Spirit Hall Would Enter a New Future

The first-year cohort had the most students, with a total of twenty-four classes.

Xu Yuan's first-round opponent was a student from Class One. Although lower grades did not distinguish between regular and advanced classes,

the students still compared themselves to one another.

For example, from the third year onward, Class One was the best class, Class Two came next, and so on.

Thus, even though the lower grades had not been formally divided into classes, students from the first few classes still felt superior to the rest.

Being assigned to Class One was proof of their talent and strength.

Although the students of Class One and Class Two did not say it aloud, they were quite dissatisfied behind the scenes that Pope Bibi Dong had chosen a student from Class Six as her disciple.

Newborn calves feared no tigers!

As for the rumors that Xu Yuan had defeated Yan, the genius Soul Master of third-year Class One, in a single strike, they simply did not believe them.

I might as well say my mother was Bibi Dong. How could rumors be taken seriously?

They had heard that Xu Yuan had only just entered the first ring. Defeating Yan, who was nearly at the third ring, with one strike sounded utterly impossible.

Seeing was believing; hearing was not.

If they were going to boast that much, why not just say he could one-shot a five-ring Soul King?

Having drawn Xu Yuan as her opponent in this monthly exam, his opponent was extremely excited.

In her eyes, as long as she defeated Xu Yuan in front of so many people, would that not prove she was stronger than him?

That her talent was greater than Xu Yuan's?

The two stepped onto the stage and exchanged bows.

Xu Yuan calmly stated his basic information.

"Xu Yuan, Martial Soul: Elemental Canon. Level thirteen Tool Spirit Soul Master!"

His opponent was a girl who looked around ten years old and was slightly taller than Xu Yuan.

"Li Yueshuang, Martial Soul: Frost Moon Scimitar. Level nineteen Tool Spirit Soul Master!"

Since they were only at the first ring and had not yet formally determined their future development paths, they generally only identified themselves as Tool Spirits or Beast Spirits.

Only after absorbing the Second Spirit Ring and roughly deciding which path to follow would they be further classified into categories such as assault-type and control-type.

The Spirit Fighting Arena was not so particular about such matters, but formal competitions had strict standards.

The match began.

Both possessed hundred-year Spirit Rings of equal quality.

Li Yueshuang's Martial Soul was suited for close combat and needed proximity to be effective, so she immediately rushed toward Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan, meanwhile, calmly retreated to widen the distance while swiftly laying down a layer of shimmering blue water-element power along Li Yueshuang's path.

Then he instantly switched to the lightning element.

A peal of thunder rang out. Completely unprepared, Li Yueshuang charged straight into the trap and was instantly enveloped by a silvery-white Thunder Curtain.

The lightning had a numbing, electrifying effect, directly locking her down for two seconds.

It also caused some damage both inside and outside her body. In particular, the neat and tidy little girl instantly ended up with an explosive mess of hair.

Li Yueshuang was furious!

The moment the Thunder Curtain vanished, she moved to continue chasing Xu Yuan, only to discover that dozens of golden diamond-shaped crystal shards had somehow surrounded her in midair.

The sharp diamond tips glinted coldly, and even from more than ten centimeters away, they made her whole body go cold.

"You lost!"

Xu Yuan's calm voice rang out from the distance. His face still wore that composed, unruffled expression.

The battle had only just begun, yet it was already over!

"..."

The many students below the stage stared blankly. They were somewhat surprised, yet also felt it was only natural.

Anyone chosen by the Pope as her disciple truly had some skill.

Only the third-year students and those above them understood the gap concealed between the two sides in that match.

The short duration was only one aspect.

From beginning to end, Xu Yuan had not even used a soul skill!

Hu Liena's gaze shifted as she seemed to recall Xu Yuan casually killing an Evil Spirit Master Soul King.

Yan, meanwhile, trembled with rage.

Especially when he saw Hu Liena staring at Xu Yuan without blinking, he nearly crushed his teeth.

So furious, so shaken, so cold. When would the simp faction finally rise up?

As for Xie Yue, he stood with his arms crossed, his gaze continuously shifting among Xu Yuan, Hu Liena, and Yan. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly, as though he had thought of something entertaining.

Because there were so many students, this monthly exam lasted a full two days.

Without any surprise, Xu Yuan took first place in the second-year monthly exam.

He received three hundred Gold Soul Coins and an exquisitely crafted small badge as his reward.

First place in the third year was claimed by Xie Yue, with Hu Liena in second and Yan in third.

Of course, as the Pope, Bibi Dong had many official duties. She watched only briefly on the morning of the first day before returning to Pope Mountain.

The other Spirit Hall higher-ups did not return after lunch.

Everyone was busy.

Next, Xu Yuan became busy as well.

Cultivating, studying, making Happy Water for Bibi Dong and Hu Liena, and being pulled into discussions by Spirit Hall's mid- and upper-level officials regarding the production, sales, and profit-sharing of Happy Water.

Xu Yuan set the price at one Silver Soul Coin per cup. He would not participate in production or sales, but would take a twenty-percent cut from each cup while being responsible for marketing and developing new products.

At one Silver Soul Coin, most ordinary civilians could not afford it.

They could grit their teeth and try it once for novelty's sake, but treating it as an everyday drink was not very realistic.

The reason they held meetings every day was mainly because Spirit Hall's higher-ups felt that Xu Yuan's proposed twenty-percent cut was too much.

He provided a formula and an idea, then took twenty percent.

They had to provide everything, pay taxes, and pay the workers below them. In the end, they would not earn much at all.

Xu Yuan eventually took a step back and reduced his cut to fifteen percent. After some discussion, everyone found it acceptable, and the arrangement was finalized.

In truth, the main reason was that they had seen the profit potential.

At noon on the first day of Spirit Academy's monthly exam, before they had even had time to eat, Xu Yuan sought them out and explained his ideas in detail.

The public buzz had long since been spread, and they had already received the first wave of feedback.

People were eagerly discussing Spirit Academy's monthly exam, and they were sincerely curious about the Happy Water that even the Pope had praised.

The discussions were extremely lively.

So by now, it was no longer Xu Yuan pushing them to act. They themselves were already rolling up their sleeves and sharpening their blades.

Spirit Hall did not have a stable source of income of its own. All of its expenses relied on suppressing Evil Spirit Masters and receiving funding from the two great empires based on its performance.

But there were not many Evil Spirit Masters, and they were not like leeks that grew back after each harvest.

Financial issues had always been a longstanding problem for Spirit Hall.

But now, things were different.

If this succeeded, they would have their own industry and a stable source of income. They would no longer have to depend on others.

This was also the main reason why Spirit Hall's relationship with the two great empires was poor.

The two great empires were unwilling to spend money on Spirit Hall, but Spirit Hall's outstanding record in suppressing Evil Spirit Masters had earned tremendous public support. Holding the moral high ground, it forced the two empires to provide funding.

Since they paid that money unwillingly, conflicts naturally arose along the way.

How much money they paid, how they paid it, and when they paid it were all controlled by the two great empires. Spirit Hall was vast and costly to maintain, and it simply could not afford to wait them out.

With things going back and forth like that, it would have been strange if their relationship had been good.

But now, all of that would become a thing of the past. Spirit Hall would enter a new future!