Mujin, Are You Serious?

Ten minutes later, at the sound of a whistle, the two groups of students quickly assembled in front of Mujin.

In a running competition where soul power was permitted, combat-type Soul Masters with stronger physical foundations undoubtedly held the advantage. Even though all the non-combat freshmen had been equipped with Soul Tools, quite a few people still looked at them with disdain.

After ten thousand years of accumulation, Shrek Academy's wealth had built a massive super track field, large enough for these hundred-odd freshmen to stand on the same starting line.

"All freshmen, take your positions, ready—" Mujin placed the whistle hanging around her neck between her lips as she faced the eager students at the starting line.

"Phee—"

As the whistle sounded, several Agility Attack Soul Masters took the lead, swiftly opening a gap from the main group. The Assault System Battle Soul Masters with powerful bursts of strength followed close behind, followed in turn by the physically robust defense-type Soul Masters. Although every non-combat freshman immediately activated their soul power and ran out in Propulsion Shoes the instant the whistle blew, they were still noticeably behind those combat-type elites at first.

Even Ning Tian, with soul power as high as Level 33, could not avoid trailing near the back of the main group. However, her soul power was abundant, and her Propulsion Shoes unleashed a powerful forward thrust, allowing her to accelerate steadily. Before long, she had left the other non-combat Soul Masters behind and caught up with the defense-type Soul Masters ahead.

The Agility Attack Soul Masters made full use of their speed advantage. By the time they had completed two full laps, those trailing at the rear had only just reached the end of the first lap. But now came the test of physique and willpower. In terms of pure physical fitness, the Assault System and defense-type Soul Masters were still superior. Even after explosively sprinting through two laps, they were neither red-faced nor out of breath, looking completely at ease.

Around the time the front-runners reached the third lap, the non-combat Soul Masters with sufficient soul power had completely caught up. Most had reached the middle of the main group, leaving many combat-type Soul Masters who had originally been prejudiced against Soul Tools utterly astonished.

Could Soul Tools really change the world of Soul Masters?

Relying on her ample soul power, Ning Tian was struggling somewhat, but her position was already quite near the front. Many Agility Attack Soul Masters whose stamina could not keep up had begun to fall behind one by one. The person currently running in first was no longer an Agility Attack Soul Master, but Xie Huanyue, whose soul power had reached Level 40.

Xie Huanyue was practically about to jump for joy. In the past, all that fat on his body had greatly affected his mobility. Now that he had completely slimmed down, with the highest soul power in the class and the physique of an Assault System Battle Soul Master, he had taken first place in this running contest.

By the fourth lap, Ning Tian had completely overtaken everyone except Xie Huanyue with the support of her Soul Tools, holding firmly onto second place. Meanwhile, the Agility Attack Soul Masters who had sprinted with all their might from the start had all fallen into the middle of the main group due to insufficient stamina.

As for those non-combat Soul Masters whom no one had favored, they had each used their Soul Tools to reach the upper ranks of the main group, leaving even more combat-type Soul Masters dumbfounded.

Apparently determined to keep up his act, Huo Yuhao deliberately hung far behind everyone else. As he passed Mujin, he even threw his teacher a flying kiss. Judging from his relaxed expression, this guy was clearly holding back like mad. By the time Xie Huanyue had finished the fourth lap, Huo Yuhao had only just begun his third.

"This brat..." Mujin had nearly been angered to the point of smoking from all seven orifices after being teased by Huo Yuhao every lap. Just now, the brat had even secretly run up beside her and deliberately leaned his face close. Before she could react, she had directly kissed Huo Yuhao on the cheek.

Furious and embarrassed, Mujin loudly announced, "In today's running competition, the last-place finisher is forbidden from eating for a day! The bottom thirty are not allowed to eat lunch!"

"Mujin, are you serious?" Huo Yuhao, trailing at the very back, looked shocked. People were made of iron and meals were made of steel—skip one meal and you would be starving! This was even more true in the Douluo World, where one could not cultivate to fast from food. Seeing the freshmen ahead shoot him gleeful, mocking looks, Huo Yuhao hardened his heart.

Fine, you're looking down on me? Laughing at me? I'm pretending to be a weakling, so it's perfectly normal and logical for me to run slowly. I'm running so elegantly—why are you all targeting me?

Although Mujin's registration records noted that Huo Yuhao's true soul power was Level 29, she could never have imagined just how terrifying his actual strength was.

When Huo Yuhao underwent his Secondary Awakening in the Holy Spirit Cult, he possessed Innate Level 30 Full Soul Power. After a year of tempering in the Blood Pool, he also gained a physique that only Assault System Battle Soul Elders possessed. Then, after fusing with Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and consecutively obtaining two Million Year Soul Rings, his actual soul power had long since broken through the Level 40 Soul Ancestor threshold!

He merely lacked the Soul Rings; it was not as though he lacked the soul power corresponding to a Soul Ancestor or above. Bibi Dong had once said that if he had not deliberately compressed his soul power to raise its level, then with enough Soul Rings, he might already have become a Soul King.

Then, all the freshmen still sprinting with all their might saw a black shadow howl past.

He was too fast—simply too fast! With the enhancement of Soul Tools, Huo Yuhao's instantaneous burst of speed directly surpassed that of a normal Agility Attack Battle Soul Ancestor. In less than ten seconds, he completed the third lap, then maintained that same speed as he charged into the fourth.

This guy really was incredible! Ning Tian gave a soft snort. Whenever he spent time with them, he had always kept such a low profile. Most of the time, they had treated him as a cultivation cheat, instead overlooking his talent.

"Good heavens!" Even Xie Huanyue, who was running at the very front, was deeply shocked by Huo Yuhao's sudden burst of speed. But Huo Yuhao had been hiding his strength—did that mean he, after awakening the legendary Sun God Ape Martial Soul, had not been hiding his own strength?

Just as Huo Yuhao rapidly finished the fourth lap and was about to overtake Ning Tian, Xie Huanyue abruptly stopped. He bent his upper body forward into a horse stance, his right fist braced against the ground. His springy calves pressed down hard like a pumping machine, taking on the shape of compressed springs, while wisps of steam began to rise from his body.

Seeing this familiar scene just after overtaking Ning Tian, Huo Yuhao nearly slipped. It was not merely similar—it was exactly the same.

The next moment, Xie Huanyue's body shot forward in a burst that was practically a flash. Even an Agility Attack Soul King could not match that speed.

The two of them had reached speeds far beyond what ordinary freshmen could comprehend. They crossed the finish line almost one after the other, leaving Ning Tian alone behind them, utterly disheveled in the wind.

First place: Xie Huanyue. Second place: Huo Yuhao. Third place: Ning Tian.

"Young Huo, it's not very fair of you to hide your strength like that." Xie Huanyue patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder. His previous state could not be maintained for long. If Huo Yuhao had erupted seriously like that from the beginning, first place would certainly not have been his.

"Fatty, you're not bad yourself. A god-tier Martial Soul awakened from a legend really is different." Huo Yuhao grinned. Then, after thinking for a moment, he took a round straw hat tied with red silk from his Storage Soul Tool and placed it on Xie Huanyue's head. "This is for you. It suits you pretty well."

Xie Huanyue's mouth twitched. He did not understand why Huo Yuhao had put such a straw hat on him, but when Huo Yuhao handed him a mirror and he looked at himself wearing it, he found that he actually looked rather handsome.

While Huo Yuhao and Xie Huanyue chatted, all the freshmen finally completed the course as well. The defense-type Battle Soul Master who came in last wore a miserable expression. He would not get to eat today...

"Everyone, assemble." After resting for a few minutes, Mujin gave a light cough, and the sprawled-out students finally climbed up from the ground.

"You must have seen it just now. With the help of Soul Tools, these twenty-some non-combat students achieved quite respectable results."

Everyone nodded, unable to deny it. Even some freshmen who were deeply opposed to Soul Tools had to admit inwardly, after seeing those non-combat students achieve better results than themselves, that Soul Tools had indeed brought earth-shaking changes to the world of Soul Masters.

"I believe everyone knows that over the past several thousand years, Soul Tools have developed at an astonishing pace. What the Sun Moon Continent brought back then were more rare materials and the basic methods for making Soul Tools. After several thousand years of development, the crafting of Soul Tools has become more and more refined, and their power has grown greater and greater. This has led to a situation where even a food-system Tool Soul Master wielding a sufficiently powerful Soul Tool can unleash attack power no weaker than that of an Assault System Battle Soul Master—perhaps even stronger. Likewise, if an Agility Attack Battle Soul Master holds a Soul Tool with powerful defensive capabilities, then they can temporarily serve the role of a defense-system Tool Soul Master."

"One could say that the emergence of Soul Tools has greatly changed the direction and current state of Soul Master cultivation. In truth, what has been weakened is the role of Soul Rings. As long as one has sufficient soul power, one can use Soul Tools to make up for the lack of power from their Soul Rings. This has caused many people to overlook the function of Soul Rings, leading to the current state where Soul Masters throughout the four great empires all cultivate by pursuing soul power alone."

"Without question, this cultivation method is indeed effective in the short term, especially for Soul Masters below Level 50, where the results are especially obvious. But I must tell you this: Shrek Academy does not train such Soul Masters. Because once they pass Level 50, they are all trash!"

The freshmen looked at one another, unable to understand what Teacher Mujin was getting at.

"You don't understand, right? Let me give you an example. Suppose you are a Tool Martial Soul Master who has cultivated to Level 50, while I am an Agility Attack Battle Soul Master who has also cultivated to Level 50. You possess a Soul Tool capable of threatening my life, while I have no Soul Tools. In this battle, who wins?"

"The answer is simple: I will definitely win. Why? Because with my speed, you will not even have the chance to hit me with your Soul Tool. Even if you are equipped with top-tier Soul Tools from head to toe, I can still wear you down with my speed advantage until your soul power is exhausted. The more powerful a Soul Tool is, the greater its soul power consumption. Therefore, although defense-, support-, and food-system Tool Soul Masters can use Soul Tools to gain the attack power of Assault System Battle Soul Masters, that does not mean they possess the combat strength of Assault System Battle Soul Masters. You must remember this clearly. Thus, while Soul Tools can greatly enhance defense-, support-, and food-system Tool Soul Masters, if your body is not strong enough, then on the battlefield, you will always be the first to die. Your enemies will not spare you just because you are not Battle Soul Masters. On the contrary, people squeeze the soft persimmon first. Your attack power may be strong through Soul Tools, but you are weak in every other aspect. How do you think your enemies will choose?"

Listening to this lecture, which was almost identical to the one from the original story, Huo Yuhao finally understood. The current Shrek Academy was beginning to focus on training Soul Masters who also studied Soul Tools—the so-called Shrek Soul Tool Department.

"By the same token, if my physical qualities are extremely strong and I already possess formidable combat power, then having powerful Soul Tools in my hands is like adding wings to a tiger. That is what a true powerhouse is." Mujin patiently instructed them.

"Attack and defense should be blurred. Anyone in a Soul Master team can act as an attacker, but improving your own qualities is what will maximize your ability to survive on the battlefield. Unless Soul Tools develop to the point where they can completely replace your bodies one day, physical training and the selection of Soul Rings will remain the highest priorities of your future cultivation."

The Shrek teachers, who shared this understanding of Soul Tools, had no idea that ten thousand years later, Soul Tools would truly develop to the degree they had described—replacing the body. Well, things like Battle Armor, Mecha, and even space warships.

"For the next three months, I will primarily guide you in physical training and theoretical knowledge, allowing you to truly become genius Soul Masters with immense potential."

"This morning's class ends here. As an exception, everyone is allowed to have a proper meal at noon today. Class dismissed. Huo Yuhao, come to my office."

"Long live Teacher Mujin—" The students who had just been depressed about not being allowed to eat immediately cheered. It was clear that Teacher Mujin truly knew how to win people over.

Inside the office, Huo Yuhao shyly touched the mark on his face where Mujin's red lips had brushed him. "Teacher Mujin, are you going to examine my body?"

Mujin flew into a rage. "Get lost, Huo Yuhao! What is wrong with you—"

Three updates today. After dinner tonight, I'll check the voting results and decide whether to post a fourth or fifth update.