Chapter 271

Although Tang Wulin caused a big scandal at the start, the Sea God Fate must go on.

The one ranked second is Xu San Shi.

As for him, everyone watched with smiling faces and cheerful amusement; everyone knew his goal was only one, and he posed no threat at all to anyone else.

Xu San Shi placed his large black shield on the water, using it as a small boat, stood atop it, clapped his hands behind him, employed the Crane‑Control, Dragon‑Capture technique, causing the shield to glide forward like a boat while he shouted loudly:

"Nan Nan, I'm coming!"

"Impressive!"

Seeing this, the male trainees could not help but exclaim in admiration.

For Xu San Shi, who has no means of flight, this move was undoubtedly very clever; although the speed was a bit slower, the important thing was its stability, enough for him to showcase himself.

If he used another method, the speed could be faster, but he would probably have only one chance to act once he reached the female trainees.

Having finally secured the second‑place position, Xu San Shi clearly wanted to perform well; if he only had one chance to act, it would naturally be a huge loss.

Quickly, Xu San Shi rowed to the female trainees and began giving his commentary.

"This one isn't right, a bit chubby; this one isn't right either, too skinny. Huh? This one's figure is really good! But it's a bit larger than Nan Nan's, no, no…"

A sharp voice suddenly rang out among the female trainees.

"Xu San Shi, if you want to fall into the water, just say it!"

"Uh… I was wrong."

Xu San Shi immediately shut his mouth, and within that brief moment he had already locked onto his target; the Xuanming Turtle Shell Shield moved again, propelling his body toward the third female trainee on the right.

Clearly, this was the target he was looking for.

Tang Wulin watched the scene and couldn't help but admire Xu San Shi's toughness.

It should be noted that the female trainees are all in uniform attire, their faces fully covered; to most male trainees they look indistinguishable, yet Xu San Shi managed to pinpoint Jiang Nan Nan in the darkness by the light, showing how well he knows her.

At least without the Water Fire Dragon King, Tang Wulin would not have confidence to achieve this.

After a round of clash, Xu San Shi easily removed the Douli (Hat) (Hat) from Jiang Nan Nan's head and, under her murderous gaze, slowly returned to the lotus leaf.

Next came a male trainee named Ye Liu; under everyone's watchful eyes, a pair of pure white wings sprouted from his back as he flew toward the female trainees.

Excluding the overwhelmingly strong Tang Wulin and the second‑place Xu San Shi, this male trainee Ye Liu was the first; his cultivation must be formidable—seven soul rings on his body glittered, his wings flapped violently, and a massive wave surged toward the female trainees.

Ye Liu's face involuntarily broke into a lecherous grin; this move not only increased his visibility but also let him admire the wet‑bodied beauties—a win‑win in his eyes.

However, he seemed to have forgotten the female trainees' own wishes.

As the wave approached, two angry shouts suddenly erupted among the female trainees.

"Bastard!"

"Ye Liu, you shameless one!"

Then a golden and a crimson flame shot upward, instantly vaporizing the incoming wave.

Seeing this, Xu San Shi couldn't help but gasp. "What a pair—Wu Ming and Ma Xiaotao, the two big hot‑heads of the inner courtyard, have both acted; looks like Ye Liu is in trouble."

"Ma Xiaotao?"

Hearing the name, Tang Wulin was startled for a moment and asked curiously:

"Third senior brother, didn't she disappear?"

"Oh right, you kid's disappearance lasted longer than hers, so naturally you don't know her situation."

Xu San Shi sighed and said, "Six months after you vanished, Ma Xiaotao returned to the Academy on her own. According to her, she accidentally entered a secret realm, solved the Phoenix Fire problem there, and now her cultivation is close to the Soul‑Douluo realm; her strength even surpasses senior sister Wu Ming. If she hadn't come back, Xuan Lao wouldn't know how long he'd stay despondent."

"…I see."

After hearing his description, Tang Wulin still felt something was off.

He stared at the direction where the red flame had just risen, his eyes darkening.

On the other side, realizing his actions had provoked everyone's anger, Ye Liu let out a strange cry, preparing to flee.

Don't be fooled by his seven‑ring Soul Saint title; in fact his martial soul is just a swan, a pure support type, and in combat he can't match those two fierce girls.

However, just as he turned in the air, Huo Yutong, who had been looking down, lifted her head and glanced at him, a flash of golden light in her eyes.

This guy is too noisy; his clamor made her start thinking.

Suddenly, Ye Liu let out a muffled hum and could no longer control his form in the air, plummeting straight into the water.

After being submerged for a long time, he finally struggled back to the surface, gulping fresh air, and, tearfully unable to speak, shouted at Zhang Lexuan: "Senior sister, they broke the rules; didn't it say the girls can't act in the first round?"

The soul blast Huo Yutong just unleashed left no mercy; he almost didn't have time to catch his breath before drowning.

Zhang Lexuan snorted coldly.

"What's the purpose of you raising the wave? Your intention is lecherous, which already breaks the rules. Swim back to the shore; you no longer need to participate in this matchmaking gathering."

Although Ye Liu wore a face of grievance, Zhang Lexuan's strong charisma was undeniable, and she said nothing more, leaving him to swim away dejectedly toward the shore.

Seeing this, the male trainees' faces turned somewhat pale.

Is the strength of this batch of female trainees perhaps a bit too fierce? Even though Ye Liu is a support type, he is a Soul Saint strongman; securing third place already proves his ability, yet he meets such a tragic end.

This made the male trainees feel terrified.

Nevertheless, thanks to Ye Liu being the scapegoat, many male trainees withdrew their illicit thoughts.

The first round then clearly accelerated; the male trainees rushed onto the field one after another, each displaying their prowess. Although two more fell into the water, the results were still impressive, and only two female trainees remained wearing Douli (Hat) (Hat).

After this mutually appreciative first round, the emotions of all inner‑court trainees were fully stirred; Tang Wulin, standing in the front row, could clearly feel the fiery gazes radiating from beside and behind him.

The vast majority of male trainees were watching the girls they fancied; Tang Wulin was no exception—he stared straight at Huo Yutong, confident she would notice his gaze, yet she kept her head down, refusing to meet his eyes.

As an aside, Ma Xiaotao differs from Tang Ya; she has a remarkable trait—when she becomes the Holy Maiden she retains her consciousness (see Chapter 379), so rather than being controlled, she seems more like a fallen evil.

(End of Chapter)