After Ling Yun transformed into a Stone Armor Bear, the siblings were both dumbstruck. Huo Wu couldn't help exclaiming, "What a huge brown bear! And it looks so cute, too. That Vajra Bear from earlier was just so ugly!"
Huo Wushuang added, "A Divine Wood Ape with a wood attribute, a Flame Crane with a fire attribute. Ling Yun, this beast-form warrior with an earth attribute must have a name, too, right?"
"That's right! It's called the Stone Armor Bear, and it has the power to tear the earth apart!"
With that, Ling Yun walked over to a tree so large it would have taken two people to wrap their arms around it. He gave it a gentle pat with his bear paw, and with a loud bang, the tree came crashing down. The Stone Armor Bear's strength was plain to see!
"What terrifying strength!"
Huo Wushuang cried out in shock. Before, with his powerful One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul and his third Soul Skill, his strength had been no weaker than Ling Yun's Divine Wood Ape or Flame Crane.
But now that Ling Yun had transformed into a Stone Armor Bear, he wasn't sure if he could still beat him in terms of strength.
Huo Wu's thoughts were much simpler. "Stone Armor Bear—that's such a cool name!"
"Now that Ling Yun has obtained his third Soul Ring, let's hurry out of here. This is, after all, Soul Beast territory."
With that, Huo Li turned and headed out of the forest. The other three followed close behind. Once they were out, they climbed into a carriage and returned to Blazing Academy.
In the carriage, Huo Li suddenly chuckled. "Heh, now that Ling Yun has become a Soul Elder, his strength has increased tremendously.
"It looks like Blazing Academy might get a decent result in the Academy Exchange Tournament three months from now."
"Academy Exchange Tournament? Dean, what is that?" Ling Yun asked in confusion. He had been at Blazing Academy for two years, yet he had never heard of the Academy Exchange Tournament.
"The next Soul Master Tournament is still two years away. As is customary, before each tournament, Blazing Academy holds an exchange match with Skywater Academy and Godwind Academy to test the participating students' combat abilities and prepare for the upcoming Soul Master Tournament.
"The reason it's just our three academies is that the Three Elements Academies have the best relationship."
Among the Five Elements Academies, Elephant Armor Academy was backed by the Elephant Armor Sect, while Thunder Academy was backed by the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
But Blazing, Skywater, and Godwind Academies had no backing at all. So the three academies had to band together, and their relationship grew closer and closer as a result.
"You've met Feng Xiaotian, right? That kid is a real talent. Like you, he has Innate Full Soul Power. And according to Xiao Wu, he's been practicing a Self-Created Soul Skill with considerable power. He's Godwind Academy's trump card.
"As for Skywater Academy, I hear two of their girls have good talent and have mastered a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
"I thought Blazing Academy would probably come in last in this exchange tournament, but then you came along and surprised me!"
As he spoke, Huo Li patted Ling Yun on the shoulder, his smile growing brighter and brighter, his lips curling so high he could barely contain it. Then he continued.
"You're already a three-ring Soul Elder, and you've even mastered Ring Fusion. You're much stronger than Xiao Wu and Wushuang.
"I'm sure you can lead Blazing Academy to victory over the students from Skywater and Godwind, and make our academy's name shine!"
"Heh, thanks for believing in me, Dean. I'm sure the final victory will belong to Blazing Academy!"
Ling Yun smiled, then looked out the window, lost in thought.
An Academy Exchange Tournament? Sounds interesting. I can use it to test my strength.
As Ling Yun's thoughts raced, the carriage sped along. The night passed in the blink of an eye, and by the time they returned to Blazing Academy, it was already dawn the next day.
"Finally, we're back. We only went to get one Soul Ring, but I can't believe it took a whole day."
Huo Wu yawned and stretched lazily. She had fallen asleep on the bumpy carriage ride the night before, and when she woke up, her back and legs were aching.
"We were lucky it only took a day."
Huo Li smiled faintly. "Back when your father reached level eighty, he spent a full six months wandering around Star Dou Great Forest just to find a suitable Soul Ring.
"Getting back this quickly is wonderful."
"That's true." Huo Wu nodded, then looked at Huo Wushuang and Ling Yun with a smile. "By the way, Brother, Ling Yun, what are you two doing today?
"If you're free, come with me to explore Heaven Dou City. I haven't been there in ages."
"Sorry, Sister Huo Wu." Ling Yun shook his head and declined. "I still need to go to Fire Cloud Mountain to train and consolidate my cultivation, so I can't come with you."
"All right, then."
Huo Wu sounded disappointed, but Huo Li said, "Ling Yun, I think you should go to Heaven Dou City with Xiao Wu. But not to shop—you should compete at Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena!"
"Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena?"
"That's right!"
Huo Li explained, "It's the biggest and most famous Soul Fighting Arena in the Heaven Dou Empire. Thousands of matches, big and small, are held there every day. The winners can earn generous prize money and even attract the attention of nobles.
"More importantly, talented Soul Masters come there to compete every day. Fighting them will help you build up combat experience quickly.
"So I think you should go to Heaven Dou City with Xiao Wu and the others. You'll get a chance to see the world and broaden your horizons, too."
"All right, then. I'll go."
Ling Yun nodded. Going to Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena would be a perfect chance to test the Stone Armor Bear's power against the Soul Masters there.
As they spoke, the carriage reached the entrance to Blazing Academy. The three were just about to head to Heaven Dou City for a look around when a flash of green approached them. It was Feng Xiaotian.
The moment he saw Huo Wu's stunning face, Feng Xiaotian broke into a grin like a lovestruck fool.
"Hehehe, Sister Huo Wu! Long time no see!"
"Feng Xiaotian, what are you doing here?"
Huo Wu frowned slightly when she saw him, wondering why this annoying guy had shown up again.
"Heh, my Self-Created Soul Skill has made another breakthrough, so I came to spar with you."
Feng Xiaotian smiled and came up with an excuse without batting an eye. In truth, he had simply come to see Huo Wu.
Then he asked, "By the way, where did you go? I came yesterday, but you weren't here. I had no choice but to spend the night at a nearby hotel."
"Ling Yun's cultivation broke through, so we took him to get a Soul Ring."
"He broke through? This kid's Soul Power reached level thirty?" Feng Xiaotian's eyes widened as he stared at Ling Yun in disbelief.
"Good heavens! If I remember right, Ling Yun, you're only ten this year, aren't you? A ten-year-old Soul Elder—no one's ever done that before, and it'll be tough for anyone in the future to surpass it!"
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