Soul Elder? How Could He Possibly Be Twelve?!

He wasn't actually worried about Jiang Nannan's strength.

Though she was a commoner student, she had become one of Shrek's core disciples.

She had even secured a spot among the Shrek Seven Devils with several [rule-type divine skills].

Naturally, fighting these students posed no problem for her.

It was worth mentioning that

Sun Moon Academy had very few people qualified to participate in the Core Competition, so the requirement was to form pairs.

This also made it easier to ensure the students' safety.

It prevented any accidents from happening.

A female teacher around thirty arrived in the Ninth District.

A gentle smile rested on her face. Her high ponytail made her look spirited and heroic.

"I am Xuan Xingyue."

"The purpose of the competition is to discover each student's strengths and assess what you have learned during this period."

"So remember: you must not deliberately maim your opponents."

"When the first Soul Guidance Protective Barrier on your body breaks, you will lose your qualification to continue competing."

"Do you understand?"

Xuan Xingyue clapped her hands, drawing all the youths' attention to herself.

The woman spotted the class monitor from her class among the crowd and gave him a slight nod.

Xu Tinglan had not expected the supervising teacher of the Ninth District to be his homeroom teacher.

Still, after hearing the rules, he felt they were quite humane.

They also greatly reduced the risk of Soul Tools piercing students' bodies and causing injuries that would be difficult to heal.

There was nothing noteworthy about the first match.

All four contestants were Soul Masters just over level twenty, standing on opposite sides.

Both teams wildly fired the Soul Tools in their hands.

Xu Tinglan could only shake his head at the match.

After scoring the previous four contestants, Xuan Xingyue turned the page. "Second match: Xu Tinglan and Jiang Nannan versus Chen Jun and Wang Zining."

A mischievous smile appeared on the woman's face.

Xu Tinglan and Jiang Nannan exchanged a glance before stepping onto the arena.

The two positioned themselves one in front of the other.

The red-haired boy grinned, rolled his wrists, and shouted,

"You show-off?"

Although his Soul Tool crafting was only at the first level, his actual control was unquestionably at the second level.

Xu Tinglan's brows lifted slightly.

So his opponent was a classmate—the one who had not dared meet his eyes on the first day of class?

No wonder he had chosen to provoke him.

Those qualified to participate in the Core Competition were at least Soul Grandmasters.

"Begin!"

Xu Tinglan took out the third-level Soul Guidance Sword, [Brook Moon], a Soul Tool he had traded for from his roommate.

Its blade was long and slender, blue and white throughout.

The blue resembled seawater freezing over, while the white was like snow falling upon a cold pond. Blue light flowed across its edge like shimmering ripples.

It was a top-grade item among third-level Soul Tools.

The instant Martial Soul Possession activated, Xu Tinglan's aura changed drastically.

Ink-like Soul Power surged from his body, spreading rapidly like thick ink dropped into clear water.

A shield emerged at his side.

Its face was broad, its design ancient and imposing. It was entirely deep black, with faint dark-gold patterns along its edges.

Every engraved mark carried an air of age and desolation.

Three soul rings lit up around him.

The opponents' expressions changed sharply at the sight.

The class monitor was actually a three-ringed Soul Elder?

Why the hell was he in the first year?

Chen Jun felt as if ten thousand horses were stampeding through his heart, and a bitter smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

He had thought his Soul Grandmaster cultivation was enough to let him run wild among first-years.

Yet he had encountered a Soul Elder-level opponent.

He could at least control third-level Soul Tools, right?

Usually, everyone kept their heads down in class and studied. Private fights between classmates were also forbidden, so no one knew how strong the others truly were.

Xu Tinglan activated the Propulsion Soul Tool on his back.

White light flared behind him. With a fierce stomp, the youth shot forward like a cannonball.

He held a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right.

Jiang Nannan raised her two rabbit ears. After activating her Propulsion Soul Tool, she moved with astonishing speed, closely following behind him.

Three streaks of white light flashed.

Xu Tinglan easily blocked the opponents' Soul Guidance Beams without his body swaying in the slightest.

Chen Jun's expression changed, and his second soul ring immediately lit up.

[Deer Flame Kick]

Flames rose from his legs as he leaped backward like a deer.

The Soul Guidance Beam in his hand glowed fiery red.

Xu Tinglan did not even bother to dodge. The Mysterious Underworld Turtle Shell Shield swallowed every one of the opponent's attacks.

He raised his right hand high.

The [Brook Moon] sword glowed white and blue. Under his opponent's terrified gaze, it cleaved apart the Soul Guidance Protective Barrier around him.

The powerful momentum crashed into his body.

Chen Jun was sent flying, scraping across the ground for several meters.

Even the fiery-red deer antlers on his head nearly broke from the impact.

The youth climbed up from the ground.

His face was swollen and smeared with dust. Though utterly bedraggled, he still forced out a smile.

"Misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding..." As he spoke, he shrank backward.

His eyes darted away, not daring to meet the youth's gaze.

Xu Tinglan did not look at him. He merely raised a hand and casually waved it in Chen Jun's direction.

As though

he were brushing dust off the hem of his clothes.

The other opponent was not faring much better either.

Jiang Nannan's Soul Guidance Rays forced him to scramble frantically about.

His second soul ring lit up.

The moment the Gravity Domain opened, he became like a lamb awaiting slaughter.

The Golden-Haired Girl's face remained cold as she swapped for another Soul Tool from her ring.

Her two small hands controlled a Soul Guidance Beam Cannon.

Her golden hair fluttered as she moved with effortless grace.

Jiang Nannan's small face turned serious, and the fluctuations of her Soul Power continued to rise.

The Beam Cannon's white light was dazzling.

In an instant, it struck Wang Zining's Soul Guidance Protective Barrier.

After a brief distortion, the Soul Guidance Protective Barrier shattered with a crack.

Only the opponent remained, standing there blankly.

"Xu Tinglan and Jiang Nannan win!"

The match was won.

The two walked off the arena.

Throughout that match, Xu Tinglan had not used a single soul skill.

It was not because he was arrogant.

With the Mysterious Underworld Turtle Shell Shield in hand, the second-level Soul Tools controlled by these Soul Grandmasters could not possibly harm him at all!

That was the dominance of a top-tier defensive martial soul.

The other students below the stage wore grave expressions after witnessing the pair's strength.

One was a Soul Elder, and the other clearly was not a newly advanced Soul Grandmaster.

Both also possessed strong combat awareness.

They were unlike the contestants in the earlier match, who could only stand on either side and fire Soul Tools at each other.

Waiting for someone to run out of Soul Power, or for a protective barrier to be accidentally shattered.

The remaining two matches had opponents about as strong as those from the first match.

The third match's opponents had even less desire to fight.

Once they realized their opponent was Xu Tinglan, a Soul Elder, their faces fell, and they decisively surrendered.

The next day was much the same.

Three consecutive matches brought no opponents worthy of praise.

"Why is there a Soul Elder among the freshmen? That's completely insane! Is he really twelve? I don't believe it!"

"I want to report this! I want his age verified!"

Le Tianyu, at level twenty-nine, stood on the stage and spoke with an angry expression.

As a Soul Grandmaster capable of controlling third-level Soul Tools, he had believed his team would at least be strong contenders for the top five.

Winning the reward of freely chosen metals should have been easy.

Yet they had been eliminated within the first six matches.

His companion also looked deeply unwilling to accept it.

Both were very close to level thirty and ranked first and second among the second-years in strength.

Xuan Xingyue said coldly, "There is no issue with his age."

"That's impossible! I want him tested!" the youth said furiously.