Battle Gu Yue Na Again

If he became Xu Lin's disciple or the disciple of someone else from the academy now, it would be difficult for him to take another master in the future.

On the continent, one could have many teachers, but there was usually only one master.

The teacher Chen An had acknowledged was the latter kind—a master. There normally would not be a second.

"You can use your age as an excuse. Say you don't want to consider taking a master before turning twelve," Chen An suggested.

"Not a bad excuse." Gu Yue Na nodded, deciding to use it.

After discussing a few more matters with Gu Yue Na, Chen An left her room.

Back in his room, Chen An lay flat on his bed, his mind filled with tangled thoughts.

The next day, after breakfast, Chen An brought Gu Yue Na to the Dean's Office.

Just as he had expected, after a few casual remarks, Xu Lin asked Gu Yue Na whether she would be willing to become his disciple.

Gu Yue Na refused on the grounds of her age, saying that her family elders had warned her not to rush into taking a master.

Xu Lin was somewhat embarrassed by her refusal and could only conceal it with a smile.

He could only abandon the idea. Having a disciple like Chen An was already quite good.

They were cousins. If Chen An developed a sense of belonging toward the academy in the future, it would be no different from Gu Yue Na having one as well.

Therefore, it was not as though he absolutely had to make Gu Yue Na his disciple.

Nor would he become dissatisfied just because she had refused him. He was not that petty.

More importantly, there was no need to fall out with a super genius over such a trivial matter.

After declining to take him as her master, Gu Yue Na did not remain in the Dean's Office for long.

Chen An, however, was kept behind, and Xu Lin spoke to him at length.

It was mainly about his cultivation. His priority still needed to be Soul Power cultivation.

He could not rapidly increase his Soul Power like a Soul Engineer. Instead, he needed to build a solid foundation and improve step by step.

As for the Soul Tools he liked, spending two or three hours a day studying them would be enough.

"Your starting point was later than that of ordinary soul masters. If you want to overtake them on the curve, you'll need special instruction."

"I plan to let you study outside your class. In other words, you won't need to attend class anymore."

"I'll arrange dedicated teachers to instruct you one-on-one. That will be more efficient."

"They'll teach you in the morning, and I'll personally instruct you in the afternoon."

"What do you think?" Xu Lin still respected Chen An's opinion.

"I'll follow Teacher's arrangements," Chen An said. He did not particularly want to attend class anyway.

He felt that the lessons in class progressed too slowly and were somewhat a waste of time.

"Bring Gu Yue Na along as well. She's your cousin, so she should receive some special treatment too."

After some thought, Xu Lin added this. It would also help Gu Yue Na develop a favorable impression of the academy.

"Alright." Chen An nodded. Since Xu Lin had said so, he naturally had no objection.

"Tomorrow morning will be your final battle with Gu Yue Na. Perform well when the time comes."

"You two should still stop at the right point. Don't actually fight to the death," Xu Lin joked.

He was rather curious as to which of these two cousins was stronger.

In terms of combat experience and skill, Gu Yue Na was certainly stronger.

This might have had something to do with the family behind Gu Yue Na. She had received combat training from a young age.

Chen An, on the other hand, might only have gone to that reclusive family after his own family suffered misfortune.

He had not received that family's guidance as a child, so it was normal for him to lack experience and technique.

Chen An had his own strengths as well. He could transform into a giant dragon.

That would greatly enhance his combat power. Absolute strength could suppress any technique.

It was not as though he had no chance of defeating Gu Yue Na.

"We'll definitely stop at the right point," Chen An said, equally looking forward to tomorrow's match.

It was the perfect opportunity to test how much he had improved during this period.

On the day of the finals, the stadium was still cleared out, with unrelated personnel forbidden from entering.

In the enormous stadium, there were only Chen An, Gu Yue Na, and more than a dozen academy higher-ups.

"Congratulations, Dean, on taking such a super genius as your disciple."

These higher-ups had also learned that Xu Lin had accepted Chen An as his disciple, and they all offered their congratulations.

Some were even envious. They wanted such a genius disciple for themselves as well.

Xu Lin smiled broadly. Having a disciple like Chen An gave him considerable prestige.

Inside the fighting arena, Chen An and Gu Yue Na stood facing each other. Their gazes met, and both remained relatively calm.

As the referee called for them to prepare, Soul Power fluctuations began to rise from their bodies.

Gray Dragon Scales covered Chen An's body as the Death God Dragon Spirit was released.

Behind Gu Yue Na, the Silver Dragon radiated a dazzling, magnificent seven-colored glow.

The referee announced the start of the battle, and both moved at once.

Chen An charged forward explosively, moving with great speed like a Death God Dragon bursting into a sprint.

Gu Yue Na retreated, while spheres of elemental energy appeared around her.

They were the four elemental energies of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, the ones she used most often.

The three elements of Light, Darkness, and space were not suitable for frequent use yet.

Using those three elements consumed a great deal of Soul Power, and her current Soul Power cultivation could not sustain it for long.

Their combat effects might not even surpass those of the other four elements.

One elemental energy sphere after another shot toward Chen An, blocking his advance.

Chen An's response was clearly far more practiced than before. He broke through at their weakest points.

After breaking through, he lunged forward swiftly, reducing the damage from the exploding energy spheres to a minimum.

After lunging out, he rolled once, rose smoothly, and continued charging ahead.

The energy spheres came flying one after another along different trajectories, forcing Chen An to use a different posture for every breakthrough.

Injuries appeared on Chen An's body, but the distance between him and Gu Yue Na was also shrinking.

Gu Yue Na was fairly approving of Chen An's performance. His improvement was obvious to the naked eye.

Gu Yue Na began changing her tactics, using the elements in more elaborate ways.

Thick mud appeared along the path ahead of Chen An, making the ground extremely slippery beneath his feet.

Streams of water turned into chains that coiled toward Chen An's legs.

Flames surged toward him fiercely, like beasts trying to swallow him whole.

Gales became cyan tornadoes that howled piercingly as they converged on him from several directions.

Chen An had watched every one of Gu Yue Na's battles and had seen this fighting style before.

He had repeatedly considered how he should respond if he encountered such a situation.

Now that he was truly facing it, he did not panic and dealt with it relatively calmly.

The flesh on his back writhed, and a pair of dragon wings grew out. They were large enough to envelop another person.

With a flap of his dragon wings, Chen An rose into the air, no longer touching the ground at all.

The mud Gu Yue Na had spread across the ground immediately lost its effect.

This was something Chen An had figured out during this period: partial control over his own dragon transformation.

With his dragon wings released, he looked even more like a giant dragon, yet he had not directly transformed into the Death God Dragon.

Seeing Chen An take flight, Gu Yue Na froze for a moment and instinctively glanced behind herself.

She still could not release dragon wings and fly into the air.