Old Lady Zhou's expression tightened at once. "I'm certainly interested in someone who reached the Soul Elder level with her Talisman Martial Soul before turning twelve."
"But Mu Jin, stop giving yourself so much credit. Feng Piaoling just happened to be assigned to your class. You can hardly call yourself her teacher."
Though Mu Jin was no longer young, she could still be described as youthful and beautiful. She smiled and shook her head.
"Oh? So, Teacher Zhou, you're determined to get my student, then? But aside from the fact that the academy has already decided the class assignments, even if you were willing to teach her, she might not want to join your class. After all, your reputation as Old Lady Zhou has long since spread throughout the academy."
Zhou Yi's expression turned cold. "Are you trying to provoke me?"
The smile vanished from Mu Jin's face as well. "So what if I am? Don't you think you're so good at teaching students? Let's see how you plan to compete with me this time. When I heard yesterday that Dai Huabin from your class lost to Feng Piaoling from mine, it put me in a very good mood."
"I haven't been this happy in ages—not since I begged you so desperately to spare my younger brother, and you expelled him anyway."
Just then, Feng Piaoling entered the Soul Fighting Arena with Jiang Nannan.
Zhou Yi ignored Mu Jin's repeated provocations and instead watched Feng Piaoling. After thinking for a moment, her expression suddenly turned sly. One corner of her mouth curled up. "Dare to make a bet with me?"
Mu Jin was taken aback. "A bet? What are we betting on?"
Zhou Yi finally stated her aim. "We'll bet on whether I can persuade Feng Piaoling to join Class One and let me tutor her personally. If you lose, you'll agree to let Feng Piaoling transfer classes. As for the academy, I'll handle it myself."
"Have you gone mad?" Mu Jin was both shocked and furious.
"What, you don't dare? If you're scared, get away from me. I don't want to smell that nauseating perfume of yours." Zhou Yi resorted to her usual goading tactic.
Mu Jin fell for it. "Who's scared? Fine, let's bet. But what happens if you lose?"
"If I lose, I'll give you a Spirit Bone," Zhou Yi said.
"A Spirit Bone? You really are willing to bleed for this, you old woman. But I don't want your Spirit Bone. If you lose, have Fan Yu make me a Melee Soul Tool."
Mu Jin gave a cold snort and proposed the same wager as in the original Freshman Assessment tournament, when Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong'er, and Xiao Xiao fought Ning Tian, Wu Feng, and Nanmen Yun'er.
Romance-addled brains and love triangles—if you know, you know.
Zhou Yi frowned. "You're betting with me, not him."
"That's your problem. I've already stated my terms," Mu Jin said with a cold laugh.
"Fine. I'll agree on his behalf." A tall, broad-shouldered middle-aged man strode toward them.
He stood about 1.8 meters tall, with broad shoulders and a sturdy build. He wore simple cloth clothes, and his arms were exceptionally thick and strong. The muscles exposed beneath his sleeves were like granite. Just standing there, he gave off the weighty presence of a mountain.
He was none other than Fan Yu, the man Mu Jin had mentioned. He was also Zhou Yi's husband, the teacher of Xu He, the former crown prince of the Sun Moon Empire, and the man Mu Jin secretly loved.
At the sight of the man she loved, Mu Jin's expression changed at once. Her earlier defiance vanished without a trace. She stepped back, her face pale and her eyes reddening as she looked at him. "You actually joined forces with her to bully me."
Afraid Zhou Yi might misunderstand, Fan Yu frowned. "You were the one who kept provoking her. If you want to bet, then bet. If not, move aside. And don't forget: Zhou Yi is my wife."
"F-fine. I'll bet against her today. Back then, when you had to choose between Zhou Yi and me, you chose her, and I lost. But that doesn't mean my student will make the same choice you did. Just wait and see."
Mu Jin abruptly turned away and gripped the railing at the front of the Soul Fighting Arena with both hands. Her eyes, blurred with tears, fixed on the competition grounds in the assessment area.
The Soul Fighting Arena was so noisy that Feng Piaoling had no idea Zhou Yi and Mu Jin had made a bet.
After entering the arena, she parted ways with Jiang Nannan and went to the arena's waiting room to sign up and register.
Xu Sanshi had been waiting for a long time.
When he saw Feng Piaoling arrive, he said with complete confidence, "I thought you weren't coming."
"You seem pretty confident," Feng Piaoling said. Seeing how different Xu Sanshi was from the day before, after she had defeated Dai Huabin, she secretly grew wary.
"Hmph. If I weren't confident, why would I dare make such a big wager with you?"
Before coming, Xu Sanshi had already experienced Huo Yuhao's Spirit Detection Sharing. There was no denying that it was an exceptionally powerful support skill.
With Huo Yuhao's Spirit Detection Sharing assisting him, Bei Bei, who had previously been evenly matched with him, had been no match at all.
"Then give it everything you've got," Feng Piaoling said. Though she remained alert, she wasn't especially worried.
No matter how many advantages her opponent had, she had plenty of ways to beat him.
Meanwhile, in a corner near the front of the Soul Fighting Arena, Bei Bei, Tang Ya, and Huo Yuhao stood among the crowd.
"Yuhao, how is it? Can you handle it?" Bei Bei asked Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao released Spirit Detection to sense the area, then nodded. "It shouldn't be a problem. From here, as long as Senior Xu Sanshi doesn't move more than fifty meters away from me, I should be able to share my detection with him."
Since Huo Yuhao was already a Soul Grandmaster, his Spirit Detection had a much greater range than when he had first entered the academy in the original story.
Bei Bei nodded. "Good. I've already reminded Xu Sanshi about that. He'll try to draw the fight over toward us."
Tang Ya listened to the two of them, hesitating a little before she spoke. "Feng Piaoling is so absurdly strong. Even with little Yuhao's support, can Xu Sanshi really beat her?"
"We'll just have to leave it to fate," Bei Bei said, still uncertain himself.
After all, they still didn't know what Soul Skill Feng Piaoling's third Spirit Ring had granted her after she absorbed the five-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.
Huo Yuhao's eyes suddenly lit up. "Senior Bei, Teacher Xiao Ya, I might have an idea."
"What idea?" they both asked, turning to him.
Huo Yuhao said, "This morning, while absorbing the purple qi of dawn and practicing the Purple Demon Eye, I discovered that combining the Purple Demon Eye with my Spirit Eye Martial Soul lets me launch a mental attack. If I can catch Feng Piaoling off guard, I might be able to give Senior Xu Sanshi a chance to win."
"That could put you at considerable risk," Bei Bei said with a frown. Generally speaking, attacks that involved the mind were limited by the mental strength of both sides.
Feng Piaoling's Soul Power far surpassed Huo Yuhao's. There was no telling whether the attack might backfire on him.
"As long as I can help Senior Bei's friend, I'm willing to take the backlash."
Huo Yuhao's words were undeniably noble and selfless.
But to Tang Ya, listening nearby, something about them just felt a little off.
Before you continue