"The Outer Academy's curriculum is currently divided into theory classes and practical classes,"
Mu Jin said:
"Given that the Freshman Assessment is in three months, our upcoming classes will mainly focus on physical training."
"Ning Tian will be our class monitor. Other than Lu Ran, she has the highest Soul Power among the students,"
"As for the deputy class monitor..."
She turned her gaze to Ning Tian's side.
"Wu Feng will take the position."
Wu Feng brightened,
and secretly pressed herself against Ning Tian,
but Ning Tian's slender hand smacked her firm thigh beneath the desk,
telling her to behave,
which only made Wu Feng even happier.
As for why Lu Ran hadn't been chosen, it was naturally because Yan Shaozhe knew his personality and had instructed Mu Jin accordingly.
The morning classes ended.
In the office,
Huo Yuhao, who had witnessed Zhou Yi expel nine students in her very first class,
stood nervously beside the desk,
his little hands damp with sweat.
"I know you entered through the Tang Sect's exemption quota,"
Zhou Yi said, her gaze sharp.
"Tell me about your Martial Soul."
Huo Yuhao's throat bobbed. He swallowed unconsciously,
and answered without hiding anything:
"My Martial Soul is called Spirit Eye. It's my eyes, a Mental Attribute Body Martial Soul."
Zhou Yi's eyes lit up, and her voice suddenly rose.
"What's your first Soul Skill?!"
Under her intense stare, Huo Yuhao grew nervous. He released a luminous white Soul Ring, and a glimmer of gold appeared in his deep-blue eyes,
sharing Spiritual Detection with Zhou Yi.
Feeling the sudden change,
Zhou Yi's gaze froze,
then a smile spread across her wrinkled face,
so ghastly that Huo Yuhao's heart leaped.
Brother Sky Dream... Brother Sky Dream... Brother Sky Dream, wake up, quick!!
"Come with me!"
Zhou Yi rose and took Huo Yuhao straight outside the office. Before he could react, she grabbed his shoulder and whisked him away through the clouds.
Inside Test Site No. 12, two thousand meters across, cold metal plates divided the various sections.
Zhou Yi watched Lu Ran's slender back with a calm expression,
her gaze slowly deepening.
Heh, Du Weilun, Mu Jin, aren't you good at snatching people?
You took all the geniuses and left me with a heap of dead weight.
You snatched Lu Ran,
but I still have Huo Yuhao!
When the time comes, I'll show you who was right...
"If one day your Spiritual Detection can reach a hundred meters,"
Fan Yu said warmly, his tall, burly frame broad across the shoulders,
"I'll teach you how to make Soul Tools."
"Thank you, Teacher!"
Huo Yuhao's face flushed with excitement. He hurriedly bowed with respect.
In the Star Dou Great Forest, Tang Ya had told him about Soul Tools, so he already had a basic understanding of them. Soul Tools could store things, fly, and dive underwater,
and they could kill!
This thing was powerful in the distant Sun Moon Empire!
Huo Yuhao's eyes shone.
This was the first time in his life—
the first time in eleven years that anyone had believed in him... said he had talent... and made him a promise.
This wasn't like Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's promise to make him a god.
Teaching him to make Soul Tools was real,
right in front of him!
He quietly turned to look at the disc that had just struck the metal plate. Its power was astonishing,
and Fan Yu was explaining Fixed Soul Tools, something he had never heard of before.
Their power was incredible, he said. They could even be launched from a distance without using much Soul Power!
...If only I could master this kind of ability too...
Huo Yuhao slowly clenched his fist, deep anticipation shining in his blue eyes,
as he stared fixedly at the disc.
That night, in the dormitory,
Lu Ran crossed his hands behind his head and gazed at the Soul Guiding Lamp on the ceiling.
It only needed Soul Power to light up.
The day had passed both slowly and quickly.
Before the Freshman Assessment, students entering the Outer Academy proper and those entering the Inner Academy took entirely different classes.
Generally speaking,
all the courses at Shrek could be divided into two broad categories: practical and theoretical.
The practical classes needed no explanation—
one-on-one matches, team battles, physical training.
They all took place on the arena or the training field.
Theory classes were divided into Martial Soul theory and Soul Tool theory.
Martial Soul classes covered the fundamentals of Soul Masters, Martial Soul Theory, potential development, team coordination, tactical planning, the types of Soul Beasts, and how to identify their age...
As for Soul Tools,
yes,
even though Yan Shaozhe, the dean, had little interest in Soul Tools, every grade and department at Shrek taught Soul Tool Technology.
After all, Yan Shaozhe might be the dean, but Shrek wasn't under his control alone.
Still, no one should expect the Martial Soul Department to teach Soul Tool Technology properly.
The classes covered things like The Origins of Soul Tools, The Development of Soul Tools over Ten Thousand Years, and The Types of Soul Tools...
If you wanted to study them seriously, you had to join the Soul Guidance Department.
But those courses were only available after officially entering the Outer Academy.
Lu Ran was still in the early stages before the Freshman Assessment,
so for now, they mostly taught physical conditioning, Martial Soul combinations, and team coordination...
After all, at least half the students would be eliminated in three months.
Too many classes would only burden them.
"..."
"...Hey, why aren't you saying anything?"
Wang Dong lay on her bed,
glaring at Lu Ran in annoyance.
She had started the conversation, but Lu Ran acted as if he'd never speak unless she did.
He wasn't the one who'd been pinned to the floor...
"..."
Lu Ran turned his head to look at her—
more precisely, at her head,
or, to be exact, at the trace of Divine Sense in her Sea of Consciousness.
It had been left behind by Tang San.
Fortunately, aside from the Chastity Lock, it had no other function and couldn't monitor him.
Otherwise, he would've been in danger long ago.
But... perhaps Elder Yi could deal with that Divine Sense... or even absorb it?
Divine Sense should count as nourishment for the soul, right?
Following Lu Ran's gaze... Wang Dong immediately covered her forehead, looking a little embarrassed.
"What are you looking at?!"
Lu Ran spoke slowly. "I was just thinking..."
"Thinking about what?"
Wang Dong immediately pressed him.
"The Freshman Assessment in three months..."
"You're worried about the Freshman Assessment?"
Wang Dong asked incredulously.
With three Thousand-Year Soul Rings, you were ridiculously strong. Why worry about the Freshman Assessment?
"Of course not,"
Lu Ran explained. "Class Nine has 101 students. The Freshman Assessment puts students in groups of three, which means one person will inevitably be left over and have to team up with students from another class."
Huh?
Wang Dong froze, nearly counting it out on her fingers.
Three to a group, with 101 students...
"Wouldn't that leave two people?"
Lu Ran looked at her as if it were obvious.
"Do you think I need teammates?"
"..."
Wang Dong wanted to say yes, but the words wouldn't come.
She couldn't argue with Lu Ran, either.
Looking at that infuriating face, her teeth suddenly began to itch.
The retort stuck on the tip of her tongue, impossible to spit out.
Fuming, she abruptly rolled over,
lying on her side and facing the wall,
her uniform outlining the round, pert curve of her buttocks.
Lu Ran quietly looked away,
and returned his gaze to the Soul Guiding Lamp.
"Hmph. Then I'll team up alone, too."
After a stretch of silence, Wang Dong's defiant voice rang out.
In another room,
Lin Hu had just finished bathing and was drying his hair with a towel.
He stared wide-eyed at Huo Yuhao, who was meditating on the bed.
"Are you trying to kill yourself?"
"You're still cultivating now?"
He'd run a hundred laps in the morning, then spent an entire afternoon class running in a twenty-jin iron suit, on top of the mental strain Zhou Yi had put him through.
He was almost too exhausted to breathe,
yet Huo Yuhao could still cultivate at night?!
That was absurd!
Before you continue