Under Mu Ye's guidance, Mu Yi's pores gradually opened. The grass and trees in the wilderness moved without wind, and green specks of light floated from the plants like fireflies, converging toward Mu Yi. The moment these specks touched his skin, the green glow on his body abruptly intensified.
"If it hurts, scream! It'll be more painful the first time—hang in there."
Mu Ye increased the pressure of his palm. Mu Yi felt the green specks turn into molten iron seeping through his pores, causing his muscles to spasm uncontrollably. But he gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, refusing to make a sound.
Soon, the Ultimate Wood attribute within his Body Martial Soul activated, adapting to the method of using wood energy to temper his blood essence and physique. The pain vanished, replaced by a warm, soothing sensation.
Mu Yi's expression grew calm.
Mu Ye thought Mu Yi had adapted to the pain so quickly and nodded approvingly, continuing his explanation: "Remember, wood governs vitality. The greater the pain, the stronger your reborn body will become."
"Our sect's founding ancestor fell into the ocean during a life-or-death crisis, unlocking the potential of his Body Martial Soul. That's why most of our sect's secret techniques are extremely painful. Your willpower determines how far you can go!"
"Pain is both torment and a trial for your willpower!"
Mu Yi no longer heard him; he had entered a deep meditative state.
The green energy that had seeped into his body began to flow in an orderly manner. The soothing sensation gradually turned into tingling, as if countless tender shoots were growing within his flesh. Tree bark-like patterns appeared on his skin, then slowly faded back to normal.
The Life Gold traded from Gu Yue had already been integrated into the heart position of Mu Yi by Gu La. Since the heart is the origin of blood, under the flushing of blood essence controlled by the Innate Secret Technique, it was now gradually fusing with Mu Yi's heart.
His crimson heart pulsed steadily, its dense vitality transforming it completely into a jade-like gold. Blood carrying a golden glow flowed through his veins, slowly attracting external vitality to reshape his physical body.
As long as his heart and brain weren't damaged, he could recover. Once his body was fully transformed, he would be close to achieving true immortality—droplet rebirth.
Three hours later, Mu Yi opened his eyes, drenched in sweat.
Mu Ye retracted his soul power, satisfied as he looked at the fading green glow on his disciple's body, masking the shock in his eyes: "To draw in the essence of plants within ten miles on your first cultivation—impressive."
He tossed a set of weighted equipment to Mu Yi: "From today onward, aside from daily cultivation of the technique, you must complete three sets of basic training."
"Use these specially made weights to train—they're Rank seven to nine soul-guided devices that suppress your blood essence and soul power, doubling the efficiency of your training."
"Thank you, Master."
Mu Yi accepted the weights and stood up, but suddenly stumbled.
He realized his body had become several times heavier. Mu Ye laughed aloud: "The effects of the Innate Secret Technique are beginning to show—your bone density is increasing! Don't stop training, and you'll find that effort yields results!"
---
The next morning, inside the guest room of the Blacksmith Association.
Gu La had just finished washing up when a knock came at the door. He opened it while munching on a meat bun he'd bought yesterday, revealing the observing teacher standing outside with a somewhat solemn expression.
"So early?" Gu La mumbled indistinctly, swallowing the bun in a few bites.
The observing teacher entered the room, closing the door behind him: "An urgent notice from the academy—the exam rules have changed."
He lowered his voice: "Traces of evil soul master activity were discovered again last night. For safety reasons, all final exams will now be conducted in teams."
Gu La raised an eyebrow, taking a sip of soy milk from the table: "Can I choose my teammates?"
"No." The observing teacher shook his head. "The academy will assign teams based on complementary martial souls and balanced strength. All of you will gather at the station."
"Fine." Gu La shrugged nonchalantly, but inwardly calculated what kind of teammates the academy would assign him based on his displayed strength.
Half an hour later, when Gu La arrived at the station with his teacher, the lineup before him made his eyebrows rise.
Na'er, with silver hair and purple eyes, leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. Bai Yuan stood in the shadows, seemingly blending into the darkness. Xu Xiaoyan nervously gazed out of the station, Gu Yue emotionlessly flipped through a book, and Wu Sido idly played with her long hair.
"My, my," Gu La muttered under his breath. "This lineup's combat power is excessively overpowered."
He instantly understood the academy's intentions.
Na'er, as Yun Ming's disciple, and Bai Yuan, with his Abyss Martial Soul, were hidden trump cards unsuited to teaming with others.
Gu Yue and Wu Sido, as core members of the Spirit Pagoda and heir to the Netherworld family respectively, were destined not to truly integrate into Shrek Academy. As for Xu Xiaoyan, her unstable Absolute Control clearly didn't meet Shrek's standards.
"Tsk, they've dumped all the 'problem students' on me?"
Gu La mentally sighed but wasn't overly concerned. He noticed Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi were absent, presumably assigned to more "orthodox" Shrek teams.
"Hello, everyone!" Gu La grinned, striding toward the group.
The previously tense atmosphere immediately eased. Na'er and Gu Yue simultaneously averted their gazes, and Xu Xiaoyan ran over with relief:
"Big Brother Gu! I heard you dealt with the evil soul masters who attacked the train—are you injured?"
"Mere evil soul masters couldn't hurt me." Gu La flexed his arm to show he was unharmed, then asked: "Have you all completed your assessment goals in Tian Dou City?"
Everyone nodded. Bai Yuan gave a brief "Mm," and Wu Sido lazily said: "Piece of cake."
At this moment, Shen Yi walked over from the platform direction, holding a stack of documents: "I'm your instructor for the second phase. Everyone's here—get ready to depart. Have you decided where to go next?"
All eyes instinctively turned to Gu La. In this hastily assembled team, he, being the strongest, was naturally the best candidate for leader.
Gu La rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
According to Shrek's traditions, student assessments involved either challenging federal institutions or visiting the Spirit Pagoda for "exchanges." But considering he and Gu Yue were both core members of the Spirit Pagoda…
"Let's go to the Tang Sect!" Gu La suddenly decided, a sly glint flashing in his eyes. "Neither Gu Yue nor I should challenge the Spirit Pagoda. Besides, the Tang Sect is a powerful sect with twenty thousand years of heritage—it's the perfect opportunity to witness their legendary techniques."
Upon hearing this, Na'er's eyes lit up. As Yun Ming's disciple, she had a special connection to the Tang Sect. Though she hadn't joined yet, she'd likely be introduced by Yun Ming in the future, making this trip a great chance to explore.
Gu Yue frowned slightly, feeling it might be troublesome, but didn't object.
Shen Yi's brows furrowed tightly. 'Challenging the Tang Sect doesn't align with the academy's intentions.'
Everyone knew Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect were practically inseparable. Challenging the Tang Sect wouldn't showcase Shrek's prowess.
Shen Yi glanced at Gu La. Was he doing this on purpose… or by accident?
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