Zhao Wuji casually tossed a stick of incense onto the ground, where it stuck upright.
"I'll give you the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn to discuss tactics."
"Once it's burned down, I'll suppress my Soul Power to level forty and use only my first four Soul Rings."
After hearing this, Li Luo and the others gathered together to discuss their tactics.
Just then, Dai Mubai took the initiative to join the conversation.
"Normally, you'd pass the fourth trial by holding out against me for the time it takes one stick of incense to burn. But I don't know what's gotten into Teacher Zhao today."
In truth, Dai Mubai wasn't confident he could serve as the examiner this time. He couldn't even stop Li Luo by himself, let alone all five of the new students.
"Ahem!" Hearing Dai Mubai's complaint, Zhao Wuji gave two impatient coughs.
"Four-fifths of the incense is still left!"
With little time remaining, Dai Mubai got straight to the point.
"Teacher Zhao's Martial Soul is the Vajra Diamond Bear, but don't assume that means he's slow."
"He's a Soul Saint. Even with his Soul Power suppressed, he's not someone you can take head-on."
"Besides, two of Teacher Zhao's first four Soul Rings are rather special. One Soul Skill is Gravity Enhancement, and another is Position Tracking."
"He can lock onto your positions directly, so you can't just run around dodging to stall for time."
After hearing Dai Mubai's explanation, Li Luo and the others had a better understanding of Zhao Wuji's Soul Skills. They gathered together to discuss their countermeasures.
But four out of the five people were on Li Luo's side. Although Li Luo hadn't shown any resistance toward Zhu Zhuqing, she was naturally cold and wasn't familiar with him or the others, so she felt awkward joining their discussion.
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing standing alone, unable to fit in with the group, Dai Mubai thought his chance had come. He stepped forward, struck what he thought was a gentlemanly pose, and tried to take Zhu Zhuqing's hand.
"Zhu Zhuqing, I..."
Before Dai Mubai could finish, Zhu Zhuqing slapped away his outstretched hand and turned her head, wearing an expression that kept everyone at a thousand miles' distance. She ignored him.
Just then, Xiao Wu crept up behind Zhu Zhuqing with light, soundless steps.
"Come here!"
Xiao Wu wrapped an arm around Zhu Zhuqing and pulled her into the group.
Zhu Zhuqing wanted to resist, but Xiao Wu was so strong that she couldn't break free from her arm.
Once she saw that the one holding her was a girl and not Dai Mubai, she half-heartedly let Xiao Wu do as she pleased.
"Brother Luo, I brought Zhu Zhuqing over too. Now we can discuss tactics."
Xiao Wu was cheerful, lively, and fearless, much like Ning Rongrong.
But Ning Rongrong was an auxiliary-type Soul Master, and might not be able to restrain Zhu Zhuqing in an instant. So Xiao Wu had stepped in to drag Zhu Zhuqing into the team by force.
Seeing that Li Luo's team was willing to accept her, Zhu Zhuqing didn't refuse. She remained silent and listened to Li Luo's instructions, since he was clearly the core of the team.
"Zhao Wuji is a level seventy-six Soul Saint. There's no way we can face him head-on."
"Once the fight begins, I'll give you all buffs first."
Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Ning Rongrong understood what Li Luo meant, but Zhu Zhuqing was still completely confused.
Since Dai Mubai had told Li Yusong about Li Luo in advance, Li Luo hadn't had the chance to show his Martial Soul. Zhu Zhuqing also didn't know what his Martial Soul or Soul Rings were.
So this Li Luo has an auxiliary-type Martial Soul?
Zhu Zhuqing didn't ask aloud, silently turning it over in her mind instead.
Li Luo continued laying out the plan.
"Once I've buffed you, Rongrong, you'll give Xiao Wu a boost to both her strength and speed."
Hearing Li Luo's instructions, Ning Rongrong obediently nodded.
"Okay, Brother Luo (•̤̀ᵕ•̤́๑)ᵒᵏᵎᵎᵎᵎ"
"Xiao San, you're in charge of distracting Zhao Wuji. Just bind his ankles so he can't attack freely."
"Also, use your third Soul Skill to take to the air and dodge Zhao Wuji's surprise attacks."
Tang San's third Soul Ring came from a five-thousand-year-old Rattan Bamboo.
Rattan Bamboo wasn't a particularly powerful Plant-type Soul Beast, but its defining trait was its toughness.
And since it was five thousand years old, it had granted Tang San's Blue Silver King an exceptionally powerful Soul Skill and attributes.
Tang San's Blue Silver King had become astonishingly hard. Li Luo had tested it: even the bolts from the Godly Zhuge Crossbow couldn't pierce it. That showed just how tough Tang San's Blue Silver King had become—it was as hard as a level-forty Soul Master's defenses.
This also happened to correspond to the level of an average Soul Master's fourth Soul Skill.
Tang San's third Soul Skill was called Blue Silver Pole Vault.
It could summon individual Blue Silver Bamboo Poles, with the number determined by his Soul Power.
The Blue Silver Bamboo Poles could take two different forms.
The first was for Tang San to precisely control his Soul Power and summon a pole beneath a specified position. Each pole had a radius of twenty-five centimeters, or two and a half decimeters.
Each Blue Silver Bamboo Pole was two and a half meters long.
Anyone standing on one gained damage reduction, with the exact amount determined by Tang San's Soul Power Level.
For example, if Tang San's Soul Power Level was thirty-five, he would grant anyone standing on the pole a thirty-five percent reduction in damage.
Besides that, the summoned Blue Silver Bamboo Poles were extremely sturdy and could withstand a full-power attack from a Soul Ancestor.
If Zhao Wuji didn't use an offensive Soul Ring, breaking a pole with brute force alone would take him quite a while.
Most importantly, anyone standing on a pole gained Dominant Body. They wouldn't fall until the pole was broken.
The second form was to wield a Blue Silver Bamboo Pole in one's hand. It didn't have many additional attributes. Its main quality was its toughness, making it a handy weapon.
Tang San, for example, could use a Blue Silver Bamboo Pole to skillfully perform the Chaotic Cloak Staff Technique.
Tang San's third Soul Ring was incredibly powerful. In theory, a mere five-thousand-year-old Rattan Bamboo shouldn't have been able to grant him such a powerful Soul Skill.
But Tang San's loyalty to Li Luo had already reached one hundred percent, and his intimacy was maxed out. So when Tang San absorbed the Soul Ring, it underwent an unexpected evolution, granting him such a powerful Soul Skill.
"Xiao Wu, use your Teleportation Soul Skill and take Xiao San's Blue Silver Bamboo Pole to keep harassing Zhao Wuji. Remember, don't use Charm on him."
"Rongrong, just stay on Xiao San's Blue Silver Bamboo Pole. Zhao Wuji won't be able to hit you."
Li Luo quickly finished assigning everyone their roles. Then he looked toward Zhu Zhuqing, who stood off to the side.
To be honest, Zhu Zhuqing and the others weren't coordinated well enough to work together.
Even if he assigned Zhu Zhuqing a task, she might not be able to carry it out successfully.
More importantly, Zhu Zhuqing was too weak. She was only level twenty-seven. Even if Ning Rongrong were given a Blue Silver Bamboo Pole, she could handle Zhu Zhuqing with ease and remain undefeated.