"What! She actually reacted!" White Shadow twisted in mid-air and kicked the side of the spike. As a twenty-third-Rank Spirit Master, she believed a spirit power-charged kick could snap those spikes. Even if she couldn't clear them all, she could at least use the force to change direction.
But the moment her foot landed on the spike, she found it far harder than expected. Still, she used the recoil to kill her forward momentum.
Yet no matter which way she charged at Jin Bao, those spikes appeared instantly in front of her.
"Second Spirit Ability, Shadow-Grab!"
Agility-attack system Spirit Masters, besides simple speed boosts, have skills that let them dart through special terrain or past obstacles to reach their target fast.
White Shadow's second skill did exactly that: a burst of speed that let her fly briefly through the air, protected by a temporary shield formed by the ability, enough to break through most control system techniques.
Jin Bao watched White Shadow soar over the spike array, the smile on his face unchanged.
"He's still smiling—does he actually enjoy getting hit? No good; my Spirit infuses every basic attack with chill poison. I'd better hold back!"
A sparring partner isn't here to be beaten to a pulp; if every fighter went all out, who'd dare take the job?
But even as that thought crossed her mind, a golden, wall-like shield rose in front of her.
"What!" Startled, she snapped her waist and flipped forward.
Her bent legs kicked off the shield wall, sending her flying backward.
The next instant she crashed into the wall behind her.
Bang!
"Ouch!" White Shadow rubbed her back; that had hurt.
Then Jin Bao's voice reached her ear.
"Shall we keep going?"
White Shadow looked around—there was even a golden shield above her head.
"That's still your First Spirit Skill?" she asked. No First Spirit Skill, however strong, should be able to do this!
Jin Bao dismissed the effect. "My First Spirit Skill is actually a moldable, hard energy shield. Change its shape and you get all these variations—but the more shapes, the bigger the spirit power cost. You can also see my control range isn't as large as a true control system Spirit Master's."
White Shadow glanced back at the floor. Sure enough, an ordinary control system opponent would have interfered before she reached half the field, yet Jin Bao's skill hadn't bothered her until two-thirds of the way across.
"So your control is protective," she said.
Jin Bao surveyed the zone. "Pretty much. But individual shields can land on teammates without hindering their movements." He flicked a shield in front of her.
White Shadow found she could poke her hand through, but anything past the shield lost its protection.
"If you can still reshape this mid-fight, it'll be really useful," she said.
Jin Bao: "Sadly, the range is fixed for now. Only after I Breakthrough to Spirit Elder can I expand it further."
"Spirit Elder, huh." She sighed, then suddenly asked, "What Rank are you?"
Jin Bao: "Twenty-seven, almost twenty-eight. Why?"
White Shadow: "I envy you. But Spirit Hall Academy has far better resources than ordinary schools—I'll reach Spirit Elder within three years!"
Jin Bao studied her. "You're not thinking of trying for the Inner Academy exam?"
White Shadow: "Inner Academy? I wouldn't dare. Only Geniuses take that test. If I can reach Spirit Elder around fifteen and get close to Spirit Ancestor by graduation, I'll land a stable job in Spirit Hall!"
Watching her smile, Jin Bao realized that in this World even Spirit Masters were mostly common folk; only a handful ever stood in the higher Realms, and only the tiniest fraction reached the final Rank to become Titled Douluo.
And those who became Titled Douluo while still young were Heaven-blessed prodigies, nothing like ordinary people.
"Hey, what're you spacing out for? We're not done!" White Shadow's voice snapped him back.
Jin Bao grinned. "Sorry, lost in thought—let's continue!"
White Shadow: "This time no shield-cage. One shield at a time; I need to practice fixed-area footwork!"
Jin Bao: "No problem—ready."
A white silhouette ricocheted off golden walls while Jin Bao refined his control. After an hour White Shadow stopped.
"Phew! I'm spent—spirit power's almost gone; that's it for me." They walked to the card-swiping zone at the edge of the field—a special spirit tool Spirit Hall had installed to transfer points with student IDs.
Points didn't come only from the trainee; the school contributed, so the pay was decent.
"I'm off. You?" White Shadow asked.
Jin Bao: "My consumption wasn't high; I'll take another round."
"Working so hard! Don't get hurt—see you tomorrow." She waved and left the training ground.
Jin Bao's second sparring partner was a Power attack system Spirit Master whose request was simple: let him unload Spirit abilities on Jin Bao.
So Jin Bao trapped the guy in a shield-prison and let him burn through almost all his spirit power before releasing him.
"Great! That felt good!" The man flexed, then paid Jin Bao for the session.
"Bro, where've you been? If I'd known you earlier, I'd have hired you ages ago!" He stuck out his hand. "Name's Yuan Shan, Iron-Arms Ape Spirit, twenty-fifth-Rank Power attack system Spirit Grandmaster. Previous partners quit fast 'cause my abilities are too rough—never had a session this satisfying."
"I'm Jin Bao. Used to run team matches with friends," he replied, shaking hands.
"Team matches! I've been looking for teammates, but I arrived late; all the strong ones were taken. Is your squad short a member?" Yuan Shan asked hopefully.
Jin Bao: "Disbanded—they stopped giving us opponents."
Yuan Shan: "Wait—don't tell me you were on the Brilliant Gold Scepter squad!"
Jin Bao smiled. "Yep, that was us."
Yuan Shan: "Of course I know—" He'd wanted to join, but the squad was already gone.
"So… can we team up?"