Chapter 65: Basketball?!

The first ones to finish absorbing their earthly-grade heavenly materials were the four—Hua Buluo and the others. Originally already at level 39, after absorbing the treasures, they all reached the bottleneck of level 40.

By the looks of it, they might even gain another level or two after obtaining their fourth spirit rings.

After Hua Buluo's cherry blossom martial soul absorbed the Nine-Grade Spirit Sakura, it evolved. The summoned cherry blossoms became crystal-clear like gemstones and incredibly sharp.

Feng Xiaoyu's physical attributes greatly improved after absorbing the earthly-grade Water Immortal Jade Bone Flower.

Xue Youyou, upon absorbing the Thousand-Year Snow Ganoderma, saw her Ice Sword transform from an iron sword encased in ice into a pure ice-crystal sword. Her control over the ice element had also significantly improved.

Xuan Mo, after absorbing the Jade Mud Crystal, had his Mountain-Crushing Shield transform into a gem-like shield. His three spirit skills also evolved, now forming energy shields with the appearance of crystalline earth gems.

After those four came Luo Chen, who had been the first to start absorbing the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid.

Luo Chen stood up with a strange expression on his face, a mix of disbelief and overwhelming joy. A grin spread across his face, and if not for the fact that others were still cultivating, he would've burst into laughter.

"I... I just leveled up six times in a row! Brother Chen, I love you!!" Luo Chen exclaimed excitedly.

Gu Chen took a step back. "Please don't. I only like Na'er."

"Uh…" Luo Chen looked a little embarrassed.

But who could blame him for being so thrilled? He had just broken through six levels and reached the level 40 bottleneck. To put it in perspective—going from level 24 to 30 had taken him a full three years!

Yet the journey from 34 to 40 had only taken two hours!

Next was Jin Zi, who had absorbed the Strange Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.

A sharp roar like a crocodile's echoed out as Jin Zi instinctively activated his Golden Crocodile Possession. The golden armor flared with an imposing aura.

"Brother Chen, I broke through two levels! I'm at level 47 now!" Jin Zi exclaimed with joy.

Most of the medicinal effect from the chrysanthemum hadn't gone into raw spirit power increase but rather into strengthening his physique and innate talent.

Now, the strength of Jin Zi's martial soul was nearly on par with the legendary Hao Tian Hammer.

The last to finish was Ling Xiaojie. Her Nine-Leaf Sword Grass had grown to a meter tall, radiating with sharp sword aura.

"Brother Chen, I've reached level 47," Ling Xiaojie said with a sweet smile.

"Keep training," Gu Chen said seriously. "In a month, someone from Spirit Hall will come to take us to a place called the Death Training Camp."

Luo Chen waved it off. "A training camp? Please. With our talent, passing that should be easy-peasy."

Gu Chen's expression darkened. "The mortality rate there is ninety-eight percent."

"Ninety-eight percen—Wait, what?! Ninety-eight percent mortality?! Brother Chen, you have to protect us!!" Luo Chen shouted in horror.

After everyone finished absorbing their respective herbs, they left the classroom. The nine met up again a month later, riding the carriage that Spirit Hall had dispatched to take them to the Death Training Camp.

During this month, Luo Chen, Hua Buluo, Feng Xiaoyu, Xuan Mo, and Xue Youyou had all, under the guidance of their instructors, obtained their fourth spirit rings.

On the carriage, Gu Chen asked, "Luo Chen, what's your fourth spirit skill?"

Luo Chen replied, "It's Kung Pao Fried Rice. After consuming it, I can summon an energy orb that autonomously attacks enemies within ten meters for ten minutes. The energy orb's appearance differs from person to person."

"Show me," Gu Chen said with interest.

Luo Chen nodded and chanted a rather strange incantation—it sounded like a song.

Moments later, a rice ball with diced chicken materialized in front of everyone. The aroma of chicken filled the carriage.

Luo Chen took a bite, opened his hands, and a milky-white energy orb about half a meter in diameter hovered before him.

"Make one for me too," Gu Chen requested with a grin.

Luo Chen made another Kung Pao Fried Rice and handed it over. Gu Chen swallowed it in one gulp.

Imitating Luo Chen, he extended his hands—and then… a basketball appeared in front of him, just like the ones from his previous life.

"Uhhh…"

Gu Chen was deadpan. Was this skill tree misallocated or something?

Following him, Gu Yue Na, Ling Xiaojie, and the others all wanted one too.

Luo Chen was drained, but he still managed to cook up seven more portions of fried rice.

Gu Yue Na summoned an energy orb containing the power of seven elements.

Ling Xiaojie summoned a flower-ring-shaped orb.

Hua Buluo's was a light pink energy ball.

Xuan Mo's was a futuristic metal sphere.

Jin Zi's was a golden orb.

Feng Xiaoyu's was a transparent orb seemingly made of wind.

Xue Youyou's was an ice ball.

"Why is mine the only one that's a basketball? Is this… some kind of hidden message?" Gu Chen muttered in despair, drawing circles on the ground.

Ignoring Gu Chen's emo moment, Luo Chen asked the others, "What are your fourth spirit skills?"

"My fourth spirit skill is Timed Sakura Bomb. I can conjure cherry blossoms and set a timed explosion—up to a full day in advance. When they explode, they deal devastating damage within ten meters," Hua Buluo said.

"My fourth is Wind Barrier. It creates a wall of wind to protect either myself or a teammate," Feng Xiaoyu said.

"Mine is Forceful Repair. It repairs any defensive structure with less than 70% damage," said Xuan Mo.

"My fourth is a domain-type skill: Extreme Cold Storm. It creates a 50-meter field with a temperature of minus 40°C. Enemies freeze, but allies remain unaffected. I can control snow and ice storms freely inside the domain," Xue Youyou said, visibly thrilled.

Everyone congratulated each other, especially impressed by Xue Youyou's domain skill. It elevated her from one of the weakest members to a key player in the team.

Soon, the carriage came to a stop. Gu Chen, the other eight, and several other top-tier students from Spirit Academy were ushered off.

This year's Death Training Camp had a strict age limit of under 25. Among the crowd, Gu Chen spotted Ye Wuyou.

After disembarking, they realized they were in a place resembling a concentration camp. In the distance were other elite Spirit Hall trainees gathered from all over the Douluo Continent.

"Get off the carriage. Next, we'll ride the Sky-Swallowing Roc to our destination!" a man who looked like a commander shouted through a megaphone-like soul tool.

The Sky-Swallowing Roc was a thousand-year-old soul beast tamed by Spirit Hall. Massive in size, its back stretched for hundreds of meters. It served as long-distance transportation for Spirit Hall operations.