Freshman Assessment Finals

Time soon advanced to the morning of the third day, and the three-day Freshman Assessment finally reached its last match: the finals.

The stands were packed, and quite a few students who had failed to get seats had chosen to stand.

Jing Hongchen, Xiao Hongchen, and Meng Hongchen sat in a relatively secluded section of the stands, while Ye Guyi, Ji Juechen, and Jing Ziyan stood near the front, ready to enjoy the coming match.

Both teams in the finals were already in position.

On one side stood the Mo Yu Xiao Team: Lin Mo, Huo Yuyao, and Xiao Xiao.

On the other, a girl with fair skin, pale enough to look slightly sickly, stood at the front. She had a slender figure and wore a short black jacket, a short pleated skirt, and ankle-high black combat boots.

A strap around her thigh held a dagger.

Two boys stood behind her.

"Wow, that girl is so pale."

Xiao Xiao could not help exclaiming as she looked at their opponent.

"But she looks kind of sickly."

Listening to the two girls chat, Lin Mo briefly studied their opponent, but could not recall whether there had been such a character.

After all, it had been over a month since he had last encountered a character from the original story. In that month, he had met countless people who had never been mentioned in it, and he was gradually forgetting which named but relatively minor characters had appeared in the original.

"Both teams, introduce yourselves."

At the referee's raised hand, both teams stepped back five paces as before.

"Huo Yuyao, eight years old, level twenty-five Soul Power."

"Xiao Xiao, ten years old, level twenty-five Soul Power."

"Lin Mo, nine years old, level twenty-six Soul Power."

Since there had been a match every half day, everyone present already knew their Soul Power levels by heart, so the announcement caused no further stir.

Once that side had finished its introductions, the referee turned his gaze to the other team.

"Nana, twelve years old, level twenty-four Soul Power."

"Liu Cheng, twelve years old, level nineteen Soul Power."

"Chen Hao, twelve years old, level nineteen Soul Power."

Nana?! I finally remember. She's Ghost Nana, the girl controlled by a Holy Spirit Cult branch in the original story. Wait, what were her Soul Skills again?

Lin Mo pondered in confusion.

Never mind. She's another promising talent, anyway. In the original story, my teacher took part of her soul, then returned it to her. After he helped rescue her parents, she followed Huo Yuhao. I could try that too. It's a bit scummy, but since I intend to establish the Spirit Pagoda, I need to learn something about the Holy Spirit Cult first.

"Both teams, ready."

The referee spread his fingers, confirmed that both teams were prepared, then swept his hand down hard.

"Match, begin!"

As the referee's words fell, the three of them summoned their Martial Souls.

Standing in front of the two girls, Lin Mo summoned the Mystic Sword first. Huo Yuyao and Xiao Xiao immediately activated their Martial Souls and stood together. Xiao Xiao split the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron into three, surrounding them with protection.

Golden light flashed in Huo Yuyao's eyes, and her two teammates were instantly connected to Spiritual Detection Sharing.

Across from them, the boy named Liu Cheng immediately took out his equipment and began assembling it.

It looked like a basic Soul Guidance Ray array.

The boy named Chen Hao stepped forward and released his Martial Soul. The phantom of a thick stone wall appeared before him, and he positioned himself in front of Liu Cheng.

As for Nana, her Martial Soul entered its possession state the instant the command fell.

Her Martial Soul was rather unusual-a ghost. The instant Martial Soul Possession activated, her entire body became slightly ethereal, and her dark purple hair grew somewhat indistinct.

Almost as soon as Lin Mo summoned his Martial Soul, the girl was already less than five meters away from him.

When Nana reached the five-meter mark, a yellow Soul Ring rose from beneath her feet.

In an instant, her figure became even more blurred. A wisp of pale purple mist seemed to envelop her, and her body grew slightly transparent.

I remember now. This is her First Soul Skill. It seems to grant immunity to some physical damage. Damn, isn't that a direct counter to me?!

Just as he was about to complain, he noticed something even more startling.

"No! She's so fast that even Spiritual Detection can barely track her."

Fast...

So fast!

Lin Mo's pupils abruptly contracted. Almost instinctively, he raised the Mystic Sword horizontally to block.

Clang-

The crisp sound rang in everyone's ears as a dagger struck the blade.

Far behind Nana, Liu Cheng began firing wildly, aiming to harass and attack their back line.

"Xiao Xiao, send one Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron over to block as many of those attacks as possible. Keep two here to protect us."

Although they were standing close together, Huo Yuyao still chose to communicate through her First Soul Skill, relaying the message to Lin Mo as well.

"Okay!"

Following her instructions, Xiao Xiao sent one of the great cauldrons circling her straight toward Liu Cheng and Chen Hao in the distance.

Just before it struck, however, a sturdy stone wall blocked it.

On Lin Mo's side, at the same moment Xiao Xiao's cauldron flew out-

Nana slapped the flat of his sword. Although she seemed to exert no force at all, Lin Mo's wrist sank, and he retreated two steps.

"Tch."

Before he could steady himself, Nana's second strike arrived. In her half-ghost state, her body seemed weightless, her movements drifting unpredictably. Like a dandelion carried by the wind, she darted left and right, impossible to anticipate.

Lin Mo turned sideways to evade and slashed diagonally with the Mystic Sword.

The blade passed through Nana's body.

No-or rather, it passed through part of her body. As the blade swept across her waist and abdomen, it stirred up a swirl of translucent mist.

It should have left a moderately deep wound, yet all it did was slice her clothes.

Good grief, just how much physical damage does this Soul Skill make you immune to?!

Lin Mo could not help complaining inwardly.

Nana's expression did not change. Taking advantage of the opening after Lin Mo's strike, she thrust a palm toward his chest.

The wind from her palm was cold and sinister, carrying the soul power unique to her Martial Soul.

Lin Mo should have been able to evade the blow easily, but suddenly his left hand felt heavy.

An attack he could have avoided by turning sideways now had to be taken head-on with his left arm.

Thud!

The force of her palm drove him back three full steps. Pain shot through his arm, making him frown, but fortunately, he suffered no more serious injury.

Nana had achieved her goal. Having forced Lin Mo back, she twisted around and stopped engaging him, darting toward his rear flank instead. Her target was clear.

Huo Yuyao.

"Not a chance!"

Lin Mo turned, lightly tapped his left foot against the ground, and a white light shone behind him. A figure identical to him stepped onto his shoulder and leaped toward Nana.

Extreme Yang.

Lin Mo's clone leaped high into the air and thrust the Suspended Sword down directly in front of Nana, stopping her advance.

Nana frowned slightly. Her half-ghost body was forced into a sharp turn as she prepared to charge again, but the next moment, she sensed a flash of cold steel beside her.

Instinctively, she made two long leaps in succession, avoiding the thrust.

Extreme Yin.

The sword that had been embedded in the ground was now gripped by another clone, who hurled it toward her.

The reason he could summon this new clone so far away was that, after reaching two Soul Rings, he had discovered that the clones summoned by these two Soul Skills were no longer restricted to his immediate surroundings. He could summon them anywhere near either himself or the Mystic Sword.

After evading the flying Suspended Sword, Nana had no choice but to halt her offensive, because Lin Mo's true body had already reached her side.

"Your opponent is me."

The Mystic Sword swept across, its blade glowing faintly silver-white. This was an additional effect of his First Soul Skill: it had an extra one hundred percent effect against Soul Masters with dark, evil, or undead Martial Souls.

As the sword's light approached, Nana instinctively felt a trace of unease. She reflexively activated her First Soul Skill to make her body ethereal, but when the blade swept across her translucent shoulder, a sharp pain still struck her.

She grunted and retreated two steps, looking down at her shoulder.

Blood began seeping from the cut, and the pale purple mist around that spot slowly dissipated.

"Hmph!"

Nana's eyes flashed, and the second Soul Ring beneath her feet lit up.

Three streams of pale purple mist instantly surged from her body, forming three phantoms identical to her at her sides.

The four figures scattered simultaneously, attacking Lin Mo from four directions.

At the sight, Lin Mo gave a wry smile.

"What a shame. We happen to have a Soul Skill that counters clones."

Lin Mo sighed, then thrust the Mystic Sword straight at the Nana on his left.

Nana's expression changed. The phantom dispersed the moment the blade touched her, and her true body rapidly retreated, avoiding the lethal strike.

"How did you tell?"

She could not help asking. In theory, her phantoms should have been indistinguishable from her true body.

Lin Mo did not answer her question. The Mystic Sword thrust out again.

The girl quickly dodged his thrust, her gaze instantly locking onto the blue-haired girl in the distance.

That girl is the only one who hasn't revealed her Soul Skills or Martial Soul yet. It has to be her.

"Liu Cheng, target the blue-haired girl first!"

"Got it!"

He directed a dense barrage from his many Soul Guidance Ray Guns toward Huo Yuyao.

"Hmph! You want to lay a hand on our adorable captain? Did you ask me first?"

Xiao Xiao waved her little hand, and the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldrons guarding their flanks pressed together, directly blocking the rainlike barrage.

Then she commanded the other Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, which had been harassing their opponents, to slam hard into Liu Cheng.

Clang!

The stone wall Chen Hao summoned took the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron's blow head-on.

"Hmph."

At the center of the battlefield, Lin Mo and Nana's fight continued. Both had begun growing accustomed to the other's attacks, and were largely countering each move as it came.

"Shattering stone quake!"

With Chen Hao's roar, he hurled the stone wall, several meters tall, into the air. The intact wall then burst into countless spikes that shot straight toward the two girls.

Liu Cheng also left Chen Hao's protection, moving directly to the other side and launching a fresh offensive.

The sudden change forced Lin Mo, still fighting Nana, to divide his attention and watch what was happening behind him.

But this also gave Nana an opening.

The girl instantly activated both her first and second skills, flashed in front of Lin Mo at tremendous speed, and struck his chest with her palm.

Her Soul Power poured into Lin Mo's body through that blow.

This was not a Soul Skill, but an ability she had developed herself. She merged her unusual Martial Soul's power into her Soul Power, driving Ghost Power into her opponent's body as she attacked. This briefly slowed their spiritual power, primarily to disrupt the circulation of their Soul Power.

"Ugh!"

Lin Mo felt a chill in his chest, and his Soul Power circulation faltered.

Sensing something wrong, he hurriedly used Yin-Yang Reverse Profound Steps to pull away. Without the support of Soul Power, however, he could not move very fast. With its circulation restricted, his movements had also become somewhat sluggish, and every time he evaded her, she caught up again.

Nana seized the opportunity, striking with her palms in rapid succession and constantly flashing to his side. Every blow carried Ghost Power. Although none hit particularly hard, each strike made his Soul Power circulation a little more sluggish.

Thud, thud, thud, thud...

A series of muffled impacts rang out. Although Lin Mo took several palm strikes, he still blocked most of her attacks.

Just as Nana decided it was time to settle the match and drew her dagger to attack Lin Mo-

She suddenly froze for a brief instant.

This was Mental Interference, activated by Huo Yuyao as she dodged attacks while keeping an eye on their battle.

However, with her ghost Martial Soul, Nana also cultivated her spiritual power. That fleeting daze did not stop her attack.

Just as her dagger was about to pierce him, Lin Mo shifted his weight onto his right foot, then hopped lightly and spun, avoiding the blow.

And that was not all. Just as Nana realized what had happened and saw that her attack was about to miss-

As Lin Mo dodged right, an identical figure appeared behind him and thrust a sword at her.

Damn it, he used his own body to hide his Soul Skill activation?

Lin Mo had wanted to use this opportunity to seek help from Xiao Xiao's Soul Skill, but the distant opponents were attacking like their ammunition cost nothing, unleashing a furious barrage.

Just as he was about to think of another method, his teacher, whom he had been unable to wake all this time, finally spoke.

"I sensed the power of a soul. What is happening?"

Seeing that his teacher had awakened, Lin Mo quickly explained what had happened. He even told Electrolux that the girl belonged to the Holy Spirit Cult and just how vile that cult was, securing his help.

"I understand. A few of the methods used by this Holy Spirit Cult are rather interesting. I will teach you this spell. The next time that girl uses her First Soul Skill, you only need to touch her to forcibly seize some fragments of her soul. Rest assured, someone who loses part of their soul will not die. They will merely suffer some spiritual deterioration and be unable to use much of their power."