Soul Grandmaster is an ordinary person? Do you know what the Soul Masters outside would think if they heard that?"

Shui Wuyue: "..."

Qian Yuling said, "All right, all right. The New Student Competition is in two days. Our group has an excellent lineup: Keke is a Support System Soul Master, I'm a Summon System Soul Master, and Yueyue is a Control System Soul Master. I think no other group besides Mo Ying's can stand in our way to the championship. Still, we need to be cautious and come up with a perfect strategy."

Ning Keke said, "Then you make the plan, Yu Ling. Yueyue and I have been thinking for five days and still haven't come up with anything. We really have no way to deal with Mo Ying's group. Mo Ying has the strength to take on all three of us by himself."

Shui Wuyue nodded.

Qian Yuling shook her head. "I won't lose to Mo Ying now, but he isn't his group's trump card. Lu Xiaoguo and Hua Ruyi are."

Ning Keke looked utterly confused, while Shui Wuyue frowned. "You mean a Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"

Qian Yuling nodded. "I'm not sure yet, but there's a strong chance the two of them possess a Martial Soul Fusion Skill."

Ning Keke cried out, "A Martial Soul Fusion Skill!"

Shui Wuyue frowned. "If that's true, we might not be able to defeat them."

Seeing the heavy atmosphere, Qian Yuling patted Ning Keke and Shui Wuyue on the shoulders. "Relax, relax. This time, our group will definitely be the champions, so don't worry. Don't forget, I'm already a Soul Elder."

Ning Keke and Shui Wuyue felt much more at ease upon hearing that. After all, Qian Yuling's martial soul was exceptionally special. At level 21, she had been able to defeat a level 25 Assault System Soul Master. Now that she was a Soul Elder, her combat strength was surely far beyond what it had been then.

Qian Yuling added, "As long as they're ordinary Soul Elders, I can defeat them without even using my Third Soul Skill. Besides, the vast majority of participants in the New Student Competition are Soul Masters or Soul Grandmasters. So relax. Oh, and every one of my Babies is level 37 now."

Ning Keke: "..."

Shui Wuyue: "..."

Ning Keke and Shui Wuyue were completely reassured. After the three chatted for a while, they returned to their dormitory.

That night, when Dugu Yan returned to the dormitory after class, she found Qian Yuling cultivating. She called softly, "Yu Ling?"

Qian Yuling opened her eyes and jumped down from the bed. "Yanyan."

Dugu Yan stepped forward and hugged Qian Yuling. "Yu Ling, I missed you so much. We haven't seen each other for five days."

Qian Yuling looked at the enthusiastic Dugu Yan and said, "Well, I'm back now."

"Yu Ling, you're already a Soul Elder, right?"

"Mm."

"I'm so jealous of your talent. My Soul Power is only level 23."

"Um... Work a little harder, Yanyan, and you can do it too."

"Then I'll take that as a good omen."

"Mm!"

Two days later.

In Class One of New Students, Ye Qiu looked at the twenty students below him. "I won't say much more. You are the best group of students I've ever taught, so in this New Student Competition, let the entire Heaven Dou Royal Academy see your talent and your hard work. Now, the whole class will proceed to the Battle Arena in groups."

Under Ye Qiu's leadership, Class One of New Students headed to the academy's Battle Arena.

The host of the New Student Competition was still the same woman from the class placement examination a year ago. Her name was Qing Piaopiao.

The spectator stands were packed with senior students, while the judges were still the three members of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy's Education Committee. The referee was also the same person from the class placement examination, Xia En, a powerful Soul Emperor.

Qing Piaopiao said, "Good morning, students, teachers, and the three members of the Education Committee!"

"Good morning!" the senior students shouted loudly.

Qing Piaopiao continued, "It is once again time for the annual New Student Competition at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. I will now announce the rules. Although the rules are the same every year, I still need to explain them."

"This year's New Student Competition has a total of 200 participants. Excluding the two substitutes from each class, there are 180 remaining. The competition is conducted in groups of three, so the ten classes are divided into a total of sixty groups, six groups per class. The homeroom teacher of each class will select the two strongest groups from their class to enter the Elite Group, while the remaining four groups will compete in the Ordinary Group. That means there are twenty Elite Groups and forty Ordinary Groups."

"The Elite Groups will be divided by class into Elite Group One and Elite Group Two. Each class's Elite Group One will face another class's Elite Group One, with opponents drawn at random. This is to prevent groups from the same class from meeting in the first round. The ten winning groups will advance, while the ten losing groups will be eliminated immediately. The ten advancing groups will then face each other in pairs, with opponents randomly selected. The five winning groups will enter the Winner Group, while the five losing groups will enter the Loser Group."

"The forty Ordinary Groups will face each other in pairs, with opponents randomly selected. The twenty winning groups will advance, while the twenty losing groups will be eliminated. The twenty advancing groups will again face each other in pairs, with opponents randomly selected. The ten winning groups will advance, while the ten losing groups will be eliminated. The ten advancing groups will once again face each other in pairs, with opponents still randomly selected. The five winning groups will secure advancement. The five losing groups will be paired through a draw, with one group receiving a bye. The two losing groups will be eliminated directly, while the two winning groups and the one group with a bye will again face each other in pairs through a draw, with one group receiving a bye. The one losing group will be eliminated directly, while the winning group will face the group with the bye. The loser will be eliminated directly, and the winning group will join the previous five groups in securing advancement. These six groups that have secured advancement will then face each other in pairs through another draw. The three winning groups will enter the Winner Group alongside the five groups that won the final round of the Elite Group, while the three losing groups will enter the Loser Group alongside the five groups that lost in the Elite Group. The eight Winner Groups and eight Loser Groups will make up the top sixteen."

"Finally, the eight groups in the Winner Group will face each other in pairs. The four winning groups will advance to the next round of the Winner Group, while the four losing groups will drop into the Loser Group. The eight groups in the Loser Group will also face each other in pairs. The four winning groups, along with the four groups that fell from the Winner Group, will advance to the next round of the Loser Group. Likewise, the four groups that advance in the Winner Group will face each other again. The two winning groups will advance to the next round, while the two losing groups will drop into the Loser Group. The two groups advancing to the next round will face each other again. The winner will advance to the finals, while the loser will drop into the Loser Group. The eight groups advancing in the Loser Group will face each other in pairs. The four winning groups, along with the two groups that fell from the Winner Group, will advance to the next round. Then, the three winning groups among the six groups and the one group that fell from the Winner Group will advance to the next round. Finally, the four groups in the Loser Group will compete. The two winning groups will advance, while the two losing groups will be eliminated. The two advancing groups will then compete again. The winner will advance to the finals, while the loser will take third place. Finally, the two groups that reach the finals will no longer be divided into Winner Group and Loser Group. After the two groups compete, the winner will claim the championship, while the loser will take second place."

"After the competition ends, the champion group will receive one Soul Bone and one million Gold Soul Coins. The runner-up group will receive one million Gold Soul Coins, while the third-place group will receive five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins."

After explaining the competition rules and rewards, Qing Piaopiao's mouth was parched, but she could only endure it as she continued, "I have finished explaining the rules. Therefore, I declare the New Student Competition officially begun!"

Thunderous applause erupted throughout the Battle Arena. As Qing Piaopiao's words fell, the New Student Competition officially began.