That afternoon, the three of them went to the examination grounds to draw lots for the round of thirty-two, then stepped onto the Soul Fighting Platform.
Their opponents were already in place: three exceptionally pretty girls. The one in the middle had short golden hair, large, water-blue eyes, and long eyelashes. The girl on the left had short, fiery-red hair, red eyes, and skin as fair as jade. The one on the right had long, pale-green hair flowing down her back and gentle, dark-green eyes.
"Freshman Class Nine, Ning Tian, thirty-one-level Auxiliary System Soul Elder," the golden-haired girl said coolly.
"Freshman Class Nine, Wu Feng. Twenty-five-level Power Attack System Soul Grandmaster," the red-haired girl said with an air of pride.
"Freshman Class Nine, Nanmen Yun'er, twenty-four-level Agility Attack System Soul Grandmaster," the pale-green-haired girl said softly.
After Lin Shuo and his teammates had introduced themselves, the match began. "Seven Treasures Have Names: First, Speed; Third, Power." Ning Tian's Martial Soul was the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda. As the young mistress of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, she had reached the Soul Elder rank at such a young age. There was no doubt about her talent.
"Feng'er, Yun'er, follow the plan!"
Wu Feng's Martial Soul was the Red Dragon. The moment she summoned it, she heard it let out a mournful cry.
Lin Shuo stopped Wang Dong'er, who was itching for a fight beside him, and released his Martial Soul. Three black Soul Rings slowly appeared.
Lin Shuo took a step forward. An indescribable aura wafted from him, sweeping mercilessly toward Ning Tian and the others.
"H-how is this possible..." Wu Feng's voice trembled. She strained with all her might to raise her fist, but her body wouldn't obey. Her Martial Soul instantly fell apart, struggling and wailing as it sent her a message: surrender. Then she passed out.
"Feng'er!" Nanmen Yun'er cried out in alarm.
She, too, could feel the immense pressure, but she could still move. She hadn't expected Wu Feng to pass out on the spot.
Ning Tian's pupils contracted sharply. She'd heard that Lin Shuo was strong, but she hadn't expected him to be this powerful. Just releasing his aura had been enough to knock Wu Feng unconscious.
Lin Shuo summoned a fireball and used it to knock Ning Tian and Nanmen Yun'er out of the match. The referee hurried onto the platform and blocked the attack for them.
"Victory goes to Lin Shuo's team! They advance to the round of sixteen!"
Wang Dong'er watched from the sidelines and shook her head. "Ugh, once you step in, there's nothing left for Yu'er and me to do."
Ning Tian helped the unconscious Wu Feng up and checked her breathing. Wu Feng was breathing steadily; she'd only lost consciousness for the moment.
Ning Tian watched Lin Shuo leave the platform, feeling a little baffled. As the young mistress of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, she'd always been the best of her peers, but she'd never lost so badly before.
"Lin Shuo," Ning Tian silently repeated to herself.
"Fire, ice?" Xuan Zi muttered from below, taking a swig of wine and a bite of chicken leg. His tone was puzzled. Wasn't the boy's Martial Soul a dragon? How could he control two elements as well? Could he have Twin Martial Souls?
In the round of sixteen, Lin Shuo faced another Soul Elder, Xie Huanyue. Xie Huanyue was a level-thirty-one Martial Soul user with the Rubber Elephant, but Lin Shuo punched him flying. His two teammates immediately jumped off the platform themselves. When their next opponents saw that, they surrendered on the spot.
Dean Yan Shaozhe personally oversaw the draw for the semifinals. The four team captains stepped forward one by one to draw lots. When Lin Shuo stepped up, he felt a scorching gaze fixed on him.
Lin Shuo looked up and met Yan Shaozhe's beaming face. Yan Shaozhe looked at him as if he were a rare treasure. Lin Shuo frowned, drew a lot, then shot him a look of distaste.
Yan Shaozhe accepted the lot as if nothing had happened. "Freshman Class One, Lin Shuo's team, number two."
Lin Shuo returned to his team and passed a golden-haired boy with dark-blue eyes and double pupils, who walked expressionlessly toward Yan Shaozhe.
Lin Shuo's gaze settled on Huo Yu'er. He'd noticed that something was wrong with her mood even before the draw began. She sat on a bench in the rest area, her hands on her knees, fingers unconsciously twisting together. Her dark-blue eyes were fixed on the ground ahead, but she wasn't focused on anything. Her face was paler than usual, and her lips were pressed tightly together, as if she were trying hard to suppress something.
Lin Shuo went over, sat beside her, and looked down at her.
"Yu'er."
Huo Yu'er looked up as if startled awake. When her eyes met Lin Shuo's, she saw the warmth and concern in his gaze, and the nerves she'd kept taut for so long relaxed a little.
"Brother Lin..." Her voice was so soft that it was nearly drowned out by the noise around them.
Wang Dong'er noticed something was wrong, too. She dropped her usual playful expression, went over, sat beside Huo Yu'er, and took her icy hand.
"Yu'er, what's wrong?"
Huo Yu'er was silent for a long time. The noise around them seemed to fade away.
"I'm fine, Dong'er, Brother Lin. Let's compete first." Wang Dong'er was about to say something, but Lin Shuo stopped her.
"All right. We'll compete first. We can talk about it afterward."
Their opponents in the finals were three Soul Grandmasters: Cao Jinxuan, Zhou Sichen, and Long Xiangyue. Wang Dong'er and Lin Shuo wanted to finish quickly, so Lin Shuo released his Martial Soul. A whirlwind laced with fireballs shot straight toward them. Du Weilun stepped in just in time to block the attack.
The three opponents stared at Lin Shuo, their faces pale. Hey, man, what did we ever do to you? Why are you treating us like this?
"The winner is Lin Shuo's team. Congratulations on advancing to the finals," Du Weilun announced on the spot.
Lin Shuo turned and left with Wang Dong'er and Huo Yu'er.
On the way back, even Wang Dong'er, usually so carefree, had fallen quiet.
"Dong'er, go back to the dorm first. Yu'er and I need to talk."
"Okay." Wang Dong'er looked from Lin Shuo to Huo Yu'er but didn't ask any questions. She gave Huo Yu'er's hand a firm squeeze, then turned and headed for the dormitory. After a few steps, she looked back, worry filling her pinkish-blue eyes.
Lin Shuo led Huo Yu'er slowly along the tree-lined path through Shrek Academy. The sun had already dipped below the horizon, leaving only a streak of dark-orange afterglow in the sky. They walked one after the other for a long time without saying a word.
Lin Shuo didn't hurry her. He led her across Shrek Plaza, past the classroom buildings, and all the way to the bench beside Sea God Lake. In the twilight, the lake shimmered faintly, and Sea God Pavilion was barely visible through the dusk in the distance. He sat down and patted the spot beside him.
Huo Yu'er sat beside him, hands on her knees, head bowed. The lake breeze swept past, ruffling the hair on her forehead and revealing her dark-blue eyes. Reflected in them were the lake's faint glimmers, along with things she'd kept hidden for a very, very long time.
"Brother Lin," she said softly, "I'm sorry for making you and Dong'er worry."
"There's nothing to apologize for." Lin Shuo leaned back against the bench, gazing at the lake in the distance. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Whenever you feel ready to talk, I'll be here."