The scene shifted.
It was no longer the disgusting Imperial Garden, nor the perilous Soul Hunting Ground.
Instead, it showed a quiet royal Martial Arts Arena.
The morning sun spilled across the stone paving.
A boy of just five sat cross-legged on a massive boulder.
It was Dai Mubai of the White World, in his youth.
But he wasn't playing like an ordinary child, nor was he bullying the palace maids like Dai Mubai of the Black World.
His eyes were closed, and his breathing was steady and strong.
Air currents seemed to swirl faintly around him.
The moment this scene appeared,
everyone in both worlds, who had still been cursing moments before, fell silent.
"This..."
"What is he doing?"
"Training? He started training at five?"
"Wait, he hasn't awakened his Martial Soul yet. How can he have fluctuations of Soul Power?"
Countless people stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
Then the little Dai Mubai in the scene moved.
He snapped his eyes open. His golden gaze held none of a child's innocence; instead, it was deep, as if he could see through illusions.
He leaped down from the boulder.
His body was small, but his movements flowed smoothly, without the slightest hesitation.
He took his stance.
Threw a punch.
Pulled it back.
Then threw another.
His movements seemed ordinary, even a little dull.
Black World.
Dai Mubai, who had just been drowning in shame, suddenly lifted his head and stared at the Sky Screen.
At the sight of this, a spark of something called jealousy rose in his despairing heart.
"Quit putting on a show!"
He gritted his teeth and forced the words out.
"Five years old? Creating your own technique?"
"That's the biggest joke I've ever heard!"
"Even a Titled Douluo wouldn't dare claim to create a cultivation technique. What gives a brat who hasn't even awakened his Martial Soul the right?"
He couldn't accept it.
Why were you so exceptional when we were both Dai Mubai?
I don't believe it!
It must be fake!
This has to be staged!
Tang San narrowed his eyes. Purple Demon Eye began to circulate instinctively as he tried to see through the child in the scene.
"Strange..."
Tang San furrowed his brow.
"His movements are simple, but every punch seems to align with some law of heaven and earth."
"How could a five-year-old possibly do that?"
He had lived two lives and brought the Tang Sect Secret Arts with him when he crossed over.
Yet even he had only practiced the Mysterious Heaven Skill by the book at five. He had never considered improving it, let alone creating something of his own.
The scene on the Sky Screen continued.
Little Dai Mubai threw punch after punch.
Sweat soaked through his clothes.
But he didn't stop.
He was thinking.
Every so often, he stopped and furrowed his little brows, muttering to himself as if working through something profoundly complex.
"No, the force is too scattered."
"If I exert myself like this, I'll hurt myself as much as my opponent."
"I need to bring my whole body's strength together into one, combining point and plane..."
Though they couldn't hear him, the subtitles made his thoughts clear to everyone.
The people of the Black World were dumbfounded.
Was this really five years old?
If this counted as five, had they all spent their lives doing nothing?
Yu Xiaogang had stopped clutching his crotch. His eyes widened, and his mouth gaped so far it could fit an egg.
"This... this theory..."
"This method of exerting force..."
"I've never heard of it, never seen it!"
"Could Dai Mubai of the White World be some kind of monster who started cultivating in the womb?"
As time passed,
little Dai Mubai's movements grew slower and slower.
But with every punch, the sound of the wind grew louder.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
His fists were tearing through the air.
Finally,
little Dai Mubai stopped.
He stood before a boulder more than two meters tall.
The royal guards usually used it to test their strength. It was incredibly hard; even a Soul Grandmaster of rank ten-something might not be able to break it easily.
Little Dai Mubai took a deep breath.
He crouched slightly, his back arching like a great dragon.
His right fist drew back to his waist.
At that moment,
everyone held their breath.
Even through the screen, they could feel the terrifying power gathering inside that small body.
"Break!"
Little Dai Mubai roared.
His right fist shot out like a cannonball.
There were no flashy effects.
No Soul Power behind it.
Just the strength of his body.
Just the pinnacle of technique.
Boom!
The instant his fist struck the boulder,
a deep, thunderous crash rang out.
As countless eyes from both worlds watched,
the incredibly hard boulder didn't shatter into pieces.
Instead...
It turned to dust in an instant!
That's right.
Dust!
Not chunks of stone!
The penetrating force in that punch had completely destroyed the boulder's inner structure.
A breeze blew.
Stone dust drifted through the air like a gray mist.
Little Dai Mubai stood with his fist lowered. He showed little joy, only exhaled slowly and said,
"I suppose I've just about got the basics."
"I've finally mastered the first form of Fist Strikes the Void, Rock Shatter."
Black World.
Utter silence.
It was even quieter than when Dai Mubai had abandoned Zhu Zhuqing.
If that had been a collapse of morality,
then this was a collapse of their worldview.
Everyone stood rooted to the spot as if struck by lightning, their minds completely blank.
One punch?
He'd turned a boulder that huge to dust with one punch?
Could a five-year-old who hadn't awakened his Martial Soul really do that?
What did he even need a Martial Soul for?
What did he need a Soul Ring for?
With that one punch alone, he could probably kill a whole group of Soul Grandmasters!
"Th-that can't be real, can it?"
Ma Hongjun stammered, his eyes nearly popping out of his head as he broke the silence.
"What kind of person is that?"
"Even Teacher Zhao might not be able to turn a rock to dust without using his Martial Soul, right?"
Oscar swallowed, his throat dry.
"Boss Dai of the White World... is a monster, isn't he?"
"A real monster."
In the center of the crowd,
Dai Mubai stood completely frozen.
The last scraps of hope and jealousy he'd held were pulverized by that punch.
He watched his younger self on the screen.
He watched the stone dust swirling through the air.
At that moment,
he felt neither anger nor jealousy.
Only a deep sense of helplessness.
The despair of an ant looking up at a dragon.
"Heh..."
Dai Mubai gave a bitter laugh. His legs gave out, and he fell backward, landing hard on the ground.
His eyes were vacant as he muttered,
"Five years old... creating your own technique..."
"One punch to shatter stone..."
"Fine, fine. So that's how you want to play?"
"We aren't even the same kind of creature..."
"I give up."
Two streams of tears slipped from the corners of his eyes, full of bitterness.
"Please... just make it end already."
Before you continue