Chapter 41: Ah Jin, Are You Serious?

Ten minutes later, with a sharp whistle, the two groups of students quickly assembled in front of Mu Jin.

In a race where the use of soul power was permitted, the physically formidable combat-type soul masters undoubtedly had the advantage. Even though all the non-combat new students were equipped with soul tools, many people still cast disdainful glances at them.

Shrek, after ten thousand years of accumulation, possessed the wealth to build a super-sized training ground, enough for all one hundred new students to stand on the same starting line.

"All new students, to your positions, get ready—" Mu Jin said to the eager new students on the starting line, putting the whistle hanging around her neck into her mouth.

"Tweet—"

As the whistle blew, several agility-attack type soul masters took the lead, quickly pulling away from the main group. The power-attack type battle soul masters, with their explosive power, followed closely behind. Further back were the physically formidable defense-type soul masters. Although all the non-combat new students activated their soul power and started running with their propulsion shoes the moment the whistle blew, they still had a considerable gap with the combat-type elites at the beginning.

Even someone as powerful as Ning Tian, with her soul power as high as level thirty-three, was inevitably at the back of the main group. But her advantage was her abundant soul power. The propulsion shoes burst forth with a powerful forward thrust, allowing her to accelerate steadily. Soon, she had shaken off the group of non-combat soul masters and caught up with the defense-type soul master brigade ahead.

The agility-attack type soul masters maximized their speed advantage. By the time they had completed a full two laps, the group lagging at the very end had just reached the vicinity of the first lap's finish line. However, this was when their own physical fitness and willpower were put to the test. In terms of pure physical quality, the power-attack and defense types were still superior. Even after explosively running for two laps, their faces were not red, and they were not out of breath, appearing to be at ease.

By the time the leading group was running their third lap, the non-combat soul masters with sufficient soul power had completely caught up. Most of them had reached the mid-level of the main group, which astonished many of the combat-type soul masters who had originally been prejudiced against soul tools.

Have soul tools... really been able to change the world of soul masters?

Relying on her abundant soul power, Ning Tian, although also struggling a bit, was already positioned quite far ahead. Many of the agility-attack type soul masters who couldn't keep up physically had already begun to fall behind one by one. Currently, the one running at the very front was no longer an agility-attack type soul master, but the level forty Xie Huanyue.

Xie Huanyue was so happy he was about to jump. If it were before, that layer of fat would have greatly affected his mobility. After completely slimming down, with the highest soul power in the class and the physique of a power-attack type, he had taken the lead in this running competition.

Fourth lap. Ning Tian, with the help of her soul tools, had completely surpassed everyone except Xie Huanyue, hanging in second place. As for the agility-attack type soul masters who had sprinted with all their might at the beginning, due to lack of stamina, they had all fallen to the middle of the main group.

As for the non-combat soul masters who were not thought highly of, they had all run to the upper ranks of the main group with the help of their soul tools, which made even more of the combat-type soul masters' jaws drop.

As if to fully commit to his acting, Huo Yuhao deliberately lagged far behind everyone else. When he passed by Mu Jin, he didn't forget to blow a kiss to his teacher. From his relaxed and carefree expression, it was clear that this guy was crazily hiding his skills. When Xie Huanyue had already finished his fourth lap, Huo Yuhao had just begun his third.

"This kid..." Mu Jin, who was teased by Huo Yuhao every time he completed a lap, was so angry that smoke was about to come out of her seven orifices. Just now, this kid had even secretly run to her side and deliberately moved his face close to hers, causing her, who hadn't recovered her senses, to kiss him directly on the face.

Exasperated, Mu Jin loudly announced, "In today's running competition, the last place will not be allowed to eat for a day! The bottom thirty will not be allowed to eat lunch!"

"Ah Jin, are you serious?" Huo Yuhao, lagging at the back, showed a look of shock. Man is iron, food is steel; miss one meal and you'll panic with hunger! This was even more true in the Douluo world, where one couldn't practice Daoist fasting. Seeing the gloating looks from the new students ahead, Huo Yuhao's heart steeled.

Fine, you look down on me, right? You laugh at me, right? I'm pretending to be a noob. It's very normal and logical for me to run slowly. I'm running so elegantly, why do you all have to target me?

Although Mu Jin's registration form had recorded Huo Yuhao's true soul power as level twenty-nine, she never would have imagined just how exaggerated his true strength was.

When Huo Yuhao had his second awakening in the Holy Ghost Cult, he had innate level thirty full soul power. After a year of tempering in the blood pool, he also possessed the physique of a power-attack type Battle Soul Elder. Then, after fusing with the Tianmeng Ice Silkworm and successively obtaining two million-year soul rings, his actual soul power had long since broken through the level forty Soul Ancestor mark!

He was only missing the rings, not the soul power corresponding to a Soul Ancestor or higher. Bibi Dong had once said that if he hadn't insisted on not compressing his soul power to raise his level, as long as he had enough soul rings, he might have already become a Soul King.

Then, all the new students who were still running hard saw a black shadow whistle past.

Too fast! It's simply too fast! With the help of the soul tools, the speed Huo Yuhao instantly burst out with directly surpassed the standard of a normal agility-attack type Battle Soul Ancestor. In less than ten seconds, he had finished the third lap, and then he continued towards the fourth lap at the same speed.

This guy is really amazing! Ning Tian snorted softly. When this guy was with them, he had always been reserved and didn't show his true colors. For most of the time, they had treated him as a cultivation cheat and had instead ignored this guy's talent.

"Good heavens!" Even Xie Huanyue, who was running at the very front, was fiercely shocked by Huo Yuhao's sudden speed. But if Huo Yuhao had hidden something, did he, who had awakened the legendary Sun God Ape martial soul, not hide anything?

Seeing that Huo Yuhao had quickly finished the fourth lap and was about to surpass Ning Tian, Xie Huanyue suddenly stopped moving forward. His entire person assumed a horse stance, bent his upper body, and pressed his right fist to the ground. His elastic calves pressed down hard like a pump, taking on a spring-like shape. At the same time, wisps of steam began to rise from his body.

Huo Yuhao, who had just passed Ning Tian, saw this familiar scene and almost slipped. This can't be said to be similar; it can only be said to be identical.

The next moment, Xie Huanyue's body almost teleported as it shot forward. That speed, even an agility-attack type Soul King couldn't compare.

The speed of the two of them almost surpassed the scope of what normal new students could understand. They crossed the finish line almost one after the other, leaving a lone Ning Tian behind, disordered in the wind.

First place, Xie Huanyue. Second place, Huo Yuhao. Third place, Ning Tian.

"Young Master Huo, it's not very kind of you to hide your strength like this," Xie Huanyue patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder. His state just now couldn't last long. If Huo Yuhao had gone all out from the beginning, this first place would definitely not have been his.

"Fatty, you're not bad either. This awakened divine-level martial soul is really something else," Huo Yuhao grinned, then thought for a moment and took out a round straw hat with a red ribbon from his storage soul tool and placed it on Xie Huanyue's head. "This is for you. It suits you."

The corner of Xie Huanyue's mouth twitched. He didn't understand why Huo Yuhao wanted to give him such a straw hat, but after Huo Yuhao handed him a mirror to look at himself with the hat on, he actually thought he looked quite handsome.

While Huo Yuhao and Xie Huanyue were chatting, the entire new student body finally finished the race. The defense-type battle soul master who finished last had a long face. He wasn't getting any food today...

"Everyone, assemble," after about a few minutes of rest, Mu Jin coughed lightly, and the people who were scattered all over the ground finally climbed up.

"Just now, you must have all seen that these twenty-something non-combat type classmates all achieved good rankings with the help of soul tools."

Hearing this, everyone nodded in undeniable agreement. Even some of the new students who were extremely repulsed by soul tools, seeing those non-combat classmates achieve better results than themselves, had to admit in their hearts that soul tools had indeed brought earth-shaking changes to the soul master world.

"I believe everyone is very clear that in the recent few thousand years, soul tools have developed at a high speed. What the Sun Moon Continent brought back then were more rare materials and the basic production methods for soul tools. And after these few thousand years of development, the production of soul tools has become more and more refined, and their power has also become greater and greater. This has resulted in a situation where even a food-type tool soul master holding a soul tool of sufficient power can burst forth with an attack power not inferior to that of a power-attack type battle soul master, and even surpass it. And an agility-attack type battle soul master, if they hold a soul tool with powerful defense, then they can also temporarily act as a defense-type tool soul master."

"It can be said that the appearance of soul tools has greatly changed the direction and current state of soul master cultivation. In fact, what has been weakened is the role of the soul ring. As long as one has enough soul power, one can use soul tools to make up for the lack of power of the soul ring. This has caused many people to ignore the role of the soul ring, thus forming the current situation where all the soul masters of the four great empires pursue soul power as their cultivation method."

"Undoubtedly, this cultivation method is indeed effective in the short term, especially for soul masters below level fifty, the effect is very obvious. However, I want to tell you that our Shrek Academy does not cultivate such soul masters. Because after level fifty, they are all trash!"

The new students looked at me, and I looked at you, not understanding what medicine this Teacher Mu was selling in her gourd.

"You don't understand, right? Let me give you an example. If you are a tool martial soul soul master and you have cultivated to level fifty, and I am an agility-attack type battle soul master, also cultivated to level fifty. You have a soul tool in your hand that is enough to threaten my life, and I do not have a soul tool. In this battle, who wins?"

"The answer is simple. I will definitely win. Why? Because with my speed, you simply won't have a chance to hit me with your soul tool. Even if you have a full set of top-tier soul tools, I can still rely on my own speed advantage to wear you down until your soul power is exhausted. The more powerful the soul tool, the greater the consumption of soul power. Therefore, although defense, auxiliary, and food-type tool soul masters can use soul tools to give themselves the attack power of a power-attack type battle soul master, they are by no means possessing the combat power of a power-attack type battle soul master. You must remember this point clearly. Therefore, although soul tools have a great enhancement effect on defense, auxiliary, and food-type tool soul masters, if your body is not strong enough, then on the battlefield, you will always be the first to be killed. Your enemy will not let you go because you are not a battle soul master. On the contrary, they will pick on the weak. Your attack power is very strong with soul tools, but other aspects are very weak. How will the enemy choose?"

Listening to this teaching speech, which was almost identical to the one in the original plot, Huo Yuhao also understood. The current Shrek was beginning to focus on cultivating soul masters who also cultivated soul tools, the so-called Shrek soul tool department.

"By the same token, if my physical fitness is extremely strong and I myself have very strong combat power, then having a powerful soul tool in my hand means like giving a tiger wings. This is a true expert," Mu Jin taught earnestly.

"The blurring of offense and defense. In a soul master team, anyone can act as an attacker, but improving your own quality is what can maximize your survivability on the battlefield. Unless one day soul tools can develop to the point of completely replacing your body, otherwise, the cultivation of physical fitness and the choice of soul rings are the top priorities of your future cultivation."

The Shrek teachers, who had a common understanding of soul tools, did not know that ten thousand years later, soul tools would actually develop to the point of replacing the body as they had said. Mmm, that is, battle armor, mecha, and those things, even cosmic battleships.

"In the next three months, I will mainly give you guidance on physical and theoretical knowledge, to let you truly become a genius soul master with great potential."

"That's all for this morning's class. For lunch, an exception will be made to allow everyone to eat well. Class dismissed. Huo Yuhao, you come with me to my office."

"Long live Teacher Mu——" The students who were just now depressed about not being able to eat immediately cheered. It could be seen that this Teacher Mu really had a way with managing people's hearts.

In the office, Huo Yuhao awkwardly touched the mark on his face that had been wiped by Mu Jin's red lips. "Teacher Mu, are you going to give my body an inspection?"

Mu Jin was exasperated. "Get lost, Huo Yuhao! How can you be like this—"