First Battle

Xue Xiao Ran repeatedly clenched and unclenched his hands, confirming the smooth flow of his Soul Power.

The twenty students of Class A now sat in twos and threes in the stands of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy's Soul Fighting Arena, all silent. Students from the other classes occupied the surrounding sections, their battle-hungry gazes fixed on Class A.

"Gu Tian Yuan, I have to say, you're still far too confident." Class B's Homeroom Teacher snorted. "You actually had your students enter this competition one at a time. Aren't you being absurdly arrogant?"

Teachers were ranked by performance as well, but Gu Tian Yuan's teaching ability was clearly superior to Class B's Homeroom Teacher's. Otherwise, he would not have become Class A's Homeroom Teacher.

"Whether it's arrogance or not, you'll find out soon enough." Gu Tian Yuan narrowed his eyes with a smile.

With that, he lost interest in continuing the conversation with Class B's Homeroom Teacher. He turned and returned to his class, sitting at the front in silence.

Class A was the quietest. In comparison, the other classes were far livelier, chatting, laughing, and fooling around as though they had not come for an assessment at all.

Before long, Dean Jing Hong Chen and three senior teachers entered the nearby spectator seats, which also served as the Judge Stand.

After taking his seat, Jing Hong Chen spoke into the Amplifying Soul Tool before him. "Welcome to the Soul Fighting Arena of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. This Freshman Competition will be held in teams of three." At this point, he paused and glanced at the smiling Gu Tian Yuan.

"I hope all of you can demonstrate the progress you have made over these three months since enrolling, as well as your strength. The top ten competitors will be designated as key training candidates. That is all." He gave a light cough and quickly concluded his opening remarks.

Two teachers stood in the arena, holding a sheet of paper that was clearly the match list.

"First match: Class C's Heavenly Fiend Team versus Class E's Unknown Team!"

The first battle began with great fanfare.

Xue Xiao Ran turned his gaze toward the arena and found that both teams consisted of an Assault System Soul Master, an Agility System Soul Master, and a Support System Soul Master—perfectly balanced squads.

At the referee's command, the two teams immediately charged. Assault System Soul Masters faced Assault System Soul Masters, Agility System Soul Masters faced Agility System Soul Masters, while the Support System Soul Masters silently supported them from behind.

It was the simplest kind of king versus king, general versus general.

Gu Tian Yuan narrowed his eyes and said nothing. The Homeroom Teachers of the other classes, meanwhile, carefully explained each team's composition and combat precautions to their students.

Xue Xiao Ran felt that this hands-off teaching system suited him very well. At the very least, he had no desire to be nagged every day like a child about what to do. Gu Tian Yuan treated them as though they were already mature young adults.

In the span of those brief thoughts, the battle on the stage had already reached its conclusion. At the same time, the fight on another arena had also ended.

"Next match: Class C's Spirit Water Team versus..." His voice lowered, as if he were confirming something.

"Versus Class A's Xue Xiao Ran!"

An uproar swept through the stands. Some knew Xue Xiao Ran, while others did not. Hearing the referee announce his name alone, was he planning to fight by himself?

Nangong Ling, seated with Class B, felt the corner of his eye twitch wildly. This roommate of his... was really something.

If he learned that every student in Class A was competing alone, would his jaw drop in shock?

"For Class A's first match, win it beautifully for me." Gu Tian Yuan crossed his legs, opening his eyes just a sliver.

"Yes, Teacher Gu."

Xue Xiao Ran rose to his feet and walked into the arena step by step.

Xiao Hong Chen's gaze also drifted toward Xue Xiao Ran. He wanted to see the combat ability of this formidable rival, Xue Xiao Ran.

Wearing his yellow school uniform, Xue Xiao Ran stepped onto the arena and found three young girls standing opposite him. Seeing him come up alone, they all wore playful smiles.

"Are you ready?" the referee asked to confirm.

The three girls appeared to include two Agility System Soul Masters and one Support System Soul Master. All three summoned their Martial Souls.

White and yellow light instantly appeared before Xue Xiao Ran's eyes.

Xue Xiao Ran kept both hands in his pockets, apparently with no intention of taking them out. A yellow and a purple Soul Ring quietly emerged, startling the three girls.

"A thousand-year..."

Murmurs gradually spread through the stands. Xiao Hong Chen's expression darkened. How was this possible?

"Since you are ready, begin!"

The referee let out a thunderous roar. Along with it, the two girls charged at Xue Xiao Ran simultaneously. Cat ears appeared atop both their heads; they were apparently both cat Martial Souls.

The Support System girl held a Weapon Martial Soul resembling a scepter. Her white and yellow Soul Rings appeared, and as the yellow ring flickered, the two Agility System Soul Masters became even faster.

Xue Xiao Ran did not move, nor did he take a step forward.

"Hey, was he scared stupid?" someone from Class D muttered quietly.

A flash of violet suddenly passed through Xue Xiao Ran's eyes. If he was going to win this battle, he would win it beautifully.

The claws of the two girls thrust toward Xue Xiao Ran's chest. Xue Xiao Ran saw through the Soul Skill's illusionary attack at once.

He made only one movement: taking a slight step back as the flowing wind suddenly blew toward the two girls.

The Soul Skill came to an eerie halt in front of Xue Xiao Ran. It turned out that their Soul Skill had already been activated. The two girls froze in strange poses, then stumbled back several steps.

"He even saw the range of their Soul Skill clearly. Was that a coincidence?" Gu Tian Yuan narrowed his eyes with an interested smile. The stronger his students were, the happier he was.

"You're very strong, but your weakness is that you're alone."

The heroic-looking girl extended her claws and charged at Xue Xiao Ran again, while the other girl circled behind him and launched her own charge. As a wisp of white light descended onto them, the two girls became considerably faster once more.

With his hands still in his pockets, Xue Xiao Ran watched the heroic-looking girl's Soul Skill approach. He neither dodged nor avoided it. The final gaze he gave them remained as calm as still water.

Smack. Smack.

The two girls tripped and fell, rolling with their momentum to Xue Xiao Ran's feet. Their beautiful eyes were filled with confusion, unable to understand what had happened.

What... what was going on?

Xue Xiao Ran's expression did not change as he stepped over one of the girls. The heroic-looking girl only needed to stretch out her hand to drive her claws into Xue Xiao Ran's body, yet she could no longer control herself. She could only stare wide-eyed as Xue Xiao Ran walked step by step toward the last Support System Soul Master.

"Are you going down on your own, or do you want me to send you down?"

With his hands in his pockets, Xue Xiao Ran strolled up to the final girl holding the scepter and asked calmly.

"I... I... I surrender."

After weighing the situation, the Support System girl sighed and raised her hand.

"This match goes to Xue Xiao Ran!"

From beginning to end, his hands had never left his pockets.