"You better not be!"
Ma Xiaotao shot a sharp glance at Dai Yueheng, then quickly moved on. Turning to Jiang Qingtong, she grinned and said, "Qingtong, during the freshman assessment, both Teacher and Vice Dean Cai will be watching. Do your best and knock them all flat!"
"Don't worry," Jiang Qingtong replied, flashing a confident hand gesture.
Hearing this, Dai Yueheng caught on. "So, these three are the ones who'll be defending the stage during the assessment?"
Though most inner court students were preoccupied with their own cultivation, many still kept tabs on the outer court. Dai Yueheng had learned from Dai Huabin that this year's freshman assessment format had changed.
"This is about the freshman exam. Why do you care so much?"
Ma Xiaotao shot him another look. "Go on, don't distract Qingtong and her team while they're strategizing. Or do you plan to eavesdrop and report back to your little brother in the outer court?"
Dai Yueheng quickly shook his head. "Of course not!"
Although he had hoped to build a rapport with the trio, he had no chance under Ma Xiaotao's watchful eye and could only leave, slightly disappointed.
---
On the day of the freshman assessment, the outer courtyard's training grounds were packed to capacity. Not only had upper-year students filled the stands, but even a few idle inner court students showed up, curious to see how a trio of freshmen would fare defending the stage against hundreds of challengers.
Some of the rowdier upperclassmen were already waving banners.
"Fight! Fight!"
Only to be promptly called out and scolded by Wang Yan.
There were 930 freshmen participating in the exam. Jiang Qingtong, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao would be defending the platform, while the rest would take turns in teams to challenge them.
Elder Zhuang brought a chair to the side of the combat zone, opened a parasol to shade himself, and settled in to watch. On the main viewing platform, Yan Shaozhe and Cai Meier sat side by side, observing everything from above.
"Shaozhe, do you think anyone will force Qingtong to use her ninth-level soul tools?" Cai Meier asked, her gaze locked on the trio already warming up at the edge of the ring.
"Hard to say before it starts. But there are some strong freshmen this year—three-ring Soul Elders and even a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda user. With the right teamwork, they might stand a chance," Yan Shaozhe replied. He had personally reviewed the full list of this year's newcomers.
"But Qingtong's a twin martial soul user. We still don't even know what her second martial soul is," Cai Meier added.
Yan Shaozhe sighed. "These past few months, she hasn't used it once. No matter how we probe, she won't talk. Despite her age, her self-control is extraordinary."
"If only she weren't from the Sun-Moon Empire…" Cai Meier said softly.
"Let's believe in the Academy's atmosphere. If anything can change her heart and guide her toward peace between the Three Nations and the Sun-Moon Empire, it's here," Yan Shaozhe replied. Like all Shrek elders, he had an almost blind faith in the Academy's influence.
---
Inside the exam area, Jiang Qingtong, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao stepped onto the platform.
Wang Dong stretched and said, "Once the match starts, let's crush them as fast as possible! Show everyone we're not to be messed with!"
"Exactly! Let's prove we deserve to hold this stage!" Xiao Xiao agreed, pumping her little fists.
Wang Yan came up to announce the first match. "Freshman Class 3: Ouyang Junyi, Chen Junfeng, Zhao Haochen. Enter the arena and take a corner. You may only release your martial souls after I say start. Get into position."
The three boys stepped onto the stage.
Wang Yan looked at Jiang Qingtong. "Ready?"
She nodded. "Let's go."
"Begin!"
In an instant, Jiang Qingtong released her martial soul. Two thousand-year soul rings lit up, and her Spiritual Detection Sharing instantly linked her with Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao. At the same time, a powerful spiritual shockwave struck the minds of the three opponents.
The momentary mental daze disrupted their martial soul release. Before they could recover, Xiao Xiao's Three Lives Soul-Suppressing Cauldron came crashing down between them, shattering their formation.
Wang Dong took flight on his Goddess of Light Butterfly wings, targeting Zhao Haochen.
Zhao, panicking, shouted, "Quick! My giant drumsticks!"
Two glossy chicken legs appeared in his hands, but Wang Dong was already in front of him—and promptly kicked him off the stage.
Wasting no time, Wang Dong turned on the other two.
Without their support, and with Jiang Qingtong's Spiritual Detection relaying all their movements to her teammates, the duo stood no chance. Wang Dong dodged every attack with ease and booted them both off the platform.
All of this took only a minute and a half.
Silence.
The audience was dead silent.
They knew the defending trio was strong—but this strong?
Surely there should've been at least a bit of back-and-forth! After all, the opposing team had two Soul Masters as well!
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The defeated trio sat on the ground in a daze, rubbing their heads, unsure of what had just happened.
From the side, Elder Zhuang waved a hand, releasing a soothing green light over them, then nodded at Wang Yan.
Wang Yan nodded in return and announced the result.
Yan Shaozhe, watching from above, said, "Qingtong's timing was impeccable. She summoned her martial soul and activated two soul skills the instant the match began, leaving the opponents no chance to respond."
"Two soul skills…," Cai Meier murmured, eyeing the two thousand-year rings floating before Jiang Qingtong. "At her age, I've never seen someone with better combat instincts."
Wang Dong skipped back to join Jiang Qingtong and Xiao Xiao, giving them both high-fives. "Told you we were unstoppable! They didn't even get a chance to react!"
"And we barely revealed anything, so they'll have no way to plan against us," Xiao Xiao grinned. It was her first time teaming up with Jiang Qingtong, and the power of Spiritual Detection Sharing left her awed.
Jiang Qingtong calmly said, "Let's take a break. We've got a long day ahead of us."