Chapter 284: The Orange Soul Spirit!

After the grade challenge competition concluded, Cai Yue'er kept the first and second-year students behind.

"I have an announcement to make," Cai Yue'er said, her voice calm and indifferent, immediately silencing the cheerful celebrations of the students, all of whom turned their attention to her.

Cai Yue'er spoke expressionlessly, "In light of the outstanding performance of the first and second-year students in this challenge competition, the academy will select a group of outstanding students from these two grades to participate in an exchange program to the Star Luo Continent half a year from now. I hope you will double your efforts to secure a spot for this exchange program, which will last for one year."

Upon hearing Cai Yue'er's words, most of the students showed expressions of curiosity and surprise. As students capable of entering Shrek Academy, few were unaware of the Star Luo Continent, hence their astonishment.

However, Jing Shaoyu and his six companions were much calmer, as they had already been informed of this news beforehand and were not surprised. They even understood that they were likely to be the main participants in this exchange program.

After announcing this, Cai Yue'er left directly, and the first and second-year students also dispersed.

Not long after, the list of students going to the Star Luo Continent was finalized. All seven selected students were from the first year: Jing Shaoyu, Gu Yue, Na'er, Xu Xiaoyan, Wu Siduo, Ye Xinglan, and Mo Hentian.

Why were there no second-year students? Perhaps the academy considered the seven first-year students to be a complete team and did not want to add outsiders, hence no second-year students were included. Of course, it could also be because the overall strength of the second year was indeed inferior to that of the first year. After all, the second year could only boast of one and a half outstanding students—one being Yuanen Yehui and the half being Le Zhengyu.

The leader of the group was Cai Yue'er, the dean of the Outer Academy, and the accompanying teacher was Wu Zhangkong, one of the assistant homeroom teachers for the first year.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, half a year had passed since Jing Shaoyu advanced to the Soul King rank. There was less than a month left before their exchange trip to the Star Luo Continent.

That night, at the Sea God Pavilion on Sea God Island.

Following Yun Ming's suggestion, Jing Shaoyu prepared to use the Dragon Tendon Tempering Medicine prepared for him by Leng Yaozhu and then release the Nightmare Demon Eye Beast Soul Spirit.

In an empty room within the Sea God Pavilion, Jing Shaoyu sat naked in a round wooden barrel, his body enveloped in ice-blue liquid. His eyes were tightly shut, and his body radiated intense heat. The aura around him continuously rose, compressed, and churned. The blue liquid surrounding his body was restless, flowing as if accompanied by the roar of a dragon.

Jing Shaoyu was not alone in the room. Yun Ming sat leisurely by the window, sipping tea and reading a book, completely at ease. He was not at all worried that Jing Shaoyu would make a mistake, or perhaps in his mind, Jing Shaoyu simply wouldn't make a mistake—after all, he was Yun Ming's disciple.

As Yun Ming had anticipated, Jing Shaoyu's absorption of the dragon tendon energy proceeded smoothly. His physique was continuously tempered amidst the dragon's roar and the explosive dragon energy, becoming increasingly robust and solid. The flow of his blood and qi within his body sounded like the roar of tigers and leopards, and his skin glistened like diamond and adamantine.

As the water in the wooden barrel gradually cleared, Jing Shaoyu began the most crucial step. Behind him, four crimson-red rings appeared, swirling incessantly around the back of his head. A red light immediately emerged at the center of his brow, flickering and becoming increasingly vivid and tangible.

A gray egg flew out from the red light and hovered above Jing Shaoyu's head. The four crimson Soul Rings, sensing the egg's presence, immediately abandoned their position behind his head and began to revolve around it. Simultaneously, the gray egg started to rotate on its own.

The rotation grew faster and faster until the gray egg became a blur, and the four crimson Soul Rings began to emit faint golden lights.

"Ding!"

A crisp sound rang out. The gray egg, which had been spinning rapidly above Jing Shaoyu's forehead, suddenly came to a complete halt. The egg had lost its original form and had transformed into a small, four-legged creature. This creature was pitch black, with a pair of dark golden wings on its back, resembling a black Pegasus. However, it had three eyes—one blood-red vertical eye and two pure black ones.

This small, adorable Pegasus was none other than the successfully hatched Soul Spirit of the Nightmare Demon Eye Beast. At this moment, it was still unable to fully control its new form and needed time to adapt. However, one thing was certain: it was now a genuine orange-tier Soul Spirit.

The four orange-golden Soul Rings were proof of this.

As an orange-tier Soul Spirit, the Nightmare Demon Eye Beast could provide Jing Shaoyu with up to six orange-golden Ferocious Beast Soul Rings. Although there were only four at the moment, Jing Shaoyu could generate the fifth one at any time if he wished.

After the Nightmare Demon Eye Beast hatched, it did not linger in the outside world but instead rushed directly into Jing Shaoyu's spiritual sea through the center of his brow. It chose to familiarize itself with its new body, state, and circumstances through sleep.

Meanwhile, Jing Shaoyu's aura surged as the Nightmare Demon Eye Beast Soul Spirit was born. His Soul Power easily broke through the barrier of level 52 and reached level 53. However, it did not stop there and continued to rise—level 54, 55, 56, until it finally stabilized at level 57.

In the end, Jing Shaoyu deliberately controlled his cultivation, stopping it at the peak of level 57, just a hair's breadth away from level 58.

It had only been six or seven months since he had broken through to the Soul King realm. In other words, he had advanced from a newly promoted Soul King to a seasoned Soul King in just half a year. If this were to be made public, it would undoubtedly shock many people.

Yun Ming, who was standing nearby, watched as Jing Shaoyu's Soul Power surged dramatically. He couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation, worried that Jing Shaoyu might become intoxicated with the thrill of rapid advancement. Fortunately, his concerns were unfounded. Jing Shaoyu remained rational and did not seek immediate gratification, opting instead for a steady approach, knowing that some gains were not worth pursuing recklessly.

As the sky brightened, Jing Shaoyu awoke from his cultivation. He opened his eyes, a flash of red light passing through them, and his entire demeanor became unruly and domineering—a result of the influence of his Martial Soul.

He stepped out of the wooden barrel, quickly dressed, and left the room. Yun Ming was waiting for him outside.

"Teacher," Jing Shaoyu called respectfully.

Yun Ming turned to look at him, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "Can your demeanor still change back? You look quite punchable like this!"

"Uh!" Jing Shaoyu didn't expect Yun Ming's first words to be this, leaving him momentarily speechless. However, he quickly replied, "Yes, it's just that I've just broken through and I'm still adjusting. Once I get used to the changes in my Doomsday Godslaying Spear Martial Soul, I'll be able to switch my demeanor freely."

"Good," Yun Ming nodded. "Hurry up, or else you'll stand out like a sore thumb when we go to the Star Luo Continent for the exchange."

"I understand," Jing Shaoyu immediately agreed.

"Alright, tell me about the Soul Skills you've gained from your second Martial Soul," Yun Ming got back to the main topic.

"Since Poya is an orange Soul Spirit, the four orange-gold Soul Rings have provided me with four Soul Skills," Jing Shaoyu explained.

"That's common knowledge, no need to tell me. I know," Yun Ming rolled his eyes.

"The first Soul Skill is called the Spear of Destruction," Jing Shaoyu didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point. "As the name suggests, it's a spear imbued with the power of destruction. The spear carries destruction, overturning heaven and earth, using the purest force of destruction to annihilate all enemies."

"Destruction attribute?" Yun Ming's eyes gleamed with astonishment. At his level, he was well aware of the terror of the destruction attribute. He hadn't expected Jing Shaoyu's first Soul Skill from the Doomsday Godslaying Spear to be so powerful.

"The second Soul Skill is called the Spear of Void," Jing Shaoyu continued. "This Soul Skill allows every attack of the Doomsday Godslaying Spear to be imbued with the power of void, dealing substantial damage to enemies of all forms and natures."

"Void attribute?" Another powerful attribute that left Yun Ming in awe.

"The third Soul Skill is called the Spear of Calamity," Jing Shaoyu said. "Any creature struck by the Spear of Calamity will be stripped of all auspiciousness and fortune, doomed to suffer continuous misfortune and disaster until death."

"Is it really that domineering?" Yun Ming couldn't help but shudder as he asked.

"Of course... not. I can't achieve that level yet," Jing Shaoyu chuckled. "But after using this Soul Skill, my attacks will be imbued with the power of calamity. While I can't strip away their fortune, I can make them unlucky for a while. Oh, and the calamity power will also cause the opponent to randomly suffer an elemental attack."

"You little rascal, I almost thought you were going to defy the heavens," Yun Ming rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Hehe, the fourth Soul Skill is called the Spear of Slaughter," Jing Shaoyu said. "Like the first Soul Skill, the Spear of Destruction, it's a purely offensive Soul Skill, using the ultimate power of slaughter to break through all obstacles."

(End of Chapter)