Dominant Victory

Before long, the arena had been cleared. Zhongli and Hua Banhao stepped onto the field at the same time, watching each other from afar. Zhongli looked utterly calm, occasionally glancing at Mo Yuqing below the stage, who was pretending to cheer while actually "boosting his shield."

Honestly, he almost wanted to laugh...

"Yo, are you my opponent?"

Hua Banhao took the initiative to speak from the other side, wearing the bright, cheerful smile of a leader among children. It was just that this child had grown a little too quickly, giving him a rather... bizarre appearance.

"As you can see."

Zhongli replied with a faint smile.

"Haha, Hua Banhao, Martial Soul: Qiao Lezi. Level twelve Power Attack System Battle Soul Master. Please enlighten me!" Hua Banhao laughed as he condensed a Qiao Lezi, used his First Soul Skill, Gigantification, and slung it over his shoulder. He struck a battle stance, his blood boiling with excitement.

"Zhongli, Martial Soul: Vortex Vanquisher. Level thirteen Support System Weapon Soul Master. Please enlighten me." Zhongli casually grasped the air, and Vortex Vanquisher instantly appeared in his hand. He looked directly at Hua Banhao as he spoke.

There was a vast difference in their builds. Hua Banhao was much bigger than Zhongli, with exceptionally defined muscles. He was the sort of person who looked powerful at a glance.

Zhongli, on the other hand, appeared calm and otherworldly. There was nothing obviously formidable about him on the surface, yet for some reason, merely seeing his face and his spear gave one a sense of stability that came from the depths of the soul.

"Zhongli, go! Go!"

Mo Yuqing edged closer from below the stage, feeling somewhat nervous. She was afraid that, if she stood too far away, her buff would not reach Zhongli. At the same time, she was afraid the teacher would notice. It was a strange feeling.

Looking at Hua Banhao's smiling face, Mo Yuqing silently muttered in her heart, Keep laughing, go on and laugh. Once you realize you can't break that shield, let's see how you keep smiling! Go, Zhongli, give this guy a Sorrowful Smile!

She still understood Zhongli's shield fairly well. At the same level, she had attacked it for twenty minutes without breaking it. That was his shield after receiving her buff... Wait, no, something was wrong. What did she mean, after receiving her buff?

Could it be that whenever I tested his shield's durability with him before, I was attacking while buffing him at the same time? That's unfair—completely unfair! That guy never told me before. He's such a bully!

No, I can't let this go. Hmph!

"Ha!"

Hua Banhao took a step forward and swung his one-and-a-half-meter club straight down at Zhongli. As long as the Qiao Lezi could smash into Zhongli's face, he would win. The Qiao Lezi strategy was that simple, brutal, and brainless.

But could it really be that simple?

"Fortified as a Golden Moat!"

Zhongli raised one hand and clenched the air. A thin, pale-yellow shield instantly appeared, steadily blocking Hua Banhao's Qiao Lezi. Moreover, because the shield was much harder than the Qiao Lezi, the frozen treat shattered at once, splattering all over the shield. Fortunately, none of it got onto Zhongli himself.

"What the heck is that?"

Hua Banhao hurriedly retreated several steps. The shield was slick, and the ice cream quickly slid off it. Seeing the completely unscathed shield and Zhongli's composed expression within it, his heart skipped a beat. He suddenly had a bad feeling.

"Your attacks are ineffective against me."

Zhongli casually flicked Vortex Vanquisher, activated the Jade Shield, and walked toward Hua Banhao step by step as he spoke in a cool voice.

"This is... a little troublesome."

Hua Banhao lightly bit his lip as he watched Zhongli approach. He felt a bit flustered, but quickly recovered. Gritting his teeth, he condensed another gigantic Qiao Lezi and smashed it fiercely toward Zhongli.

"Smack!"

The shield still did not break...

Hua Banhao felt anxious, but he refused to admit defeat. He directly condensed one gigantic Qiao Lezi after another and launched a frenzied assault against Zhongli's shield, moving like Oula's windmill.

"Oula! Oula oula oula!..."

He was incredibly strong, but the Qiao Lezi was not durable enough. None of his attacks could break through the defense. The only change was that more and more Qiao Lezi splattered onto the shield, while more and more ice cream fell onto the ground.

Zhongli simply ignored his attacks and took another step forward. An all-around shield in reality was even more fantastical than in a game; even the piles of ice cream on the ground could not dirty Zhongli's shoes. He pressed forward step by step through Hua Banhao's attacks.

"Damn it!"

Hua Banhao's expression was terrible. He had even swung the wooden sticks of his Qiao Lezi until they snapped, yet he still could not break through the defense. This was a Soul Master around the same level as him. Zhongli's calm demeanor and invincible shield brought him an unprecedented sense of pressure. He had never imagined that he could feel so powerless in battle.

Everything was futile!

No, I'm a man who will become the world's strongest Power Attack System Soul Master!

Hua Banhao gritted his teeth, his ambition blazing fiercely. The God's Eye in his pocket gradually began to shine, and just as he was about to unleash power beyond his limits, Zhongli's gaze changed as well.

Zhongli strode forward, lightly "tapping" Hua Banhao with Vortex Vanquisher. The blow immediately sent him staggering, and Zhongli swiftly followed up with a kick, sending the guy flying out of the arena.

You think you can power up without my permission?

Zhongli stood proudly in the arena, imposing and dominant like an invincible war god. No one could break his defense, and no one could withstand his attacks.

Hua Banhao had obtained his God's Eye too recently and was not very skilled at using Geo Elemental Power. Such a huge wind-up was no good in a fight. As long as someone had sharp enough eyes, they could interrupt him in advance just like Zhongli had.

It was not that Zhongli feared Hua Banhao powering up. Even if he used Geo Elemental Power, he probably still would not be able to break through Zhongli's defense. It was simply that explaining it afterward would be troublesome, and Zhongli did not like making trouble for himself.

"Zhongli wins!"

Chi Tianxiang smiled from the side. This result suited him perfectly. He hoped both Zhongli and Hua Banhao could clearly see their own abilities and avoid taking paths that did not suit them. As a teacher, there was actually little he could do; the right to choose lay in the children's hands.

"Zhongli, you won! That was amazing! He couldn't hurt you at all!" Mo Yuqing ran to Zhongli's side with a cheerful smile.

"Yes, it was thanks to you. Without your buff, I could not have done any of that."

Zhongli said with a faint smile.

"Hehe, so you know it was thanks to me. Then what were you thinking when you used my passive bonus to test your shield against me before? I'd really like to understand that!" The smile on Mo Yuqing's face gradually stiffened, becoming unnatural.

The corner of Zhongli's mouth twitched slightly. Then, he placed one hand on her shoulder, leaned close to her face, and said softly, "You understand. Better than anyone else. I never hid it from you from the very beginning."

He never hid it from me?

Mo Yuqing's expression gradually changed. Zhongli had never mentioned this passive bonus before. And he had said that he was innately level twenty, only keeping a low profile because... Wait, innate level twenty and keeping a low profile? Could it be that his shield had always been this strong, and he had merely made up an excuse in order to stay low-key?

"Shh~"

Zhongli made a gesture, the smile on his face as dazzling as ever.