Wang Dong'er held out her right hand in front of the Wind Tiger.
The Wind Tiger was sitting on the ground, its forelegs braced against the floor. It looked at Wang Dong'er's outstretched hand, not understanding what she meant.
Just then, Song Mu's command came into its mind. The Wind Tiger immediately obeyed, lifting its left paw and gently placing it on Wang Dong'er's palm.
"Such a good girl." Wang Dong'er stroked the Wind Tiger's head with her left hand. Planning to reward it with some food, she turned to Song Mu and asked, "Song Mu, do you have any meat?"
Song Mu replied, "There should be a place in the Beast Fighting Zone where they keep meat. Go ask."
"Okay." Wang Dong'er turned to leave.
Song Mu called after her, "Wait. Take this." He tossed her a ring.
Wang Dong'er caught it and glanced at it, recognizing it as a Storage Soul Guidance Device. Smiling, she waved to Song Mu and walked away.
After watching Wang Dong'er leave the Soul Fighting Arena, Song Mu looked away. Soul Power surged through him as he summoned his Panel Martial Soul.
A transparent screen appeared before him. Song Mu studied the panel, lost in thought.
Some of his Martial Soul's functions were still locked.
For example, in the Soul Beast Interface, there was a second page for skills, in addition to the page showing a Soul Beast's basic information. The options at the bottom to change its skill configuration and learn skills were both unavailable.
He suspected that the new functions would unlock once his Soul Power Level increased. Perhaps he would be able to use them after breaking through to Level 30.
Aside from the locked functions, Song Mu already had access to the following: the team page, where he could deploy Soul Beasts; the Soul Beast Warehouse, where he could store captured Soul Beasts; the bag, where he could store Gulu Balls; the task list; and the shop.
The synthesis option could be opened, but there was nothing available to synthesize. Perhaps he would get a recipe as a reward for a special task in the future, unlocking synthesis.
There was one more function Song Mu cared about: the first option, "Mine."
There, he could check his basic information.
Song Mu couldn't absorb Soul Rings, but he still had a Soul Ring section.
When he tapped it, portraits of the Soul Beasts he had captured appeared. He could select a skill by tapping a portrait, but the skill selection itself was unavailable.
It was probably another function that required certain conditions to unlock.
This discovery showed that he could use Soul Skills too, instead of relying entirely on his Soul Beasts.
Learning a few defensive Soul Skills in the future would greatly improve his chances of survival.
Take the Soft Bone Charm Rabbit clan's divine skill, Invincible Golden Body. After using it, one could even withstand attacks from a Limit Douluo for a short time.
When he traveled the continent in the future, he would have to see if he could catch one.
At the moment, Song Mu had over nine thousand Locke Berries. That was what remained after adding the reward for completing his basic tasks and subtracting what he had spent on Gulu Balls.
He couldn't even afford a single Advanced Gulu Ball.
Aside from Wang Dong'er, he currently had fifteen Soul Beasts: ten Hundred-Year Soul Beasts and five Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.
All of the Hundred-Year Soul Beasts were over seven hundred years old. The one he had summoned to fight Wu Feng earlier had been the weakest.
When testing the upper limit of the ages he could capture, he had released every Soul Beast under seven hundred years old, turning them into cultivation materials.
Of his five Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, three were over a thousand years old, one was over two thousand years old, and one was over three thousand years old. They were a lion, a tiger, a bear, a leopard, and a wolf.
Song Mu had no plans to spend his remaining Locke Berries.
Completing basic tasks was his only way of earning Locke Berries for now. Once he spent them, they would be gone.
He planned to save up more, catch every Soul Beast in the Beast Fighting Zone, then release them and use the materials he got to level up Wang Dong'er.
Once she reached a certain level, he would be able to complete the special task and claim a Skill Stone for a skill called Refraction.
From the name, Song Mu felt the skill must be quite powerful. He could have Wang Dong'er learn it when the time came.
The days passed one after another, and soon three months had gone by.
Freshman Class Nine.
When the class bell rang, homeroom teacher Mu Jin walked in, carrying a stack of papers.
She went to the front of the classroom and looked over the students. After confirming that no one was absent, she began:
"Tomorrow is the Freshman Assessment. The results will determine whether you can continue studying at Shrek Academy in the days ahead. Every one of you must do your best to pass."
"The rules are as follows: you'll be divided into teams of three and compete against other teams in Soul Fighting. The winning team earns one point. Once the rankings are tallied, the top fifty percent of teams by points will pass."
"After observing you over the past few months, I've already divided you into teams. I'll announce the groups now."
"Group One: Song Mu, Ning Tian, Wu Feng."
"Group Two: Nanmen Yun'er..."
"..."
After finishing the announcements, Mu Jin put down the list and said:
"All right, that's all I have to say. You can get to know your teammates now and prepare for tomorrow's assessment. Class dismissed."
As soon as Mu Jin left, the classroom erupted in heated discussion. The students immediately switched seats to sit with their teammates.
Ning Tian also brought Wu Feng to the back of the classroom and sat in the seat beside Song Mu.
"Song Mu."
"Class monitor."
Ning Tian greeted Song Mu with a smile, while Wu Feng looked wary.
"Ning Tian, Wu Feng."
Song Mu smiled back.
Song Mu suggested, "Why don't we go to the Soul Fighting Arena and get familiar with one another's Soul Skills?"
Ning Tian and Wu Feng both nodded in agreement.
The three of them got up and headed for the Soul Fighting Zone, introducing their Soul Skills to one another along the way.
Ning Tian spoke first. "My three Soul Skills are Speed, Dispel, and Strength. Speed and Strength boost the target's speed and strength by thirty percent, while Dispel can remove abnormal conditions from the target."
Wu Feng said, "My first Soul Skill is Dragon Fire. It ignites flames across my body that I can imbue into my attacks. My second Soul Skill is Dragon's Fury, which boosts the flames, my strength, and my defense."
Song Mu said, "My ability is controlling Soul Beasts. You already know that. I can control two Soul Beasts at once, with an upper limit of three thousand years."
"How old?!" Wu Feng blurted out, unable to believe what she had heard.
Ning Tian's pupils also contracted sharply, though she kept a composed expression.
"You heard right. Three thousand years," Song Mu replied calmly. He had long anticipated how shocked people would be when they heard about his Martial Soul ability.
"So before, you only used a six-hundred-year-old one," Wu Feng said, though she already knew the answer.
"If I brought out a three-thousand-year-old Soul Beast, you wouldn't even be able to fight back."
Ning Tian reached out to restrain the restless Wu Feng, then smiled at Song Mu.
"Song Mu, your strength really is astonishing."
"We'll be relying on you to get us through this assessment."
Song Mu said, "You could pass easily even without me. And there's a competition after the assessment. I couldn't possibly win the championship on my own. With two powerful teammates like you, I'm confident we can take the title."
Just then, the three of them entered the Soul Fighting Zone.
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