Yan Shaozhe left, but the hearts of the Shrek Academy team settled down.
"Alright, everyone should move on from the previous emotions now."
With Yan Shaozhe's appointment, Wang Yan gained confidence and began formally taking over the team leader duties.
"Yuhao, you need to be prepared. You will be the core in the upcoming battles."
"Ah?"
Huo Yuhao was stunned.
He looked up at Wang Yan, thinking he had misheard.
Even if three senior members were injured and reserve team members needed to be selected as replacements, logically it shouldn't be him, let alone as the core.
"Why me?"
"The team's overall strength is impaired, but we still maintain an advantage. Xiao Tao and Yueheng are both Spirit Emperors, plus three Spirit Kings. What we need to consider isn't how to win, but how to win without exposing more of our strength."
"Why?"
Ma Xiaotao spoke up to question.
Her fighting style was straightforward and forceful; she didn't like hiding her capabilities.
"With our strength, we don't need to go through all this trouble."
Wang Yan said helplessly, "This was instructed by Dean—Elder Yan."
"When?"
Ma Xiaotao looked skeptical.
"Last night."
"Fine."
With Yan Shaozhe as his pretext, Wang Yan managed to convince Ma Xiaotao.
"According to Elder Yan, this year's Sun Moon Imperial team has a very high overall standard. Coupled with some uncertain factors, we can't take it too seriously."
"What factors?" Ma Xiaotao pressed.
She hated it when people beat around the bush.
Wang Yan had no choice but to look at Huo Yuhao.
"Yuhao and Caitou should be the most knowledgeable about this. Let them explain it to you."
Huo Yuhao looked bewildered.
He Caitou also didn't immediately understand what Wang Yan meant.
"Spirit Metal," Wang Yan reminded them.
Spirit Metal?
Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yueheng's eyes flickered.
They had heard something about it but didn't know the details.
The others were clueless, having never heard the term.
"Spirit Metal!"
Huo Yuhao's expression changed slightly.
"Teacher Wang Yan, do you mean the Sun Moon Empire might also have Spirit Metal?"
"Yes, this is also the latest news. The Blacksmith Association intends to expand across the entire continent. They may not have traded Spirit Metal exclusively with us." Wang Yan informed everyone of the information he had received in the past two days.
Huo Yuhao and He Caitou exchanged a glance, their expressions turning grave.
"Yuhao, what does this mean?" Ma Xiaotao asked.
"To put it simply, if Spirit Metal is used properly as the core of a spirit tool, it can possess power that surpasses its grade. A seasoned seventh-grade Spirit Engineer can use Spirit Metal to create a seventh-grade spirit tool comparable to an eighth-grade one."
"What?"
Everyone was shocked.
"What about the consumption? Is it calculated based on which grade?"
"The consumption is higher than ordinary spirit tools, but definitely less than higher-grade spirit tools. The key is the usage conditions." Huo Yuhao said with a grave expression, "If the opponent is originally a six-ring Spirit Emperor and a sixth-grade Spirit Engineer, and if they truly possess spirit tools made from Spirit Metal, we basically have to treat them as seventh-grade Spirit Engineers."
Ma Xiaotao also calmed down.
A seventh-grade Spirit Engineer is on par with a Spirit Sage.
No matter how confident she was, she didn't think she could suppress a seventh-grade Spirit Engineer.
"According to the academy's previous observations and deductions, the Blacksmith Association will likely auction Spirit Metal or spirit tools made from Spirit Metal during the competition. Besides competing, we need to frequently visit the major auction houses."
"What is the Blacksmith Association's purpose?" Ma Xiaotao wondered.
Faced with this question, Wang Yan could only shrug.
"I don't know either."
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something and instructed the reserve team members.
"Xiao Xiao, Wang Dong, after the matches, you can look into this information. When you need to obtain Spirit Rings, consider carefully whether to hunt Spirit Beasts in the normal way."
Wang Yan spent considerable effort explaining these basics to the group of students who had just left the academy. Only then did he lead everyone out of the private room, preparing to attend tonight's auction.
"Brother Su!"
In the hallway, Huo Yuhao's exclamation made both groups stop.
On the Sun Moon Imperial team's side, Su Ming was drawn by Huo Yuhao's voice and saw the Shrek Academy team coming downstairs.
"Su Ming, you know him?"
Xiao Hongchen moved closer and asked in a low voice.
"Sort of." Su Ming raised an eyebrow and looked at Xiao Hongchen. "What's on your mind?"
He remembered in the original story, Xiao Hongchen showed off in front of the Shrek Academy team.
Why did the Xiao Hongchen before him feel fake, with no desire to show off?
Meng Hongchen also moved closer and asked quietly.
"Su Ming, you know them?"
Su Ming saw Meng Hongchen staring intently at Wang Dong and felt quite speechless.
He, Xiao Hongchen, and Li Qing, who had already left the team, could all be considered handsome, albeit in a more masculine, physically robust way.
Meng Hongchen had never shown any signs of being boy-crazy before, so Su Ming thought she didn't have that trait in reality.
But upon seeing Wang Dong, she still revealed it.
Su Ming glanced at Wang Dong.
Hmm...
It's a delicate, pretty kind of handsome.
Not effeminate, but a special kind of masculine feeling, almost heroic.
Right, using adjectives that describe a girl as boyish perfectly fits Wang Dong.
"He's actually a girl, believe it or not," Su Ming said quietly.
"Ah?"
Meng Hongchen was stunned.
She carefully observed Su Ming's expression and found he didn't seem to be joking.
No—
Looking at Meng Hongchen's disappointed expression, Su Ming had a strange conjecture.
Could it be that Meng Hongchen's orientation was unconventional, but her self-perception was normal? So the objects of her infatuation fit the standard of girls disguised as boys.
Shaking his head, Su Ming stopped his wild thoughts.
While the Sun Moon Imperial team was conversing quietly, the Shrek Academy team across from them was in an uproar.
"It's him!"
Compared to Huo Yuhao's surprise mixed with joy and confusion, Bei Bei's emotion was pure anger.
He stared fixedly at Su Ming.
"Bei Bei, what's wrong?" Wang Yan acted swiftly, placing a hand on Bei Bei's shoulder to restrain him. "Also, Yuhao, do you and Bei Bei both know that person?"
"Yes. When I went to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt for a Spirit Ring years ago, I met Brother Su. He was very kind, helped me hunt the Spirit Ring, and then I followed Big Senior Brother and Teacher Xiao Ya to join Shrek Academy."
After hearing Huo Yuhao's words, and noticing his hesitation in the middle, Wang Yan knew Huo Yuhao wasn't telling the whole story. He turned to Bei Bei for him to elaborate.
"He's from the Body Sect!"
Bei Bei said resentfully, "It was him who brought the Body Sect back then, forcing my great-grandfather to take action, which prematurely ended his already limited lifespan."
Wang Yan's gaze instantly turned heavy.
What did that mean?
Was this Su Ming also involved in Elder Mu's death?
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(Chapter End)