The ten-second battle,
had caught Long Hengxu completely off guard.
He had originally only intended to put Xie Xie through a bit of training, as the Xie Family had requested,
while also putting some pressure on the other classes,
which was why he had placed the genius Xie Xie in Class Five.
After all,
in a team competition,
no matter how talented one person was,
she couldn't carry the whole team alone!
But he had never expected,
that Tang Wuyue would suddenly appear out of nowhere!
He clearly remembered that when Tang Wuyue enrolled,
her Soul Power had only been at level 12!
Yet now she had two Soul Rings,
and her combat ability was terrifyingly strong.
It was obvious to everyone,
that she was one hundred percent a candidate for Class Zero!
Long Hengxu suddenly felt,
that he might not be able to hold on to his purse.
With the abilities of the two young ladies in Class Five,
they could sweep their way through the competition,
and take Class Five straight to Class One.
In the Class Promotion Tournament,
if a lower-ranked class kept winning,
that wouldn't be good news for him, the person responsible for admitting students,
because it would prove that the admission assignments,
had been unfair.
People's joys were never shared,
but the ten-second battle,
had sent the students in the audience into a frenzy,
in an instant!
Cheers for "Tang Wuyue" and "Xie Xie" rose and fell in waves.
Hearing her own name,
Tang Wuyue finally stood tall.
She no longer had to feel inferior because her Martial Soul was the Trash Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass,
and she no longer had to lower her head because her Innate Soul Power was only level 3.
Now,
her Soul Power had reached level 25,
making her a genius through and through.
"Wuyue, they're all cheering for us!"
Xie Xie grinned and waved toward the audience,
fully savoring the glory of the moment.
Inspired by her,
Tang Wuyue began to enjoy the fruits of victory, too.
When she saw Lu Chuan waving to her from the audience,
the smile at the corners of her mouth rose beyond control.
Since they still had class the next day,
the excitement at the venue didn't last long.
After Tang Wuyue left the arena,
the first thing she did was get ready to find Lu Chuan.
But Xie Xie stopped her,
and the young lady, just coming down from the high of victory,
suddenly remembered,
that during those ten seconds of the match,
she had caught a brief, breathtaking glimpse,
of two purple Soul Rings appearing beneath Tang Wuyue's feet!
"Wuyue, I thought I saw two Soul Rings just now. Did I imagine it?"
Deep down, Xie Xie didn't want to believe Tang Wuyue was a Soul Grandmaster.
Because if she was,
then Xie Xie's only advantage over Tang Wuyue in Soul Power,
would be gone!
As far as Xie Xie was concerned,
Tang Wuyue would completely outclass her in every way!
But,
the facts could never be changed.
"Mm, I have two Soul Rings now. And... my Soul Power is already level 25!"
Tang Wuyue looked at Xie Xie's disbelieving expression,
and the corners of her lips lifted slightly.
At her words, Xie Xie was utterly dumbfounded!
Her voice shot up in an instant,
and she looked like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
"Two Soul Rings! And you're not just a newly advanced Soul Grandmaster—you're already level 25!"
"How is that possible? You haven't even been at school that long! And before, you clearly..."
Xie Xie's mind suddenly went blank.
She remembered,
that three months ago,
Tang Wuyue had been level 12 and she had been level 18, a full six levels ahead!
But now,
she was only level 21,
while Tang Wuyue was already level 25.
Tang Wuyue's Soul Power wasn't lower than hers anymore;
she had even overtaken her by four levels!
"Wuyue, how did you raise your Soul Power by thirteen levels in three months?"
"Come clean! Did you sneak some heavenly treasure? Do you have any more? Sell me one!"
"I'm begging you!"
As Xie Xie spoke, her tone changed.
She grabbed Tang Wuyue by the shoulders and wheedled like a spoiled child.
Tang Wuyue laughed as Xie Xie shook her.
She had never seen Xie Xie act like this before.
"I didn't. I've just been cultivating normally."
"If I had to say, I followed our teacher's advice and found an environment suited to my cultivation. I've been cultivating at East Sea Park this whole time."
"An environment suited to your cultivation?"
At that, Xie Xie raised an eyebrow.
She knew about that, too.
A cultivation environment compatible with one's Martial Soul could double the results for half the effort.
But it couldn't possibly raise someone's Soul Power by thirteen levels in three months.
Otherwise, Blue Silver Grass wouldn't have been branded a Trash Martial Soul for tens of thousands of years!
"Xiao Wuyue, if you won't be honest, don't blame me for what comes next!"
Xie Xie narrowed her eyes,
and a sly, sinister smile suddenly spread across her face.
Her jade-white hands lifted,
curving into dragon claws.
Seeing this, Tang Wuyue instinctively backed away, wanting to run.
But the two of them were less than a meter apart.
How could Xie Xie possibly let her escape?
Her fingers darted like the wind,
going straight for Tang Wuyue's sides and armpits,
her most ticklish spots.
"Are you going to tell me the truth? Are you going to tell me the truth? If Blue Silver Grass can gain thirteen levels in three months just from its environment, I'll write my name backward!"
"Ha ha ha... stop, stop! Xie Xie, quit it!"
Tang Wuyue laughed until her whole body went limp,
tears spurting from her eyes.
In no time at all,
she couldn't withstand Miss Xie's "torture" any longer,
and could only beg for mercy over and over.
"Fine, fine! I'll tell you!"
At that, Xie Xie,
immediately stopped with a grin,
and blinked her pretty eyes,
waiting eagerly for what came next.
Tang Wuyue rested her hands on her knees and caught her breath,
then lowered her voice and said:
"I really did eat Spirit Fruits. My brother got me a hundred-year Ice Crystal Fruit and a hundred-year Red Flame Fruit, as well as a hundred-year bottle of Earth Dragon Blood."
"What?!"
Xie Xie's eyes went wide, and her voice rose despite herself.
"Hundred-year Spirit Fruits? And Dragon Blood? Tang Wuyue, didn't you say your family was poor? I was the one who paid the thirty-four thousand Federation Coins for the dorm repairs after our fight!"
A hundred-year Spirit Fruit had a market price of 800,000 to 1,000,000 Federation Coins,
and most of the time, it couldn't be bought even at that price.
A bottle of hundred-year Dragon Blood contained about ten drops and cost 100,000 to 300,000 Federation Coins.
It wasn't quite as rare,
but it was hardly ever sold at ordinary auction houses in Eastsea City.
It usually only appeared at major auctions in big cities such as Tianluo City, Ming Capital, and Shrek City,
and was often one of the final lots.
You had to pay a hefty deposit just to get in!
"I wasn't lying. My family really is pretty poor; it's just that my brother has money," Tang Wuyue hurried to explain.
At that, Xie Xie's eyes widened. "Is your family favoring boys over girls?"
"No, no!"
Tang Wuyue hurriedly waved her hands,
afraid Xie Xie would rush off to the Tang Family to "demand justice" the very next second.
"My parents dote on me too much for that. How could they favor boys over girls?"
"My brother has money because he's a sixth-grade blacksmith. He can earn several million Federation Coins from a single commission. And he can take on several commissions at once, which is how he managed to save up a little money!"
"Holy crap! Your brother is a sixth-grade blacksmith!"
This time, Xie Xie's voice really cracked.
She could just about accept the hundred-year Spirit Fruits and Dragon Blood,
since those things,
could be bought if you kept an eye on the auction houses and spent enough money.
But a sixth-rank blacksmith... that was truly a rare find!
Her dad had spent three years replacing every part of his mecha with Thousand Refinement parts,
and that was only Thousand Refinement.
A Grandmaster-level blacksmith.
Yet Lu Chuan was a master craftsman-level blacksmith capable of Spirit Forging!
There couldn't be many master craftsman-level blacksmiths in the East Sea Blacksmith Branch!
Xie Xie's eyes nearly bulged out of her head.
She'd thought Lu Chuan becoming a Soul Elder at nine was already outrageous,
but she'd never imagined
there could be someone even more outrageous!
"Why was Xie born at all, if Yue and Chuan were going to be born too!"
Xie Xie looked up at the sky,
her face filled with anguish.
After just a few minutes of pumping Xiao Wuyue for information,
her throat had gone hoarse!
Before you continue