Chapter 105: Exhausting the Last of His Soul Power, A Test of Willpower

  At the moment of departure, dozens of wooden boards flew off the shoulders of several dozen soul masters, presumably because these people were too confident and didn't prepare before running. Those who lost their souls and were chased out of the venue made Helian's heart tighten. After all, this test was a one-time opportunity for everyone; either succeed or fail, and to get another chance at the Sacred Soul Academy's qualification would have to wait three years. Under such cruel rules, running while coping with tense emotions was itself an extremely difficult test.

  Because the purple-robed examiner had already made it clear earlier, any soul who they felt was not making a full effort to run would be eliminated directly, so over a thousand test-takers started sprinting with all their might. No one dared to slack off at this time, and everyone was well aware that the prestigious Sacred Soul Academy absolutely did not allow anyone to slack off during the test.

  Lan You Ruo, who was running at the back of the crowd, although her cultivation wasn't weak, but after all, she was a woman, and her speed couldn't keep up with that of men. He Lian Nu and his brother He Lian Shuo couldn't slow down to wait for her either, so Lan You Ruo could only follow behind a group of female soul masters, running with great effort. He Lian Nu and He Lian Shuo's leg strength were extremely outstanding, and before long, they had already run to the front of the team.

  Although the wood on his shoulder was very heavy, Helianuo knew that the real test lay in controlling his soul power. The purpose of this test was not only to test the determination of the soul master, but also to test the skill of controlling the soul power. Helianuo carefully controlled his soul power to the most suitable degree, and at the same time, he had to pay attention to the obstacles on the track that were irregularly arranged. With such a divided attention, it didn't take long for his clothes to be soaked in cold sweat.

  The situation of Helian Shuo, who was thrown beside him, wasn't much better. Although his cultivation was very high, this wooden puppet was made according to the limit that each soul master could bear. Even he had to focus all his attention on it. However, his experience was far richer than Helian Nu's, and his control over the soul power was more pure and skilled, so his response was relatively easier.

  "Kid, you really passed the initial test! How about it, are you interested in having a racing competition with me? Running alone with a wooden beam on your shoulder is really too boring!", a slick and sly voice suddenly sounded beside Helianuo, Helianuo turned his head, only to find Mo Fei Bai pressing down on the wooden beam with one hand, smiling at him.

  "How can this kid still have the energy to talk?", looking at Mo Fei Bai's relaxed appearance, He Lian Nuo felt even more suffocated, all the cultivators on the scene were running around with their heads down, even he himself was already somewhat exhausted, who would have thought that Mo Fei Bai could still joke around as if nothing was wrong, and even had the mood to issue a challenge, this kid's strength really is astonishing!

  "What? Not dare to fight? Ah, what a pity! I thought you were a pretty spirited kid, but now it seems you're not that great after all! Tell that little girl who was with us earlier that I'll go find her once I'm done testing! Haha!" Without waiting for Helianuo's response, Mofei White shrugged uninterestingly and suddenly accelerated his speed by over 30%, instantly leaving Helianuo and the others far behind.

  Although he knew that he shouldn't be impulsive at this critical moment, Mo Fei's words still successfully enraged He Lian Nu. He gritted his teeth fiercely and no longer held back any strength, his footsteps suddenly quickening as he chased after Mo Fei in a flash!

  "Hurry! Don't be impulsive! Pay attention to the control of your soul power!", Hekuren shouted loudly, reminding him as he saw Hekurenno rush out like a madman. But before he could even finish his words, Hekurenno had already run far, far away. Helpless, Hekuren also quickened his pace, leaving the other soul masters far behind.

  This cruel run didn't last long, and hundreds of souls had already been eliminated. Those who remained were all drenched in sweat, but their footsteps were steady, and the wooden blocks on their shoulders were firmly in place. Mo Fei was running far ahead in first place, with He Lian Nu and He Lian Shuo closely following behind him. The three formed the First Legion, leaving everyone else far behind. It had been half a day since anyone had been eliminated, and the purple-robed elder on the sidelines frowned in dissatisfaction. Turning to an attendant beside him, he whispered, "At this rate, who knows how long it'll take to narrow down the numbers? It's time to activate the second plan!"

  He nodded, pulled out a delicate scroll from his sleeve and carefully spread it on the ground. He slowly inputted a wisp of soul power into it, and soon the scroll emitted a faint yellow glow. The glow rose to mid-air, then suddenly split into hundreds of light swords that shot towards the wooden tags on each of the soul masters' shoulders in the arena!

  Helianuo was exerting all his strength to shout at Mo Fei Bai, and as the distance between them grew shorter, he thought of making a dash forward. However, the wooden beam on his shoulder suddenly sank heavily, almost causing him to stumble. Helianshuo, who was following behind, quickly pressed down on his own beam and stretched out a hand to pull up Helianuo, who had lost his balance. At the same time, the beams on the shoulders of several hundred soul masters in the arena underwent some intense changes. Although most people adjusted their soul power in time, more than 300 people's beams left their bodies in an instant. Soon, they were expelled from the venue by the examiners.

  "Hmm, it's almost done now. Next, we'll just wait and see who falls first among the remaining few hundred people!" The old man in purple robes smiled contentedly, pulled over a chair from the side of the stage, and leaned against it leisurely. Now there were only more than 800 people left on the scene. As long as they eliminated the first 300 or so people who fell, this test would be considered complete!

  He Lian Nu secretly thought he was lucky, originally having abandoned one arm, in this test he didn't have any advantage, and with the examiner's sudden attack, he almost got eliminated. He looked at his brother who was running beside him panting heavily, He Lian Nu suddenly thought of Lan You Ruo, he quickly turned his head back to look for her, after searching for half a day he finally found Lan You Ruo's pale face flushed red, struggling to run at the end of the crowd. Although she luckily survived the sudden attack, her physical strength was almost reaching its limit.

  Although he was worried about Lan You's situation, He Lianuo also knew that even he himself couldn't be sure if he could pass the test, let alone have the energy to help her. The only thing Lan You could rely on was her own perseverance. It had to be said that among the female souls, nearly a hundred of them were still persisting in running, and compared to them, those pampered male souls who couldn't bear the hardship and were crying out while sitting on the ground, were really too embarrassing.

  According to Helian's impression, Mo Feibai should also be one of them, but the usually gentle and weak Mo Feibai was exceptionally fierce at this moment. He ran far ahead of everyone with big strides, even leaving behind Helian Cheng, who had a higher cultivation level. Because Helian Nuo stumbled once before, the distance between him and Mo Feibai grew even larger, but Helian Cheng quickly overtook Helian Nuo and took second place.

  "We can't lose to Second Brother and that rascal! ", He Lianuo gritted his teeth, shook off the legs that were already feeling sore and sprinted with all his might. At this point in the test, physical strength and spiritual power were no longer important; what one could rely on after reaching their limit was only their own willpower!

  "It's been four hours already!", through the transparent roof, the purple-robed old man stretched his waist, the souls in the field may not have much feeling, but the examiners on the sidelines were a bit impatient. The purple-robed old man turned his head and asked his subordinates: "How many people are still running without falling down now?"

  "There are still 450 people! The last fifty who fell, we have already recorded their names! However, as per convention, this test will only end when the last person falls!", the subordinate replied in a low voice.

  "Alas, it's enough to have eliminated the required number of people, yet they insist on competing until the very end!", The old man in purple robes let out a helpless sigh and slumped back into his chair.

  Those who were still running in the arena had no idea that they had already qualified for the next round of testing. Everyone had reached their physical limit, and everyone's consciousness was a bit blurry. Who still had the mood to pay attention to others? Even Mo Fei Bai, who had been performing extremely easily before, had slowed down his pace at this moment, and no longer had the strength to compete with He Lian Nu.

  Lan You had been running at the back of the team, her footsteps were already a bit shaky, sweat kept flowing from her forehead to her eyes, and every move she made was now just an instinctive reaction. After barely holding on for another lap, she finally couldn't hold on anymore, her entire body swayed violently before heavily crashing onto the ground!

  The test has been going on for five hours, and the sky is already completely dark. The venue's surroundings have lit up dozens of torches, and the fierce flames have made the atmosphere even more intense. Almost every now and then, a soul would fall to the ground on the track. The previously crowded venue was now empty.

  Mo Fei Bai has already fallen to second place, running ahead of him is He Lian Shuo, and as for He Lian Nuo, he is closely following behind Mo Fei Bai's back, the distance between them being only a shoulder's width apart, but this tiny difference in distance was never able to be narrowed.

  "I must not lose to this rogue!", Helianuo muttered in his heart, gritting his teeth and moving his legs. Just as he was about to overtake Mo Fei Bai, the latter's body suddenly shook violently, and then heavily fell to the ground!

  When his long-time rival suddenly fell down, He Lianuo only felt his legs go weak and he collapsed beside Mo Fei Bai. However, in the instant that he fell, He Lianuo exerted one last bit of strength in his feet and kicked forward with all his might. This single kick caused him to fall at a distance exactly half a palm's length away from Mo Fei Bai!