Qin Ming shouted, "Start!"
A young male trainee immediately dashed out in the lead. He was tall, not particularly handsome, and even had a stiff, expressionless face, but his body constantly radiated a sense of danger.
Even without using his martial soul or soul power, this feeling remained. His name was Yu Tianheng, from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was known as the number one attack-type beast martial soul in the world.
Coming from such a clan and possessing such a martial soul, he allowed himself only one position: first place. He was never willing to settle for second.
Wang Li's arrival had indeed put considerable pressure on him. He was currently a Level 32 Soul Elder, but when he was nine years old, he had definitely not been a Level 25 Grand Soul Master.
However, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul gave him boundless confidence. With the world's strongest attack-type beast martial soul, as long as his soul power increased, he believed he could sweep aside all opponents.
Aside from Yu Tianheng taking the lead, most of the other trainees showed no intention of standing out. They had to run twenty laps, and they had only just started,there was no need to rush.
Wang Li blended in with the rest of the trainees. He observed them with interest, carefully looking around, wondering whether all seven future members of the Tiandou Royal Team were present.
One lap, two laps, three laps around the academy grounds… for these trainees, it posed no real challenge. Even without using soul power, they could easily manage it.
However, the bodies of soul masters were not fundamentally different from those of ordinary people. They were merely stronger, faster, and more enduring. As they continued running lap after lap, once the count reached more than ten laps, things began to change.
These Grand Soul Masters and Soul Elders were soon drenched in sweat, panting heavily. In fact, as long as they used soul power, the situation would immediately improve. Forget twenty laps,even thirty laps would not be a problem.
If it were another teacher, they would have done exactly that. After all, they were a group of students from noble or powerful backgrounds, raised in luxury since childhood. They had never endured such hardship.
But this was Qin Ming's class. Qin Ming was a legend,only thirty years old, yet already a high-level Soul King, and likely to break through to Soul Emperor before long. He was someone they admired and aspired to be like, which was why they were willing to endure this suffering.
As for cheating or secretly using soul power, they did not dare. Qin Ming was famously strict. If he said he would eliminate someone, he truly would. He was completely different from other teachers.
Among all the trainees, Wang Li seemed to be the only one who remained calm and composed, running at a steady, unhurried pace.
He did not use Instant Step, since that also required soul power. But even with ordinary running, his talent was functioning as usual.
His recovery ability far exceeded that of ordinary people, keeping his body in peak condition at all times.
Soon, his relaxed demeanor caught the attention of a girl with purple hair and green eyes. She was a Level 31 Soul Elder, and her condition was much better than that of the Grand Soul Masters.
Even so, sweat had already formed on her fair forehead, and her breathing was no longer steady,sometimes long, sometimes short, with increasingly heavy panting.
She was already like this, yet Wang Li was still calm and relaxed. She felt both unconvinced and curious. Coupled with the shock of his Level 25 soul power at age nine, which had stunned everyone, including her, she became even more interested.
The girl accelerated to catch up with Wang Li. Her beautiful eyes shifted as she smiled charmingly and said, "Junior, your stamina is pretty impressive. You've already run fourteen laps and you're still this relaxed."
In fact, Wang Li had already noticed her. Neat purple short hair, a pair of green eyes, and though her face was not stunningly beautiful, it carried a unique allure. With such obvious features, it was hard not to recognize her.
Now that she had approached him, Wang Li smiled slightly and said, "Senior, my talent isn't very good, so in order to cultivate better, I've always trained my physical endurance."
"Also, your breathing is irregular. That increases your energy consumption. If you want to conserve stamina, you can follow my breathing rhythm."
"Three steps to inhale…"
"Three steps to exhale…"
"This is slow jogging. Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. It allows you to take in more air while expelling as much used air as possible. Don't tense your abdomen,let it help with your breathing as well."
At first, when the girl heard Wang Li say his talent was poor, she was completely speechless. Level 25 soul power at nine years old, and he called that poor talent? But when she saw him sincerely teaching her how to breathe, she burst out laughing, swaying with mirth.
Seeing this, Wang Li restrained his smile, put on a serious expression, and said, "Senior, why are you laughing?"
The girl covered her mouth and continued laughing. After a while, she finally spoke, "I'm laughing at you, junior. You're actually a pretty good person."
Wang Li shook his head helplessly and said, "But senior, laughing like this will only consume more stamina. It will be very difficult for you to finish the remaining laps."
Looking at Wang Li, who was clearly only nine years old yet deliberately acting like an adult, the girl cooperated and frowned as she asked, "Then what should I do?"
Wang Li showed a resolute expression, as if he had made some important decision, and said in a deep voice, "It seems the only option is for me to lead you through the rest of the run."
After saying that, Wang Li sped up, overtook her, and ran ahead.
Following behind him, the girl actually felt much less pressure. Her steps became lighter. With surprise in her eyes, she looked at Wang Li's back and thought to herself, "This junior is unexpectedly reliable."
Her name was Dugu Yan. Because of her Jade Phosphor Serpent martial soul and its terrifying poison attribute, people,both men and women,had avoided her since childhood, never daring to get too close.
Today, she had originally intended to tease Wang Li, but instead discovered that he was even more interesting than she had imagined.
Running behind him, Dugu Yan chuckled softly and said, "Junior, your name is Wang Li, right? From now on, don't call me senior anymore. My name is Dugu Yan. My grandfather calls me Yan Yan or Yan'er."
Wang Li thought to himself that this was exactly as expected, then tried to push his luck a little. "Yan Yan…"
Hearing this, Dugu Yan felt that her authority as a senior had been completely ignored. She pretended to be angry and said, "Add 'senior'!"
Wang Li could only helplessly change his words. "Senior Yan Yan."
Dugu Yan turned from mock anger to delight,or perhaps she had never been angry at all. Smiling brightly, she said, "That's more like it. From now on, Senior Yan Yan has your back. If anyone bullies you, just tell me!"
There was undisguised amusement in Wang Li's eyes, though no one could see it. He said, "Then thank you, Senior Yan Yan."
…
Twenty laps later, some trainees finished, while others did not. Those who finished immediately collapsed upon returning, gasping for air and drenched in sweat.
Qin Ming lifted them up one by one and made them move around, forbidding them from lying down or sitting, until Wang Li and Dugu Yan returned.
Wang Li remained calm and composed as ever. Dugu Yan was very tired, but she felt much more relaxed than usual.
Qin Ming was extremely puzzled. He frowned and shouted in a deep voice, "Wang Li, run five more laps!"
Wang Li was a little surprised by this, but he did not refuse. "Alright, teacher!"
After saying that, Wang Li ran off again.
This time, Qin Ming was the one who was surprised. He did not expect Wang Li to ask no questions at all. Even if he had asked, Qin Ming might not have answered, but not asking at all showed remarkable composure.
At that moment, Dugu Yan questioned him, "Teacher Qin, Wang Li has already completed twenty laps. Why does he have to run more?"
With a cold expression, Qin Ming explained, "Haven't you noticed? Wang Li hasn't reached his limit. If physical training doesn't push stamina to the limit, then the training has no meaning!"
Dugu Yan wanted to argue further, but seeing that Wang Li had already run far away, she could only stomp her foot in anger and curse, "That idiot…"
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