Elder Brother and Nephew

"All right, stop being modest. Luo Yun's strength is as formidable as ever."

"The new student is also quite capable. It's just that his physical condition is still a little lacking, and he needs more exercise."

Facing the somewhat stern Coach Yan Feng, Xu Mingxi still felt a little guilty.

His physical condition was good, but he had neglected physical combat training, and in close-quarters combat, he was no match for Luo Yun at all.

"But if I didn't see wrong just now, Mingxi's First Soul Skill can provide Luo Yun with an enhancement, right?"

"Yes, Coach. At that moment, my speed suddenly increased by a lot, about forty percent or so."

"Good, good, excellent."

Even if Xu Mingxi's other soul skills were useless, this move alone was enough for him to join the school team.

If Luo Yun broke through to Soul Ancestor by then, and with Xu Mingxi's support on top of that, they might even be able to make a push for the finals.

Yan Feng smiled unconsciously, but when he realized he was still in front of the students, he swallowed back the drool that was about to spill out.

The seven of them began the day's training. With Xu Mingxi joining, the team allocation became much more reasonable.

Before Xu Mingxi arrived, Wen Tingyu had always relied on Zhou Lingling's support to contend against Luo Yun.

Xiong Lie and Ye Zhiqiu's Soul Power were about the same, and with water and fire countering each other, they fought to a standstill.

That had left Yun Ni off to one side. No matter which side she joined, it would become an overwhelming victory.

Now things were better: Xu Mingxi, Luo Yun, and Xiong Lie were on one team, while the other four formed the opposing team.

Luo Yun's First Soul Skill strengthened his power by thirty percent, his Second Soul Skill strengthened his speed by thirty-five percent, and his Third Soul Skill was called Star Light Wave.

With Xu Mingxi's enhancement added on, even with Zhou Lingling's support, Wen Tingyu still found it difficult to stand against Luo Yun.

It was only with Yun Ni coordinating from the side that the three of them could barely hold on by working together.

But in that case, Xu Mingxi was freed up. He alternated between Star Light Ray and Star Net, and before long, Wen Tingyu's group of four was defeated.

Yun Ni had considered flying straight over and dealing with Xu Mingxi.

But Star Net's coverage was too wide, and his Star Light Ray could actually be fired repeatedly. Under that heavy fire suppression, Yun Ni had no real solution either.

"Damn it, just which one of us is the support here, you or me? Why do I feel like your enhancement is even stronger than mine?"

Zhou Lingling's Martial Soul, Jade Bracelet, was a high-level support-type tool Martial Soul. It could produce a Jade Halo, which would settle over her teammates' heads and provide enhancement.

Her First Soul Skill increased group speed by twenty percent, while her Second Soul Skill enhanced Soul Power by twenty percent.

Worth mentioning was her Third Soul Skill, Clear Spirit Ring, which could remove negative statuses from her teammates.

Just now, relying on her support, Ye Zhiqiu had completely suppressed Xiong Lie.

If not for Xu Mingxi's occasional support, plus the fact that Luo Yun ended his battle too quickly, Xiong Lie definitely would not have lasted long.

"All right. The old team members still have the same problems as before. Mingxi, you need to strengthen your physical combat training a bit."

"Your foundation is very good. That can let you hold out for a while even when an opponent gets close, giving you time to wait for your teammates' help."

The Star Crown Sect's many years of investment in Xu Mingxi had not been wasted. Persistent exercise plus Medicinal Baths meant Xu Mingxi's foundation was still passable.

It was just that he had focused on cultivating Soul Power before and had slightly neglected close-quarters combat techniques.

"Mingxi, don't worry. I'm good at close-quarters combat. I'll teach you."

Right now, Luo Yun's desire to recruit Xu Mingxi was overflowing, and he was thinking up every possible way to get closer to him.

"Then thank you, Brother Luo Yun."

"No problem, no problem."

Xu Mingxi did not mind either. He would eat the sugarcoating first. As for whether he accepted the recruitment, that would be a matter for many years later.

If possible, Xu Mingxi did not mind using the Star Luo Kingdom as a springboard to get involved in the continent's affairs.

The two of them were satisfied, the others were satisfied too, and Canghui Academy was even more satisfied.

There was still more than a year until the National Tournament, and they had already assembled a team made entirely of Soul Elders.

Four power attackers, one agility attacker, one control, and one support. Although it did not quite conform to the current extreme-flow style, it was still a fairly reasonable team.

A few days later, the excited Third Prince Luo Yun returned home and shared the good news with Father King.

"Oh? You're saying this new classmate's Martial Soul is the Star Crown?"

The Star Luo Kingdom's royal family was not like the Heaven Dou Imperial Family after the start of the plot, where the ruler was weak and the ministers strong.

The current king of Star Luo, Luo Yi, was an eighty-third-rank Power Attack System Soul Douluo. His Martial Soul was the Starry Tiger, and he intimidated the many forces within the kingdom.

"Yeah, and his soul skill can even enhance me."

"Father King, how come I've never heard of this Martial Soul before?"

"Hahahaha, Yun'er, though you've never heard of it, you have seen it before."

Seen it? Where have I seen it?

Seeing that Luo Yun still had not realized, Luo Yi could only open his mouth and remind him.

"Yun'er, have you forgotten? Your Empress's Martial Soul is precisely the Star Crown."

Luo Yun's body jolted. That was right—although the Empress had never once made a move in the past decade or so...

When he was little, when Father King had inherited the throne and the kingdom was in turmoil, the Empress had acted before.

Luo Yun vaguely remembered that when the Empress made her move, there had been a crown radiating golden light.

And that shining Star's Protection, which had kept him and his two older brothers safe.

So that had been the Star Crown.

"Father King, then this Xu Mingxi is my...?"

"In terms of seniority, he should count as your... uncle?"

Luo Yun felt as if five bolts of thunder had struck him. That was right—the Empress's name was Xu Mingya.

"All right, you can each go by your own seniority. I'm not clear on the specifics either. Go ask your Empress."

Luo Yun walked out of Father King's study in a daze and arrived at the Star Palace where the Empress was.

Seeing her youngest son walk in with a downcast expression, Xu Mingya stopped playing the pipa in her hands.

"Yun'er, what brings you here? Come in and sit."

Luo Yun looked at the Empress, as if only then realizing he had already arrived.

"Empress, a new student named Xu Mingxi came to our academy. His Martial Soul is the Star Crown. I heard from Father King that he's a member of your clan?"

When Xu Mingya heard this, her eyes lit up. She had not seen a clansman in a very long time.

"If it's the Star Crown, then he must be one of the Empress's clansmen. Strictly speaking, Yun'er, you should call him uncle."

Here it came. Luo Yun broke down inside. How had his perfectly good little bro suddenly turned into his uncle?

"It should be one of the clan's younger generation coming out to train. Yun'er, when you have time, you must invite your uncle home as a guest."

"Fine, fine."

In the end, Luo Yun still bore everything alone, but he was still quite capable of playing dumb.

Judging by Xu Mingxi's appearance, he probably did not know about this relationship either. He would drag it out for as long as he could.

As long as it was not exposed for a day, I'm still the big bro, not the nephew.

Xu Mingxi knew nothing about what had happened in the Royal Palace. He was still in the dormitory dealing with his roommate.

Canghui Academy had two-person rooms. Star Dou Class had four boys; Ye Zhiqiu and Xiong Lie shared one room, while Luo Yun had bought a house off campus.

Xu Mingxi could only squeeze in with a junior from Star Arrived Class.

"Senior, although you're stronger, we still need to set three rules. First..."

Set three rules, my ass. Who do you think you are, Dong Tongni?

Looking at the burly man in front of him, Xu Mingxi was somewhat helpless too. This Shi Chui was big and thickset, but he was actually quite particular about cleanliness.

Fortunately, what he brought up was only some hygiene-related issues, and Xu Mingxi readily agreed.

After all, to Xu Mingxi, the dormitory was just a place to sleep every night. He did not plan to actively befriend this roommate either; he would just let things take their course.