The Beast Duelling Area.
As the largest specialised area within Shrek Academy, it was also the largest building within Shrek Academy. The space that the Beast Duelling Area occupied was as large as all of the buildings and dorms within the Martial Soul Department, including Shrek Plaza, combined.
The enormous Beast Dueling Arena was capable of accommodating up to ten thousand spectators, though a large part of its enormous space was taken up by the interior of the Beast Dueling Arena.
Like the Soul Dueling Area, one could both fight against a single soul beast or against several soul beasts simultaneously. Senior students of the Martial Soul Department were definitely familiar with the Beast Dueling Arena, as students with a higher cultivation base would often come to it in order to hone their combat skills. At the same time, it was a nightmare to those with lower cultivation bases.
And this is the place where advancement exam was going to take place.
When Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, Wu Feng and Ning Tian walked into the great Beast Dueling Arena together, they almost couldn't believe their eyes. Despite whatever background they had, the building in front of them was definitely one of the most magnificent construction they'd ever seen.
"...Still, isn't this kinda excessive for a fighting arena?" Xiao Xiao muttered, the group entering the building .
"Not in the slightest," Huo Yuhao replied, explaining. "Considering how large some soul beasts could be and that fighters need a wide area to maneuver and showcase their abilities, it makes sense for the Beast Duelling Area to be this spacious. Plus, it also serves as a venue for various events and competitions held within the academy."
As they stepped further into the arena, the atmosphere around them shifted. The air seemed charged with anticipation, and the sound of their footsteps echoed in the vast space.
Xiao Xiao gazed around in awe, taking in the grandeur of their surroundings. "It's incredible," she murmured, her eyes wide with wonder.
"Everyone, line up and get your forms for your final exam!" Zhou Yi sternly said, snapping them out of their daze.
The students quickly formed a neat line as instructed, their expressions a mix of nerves and excitement.
As Huo Yuhao retrieve his form, he then notices Dai Huabin and classmates a few meters off standing in line to get their own forms.
'Hm. This is a perfect oppurtunity,' A smirk tugged on Huo Yuhao's lips and he walked over towards Dai Huabin.
"Huh? Yuhao, what are you doing?" Wang Dong'er asked, Xiao Xiao, Ning Tian and Wu Feng also turned towards him with curiosity, wondering what he was up to.
Huo Yuhao raised a hand, signaling for them to wait for him. "Just trust me," he said with a confident smile before turning his attention back to Dai Huabin.
Dai Huabin was also paying attention to him and gave him a cold look as he approached.
Huo Yuhao stopped around three meters from Dai Huabin, and after pausing briefly, he lightly smiled and said, "Hey there, Dai Huabin. What's with that cold look on your face? I come in peace."
"What do you want, Huo Yuhao?" Dai Huabin coldly said.
It took every self-control that he has not to lunged at Huo Yuhao, especially about the humiliation and embarrassment he went through when some of his classmates saw his head almost getting eaten by the latter's pet fat rabbit! Try as he might, but the entire class 2 knew about what happened.
This was even more humiliating than when they lost in the tournament! At least he managed to fight back against Huo Yuhao...
Huo Yuhao shook his head, looking a bit amused. "Oh fine, you angry puss. I just came here to ask if you really won't regret doing this bet?"
Dai Huabin's right brow twitched, the urge to punch him on his face almost overwhelming. He clenched his fists, struggling to maintain his composure. "Regret? I, Dai Huabin, have never gone back on my word. Today, our two parties of three will participate in the several phases of the final test; the party that has the lowest cumulative score will kowtow and admit their fault to the other!" he loudly said, letting everyone hear him.
His classmates and the ones from class one started whispering to each other.
'Seriously?'
'Does this guy have a death wish? Did he forget how he lost against Huo Yuhao last time?'
'Ah, but it's been a while, Dai Huabin's getting closer to becoming a Soul Ancestor. And last I check, Huo Yuhao has only one ring. Even if he has gotten a second one...'
Huo Yuhao smile widened and said, "Good, then I ask everyone present to act as a witness for today's bet. What do you think, Dai Huabin?"
Dai Huabin coldly snorted and replied, "That's fine. However, if you regret decision, you and Wang Dong better kowtow and admit your mistakes right now. Xiao Xiao, Ning Tian and Wu Feng are girls however, so I can make an exception for them."
Huo Yuhao chuckled, "All right then, I wait for you here after the exam."
Once everyone had received their forms, the students orderly lined up by the side and waited for their turn to take the test.
Du Weilun, the head examiner today, along with the other four teachers in charge of grading the students, were all sitting atop a tall platform that they could clearly observe the Beast Dueling Arena from.
Du Weilun was especially eyeing a certain student that had gone to antagonize Dai Huabin.
'... He's certainly gotten stronger,' He thought, feeling the Soul Ancestor aura steadily emanating from his body. He and the other teachers knew that Huo Yuhao was deliberately showing off his cultivation.
There are two ways to know someone's cultivation, one is obviously when they show of the amount of soul rings that they have. The other is when the one analyzing the target's soul power is around the same level or higher, but only if they push out the aura of their soul power out of their body.
Du Weilun swallowed, clenching his hands on the armrests.
This cultivation speed... it was incredible! In a short of a year, Huo Yuhao managed to increase his cultivation from one soul ring to four! Something that a very few and rare individuals can do, perhaps only Zhang Lexuan could match him.
'We should've push the matter of having him join our department...' He thought in deep regret. Their dean had strongly fought for the freshman student to join their department but the elders were swayed by both dean and vice-dean of the Soul Engineering Department when they heard how incredibly talented he was in soul engineering.
Rank 3 soul engineer, at just one soul ring and in three months, it was impossible!! Du Weilun couldn't believe it himself when heard it. As even the Sun Moon Empire didn't have such a talented Soul Engineer.
At the time, most of the elders had thought that Huo Yuhao's path should be with soul tools as it's widely known that someone could only follow one true path of their cultivation; a soul engineer or a pure soul master. Because despite the technological advances in the continent, most soul master academies are still stuck with old tradition.
Du Weilun sighed, and prayed that the dean could do something about this. Letting go of such a remarkable talent would be a great loss for the Martial Soul Department.
Meanwhile, as the students awaited their turn, tension hung thick in the air. Each participant understood the gravity of the advancement exam.
'I am very curious on how they managed to capture and tame so many soul beasts, even to the point of having a few ten thousand year soul beasts domesticated as well!' Huo Yuhao idly thought, blinking as he analyzed the whole building.
Sure he managed to domesticate a wild Snow Rabbit, now tuck away in his pouch and resting as it had been exhausted from being bothered by his classmates, but that was just because he adopted it when it was weak and young. Young soul beasts were easier to tame compared to those with higher cultivation levels.
However, the ones housed in the Beast Duelling Area seemed to be of various ages and strengths, indicating a high level of expertise in soul beast handling.
Du Weilun's voice suddenly echoed from the tall platform, "The test is starting. Year 1 Class 1 will send its student out first. Afterwards, Class 2 will send out a student from their class."
Huo Yuhao grasped his test form as he entered the Beast Dueling Area with long strides. His expression was calm and steady, unfazed by the upcoming battle with a soul beast.
Even though he has faced many ten thousand year old soul beasts, they are still not to be underestimated.
But, so what? No matter how dangerous the situation might be, for his life goal, he would face it with courage and determination.
That was his way, as both a soul master and a shinobi.
Du Weilun's eyes focused; he was impatient to see how outstanding this student—someone who the Soul Tool Department hadn't been able to wait to take under their banner—was. Fighting soul beasts and fighting other students from the academy were two completely different things. Soul beasts were innately hostile towards human beings; they wouldn't show any mercy when they fought. As such, this would give the students the feeling of a life and death crisis.
Huo Yuhao was only 13 years old. What skills, no, miracle could he show them?
Huo Yuhao arrived in the middle of the stage. Two teachers would act as referees here, in order to assure the complete safety of the students.
The referee on the left asked him, "What do you cultivate in?"
"Control system."
The referee continued, "Choose the soul beast that you would like to take the test with. Remember, a Control System Soul Master has to do their best to focus on the word 'control'. You'll only have a single chance to assess your abilities. Don't waste it. Soul beasts are divided into hundred year intervals, ranging from a hundred year soul beast to a thousand year soul beast."
Huo Yuhao frowned and asked, "No ten thousand year?"
The right referee scoffed and replied. "No. Kid, I don't know how you pissed off your teacher so much that he even went as far as requesting you fight a ten thousand year soul beast, but that crap ain't flying by the management and the higher ups!"
"Don't worry kid, but that Fan Yu is getting an earful from a high ranking elder."
'But he isn't punishing me though...' Huo Yuhao sighed, feeling disappointed.
Well, it was to be expected. Fan Yu and the rest of the Soul Engineering Department wanted to keep his abilities a secret until the Martial Soul Department lose their interest on him, but if they wanted to see Huo Yuhao's skills against a ten thousand year soul beast without revealing anything then they tried all kinds of excuses to make it happen during the example...
But of course no one was going to let a 13 year old fight against such a powerful soul beast! They were strict and cold to their students but they weren't cruel.
"... The strongest thousand year old soul beast that you have," Huo Yuhao said after a brief pause. Oh well, he was just going to go with the next best thing.
"Kid, are you crazy?!" The teacher in charge of assessing his skills thought he had misheard him; the first students to go on stage were usually the most outstanding of the bunch, but choosing the strongest thousand year soul beast was a bold move, especially for someone as young as Huo Yuhao.
Huo Yuhao met the teacher's incredulous gaze with unwavering determination. "I'm sure, I want to face the strongest thousand year soul beast that you have!" he replied confidently, making everyone hear him.
'What?! Has the class prez gone crazy?!'
'Did he hit his head on the way? Or did someone cast a charm on him?'
'Uuh, I can't watch...'
Huo Yuhao ignored their whispers and stared straight at the referees, his deep blue eye gleaming with confidence... and arrogance!
Under Huo Yuhao's insistence, the referee reluctantly nodded and said, "Then we'll choose the strongest thousand year soul beast to conduct your test. Are you ready?"
"I'm ready."
"The test will now commence." The referee gestured toward a distant place, immediately giving rise to a mechanical sound. In the distance, a huge hydraulic gate was slowly opening, and the sound of something dashing about madly could be heard from the pitch-black corridor behind it.
All the students that were busy gaping and whispering immediately went silent. It was their first time being in this kind of situation, and they started to feel an indescribable pressure weighing down on them.
A streak of crimson light burst out from the depths of the corridor. Its speed was incredibly fast, and it traveled dozens of meters in an instant, directly pouncing toward Huo Yuhao.
Blazing heat radiated from the approaching figure, causing some of the far away students to step back in fear and they all worriedly looked at the tall figure of Huo Yuhao.
What is he going to do? What was his plan?
Simple, as someone who follows the Control System, there was one way to truly 'control' a battle.
Absolute power.
Upon seeing the soul beast Huo Yuhao grinned, his eyes wide and his right hand clenched into a fist. His hands turned completely white and hard, as if it were a block of ice. Extreme chill spread from his body, contrasting sharply with the fiery heat emanating from the approaching soul beast.
....
AN: Sorry it took a while, the internet was out for a couple of hours just when I was about to post this. Just woke up and the internet returned. Well then, see you guys next week!
Also, did you guys pull for chiori or are you waiting for the next banner or Arlecchino? Got 36 intertwined fates saved up, I'm hoping I could get 3-4 hundred when their banner arrives XD.
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