Prelude to the Promotion Match

Ample time always slips away unnoticed, and two months passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Wu Changkong summoned Linchen, Gu Yuena, and the others to his office.

Only then did Xie Xie and Tang Wulin realize that two months had already flown by, and the first match of the Grade Advancement Tournament was just two weeks away.

Due to the drawbacks of his ultimate martial soul, Linchen's Soul Power Level had only just reached the peak of level 32 over these two months.

Following closely behind was Gu Yuena, who had steadily improved by two levels during these two months, her soul power now reaching level 22, second only to Linchen.

Through diligent cultivation during this period, Xie Xie had raised his soul power to level 19; he was just one step away from being able to obtain his second soul ring provided by a soul spirit.

Tang Wulin's progress, despite only having the Blue Silver Grass martial soul, had also brought him to level 12.

Among the students at Eastsea Academy, Linchen was undoubtedly the absolute ceiling of combat power.

Xie Xie subconsciously scratched his head. At this moment, he hadn't even thought of Linchen or Gu Yuena, only worrying about the situation of the Grade Advancement Tournament, and couldn't help but ask, "Teacher Wu, who does Class 4 plan to send out? Do we have any intel or anything like that?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Changkong's eyes turned cold, and he reprimanded, "Do you need intel?"

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze sweeping over Xie Xie, his voice icy: "If you need to rely on intel to be confident in defeating your opponents, then you have no need to be my disciples."

He paused, then turned his gaze toward Linchen and Gu Yuena, his eyes sharp as blades as he set the goal with a firm tone: "You have only one objective: crush them."

Xie Xie suddenly realized that standing right beside him was the absolute combat power ceiling of the entire academy, along with the formidable Gu Yuena. As long as the two of them took action, this Grade Advancement Tournament was already a foregone conclusion.

Tang Wulin silently clenched his fists, secretly resolving to do his utmost to keep pace with everyone else.

Wu Changkong saw through Xie Xie's little thoughts at a glance and immediately dropped a piece of news that left him stunned on the spot.

"However, I must clarify one point in advance."

As soon as these words were spoken, a glimmer of anticipation flashed in Xie Xie's eyes, ready to prepare for an easy win, but the next second, Wu Changkong's words struck like a bolt of lightning.

"Before truly encountering a formidable opponent, Yun Linchen will not take the stage."

The anticipation on Xie Xie's face froze instantly, and he stood there dumbfounded: "Teacher Wu, do you mean that Linchen is our trump card?"

"Correct." Wu Changkong nodded expressionlessly: "The preceding matches will be handled by the three of you first. Only when we encounter a truly powerful opponent will I deploy the trump card."

Linchen felt this arrangement was quite good; after all, bullying the weak was truly boring.

Wu Changkong swept his gaze over the other three and added: "I want you to fight for yourselves. Only by experiencing real pressure will you be able to make a breakthrough."

The conversation in the office concluded, with the ultimate goal being to fight all the way to Grade 1 of the fourth year, a curtain that would officially rise that very afternoon.

On the training field, the four maintained their usual sparring mode: Yun Linchen versus Gu Yuena, Xie Xie, and Tang Wulin.

Linchen remarked, "So I'm being used as a training dummy, then." But in reality, that wasn't the case; Linchen also sparred with Wu Changkong, who suppressed his own realm to the four-ring level.

The intense special training finally came to an end, with everyone drenched in sweat and their soul power heavily depleted.

Linchen bid a soft farewell to Gu Yuena and watched as the girl turned toward the girls' dormitory, then walked side-by-side with Tang Wulin and Xie Xie back to the boys' dormitory.

Back in the room, after everyone had washed up, Xie Xie and Tang Wulin just wanted to collapse onto their beds.

A sense of longing stirred in Linchen's heart; counting it up, he hadn't contacted his parents for a month. He stepped lightly out of the dormitory and reached the end of the quiet, deserted corridor.

Releasing his soul power, he set up a sound-insulating barrier around himself, took out his communicator, and dialed the number he knew by heart.

The moment the call connected, a voice as gentle as water came from the other end: "Linchen, what's wrong?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Linchen's heart relaxed: "Mom, it's me."

Ya Li's voice was filled with irrepressible longing: "It's been a whole month before you called. Your father and I miss you very much. Is everything going smoothly at Eastsea Academy?"

Linchen had told them about enrolling in Eastsea Academy a month ago; he wanted to rely on himself to officially get into Shrek Academy. Even if he relied on the status of Yun Ming and Ya Li, he feared it would inevitably cause some dissatisfaction.

Once the school year at Eastsea Academy ended, Shrek would begin its enrollment.

After chatting with Ya Li and Yun Ming for a while, he ended the call. At this moment, an idea popped into his head.

He dialed Gu Yuena's number. The call was answered quickly, and Gu Yuena's soft voice came through, carrying a hint of confusion: "Linchen, what is it?"

Linchen leaned against the cold wall of the corridor. "Nothing much." His tone carried a hint of an invitation: "Do you want to go out and get something good to eat? We can go buy some desserts while we're at it."

The girl was clearly stunned for a moment, obviously not expecting such an invitation, as students were forbidden from leaving the academy during their time at Eastsea Academy.

On the other end of the line, Gu Yuena put down the book she was reading, One Hundred Ways to Win Over the Boy You Like, and responded with a hint of imperceptible joy: "Okay, I'll wait for you downstairs at the girls' dormitory."

Ending the call, Yun Linchen dissipated the barrier around him, put away his soul guide communicator, and walked briskly toward the girls' dormitory.

He was completely unaware that his every move had already fallen into the sight of two people observing in the shadows.

Tang Wulin poked his head out slightly, watching Linchen's receding figure with confusion written all over his face. He lowered his voice and said to Xie Xie beside him: "Xie Xie, where is Brother Linchen going so late at night? He had a smile on his face the whole time he was on the phone."

Xie Xie rolled his eyes dramatically, leaning against the doorframe with a knowing look, as if he had already seen through everything: "Where else could he be going? Besides looking for Gu Yue, who else could it be? It's obvious they're sneaking out for a date."

Tang Wulin suddenly realized, feeling a bit surprised: "So that's it. No wonder Brother Linchen's smile was stretching to his ears." But what puzzled him was, didn't Eastsea Academy forbid students from going out?

"Exactly. To take Gu Yue out, Linchen doesn't even care about school rules anymore," Xie Xie clicked his tongue twice.

Just as Linchen reached the bottom of the girls' dormitory, a slender figure slowly walked out of the building.

Under the night sky, Gu Yuena had changed into a pure white dress. The hem of the skirt reached just above her knees, leaving her slender, shapely calves exposed, glowing with a delicate luster in the moonlight.

Her long hair was draped over her shoulders, and her entire demeanor exuded a gentle, soft beauty that was completely different from her usual self.

The evening breeze blew gently, causing the white hem of her dress to flutter slightly, making her figure appear even more graceful and moving.

Linchen's gaze paused involuntarily for a moment, a trace of imperceptible amazement flashing in his eyes.

Up in the dormitory, Xie Xie clicked his tongue with a sour, envious expression: "There's no doubt about it now. This guy Linchen, honestly, he abandoned the two of us here to go out and have fun with Gu Yue. He's putting romance before friendship!"