The Immovable Wisdom King

"If that's the case, then let's decide by vote. The minority will obey the majority, and whatever the outcome, we'll all follow the majority's decision."

With that, Feng Xinglie took a step back and stood beside Zhu Zhuqing. Xiao Wu also grabbed Tang San's arm, leaving him no room to choose. That left everyone looking at Ning Rongrong. She lightly smoothed the hair at her forehead and smiled.

"I'm in favor of fighting, too. Xiao Wu's right. We're students of Monster Academy. How could we choose to run away?"

Great. I'd forgotten she was another one who loved watching the fireworks...

Seeing Ning Rongrong's Little Demoness side come out, Feng Xinglie helplessly covered his eyes.

"Humph. You said it yourself: the minority obeys the majority! You're not going to go back on your word, are you?"

"Of course not. Since we've decided, we'll fight according to Tang San's plan. I'll charge in first and take some of the pressure off you. Everyone else should focus on holding him back. Apart from Xiao Wu and me, who are both Power Attack System fighters, try not to confront Zhao Wuji head-on."

Xiao Wu had expected Feng Xinglie to play along with her teasing, so his serious response left her thoroughly disappointed. She turned her head away with a huff.

"Well? Have you finished discussing it? Then let's begin."

Seeing that everyone had more or less finished their discussion, Zhao Wuji rose slowly to his feet. He stamped out the incense stick that had nearly burned down, took out a second one, lit it, and stuck it into the ground. Then he strode toward them.

"Seven Treasures Manifest Glazed Tile!"

The moment Zhao Wuji moved, Ning Rongrong immediately summoned the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. Two Soul Rings lit up in succession, and everyone felt their strength and speed increase considerably.

"Just what you'd expect from the world's number-one support-type Martial Soul."

While marveling at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's power, Feng Xinglie, who knew full well that support players were durable while carries came and went, had already begun plotting how to deal with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Zhao Wuji, however, wasn't about to let him think for long. He raised both arms high, then smashed them down into the ground. The earth shuddered violently, and ocher waves spread toward them.

"Not good! Get out of the way!"

Tang San shouted as soon as he saw it, summoning Blue Silver Grass to pull Ning Rongrong, who had no combat ability, out of the fight. But someone was faster. Feng Xinglie rushed in front of everyone at once, raised his right arm, bent his leg, and thrust his elbow forward like a spear, smashing into the shock wave. A deafening crash rang out. The ocher energy wave was torn open by sheer force, its path just clearing his teammates behind him as it thundered off to either side.

"Hiss... No wonder he's the Immovable Wisdom King. Even his probing attack is this powerful."

Feng Xinglie shook out his numb arm, now with a rough idea of Zhao Wuji's strength. Even a casual attack could overpower him while he was using the Rigid Body Technique.

As its name suggested, the Rigid Body Technique was a method for strengthening the body. Put simply, it locked the body's muscles and joints in place. That way, when attacking or defending, the opponent wasn't facing a person made up of different organs and limbs, but a "whole," like a metal statue.

"Feng Xinglie, are you okay?"

Zhu Zhuqing asked worriedly when she saw him take Zhao Wuji's attack head-on. Feng Xinglie only waved a hand, then charged toward Zhao Wuji ahead of the others.

"Wasn't he against fighting just a moment ago? Why's he fighting even harder than I am now?"

The series of sudden events that had unfolded over just a few seconds left Xiao Wu dumbfounded. Only now did she begin to understand what Feng Xinglie had meant by, "Whatever the outcome, we'll all follow the majority's decision."

"Oh? Instead of running away, you're coming right at me?"

Seeing Feng Xinglie charge, Zhao Wuji grew interested too. He strode forward and reached out to grab him, but Feng Xinglie suddenly flopped to the ground and dodged. Then he rolled forward, and as Zhao Wuji stepped forward, with one foot briefly off the ground, Feng Xinglie slammed into his other, supporting leg.

The forward momentum and the sudden sensation of falling struck Zhao Wuji at once. Even he had never seen anyone drop to the ground in the middle of a fight like that. Instinctively, he tried to take a few quick steps to steady himself, but Feng Xinglie had already scrambled up behind him. He grabbed Zhao Wuji's raised calf and heaved it upward. His unsteady body spun through the air in a great arc, and his head swung around close to the ground until his gaze met Feng Xinglie's. His whole body was left "lying" horizontally in midair, watching helplessly as Feng Xinglie pressed both hands against his face.

Zhao Wuji, I have to thank you for underestimating me...

This is the only chance I have to suppress you, even if just for a moment.

Our strength is separated by three full major realms?

Don't say something so stupid...

That's only true if you assume you're actually trying to fight.

When you, without summoning your Martial Soul or even using Soul Power, are left suspended in midair...

Three little realms? What do they matter!

"First Soul Skill: Collapsing Ape Giant Arm!!!"

Feng Xinglie's arms swelled in an instant, and Zhao Wuji's head was driven deep into the ground.

"Oh? The Little Monster has plenty of tricks."

Even with his entire head pressed into the ground by Feng Xinglie's huge hands, Zhao Wuji remained completely calm. He was even intrigued by this fighting style he had never seen before.

"Throwing yourself down and using your body as a tripwire? That's the first time I've seen anyone fight like that. Well, then, let's have some fun... Hmm?"

Just as Zhao Wuji eagerly prepared to get back up, he finally noticed something was wrong. A faint numbness spread through his body, and then it felt as if a small mountain had landed on him, leaving him unable to move.

"No, it's the weight. An endless stream of weight is passing through those hands! Is this a Soul Skill of the same type as my Gravity Crush?"

After struggling a few times, he realized he couldn't even stand up under the pressure. Worse, the weight kept pouring into him, growing heavier with every passing moment.

Aiki, in the Baki World, was a technique that only geniuses could use to overcome superior strength. It targeted the body's natural reflexes, like the knee-jerk response. Its greatest feature was using physical contact to press an endless weight onto the opponent. The greatest master of this art had once thrown a sumo wrestler over two meters tall and six times his weight, despite having the small, elderly body of a child.

But... the difference between a Soul Ancestor and a Soul Sage was surely more than six times.

"Damn it! Martial Soul Possession!!!"

Zhao Wuji was furious.

The Immovable Wisdom King was renowned for his overwhelming offense and defense. Even in Shrek, a Monster Academy, he was second only to the headmaster. Yet a new student taking the entrance exam had pinned him down so completely that he couldn't move!? Humiliated and enraged, he set his Soul Power surging. His Martial Soul, the Great Strength Vajra Bear, appeared in an instant, and the muscles all over Zhao Wuji's body began to swell until he looked a full size larger.