Hearing Xuan Zi's words, which were somewhat fierce in voice but weak in resolve, Huo Yuhao merely gave a faint smile. "When they all rushed up to attack me together, they didn't say anything about 'student unity.'"
"...What a sharp-tongued brat. You four have passed. The rest of the students, go back and recover well; there will be another selection round in three days."
Xuan Zi couldn't help but glance down at Lan Xuanyu, who was watching the battle. To think this old master invested so much effort into you, yet you couldn't even block a single move of his?
What a pity. If only I had discovered this kid Huo Yuhao earlier myself...
Forget it.
Just then, several senior Core Disciples who couldn't accept the result stepped forward. Among them, the Soul Elder with the long spear Martial Soul shouted in front of Xuan Zi: "Teacher, this person absolutely cheated! With his Soul Ring configuration, how could his Soul Skill possibly have such power! There must be something wrong with him; we must investigate and expel him."
The lion Martial Soul Soul Elder, who had been fighting in coordination with him, also stepped forward. "Exactly! He must have used some kind of trick!"
In all matters, the danger lies in someone leading the charge; once someone starts, the rest follow—the gold and silver stock markets operate on the same logic.
However, fellow Soul Ancestors such as Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi did not speak, keeping their heads lowered.
Jiang Nannan glanced at that Soul Elder with a look of pity. In this chaotic brawl, she was arguably the one who had clashed with Huo Yuhao the longest; she could still feel that overbearingly unreasonable strength at her ankles.
Xuan Zi's expression instantly darkened, and he let out a cold snort.
Suddenly, every student present felt as if the entire sky had collapsed. The previous clamor was instantly replaced by dead silence.
He was the initiator of this brawl, the second strongest expert of Shrek Academy. Cheating under his nose was simply impossible.
Taking a bite of a chicken leg, Xuan Zi grunted: "Not convinced? If you aren't convinced in the future, I hope you demonstrate it through your strength. Do you feel that this free-for-all selection method is unfair, causing many of you to lose inexplicably before you could even showcase your abilities?"
The Core Disciples answered him with silence.
Elder Xuan curled his lip and spoke disdainfully: "This seemingly unfair brawl is actually the best way to test your comprehensive strength. In the Inner Courtyard, such chaotic assessments are commonplace. If you don't even have this level of reaction capability, what qualification do you have to become an Inner Courtyard disciple? Furthermore, do you really think everything will be smooth sailing once you enter the Inner Courtyard?"
Then, Xuan Zi put down the chicken leg, his voice gaining a hint of sadness and regret. "Do you know what kind of situation Inner Courtyard disciples faced during their darkest hour?"
"That time, twelve Inner Courtyard disciples faced a 100,000-year-old Soul Beast after being separated from their teachers. Only one of those twelve survived. That person obtained the Soul Ring and Soul Bone of that 100,000-year-old Soul Beast and became the eldest disciple of the Inner Courtyard."
"This is the cruelty of the Inner Courtyard. Don't think that studying at the academy means all is well. If you want to truly become a powerhouse, even within the academy, you must have the resolve to face life-and-death crises at any moment."
"Does anyone else have a problem?"
Through his words, these Outer Courtyard Core Disciples touched upon the world of the Inner Courtyard for the first time. But what it gave them was not hope, but a sense of tragic heroism—a tragedy carrying the glory of Shrek.
One by one, the Core Disciples lowered their heads and walked out of the Soul Duel Arena. Everything Xuan Zi said today would be deeply etched into their hearts, perhaps never to be forgotten for a lifetime.
"???"
Huo Yuhao was dumbfounded by what he heard. No, wait—this old man actually has the nerve to bring that up?
Why doesn't he mention how those twelve Inner Courtyard disciples got separated from their teachers in the first place?
Once everyone else had left, only Huo Yuhao, Wu Feng, Ning Tian, and He Caitou remained in the Soul Duel Arena.
Xuan Zi glanced at the indifferent Huo Yuhao and delivered his speech regarding the glory of Shrek.
It was a long-winded tirade that made Huo Yuhao feel drowsy, until he heard Xuan Zi say...
"If the Sun Moon Empire wishes to dominate the continent, the first target they need to deal with is not Star Net, Heavenly Soul, or the Star Spirit empires. It is our Shrek Academy. Because only we have the ability to unite the three nations to resist the Sun Moon Empire together."
"The Sun Moon Empire dares not use a major war to test our Academy's strength, but they are constantly probing. The best way to probe is through the Continental Elite Young Soul Master Tournament. Therefore, in this tournament, we have only one opponent: the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy."
...Regardless, Huo Yuhao didn't know if it was Shrek Academy as a whole or just Xuan Zi alone who had come to this conclusion.
Are the battlefield and the tournament arena the same? Has this Xuan Zi ever seen a Soul Tool artillery bombardment level the ground?
On a real battlefield, these Soul Masters charging toward a Soul Tool defensive position with their Soul Rings glowing would likely be turned into sieves before they even saw the face of a Soul Engineer...
Whether to fight and when to fight—the initiative is entirely in the hands of the Sun Moon Empire. For an academy to claim that the Sun Moon Empire would target them first if they started a war... one can only hope that when the empire actually makes its move, Shrek Academy remains just as confident.
After Xuan Zi delivered another speech on Shrek's glory, the four of them, including Huo Yuhao, couldn't wait to leave the arena.
Although the old man was unreliable in many ways, he was right about some things.
A well-coordinated team of Soul Masters can achieve an effect where one plus one is greater than two; the boost brought by such synergy is not easily erased by individual strength alone.
However, Huo Yuhao didn't particularly care whether he had such a team.
Nonsense—his fourth Soul Skill could toy with a Soul Douluo. Who would care about a competition that felt like children playing house?
Shortly after, the remaining members of the preparatory team were decided.
Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Jiang Nannan, and Lan Xuanyu. Along the way, Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong were arranged to follow as "reserve members of the preparatory team."
As for why Lan Xuanyu was among them, it was due to Xuan Zi's behind-the-scenes manipulation, replacing Wu Feng...
As for the reason for removing Wu Feng, Xuan Zi provided plenty of justification.
Claiming Wu Feng's strength was on the weaker side, her abilities were too singular and not comprehensive enough, her cultivation was only at the two-ring level, and she wouldn't be of much use even if she took the stage, and so on...
The capable rise while the mediocre fall; it's the same everywhere. If you can't do the job, there are plenty of people who can.
In truth, it boiled down to the fact that Wu Feng was deeply tied to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Only a Twin Martial Souls genius from a small family like Xiao Xiao could carry the future of Shrek Academy.
Of course, Xuan Zi didn't push things to the extreme. He generously arranged for Wu Feng, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao to sit at the same table, becoming the so-called "reserve members of the preparatory team."