Chapter: Freshman Examination

The third month after enrollment had arrived, leaving a single day until the Freshman Assessment.

The cultivation bases of the three had also improved quite a bit by now.

Xiao Xiao had naturally been the first to break through, but because her soul power was previously rather thin and mixed, she now began practicing the Soul Power Compression Method, bringing her soul power to the twenty-fifth rank. Just a week ago, she had also celebrated her tenth birthday.

Huo Yuyao had similarly reached the twenty-fifth rank. The money and Heavenly Treasures provided by the academy were simply too abundant; paired with the Soul Spirit Contract, her cultivation speed had received a massive boost. Coupled with the two people's continuous adjustments and refinements over the past two weeks, this Martial Soul Fusion Cultivation Method worked wonders.

As for Lin Mo, his soul power had reached a startling twenty-sixth rank.

Cough, cough. Here I must thank the little wealthy heiress Huo Yuyao for providing those precious medicinal ingredients for the medicinal bath.

Likewise, he too had relied on the Martial Soul Fusion Cultivation Method to increase his cultivation speed. Moreover, the awakening of his second soul ring had raised his cultivation velocity by a few notches as well.

As for the Hongchen brother and sister, the soul powers of both had broken through successively over the past month and a half. Having absorbed their fourth soul rings, their soul powers had reached the forty-first and forty-second ranks respectively.

Ji Juechen had also acquired his fourth soul ring, and his soul power had advanced all the way to the forty-fourth rank.

As for Ye Guyi, Lin Mo had not concealed the Sun Moon cultivation methods and the soul compression cultivation method from her, informing her of them altogether.

The reason he chose not to tell the Hongchen siblings was because they belonged to the Hongchen Family of the Sun Moon Empire, and his current self lacked the strength to control certain matters, meaning he could not take that risk.

Yet Ye Guyi was different. She had no one to lean on, and moreover, he was the first person who had reached out a hand to help her. Based on his understanding from the original work, he trusted Ye Guyi's character.

Also due to the blessing of the two cultivation methods, although Ye Guyi had made no progress whatsoever in her soul power level, the precision of her soul power had taken a massive step forward. As she was now, she might appear to have only forty-first-rank soul power reserves, but they were far superior to those of an ordinary forty-third-rank soul master.

Meanwhile, Huo Yuyao and Lin Mo displayed extraordinary talent not only in terms of martial souls, but in soul tools as well.

Huo Yuyao was just like in the original work, possessing extremely high talent. From when she began studying until now, although it seemed like two and a half months, the actual time spent truly studying had only been a single month.

In this one month, she had already successfully passed the exam to become a Level 1 Soul Engineer. Not only that, but the immensely powerful imagination and extension abilities belonging to her in the original work were also displayed to perfection, leaving Xuan Ziwen immensely excited.

As for Lin Mo, he had not expected that crafting soul tools would be unexpectedly simple. Once he understood the principles, in a mere moment, he inscribed the soul tool core and built a basic soul tool.

The two completed the examination on the same day and at the very same moment.

At the same time, Lin Mo had grown even more proficient in his sword technique and movement technique.

Through his continuous iterations and refinements, that bizarre defensive movement technique had finally formed a relatively complete movement technique.

He named it the Yin-Yang Reverse Profound Steps. In his view, this movement technique of his was actually not much different from the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track in the Tang Sect techniques, but its strength lay in the altered Yin-Yang Reverse Profound Steps: once soul power was released, it could achieve extremely rapid displacement. As long as he still had soul power, he could execute these steps unceasingly.

As for his proficiency in swordplay, it was manifested in a sword technique he had figured out through exploration.

The name of the sword technique was [Cherry Blossom Splendor].

This was inspired on Xiao Xiao's birthday, when everyone went out to play together and saw a cherry blossom forest in Mingdu, watching the continuously falling cherry blossoms dancing about in irregular directions, moving him to emotion.

[Cherry Blossom Splendor]: Within an extremely short period of time, executing chaotic sword strikes that dazzled the eye and defied clear vision. Parrying, stabbing, striking, hacking, slashing-the rhythm of every single sword strike was different, and the rules were distinct, making it difficult for opponents to fathom the pattern of the attacks, and even harder to counterattack.

As for the name of this move, it was not actually chosen by him, but by Huo Yuyao; he discovered that his talent for naming things seemed to be a bit abysmal.

Time quickly arrived at the second morning—the day of the Freshman Assessment.

The three little ones arrived at the competition arena together.

"Wow, isn't this the place where you broke through, Little Mo, big brother?"

The two looked around and discovered that this was indeed the competition arena that had been requisitioned when Lin Mo broke through to the two-ring level.

Only, at this moment, the spectator stands were packed with people, including both freshmen and senior students.

"Will all captains of the freshman teams come forward to draw lots."

Hearing this broadcast echoing across the entire venue, Lin Mo patted Huo Yuyao on the shoulder.

"Alright, Little Yao, it's up to you. Go ahead."

"Mm!"

This was also what the three of them had discussed. The original plan was actually to have Lin Mo act as captain-after all, among the three of them, if one spoke of maturity, it was only Lin Mo. Yet Lin Mo preferred to give this opportunity to Huo Yuyao; after all, among the three little ones in the original work, Huo Yuhao was the core of the team, and it remained the same here.

After all, just because the protagonist of today had turned into a female protagonist, it didn't mean he should hesitate to shelter her behind him. What he wanted to see, or what Huo Yuyao hoped for, was the ability to stand on her own and stand proudly beside him.

"Hehe, I'll just draw casually. With the strength and tacit understanding of the three of us, winning the championship of the Freshman Assessment will be an absolute breeze."

"Mm-mm."

Watching the young girl's retreating figure as she ran off, Lin Mo lingered for a long time.

As an elder brother, to be a male oneself and protect one's younger sister behind one's back, never letting her suffer even the slightest harm-this would forever be his primary thought.

Yet Huo Yuyao was different. What Lin Mo wanted to see, or rather, what Huo Yuyao herself desired to see, was the ability to grow into a reliable person capable of avenging her mother and protecting the people around her.

Moreover, given Huo Yuyao's inexplicable stubbornness, not even eight horses could hold her back. Since that was the case, Lin Mo as her older brother naturally could only guard his younger sister well from behind.

Before long, precisely less than ten minutes after Huo Yuyao returned, the broadcast sounded once more.

"Will the Mo Yu Xiao Team and the Sheng Sheng Sheng Team please come to the battle zone."

"Wow, are we the very first group?"

"That's great! After finishing this match, we'll have to wait until afternoon for the second one. This is best-finish fighting and call it a day immediately."

"Xiao Xiao is right. Fight early, finish early."

"Mm-mm, then let's move out."

With that, the three of them walked toward the competition stage together, while standing opposite them were two males and a female.

Their appearances could only be described as thoroughly unremarkable, but the most distinctive feature was perhaps the rather exaggerated muscles on the boy at the very front.

"Little Mo, you say... um, is he really thirteen years old?"

Hearing Xiao Xiao's reply, Lin Mo's gaze also turned toward the opposite side.

He saw a muscular youth close to two meters tall looking at them with a stern expression.

"Uh, this..."

"Both sides, forward five steps!"

A middle-aged man wearing a white teacher's lab coat arrived on the competition stage and raised his hand to signal the two teams.

In accordance with the teacher's demands, the two teams stepped forward one after another, leaving a distance of no more than fifteen meters between them.

"Conduct self-introductions first."

As the teacher's arrangement fell, the muscular youth on the opposite side took a step forward and spoke in a thick, deep voice.

"I am Zhao Yi, twelve years old, soul power at the seventeenth rank, Practical Control Department."

Following the conclusion of Zhao Yi's self-introduction, his male and female teammates standing behind him also successively introduced themselves.

"Wang Liu, twelve years old, sixteenth rank, Practical Control Department."

"Liu Qian, eleven years old, fifteenth rank, Soul Tool Department."

A hint of arrogance carried through all three of their voices.

At the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, soul masters who could reach above the two-ring level upon enrollment were actually quite rare.

Unlike Shrek, where enrollment required an age under twelve and soul power higher than the fifteenth rank, the standards of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy were much lower, only requiring one to become a a One-Ring Soul Master.

Thus, by comparison, a pair like the one facing the three of them could be considered the cream of the crop among this year's freshmen.

It was simply a pity that what they were facing was-

Just as the three finished their introductions, the gazes of the four people present, as well as the gazes of others in the spectator stands, all landed upon Lin Mo and his companions.

"Huo Yuyao, eight years old, twenty-fifth-rank soul power, Soul Tool Department."

Hearing Huo Yuyao's introduction, everyone present gasped sharply in unison.

Sounds of questioning or astonished conversations rose one after another among the crowd on the stands.

"Holy cow, did I hear that right just now?"

"Eight years old, twenty-fifth rank."

"Did I think I went deaf?"

Listening to the increasingly loud sounds across the arena, the teacher acting as referee instantly released soul power fluctuations to quiet all the freshmen present.

Huo Yuyao was indeed only eight years old; although her age was approaching nine, the bone age measured by the machine was absolute perfection with zero issues.

Hearing the age spoken by Huo Yuyao, Lin Mo also suddenly recalled an important matter.

"Come to think of it, Little Yao will be turning nine very soon—it seems there's less than a month left. According to memories of my past life, it seems one celebrates birthdays. Should I buy a gift after all?"

Just as he finished pondering this question, another issue popped into his head.

"...Put that way, Xiao Xiao reached ten years old over half a month ago. I have to wait three whole months before I turn ten."

"She seems older than me, eh?"

While thinking this, his gaze drifted intentionally or unintentionally toward Xiao Xiao.

"But she calls me Little Mo, big brother. That seems a bit off."

Just as he was thinking this, Xiao Xiao began her self-introduction as well.

"My name is Xiao Xiao, ten years old, soul power level twenty-fifth rank."

Hearing that the second member among the three little ones was likewise at the twenty-fifth rank, the arrogance previously plastered across the faces of the three opponents instantly shattered into smithereens. If there was only one Soul Grandmaster, they still stood a fighting chance, but two meant zero hope.

"My name is Lin Mo, nine years old, soul power level twenty-sixth."

"What the hell, are you guys even playing fair?"

Hearing that Lin Mo was at the twenty-sixth rank, Wang Liu on the opposite side flew into a rage.

He reached out and pointed continuously at the three of them.

"This is way too exaggerated."

An incredulous cry rang out from the spectator stands.

"Are these monsters?"

"Damn, even Shrek doesn't have monsters like this."

"In that case, do you surrender?"

The teacher acting as referee appeared quite enlightened. After all, the strength was already laid out right here: three soul masters who hadn't even reached the two rings going up against three people who were already Soul Grandmasters had zero chance of winning.

If the opponents were just one or two, it would still be fine, but if all of them were, there was truly no countermeasure.

Moreover, as the referee, he also knew that these three beside him were existences whose safety the dean had explicitly ordered to be guaranteed. He also knew that the three were currently key cultivation targets for the school, meant to participate in continental competitions on behalf of the school in the future.

Furthermore, he knew that today's Freshman Assessment was one that the dean—Jing Hongchen himself—would also come to watch. As for the reason, it was to scout other cultivable students.

"We do not surrender! Surrendering without even fighting has never been Zhao Yi's style."

Seeing this muscular youth act so stubbornly, the referee found it hard to say anything further; this was his choice, and as the referee, his primary duty was fairness.

He took two steps backward, holding his palm suspended in mid-air.

"Both teams, take ten steps back and enter the pending combat zone."

"You're a true man."

Lin Mo said softly, then retreated backward alongside the other two.

"Leave this match to me. I just happen to want to test whether my combat capabilities have increased."

"Eh, I want to try too."

"Me, me too."

Huo Yuyao wanted to speak, but Lin Mo's voice stopped her.

"Little Yao, don't even think about it. The dean gave instructions that your Ultimate Ice martial soul must be concealed. Rest assured, your home stage will come later."

"Alright then..."

Huo Yuyao unhappily retreated to a position standing side-by-side with Xiao Xiao, while Lin Mo stood right at the very front.

"Match, begin."

As the referee's palm pressed downward, Zhao Yi's team instantly entered the state of Martial Soul Possession.

True to his identity as a muscular youth, his martial soul was indeed the Mysterious-Toothed Turtle, a turtle-type martial soul possessing extremely formidable defensive power while unexpectedly carrying offensive capability.

As for Wang Liu and Liu Qian behind him, they were both tool martial souls.

Wang Liu's was a short dagger, while Liu Qian's was a steel pen.

Yet Liu Qian did not stop there; in an instant, she summoned various miniature Soul Guidance Ray Guns.

"Close quarters, breakthrough, attrition-truly an unexpectedly perfect formation. Then let me test it out."

Lin Mo, who hadn't participated in actual combat for a long time, couldn't help but grow excited.

Unlike others, when releasing his soul skills, he actually didn't need to display his soul rings.

Because of this, when two clone avatars appeared on his left and right, not the slightest gleam of light appeared beneath his soles; only the Mystic Sword materialized in his hand.

"What is going on? Are those two clones? His soul skill? Why do his soul rings fail to appear when he releases a soul skill?"

Innumerable doubts inadvertently filled the arena, and these doubts were likewise the questions harbored within the hearts of the three opponents.

Yet Lin Mo lacked the idle time to wait for them to ponder. The moment the two clones appeared, the three figures rushed toward the opposing trio in a neat dash.

Huo Yuyao and Xiao Xiao standing behind originally wanted to provide support, but Lin Mo stopped them, and he didn't even seek Huo Yuyao's [Spiritual Detection Sharing].

"Watch out!"

Liu Qian shouted loudly from behind, then manipulated the Soul Guidance Ray Guns to begin attacking the three Lin Mos closing in on them.

Zhao Yi looked at the two young girls in the distance who were making no moves whatsoever, and anger instantly surged within him.

"You're indeed one rank higher than us, but this is far too arrogant!"

Roaring angrily, he completed the possession of his martial soul. Two thick shields bearing sharp spikes snapped instantly onto the back of his hands, completely encasing his entire arms.

The resentment brought by contempt caused him to charge directly toward Lin Mo without a single shred of hesitation.