Storm, Logic Sword Dao

Xuan Zi's words were like a heavy bomb, setting off towering waves within Sea God's Pavilion. A "research group" personally led by a level-98 Super Douluo, established specifically for two newcomers—such a thing had never happened in Shrek Academy's thousand-year history.

Yan Shaozhe and Du Wilun looked at each other, seeing shock—and a trace of relief—in one another's eyes. They truly could not understand Huo Yuhao's "Dao." Since that was the case, perhaps leaving it to the deepest "Old Monsters" of the academy to investigate was the best choice.

"Enough. Don't just stand around here." Xuan Zi waved his hand, pulled another chicken leg from his robes, and bit off half of it with a crunch. Speaking indistinctly, he said, "The matches are about to begin. Go watch. I want to see whether there are any other 'monsters' among this year's freshmen besides you two 'Rule Builders.'"

Shrek Academy's internal elimination tournament was an annual grand event. The freshman division in particular was the perfect opportunity for upperclassmen and teachers to scout out future stars.

At that moment, the match on the central arena had reached its most intense stage.

"Mysterious Nether Shield, Guard!"

With a shout, Xu Sanshi lowered his stance. A massive tortoiseshell shield gleaming with dark light appeared out of thin air, firmly blocking the space before him. Mysterious patterns flowed across its surface, radiating an extreme defensive aura that made hearts tremble.

"It's the Mysterious Nether Shield! They say its defense can withstand the full-force strike of a Four-Ring Soul Sect!"

"Xu Sanshi has the strongest defense among the freshmen. Who's his opponent?"

Everyone looked over to see a lean, handsome youth standing opposite Xu Sanshi. He held an utterly ordinary Iron Sword in his hand. There was not a trace of Soul Power Fluctuation around him, and his two soul rings were dim and lifeless, as though he were merely there to make up the numbers.

"Is that Ji Juechen? How does he dare challenge Xu Sanshi?"

"It's over. They aren't even in the same league. Xu Sanshi could stand still and let him attack for a whole day, and he still wouldn't break through."

The teachers on the platform shook their heads as well.

"He has no chance of winning. This is a mistaken assessment of his own strength," Yan Shaozhe commented.

Du Wilun nodded in agreement. "Far too rash."

Yet Xuan Zi, seated in the main seat, stopped chewing his chicken leg. His clouded eyes narrowed slightly as he stared fixedly at Ji Juechen's hand gripping the sword.

"This kid's hand... is very steady," he muttered.

On the arena, Xu Sanshi looked at Ji Juechen and grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. "Kid, surrender. That sword of yours isn't even worthy of scratching an itch for me."

Ji Juechen did not answer. He merely slowly raised the sword in his hand.

There was no earthshaking aura, no flashing soul rings. His movement was like the repetitions of sword practice at dawn—simple, pure, yet carrying an indescribable rhythm.

Everyone's gaze focused on that utterly unremarkable Iron Sword.

Then, he drew his sword.

There was no afterimage of extreme speed, no dazzling display of light. It was merely an incomparably simple straight thrust, light and seemingly devoid of any strength, aimed at the indestructible Mysterious Nether Shield.

It struck the exact center of the shield, a spot that looked utterly ordinary and held nothing special at all.

"It's over. That's a suicidal attack," someone below the arena sighed regretfully.

Xu Sanshi could not even be bothered to dodge. A trace of mockery hung on his face as he prepared to receive the inevitable, meaningless collision.

Yet at the instant the sword tip touched the shield.

Time seemed to have been slowed down.

"Clink."

A faint sound, barely audible.

There was no thunderous collision of immense force, no flare of exploding energy.

The tip of the Iron Sword simply "tapped" lightly against the Mysterious Nether Shield.

Then, something bizarre happened.

Centered on the sword tip, a crack thinner than a strand of hair instantly appeared on the surface of the Mysterious Nether Shield. It was not just one crack, but tens of thousands. Spreading at a speed visible to the naked eye, they raced outward like a spiderweb.

"Crack... crack-crack..."

The crisp sounds of shattering were as dense as a torrential downpour.

Before the horrified eyes of tens of thousands of teachers and students, the Mysterious Nether Shield, hailed as an "absolute defense," began to disintegrate and collapse inch by inch from within.

At last, with a dull wail, the entire massive shield turned into a heap of fine black powder. It sifted through Xu Sanshi's hands and piled into a small mound on the ground.

The entire arena fell into Deathly Silence.

A pin drop could be heard.

Xu Sanshi froze in place, still holding his defensive stance. His pupils had shrunk to their limit, and his face was filled with terrified disbelief. He had felt no attack at all, yet his martial soul—his pride—had been completely "erased" in that instant.

"Th-what was that?"

"Ignoring defense? His sword... passed straight through the shield?"

"No! Look at Xu Sanshi—he's completely unharmed! It wasn't penetration. It was... it was 'deconstruction'!"

All the teachers rose to their feet. Yan Shaozhe and Du Wilun's faces were whiter than paper. Even with everything they had learned in their lives, they could not explain the scene before them, a sight that overturned all common understanding.

"No... this isn't deconstruction..." Yan Shaozhe's voice trembled. "This is... this is a strike of 'logic'! He found the 'logic of existence' of the Mysterious Nether Shield, then used his sword to sever that 'logic'!"

Xuan Zi suddenly hurled the chicken bone in his hand to the ground. An unprecedented gleam burst from his clouded eyes, a hundred times more intense than when he had seen Huo Yuhao!

"Logic Sword Dao... what a Logic Sword Dao!" he roared in shock, his voice filled with astonishment and fervor. "This kid... this kid is a monster too! He isn't fighting with Soul Power. He's fighting with 'truth'!"

He abruptly turned toward the equally dumbfounded Yan Shaozhe and Du Wilun beside him, speaking each word with deliberate force.

"Do you see it? This is the future you must face!"

"One is a 'god' who 'creates rules'!"

"The other is a 'demon' who 'severs logic'!"

Xuan Zi's voice was like thunder, exploding within the hearts of every Shrek higher-up.

On the arena, Ji Juechen slowly sheathed his sword, as though he had merely done something insignificant. He cast an indifferent glance at the powder on the ground, then at the devastated Xu Sanshi, turned, and walked off the arena.

From that moment on, he was no longer that mysterious transfer student.

He became, in the minds of everyone at Shrek Academy... an incomprehensible "public enemy," an "aberration" that had to be studied and deciphered.

And the "revolution of understanding" jointly unleashed by him and Huo Yuhao had only just begun to unveil its bloody, magnificent prelude.