The Clear Sky Hammer?
A glimmer appeared in Ye Xingchen's eyes as he watched Tang San summon the Clear Sky Hammer. This hammer was the sole token of a Clear Sky Sect successor, a peerless, supreme Martial Soul throughout the entire Douluo Continent.
With his arms folded, he shook his head slightly, sighed, and said:
"Why bother, Tang San? You're no match for me at all. Even if you play every trump card you have, do you think you can beat me?"
Unconvinced, Tang San shook his head. As he looked at the white-clad figure before him, jealousy and hatred had already burned their way into the depths of his mind!
Facing this fellow who was better and stronger than him in every respect, he raised the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand and said:
"There's no reason I should lose to you. Don't be so arrogant!"
With those words, Tang San swung the Clear Sky Hammer and closed in. With a lift of his hand, he unleashed Chaotic Cloak, hammering down!
"Your Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer still lacks polish. It's a disorganized mess. You haven't grasped its true essence at all!"
"Why do this? It's nothing but wasted effort!"
Ye Xingchen shook his head slightly, his expression calm, as wisps of Sword Qi spread from the Cloud Pattern Long Sword in his hand.
On the Heavenly Emperor Cauldron Martial Soul floating above his head, the engraved Xuanwu and White Tiger totems suddenly lit up.
The powers of the two divine beasts immediately swirled around him, forming an immensely powerful pressure that swept in every direction!
As Tang San approached and saw this, a trace of horror appeared in his eyes!
"You have three Martial Souls..."
"No, those aren't Martial Souls. What is this power?"
Hearing Tang San's astonishment, Ye Xingchen chose not to answer. The Xuanwu and White Tiger totems' ability to manifest physical forms was one of the things that distinguished the Heavenly Emperor Cauldron Martial Soul from the many other Martial Souls.
He glanced at Tang San and, without hesitation, raised his Cloud Pattern Long Sword and thrust forward.
Specks of silver light suddenly appeared around the two of them. His face filled with terror, Tang San immediately raised the Clear Sky Hammer and smashed out in every direction.
As piercing metallic clangs rang out one after another, birds repeatedly scattered in alarm throughout the forest...
Such enormous fluctuations of Soul Power also drew quite a few people to watch from the shadows.
One powerful figure wrapped in a black robe glanced at the figure standing on a sword beside him and said mildly:
"It seems your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has produced a once-in-an-age genius. To think he could reach this level. Even I've never seen anything like it!"
With his hands behind his back, Chen Xin smiled slightly and glanced at the black-robed figure beside him.
Although he did not know who this person was, he could sense the aura of a Titled Douluo on him, along with that powerful pressure that had vanished from the Douluo Continent decades ago!
"That isn't important. It's only two youngsters having a fight. There's nothing particularly embarrassing about it!"
"What do you think? As their elders, we should stay out of it. That way, things won't become too awkward!"
The face beneath the black robe twitched at those words.
He thought about how he had witnessed Chen Xin beating Zhao Wuji earlier. For Chen Xin to now say they should stay out of the youngsters' affairs was really quite the humblebrag.
He glanced at the two fighting and said mildly:
"Just what I had in mind. Powerful as this fellow is, he hasn't shown any killing intent. It seems my boy is still a little too restless. Sorry you had to see that!"
Unconcerned, Chen Xin shook his head slightly. A gleam of gold appeared in his eyes as he watched that white-clad figure, who looked like an immortal descended to earth.
He thought that only a few days had passed since they last met, yet this lord had already become so strong. Given time, he dared not imagine what heights of power he would reach. After all, he was still only a youth!
In the forest,
Holding the Clear Sky Hammer, Tang San slowly calmed down. Looking at Ye Xingchen, whose clothes fluttered before him, he felt a trace of helplessness.
After several exchanges, almost nothing he tried could get this man under control.
Feeling somewhat powerless, he sighed, drew the Clear Sky Hammer back into his hand, and said flatly:
"Why did you choose to hold back? Is it because I'm too weak to deserve being your enemy?"
With his hands behind his back, Ye Xingchen almost laughed aloud at those words. Looking at the dispirited Tang San before him, who no longer resembled the proud prodigy he once was, he teased with a smile:
"We're classmates, after all. None of this was something I wanted to start. Since you wanted to fight me, I simply treated it as a sparring match!"
"Besides, you're not my enemy, and I don't want you to become my enemy either. I actually think quite highly of you!"
With those words, Ye Xingchen headed toward the other side of the forest.
Even when his figure disappeared into the depths of the forest, Tang San remained frozen in place and did not attack him from behind. It was not that he lacked the courage, but that he felt too ashamed.
This fellow had made him feel an unprecedented, overwhelming pressure.
It seemed that, in front of him, Tang San had been seen right through. Whatever move or skill he used, the man could almost always predict it a moment later!
Against such a powerful opponent, Tang San felt that even a sneak attack could not succeed in a single strike.
"Is he the nemesis destined for me? Why has he ended up on the same path as me?"
"I'm still so young, yet I've already encountered my nemesis. It seems this life of mine isn't destined to be peaceful either..."
With those words, Tang San walked out of the forest in a daze, and the entire forest immediately fell silent.
Early the next morning, at the training grounds.
Dean Flender looked at the children approaching, satisfaction appearing on his face.
He turned to glance at Zhao Wuji and gave a slight nod.
"Understood. Leave it to me!"
Immediately grasping his meaning, Zhao Wuji nodded. He looked over the group, particularly Ye Xingchen among them, and said with a smile:
"Welcome to your official enrollment at Shrek Academy. As for leaving the academy without permission yesterday, I won't pursue it!"
"However, that doesn't mean I won't punish you or give you extra training. So the first rule is that you're not allowed to leave the academy without permission from now on!"
Hearing this, Ning Rongrong, who stood beside Ye Xingchen, pouted.
She glanced at Teacher Zhao Wuji standing in front of them, a rueful expression crossing her face.
"You say that as if you could beat me if I went out. I have my husband to protect me!"
Ye Xingchen smiled slightly, stroked Rongrong's head, and said softly:
"Let's hear what they have to say. Stop being mischievous. We're here to study, after all!"
Rongrong stuck out her tongue and nodded, then folded her arms and stopped contradicting them!
After Zhao Wuji's lecture, everyone understood what they would be doing that day.
Looking somewhat dejected, Oscar shook his head and hurriedly asked:
"Teacher Zhao Wuji, I'm a food-type Soul Master, and this one is a support-type Soul Master too. There isn't much point in us taking part in these physical activities, is there?"
Unconcerned, Dean Flender smiled, glanced at Oscar, and teased:
"Of course, you can skip physical training. But if, in future battles, a support-type Soul Master like you can avoid being instantly killed by a combat Soul Master's single blow, I can make an exception for you!"
Oscar's expression immediately soured at those words. He sighed and quickly stepped back.
Zhao Wuji smiled with his arms folded, looked at everyone, and said mildly:
"Stop hoping to get lucky. Get moving, all of you! Your destination is outside the academy gates. Everyone must finish ten laps!"
"As for tonight, we'll take you somewhere nice. Dean Flender will personally take you there!"
Dai Mubai, who stood at the front, shook his head, then slowly began running off to one side.
Once everyone had left, Dean Flender let out a sigh of relief. He turned to Zhao Wuji and teased:
"What's wrong? Are you scared of taking them to the Great Soul Arena tonight? Or are you afraid that powerful figure in the shadows will beat you up again?"
Zhao Wuji's expression turned rather ugly at those words. He rubbed his bruised and swollen face and said awkwardly:
"Stop making fun of me. I need a couple of days to recover now. In another two days, I still have to take them to Star Dou Forest. Just let me rest!"
With those words, Zhao Wuji folded his arms and slowly left.
Flender remained where he was and shook his head slightly. Just as he was about to leave, a carrier pigeon suddenly descended from the sky and landed on his arm.
Seeing the letter attached to it, Flender removed it. After opening the envelope and reading its contents, a look of pleasant surprise appeared on his face.
At the academy gates,
Ye Xingchen slowly kept pace beside Ning Rongrong. Looking at the route with several laps still to go, he felt somewhat bored.
Compared with the other men-Ma Hongjun, Oscar, Tang San, and Dai Mubai-he was the only one running with the girls.
"Boss Ye, why are you running so slowly? Let's pick up the pace, hurry up, so we can go into town and have fun!"
Ma Hongjun, who was up ahead, looked back and asked with a smile:
"You even keep sister-in-law company while running. That's really enviable. Can I pass on this serving of lovey-dovey sweetness?"
As she ran, Ning Rongrong heard this and looked pleased. She glanced at the chubby Ma Hongjun and teased:
"Do you know why you don't have a girlfriend? It's because someone as thoughtless as you could never get one!"
Ye Xingchen smiled slightly at those words. He glanced at Dai Mubai, Tang San, Oscar, and the others running ahead and said with a smile:
"We don't actually need this sort of running, but he must have told us to run so we'd learn to work together!"
"After all, we're a team. Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, and Rongrong are all relatively weak girls. If we just keep moving ahead ourselves and abandon them, we're bound to fail this test!"
Hearing this from up ahead, Dai Mubai's eyes immediately shifted. He slapped his forehead, slowed down, and came alongside Ye Xingchen, saying with a smile:
"Boss Ye really does think of everything. Why didn't I think of that? If I'd known, I would've run slowly too!"
With Dai Mubai taking the lead, Oscar and Ma Hongjun also slowed down, leaving only Tang San ahead, and the others ran level with one another.
Somewhat puzzled, Xiao Wu glanced at Tang San running alone and found it a little strange.
"Xiao Wu, what's wrong with your brother? Why is he running all by himself at the very front? He's not keeping with the group!"
Rongrong glanced at Tang San ahead, then turned back and asked.
"I don't know. He's probably been in a bad mood lately!"
Finding it difficult to explain, Xiao Wu shook her head. Looking at Tang San ahead, she did not know what to say. After all, there were some things he needed to slowly digest himself before he could accept them.
"Xiao Wu, what do you think of me?"
"The sausages I make are delicious. Want me to give you one now to replenish your stamina?"
Just then, Oscar looked at Xiao Wu, eager to please, and quickly conjured a sausage as he teased with a smile.
"Just get out of here. How could Xiao Wu possibly fancy you?!"
Seeing Oscar's ulterior intentions, Dai Mubai rolled his eyes and remarked:
"You'd better stop asking for trouble. Careful someone doesn't come looking for you in the middle of the night!"
Oscar froze slightly at those words, instinctively glanced at Tang San, and quickly put the sausage away.
Somewhat embarrassed, he sighed and said dejectedly:
"Life is so hard. I just want to find a partner!"
No sooner had he spoken than the two collided, whether because Oscar had been careless or because Zhu Zhuqing had accidentally fallen out of rhythm.
Just as Zhu Zhuqing was about to fall, Ye Xingchen immediately caught her slender waist and drew her into his arms.
"Are you all right?"
With a calm expression, Ye Xingchen looked at Zhu Zhuqing in his arms, then smiled as he helped her upright and asked.
"I'm fine, but could you let go of my tail..."
Blushing with embarrassment, Zhu Zhuqing nodded. She glanced back at the tail behind her bottom and quickly whispered.
Ye Xingchen, who had not noticed what his hand was doing, froze slightly and immediately withdrew it. He said with a smile:
"I'm really sorry. My hands moved faster than my eyes, and I didn't notice!"
Her pretty face slightly flushed, Zhu Zhuqing nodded, then let go of Ye Xingchen's arm and continued running ahead.
Watching from beside them, Dai Mubai could not help showing some envy, jealousy, and resentment in his eyes.
He sighed, came up beside Ye Xingchen, and said:
"Brother Ye, I really envy you. Why do girls like Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing all have such a good impression of you? You're already married!"
Unconcerned, Ye Xingchen spread his hands, glanced at Dai Mubai, and teased with a smile:
"I was only helping her out. Don't overthink it!"
At a loss for words, Dai Mubai sighed. You even grabbed her tail just now, and you call that simply helping her?
If he had done it, he probably would have been slapped long ago.
He glanced at the graceful figure moving away and sighed:
"Brother Ye, you have to teach me how to pick up girls sometime. I feel like I'm nothing but trash compared to you!"
Somewhat embarrassed, Ye Xingchen nodded. Looking at the thoroughly dejected Dai Mubai, he did not know how to comfort the man for a moment.
Before you continue