Chapter 91: The Race of Wits in the Judgement of Horses!

As they transitioned from first grade to second grade, Huo Yuhao and his classmates were also moved to a new teaching building. Previously situated in the white building for freshmen, they now found themselves in the yellow building for second and third graders.

Huo Yuhao continued to sit in the middle of the classroom, while Ning Tian and Wu Feng occupied the front row, a habit they had formed over the past year. Even with the change in classrooms, their seating arrangement remained unchanged.

As Mu Jin and Wang Yan entered the classroom together, all the students immediately settled down, and the entire class fell silent.

Wang Yan smiled as he looked around the room, nodded at Mu Jin, and then began speaking, "It seems like everyone had a fruitful vacation. Now, let me talk about the upcoming advancement assessment."

"The advancement assessment from first grade to second grade is relatively easy compared to the assessments in higher grades. The content of the assessment is the same for our first and second classes. However, due to their soul abilities, students in the third and fourth classes will have different assessments."

"I believe you are all aware of the existence of the Soul Beast Arena from your studies at Shrek Academy last year. It's located south of the Soul Dueling Arena, behind those gray walls resembling a castle. That's where the academy specifically houses and trains soul beasts. If you advance to the fourth grade, you will also undergo practical training in the Soul Beast Arena, which will be crucial for your future performance."

"For this advancement assessment, you will engage in one-on-one battles with soul beasts in the Soul Beast Arena and can freely choose which soul beast to challenge. Different soul beasts have different point values, and the greater the challenge, the higher the potential score. The assessment will be graded by senior teachers from the Martial Soul Department, with a maximum score of one hundred. Those who score sixty or above will pass the assessment."

"However, I must warn you that even if you defeat a soul beast, if its cultivation is too low, you may still fail. On the other hand, if you choose a soul beast with too high cultivation, you might face life-threatening situations during the battle."

Of course, this was just Wang Yan's way of intimidating the students. The referees for the freshman assessment were Soul Saints above level seventy, so it was unlikely that the supervising teachers for this assessment were of lower caliber. With their cultivation, allowing students to be harmed by thousand-year or hundred-year-old soul beasts would be a joke.

Don't you agree, Xuanzi?

"Also, it's not necessary to defeat the soul beast to earn high scores. If you challenge a powerful soul beast and demonstrate commendable performance during the battle, your score may still be high."

"And depending on the type of martial soul, the emphasis of grading will vary. For students with offensive martial souls, defeating the soul beast is the goal, while for those with control-type martial souls, controlling the soul beast and the duration of the battle are key factors in scoring."

"There's one more thing."

The morning class on the first day of school ended like this. After class, Huo Yuhao treated Ning Tian and Wu Feng to a big meal, completely unconcerned about the impending assessment.

In the afternoon, they headed to the Soul Beast Arena.

As the largest exclusive area of Shrek Academy, the Soul Beast Arena had a design reminiscent of ancient Roman arenas. Covering an area equivalent to all the teaching buildings, dormitories, and Shrek Square combined, the maintenance costs for such a massive structure were astronomical.

However, compared to the expenses of nurturing soul beasts, the cost of maintaining the building was negligible.

Nurturing soul beasts was no easy task. It required maintaining their wildness, catering to their dietary habits, ensuring safety, and taming them. The investment was so substantial that no force on the continent besides Shrek Academy could afford it.

All of Shrek City's annual tax revenue went to Shrek Academy, and one-third of this substantial sum was poured into the Soul Beast Arena, making it a money pit.

The Soul Beast Arena was mainly divided into two parts: the part that students couldn't see, where soul beasts were kept, known as the Beast Enclosure, and the other part, the Beast Arena.

The Beast Arena was specifically for students of Shrek Academy to undergo practical training and assessments. At this moment, the second-grade students were entering the arena one by one, preparing for their advancement assessment.

All second-grade students had to first collect their advancement assessment forms, which listed their order of appearance and would record their scores.

After receiving the forms, under the guidance of their respective class advisers, the students entered the main arena. However, instead of going to the spectator stands, they lined up neatly outside the arena, waiting for their assessment.

To ensure the safety of the students during the assessment, twenty teachers were stationed there, responsible for guiding the soul beasts, protecting the students, and evaluating the assessments.

Though there were many participants, the arena was not divided into sections to familiarize everyone with the process. This allowed the grading teachers to have a clear view of each student's performance.

The Director of Education, Du Weilun, was also present as the chief examiner for the day, along with four other teachers responsible for scoring, all seated on a platform overlooking the entire arena.

Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong stood at the front of their respective class queues as the class leaders. In the other class, Dai Huabin and Xie Huanyue stood at the forefront.

Although Xie Huanyue's cultivation was not much lower than Dai Huabin's, she lost her position as class leader to Dai Huabin after being defeated by Huo Yuhao, becoming the top student.

Mu Jin walked to the front of the queue and said, "Yuhao, did you notice? In order to encourage the students, both of our classes are sending out their leaders first, and then the other class. Wang Dong, you go first, and Yuhao is next."

"I suggest both of you choose the highest-level assessment targets. Even if you don't defeat the soul beasts, your scores will definitely not be low."

Huo Yuhao glanced at Mu Jin with a smirk. Wow, even the race of wits is involved now?

Poor Wang Dong had no idea she was being used as cannon fodder by Mu Jin, thinking she was chosen first because Mu Jin believed in her. She nodded enthusiastically, "Teacher Mu Jin, don't worry, I won't disappoint you."

Mu Jin looked at Wang Dong with some guilt. Ah, this child is so naively adorable.

But she also knew about the bet between Huo Yuhao and Dai Huabin, and naturally wouldn't allow her most valued student to fall into the position of being humiliated.

Although Wang Dong seemed to be treated as the lowest horse, in reality, it was to test Dai Huabin's capabilities and help Huo Yuhao better prepare for him.

At this moment, Du Weilun's voice came from the platform, "Let the assessment begin. Send out a student from the second grade, Class One first, followed by Class Two."

Huo Yuhao looked at Dai Huabin, who appeared serious, with a playful smile on his lips.

Poor little white cat, let's see how I'll play with you this time!