Defense Assessment Arena.
The entire arena was built underground, encircled like a thick city wall. On the surrounding walls were openings, with dark cannon barrels protruding from them, a sight that sent chills down one's spine.
"Holy crap! Are our spirits gonna get blown to bits?!"
Standing above the arena, pressing against the glass wall and looking down, many students let out Liu Ren-style screams.
Senior Instructor Sun Gaoyang cleared his throat, quieting the students' chatter, and explained once more:
"Those cannons fire energy spheres... attribute-less energy spheres.
"Your spirits must stay in the central area of the arena and defend against attacks from all directions..."
He pointed to the red circle in the lowest central area. "This test assesses the spirit's ability to withstand attacks, not dodge them. So, your spirits can only stay inside the red circle, with their feet on the ground."
He added, "No damaging the arena facilities."
At that moment,
Liu Ren asked weakly, "Instructor, what if the spirit is bigger than the red circle?"
Senior Instructor Sun Gaoyang: "..."
"Just make it work!"
He skipped over the question and continued, "The output power and number of energy spheres in the arena will gradually increase over time...
"Surviving 30 seconds is considered passing.
"Surviving over 40 seconds is a Grade C rating.
"Surviving over 50 seconds is Grade B...
"Surviving over 60 seconds..."
After Senior Instructor Sun Gaoyang finished explaining, the instructor whose name Liu Ren couldn't recall scanned the candidates from Guanhu Garden, paused, and said:
"Today's test will use a draw to determine the order..."
He pulled out a small computer, pressed a button, and countless avatars flashed on the screen. After a second or two—
*Thud.*
A big, round face appeared.
"First, Liu Ren."
The big face was full of surprise.
But Liu Ren wasn't flustered. The defense test was his... his turtle master's strongest suit.
Liu Ren took the elevator down and summoned the Lava Dragon Turtle, which was as big as a two- or three-story building.
As soon as it stood there, the red circle was completely hidden.
A moment later, Liu Ren was back up top.
The unnamed instructor didn't pull out his familiar timer today. Instead, he went to the control panel and started setting up.
Then he pressed the start button.
Instantly,
A hum sounded.
On the surrounding walls, the tips of several cannons at the bottom began to gather particles of light.
After building up, several energy spheres shot straight toward the central Lava Dragon Turtle.
A red barrier emerged around the Lava Dragon Turtle's body.
Flame Shield!
*Boom~!*
The energy spheres slammed into it and exploded.
Ripples spread across the red barrier, but it remained intact.
The surrounding cannons continued to gather energy, and the Lava Dragon Turtle reinforced the strength of its Flame Shield.
Time ticked by.
Su Hao noticed that more and more cannons were starting to gather energy.
The energy spheres flying out carried increasingly terrifying power.
"The attack intensity has risen from beginner-level to intermediate and advanced beginner-level."
Blows came one after another from all angles.
Even an elite spirit would be in trouble if careless.
Time reached the 30-second mark.
A ring of over a dozen cannons at the mid-level began gathering energy at their tips.
Energy spheres rained down on the Flame Shield, exploding with *bang bang* sounds.
The rumbling never stopped.
The red barrier flickered like a candle in the wind, its color fading significantly as it shook violently.
At 40 seconds...
The rumbling grew denser.
The Lava Dragon Turtle's Flame Shield had long been shattered.
Now, it had fully retracted into its shell. The massive shell glowed with the light of fire-element spiritual power, defending against the energy spheres from all directions.
At 50 seconds...
Energy spheres filled the air, each carrying power comparable to a charged attack from an elite spirit.
They exploded with a thunderous roar, violently shaking the giant shell as if trying to flip it over!
Suddenly,
All the cannons that were gathering energy stopped abruptly.
The arena seemed to have equipment monitoring the spirit's condition.
It detected that the Lava Dragon Turtle had reached its limit.
"Time: 51.22 seconds, Grade B-."
The instructor announced the result.
Liu Ren ran to the ground above the arena, summoned the Lava Dragon Turtle, and handed it over to the school's medical team.
...
The little-known Liu Ren achieved a good result of Grade B-, but it didn't boost anyone else's confidence.
Energy spheres coming from all directions.
The thunderous explosions.
And the trembling ground...
Everything showed that the defense test was... damn hard!
Plus all the restrictions!
It made it even harder!
...
"Zhong Yixiang, Grade C-."
"Ran Wenlin, Grade C."
"Song Jiaxi, Failed."
"Yang Tu, Grade D."
"Suo Shiting, Failed."
"Duan Wan, Grade D."
...
"Bai Hongzhen, Grade B-."
...
"Gu Lingyao, Grade C-."
...
In the defense test, failures and Grade D ratings were much more common than in the previous two tests.
"It seems that aside from spirits naturally good at defense, most students don't pay much attention to training their spirits' defensive abilities," Senior Instructor Sun Gaoyang said.
The other instructors nodded. "Probably because most students spend most of their time at school, where it's safe. The occasional bounty mission isn't too hard for them... so they don't value defense enough.
"Next semester, after they start the New World training, they won't think that way anymore."
A spirit with sufficient defensive ability can protect not only itself but also its spirit master.
The spirit master is the core of the team.
Whether it's the speed test or the defense test, both are closely tied to survival.
"So far, the highest rating is only Grade B."
"Next, Su Hao."
The instructors all turned their expectant gazes to the 'top freshman,' Su Hao.
The students also looked over again.
A majestic Fire Crow flew down from the entrance, and everyone was stunned.
"Are you sure the spirit you're using is the Fire Crow?" Senior Instructor Sun Gaoyang frowned, walking over to confirm personally.
He knew Su Hao's Fire Crow.
He knew it was a crow with a... somewhat unique combat style.
Good at close-range assassination.
But that had nothing to do with defense, right?
He reminded again, "You can't damage the surrounding cannons, and you can't fly."
Su Hao nodded, indicating he understood.
In the center of the arena, the red circle was about two to three meters in diameter.
A spirit skilled in micro-movement and dodging, like Butterfly, could easily dance and dodge within that range.
But the energy sphere explosions and their shockwaves covered a wide area.
Relying solely on dodging would still result in high-intensity explosive damage... so they had to tank it!
Using the spirit's own abilities or various techniques to defend.
As for the Fire Crow...
Even with Flame Shield, how many rounds could it withstand?
But looking at Su Hao, he didn't seem reckless, so he stopped asking.
...
The Fire Crow landed in the center of the arena and fluttered its wings.
When the time came, several cannons on the surrounding walls began gathering energy particles.
A moment later, several energy spheres flew out.
"Caw—"
It glanced over and raised its right wing.
Steel Wing!
Fire Feather!
Wing Attack!
Layers of crimson feathers materialized, spreading from the tips of its wings like a long, narrow crimson blade.
It swung casually.
*Swish—*
The feather blade traced an arc.
The incoming energy spheres were sliced apart several meters away.
*Bang bang bang.* They exploded.
In an instant,
"It's almost 30 seconds!" an instructor muttered, watching below. "How will it handle this? After 30 seconds, even the shockwaves will be lethal."
Before he finished speaking, he saw countless cannons below firing energy spheres.
Over a dozen spheres shot in from all directions.
In that moment,
"Caw—"
A cry rang out. Rings of red light spread around the Fire Crow.
Translucent red feathers, like a coat, draped over its body, extending even to the feather blades.
It was like adding blade energy to the feather blades, lengthening them further.
The Fire Crow's eyes grew focused.
It raised both blades.
Left wing slash.
Right wing slash.
The left arc formed a circle.
The right arc blazed with flames.
Time seemed to freeze.
All the energy spheres were cut in half several meters away.
They exploded in midair with a thunderous roar.
The violent shockwaves swept out like a gale, and the surging energy poured out...
Waves of impact hit the Fire Crow.
But it didn't even waver!
The Fire Feather coat couldn't withstand a direct hit, but mere shockwaves, just a few meters away...
Couldn't harm it, enhanced by Fire Feather coat, Steel Wing, and Wing Attack!
As long as it could intercept all the energy spheres!
*Rumble~!*
The explosions grew denser.
Looking out, the energy spheres were as thick as a downpour.
But all the deadly raindrops were aimed at the central Fire Crow!
At that moment,
The Fire Crow, draped in its orange-red feather coat, stood with both feet on the ground, moving only within a small space.
Its eyes were sharp.
The two crimson blades slashed continuously, leaving countless scorching lines in the air.
Its slashing speed grew faster.
Five slashes per second!
Nine slashes per second!
Thirteen slashes per second!
Slash after slash!
Cutting into every energy sphere!
Explosions!
Impacts!
Energy surged like a giant wave.
But within the wave, a crimson figure swung its blades, leaving countless dazzling trails.
The Dance of the Fire Crow!
After a long time...
Or perhaps just a moment.
The cannons stopped.
The arena outside remained dead silent.
After a while, someone swallowed nervously. The instructor snapped back to reality and looked at the control panel.
He paused, then finally spoke:
"Time: 69 seconds, Grade A+!!!"
A clamor erupted.