Yu Xiaogang's Devil Training
On the other side of the Star Dou Great Forest, Shrek and his group were walking out along a forest path.
The atmosphere was heavy. Dai Mubai walked at the front, his face grim and silent. The pressure of his White Tiger Martial Soul unconsciously spread out, and the small Soul Beast along the way fled in all directions. He had never lost so miserably; it was an utter disgrace.
Ning Rongrong hung her head, kicking at the pebbles by the roadside. It was bad enough that her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda had been forcibly suppressed, but to be forced to have her Martial Soul canceled right in front of her was unbearable. She had never suffered such humiliation in her life. But remembering Lin Chen's calm yet unquestionable gaze, she couldn't help but feel a little scared.
Oscar walked in the middle, sighing from time to time. He had thought he would get the two-thousand-year-old Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent, but he lost the competition and lost the Soul Ring. He was happy for nothing.
Tang San walked at the very back, stroking the Godly Zhuge Crossbow in his hand, his brows furrowed, constantly reviewing the entire battle.
From the start of the battle to its collapse, it only took a dozen breaths. The core issue was Lin Chen's Space Teleportation, which was completely unreasonable, ignored formations, and directly switched to support roles.
How can we prevent this from happening again?
He mentally rehearsed the deployment range of the Blue Silver Grass, the predicted angles of the Hidden Weapon, and the timing of the Purple Demon Eye's capture. There's always a way, always a way to counter spatial Soul Skill.
"Hey, alright, alright, what's with all those long faces?" Zhao Wuji was walking at the front, suddenly stopped, turned around, looked at the group, and grinned.
"It's just a lost match, what's the big deal? Heaven Dou Royal Academy is a top-tier academy on the continent, it's normal for them to produce a few monsters. You guys aren't bad either, you just didn't expect them to have a space Soul Master."
Despite his rough exterior, he was perceptive and noticed the low spirits of the group, so he took the initiative to comfort them.
Yu Xiaogang beside him, but remained silent, his face grim.
Since the end of the battle, he hasn't said a word. His mind is filled with Lin Chen's three Soul Ring, as well as the strange Chaos Suppression and Void Shift.
Each of these things challenged the Martial Soul Theory he had studied his entire life. The Ten Core Competencies and the optimal Soul Ring ratio that he had always regarded as the gold standard were shattered in that young man's case.
He was even somewhat bewildered, wondering if his years of research had been right or wrong.
"Teacher Zhao, look!"
Zhu Zhuqing suddenly spoke, pointing to the bushes on the left.
Following the sound, everyone looked and saw a crimson figure slowly moving through the bushes. Its crest was as red as a flame, and its tail feathers were long. It was a Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent.
It flicked its tongue, warily eyeing the crowd, clearly drawn by the sounds of fighting.
"It's Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent!" Oscar's eyes lit up instantly. "Judging by its length, it's at least a thousand years old!"
Zhao Wuji's eyes lit up, and he laughed heartily, "Good lad, you've got good luck! You lost the last one, and this one's delivered right to your doorstep! Watch me!"
He darted away in a flash. With the full force of a level 76 Soul Saint, the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent was so frightened that it turned and fled, but it was no match for him.
Zhao Wuji reached out and grabbed, and the golden Great Strength Vajra Palm descended from nowhere, knocking the snake unconscious with a gentle slap. He then carried it back by its tail.
"How about it? Perfect for you." Zhao Wuji threw the snake on the ground. "Absorb it quickly, we'll protect you."
Oscar was overjoyed and quickly sat down cross-legged, placing his hands on the snake's head.
The crowd immediately gathered around, forming a cordon. Tang San also temporarily put aside his thoughts and helped with the guard duty.
Half an hour later, a purple Soul Ring rose from the snake's body and slowly merged into Oscar's body.
He trembled, and the third Soul Ring lit up steadily, spreading out the level 31 Soul Power fluctuations.
"Hahaha, it worked!" Oscar jumped up excitedly. "Third Soul Skill, Extreme Speed Flying Mushroom Sausage! Eating it allows for brief flight, and at a pretty fast speed!"
Everyone smiled, and the somber atmosphere eased slightly.
"See? I told you it was worth the trip." Zhao Wuji patted Yu Xiaogang on the shoulder. "Grandmaster, although we lost the match, Oscar got Soul Ring. Besides, what's a loss for a young man? Go back and train hard, and we'll win next time."
Yu Xiaogang twitched the corners of his mouth, wanting to laugh, but he didn't.
He glanced at Tang San and saw that the young man's eyes were resolute as he was deep in thought. He breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Losing a game isn't scary; what's scary is not even being able to find a direction to catch up with.
"Let's go." Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart. "Back to the academy."
The group set off, heading towards the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest.
By the time they returned to the Shrek Academy, it was already dusk.
The old wooden door creaked in the evening breeze, and a thin layer of fallen leaves had accumulated in the yard. The group filed in, no one spoke, only the rustling sound of their footsteps on the fallen leaves could be heard.
The shadow of Star Dou's crushing defeat during the day still weighed heavily on everyone's hearts.
Yu Xiaogang walked straight to the stone platform in the center of the playground, turned around and looked at everyone.
His gray robe was still covered with bits of Star Dou, his face remained gloomy, but his eyes were sharper than usual.
"Alright, everyone stand still."
The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable weight. The seven people immediately stood in a row. Ning Rongrong also put away her usual spoiled attitude, pursed her lips, and stood straight. Even Ma Hongjun hung his head, his usual playful smile gone.
"Today's match was a shameful defeat."
Yu Xiaogang cut to the chase, showing no mercy whatsoever, "You lost because you underestimated your opponent, because of your rigid tactics, and even more so because you had zero experience dealing with special Martial Soul. One space Soul Master from them tore your formation to shreds, instantly cutting off your support and control abilities. No matter how strong the rest of you are, you're nothing but a disorganized mess."
He paused, his gaze sweeping across everyone's faces. "Starting tomorrow, the training intensity will double. I don't care how you trained before; from now on, everything will be according to the new standards. You'll pass when you can withstand twenty breaths in a Simulation surprise attack."
Immediately afterwards, the brand-new training syllabus was read out line by line, striking a chord with everyone.
Every day at dawn, one must get up and run 30 kilometers carrying 30 kilograms of weight. Throughout the entire run, one must suppress Soul Power and rely solely on physical endurance. If one runs even one meter less, one must start over.
Morning Specialized Training: Tang San is in charge of the overall field control practice. Twenty targets will be randomly moved within the field, and all of them must be bound with Blue Silver Grass within ten breaths; failing to bind even one target will result in disqualification.
Ning Rongrong underwent anti-suppression amplification training. Zhao Wuji released Soul Power pressure to Simulation Mental Interference. She had to maintain the complete amplification of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda under the pressure. If she was interrupted once, she would have to train for an extra half hour.
Dai Mubai practiced unassisted charges, breaking through three layers of defensive formation head-on without relying on any amplification; Zhu Zhuqing specialized in harassing enemy forces from behind enemy lines, and if discovered in advance, she had to hold out for ten breaths without being captured;