The Elimination Rounds Begin

Mu En made no effort to hide his appreciation for Jiang Yue. Zhang Lexuan could tell that Mu En was in a much better mood today than usual.

When had Mu En last shown such joy? It seemed to have been when Bei Bei awakened his martial soul and took his first step onto the path of a Soul Master. Too much time had passed, and Zhang Lexuan could no longer remember clearly.

At the thought of Bei Bei, the emotions Zhang Lexuan had only just managed to ease became heavy once more. She knew that matters of the heart could not be forced, and she knew that none of it was Bei Bei's fault.

After all, Mu En had arranged the matter of her becoming a child bride. Bei Bei had only been an infant at the time.

Besides, what normal person would develop romantic feelings for an older sister who had cared for them since childhood?!

Zhang Lexuan understood that. Mu En had made that decision only because Bei Bei's parents had both passed away, driven by all sorts of emotions. In the end, it had merely been a matter of mutual need. No one could be blamed.

Seeing Zhang Lexuan like this, Mu En could only sigh silently. His heart was full of regret and self-reproach as he regretted the words he had spoken back then.

That night, in the dormitory, Jiang Yue sat cross-legged on his bed. Mental Power and Soul Power surged continuously around him as he repeatedly recalled the scene of his earlier sword dance, hoping to use the memory of that feeling to reach the Three Apertures Heart in one stroke and truly take his first step into the Distraction Control Technique.

Within his Sea of Spirit, Jiang Yue worked hard to control the three Qing Swords floating around him.

While Jiang Yue was diligently cultivating, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was extremely comfortable, curled up and sleeping peacefully in the Sea of Spirit.

Because nothing like Huo Yuhao's attack at Sea God Lake in the original story had happened to Jiang Yue, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had remained asleep the entire time, showing no signs of awakening whatsoever.

Electrolux was still in the form of a gray bead, looking utterly ordinary. No one would have guessed that it contained a wisp of the remnant soul of an unparalleled expert from another plane who had torn through the boundaries of worlds and descended into this one.

Without Mu En's assistance, Jiang Yue found it somewhat difficult to control and move three swords at once as he had before. To do so again, he would have to wait until he could use the Three Apertures Heart proficiently.

And the Three Apertures Heart was only the beginning. Not counting the Unfeeling Sword, his second martial soul that he would not reveal unless it was absolutely necessary, Jiang Yue still had four swords in total.

The Passionate Sword, along with the swords of joy, anger, and sorrow, already made four. To control all four swords, he would need the Four Apertures Steadfast Heart.

But that was not even the main issue. Once Jiang Yue reached Rank 40 and absorbed another Soul Ring, he would condense another Qing Sword, bringing the total to five. By then, he would need the Five Apertures Scattered Heart. Raising the Distraction Control Technique by several realms in such a short time would be incredibly difficult.

What gave Jiang Yue the greatest headache was what came after seven rings. Once all seven emotions had condensed into Qing Swords, even if no new Qing Swords appeared at eight or nine rings, he would still have eight swords. Adding the Unfeeling Sword would make nine, while the highest level of the Distraction Control Technique was only the Seven Apertures Exquisite Heart.

Jiang Yue hoped that, by then, his Mental Power would be enough to support him in controlling so many swords without relying on the Distraction Control Technique.

Given the current situation, Jiang Yue felt that he had to obtain the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife as soon as possible and let Electrolux's remnant soul stabilize and awaken completely. That way, he could gain access to the complete system of mental cultivation used by mages on the Holy Magic Continent and raise his own Mental Power sooner.

Looking at the gray bead that had sat quietly in the corner of his Sea of Spirit for years without any movement, Jiang Yue silently encouraged himself.

Soon. By now, the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife had definitely appeared at the Starlight Auction House. It might even have failed to sell several times already.

Realizing that it was getting late, Jiang Yue turned his gaze toward the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, curled up nearby and enjoying a sweet dream, before leaving.

Sleep. The strength you save now will all have to be used later. If things went badly, he might even need the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's Dream Finger for his fourth Soul Ring.

Leaving aside how much his physical constitution would improve after obtaining Living Gold, with Jiang Yue's current physique and Mental Power, he would definitely be able to absorb a Soul Ring of around fifteen thousand years once he reached Rank 40.

For a Soul Beast over ten thousand years old, if its bloodline was particularly rare and powerful or it possessed some special ability, even a Soul Emperor-level expert would need to have the optimal Soul Ring configuration to ensure a reasonable chance of victory. Only Soul Sages or stronger would have a fairly high probability of success.

But if they encountered a particularly powerful Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast species, even a Soul Sage might have no choice but to flee. The most representative example was the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear, which at the ten-thousand-year level could contend against ordinary Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

There were not many Mental Attribute Soul Beasts over ten thousand years old to begin with. Unless one went to the Evil Forest, finding one would require a long search. Moreover, due to the peculiar nature of Mental Attribute Soul Beasts, one careless mistake could result in being instantly killed by one. The danger was simply too great.

Jiang Yue felt that asking the Soul Sage-level lord of Maple Leaf City to help him hunt a ten-thousand-year Mental Attribute Soul Beast would be far too difficult. Shrek Academy's Freshman Assessment reward could not possibly help him hunt such a Soul Beast either.

Unless someone like Taotie Douluo Xuan Zi or Dragon God Douluo Mu En spoke up, Jiang Yue did not believe Yan Shaozhe would help him obtain a Soul Ring before he had joined Shrek Academy.

There was nothing Jiang Yue could do about it. The Soul Beast he needed was simply too rare. There were plenty of high-age Soul Beasts, and he could casually list a long string of names, but he knew far too few at the ten-thousand-year level.

If it truly came down to it, he would absorb a lower-age Soul Beast from a decent species. The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's essence could raise the Soul Ring's age anyway. As long as the species and the Soul Skill it provided were good enough, Jiang Yue could accept it.

When he withdrew from his Sea of Spirit, sunlight had already entered the dormitory through the window, driving away the darkness inside.

Jiang Yue, who had been seated all night, slowly rose and stretched his slightly stiff body. Feeling the small increase in Soul Power within him, he was extremely confident that he could break through Rank 40 before the first-year vacation began.

Jiang Yue was already Rank 38, and more than half a year remained before the end of his first year. Even if breaking through the bottleneck took more time, he remained full of confidence.

At the very latest, once he obtained the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife, awakened Electrolux, purified him, and fused with him, he would reach Rank 40.

After changing into the white freshman uniform and grabbing a quick bite in the cafeteria, Jiang Yue headed toward the assessment area. Today was the day the elimination rounds began.

Jiang Yue was quite confident about his team's first elimination match. The other three teams with Soul Elders had also achieved perfect records, so none of their teams would meet in the first round. Zuo Fan and Lu Bei were not weak either and would not hold them back, so Jiang Yue naturally felt no pressure.

There were sixty-four teams participating in the elimination rounds, meaning thirty-two battles would be held in the assessment area that morning. Compared to the round-robin stage, the pace and frequency of the matches appeared much more relaxed.

There would be one match in the morning and another in the afternoon. The entire elimination stage would last only three days, roughly the same amount of time as the round-robin stage. Adding the rest day in between, the entire Freshman Assessment would take just one week.

Once Du Weilun confirmed that all students participating in the elimination rounds had arrived, he immediately announced the start of the competition. The representatives of each team went up one after another to draw lots.

Jiang Yue's team was extremely lucky. They drew one of the relatively weaker teams among all the elimination participants, and the result was naturally without suspense.

The afternoon was much the same. The team they faced was not strong, and the four teams with Soul Elders did not meet each other in either of the day's matches. All of them successfully entered the top sixteen.

The odds of the four teams facing one another next had become extremely high.

After all of today's matches ended, Xie Huanyue immediately approached with his two teammates. The two appeared to be brothers. They were somewhat thin, though emaciated would have been more accurate. Strangely, their arms were rather long, making people instinctively think their martial souls were something like long-armed apes, the kind that affected arm length.

"Doctor Jiang, I haven't eaten your cooking these past two days, and my appetite has been seriously affected. I've even lost weight."

To make his words more convincing, Xie Huanyue patted his belly twice. His fat-filled stomach rippled in waves of flesh.

Jiang Yue did not know what to say. His gaze shifted back and forth between Xie Huanyue's eyes and his stomach, but he truly could not see any change in Xie Huanyue's body compared to before.

"We've been preparing for the elimination rounds lately, so bear with it. There are only two days left before they end. Tell me what you want to eat afterward, and I'll make it."

"That's perfect. It looks like I really need Doctor Jiang to treat my lack of appetite."

"By the way, we're all in the top sixteen now, so the chances of meeting aren't low. Even if I face you, Doctor Jiang, I'll definitely go all out. I'll make sure you see the value of the fat your food has fed me."

"Haha, I'm looking forward to it. Win or lose, we have to carry the other person's share and make it to the end."

Although Xie Huanyue ate a little too much, Jiang Yue found it very comfortable getting along with him. At the very least, over this period, Jiang Yue and Xie Huanyue could be considered dining companions.

No cook disliked being praised, and no diner did not want to eat delicious food.

"Hey! What are you people plotting here? The matches are over, so why haven't you left? Are you secretly exchanging information?"

A clear female voice suddenly rang out, carrying more teasing than accusation. When they turned around, Wu Feng was standing with her hands on her hips, looking at Jiang Yue and Xie Huanyue.

Ning Tian and another delicate girl with light green hair and dark green eyes stood not far behind Wu Feng, smiling awkwardly yet politely at Jiang Yue and the others.

"No matter how you plan, the Freshman Assessment champion will definitely be me and the Young Mistress. You should just obediently compete for second place!"

"Heh, pretty arrogant. You don't look like someone who cried last night at all."

"No! Why did you have to bring that up now?!"

The momentum Wu Feng had been building instantly collapsed. She gritted her teeth, looking as though she wanted to bite someone.

"Enough, Feng. Didn't you say you had something to discuss with Jiang Yue?"

"Oh, right. You interrupted me just now, and I almost forgot why I came to find you. Ahem. Get ready to thank me properly, or you might end up becoming the chicken sacrificed to scare the monkeys for no reason."

"According to reliable information, because Class One had the fewest students eliminated during the Freshman Assessment, their homeroom teacher will likely continue serving as Class One's teacher after the assessment ends."

"Class One is the class for the control and assault systems. In other words, the two of us will probably end up with that teacher as our homeroom teacher."

"We've heard some rumors about that teacher. You, the strongest one in terms of cultivation, will probably be singled out. So? Aren't you going to thank me for telling you this?"

"Is that so? It really is useful information. Thank you, Wu Feng."

"Hmph, that's more like it. I'll accept your thanks."

Hearing the information Wu Feng had brought, Jiang Yue could not help wondering whether someone was pulling strings behind the scenes again.

A teacher who had expelled the lowest-ranked students in her class before the Freshman Assessment, then ignored the relationships between her students during the assessment and forcibly formed teams based on the superficial data she knew in order to improve her class's results.

Why would such a teacher be appointed as the homeroom teacher of First Year Class One after the Freshman Assessment? Did no one else think something was wrong? That seemed unlikely. The only explanation was Zhou Yi's husband, Fan Yu.

After all, Zhou Yi's results on paper were indeed impressive, and she had a husband with boundless prospects like Fan Yu backing her. As long as Zhou Yi did not lose her mind and provoke those core disciples favored by the Martial Soul Department, there was no problem with letting her serve as a homeroom teacher.

Because of Shrek Academy's rules, core disciples naturally could not be expelled by Zhou Yi on a whim. Those most likely to enter the Inner Court in the future were also core disciples. Zhou Yi could torment the other students however she liked; they would not become Shrek Academy's own people anyway.

Thinking it through, Jiang Yue felt that it was not impossible for Zhou Yi to become the assistant homeroom teacher of First Year Class One as in the original story. But that was not what concerned him. What concerned him was what Wu Feng had just said: Zhou Yi might use him as the target to establish her authority through suppression.

Jiang Yue had no favorable impression of Zhou Yi. He would not find anything she did strange.

He only hoped Zhou Yi would not go looking for trouble. Otherwise, even if he had to reveal his second martial soul directly, he would leave Zhou Yi with a profound memory.

The Unfeeling Sword's innate martial soul talent of ignoring defenses would be enough to make Zhou Yi suffer if it caught her off guard. If that did not work, he still had the nuclear-level self martial soul fusion skill, Emotion Shakes Heaven. It was just that using Emotion Shakes Heaven would be like using a cannon to kill a mosquito. There was simply no need.

"Tch. Just an Outer Court homeroom teacher, and you're all this frightened. I even considered you opponents. It seems you're nothing but incompetent fools like everyone else."

At that moment, Dai Huabin happened to pass by and overhear what Wu Feng had said. Taking in Jiang Yue and Wu Feng's reactions, he immediately snorted disdainfully.

"How dare you talk like that! You eavesdropped on us and still act so arrogantly!"

"I'm only telling the truth. If you can't stand hearing it, pretend you didn't."

"Dai Huabin, I hope you'll still be this brave when you get to Class One. You'd better replace that teacher, or I'll look down on you."

"I'm not stupid enough to make an enemy of a Shrek Academy teacher for no reason just because of a few words from you."

"Enough empty talk, Dai Huabin. Was the lesson I gave you last time not enough? Is that why you came here specifically to seek attention?"

Just as Wu Feng was about to continue speaking, Jiang Yue raised a hand and stopped her.

Ever since Jiang Yue had defeated him, Dai Huabin had not caused trouble in front of him. He was probably hoping to use this Freshman Assessment to wash away his previous humiliation, so he had come over specifically to throw out a few insults.

First-year students were not allowed onto the Soul Arena. Under such rules, if Dai Huabin wanted to settle things with Jiang Yue, he either had to wait obediently until they entered their second year and could use the Soul Arena, or find an opportunity to fight openly.

The Freshman Assessment before them was an excellent opportunity, and Dai Huabin naturally would not let it pass.

"Jiang Yue, remember this. The one lying on the ground this time will definitely be you! The Freshman Assessment champion can only be me!"

"I'll return those words exactly. You might not even get the chance to face me. There are two other Soul Elder teams beside mine, after all. I'm not your only opponent."

"Hmph. Them?"

"What? You think you can definitely defeat them?"

Dai Huabin said nothing, but his expression had already exposed every thought in his heart.

Wu Feng, already irritated by Dai Huabin's sudden appearance and taunts, immediately stepped forward and glared at him. Seeing her friend act this way, Ning Tian quickly followed, while Xie Huanyue naturally was not afraid of Dai Huabin either.

Between a divine chef who could make him delicious food and the unfamiliar second son of the White Tiger Duke's Manor, Xie Huanyue could choose with his eyes closed.

Just like that, Dai Huabin's remarks had offended every other Soul Elder among the first-year students. If the White Tiger Duke's Manor learned of this, they would probably curse him to death.