Through the Fourth Test!

"Alright, alright, you brat pass." Zhao Wuji canceled his Martial Soul Avatar and withdrew his Martial Soul Possession, returning to the burly man he had been before. Only now, Zhao Wuji's body was covered in scorched skin and wounds left by blades.

Meanwhile, Lin Qing, who had put away his Martial Soul, merely looked somewhat disheveled, yet he was practically uninjured.

"I also have Teacher Zhao to thank for not using his full strength. Otherwise, no matter how strong I was, I couldn't possibly have been a match for a Soul Sage in a single exchange." Lin Qing said, "Against a Soul Sage like Teacher Zhao, all I could do was use a few tricks and slash away that incense stick. Otherwise, I really wouldn't have lasted until it burned out."

"Cut the flattery, brat. I was originally planning to use only my first four Spirit Skills, but you made me look this miserable. Still, you really are a monster." Though Zhao Wuji said that, he was secretly rather pleased. At the same time, he could not help but marvel at Lin Qing's strength.

"Mubai, go get Teacher Shao Xin to treat me and these students." Zhao Wuji instructed Dai Mubai, who stood outside the square with a blank look on his face.

Dai Mubai had originally believed Lin Qing would definitely be beaten badly by Zhao Wuji. He had never expected Lin Qing to be this powerful, and a thought could not help but arise in his mind: Maybe I should just give Zhu Zhuqing to him. How could I possibly make an enemy of someone like this? I'd better stay far away from him whenever I see him in the future.

"Dai Mubai, what are you standing around for?" Seeing that Dai Mubai had not moved for so long, Zhao Wuji immediately roared in his direction.

"Oh, oh, yes, Teacher Zhao. I'll go right away." Only then did Dai Mubai come back to his senses under Zhao Wuji's roar. He immediately jogged away to find the teacher named Shao Xin.

Taking advantage of this time, Lin Qing helped Zhu Zhuqing and the others up and leaned them against a large tree nearby. As for Xiao Wu, Lin Qing leaned against the tree himself and held her in his arms.

Zhao Wuji also sat cross-legged nearby to regulate his breathing and recover a little. At the very least, he could not let his old friend see him looking too miserable.

About ten minutes later, Dai Mubai arrived at the square with a middle-aged man.

"Old Zhao, weren't you testing the new students? How did you end up like this?" The moment Shao Xin arrived at the square, he saw Zhao Wuji covered in injuries.

"Wasn't it this little monster? He made me look this pathetic." Zhao Wuji sounded slightly embarrassed when he said this.

"What! You're saying these little ones caused your injuries?" Shao Xin's eyes widened, his mouth hanging open as he pointed at Lin Qing and the others in disbelief.

"To be precise, not them. It was that kid who's still awake. Most of the injuries on my body were caused by him alone." Although saying this made Zhao Wuji lose even more face, he was not someone who falsified things. He spoke truthfully: whoever did it, did it. He would never deliberately conceal Lin Qing's strength for the sake of his own pride.

"What did you say? This kid did all of it by himself?" Shao Xin's eyes widened even further, and his voice was more than twice as loud as before.

"Alright, Old Shao, stop being surprised for now. Give us some healing candy beans first and treat me and these little ones." Zhao Wuji had not forgotten why he had called Shao Xin over.

"Alright, I'll make candy beans for you right away." Only then did Shao Xin suppress his shock and summon his Martial Soul. A candy bean appeared in his hand, followed by seven Spirit Rings—two yellow, two purple, and three black—displaying his identity as a food-system Soul Sage.

Afterward, Shao Xin released a Spirit Skill, creating several candy beans and tossing them to Zhao Wuji and Lin Qing.

"Thank you, Teacher." Lin Qing did not refuse. Although his body had already fully recovered, there was no reason to turn down free food.

Seeing Lin Qing eat the candy bean, Shao Xin began feeding them to the others. When he reached Xiao Wu, Lin Qing spoke up. "Teacher, let me do it."

"Alright." Shao Xin could naturally tell that Lin Qing had an unusual relationship with this little girl, so he said nothing more and directly handed the candy bean to Lin Qing.

Lin Qing took the candy bean and held it in his mouth. He gently supported Xiao Wu's cheek with one hand, then fed the candy bean to her mouth-to-mouth.

Seeing Lin Qing feed her the candy bean this way, Shao Xin's mouth twitched.

He had not expected that simply coming over to deliver candy beans would leave him stuffed with public displays of affection.

After eating the candy beans, everyone's condition steadily improved.

Among the four, Tang San was the first to awaken. Though Tang San's level was lower than Xiao Wu's, his spiritual power far surpassed hers. Moreover, under the circulation of the balanced and harmonious Mysterious Heaven Skill, his body had been recovering bit by bit. That was why Tang San woke up first.

"Is it over? It seems we must have failed. I wonder if we can still join Shrek Academy." Tang San subconsciously assumed that no matter how strong Lin Qing was, he could not have held on for the duration of an incense stick by himself. Furthermore, Tang San had not completely lost consciousness, so he had a rough sense of time. By his estimation, it had been far less than the time it took for an incense stick to burn out.

"My head hurts so much!" The second to awaken was naturally Xiao Wu, the strongest among them apart from Lin Qing.

When Xiao Wu woke up and opened her eyes, she felt a stabbing pain in her head. She was also dizzy and groggy, feeling quite uncomfortable.

Seeing this, Lin Qing could only reach out and gently massage Xiao Wu's head to ease her discomfort.

"Lin Qing, is it over? Did we pass?" Xiao Wu asked as she enjoyed Lin Qing's massage.

"Of course we passed. With me stepping in, it was a piece of cake!" Lin Qing bragged in front of Xiao Wu.

Men, no matter when or what the situation was, always wanted to show off in front of the girls they liked. Whenever they were before someone they liked, men's desire to perform became especially strong, just like Lin Qing's now.

Hearing Lin Qing say that they had actually passed the fourth test, Tang San's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Lin Qing, you're so strong! You actually lasted so long against that Soul Sage teacher!" Xiao Wu covered her mouth in astonishment.

Xiao Wu knew the full power of Lin Qing's Nichirin Blade, but in her understanding, Lin Qing's combat strength should only barely have reached the level of a Soul Emperor. She had never imagined he could fight a Soul Sage for so long. After all, although Xiao Wu had heard Lin Qing talk about his strength before, hearing about it was ultimately not the same as seeing it for herself. Thus, her understanding of Lin Qing's strength had remained theoretical, without any real concept of it.

"No, actually, I used a large-area attack and caught Teacher Zhao off guard, reducing that incense stick to dust. Teacher Zhao acknowledged our result too, so we passed." Lin Qing said modestly.

Soon afterward, Zhu Zhuqing woke as well. She was also a little dizzy, but she still forced herself awake.

As for Ning Rongrong, she was the last to wake up. After all, she was only a support-type Soul Master. However, perhaps because she had recovered for longer, she did not suffer from the severe dizziness Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu had experienced after waking. Her head merely felt a little heavy.

"Alright, little monsters. Since you're all awake, it's time for me to announce the result." Seeing that everyone had awakened, Zhao Wuji clapped his hands.

Everyone turned their gazes toward Zhao Wuji, their eyes filled with anticipation as they hoped to hear the answer they wanted.

Sure enough, in the next moment, a smile appeared on Zhao Wuji's previously stern face. Grinning broadly, he said, "Congratulations, little monsters. You've passed the fourth test. From now on, all five of you are officially members of Shrek!"