Chapter 94: Formation

"Sss, at twenty he already has a Level 39 soul power cultivation, making him a student with exceptional talent."

"Unfortunately his martial soul quality is a bit poor; otherwise he could make the First Team list, but he can serve as a substitute," Bai Baoshan hesitated for a moment and said.

"No, no, I intend to cultivate him as part of the Second Team," Meng Shenji quickly interjected. "Don't forget, the Seven Treasure Glazed Sect recently sent two students with good talent in."

"I think I get your point: if at the Continental Soul Master Elite Competition our Second Team fields three Soul Ancestors, just on paper our strength would match the FiveElementsAcademy; if luck holds and we secure a victory against the FiveElementsAcademy squad, the impact of that win would be considerable;"

"In the public's eyes, they'd consider the Tian Dou Royal Academy's Second Team on par with the FiveElementsAcademy's main squad, so that team would be…"

After hearing Zhi Lin's explanation, Bai Baoshan suddenly had an epiphany.

The Tian Dou Royal Academy has always boasted the title of the Empire's top academy without the actual strength of a top school; this has been a thorn in the hearts of the three of them.

"The First Team's selection is complete; their talents and martial souls are top‑tier, and their compatibility is very high, forming a complete team;"

"For the Second Team, we'll build it around those three, and in this regard Qin Ming, whose experience is richer, can handle the selection."

"Alright."

…

"One class for Strong Attack‑type, Agile Attack‑type, and Control‑type; another class for Support‑type and Defense‑type, with dedicated Tian Dou‑level teachers assisting."

"Your martial soul is the Purple Thunder Hammer; you can try mimetic cultivation on the Thunder Stone terrain atop the mountain, and the effect is quite good."

"By the way, have you ever had experience with Team Soul Battle before?"

Teacher Li, while introducing the academy to Tie Li, also asked about Tie Li's background.

"No, I've always cultivated on my own." In this regard, Tie Li chose to conceal it.

"No problem, it's not a big deal."

Teacher Li didn't mind; he gave Tie Li a brief tour of the academy, and soon it was noon.

"It's about time; let's go eat first."

In the afternoon, Tie Li arrived at the Tian Dou‑level classroom, where most students already knew each other, leaving Tie Li as the only unfamiliar face.

Bai Xu, who provoked Tie Li in the cafeteria yesterday, was also in the classroom.

From their seats you could see they were divided into several groups; even among Tian Dou‑level students there is competition, and forming cliques is normal.

The moment Tie Li stepped into the classroom, he couldn't help glancing at a student in the front row.

He wasn't exactly handsome; his facial muscles were stiff, his expression blank, and beside him nestled a short dark‑purple‑haired girl.

The reason he caught Tie Li's attention was solely the suppression of his martial soul tier, which made Tie Li feel especially uneasy.

Such obvious suppression led Tie Li to guess his identity.

The girl beside him must be Du Gu Yan; if I'm not mistaken, the other two students are Yu Feng and Ao Si Luo, right?

In the classroom, those four appeared the youngest, only about seventeen or eighteen.

By contrast, some students were nearing twenty‑five and only at Three Ring Soul Honorable.

"Boss, a new classmate arrived, looks pretty strong," Yu Feng leaned toward Yu Tianheng, showing interest in the newcomer.

"You better watch yourself; Teacher Qin Ming is back, and don't hold back tomorrow's training," Ao Si Luo said nearby.

"Hah, how could I hold anyone back?" Yu Feng said nonchalantly.

He's not only the team's Agile Attack‑type Soul Master, but also a Flying Soul Master, and his role in the squad is far from negligible.

Tie Li sat alone toward the back, scanning his surroundings.

The teacher in charge of the lesson soon entered the classroom.

According to what Teacher Li told him in the morning, the afternoon instructor is Zhao Laoshi, a Level 67 Strong Attack‑type Soul Emperor, whose teaching greatly benefits Strong Attack‑type Soul Masters.

Zhao Laoshi entered the classroom and gave Tie Li in the back an extra glance.

He had received a notice to pay special attention to the new student, the primary cultivation target for the academy's Second Team, possibly the first to break through to Four Ring Soul Ancestor among the two squads.

"Alright, today I'm teaching you, so be serious from now on;"

"Today's main focus is the confrontation and coordination between Strong Attack‑type and Control‑type…"

The material Zhao Laoshi lectured on was all new to Tie Li, providing a different kind of inspiration; the deeper it went, the more engrossed he became.

Images of the lecture's content subconsciously flashed in his mind, especially the combat details, which were explained very clearly.

Now Tie Li is like a dry sponge, urgently needing to absorb moisture to grow stronger.

Tie Li hadn't even noticed the time passing; only when the teacher announced the end of class did he finally realize.

From then on, Tie Li missed no class; even when a Control‑type teacher lectured, the material was crucial, and absorbing their knowledge greatly helped him.

…

"Teacher Qin, what do you think?"

"Teaching both squads at once, I'm afraid…" Qin Ming's face showed distress.

"Teacher Qin, don't worry; this time we mainly hope you can cooperate with Zhao Laoshi to select Second Team members, while you mainly continue teaching the First Team," Zhi Lin said.

Qin Ming exhaled in relief; teaching two squads would likely consume all his time—he's only in his early thirties and also needs time to cultivate.

Holding the Tian Dou‑level student dossiers, the first entry was Tie Li's information.

Twenty years old, Level 39 Soul Elder, with exceptional talent, though his martial soul quality is a bit lacking.

Such an outstanding student truly needs proper cultivation.

"I'll do my best."

Qin Ming carefully reviewed the student files, conjuring several battle formation hypotheses in his mind.

"One Strong Attack, one Agile Attack, one Support; we're missing the crucial Control‑type Soul Master and Defense‑type Soul Master. For the Control slot, I recommend Tuo Yu; as for the Defense slot and the other two positions, I need to first assess their abilities," Qin Ming suggested.

He needs to witness their true strength before making the next recommendation.

"No problem, I'll have the two of them spar once," Zhao Laoshi said.

Qin Ming saw that the three Committee Members placed great importance on the Second Team; there are three squads led by Four Ring Soul Ancestors, and their Soul Master lineup already rivals the FiveElementsAcademy.

In the Strong Attack, Agile Attack, and Defense positions, one student must be exceptionally outstanding, leaving only two spots to fill the team's deficiencies.

(End of chapter)