"Alright then, let's team up. But I have one condition—the command of the team must be in my hands," Gu Chen said.
Jin Zi nodded in agreement.
"Let's eliminate all the candidates from Bibi Dong's faction first. That way, the title of Saint Son will come down to just the two of us," Jin Zi added.
"Then, are you joining our team alone, or are you bringing others with you?" Gu Chen asked.
Jin Zi replied, "Ling Xiaojiu's mother is my aunt, and she's also a friend of mine. She'll be joining our side for this Saint Son team battle."
"That's fine," Gu Chen nodded. Having a former Saintess candidate join was ideal. So, he decided to swap out Xuan Mo and Xue Youyou.
Gu Chen then met up with Gu Yuena and the others, bringing Jin Zi and Ling Xiaojiu along.
When the topic of replacing Xuan Mo and Xue Youyou came up, Xuan Mo simply nodded his agreement, while Xue Youyou looked a bit disappointed.
After Gu Chen introduced Jin Zi and Ling Xiaojiu to the team and explained his own and his teammates' abilities, he turned to them and said,"Why don't you two give a quick rundown of your abilities?"
Gu Yuena chimed in, "Go ahead."
"Saintess," Jin Zi began, "my Martial Soul is the Golden Crocodile King. My first soul skill, Golden Crocodile Armor, summons a suit of energy armor capable of withstanding attacks below the Soul King level. My second skill is Golden Ripper, which lets me attack enemies with the Golden Crocodile's claws. My third skill, Descent of the Golden Crocodile, boosts my attack and defense attributes by 500% for one minute. My fourth skill is Golden Crocodile Fangs and Claws, unleashing claw attacks that can be combined with my second soul skill."
"Not bad," Gu Yuena nodded. Jin Zi's abilities were somewhat similar to Gu Chen's Golden Dragon King, though the quality of Jin Zi's Martial Soul couldn't compare.
Then she turned to Ling Xiaojiu.
With a sweet smile, Ling Xiaojiu said, "Sister Saintess, my Martial Soul is the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass. My first soul skill, Cooling Sword Grass, can dispel any control effect unconditionally. The second, Fiery Sword Grass, puts an ally into a berserk state—but they'll lose their reason. However, if used with Cooling Sword Grass, they can stay sane while berserk. My third soul skill, Snow-Binding Sword Grass, summons a cage made of sword grass, which can either trap enemies or protect allies. My fourth skill, Reviving Sword Grass, is a healing ability."
"Very nice. By the way, Jin Zi, do you know anything about the other candidates?" Gu Chen asked.
Jin Zi nodded."I do. Yu Jiu inherited his father's Martial Soul, the Serpent Spear. Ci He inherited the Thorn Dolphin from his father, and Ci Yu has a mutated Martial Soul—the Bomb Dolphin. All his soul skills are bomb-throwing types. Lü De inherited his father's Devil Bear Martial Soul. As for the other three, there are twin sisters, Shen Ling and Shen Jing, both with the Martial Soul Healing Scepter, and then there's a shadow-type agility attacker named Ye Wuyou."
Jin Zi seemed to remember something and added,"Right—Ye Wuyou isn't just one of their lackeys. He's a senior from the last class. He's 24 years old and already a 58th-level Soul King. They invited him specifically to anchor their team! We have to be careful when the fight starts."
Gu Chen nodded calmly. To him, a 58th-level Soul King didn't warrant much concern.
"I'll lay out our strategy," Gu Chen said. "Ye Wuyou is an agility-type Soul King, so he'll probably try to pick us off one by one. Our plan is to stay close, form a support-ready battle formation, and only then split into individual matchups. I suggest we use a five-pointed star formation, with Luo Chen and Ling Xiaojiu in the center, and the rest of us at each point."
"Sounds good," Jin Zi agreed, gesturing for him to continue.
Gu Chen continued:"I'll handle Yu Jiu. Jin Zi, you take on Lü De. Na'er, go after the control-type soul master Ci He. Hua Buluo, hold off Ci Yu. Feng Xiaoyu will split off from the formation at the start, and Ling Xiaojiu will temporarily cover her position. Feng Xiaoyu, your mission is to take out their healing soul masters. Once that's done, we regroup and eliminate Ye Wuyou together."
"Agreed," Jin Zi said.
Gu Yuena nodded lightly, Ling Xiaojiu voiced no objections, and neither did Hua Buluo, Luo Chen, or Feng Xiaoyu.
The next day, the Saint Son Selection Tournament began.Although it was technically the preliminary round, it was also the final—since only two teams existed, the referee didn't bother with a draw and simply ordered both teams onto the battlefield.
The opposing team was not led by Lü De or the others. Instead, at the front walked a black-haired man with a calm expression.
He wore a black battle suit, with slightly messy hair falling over his brow. His thick, crescent-moon-shaped eyebrows framed a pair of clear, jet-black eyes that, on closer inspection, held a sharp glint.
This was Ye Wuyou.
Rumor had it Ye Wuyou was an illegitimate son from the Ye clan of the Star Luo Empire. After offending a legitimate heir, he was hunted down by his own family.
Forced to flee, Ye Wuyou stole nearly a tenth of the Ye clan's cultivation resources and made off with their ancestral weapon—a dagger called Purple-Winged Angel—before defecting to Spirit Hall.
Since joining, he had become extremely arrogant. Despite his strength, he had very few friends.
"Begin!" the referee shouted.
Everyone released their Martial Souls and went on high alert.
Feng Xiaoyu used Wind Escape to lower her presence and stealthily left the formation. Meanwhile, Gu Chen and the others, centered around Luo Chen, formed a five-pointed star formation.
Gu Chen and Jin Zi stood at the front, facing the enemy team. Gu Yuena and Hua Buluo were on the left and right wings, and Ling Xiaojiu held the rear position. Each person was spaced no more than ten meters apart.
"Nine-Leaf Fiery Scorching Grass!"
"Nine-Leaf Cool and Icy Grass!"
Ling Xiaojiu's sweet voice rang out as two glowing sword grasses floated over, buffing Gu Chen and Jin Zi.
"Secret Fried Rice! Fragrant Fried Rice!"Luo Chen tossed two helpings of soul food to Gu Chen, then prepared a Talented Fried Rice for Jin Zi.
Meanwhile, on the opposing side, Ye Wuyou formed a hand seal. His second soul ring lit up—and his figure vanished into thin air.This soul skill, also named Stealth, allowed him to hide in shadows and even materialize in another person's shadow.
Gu Chen charged forward, adjusting the formation and confronting Yu Jiu directly. His Golden Dragon Spear thrust straight toward him.
Jin Zi blocked Ci He, who tried to sneak toward the backline. Activating Golden Crocodile Armor, he lit up his second and fourth soul rings—twin crocodile claws slashing down at Ci He.
Ci He's younger brother, Ci Yu, was impatient. His first soul ring lit up, summoning a Bomb Dolphin, which he lobbed at Jin Zi.
The bomb flew in an arc and exploded near Jin Zi.
Cough cough.The Golden Crocodile Armor absorbed most of the impact, but Jin Zi was still left a bit dusty and disoriented.
Suddenly, a barrage of sharp spikes shot from Ci He toward Jin Zi.
Jin Zi quickly regained focus and concentrated on fending off Ci He.
At the same time, Hua Buluo activated his first soul skill, Thousand Sakura Dance, scattering cherry blossoms to suppress Ci Yu and his bomb dolphins.