One Strike Shattered Hu Liena's Defense

A razor-sharp vortex spun wildly at Su Chen's fingertips.

The air shrieked as it was sliced apart.

Hu Liena stared at the finger so close to her.

Her mind went blank.

The shadow of death instantly enveloped her.

She had no doubt.

The moment that finger struck,

her skull would be pierced as easily as thin paper.

She closed her eyes.

Her body trembled uncontrollably with sheer terror.

It was the first time in ten years that she had truly faced death.

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan sprang to his feet in the stands.

The nine Soul Rings around him appeared in an instant.

He was ready to force his way in and save Hu Liena.

Bibi Dong sat on the Pope Throne.

She raised her right hand.

A barrier formed from purple Soul Power.

It appeared directly in front of Chrysanthemum Douluo.

"Your Holiness, Nana is in danger."

Chrysanthemum Douluo spoke urgently.

Bibi Dong didn't look at him.

Her gaze remained fixed on Su Chen in the arena.

"Just watch. He knows what he's doing."

Just as Chrysanthemum Douluo was about to force his way through the barrier,

Su Chen moved.

The immense Bloodline Power gathered at his fingertips suddenly surged forward.

But it didn't strike Hu Liena between the brows.

Instead, it skimmed past her ear.

The vortex became a visible white streak in the air.

It slammed into the Adamantite Rock floor behind Hu Liena.

Boom!

A deafening blast erupted across the Martial Arts Arena.

Rubble shot skyward.

Dust billowed everywhere.

Hu Liena felt a powerful gust of wind scrape across her cheek.

A few strands of her short golden hair were cut off by the wind.

They drifted slowly to the ground.

She waited for a long moment.

The pain she had expected never came.

She opened her eyes, trembling.

Su Chen had already lowered his right hand.

He looked down at her from above.

There wasn't a trace of murderous intent in his eyes.

Only utter indifference.

Hu Liena stiffly turned her head.

She looked behind herself.

There, in the incredibly hard Adamantite Arena,

was a bottomless hole half a meter across.

The rocks around its edge were charred black, as if scorched by intense friction.

This was pure physical destructive power.

He hadn't used even a trace of Soul Power.

Hu Liena's heart clenched violently.

She knew she had lost completely.

She had been utterly crushed.

Her opponent had overwhelmed her in strength.

Surpassed her in speed.

And even his mental strength far outstripped hers.

In every field she had been most proud of,

Su Chen had utterly outclassed her.

"You lost."

Su Chen's voice was calm.

Hu Liena knelt on one knee.

Her arms hung limply at her sides.

She lowered her proud head.

"I lost."

Her voice was dry and hoarse.

It brimmed with defeat.

Su Chen paid Hu Liena no further attention.

He turned around.

He faced the more than one thousand Martial Soul Academy students in the stands.

Not a soul spoke in the arena.

Only the wind stirred against the railings of the stands.

Every student lowered their head.

They didn't even dare meet Su Chen's gaze.

Even Hu Liena, the strongest in their hearts, had been defeated in a single move.

They weren't even worthy of going up as cannon fodder.

Su Chen's strength had been branded deep in their hearts.

He had become an insurmountable mountain.

Su Chen raised his head.

His gaze shifted to the highest viewing platform.

He looked directly at Second Worship Golden Crocodile Douluo.

"Second Worship, have I won this match?"

Su Chen asked.

Golden Crocodile Douluo looked down at the young man.

He had lived for nearly a hundred years.

He had seen countless geniuses.

But someone as monstrous as Su Chen—

he had never seen the like in his life.

Golden Crocodile Douluo slowly rose to his feet.

He clasped his hands behind his back.

His deep voice carried across the arena.

"You won."

"Using only the strength of your body, you defeated more than ten elites who had obtained Soul Rings."

"You even overpowered a twenty-first-level control-type Soul Grandmaster head-on."

"There has never been a record like this in Spirit Hall's history."

Golden Crocodile Douluo's gaze swept across all the elders present.

"From this day forward, the Worship Hall officially recognizes Su Chen as the Holy Son. To see him is to see the Pope. No one may object."

Demon Bear Douluo also stood up.

He voiced his agreement.

"The Elder Hall agrees. His Highness the Holy Son has peerless talent. I, Demon Bear, am thoroughly convinced."

Snake Lance Douluo and Porcupinefish Douluo both nodded in agreement.

And so,

the greatest opposition within Spirit Hall had been completely silenced.

Su Chen had used his overwhelming strength

to shut everyone up.

Bibi Dong rose to her feet.

She walked to the edge of the viewing platform.

Her gaze swept over the students and instructors below.

"Send the healing-type Soul Masters up to treat the injured students."

Bibi Dong gave the order.

More than ten healing-type Soul Masters dressed in white hurried into the Martial Arts Arena through the entrance.

They quickly rushed up onto the platform.

They began examining Lei Tian, Wang Hu, and the others.

Two high-ranking healing-type Soul Masters went to Hu Liena's side.

They released gentle light-type Soul Power.

They began setting Hu Liena's broken arm bones.

Hu Liena endured the pain.

She didn't make a sound.

Her gaze followed Su Chen's retreating figure the entire time.

Bibi Dong looked at Su Chen.

"Su Chen, come back to the Pope Palace with me."

Su Chen nodded slightly.

He stepped down from the platform.

The students around him instinctively made way, opening up a broad path.

Everyone lowered their heads.

They watched him leave with reverence.

Su Chen reached the entrance.

The Temple Knight holding the Pope Token immediately offered it to him with both hands.

His manner was countless times more respectful than before.

Su Chen took the Pope Token.

He hung it back at his waist.

Bibi Dong led the elders of the Pope Palace down from the high platform.

The group left the Central Martial Arena in a grand procession.

After returning to the Pope Palace,

Bibi Dong dismissed the others.

She left Su Chen alone in the Main Hall.

"You did very well today."

Bibi Dong sat on the Pope Throne.

Her eyes were full of admiration.

"You didn't use your Twin Martial Souls. That left the Worship Hall wondering about you. They can't figure out the true nature of your Martial Soul, so they won't dare challenge you lightly in the future."

Su Chen stood beneath the steps.

"You flatter me, Teacher. There was no need to use my Martial Soul against them."

Bibi Dong nodded slightly.

"Your physical strength far exceeded my expectations. What heavenly treasures have you eaten? Or have you cultivated some special body-tempering technique?"

Su Chen remained unruffled.

"On the day my Martial Soul awakened, an energy appeared inside me. It has been strengthening my bones and meridians ever since. I don't know exactly what happened. Perhaps it's an innate secondary effect of a divine-level Martial Soul."

He blamed it all on his divine-level Martial Soul.

After all, no one on the Douluo Continent had ever awakened a Martial Soul of that level.

There was no way anyone could prove him wrong.

Bibi Dong didn't press him further.

Everyone had their own secrets.

As long as Su Chen belonged to the Pope Palace,

the stronger he became,

the more secure the Pope Palace's position would be.

"The Elder Hall has already yielded. Your position as Holy Son is now completely secure."

Bibi Dong changed the subject.

"In three days, the Spirit Hall will hold a grand investiture ceremony for you."

"At that time, all the high-level Soul Master Academies on the continent, the royal families of the two great empires, and representatives of the Lower Four Sects will come to witness it."

"Once the ceremony is over, your first priority will be obtaining your First Soul Ring."

At the mention of obtaining a Soul Ring,

Bibi Dong's expression turned serious.

"You possess level-twenty Innate Full Soul Power. That is an enormous advantage, but it also means you'll need to obtain two Soul Rings in succession."

"As for your First Soul Ring, I've already selected a target for you."

Bibi Dong took out a dossier.

She set it on the table.

"In the Royal Soul Hunting Forest outside Spirit City, a four-hundred-year-old Light Unicorn is being kept in captivity."

"Its attribute is pure light, making it an extremely good match for your Judgment Holy Sword."

"Four hundred years is right at the limit a Soul Master can withstand for their First Soul Ring."

"Absorb it, and your First Soul Skill is certain to be a top-grade light attack skill."

Su Chen listened quietly to Bibi Dong's arrangements.

He didn't object at all.

Only after Bibi Dong had finished speaking

did he slowly raise his head.

"Teacher, I don't want to absorb this Light Unicorn."

Bibi Dong's brow furrowed slightly.

"Why? Four hundred years is already the limit for a First Soul Ring. Do you think its age is too low?"

Su Chen looked at Bibi Dong.

"Yes. It's too low."

Bibi Dong's expression darkened.

"Su Chen, don't reach beyond your grasp. Soul Masters must follow the rules when absorbing Soul Rings. The moment you exceed your body's limits, the violent energy contained in the Soul Ring will burst your meridians."

"Of the Ten Core Competencies proposed by Yu Xiaogang, the very first concerns the calculation of a Soul Ring's maximum age. Four hundred and twenty-three years—that's an ironclad rule, established through countless Soul Masters paying with their lives."

At the mention of Yu Xiaogang's name,

a trace of mockery flashed in Su Chen's eyes.

"Teacher, Yu Xiaogang is nothing but a failure who couldn't even break through level thirty. His theories only apply to ordinary people with no talent at all."

Su Chen's words were fiercely scathing.

Bibi Dong was stunned.

She hadn't expected Su Chen to dare judge Yu Xiaogang like that.

At this point in time,

Yu Xiaogang may have had a bad reputation,

but within Spirit Hall,

because Bibi Dong secretly protected him,

few people dared call him a failure to his face.

"How dare you!"

Bibi Dong slammed a hand against the armrest.

"His theories have been verified against a vast trove of Spirit Hall records. What would a child who's only just awakened his Martial Soul know?"

Su Chen didn't back down at all.

"Teacher, records can lie. Every Soul Master in the samples he used to verify those records had an ordinary Martial Soul."

"Have you ever seen anyone with a god-level Martial Soul put his theories to the test?"

Su Chen took a step forward.

"You just saw my physical strength on the Martial Arts Arena. Two thousand jin of pure power. Even an average level-thirty Battle Soul Elder couldn't match it."

"Do you really think a body as strong as mine couldn't withstand a mere four-hundred-year Soul Ring?"

Bibi Dong fell silent.

She remembered Su Chen's unstoppable display on the Martial Arts Arena.

It was true.

That monstrous physique

couldn't be judged by ordinary standards.

"Even if your body can withstand it, what about the mental impact?"

Bibi Dong countered.

"The older the Soul Beast, the stronger the resentment of its soul after death. The mental shock from a Soul Beast over a thousand years old is enough to turn a level-ten Soul Master into an idiot."

Su Chen smiled faintly.

His eyes instantly turned black and white.

Vast, tangible spiritual power surged out of him,

whipping up an invisible storm inside the hall.

"Teacher, you've forgotten. My spiritual power has already taken tangible form."

"Forget the resentment of a thousand-year-old Soul Beast—even the mental shock of a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast couldn't harm me in the slightest."

Bibi Dong felt the spiritual storm rush over her.

She was utterly at a loss for words.

Su Chen was right.

His body was monstrous,

and his spiritual power far surpassed the bounds of an ordinary Soul Master.

Yu Xiaogang's theories

simply didn't apply to Su Chen.

Just then,

a crisp mechanical voice rang out in Su Chen's mind.

"Ding. The host is about to reach a critical point: obtaining his First Soul Ring."

"God-Level Choice System activated."

"Option One: Follow Bibi Dong's arrangements and absorb a four-hundred-year-old Light Unicorn. Reward: Soul Power increased by one level; one thousand Gold Soul Coins."

"Option Two: Slightly exceed the limit and absorb an eight-hundred-year-old high-grade Soul Beast. Reward: one random low-grade Profound Rank Torso Soul Bone; one low-grade Profound Rank lightness skill."

"Option Three: Shatter the limit theory completely and absorb a Soul Beast over a thousand years old as your First Soul Ring. Reward: dark-attribute affinity increased to one hundred percent; First Soul Skill automatically evolves into a growth-type god-level skill."

Su Chen quickly scanned the three options on the screen.

He had already made up his mind.

The rewards for options one and two were as useful to him as chicken ribs.

Only option three

was a true god-level start.

A growth-type god-level skill.

That meant his First Soul Skill would keep growing stronger as his Soul Power increased.

It would never become obsolete.

"System, I choose option three."

Su Chen issued the command in his mind.

"Option confirmed. The reward will be issued once the host successfully absorbs a thousand-year Soul Ring."

The system screen faded away.

Su Chen raised his head.

He looked resolutely at Bibi Dong, seated on the Pope Throne.

"A four-hundred-year Soul Ring would be a waste of my talent."

Su Chen's voice echoed through the empty hall.

"The First Soul Ring I want must be at least a thousand years old."

Bibi Dong looked at the sharp-eyed boy before her.

She knew she couldn't persuade him.

Su Chen was too much like her.

Once he made up his mind,

he would never change it.

"A thousand years."

Bibi Dong took a deep breath.

"Do you know what will happen if you fail to absorb a Soul Ring beyond your limit?"

"Destroyed meridians. My body will explode."

Su Chen answered calmly.

"But I won't fail."

He had a perfect body transformed by the Marrow Cleansing Pill.

He had a million-year spiritual power that had taken tangible form.

If he still couldn't absorb a thousand-year Soul Ring,

he might as well go find a piece of tofu and smash his head against it.

Bibi Dong stared at Su Chen for a long time.

In the end, she gave in.

"Fine. Since you're so determined, I'll grant your wish."

Bibi Dong rose to her feet.

"After the investiture ceremony, I'll have Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo personally accompany you to the Star Dou Great Forest."

"Whatever Soul Beast you take a fancy to, they'll help you capture it."

"But—"

Bibi Dong's tone turned stern.

"If anything goes wrong while you're absorbing the Soul Ring, they'll forcibly interrupt the process. Even if they have to destroy your Martial Soul, they must keep you alive."

"Thank you, Teacher."

Su Chen bowed slightly.

He knew this was the greatest concession Bibi Dong could make.

"Go back to Cloud Condensing Pavilion and rest. Use these three days to get yourself ready for the investiture ceremony."

Bibi Dong waved a hand.

Su Chen bowed and took his leave.

He turned and walked out of the Main Hall.

The heavy doors slowly closed behind him.

Bibi Dong returned to the Pope Throne.

She looked at the empty hall,

thinking back to Su Chen's assessment of Yu Xiaogang's theories.

"Records can lie..."

Bibi Dong murmured softly.

Her expression grew complicated.

For years,

she had believed Yu Xiaogang's theories without question.

She had even treated them as the truth.

But today,

this six-year-old boy had ripped the veil away without mercy.

Could it be

that Xiaogang's theories really were wrong?

Bibi Dong shook her head,

tossing those distracting thoughts aside.

What she needed to consider now

was how, at the investiture ceremony three days from now,

to raise Su Chen's prestige to its peak.

Su Chen followed the corridor back to Cloud Condensing Pavilion.

When the guards outside saw him return,

they straightened their backs one after another,

their eyes fixed straight ahead.

Su Chen pushed open the door.

He walked into the room.

He sat back down on the bed.

There were three days left before he obtained his First Soul Ring.

He had to fully consolidate the Chaos God-Demon Art.

He closed his eyes.

Once again, he entered a state of Deep Meditation.

The black-and-white vortex in his dantian spun faster.

Pure Soul Power surged ceaselessly through his broad meridians.

It made its final preparations for the upcoming absorption of a soul ring beyond his level.