After arriving in Class Nine, while waiting for the lesson bell to ring, Feng Piaoling began practicing the Heaven-Reaching Demon Eye.
More than two months passed in the blink of an eye, and the Freshman Assessment drew ever closer.
Mimicry Training Ground No. 36.
"Split."
Feng Piaoling gave a low shout. Two incredibly lifelike Soul Power afterimages shot out from behind him and sprinted off. In the time it took to blink a few times, they had circled the Mimicry Training Ground once. Then they suddenly appeared in front of a specially made iron post and threw a punch.
Bang! Bang!
Two shallow fist marks appeared on the specially made iron post.
"Almost there. Give it a little more time, and Clone Shadow will complete its transformation." His Clone Shadow had already surpassed its original effect.
Its speed had improved especially dramatically. After incorporating the Soul Power circulation pattern of Jiang Nannan's Soft Bone Rabbit third Soul Skill, Teleport, its speed had increased by a great deal.
It couldn't match true teleportation, but it was more fluid and could be used at will. Unlike Jiang Nannan, he didn't need to rely on a Martial Soul and Spirit Ring to use it.
Feng Piaoling had created these Soul Power afterimages by combining the movement technique he'd developed while dodging a barrage of Soul Cannons with the Martial Soul of Shadow Douluo, Xu Tianran's loyal servant and an attendant of the Sun Moon Empire Imperial Offering Hall.
They had the ability to confuse enemies.
The higher the level of a battle, the faster it became. The slightest carelessness could turn victory into defeat.
Even knowing that a Soul Power afterimage wasn't his real body, opponents would still instinctively guard against it.
And that instant of distraction was often the key to victory.
...The Soul Power afterimages merged back into his body. Feng Piaoling stood still and closed his eyes.
After a long while, he opened them, and an utterly terrifying aura poured out of him.
Green light surged in his right hand as the Green Lotus Sword appeared in his grasp.
With a whoosh!
The specially made iron post was cut almost all the way through, leaving only a thin layer. The cut was smooth and even.
Feng Piaoling shook his head. "Still not enough. In terms of power, it's already on par with the real Dark Gold Terrorclaw, but it still feels like something's missing. It seems my cultivation really is too low. To perfect it, I'll need to raise my Green Lotus Sword Art by at least one or two more levels before I can truly complete it."
During this time, Feng Piaoling had not only incorporated Teleport into Clone Shadow; he had also continued practicing the Golden Radiance Shock-Kill Sword.
He had wanted to see if he could surpass the original power of Dark Gold Terrorclaw. Now it seemed the Golden Radiance Shock-Kill Sword had hit a bottleneck. Wasting his limited time on it would be unwise.
Time flowed like water.
One day, Feng Piaoling went to report to Class Nine as usual.
When Mu Jin arrived, he rose and saluted alongside the other students, then was just about to slip away quietly.
Mu Jin suddenly called out to him. "Feng Piaoling, put your training on hold for now. The rest of you, suspend your combat lessons too."
At her words, Feng Piaoling returned to his place, and the other students grew serious as well.
"Three months have passed since the start of term. I'm sure you already know: the Freshman Assessment begins tomorrow. Only those who pass will become official first-year students. Today, I'll go over the key points. Before that, write down your cultivation direction. It will help the Academy tailor its instruction to your needs in the future."
As she spoke, she handed out a form.
When it reached Feng Piaoling, he casually wrote Power Attack System beside his name.
Before long, everyone in Class Nine had finished. The form returned to Mu Jin.
Mu Jin skimmed through it, then her gaze settled on several key students. A faint smile appeared on her face.
"There's only one key to the Freshman Assessment: combat. Every student must take part in a fight."
"Since some of you are Support System Soul Masters, the Academy will allow you to form teams of three to ensure fairness."
At her words, every student in Class Nine turned to look at Feng Piaoling in unison.
That included Zhu Lu, Nangong Yun'er, Ning Tian, and Wu Feng.
Their eyes lit up one after another.
As long as they teamed up with Feng Piaoling, passing the Freshman Assessment—and even winning the championship—would be all but certain.
Mu Jin added, "Of course, there are restrictions on these teams. Roommates will be given priority, and each team can have no more than one Power Attack System Battle Soul Master. More than three hundred students are competing this time, but only half will be allowed to stay: the top one hundred and fifty teams. You can form your teams now."
As soon as Mu Jin finished speaking, two whooshes rang out. The students saw two dark figures flash past, bringing with them a breeze and the faint, delicate fragrance unique to young women.
The next moment, two graceful figures appeared on either side of Feng Piaoling.
The one on the left had black hair and mismatched eyes, along with a curvaceous figure that seemed far too mature for her age.
The one on the right looked delicate and gentle. Long, pale green hair fell down her back, and her deep green eyes were so tender they inspired an instinctive urge to protect her.
Who else could they be but Zhu Lu and Nanmen Yun'er, the only two Agility Attack System Soul Grandmasters in Class Nine?
"Class monitor, team up with us," they said in unison, their eyes shining as they looked at Feng Piaoling.
The two shared a dorm room.
It seemed that after spending time together over the past few months, they had gotten along quite well.
"Sure." For Feng Piaoling, it made little difference who he teamed up with. The outcome would be the same either way.
Seeing Feng Piaoling agree, Zhu Lu and Nanmen Yun'er exchanged glances, both of them unable to hide their delight.
Ning Tian and Wu Feng clearly hadn't expected the two girls to move so quickly. They raised their brows in unison.
But they both knew they had no chance of teaming up with Feng Piaoling.
They didn't press the matter.
After all, they were going to team up together, and a team could have only one Power Attack System Battle Soul Master.
Wu Feng had already claimed that spot.
Seeing that the strongest student, Feng Piaoling, had been snapped up, the others could only turn their attention to Ning Tian and Wu Feng, disappointed.
In the end, Ning Tian and Wu Feng chose an Agility Attack System Beast Soul Master with level nineteen Soul Power from among them.
Meanwhile, as Class Nine arranged its teams, a very different and rather discordant scene was playing out in Class One.
In front of the whole class, Wang Dong'er stood up and glared at Zhou Yi on the podium. The teacher wore half-rimmed glasses and an old-woman mask, and her face was fierce.
"No, I don't agree. You said earlier that you'd give priority to two people from the same dorm. I want to team up with Xiao Xiao."
If they had assigned her to anyone else, she might have accepted it.
The problem was, just look at the sort of people they'd assigned her.
Huo Yuhao, a despicable coward who had attacked someone from behind during a supposedly fair Soul Fighting match.
Dai Huabin, a bastard who had abandoned his fiancée and, right in front of her, had shamelessly taken a fancy to Wang Dong'er in public and relentlessly pursued her.
Neither of them was any good.
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