After arriving at one of the Soul Fighting Arenas, the three of them gathered to discuss how to familiarize themselves with one another's Soul Skills.
Wu Feng said excitedly, "Why don't we have a match? Ning Tian and I will be on one team, and Song Mu can be on the other. But you can't use any thousand-year Soul Beasts, or there won't be any point in fighting."
The match on the first day of school was still vivid in Wu Feng's memory. She had lost that fight, but she believed that with Ning Tian, a Soul Elder with the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda Martial Soul, supporting her, she could still win even if she fought two Soul Beasts at once.
Still, she cautiously glanced at Ning Tian. On the day of the class monitor election, she had challenged Song Mu because she was unhappy about him becoming class monitor. After they returned, Ning Tian had given her an earful, then taken her to apologize to Song Mu.
She had just suggested challenging Song Mu again, and she hadn't meant anything by it. But she was afraid Ning Tian might misunderstand her intentions.
However, Ning Tian didn't stop her. She looked at Song Mu as well and asked, "What do you think, Song Mu?"
The best way to quickly familiarize themselves with one another's Soul Skills was to experience them firsthand.
Knowing this, Song Mu nodded. "I have no problem with that."
Seeing that Song Mu hadn't refused, Wu Feng breathed a sigh of relief. Then fighting spirit flared in her heart, and she grew confident about the battle ahead.
Especially when she imagined Ning Tian looking at her with adoration after she defeated Song Mu, Wu Feng felt her nose grow a little warm.
"Fengmei, did you hear me?" Ning Tian asked.
"Huh? Hear what?" Wu Feng snapped back to herself, looking puzzled.
Seeing her expression, Ning Tian realized Wu Feng hadn't been paying attention. She repeated, "Let's move to the field on the west side. The fight will begin when Song Mu gives us the signal."
"Understood, young mistress!" Wu Feng stood at attention and answered seriously.
"All right, stop fooling around. Let's go."
"Hehe~" Wu Feng followed Ning Tian to the edge of the Soul Fighting platform.
On the other side, seeing that the two girls were ready, Song Mu raised his right hand and announced the start of the match.
The moment Song Mu's right hand came down, Wu Feng immediately activated Martial Soul Possession and charged forward.
As she ran, she suddenly felt two streams of Soul Power flow into her body. At the same time, her speed and strength increased dramatically.
She didn't need to look back to know that Ning Tian had used her first and third Soul Skills to support her.
Song Mu had also already summoned two Soul Beasts. Wu Feng could only make out that one was a pig and the other a snake, and neither was more than a thousand years old.
Wu Feng's confidence soared. With Ning Tian's boosts, she had the combat strength of a Soul Elder. She decided to take out the pig first, then charge over and defeat Song Mu.
"First Soul Skill, Dragon Fire!"
"Second Soul Skill, Dragon's Fury!"
After releasing two Soul Skills in quick succession, Wu Feng's strength and the flames around her body surged again. She swung her dragon claw and slammed it into the Mountain-Ramming Pig.
The instant she attacked, a layer of earthen armor formed over the Mountain-Ramming Pig's body.
Her dragon claw struck the pig, shattering its armor, but didn't hurt it at all.
How was that possible?!
Suddenly, Ning Tian cried out urgently from behind her.
"Fengmei, watch out behind you!"
Wu Feng immediately remembered the snake. It must have circled behind her while she was clashing with the pig, preparing to attack.
Without looking back, she reacted at once, pushing off the ground with her left foot to retreat.
At that moment, the Mountain-Ramming Pig stomped both feet against the ground, making it quake violently and leaving Wu Feng struggling to move.
The snake Soul Beast attacked as well, striking her in the back.
Behind them, Ning Tian saw Wu Feng get hit by a jet of water released by the snake, and her heart tightened.
Unexpectedly, Wu Feng only stumbled. She didn't seem to have suffered any real injury.
But Ning Tian didn't think Wu Feng had blocked the attack. Song Mu must have held back.
The thought made Ning Tian's heart leap. Had he predicted that the attack would definitely hit Wu Feng, then weakened the Soul Skill's damage in advance?
That was exactly what had happened. Song Mu knew his Soul Beasts well and controlled them to work together seamlessly, so he defeated Wu Feng with ease.
After being hit, Wu Feng didn't continue attacking. She knew she had lost.
She couldn't help feeling a little discouraged, but at the same time, she admired Song Mu.
While she was feeling down, Song Mu and Ning Tian came over to her.
"Are you all right, Wu Feng?" Seeing her with her head lowered, Song Mu thought she had been hurt.
Wu Feng raised her head and looked at Song Mu with determination. "I'm fine. Song Mu, you're strong. I want to fight you again."
Song Mu smiled. "No problem. I never planned to have just one match anyway. Since we're trying to learn each other's abilities, it's better to have a few more."
After reaching an agreement, the three of them fought several more matches.
By the end of the afternoon, they had gained a rough understanding of one another's Soul Skills and had begun to coordinate a little.
The next day, the Freshman Assessment officially began.
More than three hundred teams were taking part, but only one hundred and fifty would pass and remain at Shrek Academy. The elimination rate was over fifty percent.
The rules required freshman teams to fight one another in pairs. The teams with more victories would rank higher.
The assessment matches weren't held in the Soul Fighting Zone, but at a location nearby. It was a dedicated Assessment Zone.
The Assessment Zone was divided into fifty sections, and the freshman teams were likewise split among them. Song Mu and his companions were in Section 23.
The section markers were easy to make out, and Song Mu found Section 23 without difficulty.
He led Ning Tian and Wu Feng to their section, where they took their places and waited for the assessment to begin.
A middle-aged man was already standing in the center. He was probably the teacher in charge of this section.
Before long, all the freshman teams had arrived. The middle-aged man began speaking, confirming Song Mu's guess.
"My name is Liu Yang, and I'm the assessment teacher for Section 23. I'll be in charge of your Freshman Assessment."
"First match: Song Mu's team against Cao Jinxuan's team. Those two teams, stay here. Everyone else, wait below the platform."
Hearing the name Cao Jinxuan reminded Song Mu of the character from the original story whose Martial Soul was time-based.
Could it be them? He hadn't expected to meet such a powerful team in the very first match.
As Song Mu recalled the Martial Souls and Soul Skills of the three members of Cao Jinxuan's team, he followed the teacher's instructions and walked to the spot where their team was supposed to stand before the match.
Looking past the assessment teacher, Song Mu saw the boy at the back of the opposing team glance at Ning Tian and Wu Feng, then turn to speak to the boy beside him.
Cao Jinxuan gave Zhou Sichen a mischievous grin. "There are even two girls on the other team. What do you think? When they see you summon two Soul Beasts, won't they be scared to tears?"
Zhou Sichen shot back, "If anyone cries, it'll be because your face scared them."
Still, a hint of smugness rose in his heart. The ability to summon Soul Beasts was the greatest advantage of his Martial Soul.
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