Wu Zhangkong Nearly Gets Disfigured

After entering a state of focus, Tang Wulin became especially clear-headed. He knew very well that if he retreated, his left-hand hammer would never be able to reach his teacher.

Therefore, he suddenly released the left-hand hammer he had swung, sending it flying straight at Wu Zhangkong.

Wu Zhangkong casually flicked the wooden sword in his hand, sweeping it sideways at the left-hand hammer.

Wu Zhangkong's Martial Soul had always been a sword. What he pursued was the realm of breaking all techniques with a single sword. Thus, regardless of what the enemy's attack was or who the enemy was, all he relied on was his sword.

But this time, he suffered a setback.

Hammer and sword collided. Wu Zhangkong felt a considerable force travel through the wooden sword in his hand. Though it could not compare to his own strength, he had not released his Martial Soul and had used only a small portion of his Soul Power. He immediately realized that his wooden sword was having trouble holding up.

Before he could channel more Soul Power into it, two more waves of force struck the wooden sword in rapid succession. At the same time, a familiar dizziness washed over him once more, and Wu Zhangkong blanked out.

"Crack!" The wooden sword snapped, and the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer smashed fiercely toward his head.

"Teacher Wu!"

Seeing the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer about to smash Wu Zhangkong's head apart, Tang Wulin could not help shouting.

Perhaps it was the sense of danger between life and death, or perhaps Tang Wulin's shout woke him. When the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer neared his face, Wu Zhangkong finally came to his senses.

When he saw the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer, just a fraction away from touching his face, he finally erupted!

Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black! Six Soul Rings appeared around Wu Zhangkong. As his Soul Power exploded forth, the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer's momentum came to an abrupt halt. A longsword had appeared in his hand at some point, and Wu Zhangkong knocked the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer away with it.

The seemingly modest Forging Hammer hit the ground with a tremendous boom, startling Xie Xie and Gu Yue, who had been about to come over and provide support.

They were astonished not only that Tang Wulin had actually forced Teacher Wu back and even broken his wooden sword, but also that Teacher Wu was a six-ringed Soul Emperor!

"Stop! You won this match." Wu Zhangkong raised a hand, stopping Gu Yue and Xie Xie, who were about to continue attacking. The moment he had used his Martial Soul, he had already lost.

To be honest, Wu Zhangkong was breaking out in a cold sweat as well. After being hit by Nan Fusheng's Soul Skill at the start, he had kept his spiritual power on high alert.

In his view, with the spiritual power of a six-ringed Soul Emperor, even if Nan Fusheng's Soul Skill was somewhat strange, as long as he was prepared, a Soul Master's First Soul Skill was nothing to worry about.

Yet he had nearly capsized in a ditch. When Tang Wulin's Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer broke his wooden sword, Nan Fusheng had used his Soul Skill and successfully caused him to lose focus. When the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer neared his face, he had instinctively released his Martial Soul.

Otherwise, if that hammer had hit him, even if his head had not been smashed apart—

he would still have had to lie in the hospital for some time. In any case, his face would definitely not have been spared. Even a cold and aloof male god needed to save face. If he got sent to the hospital by these children, he did not know whether he would still have the face to come back and teach them.

"Oh, we won! We beat Teacher Wu!"

Xie Xie excitedly shouted at the side. The three of them wore smiles as well. Teacher Wu was a six-ringed Soul Emperor, after all! They might have won through some clever tricks, but a win was still a win.

Watching Xie Xie shout and make a fuss, Wu Zhangkong quietly added him to his little black book. He would definitely make Xie Xie work hard in the future.

He had contributed throughout the match, but not much. At the end, when Wu Zhangkong attacked Tang Wulin, he had even held Gu Yue back and prevented her from providing support. Yet after winning, he was shouting here as if he feared others would not know he had won.

Xie Xie still had no idea that Wu Zhangkong had added him to his little black book. He merely instinctively felt a chill.

"Nan Fusheng, use your Soul Skill on me again," Wu Zhangkong said to Nan Fusheng.

"Alright." Nan Fusheng did not waste any words and directly used Steal on Wu Zhangkong.

As the glow symbolizing a Ten-Year Soul Ring flickered, Wu Zhangkong held his breath and focused, staring intently at Nan Fusheng. A wave of dazedness followed once more.

"Nan Fusheng, would you mind explaining your Soul Skill?" Wu Zhangkong asked him directly. Asking about a Soul Master's Soul Skills was a major taboo.

Unless they were close companions, people generally would not ask. That was why Wu Zhangkong sought Nan Fusheng's permission.

"Mm, Teacher Wu. My First Soul Skill, Time Deprivation, can deprive others of their consciousness for a period of time. It depends on the strength and spiritual power of both sides.

"The stronger the opponent, the shorter the time I can control them. As for the range, as long as they are within my line of sight or locked onto by my spiritual power, I can use it." Nan Fusheng spoke with half-truths and half-lies.

"A Soul Skill that can deprive others of consciousness? A Soul Skill that lets a Soul Master restrain a Soul Emperor like me for a brief period... It seems his Martial Soul may be even more powerful than I thought. Worm of Time? Time?"

Just as Wu Zhangkong was pondering in secret, he saw the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer that had broken his wooden sword.

"There's something strange about your hammer."

Wu Zhangkong came back to his senses and looked at Tang Wulin, who was retrieving his hammer. Nan Fusheng's Soul Skill had indeed restrained him earlier, but Tang Wulin's hammer was what had delivered the decisive blow.

Tang Wulin said, "It's a Heavy Silver Hammer. It's somewhat heavier than an ordinary Forging Hammer."

"How heavy is it? Let me see." Xie Xie was extremely interested in the hammer that had smashed Teacher Wu's wooden sword. He ran over quickly and grabbed the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer in Tang Wulin's hand.

"Bang!" The instant the Heavy Silver Hammer left Tang Wulin's hand, it dropped straight to the ground. Its enormous inertia sent Xie Xie tumbling face-first onto the ground.

"Ow!" Xie Xie cried out in pain. "Y-you, what is this thing? Why is it so heavy?"

Wu Zhangkong walked over and picked up the Thousand-Refined Silver Hammer, unable to help being moved. No wonder his wooden sword had been smashed apart. The weight of this hammer...

"One hammer weighs roughly one hundred and fifty kilograms."

Wu Zhangkong said, "Three waves of force came from it just now. Was that your control, or something else?"

Tang Wulin hesitated before saying, "It's an ability of the hammer itself. After metal undergoes Thousand Forging, it can develop certain unpredictable special effects. My Heavy Silver Hammers have one too. It's called Stacking Hammer."

Though Wu Zhangkong did not understand Forging, he could tell how valuable this pair of Thousand-Refined Silver Hammers was. He nodded slightly. "You're very talented in Forging? I looked into it. Mu Xi, who challenged you to a Forging match today, is the daughter of the president of the Eastsea City Blacksmith's Association."

"Mm, I'm a Blacksmith." Remembering the treatment he had received at the Blacksmith's Association, Tang Wulin immediately felt much better.

A thoughtful look appeared in Wu Zhangkong's eyes. He raised a hand toward Tang Wulin. "Come, hold my hand."

"Pull me with all your strength. Let me feel exactly how strong you are," Wu Zhangkong said.

"Alright." Tang Wulin answered, took a deep breath, and exerted strength with both arms, pulling hard backward.

This time, Wu Zhangkong was prepared. He stood there like a nail driven into the ground, completely unmoving.

As Tang Wulin went all out, his little face gradually turned red. Wu Zhangkong himself did not move, but the faint fluctuations of Soul Power around him showed that he was not as relaxed as he appeared. At the very least, he needed Soul Power to keep Tang Wulin from pulling him.

"Alright," Wu Zhangkong called after a moment.

Only then did Tang Wulin withdraw his strength.

A strange expression flashed across Wu Zhangkong's cold face. He patted Tang Wulin on the shoulder. "All four of you will compete together in the Class Promotion Tournament. Since your strength can reach this level, our tactics will become interesting."