Tang Wulin shook his head. “I don’t think so. I plan to join the army in the future. It’s been my objective since long ago. I’ll be leaving for that once I’ve graduated from the inner court.”
“Join the army?” Ye Xinglan looked at Tang Wulin in astonishment. “Xu Lizhi mentioned that before, but I assumed it wasn’t true. You think that enlisting will be better than cultivating in the academy?”
Tang Wulin smiled. “This is what I want. I’ll do whatever it takes, just like how Gu Yue’s goal is to become a member of the Spirit Pagoda. Everyone has their own ambitions. How about you? You’ll be staying in the academy, right?”
Ye Xinglan nodded. “I don’t like the outside world that deceives and schemes. The academy suits me best. Lizhi too. He said that he’ll join me and remain in the academy.” Her gaze became much gentler when she said that.
“That’s great! Think about this, where will we be in another ten years? It’ll be wonderful when the day comes that we can all reminisce about the times we had together.”
Ye Xinglan laughed. “That’s right! Perhaps it will be as such. You should leave now. I’m going to cultivate.”
After leaving Ye Xinglan’s chambers, Tang Wulin was about to return to his room, but he suddenly recalled her words from earlier. His feet suddenly came to a halt in front of Gu Yue’s door.
He knocked on the door softly.
The door opened after Gu Yue realized that it was him.
Tang Wulin walked into the room and announced proudly, “My second piece of battle armor is done. The next one will be yours.”
Gu Yue smiled. “I don’t know. We’ll wait to see Xinglan’s plan. Anyhow, I’ve already passed her the designs for everyone’s second pieces of battle armor.”
Tang Wulin did not feign his courtesy and sat onto the sofa. He picked up a glass of water from the table and drank a few mouthfuls.
“Hey, that’s my glass.” Gu Yue looked at him reproachfully.
“Oh,” Tang Wulin answered and laughed. “I drank it anyway. You can wash it later.” As he spoke, he poured the remaining water into his mouth and swallowed.
Getting ever more infuriated, Gu Yue glared at him as Tang Wulin sniggered. “I like your look now. Don’t always look like you have the weight of the entire world on your shoulders. We’re only fifteen years old. I’m already old and steady enough, but these days you look even older than I am. You’re going to get wrinkles, you know.”
Gu Yue grabbed her slipper and threw it at Tang Wulin angrily. “You’re the one who’s getting wrinkles.”
Tang Wulin caught it and spoke with a smile, “I heard a song before. It was titled ‘The Most Romantic Thing Is to Grow Old with You’. Gu Yue, do you think we’ll grow old together in the future?”
Gu Yue was caught off guard. She was suddenly speechless as she looked at him.
Tang Wulin stood and walked right up to her. He knelt down and lifted her foot gently, putting the slipper he held back on for her.
He stood up, raised his hand and rubbed her head, then said with a grin, “Your hair’s messy.”
“Scoundrel!” Gu Yue scowled at him furiously.
“Goodnight.” Tang Wulin rubbed her head again, but Gu Yue did not actually try to dodge.
He left, while Gu Yue simply stood there the whole time. She did not tidy up her hair at all.
After a long while, she walked over and took a seat where Tang Wulin’s had plopped himself earlier. She picked up her glass and filled it with water before downing it in one gulp.
“The most romantic thing is to grow old with you?” Tears silently welled up in her big eyes.
The first round of the Continental Young High-Ranking Soul Masters Elite Competition took three days to complete. Some people were joyous while others were heartbroken. The Star Luo Empire’s government revealed its great organizational skills. Even though Star Luo City was already overcrowded, they still managed to keep everything running smoothly and ensured that the competition did not cause additional disturbances.
After the first round of one-on-one matches ended, it was followed by the first rounds for the pairs, group and mecha categories.
The three remaining categories had far fewer contestants compared to the one-on-one contest. The first round for each category was carried out every day according to the organizer’s arrangement. After the losing contestants were eliminated, one would be able to watch all sorts of matches in a day.
Tang Wulin appeared in front of Gu Yue’s door with a fresh and cool manner in the early morning to take her to breakfast with him.
It was apparent that Gu Yue’s charming face was smiling more when compared to the day before. Her gloominess seemed to have disappeared, and her sunny aura was beaming once again.
Tang Wulin peered at her continuously in secret as he was having his breakfast.
“What are you looking at?” Gu Yue rolled her eyes at him.
Tang Wulin laughed and said, “I noticed that you look slightly different today! Do you regret not taking part in the one-on-one contest?”
Gu Yue scoffed. “I didn’t participate in the one-on-one contest because I didn’t want us to fight each other. If you were to fight against me, how would you maintain your reputation?”
“So confident, huh?” Tang Wulin asked in slight defiance. “What makes you so certain that I am not a worthy opponent?”
Gu Yue answered flatly, “My power.”
“Perhaps we should get together and compare notes someday,” Tang Wulin said with a laugh.
Gu Yue pursed her lips arrogantly, yet the corners of her mouth cracked into a smile.
Meanwhile, the rest of their companions had already been arriving at the cafeteria one by one. Ye Xinglan sat down next to Gu Yue. When she saw the smile on Gu Yue’s face, she could not help but smirk as she darted Tang Wulin a look.
“It’s the two-on-two match today. Be careful everyone! I fought with a Soul King-ranked opponent yesterday. The overall power of the Star Luo Empire’s Soul Masters is even stronger than I imagined.”
Full of confidence, Xie Xie said, “Still useless, no matter how strong they are. Our goal in the pairs category is to become the champions.”
Yuanen Yehui shot him a look. “Shut up.”
Xie Xie said awkwardly, “I didn’t say anything wrong. Is it not our goal to become the champions?”
Yuanen answered, “Even if we are, you don’t have the right to say so. The weak have no right to boast.”
Xie Xie was speechless. “Since when am I the weak one?”
Yuanen asked, “Who have you ever managed to best in a fight?”
Xie Xie pointed to Xu Lizhi without the slightest doubt. “Lizhi! Lizhi definitely can’t beat me. I don’t think Xiaoyan can either.”
“Can you be a little less good-for-nothing? Comparing yourself to the Auxiliary System Soul Master and Control System Soul Master.” Yuanen Yehui had a strong urge to send him flying with one hard slap.
Xie Xie sniggered. “One day I’ll be stronger than you. Perhaps everyone will meet a strong opponent today. I can only reveal my true strength when I have found a worthy match!”
Yuanen Yehui scoffed dismissively.
Tang Wulin snapped. “Keep your big mouth shut from now on!”
Xie Xie said, “Captain, aren’t you going to back me up? Look at Yuanen. She’s looking down on me.”
Tang Wulin spoke in an unpleasant tone, “Then you must use your strengths to prove that she’s wrong. Otherwise, don’t talk nonsense.”
All eight of them were taking part in the two-against-two competition. Tang Wulin and Gu Yue were a pair, as were Yuanen Yehui and Xie Xie, Xu Xiaoyan and Yue Zhengyu,and Ye Xinglan and Xu Lizhi.
There was no way to tell which pair was the strongest out of the four teams. After all, they had seldom engaged in two-on-two match. That being said, Tang Wulin and Gu Yue once challenged Yuanen Yehui and Yue Zhengyu, and they were still the strongest in overall power when combined.
The eight of them exited the hotel and headed straight for the sparring ground. Wu Zhangkong did not join them having already gone to the sparring ground in advance. The organizer had prepared a special podium for the Shrek Academy contingent.
The first round of the one-on-one category had been divided into three days, so Wu Zhangkong had actually only managed to watch Tang Wulin’s match. He did not pay as much attention to the others’ matches.
All four pairs of Shrek Academy’s students were contesting in today’s two-against-two category. As a leading teacher, he would naturally have to pay the most attention when his students were displaying their abilities.
The students of Shrek Academy would start developing in different directions once they had achieved a certain level in their cultivation base, especially the elite students. A teacher had to help them avoid going astray as much as possible and offer some guidance in finding their own path. He would not intervene in any more of their situations. The best method for cultivating truly outstanding Soul Masters and Battle Armor Masters was to allow them to develop their individual characters in the manner best suited for them.
Thus, Wu Zhangkong already seldom gave them instructions. He would help them to correct their inadequacies mostly after they saw their own weaknesses in actual combat.
Tang Wulin and his companions walked together after they entered the contestant’s passageway. Even though many had witnessed the shocking scene when he defeated a Soul King during the first day of the competition, it had been for such a short time and a few days had passed since then, so nobody else among the audience or the contestants noticed him.
The contestants had a special waiting area, but there were already no seats available for them by the time they arrived there. The eight of them found a corner to stand in, waiting for their matches to arrive.
Tang Wulin looked at the other contestants within the waiting area. The competition’s age requirement was below twenty years old. He could see most of the contestants were at least eighteen years old and above. Some were excited and eager to try, while some were clutching their fists anxiously, and others were sitting and meditating with their eyes closed calmly.
He could sense the contestants’ levels roughly just by looking at them.