In the blink of an eye, autumn gave way to winter. Three and a half months had passed since Huo Yuhao arrived in Shrek City.
Inside the little house, Huo Yuhao gently brushed the metal shavings off the fine gold plate with his hand, clearly revealing a Level 2 Core Array, "Energy Gathering," that lacked only a few crucial strokes.
He gazed at the seemingly sharp tip of the refined iron carving knife, then shook his head and removed the fine gold plate secured to the workbench with clamps:
"Brother Bujue, I know how to inscribe the next part, but my Soul Power isn't strong enough to sustain it."
Standing beside him, Feng Bujue swallowed:
"From knowing nothing about Soul Tools to being just a little cultivation short of becoming a Level 2 Soul Engineer, all in only three months. That talent can only be called earth-shattering. If you'd been born into a great noble family in the Sun Moon Empire and given special attention, you'd probably already have your Level 3 Soul Engineer certification."
"What level is your Soul Power now?"
Feng Bujue was currently wavering over whether to simply take Huo Yuhao and run. He gritted his teeth and ultimately held himself back.
"At the peak of level seventeen." Huo Yuhao thought seriously for a while, then said uncertainly, "I feel like reaching level twenty Soul Power would take at least three months, even if I cultivated nonstop, day and night?"
"That's not slow. Don't forget, you've taken quite a few pills. Just cultivate step by step from here on. But Soul Tool theory isn't restricted by Soul Power Level. You can start looking into the knowledge of Level 3 and Level 4 Soul Engineers."
Feng Bujue waved a hand and left Huo Yuhao's little house. As soon as he stepped outside, an employee called out:
"Manager Feng, a letter has arrived for you!"
"Coming!"
Feng Bujue took the letter back to his dormitory, tore open the anti-counterfeiting strip, and began reading:
"Why so high-flown and literary? Have you changed your ways? I read the follow-up letter you sent and arranged for a Soul Ascension Pill that very day. You should have received it long ago."
"I've been busy this year, so my reply is late. A project I've researched for years has yielded no results, and it's already gone through three extensions. Teacher is deeply disappointed too. We're preparing to wrap up the project and seal it away. Reaching Level 8 Soul Engineer through research achievements really isn't easy."
"But I'm unwilling to become a mere craftsman who only knows how to make Soul Tools. That would disgrace my teacher's lineage."
"By the way, that youngster you said became a Level 1 Soul Engineer in a month-he wouldn't happen to be a spy planted with you by the Douluo Three Kingdoms or Shrek, would he? Even my eldest senior brother didn't perform so outrageously back then."
"I hear quite a few spies have entered the country through your channels over the years. You need to keep that in mind."
"The project failed and wasted vast resources. I'm afraid Teacher won't apply for any major projects for me over the next few years. Becoming a Level 8 Soul Engineer is nowhere in sight, so I'll happen to have some free time."
"Once that youngster officially becomes a Level 2 Soul Engineer, bring him back to the academy for me to see. If his background is clean and his talent is good, I'll consider taking him as a disciple."
"Our little sister Tingting has already earned her Level 4 Soul Engineer certification. Next, I'll hire her as a teaching assistant through the academy's academic administration system and keep her by my side to train her. Don't worry."
"-Feng Yu"
Feng Bujue slowly exhaled and murmured:
"Cousin, young Brother Huo's talent probably exceeds anything you or I imagined."
The next day, at the finals of Shrek Academy's freshman assessment.
Dai Huabin led Zhu Lu and Cui Yajie in suppressing Tang Yin, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao for a time.
Seeing the situation turning against them, Tang Yin decisively retreated several steps to create distance and took various Hidden Weapons out of the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges. Time to play his trump cards!
For a moment, Tang Yin hurled all sorts of Willow-Leaf Darts, throwing knives, Locust Stones, and even Plum Blossom Needles at his three opponents using various techniques, some poisoned and some not.
Dai Huabin's expression changed slightly in surprise:
"Where did this country bumpkin come from? He's actually still using trashy Hidden Weapons!"
After all, before the Douluo Continent collided with the Sun Moon Continent, the Tang Sect's various Hidden Weapons had already been sold on the Douluo Continent for six thousand years.
Even the most sophisticated Hidden Weapons feared targeted research.
Ordinary hand-thrown Hidden Weapons, in particular, had been thoroughly researched by every major power. No matter how brilliant the throwing technique, unless the poison applied reached a certain potency, it was difficult to pull off any tricks.
Thus, Dai Huabin wasn't intimidated at all. He activated White Tiger Protection Barrier and White Tiger Demon God Transformation, while using some kind of technique to swat the Hidden Weapons away with his claws.
On closer inspection, his technique actually bore some resemblance to Tang Yin's.
"Tang Yin, you fucking idiot, stop!" Wang Dong shrieked. Shielding Zhu Lu and Cui Yajie behind him, Dai Huabin was already charging toward her!
Tang Yin's sudden barrage of Hidden Weapons had squeezed out the space Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao could occupy, hindering their movements.
Tang Yin roared furiously, "You brat, how dare you steal my Tang Sect's secret techniques?! But you've only learned their outward form!"
His eyes were bloodshot, like a gambler crazed by his losses. His Mysterious Jade Hands hurled Hidden Weapons so quickly they nearly threw off sparks.
He refused to believe that the methods he'd used to sweep across the continent ten thousand years ago couldn't deal with this three-ring Soul Elder from the Dai Family!
With a savage grin, Dai Huabin defeated Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao one after another, telling him through his actions:
You really can't!
"I was wondering why our Dai Family's special family training included such a useless exercise." Dai Huabin looked at Tang Yin, understanding written all over his face, and sighed. "So it was specifically developed to guard against petty villains like you."
"You forced me to do this!" Tang Yin said chillingly. He slapped both palms against the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges, taking a Godly Zhuge Crossbow in his left hand and a Shadow in the Sand in his right.
He had obtained both from Tang Ya. They were coated in deadly poison that no one below Soul King could suppress.
"Mechanism-operated Hidden Weapons!" Dai Huabin was slightly startled, then glanced in surprise at the unmoved referee and the academy's senior staff on the dais. Scratching his head, he muttered:
"Cui Yajie, leave the arena first. You can't withstand those two Hidden Weapons."
Cui Yajie took the opportunity to leave the assessment area. Keeping his eyes on Tang Yin's hands without exposing the slightest opening, Dai Huabin embraced Zhu Lu. A gigantic figure more than eight meters long and over two meters tall appeared in the center of the assessment area. It was their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, the Hell White Tiger!
The enormous white tiger's body looked somewhat transparent, an entirely illusory existence. Its massive body crouched slightly. The next instant, trailing a transparent ripple, it pounced straight toward Tang Yin at a terrifying speed.
Holding his Hidden Weapons, Tang Yin first fired two test shots. Finding that they couldn't penetrate its defenses, he hurriedly threw out a handful of Dragon Whisker Needles coated in deadly poison.
Specifically designed to pierce armor, the Dragon Whisker Needles were as fine as hair. With a whistle and a flash of cold light, they pierced the Hell White Tiger's Soul Power defenses!
Now I only need to kite it with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and harass it occasionally with the Godly Zhuge Crossbow and Shadow in the Sand. A Martial Soul Fusion Skill definitely can't last long!
Tang Yin's eyes lit up. He used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and began waging a guerrilla battle against the Hell White Tiger.
On the dais.
Director of Studies Du Weilun said with a troubled expression, "Headmaster, this..."
"Because the Tang Sect declined so quickly, the clause in the academy rules forbidding mechanism-operated Hidden Weapons in internal competitions was actually deleted long ago!" Yan Shaozhe took out the academy rulebook and flipped through it, equally speechless. "By the look of things, that boy might really hold out until the Martial Soul Fusion Skill ends and win the championship."
Du Weilun asked, "Then what should we do?"
"If he can exploit a loophole in the academy rules, that counts as his ability. But this loophole must be closed. There's no reason to restrict only Fixed Soul Cannon Shells without restricting Hidden Weapons. But... Tang Yin's Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, correct?"
"I revere Ancestor Tang San, but training core disciples costs real money. Let's observe him a while longer."
"Freshman Class One, Tang Yin, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao win!"
The students watching below all booed.
Seeing the strange looks from the surrounding students, Wang Dong couldn't help crying. It was too humiliating. If this was how they won the championship, she'd rather not have it!
She utterly hated Tang Yin, that arrogant, sinister little villain.
On the dais, Du Weilun opened the folder in his hands and read, "Based on the freshmen's performance in the assessment, the academy has given final approval to the following core disciples: Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, Dai Huabin, Zhu Lu, Zhou Sichen, Cao Jinxuan, Lan Susu, Lan Luoluo, Ning Tian, and Wu Feng."
Tang Yin looked utterly stunned:
I led the team to the championship, but I'm not among the core disciples.
Has Shrek Academy's system really become this rotten?!
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