As for this outcome, Lin Ximeng clearly hadn't expected it either.
She watched with interest, though at that moment, most of her attention was on Tang Wulin.
This student, whose talent she considered fairly ordinary, had actually held on until the end and was now competing against the only genius in their class.
Of course, she didn't think Qiangu Wuji would lose. At their age, Soul Power levels still mattered a great deal.
Tang Wulin had only three levels of Soul Power. There was no way he could match Qiangu Wuji.
But that was assuming he was an ordinary person.
Was Tang Wulin ordinary? Of course not. He was a cheat with the Golden Dragon King Bloodline!
Qiangu Wuji felt the pressure bearing down on him. With the aid of the Heavenly Six Eyes, he could see that Tang Wulin's vitality was incredibly vigorous.
It was only slightly weaker than that of the bald man he'd seen yesterday.
Clearly, the Golden Dragon King's power was affecting him.
Qiangu Wuji was starting to panic. When it came to physical fitness, he couldn't compare to Tang Wulin, who had the Golden Dragon King Bloodline.
In fact, his physical fitness was about the same as Gu Yue's. The only reason he was still hanging on was sheer willpower.
The two ran for another ten minutes. Class soon ended, and students from the other classes noticed them still running around the field.
Many were astonished. They'd seen the two running before class, and now class was over and they were still at it.
Hadn't it been an hour already?
Two little kids, running for an hour?
Even at Red Mountain Academy, this was a shocking sight.
Before long, a crowd had gathered to watch.
The commotion soon drew the principal, Lu Renjia.
He came over and immediately asked Lin Ximeng what was going on.
"Teacher Lin, what's happening? Why are those two kids running?"
Lin Ximeng glanced at him and explained in a fairly amiable tone.
After hearing her out, Lu Renjia stared in shock. But a moment later, worry crept over his face.
"Teacher Lin, could running like this hurt them? They may be Soul Masters, but they're only six years old..."
Lin Ximeng shook her head, her expression serious.
"Qiangu Wuji is a One-Ring Soul Master. At his limit, his physical fitness should surpass that of a well-trained adult. In theory, he can keep running this long."
She turned her gaze back to Tang Wulin and murmured to herself.
"The question now is Tang Wulin. He only has three levels of Soul Power, and his Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass. By all rights, he should have reached his limit long ago."
After a pause, she added with a sigh, "If he isn't relying on his Soul Power to keep going, then for a child his age to have such endurance means his physical fitness is practically on par with Soul Beasts!"
"On par with Soul Beasts?" Lu Renjia gaped. Then he grew worried again. "Could Qiangu Wuji actually lose to him?"
Personally, he certainly didn't want Qiangu Wuji to lose.
He didn't want the son of the Spirit Pagoda's Vice Pagoda Master to have an unpleasant time at school.
If the boy had a bad time and left, Lu Renjia wouldn't know where to cry.
Hearing the obvious favoritism in his words, Lin Ximeng frowned almost imperceptibly. But she said nothing, merely shaking her head and replying calmly, "If you ask me now who's going to win or lose, I can't say for sure. Let's just wait and see."
More and more people gathered around the field to watch the two run. By the end, the crowd was almost big enough for a proper competition.
The spectacle continued even when class started. The teachers tacitly agreed to give their students a period off.
Before long, two or three hundred people had gathered to watch the pair run.
And so another half hour passed.
A full hour and a half of all-out running!
Forget ordinary people—even average Two-Ring Soul Masters who weren't particularly fit couldn't manage that.
Yet here were two six-year-old children doing exactly that.
Calling it a once-in-a-century spectacle wouldn't be an exaggeration.
But running for so long wasn't without consequences.
Both were panting heavily.
Qiangu Wuji was in worse shape than Tang Wulin.
With the physical fitness of an ordinary Soul Master, he was nearly out of strength by now. Stars swam in front of his eyes—a clear sign he was about to faint.
Tang Wulin, on the other hand, was panting too, drenched in sweat, but his steps remained steady.
"Qiangu, are you still all right?"
Tang Wulin ran up beside him and asked with feigned concern.
Qiangu Wuji glanced at him and clearly saw the smugness in his eyes.
That immediately annoyed him, and he forced himself to rally.
"I'm fine. What about you?"
"I can keep going too."
"Good," Qiangu Wuji said with a nod. "If we can both keep going, then let's continue."
The two ran for another ten minutes.
By now, Qiangu Wuji was truly close to collapsing. The world spun before his eyes, and his stomach churned.
In his daze, he saw Tang Wulin slowly pull ahead. Behind him, a faint golden dragon raised its head menacingly, as if mocking Qiangu Wuji for overestimating himself.
Qiangu Wuji panted, his face pale, as helplessness washed over him.
He clenched his fists, unwilling to accept it.
As expected!
Going toe-to-toe with the Golden Dragon King Bloodline as a mere mortal was simply too much.
Even if his Martial Soul was stronger, his Bloodline Power still couldn't compare.
Damn it. If only his own bloodline were strong enough.
[ DING! Since you feel that your bloodline is inferior to the Golden Dragon King Bloodline, your bloodline has decided to stand up for you.]
[ DING! Your bloodline has evolved into the True Phoenix Bloodline. Current evolution level: Level One Bloodline.]
[Note: A complete True Phoenix Bloodline is Level Nine, on par with the Golden and Silver Dragon Kings.]
Just as Qiangu Wuji was about to give up, he suddenly felt heat in his torso. The burning sensation quickly spread through his limbs.
Under its influence, the exhaustion from his intense exertion seemed to burn away completely.
What was this...?
Qiangu Wuji was startled.
True Phoenix Bloodline? What was that?
He hurriedly examined the changes in his body and saw a tiny flame flickering in the palm of his hand.
Not only that, but he felt the Soul Power inside him boiling as well.
The flame quickly spread, and in the blink of an eye, his body was enveloped in fire.
The sudden change made Qiangu Wuji let out a muffled groan.
But that groan carried the clear cry of a phoenix.
The phoenix cry rang through the sky, leaving the spectators dumbfounded.
"My God, look! Why is Qiangu on fire?"
At the same time, Gu Yue, who had been watching from the sidelines, seemed to sense something. Her body trembled, and she looked up in shock, crying out in disbelief.
"That's his aura! How... how is this possible? He's human—how could he...?"
The field was so noisy that no one heard her cry.
Everyone's attention was fixed on Qiangu Wuji's transformation.
Bathed in flames, Qiangu Wuji looked like a human-shaped fireball.
Tang Wulin, who had already run ahead, faltered at the sight. He turned around in shock, a trace of pain appearing on his face.
He stared at Qiangu Wuji in disbelief, then dropped straight onto the ground. Cold sweat trickled down his face.
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