Lin Xi puzzled over it endlessly without finding an answer. In his previous life, he had been an old virgin whose years of being single equaled his age, so he knew absolutely nothing about such matters.
As a result, all because of Wang Dong, Lin Xi was somewhat off his game throughout that day's cultivation. Artoria scolded him several times during sword practice that evening, and Huo Yutong even cast suspicious looks his way.
After all, it would have been one thing if only Lin Xi's emotions had changed, but both Lin Xi and Wang Dong were experiencing emotional fluctuations...
Huo Yutong narrowed her eyes slightly.
Fortunately, the emotions she sensed from Lin Xi were mainly confusion and bewilderment. If they had been shyness and nervousness like Wang Dong's, she would have needed to warn that blue-and-pink-haired girl.
Romantic jealousy was only secondary. Ever since acquiring the Eye of Destiny, her intuition had grown increasingly sharp. She could vaguely sense that Wang Dong was hiding some secret, and getting too close to her would bring colossal trouble.
The day passed amid the strange atmosphere between the three, and soon it was time for the next day's freshman assessment.
The three were assigned to Group Seventeen. After an unfamiliar teacher said a few words, that day's assessment began.
"First match of the first round. Freshman Class One: Lin Xi, Wang Dong, Huo Yutong. Freshman Class Two: Wang Ke, Li Pan, Zhang Xiaoya. You may enter the arena now. Take a corner each. You may only release your Martial Souls after I announce the start."
Without any hesitation, the three stepped onto the competition platform.
The atmosphere between them was exceptionally relaxed, and not one of them was paying attention to their opponents.
They genuinely could not imagine how they could lose.
The opposing trio were also rubbing their fists and flexing their hands.
None of them wanted to be eliminated. To continue studying at the academy, they had to win!
Seeing both sides in position, the teacher nodded and said,
"Begin the assessment."
As his voice fell, Wang Dong was the first to charge forward.
Already airborne, she unfurled a pair of dazzling blue-purple wings. The gleaming golden patterns and magnificent wings startled both her opponents and Wang Yan, the teacher supervising the match, leaving them unable to look away.
Her purple Second Soul Ring, in particular, drew everyone's attention.
Basking in their gazes, Wang Dong suddenly felt an urge to cry.
This was the school life she had originally imagined! These looks, mingling shock, envy, and wonder, were exactly what she craved, yet Lin Xi had stolen all her limelight over the past three months.
At the very least, she could not put in a lousy performance in this freshman assessment. Wang Dong made up her mind.
This was an opportunity to show her abilities that Zhou Yi had secured for her. She absolutely could not waste it.
With that thought, she dove straight toward the three opponents under the guidance of Huo Yutong's Spiritual Detection.
Only when they saw her flying toward them did Li Pan and the others snap out of their daze and release their Martial Souls.
One person's entire body took on an iron-gray sheen, flames appeared in another's hands, and the third controlled vines rising from the ground. Two of the three were Soul Grandmasters.
Defense, assault, and control, with the control member also able to support the assault member-a very classic yet practical lineup.
Had they not been facing Lin Xi's team, their chances of advancing would have been quite good.
Unfortunately, there were no ifs.
With a thud, Li Pan-the Soul Grandmaster whose body had grown an iron skin-collapsed to the ground beneath everyone's shocked gazes.
Under the cover of Wang Dong's radiance, no one noticed Huo Yutong's Soul Ring quietly light up.
To her, Defense System opponents were the least frightening of all.
So what if their tortoise shells were tough? Against Soul Shock, they were little different from papier-mâché.
Defense System Soul Masters like this, who sacrificed speed and attack, fell with a single hit whenever she encountered them.
With the toughest bone to gnaw already down, Wang Dong naturally would not drag the team down either.
Her Butterfly Wing Guillotine slashed down swiftly. In less than ten seconds, she had thrown the remaining two opponents out of the arena.
The entire venue was silent.
Teachers and spectating students alike fell into silence.
Objectively speaking, this match had been a complete stomp.
Lin Xi's side had sent out Wang Dong alone, yet she had easily dispatched all three opponents, two of whom were Soul Grandmasters.
What was more, Wang Dong had not even used her thousand-year Second Soul Skill.
Was this level of combat strength really not that of a Soul Elder?
Wang Dong stretched luxuriously in midair, then flew down looking excited and happily draped an arm over Huo Yutong's shoulders.
"Haha, teaming up with you really is the best, Yutong! Your Soul Skill is ridiculously strong!"
As a godly skill that everyone who used it in the original story invariably praised, Spiritual Detection Sharing had unsurprisingly played an important role in this battle.
Without Huo Yutong's support, Wang Dong might have lost to the trio's teamwork. Even if she could win, it certainly would not have been this easy.
"..."
Expressionlessly, Huo Yutong slapped her hand away, then looked at Lin Xi with wide, expectant eyes.
Lin Xi could not help chuckling and patted her little head.
"You performed very well in this match. Your timing with Soul Shock was excellent. Keep it up."
"Hehe..."
Only after hearing Lin Xi's praise did Huo Yutong smile happily, her large eyes narrowing into blissful slits.
Watching the pair with pink ripples emanating from them, Wang Dong curled her lip sourly.
"Tsk, you're always being lovey-dovey. You don't even pay attention to your surroundings."
That was right. She was jealous.
Who exactly she was jealous of, however, was open to debate.
Lin Xi ignored the lemony sourness radiating from Wang Dong and instead looked thoughtfully toward the spectator stands.
A tall, burly male student and a pair of twins sat there.
He raised an eyebrow.
It seemed Wang Dong and Huo Yutong's first tough battle was coming.
Huo Yutong followed his gaze, and seeing the pair of twins, a thought stirred in her mind.
"Brother Lin Xi, could those two girls have a Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"
To take revenge on the Duke's Mansion in the future, she had specifically studied information about Martial Soul Fusion Skills.
After all, if she wanted to eliminate the Duke's Mansion, the Hell White Tiger was a hurdle she had to overcome.
Through this, she had learned that twins were far more likely than ordinary people to possess a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
That was only natural. After all, twins' Martial Souls generally had strong connections, making it easier for them to awaken a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Hers and Wang Dong's, for instance, were so unrelated that even eight bamboo poles could not reach between them, so they could not possibly possess one.
"Yes." Seeing that Huo Yutong had noticed, Lin Xi stopped keeping it under wraps and explained, "Those two girls have Body Martial Souls, just like you. Theirs are their hair. Their Martial Soul Fusion Skill is called Heavenly Net, and its effect is large-area restraint and binding."
"I see..."
At Lin Xi's words, a glint flashed through Huo Yutong's eyes, as though she had worked out how to deal with it.
Lin Xi was not surprised at all. Huo Yutong was a very clever child; he only needed to give her a hint.
Wang Dong asked curiously,
"You even know that? Where did you get your information?"
"Don't worry about it. It certainly didn't come from your brain."
After habitually leaving Wang Dong speechless with a retort, Lin Xi waved a hand.
"Let's go. I still have something to do today."
They only had one match on the first day anyway. Even if they faced that team, it would be tomorrow.
This assessment was only a bit of fun to begin with. The championship was already theirs for the taking; the only difference was whether Lin Xi would need to act.
By comparison, he was more concerned with matters outside the competition.