The next day, Wu Zhangkong entered Class Zero's classroom and simply said, "Follow me."
The seven students promptly stood and followed him as they headed toward East Sea City's Spirit Pagoda.
At the East Sea Spirit Pagoda, Director Long Hengxu of the Intermediate Department had been waiting for a while. Upon seeing Wu Zhangkong and the Class Zero students, he immediately approached and greeted, "Teacher Wu."
"Director Long," Wu Zhangkong replied expressionlessly.
Jing Shaoyu and Xu Xiaoyan were already quite familiar with the East Sea Spirit Pagoda, so there was little novelty for them here. However, the others looked around in curiosity at this towering structure, one of the eighteen Spirit Pagoda pillars known as the East Sea Pillar.
They followed Long Hengxu and Wu Zhangkong to a spacious, underground primary Spirit Ascension Platform control room. Unlike the smaller control rooms Jing Shaoyu had previously visited, this one was larger to accommodate their group.
As usual, a staff member briefed them on the Spirit Ascension Platform's precautions before allowing them to enter the login pods.
Jing Shaoyu calmly settled into the pod, familiar with this process from his many previous visits, feeling no discomfort or apprehension.
Moments later, Jing Shaoyu found himself in a dense forest. Without hesitation, he summoned his martial spirit and called forth Hong Fei, his soul spirit. His eyes flashed green, locking onto a direction before he immediately set off.
Meanwhile, after stabilizing herself upon entry, Xu Xiaoyan quickly summoned her martial spirit and soul spirit, having her soul spirit scout ahead while she clutched her Starwheel Ice Staff, following cautiously behind. Despite her familiarity with the Spirit Ascension Platform, her face showed both vigilance and apprehension. She hoped to find Jing Shaoyu soon.
In another part of the forest, Gu Yue appeared and looked around with an expressionless face. Despite the familiar yet strange surroundings, a flicker of resentment flashed in her eyes as she wandered aimlessly through the trees. Watching her on the monitor, Long Hengxu and Wu Zhangkong exchanged confused glances.
"Is she... just taking a walk?" Long Hengxu asked uncertainly.
"Seems so," Wu Zhangkong replied with a silent nod, gaining a deeper understanding of Gu Yue's aloof personality.
Elsewhere, Zhang Yangzi was startled by the forest's lush surroundings. The vibrant life energy around him left him awestruck, and he couldn't help but think, No wonder the class leader managed to raise his soul ring to the millennium level. This environment is practically designed for us soul masters.
With that in mind, he quickly summoned his martial spirit and soul spirit, ready for battle.
After a moment's contemplation, Zhang Yangzi made a decision that he would soon regret: he decided to take to the sky to survey the area. His black wings flapped as he flew to the top of a tall tree, hoping to get a better view.
"CAW—"
Suddenly, a sharp eagle screech echoed nearby, and he saw a large green bird approaching fast, wings tucked in and ready to strike.
Refusing to back down, Zhang Yangzi's second soul ring lit up as he braced for a direct confrontation. However, he was unprepared for what followed. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by more birds from the same flock. His vision went dark, and he heard an annoyed voice in his ear.
"Wake up!"
Dazed, Zhang Yangzi sat up and realized he was no longer in the Spirit Ascension Platform. After learning the details from Long Hengxu, he was filled with regret.
Meanwhile, Wang Jinxi, Xie Xie, and Tang Wulin were fortunate to land near each other, less than a hundred meters apart. While Tang Wulin sat cross-legged, immediately beginning to meditate, Wang Jinxi and Xie Xie met up and made their way toward him.
It wasn't long before they found Tang Wulin meditating in the grass. They shared a look, unsure whether to be impressed by his courage or shocked at his lack of caution. Meditating alone in a forest filled with spirit beasts, even in the Spirit Ascension Platform, was definitely reckless.
They quickly woke him up.
"Wulin, you've got nerves of steel!" Xie Xie said, exasperated. "Most people come here to hunt spirit beasts, and you're sitting here meditating! Were you planning to use yourself as bait?"
"No, I just had a sudden insight," Tang Wulin replied. "Don't you feel the environment here is amazing?"
"It's fantastic!" Wang Jinxi agreed. "They say this place is an exact replica of the legendary Star Dou Forest!"
"Really?" Tang Wulin asked curiously.
"Heh, well, I'm not entirely sure," Wang Jinxi admitted with a sheepish grin.
"Alright, enough chit-chat," Xie Xie interrupted, rolling his eyes. "We're here to gain something, not to go back empty-handed!"
"Exactly!" Tang Wulin and Wang Jinxi nodded in agreement as the three of them set off together.
Meanwhile, back to Jing Shaoyu, who had just finished dispatching a century-old Violet Spirit Wolf. Hong Fei flew back, chittering away as it absorbed the wolf's spirit energy and reported what it had discovered.
"Did you say you saw Bai Xue? Where?" Jing Shaoyu asked. Bai Xue was Xu Xiaoyan's soul spirit, and if it was nearby, Xu Xiaoyan couldn't be far off.
Hong Fei chirped excitedly and flew in a certain direction, leading Jing Shaoyu to follow closely behind.
Before long, he found Xu Xiaoyan crouched beneath a tree, clutching her Starwheel Ice Staff and trembling. Not far from her was a ten-meter-long black snake, slithering slowly toward her with its crimson tongue flickering.
"A hundred-year-old Black Snake?" Jing Shaoyu was momentarily surprised but couldn't help a slight smile. This girl really is a bit too timid; just a single Black Snake has her petrified?
He quickly approached, summoning several straight vines and branches that dropped down, trapping the snake within a small cage less than a meter wide. Then he called out, "Xiaoyan, don't just stand there! Freeze it!"
"Ah!" Xu Xiaoyan's initial fear turned into relief as she jumped up and prepared her Starwheel Ice Staff. She hesitated but then focused her courage, summoning an ice wheel that struck the Black Snake, freezing both it and the branch it clung to. A fireball from Jing Shaoyu finished it off.
"Shaoyu, thank you so much!" Xu Xiaoyan exclaimed, rushing over and clinging to his arm. "I hate these long, slimy things. I was about to quit if you hadn't come!"
"You need to work on this," Jing Shaoyu chided with a small smile. "You're a Grand Soul Master now; you can't be afraid of a simple snake!"
"But I'm a girl—girls are allowed to be afraid of snakes, aren't they?" she answered with a slight pout, as if it were the most reasonable thing in the world.
What could Jing Shaoyu say? He simply smiled and led her forward.
Meanwhile, Gu Yue was still leisurely strolling through the forest.
Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Wang Jinxi, after a few successful battles, encountered a much more dangerous opponent—a thousand-year-old Man-Faced Demon Spider!
Within moments, Xie Xie was ejected from the Spirit Ascension Platform by the spider, leaving him with a lingering fear.
Now it was just Tang Wulin and Wang Jinxi. Both were on high alert, staring intently at the spider.
Tang Wulin activated his Golden Dragon King bloodline, his right arm transforming into a powerful Golden Dragon Claw. Wang Jinxi, in turn, summoned his martial spirit, with one arm transforming into a large, powerful skeletal dragon claw.
Fighting alongside Tang Wulin for the first time, Wang Jinxi felt the astonishing boost of the Golden Dragon King's bloodline. His own spirit seemed to resonate joyfully, enhancing his strength significantly. He even noticed black dragon scales forming on his claw, leaving him both intrigued and confused.
Why? Why does Tang Wulin's presence cause such a transformation in my spirit?
"Jinxi, watch out!"
Tang Wulin's urgent shout snapped Wang Jinxi out of his thoughts, just in time to see the spider's eerie woman-like face close to his own. A foul stench hit him, and he felt his body go numb as darkness overtook him.
"No!" Tang Wulin roared, losing his composure as he charged the spider. His Golden Dragon Claw struck the spider's back with all his might.
The spider shrieked in pain, its body shuddering violently. A torrent of sticky white webbing shot out, sending Tang Wulin flying into a tree. Before he could react, the spider lunged at him.
In the nick of time, the external staff intervened, forcibly ejecting Tang Wulin from the Spirit Ascension Platform.
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