Although from the displayed strength, Gu Yuena didn't seem as powerful as he was, that effortless demeanor clearly wasn't something a normal Soul Elder should possess.
Both he and Huo Yuhao only had this kind of power early on due to their rebirth; how could she achieve it?
Ruling out the possibility that she too was reborn, Tang San's brow furrowed even deeper.
Could she be a genius Huo Yuhao discovered and nurtured?
Inside the resting area.
Xu Sanshi was gripping Bei Bei's neck in frustration, shaking him as he furiously shouted.
"I knew it! You set me up! You knew something was up with that junior and tricked me into fighting him, didn't you? That's why I got trashed so badly!"
Cough, cough. Bei Bei spread his hands, looking innocent. "I really didn't know! I approached the junior for other reasons. Besides, you're always lamenting that no one can break through your defenses. Now that someone has, isn't that a good thing?"
"How is that the same?!"
Thinking back to the nightmare-like experience he'd just gone through, Xu Sanshi's body shuddered involuntarily as he angrily retorted.
"I almost saw my great-grandma just now!"
As he said that, he glanced toward the two people who had suddenly embraced each other mid-conversation, his tone slightly hesitant.
"Are those two… a couple or something?"
At first, he hadn't thought much of it, but after Gu Yue Na defeated him and immediately went to find Huo Yuhao, he started to sense something was off.
"Doesn't seem like it."
Bei Bei shook his head slowly, then couldn't help but glance over at Zhang Lexuan, who was talking with Xian Lin'er and Du Weilun, sighing softly.
"But I really do need to make some progress myself."
Xu Sanshi was puzzled. "Make progress with what?"
But Bei Bei gave him a mysterious sidelong look. "Because some people still don't get it."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Xu Sanshi looked more confused. "Are you talking about me?"
"Take a guess."
"..."
After passing the assessment, there wasn't much Huo Yuhao and Gu Yue Na needed to worry about. They just had to wait for Yan Shaozhe and Xian Lin'er to come with their offers.
After bidding Zhang Lexuan and the others farewell, the two headed out of the arena.
Soon, they saw two familiar figures waiting at the Soul Arena entrance.
"Sister Xiao Ya, Sister Nan Nan, you're still here?"
Hearing his voice, Tang Ya and Jiang Nannan turned their heads. When they saw Huo Yuhao, they both broke into delighted smiles.
"It's your first day of school, so Nan Nan and I planned to have a meal together to celebrate."
"We were going to find you at the freshman teaching building after our classes, but we heard the announcement and came straight to the arena," Jiang Nannan explained.
"Xiao Ya, didn't we agree that I'd treat this time?" Jiang Nannan said, a little helpless.
Sharing meals usually meant splitting the bill, but it seemed Tang Ya was trying to avoid letting her spend money.
"Oh, we're all close friends here. It's the same, it's the same…"
Seeing Tang Ya scratching her head with a guilty smile, Jiang Nannan chided her lightly.
"No, we agreed. Besides, you two have done so much for my family; one meal is hardly a big deal."
Knowing her friend's stubborn nature, Tang Ya could only give in, turning to Huo Yuhao for help, waiting for him to make a decision.
Seeing Jiang Nannan's expectant face, Huo Yuhao hesitated, then smiled and nodded.
"Alright, we've already accepted quite a few meals from you before, so one more doesn't hurt. Thanks, Sister Nan Nan."
Ever since Jiang Wanjun recovered from her illness, Jiang Nannan no longer had to spend all her earnings on her mother's treatment.
Though she was still thrifty, as someone who frequented their house, Huo Yuhao had clearly noticed the improvement in their quality of life.
It was just a meal, after all; it was no big deal.
Jiang Nannan finally smiled with relief.
"Alright then, let's go find something good to eat outside the academy."
While the academy cafeteria had decent food, it didn't have tables and chairs, and takeout wasn't allowed. To the old students in the outer courtyard, eating in the cafeteria felt a bit like imprisonment.
Who invites people to stand and eat?
It was a total hassle.
Even Huo Yuhao started thinking about just getting ingredients from the cafeteria to cook himself.
After all, the energy utilization in his own cooking was much higher. Although the cafeteria chefs were skilled, they weren't on par with him, and a lot of energy in the ingredients was lost during the cooking process.
He wouldn't have cared about this before, since his body couldn't fully absorb it anyway.
But now, with the Sin of Gluttony, he naturally wanted to extract every ounce of value from his food.
Another reason was that his cooking better suited Gu Yue Na, Tang Ya, and the others' tastes.
Watching Gu Yue Na frown every time she ate in the cafeteria and then ask for an ice pop afterward always made him laugh.
Dean's Office, Martial Soul Department.
Knock, knock, knock.
Yan Shaozhe, who had just returned to the academy, heard the knocks on his door and frowned.
For some reason, he suddenly had a bad feeling.
"Come in."
Creak—
As his words fell, the door opened from the outside, and as if to fulfill his premonition, even before Du Weilun walked in, his urgent voice called out,
"Dean, you're finally back. We have a problem."
"Again?"
Yan Shaozhe was stunned. "Is it about the freshmen again?"
Du Weilun wore an awkward expression and explained.
"Zhang Lexuan applied for an internal candidate assessment for Huo Yuhao and Gu Yue Na today. By the time I found out, the inner courtyard had already approved the request."
"An internal assessment?"
Yan Shaozhe instinctively looked at Du Weilun. "What was the assessment content? Did they pass?"
Du Weilun nodded. "The content was one-on-one battles against Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi, and both of them won easily. Most importantly, as soon as Dean Xian from the Soul Tool Department heard about it, she rushed over to witness it herself."
There was no need to say anything more. Yan Shaozhe already knew what Xian Lin'er would do when she saw such talented individuals.
She would try to recruit them.
"This is troublesome…"
Yan Shaozhe murmured, and Du Weilun instinctively lowered his head, his voice filled with guilt.
"I apologize, Dean. This whole situation was my failure…"
But as a seasoned veteran, Yan Shaozhe quickly saw through Du Weilun's intentions and merely glanced at him before retracting his gaze.
"It's alright; this isn't your fault. Now, we need to focus on how to keep these two geniuses in the Martial Soul Department."
Zhang Lexuan's application for the internal assessment likely went through the upper ranks of the inner courtyard, something an outer courtyard head like Du Weilun couldn't influence.
As for Xian Lin'er, that was another story. Her fiery personality meant even he might not have been able to stop her if he had been there.
What was done was done; he wasn't someone who would dwell on regrets.
Seeing that Yan Shaozhe wasn't blaming him, Du Weilun let out a slight sigh of relief, and then spoke up again.
"Actually, Zhang Lexuan mentioned something about this…"
After recounting what Zhang Lexuan had told Xian Lin'er, Yan Shaozhe instinctively raised an eyebrow, sighing in admiration.
"So she wants the Martial Soul and Soul Tool Departments to compete for them? She really is invested in that boy!"
In fact, he remembered now that Huo Yuhao was the boy who saved Zhang Lexuan in the Star Dou Forest and even insulted Elder Xuan to his face.
Yan Shaozhe's eyes suddenly brightened as he thought of something and looked at Du Weilun.
"Did Dean Xian agree to Zhang Lexuan's proposal?"
"Yes."
Du Weilun nodded, cautiously adding.
"Dean Xian said we should set a time to talk to the freshmen together... in a fair competition."
"A fair competition… Well, that simplifies things."
Yan Shaozhe smirked slyly and then continued.
"Tell me everything about Huo Yuhao and Gu Yue Na's performance in the assessment, especially Dean Xian's reaction."
"Yes."
Although Du Weilun didn't understand Yan Shaozhe's motives, he still recounted every detail he'd witnessed.
Upon learning that Xian Lin'er seemed especially interested in Huo Yuhao, Yan Shaozhe glanced down at the student file on his desk, his smirk growing wider.
"A Spirit Eye Martial Soul... No wonder she's so invested. Fine, we'll let her have him."
"Huh?"
Du Weilun blinked, momentarily thinking Yan Shaozhe had lost his mind and hastily reminded him.
"Dean, while Huo Yuhao is only a Soul Grandmaster, he's still a rare talent with his first two spirit rings being millennium rings. Judging by his assessment performance, he's far from weak; we can't—"
But before he could finish, Yan Shaozhe raised a hand, cutting him off.
(End of Chapter)