Douluo: Poisonous Tongue, Loves Telling the Truth

Xiao Wu was the first to show a look of disdain; having lived at Notting Academy for six years, she had yet to encounter any peer whose strength could rival his.

"Shrek can't be some trash academy, can it? Even the entrance exam is this perfunctory."

Ning Rongrong was even more blunt. Although she was a support-type Spirit Master, she was confident that a backwater place like Shrek Academy couldn't possibly compare to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, let alone cultivate geniuses of their age group.

Everyone present was a genius in their own right, yet the youth before them actually harbored the delusion of challenging them all in turns.

Even the look in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes betrayed a hint of disappointment; she felt she was being looked down upon.

She had seen the scene during registration earlier, where the registration fees of all the Spirit Masters who failed were kept by the academy.

She naturally assumed that this recruitment was merely a money-grabbing scheme organized by a bunch of Soul Saints and Soul Emperors relying on their own strength.

Among the group, only Tang San remained silent, gently pressing down on Xiao Wu's shoulder as she prepared to leave, watching the youth before them quietly.

Seeing this, Xia Ran stopped wasting words and summoned his Martial Soul directly.

[Martial Soul Possession]

In the blink of an eye, the youth in white was shrouded in a mist of black fog.

When he appeared again, his entire appearance had changed.

With black hair and golden eyes, a pair of cat ears emerged from his head, his white robe transformed into a black combat suit, and a long, slender, fluffy black tail swayed gently from his tailbone.

Standing with his hands behind his back, four spirit rings—one yellow and three purple—hovered behind him, and a terrifying aura of darkness radiated from his body.

The pressure of a Soul Ancestor level shocked everyone into silence, and the noisy discussions vanished instantly.

Ning Rongrong covered her mouth and gasped, her beautiful eyes wide with shock.

"This... you are actually a Soul Ancestor? How old are you this year?"

"Why is your second spirit ring purple!"

Xiao Wu was equally astonished; she had noticed Xia Ran's abnormal spirit ring configuration.

"Impossible, how could you have absorbed a thousand-year spirit ring as your second one!"

The most shocked of all was Tang San. He had studied Yu Xiaogang's theories for many years and could recite them by heart, regarding them as absolute truth. Now, reality had dealt him a harsh slap in the face.

Why does his Martial Soul give me such a sense of familiarity?

Zhu Zhuqing remained silent, but her expression showed a trace of anomaly.

The moment the Mysterious Cat Martial Soul appeared, she clearly felt her own Hell Spirit Cat Martial Soul stir with agitation; had she not suppressed it, it might have manifested directly.

"Quiet!"

A shout imbued with spirit power interrupted the noisy discussions. Xia Ran looked at the group, each wearing different expressions, his own face remaining indifferent.

"I think you have misunderstood something. This is not a wheel battle; you are all to fight together."

"I will give you ten minutes to discuss your tactics."

With those words, he stopped speaking to them, his figure flickering and vanishing from the trial grounds.

"What a bizarre ability. I can't even sense his aura anymore."

Tang San looked at the spot where the youth had disappeared, a look of greed flashing in his eyes.

"No spirit rings lit up when he vanished; it certainly isn't a spirit skill. If I could only fathom the skill he used..."

"Brother, what should we do now?"

Interrupted by Xiao Wu, Tang San realized he had lost his composure.

"Since the academy can cultivate a genius with such powerful strength, it must have its own merits. Teacher's words cannot be wrong."

"We will proceed with the assessment as normal. Let's arrange our tactics first."

The following time was spent with him arranging the tactics alone. Once the ten minutes were up, Xia Ran appeared right on time, holding a stick of incense in his hand.

"Are you ready?"

The group looked at each other with firm expressions, then nodded in unison.

"Good! The assessment begins!"

The incense in his hand was lit by Xia Ran and driven into a wooden stake nearby. In a mere instant, he completed his Martial Soul Possession.

Without waiting for them to strike, he launched the first attack.

[Darkness Domain]

The entire arena was gradually shrouded in black shadows. Seeing this, Tang San used his Blue Silver Grass to bind the waists of the girls.

Ning Rongrong retreated at high speed, hiding at the edge of the battlefield.

[Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, First: Strength]

[Second: Speed]

Unfortunately, no matter how fast she retreated, she could not outpace the domain. Wherever the black shadows covered, Xia Ran could appear at any position; this was the talent domain of his Martial Soul.

Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing lunged forward, but just as they were about to strike Xia Ran, they found that the figure before them had suddenly vanished.

Ning Rongrong sensed a cold aura behind her, but before she could turn to look, Xia Ran delivered a hand-blade strike, knocking her unconscious and tossing her outside the arena.

The young girl landed with a dull thud, and only then did everyone notice Ning Rongrong.

"Is this the tactic you all agreed upon?"

"Losing the team's support soul master the moment the battle begins."

The girls followed the Blue Silver Grass trailing from their waists to look at Tang San, only to see his face flush with embarrassment; he wanted to say something, but he hesitated.

After holding it in for a long time, he finally squeezed out a sentence with a reddened face.

"Don't panic, Rongrong's support effects have already been applied to us anyway, it's not a big problem."

Once those words fell, the expressions of the others improved slightly.

Tang San felt a surge of irritation; this damn guy actually dared to negate his tactics in front of so many people—he was already walking the Way of Seeking Death.

[First Soul Skill: Bind]

Dozens of Blue Silver Grass appeared out of thin air, wrapping around the ankles of Xia Ran.

[Second Soul Skill: Parasite]

Immediately following that was a burst of smoke, mixed with a large number of spores that attached themselves to Xia Ran's legs.

"Got him! Xiao Wu! Zhuqing!"

[First Soul Skill: Waist Bow]

[First Soul Skill: Hell Stab]

In an instant, the two girls attacked, both employing classic close-quarters combat.

This time, Xia Ran did not choose to evade, but instead prepared to meet them head-on.

[First Soul Skill: Shadow Armor]

A suit of pitch-black armor, condensed from soul power, suddenly appeared and perfectly encased Xia Ran's entire body.

Dark energy gathered around him, making the entire suit of armor look exceptionally eerie.

The golden eyes within the helmet flared brightly as Xia Ran reached out both hands, grabbing directly to his sides.

Before Xiao Wu's Scorpion Tail Whip could wrap around his neck, it lost its momentum, and her Waist Bow soul skill was skillfully neutralized.

The cat claws Zhuqing had extended were caught in Xia Ran's grasp, and he clamped down tightly on her wrists, holding both of them captive just like that.

"Why? I clearly had you controlled..."

Ignoring Tang San's self-muttering, Xia Ran stared at him with the look one might give a monster.

"Who taught you to cultivate Blue Silver Grass like this?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why does your Blue Silver Grass have paralyzing properties? And Bind is actually your soul skill? Isn't that something grass-type martial souls can do naturally?"

"What?"

Tang San's mind was shaken to its core; grass-type martial souls could Bind naturally? Blue Silver Grass couldn't have poison attributes added to it?

Ever since he took Yu Xiaogang as his master, he had treated everything Yu Xiaogang said as absolute truth, simply because he had identified this teacher from the very first moment.

One might ask, could those mediocre people deduce that he had Twin Martial Souls based solely on a martial soul certificate?

In Notting Academy, he had been invincible, which gave Tang San the illusion that he was very strong, unaware that he was merely a frog in a well.

"A perfectly good Blue Silver Grass, cultivated by you into something neither fish nor fowl. You have the soul power, but you don't know how to use it!"

Xia Ran's expression was indifferent, and after leaving those words behind, he prepared to leave the arena.

"Wait! By what right do you question the cultivation direction of my Blue Silver Grass!"

"If it weren't for the gap in Soul Power Level, you would have already been paralyzed by my toxins."

Seeing Tang San acting like a stubborn plaster—not only refusing to accept defeat but also brazenly challenging him—Xia Ran put on a look of resignation.

"Fine, you were the one who arranged the tactics just now, right?"

"Look at the current state of the battle yourself. Why would you let your support soul master leave the range of your protection?"

"I didn't know your abilities..."

Chapter 3: The System's Reward

"Heh! Hopeless."

He had been in Douluo Continent for so long, yet he had never encountered Tang San until now.

The memories of his past life had faded somewhat over time, but now that he saw the real person, those sealed memories were finally brought to light.

[Ultimate Double-Standard Tang Buddha]

Xia Ran used his soul power to casually shatter the Blue Silver Grass on his body, his golden pupils staring straight into Tang San's eyes as a cold sneer tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"I am pointing out the flaws in your tactics, yet you are using excuses to refute me. Sigh~"

"Would an enemy on the battlefield reveal their abilities to you?"