Tang San's Conviction

At that moment, a figure landed before the palm imprint. With a grab of each hand, he flung Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong behind him and used his body to take the blow head-on!

Bang!

With a muffled thud, Xiao Tianyang only retreated three steps. When he looked up, his gaze met Zhao Wuji's.

"Ding!"

"Congratulations, Host, for completing the Side Quest: [Assist]!"

"Mission Reward: Host's charm increased!"

Xiao Tianyang looked slightly pleased. "Teacher Zhao, the time for one incense stick is up!"

Just as expected, the mission really was completed!

Since he had not been allowed to intervene from the beginning, it clearly meant the system did not want him affecting the process.

So, he had acted just as the incense was about to burn out, seizing the final opportunity. That way, he had participated in the battle without forcibly interfering, and completing the mission had become a natural outcome.

But honestly, it had been a close victory. Anyone with a discerning eye could see the gap between both sides in Soul Power.

However, Tang San and Xiao Wu held an absolute advantage in terms of technique.

Therefore, lasting through the remaining third of the time would not have been a problem.

It was only because concern had clouded his judgment. If Tang San had chosen to retreat to the side instead of charging into the range of the Great Strength Vajra Palm, then their victory would have been certain.

But he had not. In the end, Xiao Tianyang had still rushed out and blocked the Great Strength Vajra Palm. Otherwise, Tang San and the others likely would not have passed the test.

Even if, in the end, only Tang San had remained standing...

There was no question that they had still passed!

Zhao Wuji frowned slightly and looked toward the incense stick. Sure enough, it had already burned out.

"Xiao Wu!"

A voice rang out from behind Xiao Tianyang. It was Tang San.

"She only suffered a backlash from her own Soul Power. After sleeping for one night, she'll be fine tomorrow."

Zhao Wuji spoke first, though the frustration on his face remained impossible to dispel.

A dignified Soul Emperor had actually been unable to handle four Soul Masters. He would be too embarrassed to show his face if word got out!

"Why wait until tomorrow?"

Xiao Tianyang chuckled as flames rose in his hand and two soul rings emerged from beneath his feet.

One purple, one black!

Zhao Wuji had frowned when he heard those words.

But when he saw the two soul rings, his jaw nearly dropped to the ground!

What the hell was this?

Xiao Tianyang's purple soul ring lit up. With a flash at his side, nine fist-sized fireballs appeared.

First Soul Skill, Myriad Transformation Flame.

The nine fireballs glowed around Xiao Tianyang. Then, four of them turned green and entered Tang San and the other three.

Tang San's body trembled, and disbelief appeared in his eyes.

His injuries, Soul Power, stamina, and mental strength were recovering at an unbelievable speed!

Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, who had been knocked unconscious by the impact earlier, woke first. In less than Three Seconds, they opened their eyes. Although their heads still hurt somewhat, their mental states were steadily recovering!

Lastly came Xiao Wu. Though she should have suffered mental injuries from the backlash of her Soul Power, she woke within five seconds as well.

However, her eyes were still dazed.

"Xiao Wu, you're awake!"

Tang San cried out in delight.

"Little San, what happened to you?"

As Xiao Wu slowly recovered, she discovered that she was lying in Tang San's arms, and her pretty face could not help turning red.

Yet she did not struggle, merely asking softly.

"How did you do that?"

Dai Mubai stared in shock as Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing rose from the ground.

They both looked completely relaxed now, without the slightest sign of injury.

Yet the confusion on their faces clearly showed that they had no idea what had happened.

"Didn't you see? First Soul Skill."

Xiao Tianyang turned to Zhao Wuji. "Teacher Zhao, our test can begin now, right?"

"Are you really sure you want to fight me?"

Zhao Wuji narrowed his eyes. "I let them pass earlier only because I suffered a loss once. Do you think I'll stumble in the same place twice in a row?"

"That may not necessarily be the case."

Xiao Tianyang had his own reasons for being confident.

In a head-on fight, he definitely could not win. There was no need to even think about that.

But his advantage was that the other party would neither kill nor seriously injure him.

Once that limitation was in place, he had plenty of room to perform.

Defeating him was impossible, but tying him down for the time it took an incense stick to burn was no problem.

However, just as Zhao Wuji darkened his face and was about to nod, Tang San suddenly put Xiao Wu down and stepped forward. "Teacher Zhao, I hope to have a serious fight with you!"

Although Xiao Wu had recovered, Tang San truly had a fire bottled up inside him.

If not for Xiao Tianyang, all of them would likely have fallen just now!

He had once promised that unless he died, he would never let anything happen to Xiao Wu!

But what about now?

Even if winning now no longer held any meaning, it was just as Xiao Tianyang had once said.

If one's conviction was lost, then rather than remaining there in a daze, it was better to try and find it again!

"Little San..."

Xiao Wu wanted to stop him, but Xiao Tianyang stopped her.

"Teacher Zhao, I don't think you have any reason to refuse, do you?"

Xiao Tianyang spoke before him. "They are students of the academy now. Logically speaking, if you, their practical combat instructor, refuse a student's request, that would be somewhat against the rules, wouldn't it?"

Sure enough, upon hearing that, Zhao Wuji, who had been about to lose his temper, forcibly swallowed his words.

What he had done earlier already counted as breaking the rules. He had acted purely because his hands were itching for a fight; it had not been the fourth test at all.

Now that Tang San and the others had passed, if Zhao Wuji refused their request, then even if these students did not hold it against him afterward, Frank would definitely come looking for trouble.

Thinking of this, Zhao Wuji felt a headache coming on. It seemed that whether he wanted to or not, he had no choice but to agree.

"Fine!"

Zhao Wuji curled his lips and snorted out a stream of hot air. "But this time, I won't hold back. Think it through—do you still want to fight me?"

Tang San glanced at Xiao Tianyang. Encouraged by the latter, he looked at Zhao Wuji. "I'm sure!"

"Then let's begin. Same as before—one incense stick's worth of time!"

With a flick of his hand, Zhao Wuji planted another incense stick in the ground. "Begin!"

The moment his words fell, Tang San activated his Purple Demon Eye. His hands turned jade-colored as he repeatedly touched Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night. Countless hidden weapons he had forged floated around him.

Xiao Tianyang took the opportunity to retreat to the side. He also casually caught Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, who wanted to move closer to watch the excitement, and pulled them farther away.

"That's dangerous. If you don't want to get caught in the crossfire, stand here and watch."

Xiao Tianyang's voice rang out at the same time.

Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing had originally wanted to break free, but upon hearing that, they could not help abandoning the idea.

First, they could not break free. Second, they did not want to; they chose to trust Xiao Tianyang.

After all, he had just used his mortal body to block Zhao Wuji's Second Soul Skill!

Some of the hidden weapons around Tang San reflected cold glints beneath the sunlight, while others appeared utterly ordinary.

Yet what puzzled Zhao Wuji was that those seemingly ordinary ones made him feel a faint sense of danger instead!

Seeing this, Xiao Tianyang could not help curling his lips into a smile.

"Under my guidance, Tang San has already added small amounts of alloy to some of his hidden weapons. No matter how serious Teacher Zhao gets, without knowing that, he'll still suffer at the hands of these hidden weapons!"