[Blue Moon] floats in midair, radiating brilliant crystal light.
At this moment, all the demon spirits were suppressed by a certain force, unable to take flight, only able to dart around within two meters above the ground.
Though their beastly natures were partly repressed, their instinctive sense of crisis drove them to flee frantically in all directions, yet they were blocked by a layer of blue barrier.
"Hurry up! [Blue Moon] has started releasing demon spirits."
"Faster, or the good demon spirits will be taken by others."
"Wait for me, bro! Let's go together!"
As rainbow-like demon spirits erupted crazily, all the candidates needed no instructions and surged onto the altar, chasing after demon spirits, making the scene instantly chaotic.
"Brother Feng, I'm going! I must succeed." Gao Hai also leaped onto the high stage, vanishing into the crowd.
Lin Feng looked at Gao Hai's silhouette, saying no more.
On Awakening Day, to become a Demon Spirit Master, it mainly depended on talent and strength.
Soul Sea talent determines whether one can become a Demon Spirit Master, and which rank of demon spirit they can refine, while strength—full Qi and Blood and a tough body—decides the rate of successful refinement.
Soul Sea talent is the main requirement to become a Demon Spirit Master; without it, even with great strength, there's no meaning.
Of course, luck plays a part. If you're lucky enough to encounter a demon spirit that matches your desired attribute, your success rate is much higher.
Although Lin Feng had some special secret skills and experience, the requirements for using those skills were very high; without long-term training, they couldn't be activated at all. So he couldn't help Gao Hai much.
If nothing went wrong, this time Gao Hai would refine a Second Grade Strong Demon Bull.
A Second Grade Strong Demon Bull, one of the most common basic power-type demon spirits, does nothing but enhance power, with no added attribute damage.
In Lin Feng's eyes, this demon spirit's rank was too low—optional at best—and he planned to find a higher rank demon spirit for Gao Hai to replace it in the future.
"Lin Feng, aren't you going?"
Ya Ge saw Lin Feng still unmoving, couldn't hold back her anxiety, and asked impatiently.
They had agreed long ago to act together on Awakening Day, so they could look after each other.
"No need, you go by yourself."
Lin Feng glanced at the girl, the unfamiliarity in his eyes made Ya Ge tremble inside. She couldn't understand—how did he become so cold and distant after just one nap?
That gaze was missing its old attachment and tenderness; it even held a hint of rejection.
Rejection?
What did I do wrong?
Ya Ge's eyes brimmed with tears; she struggled not to let them fall, didn't pursue the matter, and turned to leave.
"Pfft..."
Demon spirits were constantly chased down by the youths, merging into their bodies, but quickly passing through and flying away again. This was either due to insufficient soul power, mismatch in attributes, or too poor aptitude, so they couldn't refine the demon spirit.
Just then, not far from Lin Feng, a youth chased down a mass of golden demon spirit and quickly merged it into his body.
"Ah!"
The youth suddenly cried out in pain, streaks of purple arc-light surged from his body, letting out the snap and hiss of electricity.
At the same time, his appearance changed dramatically—his muscles swelled, limbs grew burly, his formerly jet-black eyes turned brown, nose and forehead expanded grotesquely, and on his forehead sprouted a golden spiraled horn. His once delicate skin transformed into coppery red.
"That's a Sixth Grade Golden-Horned Rhinoceros. Not quite an advanced demon spirit, but it's a rare thunderbolt attribute demon spirit."
"This kid's too green—a total rookie. It's just the beginning and there's still time to pick. With luck, he could've refined a Seventh Grade demon spirit."
Sixth Grade demon spirits are considered middle grade, but only a rank below high grade. Thunder attribute, so it's actually a pretty good demon spirit.
As the crowd discussed, some felt it was a shame—the youth hadn't been at it long before successfully refining one; his Soul Sea talent must be exceptional.
More and more people refined demon spirits and underwent demonization, but nearly all were Fifth Grade or below demon spirits, which made up the vast majority; above Sixth Grade demon spirits were rarely seen.
Soon, another youth captured the crowd's eye—a burst of fierce golden light erupted from him.
His jet-black short hair turned yellow and rapidly lengthened to his shoulders, deep eyes turned purple-red, full of beast-like ferocity and coldness. His bones snapped and popped, his height shot from about 1.7 meters to a full 1.8 with demon possession, his muscle bulk exploded, and his school uniform ripped apart, exposing a body like a blast of power, muscles strikingly defined. At the same time, a pair of golden wings burst from his back, flapping gently, and the air shimmered with a scorching aura.
His pale, slender arms ballooned, now covered in golden fur; jet-black talons pierced from his fingertips, gleaming coldly, and a "King" symbol slowly appeared on his brow.
"What demon spirit did he awaken? Looks so powerful!"
"That's the Flying Tiger—Seventh Grade demon spirit. Demon possession grants not only devastating offense but fire series damage. High-grade demon spirits usually have innate abilities; the Flying Tiger's is Rage Frenzy, a top-notch ability among Seventh Grade demon spirits."
"Didn't expect last year's demon spirit from Ruiyi Group would end up with this kid. If all goes well, he'll probably join Ruiyi Group in the end."
"Those big groups only provide the demon spirits; where you go isn't up to them."
"Who's this kid? He's hitting the jackpot!"
On the city square was a massive light curtain; whenever someone fused with a Sixth Grade or higher demon spirit, the spectacular scene appeared on it. When the Flying Tiger was fused, it caused a stir; it was the first Seventh Grade demon spirit anyone refined.
The crowd buzzed excitedly—Flying demon spirits are far rarer than earth-bound demon spirits. The Seventh Grade Flying Tiger was one everybody coveted and envied.
Outside the venue, a plainly dressed woman clenched her hands tightly, staring at the light curtain and cheering hysterically, "That's my child! I knew he'd succeed!"
The woman declared her joy loudly, basking in the admiring and jealous gazes around her. While talking, her eyes reddened and she began to cry.
She already sensed the attention of distinguished figures on the altar. She understood—her child had leaped the dragon gate, soon to change their family's fate.
The youths pursued their targets in a frenzy—those who succeeded were overjoyed, while those who gained nothing didn't give up, still chasing breathlessly.
Except for one person—he ignored all the demon spirits, letting them flit past like headless flies wandering through the crowd.
"The distribution of Awakening Day candidates goes by region. That Ye Qiu is a student at Jiang City First Middle School, not far from us and also at the northwest side. So even if Ye Qiu runs and chases, the area isn't that big."
"But there are too many people right now, hard to find him."
Lin Feng wove through the crowd; in his past life, Ye Qiu was the pride of Jiang City, so Lin Feng knew what he looked like.
But at this point, Ye Qiu was just like him—a sixteen-year-old high schooler. Even narrowing down the area, with this huge crowd, finding him for real was extremely tough.
"Dong!"
The ancient bell sounded again, and all the youths jolted—the demon spirit refinement on Awakening Day lasted two hours, and now half was gone.
Still unable to refine a demon spirit, many youths grew anxious.
The ones who could refine but were picky also sped up. Some fragile-minded girls began sobbing aloud, obviously realizing their Soul Sea talent was too poor to fuse demon spirits, not even First Grade ones.
Lin Feng still hadn't found his target; the crowd had already scattered, finding one person was like searching the heavens.
"There's not much time left, going to stop looking for people—just search for black demon spirits!"
Lin Feng scrutinized the area. Compared to various bright demon spirits, black ones were rare.
"Not this one, nor this one!"
Lin Feng kept chasing black demon spirits, so as the bell rang again, even he grew anxious.
[Blue Moon]'s suppression of demon beast nature would only last two hours; now just half an hour remained.
When time was up, all demon spirits would be recalled into the [Blue Moon] divine artifact, and anyone wanting another try would need special school permission or pay a fee of a hundred thousand New Coins.
For a school special pass, you'd have to be a genius. Lin Feng was strong but not quite there, and next year he'd graduate high school anyway, losing qualification—unless he paid 100,000 New Coins.
But 100,000 New Coins, for a family with no savings and even debts, was nothing but a fantasy.
Even if he earned the money, a demon spirit like Nightmare was one-in-a-million; if missed, you might never meet one again in your lifetime. So, this time, he absolutely couldn't fail.
"That's..."
Just then, Lin Feng's eyes lit up, and he dashed toward a spot.
Not far away, a black demon spirit was charging at a youth in brown school uniform; on his chest burned a maple leaf insignia—the Jiang City First Middle School badge.
"Ye Qiu?"
"I must not let him discover this demon spirit's uniqueness!"
In the crowded throng, Lin Feng rushed over. As the demon spirit was about to merge with the youth, Lin Feng appeared in front of him and grabbed the black demon spirit.
Lin Feng looked down—the demon spirit resembled a ghostly shadow, body brimming with mystery and chill, twin black vortexes swirling in the eye-sockets, making the mind dizzy.
"Just like the Shadow Demon Spirit! This is it!"
Lin Feng's eyes filled with joy, with no hesitation, he merged it into his body.
"So excited?"
Ye Qiu looked mildly surprised, but didn't care much.
The rules of Awakening Day never forbade contests.
If two people want the same demon spirit, fighting for it is natural, even brawling is normal.
With his ability, even a Ninth Grade demon spirit wouldn't interest him; he was searching for demon spirits from the Earth Chart. The one just now had a strange appearance, but by its look, it was clearly a Fifth Grade Shadow Demon Spirit—not worth his time to refine.
"Looks like Ye Qiu hasn't noticed this demon spirit's difference."
As Nightmare merged into his body, Lin Feng spun and dashed back into the crowd.
At this moment, relief filled his heart; a moment more and Ye Qiu might have noticed Nightmare's extraordinariness.
Lin Feng dodged the crowds, speeding away.
Reaching a secluded corner, Lin Feng sat cross-legged, swiftly guiding the Nightmare demon spirit to his Dantian—but during the process, his mind was awash with violent killing intent and rage.