The next morning, Serena Ivory and the other two knocked on Wu Ling's door again. Before long, the steward opened the door and led them inside.
When they reached the rear courtyard, Wu Ling was already sitting on the stone bench and waiting for them. But before they could approach, the red-haired Wu Ling called out to them.
"You three, over here."
Serena Ivory and the others froze. Then all three looked toward the seated Wu Ling, but he continued reading and drinking tea as if none of this concerned him.
At that moment, the steward explained, "Young Master Ember is one of Young Master Wu Ling's clones. Since he called you over, that is Young Master Wu Ling's intention. You may go without worry."
Then he bowed to Ember.
"Since Young Master Ember is taking charge of them, this old servant will withdraw."
Ember smiled and waved at the steward, then gestured for Serena Ivory and the other two to follow him.
Behind red-haired Wu Ling, the four of them came to a large tree. The blue-haired Wu Ling was seated beneath it in quiet meditation.
Ember turned around, folded his arms, and said to the three of them, "I am the main body's first clone. You may call me Ember. Among the five categories of body, Spirit Skills, martial technique, awareness, and will, I am responsible for your physical conditioning."
As he spoke, Ember pointed at Azure.
"This is the second clone. You may call him Azure. He will mainly be responsible for your martial technique.
"As for today's lessons, the morning is physical training with me. The afternoon is technique training with Azure."
At that point, Serena Ivory raised her hand and asked, "Senior Brother Ember, may I ask who is responsible for the other three categories?"
As she asked, Serena Ivory's gaze drifted toward Wu Ling's main body.
Ember ignored her little movement completely and gave a sly smile.
"Those three? For Spirit Skills, you will follow Rose. Let me say this first. She is a girl."
"A girl?"
The three were genuinely shocked. In their understanding, a clone was an extension of the main body. If one clone was female, that meant...
At that thought, their eyes drifted uncertainly. Even Serena Ivory withdrew the gaze she had been casting toward Wu Ling.
Ember saw that the three of them had misunderstood and explained, "All right, it is not what you are thinking. The birth of us clones is related to Spirit Rings. One Spirit Ring represents one clone."
Hearing Ember's explanation, the three immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Then they heard him continue, "And do not underestimate Rose. The cultivation methods you practice and the spirit tools you use were all researched by her. In terms of importance to the main body, the four of us together cannot compare to her alone."
The three once again sighed inwardly at how all-purpose Wu Ling's clones were. Then they realized something.
"Senior Brother Ember, what about the final two clones?"
"Those two?"
Serena Ivory and the others clearly noticed a hint of schadenfreude on Ember's face when he mentioned the final two clones.
Ember was just about to say something when he suddenly paused. Then he pointed toward one of the buildings.
"There. Those two are in that room. Perfect timing. It is time for the main body to move around, so you should be able to hear a little."
Following Ember's finger, Serena Ivory and the other two saw Wu Ling set down his book and walk toward a building.
When he came within five meters of the building, Wu Ling waved his hand as if scattering something.
"Aaaaaah!"
"Roar!"
The ordinary-looking building seemed to have been taken off mute. Two beast-like roars, mixed with the sounds of impact, explosions, and shattering, surged out from inside.
At the same time, two terrifying auras erupted from the building. Under that horrible pressure, the three could not stop their legs from going weak.
But as Wu Ling entered the building, everything vanished without a trace. If not for the cold sweat covering them and their weakened legs, they might have thought it had all been an illusion.
The three were still immersed in that great terror when a clap drew their attention. They turned and saw that Ember had clapped his hands.
"All right, stop staring. If you went in there in your current state, you would just be seeking death. With the three of you together, you might last about three seconds at most."
Serena Ivory opened her mouth. She wanted to ask something, but she did not know how to phrase it.
"Enough. You will know once you go in later. Training starts now. We have already wasted too much time."
The three of them were still geniuses, no matter what else could be said. In only a few minutes, they forced themselves to calm down.
"We are ready, Senior Brother. Training can begin at any time."
Seeing the three recover their state, Ember nodded in satisfaction. Then he lightly snapped his fingers.
Snap. Snap. Snap.
Pressure across their whole bodies caught Serena Ivory and the other two off guard, forcing them to half-kneel on the ground. After that, they used all their strength to slowly stand, but no matter what they did, they could not straighten their bodies.
"Good. Physical conditioning officially begins. Let us train happily together in this relaxed environment.
"And do not worry. With Rose's potions, you will not be left with any hidden injuries. So our principle is this: if training will not kill you, train like it will."
At that moment, looking at Ember's still-smiling face, Serena Ivory and the others felt as if they were staring at a devil's smile.
Time came to noon. Serena Ivory and the other two lay on the ground, gasping for breath. Ember handed each of them a bottle of potion.
"Drink. Anything Rose makes is guaranteed quality."
The three raised their hands with difficulty. They felt that even without the pressure, their arms still weighed a thousand catties.
Once the potion entered their stomachs, their full-body fatigue eased. Warmth spread outward from their bellies to every part of their bodies. Finally, all their exhaustion seemed to melt like snow.
That was not all. After recovering, they even felt their bodies had grown stronger by a tiny, almost negligible amount. Of course, it might have been an illusion. Even so, that clearly perceptible sense of improvement filled them with unusual satisfaction.
"All right. Lunch is not provided. Go back, eat, rest, and come again this afternoon. Azure will teach you technique then."
Having tasted the benefits, the three immediately replied, "Understood!"
That afternoon, as Serena Ivory and the others' training gradually moved onto the right track, Bibi Dong summoned Wu Ling.
Her purpose was to let the other tournament team members meet him.
Wu Ling saw them afterward. There were six people in total, five Spirit Meisters and one Spirit Elite. This team had only taken shape after Wu Ling replaced one Spirit Elite. Otherwise, it would have been five Spirit Meisters and two Spirit Elites.
Wu Ling did not need to think hard to understand. This tournament was probably the one Alban Regis had mentioned, the time when the Star Stripe Empire defeated Spirit Hall.
There were only two reasons for Spirit Hall's defeat this time.
The first was a talent gap between generations. The previous generation had already aged past eligibility, while Serena Ivory's golden generation was still not mature enough. Even after Wu Ling's training raised them all to the Spirit Meister tier, they still were not yet ready to appear.
The second reason was that this tournament's reward was a fief inside the Star Stripe Empire. Spirit Hall did not care about it at all, so they had never taken the tournament seriously.
Of course, the original story was the original story. Now that Wu Ling had come here and was participating in this tournament, this tournament was destined to become Wu Ling's solo show.
At the same time, it would be his first step into the public eye.