Semifinals

Early the next morning, the Assessment Area for the four-to-two round was far quieter than it had been the day before.

Naturally, only teachers had come to watch; the students still had classes to attend. However, the scruffy old man who had appeared on the raised platform yesterday was nowhere to be seen this time.

All twelve freshmen who had made it into the top four stood together. Yet the person overseeing today's draw was no longer Du Weilun, the dean of the outer academy's Martial Soul Department.

An old man dressed in white had taken his place.

"Hello, young people. I am Yan Shaozhe, the 261st dean of Shrek Academy," the white-clad elder said with a smile. His demeanor was exceedingly gentle, making him seem like nothing more than an ordinary old man.

The dean of Shrek Academy was undoubtedly a Super Douluo-level powerhouse—a true peak existence on the Douluo Continent.

None of the freshmen had expected the dean himself to appear here.

"I know you're all curious about why I'm here. That's right, under normal circumstances, even at the final stage of the New Student Assessment, having a vice dean present would already demonstrate the academy's regard for you. But I must say that your class of freshmen has performed to my great satisfaction. You are also the most talented class of freshmen in nearly a century. I'm very interested in you, so I came. Furthermore, I will watch all of your matches today. I hope you can show me something surprising. All right, let the draw begin."

Naturally, the dean could not personally preside over the drawing. Du Weilun hurriedly took over the task, but Dean Yan stated that he would personally hold the box for the freshmen to draw from.

Understanding his intent, Du Weilun stepped forward and called out loudly, "Freshman Class Nine, Wu Xuan's team, come forward to draw."

Hearing this, Wu Xuan strode onto the competition platform with his head held high.

"Young man, I hope you and your team can display your true strength in today's assessment," Yan Shaozhe said with a smile.

After drawing a lot, Wu Xuan bowed to Yan Shaozhe, then handed the lot to Du Weilun and stepped down.

At that moment, Du Weilun's voice rang out again.

"Freshman Class Nine, Wu Xuan's team, lot number one."

Number one meant that they would compete on the first battleground in the semifinals. There were only four numbers in that box: two number ones and two number twos.

"Freshman Class Ten, Cao Jinxuan's team, come forward to draw."

After offering some encouragement, Du Weilun announced the number drawn.

"Freshman Class Ten, Cao Jinxuan's team, lot number one!"

The matchup between the four teams was now clear.

The draw ended. Battle Soul Platform Number One!

Facing Wu Xuan's group were three spirited male students, three Soul Grand Masters with peculiar Martial Souls.

"State your names. Prepare for battle," the proctor said gravely.

"Freshman Class Ten, Zhou Sichen, Assault-Type Battle Soul Grandmaster."

"Freshman Class Ten, Long Xiangyue, Agile Attack-Type Battle Soul Grandmaster."

"Freshman Class Ten, Cao Jinxuan, Control-Type Battle Soul Grandmaster."

Their sonorous voices displayed their confidence. Whether they could win or not, they still needed to show proper momentum.

Wu Xuan's group likewise introduced themselves.

"Freshman Class Nine, Wu Xuan, Control-Type Battle Soul Elder."

"Freshman Class Nine, Qian Gu Ming, Assault-Type Battle Soul Grandmaster."

"Freshman Class Nine, Nanmen Yun'er, Agile Attack-Type Battle Soul Grandmaster."

Zhou Sichen could not help muttering to Cao Jinxuan beside him, "Jinxuan, what kind of luck is that? Out of three teams, you had to draw the strongest one."

"Exactly! With the speed boost Wu Xuan gives the other two, an Agile Attack System Soul Master like me might as well retire on the spot. How are we supposed to fight them?" Long Xiangyue leaned over and muttered as well.

Wu Xuan's trio had been overwhelmingly oppressive yesterday afternoon. Huo Yuhao's trio had been crushed throughout the entire match.

Cao Jinxuan rolled his eyes at them irritably. "Complaining to me won't help. At this point, we can only give it everything we've got. I'll strip away their speed boost, and after that, it's up to you two."

"Let's do it! Let's do it!"

The three exchanged looks and solemnly nodded.

"Match start!" the referee shouted.

"Second Soul Skill, Light Spirit Wind!"

The purple Hundred-Year Soul Ring around Wu Xuan instantly lit up. As wisps of breeze wrapped around them, Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er's speed surged, and they charged straight at the three opponents.

Long Xiangyue, the Agile Attack-Type Battle Soul Master on the opposing side, did not rush forward. Instead, he swiftly dodged behind Zhou Sichen, the Assault-Type Battle Soul Master. Cao Jinxuan, the Control-Type Battle Soul Master, did the same. The three formed a straight line.

Their unusual Martial Souls appeared at the same time.

White light surged in Zhou Sichen's hands, and a book unexpectedly appeared. His two Hundred-Year Soul Rings lit up simultaneously. The pages opened, and two beams of light shot out in succession, hovering before him.

This was Zhou Sichen's special Tool Martial Soul, the Codex.

Generally speaking, book-type Martial Souls were mostly useless Martial Souls, and few could be cultivated. But Zhou Sichen was an exception. His Codex Martial Soul had granted him innate level-seven Soul Power.

When his Soul Power reached a bottleneck, he could directly absorb the Soul Ring of a soul beast he had killed and transform it into one of his own abilities. Its greatest feature was that it had no elemental restrictions: he could absorb and use the abilities of any soul beast. In other words, he might use an ice-type soul skill one moment and switch to a fire-type soul skill the next. It was an exceedingly unusual Tool Martial Soul.

At that moment, the two soul skills he released transformed into a giant bear gleaming with yellow light and a fierce tiger wreathed in flames.

After acquiring the Codex Martial Soul, Zhou Sichen had set himself the goal of becoming an Assault-Type Battle Soul Master. Thus, although he could choose any soul beast for his Soul Rings, in pursuit of his assault-type dream, he naturally focused only on assault-type soul skills.

The bear and tiger swiftly blocked the way before the three of them, roaring at Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er.

"First Soul Skill, Blazing Flame Boil!"

Qian Gu Ming shouted and brought his flaming long staff down on the giant bear's head.

"First Soul Skill, Jadeite Blade!"

Nanmen Yun'er's hands transformed into jadeite-colored wind blades as she sidestepped and stabbed into the flaming tiger's abdomen.

At that moment, an exquisite clock quietly rose above Cao Jinxuan's head.

The entire clock was shaped like a city gate arch, round on top and square at the bottom. Its white body stood roughly half a meter tall. Within it was a round clock face, and beneath that, a pendulum engraved with golden patterns swayed gently. After the clock appeared, Cao Jinxuan's two Hundred-Year Soul Rings seemed to regard it as part of his body, encompassing it as they pulsed up and down.

"Second Soul Skill, Inch of Time!"

A peculiar ripple spread from the clock above Cao Jinxuan's head. Under its influence, Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er's First Soul Skills, along with the speed enhancement from Wu Xuan, ended within mere seconds.

"What?" With their Soul Skill enhancements gone, Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er were instantly forced back step by step by the giant bear and fierce tiger's desperate counterattack.

Zhou Sichen's Codex martial soul was already rare enough, but Cao Jinxuan's clock martial soul was even rarer. Its name was the Time Passes Clock, and among Tool Martial Souls, its rarity was no less than the Light Goddess Butterfly possessed by Wang Dong among Beast Martial Souls.

As the two retreated, Long Xiangyue, an Agility Attack System Battle Soul Master, naturally would not let them have their way. With the release of his martial soul, a massive boomerang appeared in his hand. Either side of the boomerang was over a foot long, making it look rather unwieldy in the hands of Long Xiangyue, who was not yet twelve.

After the boomerang appeared in his hand, he paused slightly. His body first turned halfway backward, then spun back sharply as he flung the boomerang out. The instant it left his hand, both Soul Rings on his body lit up.

"Third Soul Skill, Jadeite Wind!"

"Condense!"

Jadeite-colored breezes gathered. Wu Xuan lightly clenched his hands, and two short spears gleaming with jadeite light appeared in his grasp.

As Wu Xuan fiercely hurled the short spears, the pursuing giant bear and fierce tiger were directly struck, pierced through, and killed.

"Second Soul Skill, Green Blade Slash!"

Nanmen Yun'er halted. Her yellow Hundred-Year Soul Ring shone, and as the boomerang flew toward her, her hands had already come together above her head. Jade-green light condensed above her into a crescent-shaped blade of light, which slashed straight at the boomerang.

"Clang!" The crescent-shaped blade shattered, and the boomerang curved back.

Zhou Sichen smiled faintly. The two yellow Soul Rings on his Codex martial soul flashed in succession, and a bear and a tiger roared out once more, charging toward Wu Xuan's group of three.

Wu Xuan narrowed his eyes. "Since you can't be killed, then stay where you are!"

"Smack!"

Wu Xuan pressed his hands together, and the jadeite-colored wind instantly solidified. Within a few breaths, it covered the bear and tiger, transforming them into two sharply faceted Jadeite Crystals.

"Group control?!" The teachers from the outer court in the stands cried out in alarm.

Group control was a skill that many Control System Soul Masters found difficult to possess even at Rank 50.

"First Soul Skill, Spirit Gathering Wind!"

A gentle breeze swept through the area, and Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er's auras instantly surged as they launched their counterattack.

"Second Soul Skill, Blazing Flame Strike!"

Qian Gu Ming leaped forward, leaning his body ahead as he hurled the blazing long staff directly at Zhou Sichen and Cao Jinxuan.

Although the Codex martial soul was powerful, and its Soul Skills were not restricted by attributes, it had one enormous drawback: each Soul Skill could only be used once at a time. For example, the Earth Bear summoned by his First Soul Skill could only have one active at once; he could not summon them endlessly. Only after the summoned one died could he use the skill again.

At that moment, the two light projections Zhou Sichen had summoned were trapped by Wu Xuan, leaving him with no other means.

Cao Jinxuan had previously accelerated the duration of enhancement Soul Skills, directly dispelling Wu Xuan's speed enhancement as well as Qian Gu Ming and Nanmen Yun'er's First Soul Skill enhancements. His Soul Power consumption was now too great, and he too was at the end of his strength.

As the Blazing Flame Staff closed in, the referee decisively intervened and pulled the two out of Qian Gu Ming's attack range.

Cao Jinxuan and Zhou Sichen were eliminated.

Nanmen Yun'er transformed into a jade-green afterimage and charged at Long Xiangyue.

There had already been a gap between the two, and with the enhancement of Wu Xuan's First Soul Skill, Long Xiangyue was soon forced into a disadvantage.

"Second Soul Skill, Green Blade Slash!"

Nanmen Yun'er seized the opening, bringing her hands together above her head. Jade-green light condensed above her into a crescent-shaped blade of light, which slashed straight toward Long Xiangyue.

Agility Attack System Battle Soul Masters had always been known for their speed and attack power. The force of this strike was obvious; the jade-green blade of light traced a beautiful arc through the air.

Her attack had a locking effect and could not be evaded at all.

The referee intervened again and saved Long Xiangyue.

"The match is over. Wu Xuan's team wins!" After saving Long Xiangyue, the proctor directly announced the result.

The teachers in the spectator seats exchanged glances and nodded repeatedly. Wu Xuan's abilities were simply too well-rounded—enhancement, control, offense, every aspect was flawless!

Dai Huabin, who had defeated his opponent on the Battle Soul Platform nearby, could not help falling into self-doubt. Could his tiger claws withstand the short spears Wu Xuan hurled with all his strength?