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The closer a virtual world is to reality, the stronger the reaction upon entering it will be.
Take the Spirit Ascension Platform, for example. Even if you're familiar with the sensation of entering, you can't completely eliminate the feeling, because it's an unavoidable transition when your consciousness is instantly pulled into another world.
If it were purely a fictional world, like an illusion, it could subtly draw a soul master's consciousness into its realm without detection. But this isn't a purely fabricated world—it's one that closely resembles reality and can be regarded as a small, separate plane, albeit one that exists on a spiritual level. Only the soul master's spirit needs to enter.
Xu Yuan felt the changes brought about by the teleportation.
"This place feels even closer to reality than my dream realm."
After this brief reflection, Xu Yuan didn't dwell on it further.
The technology behind converting between virtual and reality wasn't something he could deduce just by feeling it now.
Upon entering this forest space for the evaluation, Xu Yuan immediately extended his spiritual power outward. While part of his attention was focused on sensing the nature of this space, most of his focus was still on observing his surroundings.
Not far from him, a group of five classmates had already banded together.
"Xu Yuan!" A tall, lanky student eyed Xu Yuan with slight apprehension.
"I didn't expect you'd actually come in here all alone."
The spherical pods outside corresponded to positions within the evaluation area. Neighboring pods would transport participants to nearby zones.
Xu Yuan appearing alone likely meant he hadn't sought out teammates at all.
How arrogant!
Is he really planning to challenge groups of three, four, or even five other genius-level classmates?
How dare he!
Even with high soul power levels, there's always a chance of being defeated in one-versus-many battles.
This was a common scenario in the world of lower-level soul masters.
As soul power levels increased, especially after reaching Level 70 and becoming a Soul Sage, the cost and difficulty of fighting across ranks became much higher. However, below Level 50, cross-rank battles were still relatively common, especially in group-versus-one fights.
Theoretically, three Soul Elders had the potential to fight against a single Soul Ancestor.
And with five Soul Elders, their chances of defeating a Soul Ancestor through teamwork increased significantly.
The tall, lanky student now directed his four companions.
The five of them had known each other beforehand and had formed a team early on in preparation for this evaluation. They had collaborated in the past and shared basic trust, so they were brimming with confidence at this moment.
Are you the strongest genius of this year?
Then let's eliminate you right as you enter!
"It seems you're quite confident," Xu Yuan said calmly as he looked at the five of them.
He released his brain-type martial soul.
Four soul rings slowly rose from beneath his feet in sequence.
"Since that's the case, let me see your strength."
The tall, lanky student and his four companions' expressions turned grave, their initial confidence gone.
Before Xu Yuan, soul rings were rising one by one, their colors shockingly vivid.
Purple, purple, purple, black!
Four soul rings—his first ring was a thousand-year purple ring, and its aura clearly wasn't that of an ordinary thousand-year soul ring.
His first, second, and third rings—all three were thousand-year purple rings. Just these alone surpassed the configuration of the five-man group led by the lanky student.
The five-man group consisted entirely of three yellow-ring Soul Sage configurations. Due to the requirements of spirit power for soul spirits, not a single one of them had a purple ring.
On the other hand, Xu Yuan's three purple rings were provided by Yao Yao, each reaching six thousand years!
Moreover, Xu Yuan's fourth soul ring was a ten-thousand-year ring—a feat normally only possible for Soul Kings!
It was previously mentioned that cross-rank battles were relatively common below the Soul King level, but once you reached the Soul King rank, it became extremely difficult.
A true Soul King with a ten-thousand-year soul skill was nearly impossible to overcome.
At this moment, the five-man group felt an overwhelming sense of dread. All five of them could confidently say that whatever type of soul skill Xu Yuan's fourth ring held, as long as it had offensive capabilities, none of them could withstand it.
In fact, it was highly likely that a single soul skill could wipe out all five of them.
Xu Yuan slowly advanced.
His four soul rings had appeared, but he hadn't yet revealed his martial soul.
This was a characteristic of his current cultivation. His brain-type martial soul enhanced his spiritual power, while his four soul skills played a significant role in real combat. Additionally, he wielded the Tianyuan Five Elements Spear 'martial soul,' which was based on the Five Elements Spear Spirit, allowing him to fight using two martial souls simultaneously.
The Tianyuan Five Elements Spear had three soul rings, and all three soul skills could be activated through technique, even without releasing the soul rings, allowing him to use them freely.
Xu Yuan exuded immense pressure at this moment.
He slowly stepped forward, his brow glowing as a five-colored light shot out, circling in the air before landing in Xu Yuan's right hand. A spear slowly materialized, extending from his palm.
The five-man group instinctively took half a step back.
Is this his martial soul?
A spear!
Power-type offense!
Their hearts grew heavier.
A Soul Ancestor, wielding a ten-thousand-year soul skill, and specializing in power-type offense.
This was the hardest opponent to face.
Xu Yuan slowly shook his head.
"To show respect, I'll use my true spear technique."
Holding the Tianyuan Five Elements Spear, he mobilized the surrounding ambient energy. The oppressive force that had been purely psychological earlier now manifested tangibly around him.
The tall, lanky man's pupils contracted sharply.
"This is spear momentum!"
Retreat!
There's no chance of victory.
Level 45 Soul Ancestor.
Ten-thousand-year soul ring.
Power-type offense.
Plus spear momentum.
With all these factors combined, there was absolutely no chance of victory.
At this moment, the tall, lanky man was filled with terror, unable to comprehend how someone like Xu Yuan could achieve such feats.
Spear momentum and spear intent unleashed simultaneously.
Xu Yuan's spear strike was overwhelmingly dominant.
This strike carried the dominating spear momentum he had just mastered.
It seemed to seal everything in its path. The five men's retreat was disrupted, and in an instant, they were unable to channel their soul power, forced to watch helplessly as the terrifying spear aura exploded before their eyes.
The five of them dissolved into light, eliminated in an instant.
Xu Yuan's gaze swept across the surroundings.
"Go ahead and spread the message. Tell the others to unite however they wish."
Xu Yuan spoke to the other students hiding nearby.
His tone was supremely arrogant, exuding overwhelming dominance.
"Entertain me to your heart's content!"
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Outside
Wu Changkong stared at the battle scene on the screen, his expression tense.
"Is this his true strength?" His pupils kept contracting, clearly unprepared for such a massive disparity.
Shen Yi stood beside him, looking rather helpless.
"I'll tell you—he's just using the spear technique he claimed he'd use, but this is far from his limit. Do you believe me?"
Wu Changkong's breath caught.
Then, he let out a bitter smile.
He had no choice but to believe.
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