Su Yu glanced at Hu Liena beside him, leaning close to her ear and whispering:
"Nana, get ready to go!"
A glint flashed in Hu Liena's eyes as she nodded firmly. Their figures quickly merged into the crowd flowing toward the back mountain.
In the spectator stands, Holy Dragon Douluo scanned the competition grounds, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest as he asked Golden Crocodile Douluo beside him:
"Second Brother, which pair among this year's freshmen do you favor more?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo slightly lifted his eyelids, a sharp gleam flashing in his aged eyes:
"The Pope's disciple, Su Yu, shows promising talent indeed."
"Although his Wood Release Spirit is unheard of, anyone who caught the Pope's eye must possess remarkable strength."
"For this first assessment, he and Hu Liena should achieve a good ranking. Entering the top three in the Freshman Competition shouldn't be an issue."
He paused, then looked at Holy Dragon Douluo: "As for your junior, with his top-tier Martial Soul quality, high Innate Soul Power, and solid foundation, he deserves a spot in the top three of the Freshman Competition too."
"Regarding that girl Hu Liena," Golden Crocodile Douluo pondered.
"Her Bewitching Fox Soul leans toward control, better suited for team coordination with slightly weaker individual impact. But given her abilities, she should have no problem making the top ten in the Freshman Competition."
Holy Dragon Douluo stroked his beard, adding: "There's also the pair of Xie Yue and Yan."Moon Blade specializes in swift attacks, Flame Earth Lord in powerful assaults—one fast, one firm, their coordination is quite harmonious.""
"In this first competition, they might contend for the top three. The top ten of the Freshman Competition will definitely include them."
Several red-robed bishops nearby joined the discussion upon seeing this.
On the high platform, Bi Bidong remained silent throughout, her gaze calmly fixed on the direction of the back mountain.
Her slender fingers unconsciously rubbed the gem on the Pope's Scepter. No one could discern what she was thinking at that moment.
In the dense forest of the back mountain, branches and leaves intertwined like a net, dappled sunlight filtering through the gaps to fall upon the ground.
Most other students cautiously moved in groups, occasionally scanning their surroundings warily or discussing routes in low voices. Only Su Yu and Hu Liena walked with composed steps.
"Brother Su Yu, which way should we go?"
Hu Liena's eyes shimmered as she looked at the lush vegetation around them.
Su Yu tilted his head to listen to the forest's movements, then pointed toward a direction tangled with vines on the right:
"The Soul Power fluctuations are denser over there. There should be plenty of Soul Beasts."
"That's what I thought too!"
Hu Liena smiled radiantly, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with him deeper into the woods.
The two cooperated seamlessly. Su Yu's Wood Release Spirit could easily sense anomalies in the surrounding plants, predicting Soul Beast positions in advance.
Hu Liena's Bewitching Fox Soul emitted faint charming aura that disrupted the judgment of lower-tier Soul Beasts.
When encountering Soul Beasts hiding Command Tokens, Su Yu directly resolved them with his Splintering Wood Technique.
Occasionally meeting other teams, they merely kept their distance upon sensing the duo's Soul Power, focusing on searching rather than wasting time on conflicts.
Two hours passed in the blink of an eye. The sunset's afterglow pierced through the forest canopy, casting a warm hue over both of them.
Su Yu counted the Command Tokens at his waist, his eyes lighting up at the final tally:
"Thirty-three already!"
On the high platform, Golden Crocodile Douluo looked at the numbers reflected in the crystal ball, a trace of surprise appearing on his aged face before he sighed softly:
"It seems we underestimated them."
In just two hours, Su Yu and Hu Liena had already collected over thirty Command Tokens, far surpassing other teams.
The team currently ranked second only had eleven tokens in hand—a stark difference.
Beside him, Holy Dragon Douluo nodded in agreement, his gaze filled with approval:
"His Holiness the Pope's disciple is truly extraordinary."
"Before, we only thought his Wood Release Spirit was unique, but we never expected his combat coordination to be so outstanding. We underestimated him."
Bi Bidong sat upright in the main seat, her fingertips still lightly resting on her scepter, though the corners of her mouth curled into an almost imperceptible faint smile.
Inside the crystal ball, Su Yu was brushing fallen leaves from Hu Liena's hair.
Liena smiled and handed over the command token she had just retrieved from an Ironhide Boar, its metal tip gleaming coldly in the setting sun.
Su Yu took it and stored it away, then frowned slightly as he looked at the more than thirty tokens hanging at his waist:
"This method of searching is too slow—too inefficient."
A hint of cunning flashed in his eyes as he leaned closer to Hu Liena:
"Nana, why search when we can take? Tomorrow, we'll go 'plundering'!"
Hu Liena was taken aback at first, then quickly understood, a mischievous glint sparkling in her eyes:
"Alright, the rules never said we couldn't take them anyway."
Su Yu carefully gathered the tokens and tied them securely at his waist, his movements light and brisk.
He led her to a relatively open clearing in the forest, the ground carpeted with soft fallen leaves.
Rubbing his hands together, he said with excitement:
"Nana, let me show you a new technique—Wood Release: Four-Pillar Home Technique!"
Before the words had fully left his mouth, his hands swiftly formed seals and he slammed them onto the ground.
Instantly, countless thick wooden pillars shot up from beneath the soil, intertwining and rising at an astonishing speed.
In just a few breaths, a wooden house over three meters tall stood firmly on the ground.
The roof was layered with wooden shingles, the walls tightly fitted, and it even had two small windows.
"Wow!"
Hu Liena's eyes widened in amazement as she stepped forward and touched the wall of the wooden house. The wood was hard and smooth, as if meticulously polished.
"This technique is incredible! This way, we won't have to sleep out in the open tonight!"
Su Yu smiled and pushed open the wooden door: "Let's rest inside; it's quite spacious."
The interior of the wooden house was lined with dry hay, and a wooden table had naturally formed in one corner, exuding a faint, pleasant scent of wood and grass.
Hu Liena sat down by the window, gazing out at the gradually darkening forest, a gentle curve forming at the corner of her lips:
"With Brother Su Yu here, it feels like there's nothing to worry about."
Su Yu leaned against the doorframe, watching her profile, and chuckled:
"Once we're well-rested, tomorrow we'll have the other teams 'deliver' their tokens to us."
In the spectator stands, Golden Crocodile Douluo had just picked up his teacup when he caught sight of the wooden house that had appeared out of nowhere in the crystal ball. His hand trembled.
He didn't even notice the scalding tea splashing onto his sleeve, his lips twitching uncontrollably:
"This…"
Holy Dragon Douluo's hand, which had been stroking his beard, froze mid-air, his expression a mix of amusement and exasperation:
"This kid really knows how to enjoy himself."
"If it weren't for the numbers on the scoreboard, you'd think they were here for a vacation in the back mountains."
A red-robed bishop muttered under his breath, his tone carrying a mix of helplessness and admiration.
"This Wood Release Spirit can even be used like this? Not only is it both offensive and defensive, but it can even create a place to stay—saving a lot of trouble."
Golden Crocodile Douluo set down his teacup and shook his head: "He's certainly resourceful."
"However, this also shows they have enough confidence in their own strength to be so at ease."
On the high platform, Bi Bidong gazed at the wooden house within the crystal ball, a faint trace of amusement flickering in her eyes before vanishing instantly.
Her fingers lightly tapped the armrest as she remarked in an even tone:
"Saves us the trouble of searching for a cave."
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters. Just search for "QueenTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!