Dugu Yan's gaze fell on Lü Buliang. She found the feeling of being supported by Lü Buliang too comfortable.
Operating in a Shadow state, with a 50% increase in speed and attack attributes, this boost allowed her, as a control system Spirit Master, to have the speed of an agility-attack system and the attack of an attack system. When casting her poison control, she could do so with complete ease.
Dugu Yan was not foolish; in this practical combat, she had already experienced Lü Buliang's formidable abilities.
At the same time, she had already accepted his inclusion in her heart.
After all, what team doesn't want to win?
With Lü Buliang, no matter what opponent they faced, their chances of victory would greatly increase.
Achieving a perfect score in Shi Gao's practical combat class was something Yu Tianheng had never accomplished, yet it happened today.
After comparing the before and after, he had to admit that Lü Buliang's role in the team was indeed incomparable to Ye Lingling's.
In every Soul Duel they encountered in the future, if it was a friendly match, Yu Tianheng would choose to let Ye Lingling participate.
If victory was the consideration, Yu Tianheng would definitely prioritize Lü Buliang's participation.
Dugu Yan, Oslo, and the others also had similar thoughts.
After one practical combat session, the seven members of Heaven Dou Royal Academy's first team had seen and personally experienced the role Lü Buliang played in the team. Oslo was right; demonstrating strength was the most direct way to gain recognition from others.
Watching her companions sit on the Soul Duel Stage, relieved and chatting happily, Ye Lingling was genuinely pleased, but her emotions were also very complex.
Previously, when she fought with her companions, they couldn't injure Shi Gao no matter what, but with Lü Buliang, the team's combat capability had changed so dramatically.
Ye Lingling was very happy that her team had become stronger and was also glad to have such a reliable companion join. However, Ye Lingling's back looked a bit lonely, and a sense of distance from her companions arose in her heart, as if the team no longer needed her.
Shi Gao jumped off the arena, his face grim. It was his first time being pushed so hard by students. He gave Qin Ming a wry smile and said, "What is that new student's background? Shadow Spirit. I've racked my brain and can't think of any family surnamed Lü whose inherited Spirit is Shadow."
"He's a commoner," Qin Ming replied. "He joined the academy with the title of'special excellent student,' and he's now a member of the first team."
"So he's a special excellent student. No wonder his Spirit is so unique."
Shi Gao looked at Lü Buliang, his eyes filled with surprise. "With him, the first team's combat capability and mobility have both greatly improved. Its compatibility is also higher. I can't believe there's a support system Spirit that's even more suitable for Yu Tianheng and the others than Nine Heart Begonia. In team battles, the combat effectiveness Lü Buliang displayed is indeed far superior to Ye Lingling's."
Upon hearing this, Ye Lingling maintained a calm demeanor, but her mood became even more dejected. It wasn't until Oslo called her over on the Soul Duel Stage to help with healing that she quickly ran over, releasing her Nine Heart Begonia Spirit with her remaining spirit power.
Immediately after, accompanied by a faint fragrance, a white light descended from the sky. The white light looked extremely peculiar; it was in the shape of flower petals, slowly drifting down and landing directly on Yu Tianheng, Lü Buliang, and the others, gently merging into their bodies.
It was Lü Buliang's first time experiencing another person's support system Spirit Ability acting on him. His fatigued body gradually returned to full condition, and all his lost stamina was restored. This feeling was truly marvelous.
However, according to the original novel's description, the Nine Heart Begonia seemingly couldn't restore spirit power or mend severed limbs. Although it had the benefit of area-of-effect healing, it still had its shortcomings.
In the original novel, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, another support system Spirit with shortcomings, evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda after being modified by an Immortal Herb, thereby resolving its Spirit's flaws.
Perhaps after the Nine Heart Begonia Spirit is strengthened by an Immortal Herb, it could also evolve to possess the ability to restore spirit power, or even the miraculous effect of regrowing severed limbs.
Immortal Herbs are truly such heaven-defying existences.
Lü Buliang's gaze fell on Dugu Yan, thinking that after this battle, Dugu Yan's hostility towards him should lessen a bit. He must quickly establish a good relationship with her, then plan how to find out Dugu Bo's whereabouts through her, which would make entering the Sunset Forest to acquire Immortal Herbs much safer.
His second spirit ring gave his Shadow Spirit decent attack and speed attributes, and his third spirit ring gave his Shadow Spirit powerful plasticity and transformation abilities.
Lü Buliang could now be called a support system Spirit Master, or even a control system or agility-attack system Spirit Master.
Despite this, the Shadow Spirit's current strength attribute was still too poor. If he acquired a spirit ring with a bias towards strength or sharpness for his fourth spirit ring, it could also give the Shadow Spirit decent attack capabilities and attack system Spirit Abilities.
But this couldn't fundamentally solve the problem; relying on spirit rings to enhance the Shadow Spirit's strength or offensiveness would never achieve the ideal effect.
For the Shadow Spirit to become an existence comparable to an attack system Spirit, it still needed to undergo a fundamental change.
As mentioned earlier, Immortal Herbs could cause the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Spirit to evolve; perhaps they could also cause the Nine Heart Begonia Spirit to mutate.
By the same logic, if the Shadow Spirit could be modified by an Immortal Herb and the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, it might become even stronger, and its Spirit quality would also be upgraded. At that time, the strength attribute possessed by the Shadow Spirit should experience a qualitative leap, making it possible to become an attack system Spirit Master.
Immortal Herbs were too important to Lü Buliang now. He seemed to understand the Breaking Clan's Yang Wudi's longing for the Youxiang Qiluo Immortal Herb—it was truly something he yearned for day and night.
Last night, while sleeping, Lü Buliang even dreamed of himself eating two Ice and Fire Immortal Herbs, jumping into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well for refinement, and finally his Shadow Spirit evolving, awakening its innate Domain, and gaining the power of the Two Great Dragon Kings of Ice and Fire. That was truly an incredibly beautiful dream, but unfortunately, he was woken up by Qin Ming.
After receiving Ye Lingling's treatment, Lü Buliang and the others' stamina returned to optimal condition. Everyone jumped off the Soul Duel Stage and walked over to Qin Ming.
"Lingling, this is great! We defeated Teacher Shi Gao! We don't have to be punished!" Oslo was the first to run up to Ye Lingling, excitedly saying, "Let me tell you, during the battle just now, if I hadn't held back, that claw would have split Teacher Shi Gao's head open! How about that? Didn't expect me to be so powerful, did you?"
Before Ye Lingling could speak, Shi Gao poked Oslo's forehead with a finger and scolded, "You brat, what are you so proud of? With your meager strength, you think you can split my head open? I think you're hallucinating after getting Lü Buliang's attack attribute boost, aren't you?"
Oslo yelped, clutching his throbbing head and glaring at Shi Gao. He wanted to retort but was startled by Shi Gao's raised fist, causing his heart to tremble. He repeatedly shook his head and waved his hands in submission.
Xue Qinghe smiled faintly and said to Lü Buliang, "You performed well just now. I look forward to your future achievements. You are a special excellent student; you must make good use of the resources the academy provides you for free, cultivate diligently, and strive for an even better performance in the next Elite Competition."
"Okay," Lü Buliang responded, thinking, the original novel said that the Crown Prince Xue Qinghe at this point in the timeline was Qian Renxue disguised using a Spirit Bone ability. He couldn't tell she was a woman even at such close proximity, so to witness her true appearance, it would probably only be when she was bathing.
Cafeteria.
The practical combat class with Shi Gao in the morning had ended, and it was now lunchtime.
Heaven Dou Royal Academy's cafeteria was built at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by green mountains and clear waters.
Lively conversations echoed from a private room on the second floor of the cafeteria.
"Hey, Lü Buliang. Don't just focus on eating. We're teammates now. Let's reintroduce ourselves. I'm Oslo, sixteen years old, a thirty-fourth-level agility-attack system Battle Spirit Elder, Spirit: Ghost Leopard. Everyone calls me Leopard."
"Yu Feng, sixteen years old, thirty-fourth-level agility-attack system Battle Spirit Elder, Spirit: Wind Chime Bird. You can call me whatever you want, just don't call me Birdman."
"My name is Shi Mo, seventeen years old, a thirty-sixth-level defense system Battle Spirit Elder, Spirit: Black Tortoise Turtle. This person next to me is my younger brother, Shi Mo, a thirty-fifth-level defense system Battle Spirit Elder, and his Spirit is also Black Tortoise Turtle. Oh, and the teacher who taught us the practical combat guidance class this morning is our father. His name is Shi Gao, and our father is a seventy-eighth-level Battle Spirit Saint, his strength second only to the Three Education Committee Members."
"I am the captain of the first team, Yu Tianheng, eighteen years old, Spirit Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, a thirty-eighth-level attack system Battle Spirit Elder. As you can see, I come from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. This is the vice-captain of the first team, Dugu Yan, Spirit Jade Phosphorous Serpent, the same age as you, eighteen years old, a thirty-seventh-level control system Battle Spirit Elder."
"Although Yan Yan isn't from a major noble family, her grandfather is the Poison Douluo senior, who dominates the world with poison. A few years ago, Yan Yan's grandfather became a guest elder in the imperial family before sending her to the academy. According to school age, Yan Yan is the youngest among us."
"The other girl is Ye Lingling, Spirit Nine Heart Begonia, a thirty-fourth-level support system Tool Spirit Elder. Our hostility towards your joining was because we were afraid you would take Lingling's support position. After all, she is only fifteen years old now, the youngest among us. Everyone treats her like a younger sister, and she doesn't like to talk or express her emotions well, so we were afraid she would suffer in silence and stood up for her."
"We didn't give you a good look earlier, we're truly sorry," Yu Tianheng apologized. "If you want any compensation, we will try our best to satisfy you."