Wang Dong the Workhorse, Heaven and Earth Net!

The morning mist had yet to fully disperse, but the examination area in the north-central section of Shrek Academy's Martial Soul Department was already bustling with noise.

This area bordered the Soul Duel District frequented by upperclassmen, yet it covered a far greater expanse.

A vast open space spanning twenty thousand square meters stretched out in the shape of a massive oval.

A waist-high brick wall encircled the perimeter. Inside, instead of tiered spectator stands, thick soundproof wooden boards divided the space into individual battle arenas.

To the outer academy students, this was both a glorious paradise where they could display their talents and strength to their hearts' content, and a brutal nightmare that those with mediocre cultivation and poor aptitude avoided at all costs.

Every year, large numbers of Shrek students failed to cross the threshold of the examination area and left dejectedly with their luggage on their backs.

The annual freshman assessment was precisely when this area was divided into the greatest number of sections.

There were many freshmen this year, and low-level one-ring and two-ring soul masters had limited destructive power and attack range with their soul skills, so they simply did not need overly large arenas.

At this moment, the enormous examination area had been divided by densely packed partitions into fifty square arenas.

Each area measured twenty meters on each side. Four hundred square meters was more than enough room for these fledgling boys and girls to show what they could do.

Yun Yi, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao walked shoulder to shoulder through the crowded throng. After checking their number plates, they headed straight into Arena Thirty-Three.

At the invigilator's command, the first round of assessments in Arena Thirty-Three officially began.

Following the strategy they had decided on earlier at the Academic Affairs Office, Yun Yi leisurely retreated to the rear as soon as he stepped onto the stage.

He placed one hand against Wang Dong's back, and dazzling crimson-gold light shone from his palm.

The tyrannical Ultimate Light Soul Power flowed continuously through the point of contact into Wang Dong's meridians, swiftly transforming into perfectly compatible Yun Dong Power.

Wang Dong let out a clear, soaring cry as blue-gold light exploded behind her.

The gorgeous, dazzling wings of the Light Goddess Butterfly unfurled abruptly.

Empowered by Ultimate Light, those butterfly wings not only expanded dramatically, but their edges were coated in a sacred, inviolable crimson-gold outline.

As the wings flapped, bright motes of light scattered through the air, illuminating all of Arena Thirty-Three with brilliant radiance.

Her combat strength instantly doubled.

How could the few one-ring freshmen across from them possibly have seen such a godlike display?

Struck by that blinding sacred pressure, their formation collapsed on the spot.

Wang Dong could not even be bothered to use a soul skill. Relying only on the sharp edges of her wings and her greatly increased speed, she became a streak of blue-gold light darting back and forth across the arena.

Bang! Bang!

Dull impacts rang out one after another. The opponents had no ability to resist and were sent flying out of the arena in succession, crashing onto the grass beside the low wall.

A clean, decisive instant defeat.

Wang Dong landed gracefully, folded her wings, and lifted her delicate chin.

Students from several nearby arenas, along with the invigilators, had all been drawn over by the huge commotion here.

Exclamations and cheers rose one after another, and every gaze in the area converged on her.

The feeling of being the center of attention made Wang Dong feel wonderful all over. She proudly tossed her short pink-blue hair, feeling that her decision to compromise with Yun Yi yesterday had been incomparably wise.

However, as one assessment after another went on, her initial fervor and excitement at showing off in battle gradually faded.

Standing at the front of the arena, Wang Dong seemed to have fallen into thought.

Only then did she realize a very serious problem.

Here she was charging into battle and working herself to death. No matter how she looked at it, she was just a free laborer working her life away for Yun Yi!

She suddenly turned around.

In the safe area behind her, every time Yun Yi finished transferring Ultimate Light to her, he would immediately withdraw his hand and calmly stroll back to Xiao Xiao's side.

Whenever they encountered teams that understood tactical coordination well enough to require some effort, Yun Yi would stand behind Xiao Xiao and give her hands-on instruction right there.

"Don't rush to smash them with the cauldron. Watch where that agility attack-type soul master lands." Yun Yi lightly held Xiao Xiao's wrist and helped adjust the direction of her hand seal.

"Predict his path three steps ahead. Good, drop it!"

Under Yun Yi's precise hands-on guidance, the Three-Life Soul Suppressing Cauldron descended with a heavy roar, smashing the enemy formation that had been trying to launch a sneak attack into pieces with perfect accuracy.

Xiao Xiao turned around excitedly. Her bright, watery eyes sparkled as she looked at Yun Yi, and the blush on her cheeks was unmistakable.

Yun Yi smiled and lavished her with praise and encouragement.

The two stood extremely close. Their low conversation and tacit interaction looked, to Wang Dong, exactly like a young couple flirting shamelessly at the assessment site.

And when they encountered weak teams that could not withstand a single blow, the situation was even more infuriating.

Wang Dong chased the opponents around the arena as they flew about in panic, while Yun Yi simply put both hands in his pockets and chatted with Xiao Xiao nearby, occasionally letting out a few relaxed, cheerful laughs.

Those laughs sounded especially grating in Wang Dong's ears.

Wang Dong was so angry that her teeth itched. She wanted nothing more than to turn around and slap Yun Yi's punchable smiling face with those crimson-gold butterfly wings.

What kind of fighting side by side was this?!

She was exhausting herself, sweating and putting in all the effort, while he used the excuse of being from the auxiliary system to comfortably flirt with girls in the back!

Several times, she wanted to drop everything and go on strike, but swallowed her words before they could leave her mouth.

She had been the one begging and pleading in the first place, even assuming he would enroll in the auxiliary system, all so she could make a grand showing.

She had dug this pit herself. Even if she had to do it in tears, she had to jump all the way through it.

That day, Arena Thirty-Three welcomed its sixth match.

Wang Dong rubbed her slightly aching wrist and looked with mild boredom at the three freshmen standing across the arena.

They were a team of two girls and one boy.

At the front stood a tall, burly boy with knotted muscles, Huang Chutian.

Behind him stood a pair of identical twin sisters with dark blue hair, Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo.

Yun Yi stepped forward and pressed his palm against Wang Dong's back.

The familiar crimson-gold light surged into her body. Wang Dong turned back and gave Yun Yi a bitter, resentful smile, silently protesting her treatment as a workhorse.

Yun Yi completely ignored her resentment and instead leaned closer.

The distance between them became extremely close. Yun Yi's warm breath nearly brushed across Wang Dong's ear.

Lowering his voice, he warned her in a volume only the two of them could hear.

"Focus. Those twins have a Martial Soul Fusion Skill hidden up their sleeves, and their control is extremely strong. Don't get careless and capsize in a ditch. If you lose this match, I definitely won't let you off when we get back tonight. I'll give you a harsh lesson."

The first half of his words had been a perfectly serious tactical analysis, but the tone abruptly changed in the second half.

"When we get back tonight," "definitely won't let you off," and "give you a harsh lesson." Combined with Yun Yi's low, lazy voice, those phrases became far more lethal.

Wang Dong felt a fire explode at the roots of her ears, the heat spreading all the way to her cheeks.

Her mind filled with those suggestive words, and her heartbeat completely lost its rhythm.

She shot Yun Yi a flustered glare, forcibly suppressed the heat on her face, then turned away and nodded with utmost seriousness and force.

"Just worry about yourself! I won't lose!" Wang Dong retorted with forced bravado, but she could not hide the panic in her voice at all.

The referee stood at the edge of the arena, raised his right hand high, then swung it down sharply.

"Sixth match, assessment begins!"

Across from them, the three members of Huang Chutian's team looked solemn.

They had watched Wang Dong's previous battles from below and knew all too well what terrifying destructive power those butterfly wings blazing with crimson-gold light contained.

Against a team whose strength so thoroughly surpassed theirs, any probing or stalling would be a slow death.

They had to decide the outcome in a single strike!