All's Fair in War

After leaving the classroom, Chen Yong immediately grew excited. "Boss, with the three of us on one team, we'll definitely win this freshman assessment. I wonder what the championship prize is. Could it be a soul bone?"

The moment Chen Yong finished speaking, Jiang Hai and Sun Yunhai gave him strange looks. Jiang Hai felt Chen Yong's forehead and muttered to himself, "This kid doesn't have a fever. Why's he talking nonsense in broad daylight? Yunhai, do you know what's going on?"

Sun Yunhai shook his head, stifling a laugh. Chen Yong's expression darkened. "Boss, I'm serious! I'm not talking in my sleep!"

Sun Yunhai said, "Teacher Zhou Yi did say the prizes for the freshman assessment were valuable, but soul bones are priceless. No matter how deep Shrek Academy's pockets are, they couldn't possibly offer a soul bone as a prize. So stop dreaming, Big Yong. It'd be more realistic to put your feet on the ground and think about how we're going to win. This is Shrek Academy, after all, where crouching tigers and hidden dragons lurk. Huo Yuhao's team alone won't be easy to handle. Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao both seem to be Soul Grandmasters, and Xiao Xiao even has twin martial souls. Huo Yuhao's no ordinary guy either..."

Chen Yong muttered, "With the boss here, what's there to fear? Even the older students can't beat him, let alone a bunch of newcomers."

Jiang Hai shook his head. "Big Yong, you've forgotten what I told you. Never underestimate your opponents. To be honest, since New Student Enrollment, I've only challenged the mediocre second- and third-year students at Shrek Academy. The true geniuses rarely accept my challenges. We can't get arrogant because of that. Besides, this is a three-person team battle, so we can't rule out martial soul fusion skills and the like. None of us can afford to be careless. Our goal has always been the championship. Any place other than first is a failure."

"Got it, Boss!" Chen Yong said.

"Hahaha, let's go. Once we're back, we'll work out our tactics for tomorrow. The freshman assessment has two stages, so let's set ourselves a small goal first: advance without losing a single match!" Jiang Hai said with a laugh. Soul power surged through his meridians. More than a month had passed since he reached Level 20, and he also had Ma Xiaotao, a near-Quasi-Soul Saint, to draw from. Even he didn't know how strong his soul power had become. This would be a chance to give his blade a little test.

The night passed. The next morning, Zhou Yi stopped by, said a few brief words, and left. The competition officially began that afternoon.

The first stage was a round robin. Each team would face ten matches. Once all ten were over, the sixty-four teams with the most wins would advance to the elimination rounds.

The assessment grounds lay in the north-central part of Shrek Academy's Spirit Hall Academy, near the Soul Fighting Arena. An enormous plaza covering twenty thousand square meters had been divided into square arenas, each four hundred square meters in size.

There were fifty sections in total, all beginning their assessments at the same time.

Today was the first day of the assessment, and each team only had to fight once. Tomorrow, however, they would fight two rounds in the morning and two in the afternoon, for a total of four. On the third day, they would have to complete the final five rounds. Every match had to be finished within three days. Such an intense schedule also tested the freshmen's ability to adapt and recover.

The first day's assessment was fairly easy. Only a little over nine hundred first-year students remained, and with them divided among fifty sections, each section had only around a dozen to twenty students.

Jiang Hai and his teammates had been assigned to the Forty-Ninth District. As the soul-powered broadcast rang out, all the freshmen entered the grounds, and the three of them headed to their district.

Students from the same class would not be matched against each other, so the other five teams in Section Forty-Nine were all strangers to them. Since they would soon be opponents, and half of them would be eliminated, none of their gazes were particularly friendly.

After a while, a middle-aged man stepped onto the arena. "I'll be the referee for the Forty-Ninth District over the next three days, as well as your assessment teacher for the next two. My name is Fu Chunfeng."

"First, let me explain the rules. You must not maim your opponents, use soul tools, or disobey the referee's orders. Otherwise, you'll be eliminated immediately. Understood?"

Fu Chunfeng did not look easy to get along with, so all the freshmen hurriedly answered, "Understood!"

"If you understand, let's begin. First match: Jiang Hai, Chen Yong, and Sun Yunhai versus Jun Jian, Huang He, and Huang Hai. Come onto the arena now!" Fu Chunfeng said flatly.

Jiang Hai hadn't expected their team to be first. He paused, then quickly stepped onto the arena. Their opponents were a tall boy with very long arms and a pair of twin brothers.

Among soul masters, twin brothers were actually quite frightening. Not only were they much more likely to develop martial soul fusion skills, but their coordination also far surpassed that of others.

The match began.

Jun Jian was clearly the core of the trio. He was also their only power attack system soul master. His martial soul was a sword, but unlike Liu Gang's Green Steel Sword, his looked both long and broad. It was not a heavy sword, however. Its blade was thin and light, with an exceptionally sharp edge. Combined with his long arms, its attack range approached that of a polearm.

Right from the start, two yellow soul rings appeared around him. He was the trio's only Soul Grandmaster.

Huang He and Huang Hai were both control system soul masters, and their martial souls were quicksand. This kind of martial soul was exceedingly rare-and exceedingly frightening.

On Jiang Hai's side, however, not one of them had released his martial soul.

Jun Jian's gaze sharpened, and his first yellow soul ring lit up. Sword Blade Gang! A layer of even more terrifying sword energy coated the sharp blade. At the same time, two streams of quicksand gathered into rivers and surged toward Jiang Hai's trio.

Boom!

The rivers of quicksand easily pierced their bodies. All three were instantly torn apart, blood spraying everywhere as severed limbs scattered across the arena.

At the horrifying sight, even Huang He and Huang Hai, who had unleashed their martial souls, froze. Had they killed someone?

Jun Jian froze as well. Three living people had been torn to pieces right before their eyes. They were not even twelve years old, and the shock was unimaginable. He couldn't help looking toward their referee, Fu Chunfeng.

An uproar rose below the arena. Some of the more timid students even began dry-heaving.

Fu Chunfeng rolled his eyes at the three dumbstruck boys. Why are you looking at me? You're about to lose, and you're still staring at me! Who taught those little brats? They're far too devious!

Indeed, the entire gruesome scene had been simulated by Sun Yunhai's first soul skill, Seven-Colored Cloud Illusion. To make it gruesome enough, Jiang Hai had deliberately taken Sun Yunhai to the Morgue to study for an entire afternoon.

Meanwhile, concealed by Seven-Colored Cloud Illusion, Jiang Hai and his teammates were slowly approaching Jun Jian's trio.

Seven-Colored Cloud Illusion could not make them invisible, but it could simulate the colors of the scenery behind them. Sun Yunhai simply had to use Seven-Colored Cloud Illusion as his brush to paint an image that could deceive the eye. Since he needed to keep reproducing the changing scenery behind them, the trio advanced slowly. In fact, a careful observer could still have spotted a few clues. But faced with that bloody tableau, their opponents were already beginning to question their very lives. How could they possibly have the presence of mind to observe their surroundings?

Jiang Hai's trio reached the three boys from behind and suddenly appeared. Each delivered a kick, sending the three dazed youngsters off the arena.

"Jiang Hai, Chen Yong, and Sun Yunhai win!" Fu Chunfeng announced expressionlessly, casting a pitying glance at the weak and helpless Jun Jian and his teammates.

In Fu Chunfeng's eyes, Jun Jian, who had already reached the Soul Grandmaster realm, was no weaker than his opponents. After all, anyone who could surpass Level 20 within three months of New Student Enrollment was already a genius. Moreover, Jun Jian's unusual build complemented his martial soul perfectly, and that martial soul was the top-tier Eight-Armed King Sword.

But those three brats were simply too cunning. Sun Yunhai's illusions were also quite impressive. No, this probably wasn't pure illusion, but a form of simulation. His martial soul was a cloud? To use a soft, fluffy cloud martial soul with such consummate skill was truly extraordinary. Three support system soul masters-no wonder they were so confident. They certainly had a few tricks up their sleeves.

Fu Chunfeng reached his conclusions inwardly, but his face remained expressionless.

Jun Jian and the Huang He and Huang Hai brothers finally came to their senses. Looking utterly indignant, Jun Jian protested, "I won't accept this! They cheated!"

The bloodstains and severed limbs on the arena had all vanished. If they still couldn't realize they had fallen for a trick, they wouldn't deserve to take part in Shrek Academy's assessment.

"All's fair in war! You've still got plenty to learn, kids," Chen Yong said with a grin. Although they could have defeated their opponents in a fair fight, tricking them into defeat without shedding a drop of blood felt incredibly satisfying.

Sun Yunhai was excited too. This was the first time he had defeated opponents using his own martial soul. The boss's plan might have been a little sinister, but it certainly worked!

On some of the other arenas, the fighting hadn't even begun, yet their match was already over.

The trio's smug expressions immediately sent the blood rushing to Jun Jian and his teammates' heads. Their faces alternated between green and white. It wasn't just that Jiang Hai's trio had been so underhanded; they had already lost a match, and in such an infuriating manner. They hadn't even had a chance to show their strength. The students who had yet to compete also glared at Jiang Hai's trio, and the scene soon descended into a noisy clamor.

The commotion drew a patrolling teacher from the academic affairs office.

"What happened?" Luo Hong asked coolly.

Seeing someone who was clearly a high-ranking member of Shrek Academy arrive, Jun Jian aggrievedly recounted everything that had happened.

Jun Jian's account was fairly detailed, and Fu Chunfeng had nothing more to add.

Luo Hong gave Jiang Hai's trio a curious look. This year's intake has talents like these? Strategy is also a kind of strength. Shrek Academy's freshmen have experienced too little. A few more trouble-stirrers like them wouldn't hurt. Her expression turned stern. "Jiang Hai, Chen Yong, and Sun Yunhai did not break any rules. Continue the assessment."

"Thank you, Teacher. Goodbye, kids!" As though he hadn't noticed everyone's furious stares, Jiang Hai cheerfully bade them farewell, then ran off with Sun Yunhai and Chen Yong.

They only had one match today.

Watching the trio leave, Luo Hong couldn't help remarking, "Interesting boys. This year's intake at Shrek Academy just keeps getting more interesting. Turning a cloud martial soul into an illusion martial soul-they really dare to dream."

Still, cloud formlessness combined with illusions was indeed a powerful ability. Every martial soul held infinite possibilities. The heights a martial soul could reach depended entirely on the heights its soul master could reach. Shrek Academy hadn't had students this interesting in a long time.

Luo Hong had developed considerable interest in the trio. Aside from patrolling the assessment grounds and preventing cheating, discovering talented students for the academy was another important duty of the teachers from the Academic Affairs Office.

Luo Hong decided to watch their performance a little longer, then decide whether to report them once the round robin ended...