Tang San's "Hidden Weapons"? Toys for the Weak

Amid the ruins at the entrance of Shrek Academy, the atmosphere was bizarrely comical.

The previously arrogant Immovable Ming King, Zhao Wuji, now stood obediently to one side like a wronged little wife. Dean Flender, meanwhile, wore a pained expression as he directed Li Yusong to put away the pile of Deep Sea Silver Diamonds, terrified that even one might be missing.

In the middle of the ruins, a Grand Tutor Chair had appeared at some point.

Qian Mo sat on it with one leg crossed over the other, holding a cup of freshly brewed hot tea. Zhu Zhuqing stood obediently behind him, using hands capable of killing to gently knead his shoulders.

"Continue." Qian Mo blew away the tea leaves without even raising his eyelids. "Aren't there still people waiting to register? Don't let me delay proper business."

The corner of Flender's mouth twitched.

Who the hell was the dean here?

But for the sake of that pile of diamonds and the twelve red soul rings, he endured it.

"Next!" Li Yusong shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice still trembling from fright.

Tang San took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Although Qian Mo's display of strength had driven him to despair, he had not given up.

I just need to pass Teacher Zhao's test. Tang San encouraged himself inwardly. Zhao Wuji was just injured. Even if he was healed, his soul power must have been greatly depleted. I have the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record and Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track. If I can hold out for a stick of incense, I may still have a chance.

With that thought, Tang San straightened his back and cupped his hands toward Zhao Wuji. "This junior is Tang San, a level twenty-nine Soul Grandmaster. Please instruct me, Teacher Zhao."

Zhao Wuji glanced at him and snorted heavily through his nostrils.

Qian Mo had just thrown him around like a sandbag, thoroughly disgracing him as the Immovable Ming King. He had been worrying over where to vent the Evil Fire in his stomach, and now a soft persimmon that looked easy to bully had come right to him.

"Instruct you?" Zhao Wuji grinned viciously, cracking his knuckles. "Easy. Since Young Master Qian Mo said he sets the rules, I can't be too stingy. I won't use any Soul Skills either. As long as you can last... three minutes under me, you win."

Tang San was delighted. No Soul Skills? That increased his chances by at least thirty percent!

"Excuse me!"

Before his words had faded, Tang San suddenly pushed off with his feet, turning into an afterimage as he slid to the side.

Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track!

This strange footwork was practically unbeatable in fights between opponents of the same level. Tang San was confident he could run rings around this clumsy giant bear.

However.

"Fancy tricks." Zhao Wuji snorted.

He could not even be bothered to distinguish the real body from the afterimages. He simply raised his palm-like hand and swept it through the air in front of him.

Whoosh—!

The terrifying palm wind, carrying the pressure of a Soul Saint, surged forward like a wall.

There was no technique to it. Just brute force.

Bang!

Tang San's prized afterimages shattered instantly. He was swatted away like a fly, rolling seven or eight times across the ground before barely stopping.

"Cough, cough..." Tang San felt as if his chest had been crushed, as though his internal organs had shifted out of place.

Was this the physical constitution of a Soul Saint? Even without soul power, he was not someone a Soul Grandmaster could hope to challenge!

"Is that all?" Zhao Wuji rolled his neck, his face full of disdain. "Where did that arrogance from before go? Again!"

Tang San gritted his teeth and climbed to his feet, a ruthless glint flashing through his eyes.

A frontal clash was impossible. He had to win by surprise.

He charged again, this time with several pebbles in his hand, the medium he used to perform Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon.

But before Zhao Wuji's absolute strength, such little tricks appeared especially pathetic. In less than a minute, Tang San had already been thrown three times, his face swollen like a steamed bun.

"You forced me..."

Purple light flared in Tang San's eyes as he was driven into a corner.

Just as Zhao Wuji lunged at him again, spreading his arms wide and leaving himself completely open.

Tang San's hand flashed across his waist like lightning.

Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night flashed.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!"

The faint sound of air splitting was almost impossible to detect amid the noisy battlefield.

Three Bone Piercing Nails shot straight for Zhao Wuji's eyes.

One Dragon Whisker Needle targeted his groin.

The remaining Willow Leaf Knives sealed off his escape routes.

This Sky Flower Rain was viciously angled and utterly sinister. Every weapon targeted the most vulnerable and fatal parts of the human body.

Zhao Wuji was enjoying the fight too much to expect this seemingly honest child to suddenly strike with lethal intent. They were too close. It was already too late for him to dodge!

"You little bastard, you dare—" Zhao Wuji was both shocked and enraged. He instinctively shut his eyes and covered his groin.

At that critical moment.

"Despicable."

A cold voice exploded across the field like thunder.

Qian Mo, seated on the Grand Tutor Chair, lightly flicked his wrist.

The lid of the white porcelain teacup flew from his hand.

"Buzz!"

The teacup lid spun rapidly through the air, producing a sharp whistle like metal cutting. Though launched later, it arrived first, turning into a streak of golden light that precisely cut through the narrow gap between Tang San and Zhao Wuji.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid series of crisp sounds rang out.

The Bone Piercing Nails, Dragon Whisker Needle, and Willow Leaf Knives that had been certain to kill were all precisely knocked down by the tiny teacup lid a second before touching Zhao Wuji's skin.

Sparks flew everywhere.

As if drawn to a magnet, every hidden weapon was carried away by the Ingenious Force attached to the teacup lid. Their directions changed, and they embedded themselves in the nearby ground with a series of thuds, arranged into a neat character for "death."

After completing that series of difficult interceptions, the teacup lid drew an arc through the air and steadily returned to Qian Mo's hand, covering the teacup once more.

Not a single drop of tea had spilled.

The entire scene fell silent.

Zhao Wuji felt a chill between his legs, cold sweat instantly soaking his back. That Dragon Whisker Needle had been only 0.01 centimeters away from his life root!

"You..." Tang San stared blankly at the hidden weapons on the ground, then looked at Qian Mo, his face full of disbelief.

How was that possible?

His Hidden Weapon Technique was a Tang Sect Secret Art. How could Qian Mo possibly see through it? How could he even knock them all down with a single teacup lid?

"Is this the monster you speak of?"

Qian Mo set down his teacup and slowly rose to his feet.

He looked down at Tang San. There was no anger in his eyes, only the disgust one felt when looking at trash.

"In a sparring match, every move you make is vicious, aimed at the eyes and groin."

"Tang San, are you here to enroll, or are you here to kill?"

"I don't think you're any monster. You're a rat that cannot see light in a gutter."

Those words were like a series of loud slaps, viciously striking Tang San across the face.

The students and parents around them looked at Tang San differently as well. Everyone had seen what happened just now. It truly had been too underhanded.

"What do you know!"

Tang San flushed crimson, raising his neck as he retorted, "Those are hidden weapons! They're Tang... they're my unique secret arts! Deception in Warfare and Victory by the Weak—what is wrong with that?"

"In this world ruled by the Law of the Jungle, as long as you win, do the methods matter?"

Tang San spoke with perfect justification. This was his creed, and it was also the survival law Master had taught him.

"Hidden weapons?"

Qian Mo sneered and shook his head.

"A true strong person can injure others with a plucked leaf or thrown flower. That is control of power."

"And you merely rely on external objects to conceal your own incompetence."

Qian Mo raised a hand and drew downward with his palm.

A Dragon Whisker Needle that had fallen to the ground flew into his fingertips.

"Watch carefully. This is what technique truly is."

Qian Mo casually flicked his wrist.

There was no buildup of force, nor any fancy Opening Stance.

"Whoosh!"

Golden light flashed and vanished.

Tang San did not even see Qian Mo move. He only felt a chill brush against his cheek.

Several strands of hair drifted down.

The Dragon Whisker Needle grazed past his cheek, carrying terrifying kinetic energy as it shot directly into a massive boulder a hundred meters behind him.

There was no sound.

It had pierced straight through because it was too fast.

Three seconds later.

Boom!

The boulder, as tall as two people, exploded from within and crumbled into powder.

Tang San stood frozen in place, beads of blood seeping from the scratch on his face.

He touched his cheek, his whole body trembling.

If that needle had been off by one more inch... his head would have exploded just like that boulder.

This was the difference.

The difference between clouds and mud.

"A true strong person does not need such vile methods to prove himself." Qian Mo accepted the handkerchief Zhu Zhuqing handed him and wiped his hands, never looking at Tang San again. "Dirty."

"Teacher Zhao, what are you standing around for? The assessment isn't over yet."

Zhao Wuji finally came back to his senses.

He looked at the hidden weapons on the ground, then touched the lower half of his body that had nearly been destroyed. An unprecedented rage surged into his heart.

"Good... good boy!"

Zhao Wuji's eyes turned red as he stalked toward Tang San, radiating murderous energy.

"You wanted to cripple me, huh? You wanted to play dirty, huh?"

"Today, Grandpa Zhao will teach you what a real beating feels like!"

Without hidden weapons to launch sneak attacks, Tang San, whose mindset had collapsed, was like a rag doll before the enraged Zhao Wuji.

Less than three minutes later.

Bang!

Tang San was smashed into the ground for the last time and completely lost consciousness. His face was so swollen that even his biological father would not recognize him, while his limbs were twisted at strange angles—the pure force of Zhao Wuji's attacks had dislocated them.

"Hmph, you got off easy!" Zhao Wuji spat, feeling utterly refreshed.

The frustration of being abused by Qian Mo had finally been released.

Flender walked over, frowning as he looked at the unconscious Tang San.

Although this kid had corrupt intentions, he was still that person's son... and level twenty-nine soul power was indeed rare.

"Take him." Flender sighed and waved Oscar over to drag Tang San away. "Collect the registration fee first. The medical bills are extra."

However, the appreciation he had shown in the original work was gone from his eyes when he looked at Tang San. In its place was deep wariness.

A student who might stab someone in the back at any moment had to be watched carefully.

Just then.

A crisp, pleasant laugh came from the village entrance.

"Hehe, so this is Shrek Academy? It looks like so much fun!"

Everyone turned toward the sound.

A maiden wearing a white short-skirted dress skipped into view.

Her skin was whiter than snow, and her delicate facial features made her look like a porcelain doll. Her short, ear-length hair gave her a playful and adorable appearance. What caught the eye most was the innate nobility she carried, a temperament cultivated only by someone who had long occupied a high position.

The Little Demoness of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Ning Rongrong.

As soon as she entered, her gaze swept across the entire scene.

She directly ignored Tang San, who lay on the ground like a dead dog, and passed over Zhao Wuji's fierce-looking face as well.

Her eyes instantly locked onto the white-clothed youth seated on the Grand Tutor Chair, drinking tea with his head lowered.

Sunlight spilled over Qian Mo's profile, coating it in a golden edge.

That lazy, noble, and slightly domineering charm was a critical hit for someone like Ning Rongrong, who was hopelessly obsessed with looks.

"Wow..."

Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up, and her little mouth fell open.

She had originally come here to have some fun, yet the moment she entered, she discovered a great treasure.

"This academy..." Ning Rongrong pointed at Qian Mo and excitedly turned to Flender. "Is that handsome guy also a student here?"

Flender froze for a moment. "He... he is, I suppose."

"Great!"

Ning Rongrong waved a hand grandly, pulled out a Gold Card from her Soul Tool, and slapped it onto the table with great bravado.

"This young lady is registering! Keep the change!"

After saying that, she straightened her skirt, revealed what she believed was her sweetest smile, and walked straight toward Qian Mo.

"Hey, handsome. Want to get acquainted? My name is Ning Rongrong."

Qian Mo raised his head and looked at the eccentric Little Demoness before him, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.

The Shrek Seven Devils?

From today onward, this place was his back garden.