The Exam

"No good!"

Feng Xinglie's eyelid twitched. The moment the Great Strength Vajra Bear appeared, the Magikarp beneath his palm seemed to transform into Rayquaza. Even with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's support, even with Aikido as a potent counter to brute-force opponents, and even as Soul Power churned wildly inside him, he still couldn't hold Zhao Wuji down.

"Help me already!"

His roar jolted the Protagonist Group out of their stunned daze. At last, they recovered from the shock of Feng Xinglie suppressing Zhao Wuji all by himself and rushed toward Zhao Wuji.

Unfortunately, they were still too late.

"Second Soul Skill: Great Strength Vajra Palm!"

Golden light blazed around Zhao Wuji's right hand. His palm swept toward Feng Xinglie, carrying a torrent of Soul Power. But from the moment Zhao Wuji began channeling Soul Power, Feng Xinglie had already been bracing his arms. Now, with the attack almost upon him, he thrust off with both feet and unleashed Collapsing Ape Giant Arm, blasting backward like an arrow loosed from its bow. The ground where he'd just stood was left riddled with cracks.

"Holy hell, he opened with a second Soul Skill at zero frames. Is this old Zhao trying to kill me...?"

A bead of cold sweat slid down Feng Xinglie's brow. If that palm had landed squarely, he'd have been bedridden for months, if he'd survived at all. It left him baffled, too. Zhao Wuji had been pretty restrained in the original story. Why was he going so hard on him?

"Hmph, quick reflexes. You even dodged that. Whatever other tricks you've got, use them all!"

Zhao Wuji sprang to his feet and beckoned Feng Xinglie with a finger.

"First Soul Skill: Blue Silver Entanglement!"

"First Soul Skill: Waist Bow!"

Before Feng Xinglie could move, Tang San and Xiao Wu had already launched a joint attack. Layer after layer of Blue Silver Grass wrapped around Zhao Wuji. One strand also coiled around Xiao Wu and swung her straight into him like a meteor hammer. Unfortunately, Zhao Wuji had already summoned his Martial Soul. Xiao Wu kicked him hard in the chest, but he didn't even take half a step back. Seeing her attack fail, she hooked both legs around Zhao Wuji's neck, her supple waist tensing to its limit as she tried to lift him.

"Heh, that's all the strength you've got? You've got a long way to go, little girl."

Zhao Wuji didn't move at all. He simply stood there, utterly unaffected by Tang San and Xiao Wu's efforts.

"Second Soul Skill: Hell Hundred Claws!"

Suddenly, Zhu Zhuqing appeared behind Zhao Wuji without a sound. Her claws lashed out, landing hundreds of afterimage strikes on the back of his neck. But the metallic clanging made it clear that her attack had failed, too.

"Heh, I forgot there was a little cat here..."

Zhao Wuji turned around with a smile, looking at Zhu Zhuqing as she tried to scratch him. The moment his attention shifted, Feng Xinglie seized his chance and sprang into action:

"Second Soul Skill: Falling Leaf Crazy Foot.

First Soul Skill: Collapsing Ape Giant Arm.

Rigid Body Technique!"

In the middle of chaining his Soul Skills, he first leaped with his enhanced legs. Then, in midair, he drove his enormous fists into Zhao Wuji with Rigid Body Technique, targeting one of the body's weak points: the ribs. Caught off guard, Zhao Wuji staggered under the heavy punch from the side, taking a small step backward.

"Now!"

The instant Zhao Wuji lifted one foot, Feng Xinglie, Tang San, and Xiao Wu struck together. Feng Xinglie used Aiki to control his body and kicked hard at Zhao Wuji's supporting leg. Tang San used the Tang Sect Secret Arts: Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon, while activating his second Soul Skill, Parasitic Spores, and commanding every spore to burst. Countless strands of Blue Silver Grass wrapped around Zhao Wuji and hauled him upward. With everyone working together, Xiao Wu's Waist Bow finally flung Zhao Wuji into the air.

"You think you can pull that off twice? First Soul Skill: Immovable Wisdom King Body!"

Having learned his lesson, Zhao Wuji activated his first Soul Skill as soon as he was airborne again, before anyone could make a move. A wave of earth-yellow energy surged in every direction, shattering all of Tang San's Blue Silver Grass and blasting Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing several meters away.

"Xiao Wu!"

Tang San naturally rushed toward Xiao Wu. With Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, he caught her after only a few quick shifts. Dai Mubai also planned to take advantage of the moment and score points by catching the injured Zhu Zhuqing. But before he could move, Feng Xinglie caught her first and carried her out of Zhao Wuji's attack range.

"Damn that bastard!"

Watching his chance to win favor slip away, Dai Mubai glared at Feng Xinglie, his eyes bloodshot. He prayed Zhao Wuji would hit harder next time and avenge him.

"You're not fully healed yet. Don't push yourself."

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing's pale face, Feng Xinglie quickly placed a hand on her back and sent Soul Power into her to calm her churning blood. Then, ignoring her protests, he guided her into Ning Rongrong's arms.

"Sorry for the trouble. Could you look after her?"

Surprised by Feng Xinglie's gentlemanly gesture, Ning Rongrong blinked her wide eyes and nodded. Meanwhile, Tang San had settled Xiao Wu down, too. He looked up and shouted:

"Teacher Zhao, that round doesn't count. Let's try again. You and I, one-on-one!"

"Don't be ridiculous!"

Feng Xinglie's voice rang out even louder the instant Tang San finished speaking:

"Tang San, I know Xiao Wu's injury is hard for you to accept, but the incense has already burned halfway down. We got to this point through everyone's efforts. Don't forget, we're a team. You can't just let your whims run wild!"

His words changed the way the students looked at Tang San. Exactly. They'd struggled to hold out this long, and now he wanted to start over with a single sentence? Was he joking?

Realizing he'd become the target of everyone's disapproval, Tang San gritted his teeth and glared at Feng Xinglie. Then he hugged Xiao Wu close and made no move to help, seemingly planning to use Zhao Wuji to teach Feng Xinglie a lesson for daring to defy him.

"Alone? Fine. I can hold out for this little while."

After looking around and confirming that no one else would come to help, Feng Xinglie stood alone before Zhao Wuji.

"Only a quarter of the incense left..."

He glanced to the side, made up his mind, and charged again.

"Kid, it gets boring if you keep using the same moves over and over."

Zhao Wuji chuckled at the sight and swung a punch. But Feng Xinglie charged forward instead of retreating, ducking to the side and striking at the Immovable Wisdom King's towering frame, which stood over two and a half meters tall. His fists rained down, striking Zhao Wuji's chest, throat, and abdomen in succession. Feeling that the damage was practically zero, Zhao Wuji laughed.

"Heh, I'm a Soul Sage, kid! If you like throwing punches so much, I'll play along."

Zhao Wuji swung his enormous fists in retaliation, but after a few exchanges, he realized something was wrong. A punch needed room to swing to do any real damage. Feng Xinglie was fighting at close range, darting around with his smaller frame and landing every punch with a full-body swing. Zhao Wuji, on the other hand, was huge, with a long reach. In a real fight, all he had to do was control the distance to hold a massive advantage. But with his opponent right up against him, he couldn't get his fists moving. It wasn't just his strength that was restricted—his speed and even the angles of his punches were severely limited. And his pride as a Soul Sage made it impossible for him to back away and create distance during an entrance exam, even though one step back would let him end the fight with ease.

"This isn't working. I can't hurt him at all."

Feng Xinglie flexed his numb fist, hesitating. If he couldn't win on stats, he'd have to win with mechanics.