Sunlight cut diagonally into the classroom, casting fragmented light spots on Ren Jun.
He lightly tapped the podium with his fingertips, his metal cufflink clinking crisply. The buzzing whispers that had filled the room receded like a tide.
His gaze swept over the twenty-five students in the class as he announced, "According to the latest news, the National Soul Master Class Competition will officially begin in three days. The competition venue will be at the Great Spirit Arena of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy!"
As Ren Jun's words fell, a renewed wave of discussion instantly erupted in the classroom.
Regarding this competition, of which they had received news last semester, everyone's hearts were filled with both excitement and apprehension.
"Quiet!"
Ren Jun's pointer tapped the teacher's desk, making a clear sound.
Once the classroom fell silent again, Ren Jun continued, "Regarding the format of the competition and the re-establishment of the Soul Master Experimental Class afterward, we already discussed it last semester, so I won't elaborate further."
"What I want to say now is that Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy is the strongest academy in the Sun Moon Empire. The fact that you are now students in the Soul Master Class here shows that you are outstanding, far more excellent than many of your peers!"
Since the establishment of the Soul Master Class, this was the first time Ren Jun had so directly praised the students in his class.
"However—"
At this point, Ren Jun suddenly changed his tone: "Although other academies may not be as strong as yours overall, there are still some geniuses among them. Therefore, you cannot be careless during the competition!"
"Regarding the final outcome of the competition, I will not set any goals for you. My only requirement is to do your best!"
Facing this group of eight- or nine-year-old children, Ren Jun did not want to put too much pressure on them.
As for the ultimate victory, Ren Jun naturally desired it.
The reason he made no demands was that, in his opinion, whether he said it or not, the winning group would definitely be from their class.
Thinking of this, Ren Jun's gaze flickered to a seat by the window on the right.
Noticing his teacher's gaze, Kong Xuan smiled and nodded, a response and a promise.
That's right, Ren Jun's confidence came from Kong Xuan.
He did not believe that anyone could contend with Kong Xuan in a competition at this age group.
As long as Kong Xuan was there, their class had already secured first place in advance!
Although the Soul Master Class Competition carried the title "National," the establishment of Soul Master Classes had only just begun.
Taking Kong Xuan's class as an example, there were only twenty-five people in total.
Compared to the tens of thousands of students at an academy like Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, it was but a drop in the ocean.
So, in these past few days, apart from the Soul Master Class students, the Soul Engineers in the academy seemed completely unconcerned about this matter.
However, this competition had no impact on Kong Xuan's group of four; they continued to cultivate daily according to their established plan.
It wasn't until the day before the competition that Xu Wei mysteriously gathered the four together.
The setting sun sank in the west. Under the thousand-year-old ancient tree on the east side of the academy, four figures sat on the gnarled roots that extended outwards from its base.
Xu Wei leaned forward, his gaze sweeping over the three, and said, "Based on my investigations during this period, I've gathered some information on our opponents in the competition."
Kong Xuan and the other two exchanged glances, only then realizing Xu Wei's purpose in gathering them here.
However, such a statement would not be surprising coming from any of the other three, but coming from Xu Wei, it always felt somewhat unreliable.
After all, Xu Wei came from a commoner background, while the other three were of prominent status and had many channels for obtaining information.
Kong Xuan looked at Xu Wei and asked, "Where did you get this information from?"
Although it was just a simple question, Xu Wei could already see the disbelief in their eyes.
However, Xu Wei didn't mind. He stood up and laughed, "You know I'm very popular in class. I just asked around and found out."
It was true that Xu Wei was popular in class; he had a high emotional intelligence, and anyone who interacted with him felt comfortable.
Xu Wei continued, "However, most of the information I got was from Bi Jin."
At this, Kong Xuan and the others were somewhat convinced.
Bi Jin was a Sun Moon noble, with a heritage spanning several centuries, so it was normal for him to be able to uncover some information.
Seeing their expressions turn serious, Xu Wei continued, "Among our opponents this time, there are indeed some difficult ones to deal with. There are several who are Second Ring Spirit Grandmasters."
"Ji Yun from Tianhai Advanced Soul Engineer Academy, with the Shadow Moon Scythe Spirit."
"Gu Wenyu from Dongyang Advanced Soul Engineer Academy, with the Soul Suppressing Codex Spirit."
"Yuan Shuang from Liuyun Advanced Soul Engineer Academy, with the Profound Ice Phoenix Spirit."
Kong Ling exclaimed, "Profound Ice Phoenix, a top-tier Beast Spirit!"
Shadow Moon Scythe and Soul Suppressing Codex were Spirits they had never heard of, so it was unclear if they were powerful.
However, to become a Second Ring Spirit Grandmaster at this age, their innate spirit power must not be weak, and their cultivation talent must be very strong.
For such geniuses, their Spirits naturally couldn't be too bad.
As Kong Ling spoke, she also looked at Xu Tianyi beside her.
Among the group, only Xu Tianyi's Spirit was a Beast Spirit, and it was also a top-tier dragon-type Beast Spirit.
Feeling Kong Ling's gaze, Xu Tianyi calmly said, "If we were at the same level, she would not be my opponent."
Oh, so Xu Tianyi thought this was a comparison to him.
Listening to him not boast about being definitely stronger, Kong Xuan's face showed a relieved smile.
It seemed that after a semester, Xu Tianyi had changed successfully and was no longer as arrogant as he was at the beginning of the school year.
Xu Wei glanced at Xu Tianyi: "Brother Xu, your spirit power is also at level twenty. Hurry up and get a spirit ring! That way, our team will have another Second Ring Spirit Grandmaster. Even if Brother Xuan doesn't act, we will definitely win!"
In these days since school started, they had already figured out each other's situations.
Kong Ling had just obtained her second spirit ring, and her current spirit power was level twenty-two.
Xu Tianyi's spirit power had also reached level twenty during the holiday, but he had not obtained a spirit ring to break through and become a Spirit Grandmaster.
Xu Wei's current spirit power had just reached level nineteen, and he would need to cultivate for some time before reaching level twenty to obtain a spirit ring.
Meanwhile, Kong Xuan's spirit power had already reached level twenty-five, which was not slow considering he wasn't prioritizing cultivation speed.
Xu Tianyi looked at Kong Xuan and Kong Ling, finally resting his gaze on Xu Wei, who had raised the question.
His expression was calm, and his tone firm: "My plan for the second spirit ring is to obtain a thousand-year spirit ring. My current physical strength is still a bit lacking, so I'll have to wait a while."
With Kong Xuan as their safety net, their group would definitely make it to the end.
Xu Tianyi also knew how to distinguish between priorities, so he was not in a hurry to obtain a spirit ring, prioritizing his own strength above all else.
Xu Wei smacked his lips when he heard this, saying nothing more, having realized that he had spoken incorrectly just now.
Immediately, he no longer dwelled on the topic and instead continued to introduce the information he had gathered.
"The last Spirit Grandmaster is Shui Ling from Mingdu Soul Engineer Academy, but I don't know what her Spirit is."