Chapter 37: Lies Don't Hurt, the Truth is the Sharp Blade
"Hmm? Another team actually won this quickly." Hearing the announcement, Wu Feng was somewhat surprised.
The three of them then looked toward the adjacent Assessment Area 33.
They saw three students standing within the arena.
There was the handsome Wang Dong with his interwoven blue and pink hair, the delicate-looking and slender Xiao Xiao, and standing beside them, Huo Yuhao, whose expression was excited and eyes were burning with fervor.
"Is that... Huo Yuhao?"
Dugu Qing recognized the Class 1 classmate he had encountered a few times before, and his face immediately showed confusion.
"If I remember correctly, his Soul Power should only be level eleven, right? To think he could win the first match so quickly... How did he do it?"
"How else could he have done it?"
Wu Feng glanced into the arena and curled her lip, her voice neither loud nor soft as she said dismissively,
"By relying on his teammates, of course. What can level eleven Soul Power even do?"
Because the surroundings were briefly silent due to the rapid victory of Wang Dong's team, Wu Feng's words were exceptionally clear, reaching everyone's ears without missing a word, and naturally drifting into the ears of the three in the arena.
"..."
The excited smile that hadn't fully bloomed on Huo Yuhao's face instantly froze, as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him from head to toe. The small flame that had just ignited in his heart was extinguished with a "pssh," leaving only a cold void.
It was true; his Soul Power was only level eleven, making him the dead last in the entire class.
But he had fought with all his might just now, using his First Spirit Ability to launch a mental attack on his opponent to secure the victory. On what grounds could she say he relied entirely on his teammates?
An emotion mixed with shame, unwillingness, and anger suddenly gripped his heart.
His originally burning gaze quickly dimmed, only to be replaced by an uncontrollable surge of hatred and resentment.
He snapped his head around, his gaze piercing like a knife toward the source of the voice, but in the next moment, he saw the upright, calm youth in white standing beside Wu Feng.
—Lin Xuan.
Huo Yuhao's heart suddenly tightened, and that rising hatred instantly dissipated; he couldn't even muster a shred of courage to confront him.
The gap was too large, so vast that even resentment seemed pale and ridiculous.
Lin Xuan was somewhat speechless at Wu Feng's overly blunt words.
Indeed, lies don't hurt, the truth is the sharp blade.
He met Huo Yuhao's complex, indescribable gaze with a calm look, nodded slightly, and smiled softly.
"Congratulations."
Hearing this and seeing Lin Xuan's sincere smile, Huo Yuhao felt his throat go dry and his cheeks burn. Ultimately, he could only lower his head and respond in a low voice,
"...Thank you."
Lin Xuan said no more, withdrew his gaze, and directly led Dugu Qing and Wu Feng, who had various expressions, away from the assessment area.
Only after they had walked far away did the atmosphere in Area 33 become lively again.
Xiao Xiao jogged to Huo Yuhao's side, her large eyes filled with disbelief as she blurted out,
"Yu Hao, you... you actually know Lin Xuan?!"
This sentence was like the sharpest needle, instantly puncturing the calm Huo Yuhao had barely managed to maintain.
The self-esteem that had just been crushed by Wu Feng's words was now completely turned to ash by Xiao Xiao's unintentional exclamation.
"I actually know Lin Xuan?"
Yes, in your eyes, how could a dead last like me, with only level eleven Soul Power and poor talent, have any connection to such a radiant genius?
Am I so pathetic that even knowing someone is enough to make you this surprised?
Huo Yuhao felt his chest tighten painfully, making it difficult to breathe. He bit his lower lip hard, his fingernails digging deep into his palms.
At this time, Wang Dong also walked over. He crossed his arms and looked in the direction Lin Xuan had left, his handsome face carrying a bit of arrogance as he said casually to Huo Yuhao,
"So that's Lin Xuan? He doesn't look like anything special. Huo Yuhao, don't pay too much mind to what that red-haired girl said. If we meet them on the field later, just find a way to win it back."
Wang Dong's tone was relaxed.
He admitted Lin Xuan was strong, ridiculously so.
A Thousand-year first Soul Ring and a Ten-thousand-year third Soul Ring—this configuration was inconceivable even to a genius like him whose second Soul Ring was a Thousand-year one.
But so what?
He possessed Twin Martial Souls and infinite potential.
In his view, in the later stages of a Soul Master's cultivation, the terrifying potential of Twin Martial Souls was the true kingly way!
He was confident that his future self would never be weaker than anyone else.
Xiao Xiao also realized her words just now might have been inappropriate and quickly waved her hands to explain,
"Yu Hao, I didn't mean it like that! I meant, your strength is only level eleven, and you're usually so... uh, I mean, it was just a bit surprising that you know him, since he's so powerful..."
The more she explained, the worse it became.
Every word seemed to repeatedly emphasize the desperate gap between Huo Yuhao and Lin Xuan.
Huo Yuhao listened silently, the color draining from his face bit by bit.
He suddenly felt that standing here listening to these "encouragements" and "explanations" was even more exhausting than facing his opponents earlier.
He didn't wait for Xiao Xiao to finish, nor did he respond to Wang Dong's encouragement; he simply turned around and walked quickly out of the crowd without a word.
"Hey! Yu Hao!" Xiao Xiao called out, but seeing him not look back, she pouted her lips unhappily,
"I didn't say anything wrong... anyone would be surprised."
Wang Dong watched Huo Yuhao's departing back and shrugged indifferently.
In his eyes, Huo Yuhao's First Spirit Ability was indeed very practical, as it could impact the opponent's brain through mental force, making them weak and powerless.
But fundamentally, Huo Yuhao's Innate Spirit Power was too low and his talent too poor; that was a fatal flaw.
As a teammate, speaking up for him and encouraging him just now was already fulfilling his duty.
Was he supposed to chase after him and carefully coax this sensitive and insecure teammate?
He, Wang Dong, didn't have that leisure, nor that obligation... The first round of the freshman assessment ended quickly; the intensity wasn't high, only requiring one match. The next two days would be the main event, with a total of nine rounds, where the fate of every student would be decided in those nine rounds of fierce battles.
However, for Lin Xuan, it was just like taking a two-day vacation.
Initially, when the other teams in Assessment Area 18 saw that Lin Xuan no longer took action and let only Dugu Qing and Wu Feng fight, they briefly ignited hope, thinking they had a chance at victory.
However, when Dugu Qing and Wu Feng unreservedly displayed their strength as Great Soul Masters, that small flame of fluke was completely extinguished.
With a Soul Elder leading and two capable Great Soul Masters assisting, such a lineup was an insurmountable mountain for the vast majority of freshman teams.
Thus, from the third round onward, almost every team drawn to fight Lin Xuan's team chose to forfeit directly to preserve their strength for other opponents.
Then came a day of rest, after which the teams that entered the top sixty-four would continue with the Elimination Rounds... On the morning after the rest day, the air still carried the slight chill of the night wind.
Lin Xuan, Dugu Qing, and Wu Feng walked together toward the assessment area.
Compared to the bustling, shoulder-to-shoulder scene before the assessment, the academy's roads now appeared much emptier, even revealing a hint of desolate coldness.
Along the way, some students could be seen silently dragging their luggage away, their backs looking lonely.
There were also groups of three or five talking in low voices, their faces carrying the relief of survivors or confusion about the future.
"People have suddenly become so few..." Dugu Qing looked at the scene and couldn't help but sigh softly, her eyes filled with complex emotions as she said, "The academy's assessment is truly strict to the point of being unfeeling."
"This isn't a place for playing house."
Wu Feng crossed her arms, her voice devoid of ripples as she said matter-of-factly,
"In the Douluo Continent, if you want anything—resources, fame, power, or respect—you have to fight for it yourself, snatch it. If you don't fight, or if you can't win the fight, being eliminated is the only outcome. It's the same everywhere."
Lin Xuan walked slightly ahead of the two. Hearing this, his pace didn't stop; he only glanced at those departing figures and calmly added a sentence.
"She's right."
Having experienced three different Worlds, Lin Xuan saw this very clearly.
No matter which World it was, meat pies wouldn't just fall from the sky.
If you don't reach out to fight and snatch for yourself, do you expect the Heavens to chase you down and feed you?"