In the stands.
The Star Luo Emperor shot to his feet.
As he watched his son standing in the middle of the arena, like a drawn sword, the disappointment in his eyes had long since vanished.
In its place was utter shock—and an irrepressible flash of delight.
"Good!"
"Now that's what I call offense being the best defense!"
"Just as expected of a son of the Dai Family!"
"That domineering spirit, that drive to charge forward without hesitation—that's what it takes to be the emperor of the Star Luo Empire!"
Black World.
Star Luo Square was just as silent.
But there was no joy in that silence, only an endless sense of disbelief.
Everyone's eyes turned, almost involuntarily, to two people.
One was Black Dai Mubai, who had fainted and been roused by someone pinching his philtrum.
The other was Yu Xiaogang, who had been confidently analyzing the theory just moments ago.
Yu Xiaogang's face had turned the color of liver.
His lips trembled, and he pointed at the Sky Screen, unable to get a complete sentence out.
"This... this is impossible..."
"This isn't scientific..."
"Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear... How could a Spirit Beast like that be absorbed as a First Spirit Ring?"
"The body couldn't withstand it... In theory, it's impossible..."
"And... I calculated the defensive power of White Tiger Protection Barrier. How could it be shattered with a single blow...?"
At that moment, his "Ten Core Competencies" seemed to have turned into "Ten Core Jokes."
He'd sounded so certain before, and now the sting of having his words thrown back in his face was just as sharp.
Tang San stood nearby, equally bewildered.
Seeing his teacher so utterly dejected, for the first time, he felt a flicker of doubt.
Were his teacher's theories...
Really flawless?
Why did the Dai Mubai of that world completely ignore the usual rules, yet still become so powerful?
Star Luo Imperial City in the White World was now in a full-blown uproar.
That declaration—"Offense is the best defense"—had struck like thunder in the ears of every Star Luo citizen.
In every street and alley, every tavern and teahouse, people raised their cups in celebration.
"That's our Second Prince! That's the king we want to follow!"
"That damn theory grandmaster, going on about how defense is the proper path—what a load of crap! Look at the Second Prince's claw. What defense could stand against it?"
"That was so satisfying! That's the domineering spirit the White Tiger Martial Soul should have—not like the useless coward from the Black World next door!"
In the Imperial Garden of the palace.
The slight tension that had lingered there had completely dissipated.
Zhu Zhuqing sat on a stone bench, her beautiful eyes fixed on the spirited young man in the Sky Screen, filled with admiration and affection.
She turned to White Dai Mubai beside her, her cheeks tinged pink.
"Mu Bai, that claw was so cool."
"You really beat Dai Weisi from the other world black and blue."
Xiao Wu jumped up in excitement, crunching loudly on the carrot in her hand.
"Exactly!"
"That so-called Grandmaster was talking big just a moment ago. Why's he gone quiet now?"
"And what's Black Dai Mubai doing, fainting like that? If I ever run into him, I'll give him an Eight-Stage Throw and teach him why flowers are red!"
Qian Renxue lifted her teacup with elegance and took a small sip, her gaze drifting with a hint of pride.
"They may be the same person in two different worlds, but the gap between them is like heaven and earth."
"Other than running away and making excuses, what can Black Dai Mubai even do?"
"A good-for-nothing like that dares to call himself Dai Mubai?"
As she spoke, Qian Renxue looked at her beloved beside her, her gaze softening.
"Good thing our Mu Bai isn't like that."
"Otherwise, I'd have cut him down with my sword long ago."
Hearing the praise and teasing of his beloved companions, White Dai Mubai merely smiled calmly, showing little pride or conceit.
"The path is your own to choose."
"He chose to live on his knees. I chose to die on my feet."
"That's all."
The scene on the Sky Screen did not end there.
The breathtaking Soul Fighting Arena battle gradually faded, replaced by scenes from White Dai Mubai's daily training.
The people of the Black World had assumed that White Dai Mubai had achieved so much purely because he was exceptionally talented—or because the other world had simply been luckier.
But what came next landed like a series of heavy blows to the hearts of everyone looking for an excuse.
On the Sky Screen.
Through freezing winters and scorching summers, through wind and rain,
that golden figure was always training.
At dawn, before the first ray of sunlight had even touched the earth, Dai Mubai was already running with weights.
He wore specially made black iron bracers and greaves, each weighing a hundred pounds.
Sweat ran down his resolute face and dripped into the dirt, splattering into eight droplets.
But he never stopped.
At night, when the entire palace had fallen asleep, the light was still on in Dai Mubai's room.
He wasn't sleeping, nor was he indulging in the luxurious life of a prince.
He was reading.
He studied diagrams of the body's meridians, analyzed the best routes for circulating Soul Power, and repeatedly worked through ways to improve his Soul Skills.
His desk was piled with densely covered drafts.
Every sheet was filled with his insights into Martial Souls and combat.
The scenes flashed by rapidly.
People saw him tempering his body beneath a waterfall, the rushing water beating his skin red until it even began to bleed. He didn't make a sound.
They saw him face off against training partners ten levels above him in the Soul Fighting Arena. He was battered and bruised, knocked down again and again, only to climb back up each time.
The words he said most often were:
"Again."
No complaints.
No slacking off.
And what was Black Dai Mubai doing?
The scene helpfully showed a small inset for comparison.
At that moment, Black Dai Mubai was living it up with twin sisters at the Rose Hotel in Suotuo City.
He drank while complaining about how unfair life was and how Dai Weisi kept putting pressure on him.
The stark contrast left the Black World spectators dumbfounded.
Shrek Academy.
As Tang San watched the tireless figure on the Sky Screen, waves crashed through his otherwise calm eyes.
"How can this be..."
"Not only is he more talented than that good-for-nothing, he works this hard too?"
Tang San had always believed that with the Mysterious Heaven Skill and the experience of having lived two lives, no one could surpass him in diligence.
But as he watched Dai Mubai train with an almost self-punishing intensity, for the first time he felt something like inadequacy.
"Even I might not have been able to keep up that kind of training intensity back then."
"Was he really a pampered prince?"
Oscar and Ma Hongjun, standing nearby, were already staring in disbelief.
Ma Hongjun swallowed and murmured,
"So this is what a genius is?"
"Someone more talented than you, working a hundred times harder..."
"How are we supposed to live with that?"
Before you continue