"Level twenty-eight. Hurry up and stop."
Hearing the old man's words, Lin Yang stopped what he was doing.
Level twenty-eight-that was the result of suppressing his power with the Sharingan.
Although the Roleplay Panel itself offered no boost to his cultivation speed, innate full soul power still allowed him to cultivate very quickly.
If he broke through too quickly, his roleplay progress could easily fall behind, leaving him unable to awaken any worthwhile abilities, just as had happened with his first soul ring.
The white light gradually faded, but everyone's eyes could not recover all at once.
After everyone rested where they stood for a short while, Tang San and Dai Mubai recovered first. Dai Mubai looked at Tang San, who had recovered as well, with surprise written all over his face.
While the two exchanged looks, Xiao Wu secretly cracked her eyes open. Only after discovering that someone else had already recovered did she slowly open them fully.
Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong followed, while the ordinary examinees would probably need a little longer.
Xiao Wu glared viciously at Lin Yang. Ning Rongrong could no longer maintain her ladylike image either, fixing her two large, still slightly reddened eyes on him.
Even Zhu Zhuqing rolled her eyes when Lin Yang looked her way, leaving Dai Mubai dumbstruck.
A few seconds later, Dai Mubai came back to his senses and coughed lightly.
"Then, Teacher, I'll take them to the fourth trial."
The old man waved a hand, still rubbing his eyes with the other.
"Go on, go on. Ow, now my farsightedness is even worse."
Dai Mubai gave an awkward smile-he had been the one holding the crystal, after all-then led Lin Yang and the others deeper into the academy.
Along the way, Dai Mubai explained the four trials and some of the academy's history. Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong kept exclaiming in surprise.
A short while later, they arrived at a small clearing. A middle-aged man who looked to be in his fifties sat in the middle, dozing.
Lin Yang's gaze lingered on the man for a few seconds. So this was Zhao Wuji, the Immovable Wisdom King?
"Teacher Zhao, I've brought some people for the fourth trial."
"Hmm? Someone made it to the fourth trial this year? Five of them, at that."
Zhao Wuji slowly opened his eyes and looked at them as though he had seen something unbelievable.
"Not only that, they were exempted from the other tests and admitted straight to the fourth trial," Dai Mubai said.
At those words, Zhao Wuji shot up from his chair. He was shorter than Tang San, but his muscular build was several times bulkier.
"All five are above level twenty-five. Good, good. Quite a few little monsters this year."
His eyes slowly swept over Lin Yang and the others.
"Mine is the final trial. Pass it, and you'll become official students. But passing won't be so easy."
"My name is Zhao Wuji. I'll give you one incense stick's worth of time to discuss your plan. The test is to last against my attacks for one incense stick."
"Even if only one of you remains at the end, you'll all pass. Don't try any clever shortcuts. Neither speed nor lone-wolf bravery will get you through. Working together is your only way out."
"Teacher Zhao, isn't that a little inappropriate?" Dai Mubai asked hesitantly.
"What's inappropriate about it? The dean isn't here, so I'm in charge. All right, I'm lighting the incense. Xiao Bai, tell them about my abilities."
As he spoke, he produced an incense stick from somewhere, lit it with a rub of his fingers, and casually tossed it into the ground. Then he sat back down in his chair and went back to sleep.
"I can't help you this time. I never expected Teacher Zhao to take part personally."
Dai Mubai stepped closer, his expression grave.
"Could he be a Soul Emperor?"
Xiao Wu glanced at Zhao Wuji, who was sleeping over there.
"Zhao Wuji. Martial soul: great strength vajra bear. Known as the Immovable Wisdom King. A level seventy-six Battle Soul Saint."
Dai Mubai turned his head in surprise and discovered that Lin Yang had spoken.
"You know Teacher Zhao?"
"Do I look like some savage who knows nothing of the world?" Lin Yang rolled his eyes.
"He's actually Zhao Wuji, the Immovable Wisdom King! I never imagined he'd be at Shrek Academy. He's the fierce bastard who escaped from sixteen Spirit Hall bishops!"
This time, Ning Rongrong spoke. She covered her small mouth, her face full of surprise.
"Teacher Zhao was originally only supposed to supervise the fourth trial. I don't know why he's decided to take part himself. You should introduce yourselves first."
Dai Mubai patted Tang San on the shoulder. At some point, the two had become surprisingly familiar with each other.
"My name is Tang San. Tool martial soul: blue silver grass. Level twenty-nine Control-Type Battle Spirit Master," Tang San said first.
"My name is Xiao Wu. Beast martial soul: rabbit. Level twenty-nine Power Attack System Battle Soul Master."
Seeing Tang San speak up, Xiao Wu followed suit.
Ning Rongrong hesitated briefly before speaking softly.
"My name is Ning Rongrong. Tool martial soul: the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. Level twenty-six Support-Type Tool Soul Master."
"Zhu Zhuqing. Beast martial soul: Hell Spirit Cat. Level twenty-seven Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master." Zhu Zhuqing's voice was as icy as ever.
Seeing everyone looking at him, Lin Yang pointed to his eyes.
"Lin Yang. Body martial soul: Sharingan. Level twenty-eight... Power Attack System Battle Soul Master."
"Huh? An eye martial soul? I've never seen one before. Power Attack System-do you shoot soul power attacks from your eyes?"
Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up, and she immediately asked.
Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing also cast curious looks his way.
"Hmm... You'll find out in a moment."
Lin Yang fell silent briefly, then could only brush the question aside for now. His abilities were not something he could explain in a few words.
"Hmph. If you don't want to tell us, just say so."
Ning Rongrong turned her face away in annoyance. No one had ever refused her anything growing up.
"Oh, those martial soul eyes of his are just for show. His real ability is breathing fire."
Xiao Wu suddenly leaned close to Ning Rongrong's ear with a grin, though her voice hardly sounded like she intended to whisper.
"Huh? Breathing fire? What does that have to do with his martial soul?" Ning Rongrong grew even more curious.
Just then, she noticed several gazes settling on her.
"Your martial soul is the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda... Does that mean you're from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"
Tang San asked the question, but the others had also shifted their attention to her.
Compared with an eye martial soul they knew nothing about, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda interested them more.
Ning Rongrong stuck out her tongue, her little face turning woeful.
"Stop staring. I'm no different from anyone else. I ran away from home. Let's pass the test first."
As she spoke, her expression grew somewhat more serious.
"My two soul rings can boost everyone's strength and speed respectively, by about thirty percent. Keeping it up for one incense stick won't be a problem."
"Your lineup is fairly decent. You have an extra Power Attack System member, but that might produce some unexpected results. Decide for yourselves."
Dai Mubai took a deep breath and stepped back twice.
Tang San looked around. Seeing that no one was speaking, he spoke up.
"Ning Rongrong will support us. Lin Yang, you'll take the lead in attacking, with Xiao Wu backing you up. I'll restrict him as much as possible. Zhu Zhuqing, you'll provide support from the flank."
The others nodded, and Lin Yang offered no objections.
This was the first time any of them had faced such a powerful opponent. They would only know how things would go once they fought him.
Although Lin Yang knew more than the others, some details could only be understood through firsthand experience.
"Finished discussing?"
Zhao Wuji's voice rang out. They turned to look and discovered that the incense stick had already burned down without them noticing.
"Teacher, we're ready to begin."
Dai Mubai nodded and quickly moved aside.
Zhao Wuji stood up and rotated his wrists, producing a series of bone-popping cracks that set their teeth on edge.
He took out another incense stick and prepared to light it.
"Seven Treasures Reveal Glazed Glass."
Ning Rongrong acted first. She spun, multicolored radiance flashed, and a small seven-colored pagoda appeared in her hand.
"Seven Treasures Have Names, First: Strength."
A yellow soul ring rose, and several streams of colored light flew from the pagoda, enveloping the other four.
Feeling power surge through his body, Lin Yang instantly activated his Sharingan.
"Let's go."
Before you continue