Promotion Assessment Begins

Shrek Academy, Soul Engineering Department teaching building. Qian Duoduo shook his head at Fan Yu, who stood before him.

"Fan Yu, it's not that I won't help you. I also want to bring that promising talent you mentioned into our Soul Engineering Department."

"But you know that old bastard Yan Shaozhe. When it comes to matters like this, he'll never yield, nor will he ever allow it."

"And that kid you've taken a liking to has been holed up in his dorm ever since he came back. Our people from the Soul Engineering Department can't even get in touch with him privately."

Fan Yu's expression darkened at those words, but he still tried to fight for it. "Dean Qian, believe me. This really is our best chance."

"Huo Yuhao has a Body Martial Soul, and it's a Spiritual Attribute Body Martial Soul at that. He is absolutely the perfect candidate for the Extreme Individual Soldier Plan. In all the decades Shrek Academy has existed, there may never be another one like him."

"As long as we have him, our Soul Engineering Department can absolutely fight a beautiful battle to turn things around! You know full well what our Soul Engineering Department students are like right now."

"It could be said that they're all leftovers picked over by the Martial Soul Department. While some of them are indeed somewhat suited to the Martial Soul Department, they're only the best of a bad bunch."

"As long as Huo Yuhao becomes our standard-bearer, it won't take ten years! No, five years! I'll make the Martial Soul Department look at us differently."

Qian Duoduo sighed. How could he not understand what Fan Yu meant?

Although the Soul Engineering Department appeared to account for one-third of Shrek Academy's teaching staff, those in the know understood the truth.

The reason Shrek Academy had established a Soul Engineering Department, and why its Soul Engineering Department was considered decent among the three original nations of the Douluo Continent, was merely to keep up appearances and deal with the changing situation.

In truth, Shrek Academy's Soul Engineering Department could only compare itself with those three original nations of the Douluo Continent. It had been raised on the pitifully small portion of resources split off from the Martial Soul Department.

Forget comparing it to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. Even some fairly ordinary soul engineer academies within the Sun Moon Empire were streets ahead of Shrek Academy in their research and application of Soul Tools.

"But there's nothing we can do. This is the current reality. Neither you nor I can influence Shrek Academy's overall academic culture." Qian Duoduo sighed.

"And he doesn't seem interested in our Soul Engineering Department either. You can't force a melon off the vine and expect it to be sweet. Fan Yu, you should go back and properly train that disciple of yours."

"In my opinion, that disciple of yours named He Caitou is also a fairly good prospect among soul engineers. He may not compare to a Spiritual Attribute Body Martial Soul, but he's still quite good."

Though Fan Yu remained unwilling to accept it, he could only let out a long sigh and leave Qian Duoduo's office.

The conflict and mutual exclusion between Soul Masters and soul engineers had existed for a long time in the three original nations of the Douluo Continent. The more established and ancient a faction or sect was, the more severely it favored Soul Masters.

Shrek Academy naturally needed no further explanation. The Martial Soul Department held absolute authority. The influence of Qian Duoduo, or even Xian Liner, the dean of the Soul Engineering Department, was far from comparable to that of the Elders within Sea God Pavilion.

The most ridiculous part was that most Inner Court Disciples of the Soul Engineering Department had spent nearly their entire Outer Court careers in the Martial Soul Department. They only switched to the Soul Engineering Department upon entering the Inner Court because their potential had proven insufficient.

"The road ahead is long and arduous." Watching Fan Yu's unwilling figure depart, Qian Duoduo shook his head and sighed.

It was now the twenty-eighth day of the break. As more than half of the vacation had passed, Shrek Academy had reached the time for another round of new student enrollment.

Entrance examinations for the new first-year students were usually held a week early, while returning students did not wait until the last possible day to come back. They generally returned around this time as well.

Thus, compared to normal days, both Shrek Academy and Shrek City were far more crowded now. At the same time, this indirectly created an excellent opportunity to boost trade within Shrek City.

The many shops throughout Shrek City were making a killing from the cash flow brought in by the influx of outsiders, adding a hefty sum to Shrek City's tax revenue.

Student dormitory. Before she had even entered, Wang Dong shouted, "I'm back!"

She pulled open the dorm door. In the sunlight streaming through the window, Huo Yuhao was sprawled lazily on his bed. He opened one eye to a slit and said to Wang Dong, "Oh. That old hag said you should go see her once you got back."

Then he rolled over, closed his eyes, and seemed ready to continue sleeping.

Wang Dong: "???"

Wang Dong casually tossed her luggage onto her bed and moved to drag Huo Yuhao off his.

"No, we haven't seen each other for nearly a month! That's all you have to say when you see me?! Shouldn't you be a little more excited? And don't tell me you spent this entire break sleeping in the dorm after you came back from hunting your Soul Ring!"

"What else? Ask why you came back so late? You're already twelve. Do you have to be this childish?"

"And that old hag has been coming to the dorm every day these past few days looking for you. She kept asking why you didn't come back ten days early like she told you to. It annoyed me so much I couldn't even sleep properly. I suggest you hurry over there and prepare to bear the old hag's wrath."

Only then did Wang Dong panic. "Damn it, it's not like I wanted this either. Something came up at home and delayed me."

Wang Dong no longer had time to keep talking to Huo Yuhao. She rushed off in a flurry toward Zhou Yi's office.

Soon, after Wang Dong finally returned from Zhou Yi's office with a miserable expression, the chaotic vacation was nearing its end. Taking advantage of the final days of the break, Huo Yuhao prepared several new experimental methods for the upcoming Promotion Assessment.

The Promotion Assessment for Classes One and Two of the second year was held in Shrek Academy's beast zone.

Huo Yuhao found it difficult to understand why a facility like the beast zone had been established. If real combat experience was needed, wouldn't it be better to have high-level Soul Masters capture some wilder soul beasts from the wilderness?

Why go to the trouble of taming and raising large numbers of soul beasts in the beast zone? If it was merely to ensure the examinees' safety, wouldn't it be better to have senior students act as examiners?

At any rate, Huo Yuhao did not think there was any need for a place like the beast zone, where soul beasts were kept in captivity under the excuse of helping students gain experience fighting them.

After all, what soul beast in the wild would stand face-to-face with a Soul Master and engage in a frontal battle?

Didn't they all rely on senses beyond those of ordinary Soul Masters to launch ambushes, or use the forest terrain to lie in wait?

None of these sudden possibilities could be simulated by a beast zone. If a Soul Master entered the wilderness to fight soul beasts while relying on experience gained in the Beast Arena, they would only suffer badly for it.

Therefore, aside from displaying Shrek Academy's immense wealth and abundant manpower, this Beast Arena—built with an investment equivalent to one-third of Shrek City's tax revenue—had almost no practical meaning.

Furthermore, the soul beasts that could be tamed were at most mid-level soul beasts, and most were below the ten-thousand-year level.

That was because high-level soul beasts and soul beasts that had evolved to the ten-thousand-year level possessed a savagery rooted deep in their bloodlines, making them unable to endure the enclosed environment of the beast zone.

Thus, even when used to produce Soul Rings, these soul beasts could only be considered average or below average among soul beasts of the same age. Soul Masters rarely chose them as their first-choice Soul Ring targets.

The second-year students entered the Beast Arena one after another. Classes One and Two would be taking the Promotion Assessment together today.

The students of the Assault Type, Control Type, Agility Assault Type, and Defense Type all had only one goal in this assessment: defeat a random soul beast that was at least one hundred years old on their own.

At the examinees' request, the age could be raised as high as one thousand years. Correspondingly, defeating a Thousand-Year Soul Beast would earn far more base credits.

Aside from the previous Freshman Assessment, Huo Yuhao had hardly interacted with Dai Huabin. Moreover, he had already devised a revenge plan for the original owner of this body, so he had no interest in stirring up additional trouble.

Huo Yuhao intended to settle all grievances with Dai Huabin and the White Tiger Duke's Mansion once he became a Soul Sage. Thus, unlike in the original story, he had not openly clashed with Dai Huabin and made some wager that involved nothing but face-slapping with no tangible gain.

Although Dai Huabin's gaze toward Huo Yuhao still carried a trace of provocation and scrutiny, clearly still resentful over losing to Huo Yuhao during the Freshman Assessment, Huo Yuhao could not be bothered with him. After lining up to receive his Promotion Assessment form, he prepared to take the upcoming test.

Moreover, the person Dai Huabin was paying more attention to was Wang Dong. As the monitor of the Assault Type, Wang Dong and Dai Huabin had never seen eye to eye. Their conflicts over the previous semester had been far from few.

They had only refrained from making trouble in class due to the academy's rules and Zhou Yi's unreasonable nature. In this Promotion Assessment, Dai Huabin would likely challenge Wang Dong's position as class monitor.

"Looking at him like that, didn't you say you didn't want to be class monitor? You might as well just give it to him. You'd be happy to have some peace and quiet." Huo Yuhao patted Wang Dong's shoulder and spoke softly.

"I won't! Whether I want to be class monitor or not is my business. What right does Dai Huabin have to take the position?" Wang Dong curled her lips and said indignantly.

Huo Yuhao shrugged and could not be bothered to interfere. He simply used his Spiritual Power to inspect the stability of the Soul Power Circuit within his body once more.

It's mostly adjusted now. I'll use soul beasts to test the practical combat results this time. As for using it on Soul Masters, I may still need to alter a few steps.

Led by their homeroom teachers, Classes One and Two entered the Beast Arena in sequence. Then, according to the order on their Promotion Assessment forms, they would enter the Beast Arena one by one to take the test.

At the same time, the twenty teachers responsible for guiding the soul beasts and protecting the students were already in place. On the raised platform, Dean of Studies Du Weilun and four grading teachers monitored the situation in the arena in real time.

Once everything was ready, Class One took the lead in beginning the Promotion Assessment.

Zhou Yi said to Wang Dong, "Wang Dong, you'll go first. Make a strong opening. If you're confident, it's best to choose a thousand-year soul beast. Even if you fail, as long as you hold out long enough, your score won't be bad."

At the same time, Zhou Yi exchanged a glance with Mu Jin beside her. It was as if faint sparks were colliding in the air.

Clearly, this assessment was another contest between Zhou Yi and Mu Jin. Both wanted their own students to surpass the other's, proving that their teaching ability was superior.

Psychos. Huo Yuhao felt rather speechless as he watched the two homeroom teachers shooting looks at each other.

Wang Dong nodded in response. "Understood." Then she strode proudly into the Beast Arena.

"I choose a thousand-year soul beast," she said to the referee teacher beside her.

The very first match involved a Thousand-Year Soul Beast. After confirming it once more, the referee teacher did not dare delay. As the Beast Arena gate opened, a Thousand-Year Bloodthirsty Demonic Bear charged out, radiating a violent aura.

But in Huo Yuhao's eyes, it was merely putting on a show. After being tamed in the beast zone for so long, this Bloodthirsty Demonic Bear had likely been beaten and abused repeatedly by countless Soul Masters, all without having its life endangered.

The ferocity of this Bloodthirsty Demonic Bear had probably long since been beaten out of it. It could likely only maintain fighting ability when it had the upper hand.

However, Huo Yuhao's attention was focused more on Wang Dong. As she activated Martial Soul Possession, her one yellow and two purple Soul Rings glimmered beneath her gorgeous butterfly wings, drawing everyone's attention.

Through the Eye of Truth, Huo Yuhao saw that beyond Wang Dong's torso bones, there was a highly solid layer formed from dark black energy, extremely similar to the Soul Bone Huo Yuhao had previously obtained.

A Soul Bone? No wonder she was able to jump straight to Rank 30 within a month even without the boost of a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Among the resources of the Douluo Continent, Soul Bones can be considered one of the most important.

This Soul Bone looks far more advanced and powerful than the Ethereal Demon Leopard's Soul Bone, though the details seem somewhat different.

Huo Yuhao carefully observed the deeper structure of the Soul Bone and discovered that it did not seem to have formed an especially close fusion with Wang Dong's own bones.

Furthermore, aside from the Soul Bone naturally releasing some aura and power to strengthen Wang Dong's physique, Wang Dong's Soul Power strangely did not merge with it at all.

Strange. This doesn't look like a normal Soul Bone. Is it something created by the Clear Sky Sect or Tang San? I'll record it first. I can try researching it later.

His attention returned to the battle in the arena. Wang Dong's assessment ended quickly. Her Third Soul Skill was naturally no mere decoration. With the power of that Soul Skill—

Even without using her Soul Bone, or perhaps because she could not use it, she easily ended the assessment using only her Third Soul Skill and physical strength, defeating the Bloodthirsty Demonic Bear that had served as her opponent.

"How was that? Aren't I amazing?" Wang Dong waved at Huo Yuhao, while not forgetting to cast a provocative look toward Dai Huabin in the distance.