The Shrek Academy Central Arena was a sea of noise. Hundreds of freshmen gathered in groups of three, the air thick with the overlapping auras of diverse Martial Souls. It was a carnival of power, but for Lin Feng, it was a harvest ground for the points he desperately needed to evolve his first ring.
"Look at them," Wang Dong muttered, his wings neatly tucked away, though he still drew stares for his ethereal appearance. "Half of these teams are shaking. They've heard of 'The Devil Teacher's Trio'."
Huo Yuhao adjusted his belt, his eyes darting around. "Don't be overconfident, Wang Dong. I can sense at least three teams with combined spirit ranks higher than ours. And some of them are looking at Feng with... curiosity."
Lin Feng stood at the center of their formation, his hands behind his back.
[System Notification: Tournament Mode Active.]
Current Objective: Win the Opening Match without taking damage.
Reward: 1,500 System Points.
Hidden Condition: Maintain 'Visual Cloak' at all times.
"Let them look," Lin Feng said calmly. "Yuhao, keep your Spiritual Detection at a 20-meter radius. Don't let anyone see the full range. Wang Dong, no flying unless I say so. We win this with pure ground control."
The Opening Match: The Earth-Shatter Combo
"Arena 7! Team Lin Feng vs. Team Iron Bull!" the referee shouted.
Their opponents were three burly students, all possession-type soul masters with heavy, bovine-like features. Their leader, a Rank 23 Spirit Grandmaster named Niu Hu, slammed his fists together.
"Bronze Body? Little brat, I'll show you what real strength looks like!" Niu Hu roared. Two yellow spirit rings rose from beneath his feet, mirrored by his two teammates.
"Begin!"
The three bulls charged like a steam engine, the ground vibrating under their hooves.
[System: Activating Simulation-Pathing...]
Result: Collision in 2.4 seconds. Recommendation: Absolute Gravity burst.
"Yuhao, link!"
Yuhao's eyes glowed gold-violet. The mental map flooded Lin Feng and Wang Dong's minds. They didn't see the bulls; they saw the structural weaknesses in their charge.
"Wang Dong, left flank. Low sweep," Lin Feng commanded.
As the bulls reached them, Lin Feng didn't punch. He simply stepped forward and tapped his foot on the stone tiles.
"Absolute Gravity: 200%!"
The gravity didn't hit the whole arena; it was a localized "puddle" directly under the charging opponents. To the crowd, it looked like the three bulls simply tripped. In reality, their perceived weight doubled in an instant, causing their own momentum to snap their balance.
CRASH!
The three opponents face-planted into the stone with such force that the arena groaned.
"Now," Lin Feng whispered.
Wang Dong moved like a blue-gold blur. Without the weight of his bracers, he felt as light as a feather. He didn't even use a soul skill; he simply delivered three precise kicks to the back of their necks, guided by Yuhao's detection.
The match was over in five seconds.
The Observation: Suspicion and Awe
The crowd went silent. The referee blinked, looking at the stopwatch. "Team Lin Feng... wins!"
As they walked off the stage, Lin Feng felt a sharp gaze from the spectator's balcony. It was Zhou Yi, standing next to a middle-aged man with a scholarly air—Teacher Wang Yan, the academy's premier martial soul researcher.
"That wasn't a soul skill," Wang Yan whispered, his eyes fixed on Lin Feng. "He didn't use a ring. He just... stepped. Zhou Yi, where did you find this boy? His control over physical constants is frightening."
"He calls it 'Body Weight Control'," Zhou Yi lied, though she herself was suspicious. "He claims his Bronze Body allows him to shift his center of mass."
"Lies," Wang Yan muttered. "That was gravity. But he's Rank 16. Gravity manipulation is usually a Rank 50+ domain."
The System Harvest
Back in the waiting area, Lin Feng closed his eyes to check the tally.
[Mission Complete: Flawless Victory.]
Reward: 1,500 System Points.
Bonus: +500 for 'Efficient Combat'.
Current Points: 6,500 / 30,000.
"Feng, you're scaring me," Wang Dong said, leaning against a pillar. "You barely moved. I felt the air get heavy for a second. Is that your 'Bronze Body's' secret?"
"It's just a technique, Wang Dong," Lin Feng replied, keeping his voice neutral. "Focus on the next match. The teams get harder from here. I need you two to be ready to use the Resonance we practiced."
"We're ready," Yuhao said, his voice steady. He felt the Deep-Sea Soul Marrow he'd consumed earlier circulating through his veins, making his spirit power feel as vast as the ocean. "The next team has an Agility-type with two rings. I'll lock them down."
Lin Feng nodded. He looked at the tournament bracket. Somewhere near the end sat the "Seed Teams"—the ones with three-ring Soul Elders.
I need 23,500 more points, Lin Feng thought. If I can provoke the senior teams into betting points or challenging us to 'Extreme Trials,' I can hit the 30,000 mark before the finals.
"System," Lin Feng mentally commanded. "Scan for 'High-Reward' opponents in the vicinity."
[Scanning... Target Found: Team Dai Huabin (White Tiger).]
[Potential Reward: 10,000 System Points (Rivalry Bonus).]
A cold smile touched Lin Feng's lips. The descendant of the White Tiger. The perfect prey to fuel the evolution of the Golden Hammer.
"Let the games begin," he whispered.