Phoenix Sword Song, Heart Realm Crack

The morning sunlight cast Shrek Academy in a layer of golden radiance.

Ji Juechen pushed open the dormitory door. Jing Ziyan had already been waiting outside. She had not slept all night, and a trace of worry lingered in her eyes. Yet when she saw that Ji Juechen's gaze was clearer and deeper than ever, all her worry turned into astonishment.

"You... seem different," she could not help saying.

Ji Juechen did not answer. He merely sensed the surging Soul Power flowing through his body, as well as the Sword of Sword Intent within his Sea of Consciousness, growing ever more solid. Last night's "Red Lotus Fire" had been violent, but the "Sword Intent Wall" from the System Mall had perfectly transformed it into his finest nourishment.

"Let's go." He spoke only two words before heading straight toward Sea God's Pavilion.

Inside Sea God's Pavilion, Muen, Xian Lin'er, and Yan Shaozhe had been waiting for some time.

"How do you feel?" Muen asked with a smile.

"Very good," Ji Juechen replied succinctly.

"That's good." Yan Shaozhe rose to his feet, his expression solemn. "Ji Juechen, Shrek has Shrek's rules. If you wish to become an Inner Court student, especially if you wish to join the 'Ultimate Soldier' program, you must pass our assessment."

"What assessment?" Ji Juechen asked.

"Very simple." Yan Shaozhe's lips curled upward. "Defeat an Inner Court student, or take one move from me."

"I choose the second." Ji Juechen answered without hesitation.

"Bold indeed!" A trace of approval flashed through Yan Shaozhe's eyes. "Then prepare to take this... one move!"

Before his words had faded, Yan Shaozhe's soul rings lit up instantly, but only the first four!

Yellow, yellow, purple, purple!

He forcibly suppressed his Soul Power to the level of a Four-Ring Soul Sect!

"Since this is an assessment, I'll let you see Shrek's foundation at the same level!"

Yan Shaozhe let out a long cry, and an entirely different aura erupted from within him. It was not the pressure of Soul Power, but a sublimation on the spiritual level!

First Soul Skill: Heart of the Phoenix!

His aura instantly became distant and vast, as though he had merged with heaven and earth. His entire being radiated an immortal will of rebirth through nirvana. This was the initial application of his Self-Created Soul Skill, Unity of Essence, Energy, and Spirit, perfectly fusing spirit and Soul Power to lay the foundation for victory.

Ji Juechen's eyes sharpened instantly. What he sensed before him was no longer a person, but a rising sun brimming with the power of life and destruction.

Yet in his state of Clear Sword Heart, what he "saw" was far more than that.

Deep within that vast, ocean-like realm, he "saw" a... crack.

An exceedingly tiny crack that ran through the entire spiritual core. It was filled with the agitation of pride crushed by reality, guilt toward his teacher Muen, and the frustration of being helpless before Ma Xiaotao's evil fire.

This was Yan Shaozhe's Heart Realm Crack. It was the root of why he could not break through to a higher realm.

So that's how it is. Ji Juechen understood. His sword had found its target.

"Interesting," he said softly.

Second Soul Skill: Flame of the Phoenix!

Yan Shaozhe raised a hand and pointed, and a cluster of golden flame appeared out of thin air. Yet the flame was not scorching. Instead, it carried a holy aura that seemed capable of purifying all things. It did not attack Ji Juechen, but circled before Yan Shaozhe as though chanting an ancient war song.

Second Soul Skill: Edge Break!

Ji Juechen swung his sword, sending out a gray sword aura. Yet the instant it touched the golden flame, it did not disperse the fire. Instead, that holy aura continuously "purified" it until it dissolved into nothingness.

"My Flame of the Phoenix has fused with my realm. It can dissolve attacks of every energy form," Yan Shaozhe said calmly. This was the confidence of a powerhouse.

"Is that so?" Ji Juechen's sword grew even faster.

Third Soul Skill: Wings of the Phoenix!

Behind Yan Shaozhe, a pair of enormous wings formed from pure light unfolded. With a light beat, he vanished from where he stood. The next instant, he appeared behind and to Ji Juechen's side, a claw covered in golden scales striking directly at Ji Juechen's vital point!

Fast! Extreme speed!

Yet Ji Juechen seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.

Third Soul Skill: Sword Shadow Clone!

His figure split into two. One clone met Yan Shaozhe's attack head-on, while his true body took an unimaginable angle, the sword's edge thrusting straight at Yan Shaozhe's brow!

"Trivial tricks!"

Yan Shaozhe snorted coldly. His claw passed through the clone's illusion, while his other hand formed a sword finger and jabbed toward Ji Juechen's true body.

Fourth Soul Skill: Phoenix Aria!

This was the final move he had suppressed himself to. He poured the entire realm of his Unity of Essence, Energy, and Spirit into this finger strike. There were no dazzling lights or effects, yet it seemed to encompass every joy, sorrow, meeting, and parting in a phoenix's life, containing the true meaning of life and death. Whoever was struck would have their soul plunge into an endless aria and collapse from within!

Facing this strike of supreme realm, all Ji Juechen's movements slowed.

From Yan Shaozhe's perspective, Ji Juechen had abandoned all evasion and defense, merely holding his sword horizontally before his chest.

Was he... waiting to die?

No!

Just as Yan Shaozhe's fingertip was about to touch Ji Juechen, Ji Juechen's sword moved.

It was not a slash, a chop, a thrust, or an upward cut.

It was a... block!

Fourth Soul Skill: Light and Darkness Intertwined!

Half of Ji Juechen's blade shone with light, while the other half was cloaked in darkness. When Yan Shaozhe's fingertip, carrying Phoenix Aria, struck the flat of the blade, the two ultimate powers of light and darkness erupted at once!

"Buzzz—!"

Yan Shaozhe felt an indescribable force of chaos surge from the sword. The perfectly fused realm of his "essence, energy, and spirit" was forcibly torn open by this power!

"What?!"

In that instant of distraction, Ji Juechen's sword intent surged like a burst dam, pouring madly through that crack into Yan Shaozhe's Sea of Consciousness!

Yet his sword intent did not destroy. It did not slaughter.

With incomparable precision, it touched the Heart Realm Crack that had long existed.

There was no explosion, no impact.

Yan Shaozhe only felt as though his soul had been viciously pierced by a cold needle!

The crack he had forcibly concealed beneath endless pride, responsibility, and guilt was completely torn open by that sword! All the pain, resentment, and confusion flooded over him like a burst dam, swallowing him whole!

"Pfft—!"

Yan Shaozhe shook violently as if struck by lightning, spitting out a mouthful of blood. He staggered back several steps before barely managing to steady himself. The light of his four soul rings dimmed, and the wings of light behind him dispersed.

He stared fixedly at Ji Juechen. There was no longer shock in his eyes, but an unprecedented... terror!

He had lost. But what terrified him was not the defeat, but how Ji Juechen had done it!

"You... what did you see..." Yan Shaozhe's voice trembled. That crack was the deepest secret of his heart, the dead end he had never fully revealed even to his teacher Muen! How had this boy, who had only just arrived, struck so precisely at that spot with a single sword?!

This was no longer a battle. This was the scrutiny of a god!

At the head seat, Muen's smile had long vanished, replaced by deep gravity. He had seen it clearly. Ji Juechen's sword had not removed an inner demon. Rather... it had dissected that deeply hidden wound, bloody and raw, exposing it beneath the sunlight.

This sword was poison, but it was also medicine. Whether it caused Yan Shaozhe to sink completely or rise anew after breaking apart depended entirely on his own fate.

"A fine... truly pure sword path..." Yan Shaozhe wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his laughter filled with bitterness and lingering fear. "I understand... Pavilion Master, I lost. I concede completely."

Muen slowly rose to his feet. He gave Ji Juechen a complicated look before solemnly announcing:

"Yan Shaozhe, you lost. From today onward, Ji Juechen is an official student of Shrek's Inner Court and the first member of the 'Ultimate Soldier' program."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the pale-faced Jing Ziyan before finally settling on Ji Juechen.

"However, your trial has only just begun," Muen said. "This afternoon, the academy will hold a public Inner Court assessment. All newly promoted Inner Court students must accept a challenge from an older student on the assessment stage."

"I have already chosen your opponent."

A mysterious smile appeared on Muen's lips.

"Didn't that old fellow from the Sun Moon Empire want to find you a 'strong opponent'? Very well. This afternoon, I'll let you see just how strong Shrek's 'strong opponents' truly are."

"Your opponent is—Beibei, captain of Shrek's Inner Court team, leader of the new generation of the Seven Monsters of Shrek, martial soul: Light Holy Dragon."

"He is also a Five-Ring Soul King."