On the Soul Fighting Platform, Wen Xiyue stood opposite Duan Fan, with about thirty meters between them.
The girl had skin so fair it was almost translucent and delicate features straight out of a painting. Her expression was still cold, and she carried herself with an arrogance that didn't suit her age.
It was as if this practical exercise was nothing more than a dull game.
"Wen Xiyue, Black-Striped Ghost Leopard Martial Soul, Soul Power Level fourteen. Please instruct me!"
That was the first time Duan Fan had heard Wen Xiyue speak.
Her voice was a little sweet and cute, a huge contrast to her icy appearance.
Following Wen Xiyue's example, Duan Fan spoke as well. "Duan Fan, Paintbrush Martial Soul, Soul Power Level fourteen. Please instruct me!"
As soon as Duan Fan finished speaking, Wen Xiyue immediately activated her Martial Soul.
Seeing this, Duan Fan activated his Martial Soul too.
"Ghost Leopard, Possess!"
With a low shout from Wen Xiyue, a heavy shadow emerged from her body. Like ink spreading through water, it quickly enveloped her whole form, eventually taking on the vague shape of a black leopard.
At the same time, Wen Xiyue's appearance began to visibly change.
A pair of black leopard ears appeared among her smooth black hair. Their tips stood up slightly, their inner sides covered in fine, silvery-gray fur. They twitched gently, moving on their own.
Her fingernails quickly grew longer and harder, curving like tiny sickles. A cold black sheen glinted at their tips.
Two small fangs emerged from the corners of her mouth. They were barely an inch long, but sharp enough to catch the eye.
Most striking of all, a black leopard tail extended from her tailbone, about two feet long. It swayed rhythmically from side to side, like a young leopard poised to pounce, adjusting its balance.
Duan Fan's Martial Soul was much simpler to summon. He opened his right hand, and white light surged as a thirty-centimeter-long Writing Brush took shape.
At the same time, a yellow Soul Ring rose from beneath Duan Fan's feet.
Wen Xiyue also had a Hundred-Year Soul Ring.
The Soul Power emanating from her was on par with Duan Fan's.
As soon as she activated her Martial Soul, Wen Xiyue charged straight at Duan Fan.
She was so fast that she left afterimages in the air.
As she ran, the First Soul Ring on Wen Xiyue's body suddenly lit up.
Her speed surged at once, becoming so great that she was hard to make out.
In the blink of an eye, Wen Xiyue had closed the thirty-meter gap. Before she even reached Duan Fan, her claws were already slashing through the air.
As for Duan Fan—
The moment Wen Xiyue moved, he moved too.
The Hundred-Year Soul Ring on his body lit up, and he activated his First Soul Skill, Life from the Brush.
Silver lines flowed from the tip of his brush, quickly outlining the shape of a spider.
Even as Wen Xiyue closed in at high speed, Duan Fan remained completely calm, painting with the Fantasy Pen in hand.
Just as Wen Xiyue was about to reach him, Duan Fan finished his drawing.
It was a silver spider.
As Duan Fan made his final stroke, it sprang to life and landed heavily on the ground. It was as big as a table and shielded Duan Fan behind it.
Wen Xiyue tried to circle around the spider and attack Duan Fan, but it was as if he had seen through her every move. No matter which direction she attacked from, she was met first by the Giant Spider's Spider Spears.
The Spider Spears clashed with Wen Xiyue's claws, scraping together with a metallic screech and knocking her back.
In just a few short moments, Wen Xiyue had gone from attacking to desperately defending herself.
Wen Xiyue was indeed fast, but there was a huge difference between her and the Giant Spider in size and strength.
Before long, the Giant Spider had driven Wen Xiyue into a corner of the Soul Fighting Platform.
As the Giant Spider's Spider Spears came down once more, Wen Xiyue was forced off the platform, losing in a thoroughly humiliating fashion.
After losing, Wen Xiyue couldn't keep her emotions in check. Pointing angrily at the Giant Spider, she shouted, "You cheated!"
"That's a Dream-Weaving Spider! I know what it is, and it's a six-hundred-year-old Dream-Weaving Spider, too! How can you let a Soul Beast fight in your place?"
Seeing the proud little girl completely lose her composure, Duan Fan couldn't help laughing. "I drew this Soul Beast. Why can't it fight for me? What, am I not allowed to use my Soul Skill?"
Wen Xiyue had no answer to that. She still wanted to charge back onto the Soul Fighting Platform and fight Duan Fan again.
But Li Ruolan held her back.
"Enough, Xiyue. Calm down. We have to learn to accept defeat."
"Go rest for a while."
"Duan Fan, you can go rest too."
Only then did Wen Xiyue give up. Before heading to the rest area, she glared at Duan Fan.
Duan Fan thought Wen Xiyue was being a little unreasonable, but then he remembered she was only six years old. He could understand her having such a reaction.
It would have been stranger if Wen Xiyue had kept acting cold and composed.
Duan Fan recalled his Martial Soul, while the Dream-Weaving Spider dissolved into silver specks of light at his command.
As he headed to the rest area, Duan Fan finally noticed that all his classmates were staring at him in shock.
Clearly, the Dream-Weaving Spider had startled them.
He had to admit—
showing off in front of a bunch of kids felt pretty great.
Even if he was a kid himself right now.
After Duan Fan and Wen Xiyue left the platform, Li Ruolan quickly arranged for a new pair of students to fight.
The students were all about evenly matched, so their battles weren't particularly interesting to watch.
They all had one Soul Ring and one Soul Skill.
And all their Soul Skills were ordinary, nothing special.
Not everyone could have a unique Soul Skill like Duan Fan.
One thing worth mentioning was that every student had a Soul Ring, and all of them were Hundred-Year Soul Rings.
Of course, that wasn't anything to be surprised about. This was the Spirit Hall Academy, after all.
And it was obvious that Junior Class Ten was no ordinary class.
Judging by the students' ages and Soul Power Levels, it was easy to infer that none of their Innate Soul Power was likely below level seven.
Wen Xiyue in particular was very likely to have Innate Full Soul Power.
Duan Fan was somewhat interested in Wen Xiyue's Martial Soul.
"Black-Striped Ghost Leopard. Why does that sound so familiar..."
About half an hour later, all the students' battles had come to an end.
Apart from the first match between Duan Fan and Wen Xiyue, Li Ruolan had given the students pointers after each of their fights.
For example, when to use their Soul Skills and how to control them.
Once the last pair finished fighting and Li Ruolan had offered her advice, she turned her gaze to Duan Fan.
"Duan Fan, you should be rested by now, right? Let's have another practical match."
"All right, Teacher Li."
Duan Fan and Li Ruolan stepped onto the Soul Fighting Platform and faced each other.
At Li Ruolan's signal, Duan Fan activated his Martial Soul.
"If I attack the Dream-Weaving Spider you summon, will you be hurt?" Li Ruolan asked.
Duan Fan replied, "No."
Li Ruolan nodded. "Good. Then give it everything you've got when we start."
"Let's begin."
Duan Fan said, "Got it."
Li Ruolan didn't release her Martial Soul, and Duan Fan didn't remind her to.
Clearly, Teacher Li's Soul Power Level was far higher than his. Against a little one-ring weakling like him, she could easily handle things without activating her Martial Soul.
Duan Fan just focused on painting.
The Soul Ring on Duan Fan's body lit up, and the scene from his match with Wen Xiyue played out again.
Duan Fan quickly drew a Dream-Weaving Spider and brought it to life.
Just as everyone thought that once the Dream-Weaving Spider appeared, it would immediately attack Li Ruolan the way it had attacked Wen Xiyue—
the Soul Ring on Duan Fan's body lit up again.
Soon, Duan Fan drew another Dream-Weaving Spider, which landed on the ground at about the same size as a table.
When they saw the second Dream-Weaving Spider, everyone's expressions began to shift.
But that wasn't the end.
Duan Fan's Soul Ring lit up once again, and a third Dream-Weaving Spider quickly appeared before their eyes.
All the students' expressions turned wonderfully vivid, while Li Ruolan on the platform swallowed nervously.
What happened next left everyone even more stunned.
Under everyone's gaze, all three Dream-Weaving Spiders used their weaving ability, spinning silk to quickly construct even larger spiders.
In an instant, six spiders stood in a row on the Soul Fighting Platform.
Three Dream-Weaving Spiders about the size of tables, and three Giant Spiders even larger than them.
Standing opposite Duan Fan, Li Ruolan silently activated her Martial Soul.
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