"Then let's test it."
Jiang Jue took the Soul Guidance helmet and slowly put it on.
As soon as the switch was turned on, the reading shot straight up like a rocket. In the space of a single breath, it broke through five hundred and entered the Spirit Sea Realm range.
But the numbers showed no sign of slowing. They kept climbing, and the Soul Guidance helmet began to radiate a broad halo of white light.
"Wait, where is this thing headed? Isn't Jiang Xiu the same age as Na'er?"
Watching the reading, Vice Pagoda Master Liu's hand, clasped behind his back, gave a hard tremor. Inwardly, he cried out in disbelief.
At this age, he should be staying comfortably in the Spirit Connection Realm!
Two once-in-a-century geniuses had appeared right before his eyes.
"Is he really not secretly using something?"
Vice Pagoda Master Liu was filled with suspicion.
"Beep, beep, beep!"
The white halo flashed, and the reading broke straight through the one-thousand mark. Even Gu Yue, standing nearby, was stunned for a moment, then a ripple stirred in her beautiful eyes.
At last, the reading began to climb more slowly, and finally stopped at 1033.
Vice Pagoda Master Liu, who had been holding his breath the whole time, finally exhaled, though his throat still felt dry.
At the same time, he was deeply relieved. Fortunately, he had taken it upon himself to gift Jiang Jue the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear External Soul Bone earlier, forging a good connection. If Jiang Jue grew powerful in the future, the price would be very different.
"Not bad, but still a long way from the Spirit Abyss Realm."
Jiang Jue took off the helmet. A glint flashed in his eyes as he murmured to himself.
He had been extremely busy these past four years, constantly traveling between the Douluo Plane and the Abyss Plane, but that had also greatly increased his mental strength.
Although his body couldn't enter the Abyss Plane, his consciousness could. When he used Extraction on the Abyss to extract Shadow Soldiers, the energy was fed back to his shadow, while the mental strength was fed directly back to his consciousness.
The Ant Emperor Clan might not have been very intelligent, but many small gains added up. They were more useful than most natural treasures with mental attributes. After four years, his mental strength was already nearly twice Na'er's.
After all, Na'er didn't need to cultivate much herself. She only needed to slowly unseal the Silver Dragon King's origin within her—and the Silver Dragon King's former divine consciousness had once been a god's sense.
"Gu Yue, it's your turn."
Na'er raised an eyebrow and looked at Gu Yue, a mischievous glint passing through her violet eyes.
She had seen at a glance that Gu Yue had kept her abilities just a little above the level of ordinary geniuses—in other words, she had been pretending to be weak while hiding her true strength.
But now that she had run into Great King Na'er and Jiang Jue, Gu Yue could only pretend to be a pig eating pig feed.
Gu Yue seemed to have seen through Na'er's thoughts long ago. She gave a light laugh and took the Soul Guidance helmet.
The helmet immediately began to shine with white light, and the reading climbed rapidly, reaching four hundred in the blink of an eye, then five hundred.
"Oh no!"
At the sight of Gu Yue's meaningful smile, a foreboding feeling surged through Na'er. Was Gu Yue about to cheat?
Under Na'er's intense scrutiny, Gu Yue's mental strength reached 530, just a hair below her own.
"Beep, beep!"
The Soul Guidance helmet chimed twice more, and Gu Yue's mental strength finally stopped at 532.
Exactly one point higher than Na'er's.
"My foolish Na'er, from the moment you went first, your defeat was fated."
Gu Yue glanced at Na'er with disdain. Even among peerless minds, there were differences.
"Gu Yue, a week ago, before you applied to join the Spirit Pagoda, your mental strength was only a little over four hundred. How did it suddenly increase so much?"
Vice Pagoda Master Liu asked, puzzled. Since when had Spirit Sea Realm geniuses started appearing in droves?
"My family found me a natural treasure. After I took it, I broke through by accident."
Gu Yue smiled faintly. Though she was answering Vice Pagoda Master Liu, her eyes were on Na'er.
"I see."
Vice Pagoda Master Liu understood. He knew Gu Yue came from a mysterious, long-established family. He didn't know which family it was, but there was no doubt about its power.
"Some accident, that!"
Na'er ground her teeth and sent the words to Gu Yue telepathically.
"I wonder what kind of storm these three will stir up on the mainland in the future."
Looking at the three before him, Vice Pagoda Master Liu sighed inwardly, then spoke.
"All right, my task is done. I'll be going now. Tower Master Leng is waiting for you in her office."
With that, Vice Pagoda Master Liu turned and left. He also had a vague idea why Leng Yaozhu had asked him to test their mental strength...
"Creak!"
Just then, the silver-white metal wall opened again, and two Soul Guidance Pods popped out. Tang Wulin and Xie Xie were inside.
"We're finally out. It felt like there were a lot fewer thousand-year Soul Beasts in the Spirit Ascension Platform this time."
Xie Xie got out of the Soul Guidance Pod and fixed his hair, then asked Tang Wulin in confusion.
"Probably too many people went in. But we just need to meet the ascension goal we set earlier."
Tang Wulin replied, then noticed Jiang Jue and the others in the room.
"Gu Yue, you're out too."
"How did the ascension go?"
Xie Xie and Tang Wulin spoke at the same time.
"It went fine. I just forgot to look for you two later. Sorry."
Gu Yue smiled apologetically.
"It's fine. As long as we pass Teacher Wu's final exam."
Xie Xie nodded. This time, they weren't just raising their spirit ranks; it was also Wu Changkong's final assessment of them. The other students from Class Zero were in different rooms.
"Then let's go. Teacher Wu's waiting for us outside."
"You go ahead. I still have something to take care of."
Gu Yue politely declined Xie Xie. She still had to go see Leng Yaozhu with Jiang Jue and Na'er.
Jiang Jue's gaze remained fixed on Tang Wulin. Every muscle in his body was taut, and with his Spirit Sea Realm mental strength, he watched Tang Wulin's every move. His first and second skills were ready to be unleashed instantly.
The Shadow Monarch Martial Soul had sent him a warning: the divine consciousness inside Tang Wulin's Sea of Consciousness seemed to have awakened and was observing them.
Gu Yue and Na'er, standing on either side of Jiang Jue, exchanged a glance. A faint, seven-colored light shimmered in their eyes, where the phantom of a silver dragon and a long spear appeared.
"Let's go."
At that moment, Tang Wulin spoke and started toward the exit. But his voice sounded unlike usual, carrying a hint of indifference.
"Huh? Wulin, are you going through puberty?"
Following behind Tang Wulin, Xie Xie was startled by his voice and joked.
But Tang Wulin said nothing. When the silver Soul Guidance door opened, he simply walked out.
The three of them watched Tang Wulin's back intently. A moment before the Soul Guidance door closed, Tang Wulin suddenly looked back. A dazzling Golden Trident seemed to appear between his brows, and his eyes were entirely ocean blue as he stared deeply at the three inside the room.
This was something Tang Wulin himself could never have done.
But the next moment, the Soul Guidance door closed, cutting off all four gazes.
"Two Silver Dragon Kings and one variable. You're all courting death."
A voice suddenly rang out in Tang Wulin's Sea of Consciousness.
"Tang San, your divine consciousness has indeed awakened. Now, I'll erase you."
Jiang Jue's violet eyes were dark and deep, and the corners of his mouth slowly lifted.
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