The afterglow of the setting sun spilled across the streets of Shrek City, dyeing everything in a warm orange hue.
Xiao Cheng walked home, already contemplating the plans ahead. Today's internal sparring match had given him a clearer understanding of his teammates' strength.
Qiangu Dongfeng's Coiling Dragon Staff Technique balanced hardness and softness; Qiangu Qingfeng's Purgatory Halberd was tyrannical and ruthless; Leng Yaozhu's Heavenly Phoenix True Fire possessed astonishing explosive power; Leng Yulai's darkness attribute was elusive and unpredictable; Xia Zhengleng's sonic soul skills excelled at control and support; Zhang Geyang... well, his abilities were fairly balanced across the board. In short, everyone had their own unique strengths and traits.
But as a team, they still needed more practice and coordination.
"The Federation-wide Grand Tournament... is still over a year away." Xiao Cheng calculated inwardly. "Over the next year, I need to improve my own strength and help my teammates improve theirs. Only if the entire team grows stronger can we achieve good results in the tournament."
Early the next morning, Xiao Cheng got up, washed up, changed into a neat black combat outfit, and headed for the Spirit Pagoda training grounds.
By the time he arrived, the other six were already there.
"Oh, the captain's here!" Zhang Geyang shouted the moment he saw Xiao Cheng. "Quick, quick, quick! Line up and welcome him!"
"Get lost!" Xiao Cheng kicked him irritably. "Cut the nonsense."
Everyone laughed, and the atmosphere was relaxed and harmonious.
After yesterday's thorough internal battle, everyone had personally witnessed Xiao Cheng's terrifying ability to crush opponents of the same rank and his calm, penetrating grasp of the battle situation. Though Xiao Cheng was the youngest on the team, his strength, vision, and on-the-spot decisiveness had long since won over every teammate completely. No one had the slightest