Inside the Spirit Ascension Platform, all six members of Class Zero were gathered together. Tang Wulin and Xie Xie sat at the center, focused on restoring their soul power, while Nan Fusheng and the other four sat around them, providing protection.
Well, "protection" in this case meant sitting cross-legged themselves, recovering from the earlier battle, while keeping part of their attention on their surroundings.
As for safety? That wasn't a concern. The area around them was laced with the toxic spider silk of the Man-Faced Demon Spider—whether beast or human, anyone who came close would suffer dearly.
While the six of them were meditating, several soul beasts had already been lured in and met their demise.
This was the Riot Period of the Spirit Ascension Platform, after all. The forest was crawling with more soul beasts than usual.
And not all soul beasts had sharp senses. Different species had different ways of perceiving the world. Some took the long way around… others charged right in.
But the Man-Faced Demon Spider's deadly venom truly showed its terrifying might at a time like this. Not only was its web poisonous, it was extremely durable—even large-bodied soul beasts that slammed into it had no chance of breaking free. And then… well, you can imagine.
Under the corrosion of its venom, ten-year soul beasts died almost instantly, and even hundred-year soul beasts only lasted a little longer.
Anything that touched the webs? None of it survived. The sharp-sensed soul beasts avoided it. The dull ones walked straight to their deaths.
Once the soul beasts died, their spiritual energy—their essence—naturally dispersed. Normally, inside the platform, this energy would fade quickly after death.
But this was the Riot Period.
During the Riot Period, the decay rate of soul energy was drastically slower. And just beyond those spider webs was the living space of Nan Fusheng and his teammates. While meditating, they passively absorbed the abundant energy flowing toward them.
At first, only a few weak soul beasts fell. But as time passed, the number of deaths increased—more and more soul energy drifted into their resting zone.
Meanwhile, in the observation room:
"Wh-What the hell is this?! Did the Spirit Ascension Platform malfunction?!"
The staff member stared, dumbfounded, at the screen. Around the six students, the surrounding soul energy was visibly thickening, as if they were haunted by glowing yellow mist.
Was it cheating? Not. Everything was happening naturally.
Yet if this situation continued, the six students would absorb a massive amount of soul energy—far more than the platform was normally expected to release.
And that energy certainly didn't come from nowhere. Its source? That was one of the Spirit Pagoda's greatest secrets—but needless to say, it came at a cost.
By a twist of fate—or cunning—Class Zero had stumbled into an unprecedented opportunity, leveraging the Man-Faced Demon Spider to game the system.
"Teacher Wu, I need to report this to headquarters," the staff member said seriously.
Wu Zhangkong gave him a flat look.
"What exactly have my students done wrong? They fought and defeated a powerful, hundred-year Man-Faced Demon Spider. They're simply meditating and recovering. Everything you're seeing here? It happened naturally.
And if I recall correctly, the Spirit Ascension Platform isn't supposed to be manually adjusted, yes? Only fine-tuned, at best."
Sweat beaded on the staff member's forehead.
"Y-Yes, the platform can't be interfered with lightly. But if this continues, your students might be in danger. Do they even have the spiritual and physical strength to endure the pressure of their soul spirits evolving to the thousand-year level? Especially those with only one ring… If the evolution pushes too far, it could be fatal."
It was true—if things continued unchecked, the kids might not be able to handle it. But for now, they were still within safe limits.
And as for whether one-ring soul masters could handle a thousand-year soul spirit?
Wu Zhangkong wasn't worried at all.
Tang Wulin's physical strength couldn't be measured by normal standards. And recently, his spiritual power had already reached the Spirit Connection Realm. With a strong body and resilient spirit, he'd be fine.
And then there was Gu Yue—already nearing level 20, about to break into her second ring. Her spiritual power and physical qualities were both elite-tier.
This final exam? These kids weren't just passing it—they were acing it beyond imagination.
The staffer hesitated. Seeing that Wu Zhangkong had no intention of stopping them, he reluctantly reached for his communicator.
After all, his job was to ensure the platform functioned properly, and this situation needed escalation.
Back inside the Spirit Ascension Platform…
Tang Wulin, fully restored, suddenly felt his body swell slightly with pressure. When he opened his eyes, he was shocked by what he saw.
All around him and his teammates, thick golden-yellow soul energy was swirling and gathering.
"This… Is this spiritual essence?!"
He looked out further. All across the forest floor, soul beast corpses lay scattered. Some were half-melted from venom, others still twitching in their death throes.
He'd been the last one to wake up—his soul power had been the most depleted. The others were already watching the scene in stunned silence.
"What happened?" Tang Wulin asked quietly.
"Poison," Nan Fusheng answered calmly.
"That's the Man-Faced Demon Spider's venom at work."
Nan Fusheng had anticipated all of this. Over the past three months in the Spirit Ascension Platform, he had been carefully experimenting with various parasitic hosts.
Eventually, he chose three targets:
A hundred-year Man-Faced Demon Spider,
A hundred-year Azure Bird,
And a thousand-year Flame Lion King.
The last two were rulers of their respective clans.
He hadn't found them easily. Every time he encountered one of these soul beasts, he would instantly parasitize it, then immediately press the emergency escape button, sacrificing himself to secure them as pawns.
So yes, he earned them with his life, no exaggeration.
That Man-Faced Demon Spider just now? It was his clone, and this was his first time fighting one of his possessed bodies.
What did it feel like?
"Not too hard," he thought. "Kinda fun actually. I can even replay the battle from both perspectives."
It was Nan Fusheng who'd ordered the spider to attack the group, precisely to create this exact setup: a perimeter drenched in venomous webs.
And later, the thousand-year Flame Lion King, under his control, would begin herding nearby soul beasts into the kill zone. That's why the group had initially only encountered soul beasts one at a time—he'd been staging it.
But the pace was still too slow, so he had the Man-Faced Demon Spider use its webs to trap the battlefield and create this massive farming zone.
And sure enough, it worked.
The toxic web killed off dozens of ten- and hundred-year soul beasts—and all that sweet, precious soul energy?
Flowed right into his team's laps.
Their soul spirits were evolving rapidly.
Effortlessly.