Xiao Xiao was actually amused by that.
She straightened up, planted her broom on the ground, and looked at Ning Rongrong with a trace of pity in her eyes.
"Miss Ning, have you gotten something wrong?"
"This is Blue Silver Academy, not the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
"No one here indulges your spoiled young-lady temper!"
"You!"
Ning Rongrong's pretty face flushed red with anger. When had she ever been spoken to so disrespectfully?
"Good! Very good!"
She laughed in anger. "Looks like spending a few days in this dump has made you forget what you are! You have only half a level of innate Soul Power, and you still dare to mouth off to me?"
"If you've got the guts, then fight me!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a powerful surge of Soul Power erupted from Ning Rongrong!
"Seven Treasures turn, reveal the Glazed Tile!"
Amid dazzling radiance, a resplendent seven-colored pagoda appeared above her palm!
Brilliant seven-colored light shot into the sky, illuminating the exquisite pagoda in Ning Rongrong's palm and making it seem sacred and extraordinary.
Two Hundred-Year Soul Rings pulsed up and down, their yellow halos flowing as they released the pressure of a twenty-seventh-level Soul Power.
Ning Rongrong stood tall. Beneath her pink dress, her slender figure was alluring, and a pair of long, straight legs appeared and disappeared beneath the hem.
At that moment, she exuded the absolute confidence of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's direct-line young lady.
"A Soul Master with a Trash Martial Soul might have gotten lucky, but how strong could she possibly be?"
A cold smile played at the corner of her mouth.
Although she was an auxiliary-type Soul Master with no direct offensive abilities, the difference in Soul Power Level was an insurmountable chasm!
A level twenty-seven Soul Master against someone at half a level—she could crush her opponent to death with Soul Power alone!
She could handle someone like this with ease!
Yet Xiao Xiao's reaction to her provocation was completely unexpected.
There was no fear, no anger, not even the slightest hint of nervousness.
Xiao Xiao merely glanced at her calmly, with the look one might give a child throwing a tantrum.
"I don't want to bully you."
After saying that, Xiao Xiao really did put away her broom and turn to leave.
Ignored!
Completely and utterly ignored!
That embarrassed Ning Rongrong more than any insult could have!
"Stop!"
Mortified and furious, Ning Rongrong shouted, "I said stop! Don't think you can get away with this by putting on an act! Today, I'll make you understand that trash will always be trash!"
As she berated Xiao Xiao, her right wrist gave a discreet flick.
A nearly imperceptible flash of cold light shot from her sleeve, aimed straight at Xiao Xiao's back!
It was a Hidden Weapon Tang San had given her for protection before she left. Coated in a paralyzing poison, it was as swift as lightning!
Just as the flash of cold light was about to hit, Xiao Xiao acted as if she had eyes in the back of her head. She didn't even turn around.
A strange plant Martial Soul quietly appeared behind her.
It was no longer the lowly Foxtail Grass.
Instead, it was an emerald-green plant, as though carved from jade, with nine long tails swaying behind it!
The Nine-Tailed Soul Suppressing Grass!
One of its green grass tails flicked like a living creature and caught the flash of cold light with pinpoint accuracy.
With a crisp clink, the grass tail twisted the Hidden Weapon into fragments, which fell feebly to the ground.
The entire movement had been smooth and effortless.
The anger on Ning Rongrong's face froze completely.
She stared fixedly at the Nine-Tailed Soul Suppressing Grass, her mind going blank.
"Th-this... what kind of Martial Soul is that?"
She remembered perfectly well that Xiao Xiao's Martial Soul had been the most common Foxtail Grass on the continent!
Could it be...
Could those absurd rumors from the outside world actually be true?
Could Blue Silver Academy really make Martial Souls evolve?!
No!
Absolutely not!
Ning Rongrong shook her head violently, trying to cast the thought out of her mind.
Before setting out, she had heard Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang say with her own ears that Martial Soul Evolution required extremely strict conditions and might even require the aid of immortal-grade herbs. It was no easy feat for anyone to accomplish.
How could that Chen Xuan possibly possess such godlike abilities?!
Xiao Xiao must have been hiding her strength, or her Martial Soul must have always been like this!
Yes, that had to be it!
Being so thoroughly dismissed by someone she considered a "disgraced disciple" ignited all of Ning Rongrong's resentment and pride.
"Do you think blocking one probing attack makes you impressive?"
She let out a sharp cry, a vicious glint flashing in her eyes. "That was only an appetizer. Now I'll show you the true power of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda!"
"First Soul Skill, Strength Boost!"
"Second Soul Skill, Speed Boost!"
Two brilliant beams shot from the pagoda and enveloped her. Her Soul Power surged in an instant!
Seeing this, Xiao Xiao finally turned around and sighed softly.
"Since you insist on bringing humiliation upon yourself, I won't hold back."
She stopped indulging her opponent and released all the Soul Power within her!
An immense aura, far surpassing Ning Rongrong's, surged into the sky!
Yellow! Yellow! Purple!
Three Soul Rings rose from beneath Xiao Xiao's feet. The profound purple of the last ring shattered every last hope Ning Rongrong had clung to!
"Th-thirty-three levels? A Thousand-Year Soul Ring?!"
Ning Rongrong's voice trembled.
Xiao Xiao didn't answer. She let her actions speak for themselves.
"Third Soul Skill, Nine-Tail Soul Suppression!"
In an instant, the Nine-Tailed Soul Suppressing Grass behind her blazed with light, its nine tails stretching endlessly until they blotted out the sky!
An invisible, terrifying pressure that came from the depths of the soul swept toward Ning Rongrong like a landslide and a tidal wave!
This was no physical attack. It was an absolute crushing force upon the mind and soul!
In Ning Rongrong's perception, the world turned gray. The only things filling her vision were those nine grass tails, like lashes of divine punishment!
"Ah!"
Ning Rongrong let out a short cry. The Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda in her hands instantly dimmed. Her legs gave way, and she was swallowed by overwhelming fear, collapsing to the ground.
The pressure that filled the sky stopped abruptly, just an inch from her forehead.
Xiao Xiao withdrew her Martial Soul and Soul Rings. The plaza returned to calm, as if nothing had happened.
She looked down at Ning Rongrong, who had crumpled on the ground, and spoke evenly.
"I told you, I don't want to bully you. I'm no longer the castoff from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect whom anyone could bully."
Ning Rongrong gasped for breath. The shock of having narrowly escaped disaster left her drenched in fragrant sweat.
She looked up at the girl before her, both familiar and strange. The arrogance and disdain in her eyes had vanished, replaced by profound shock and confusion.
Xiao Xiao's magnanimity only made Ning Rongrong's face burn with shame.
"Wh-why? How did you do it?" she asked hoarsely.
Xiao Xiao gazed toward the depths of the academy. In her cool eyes, a light of admiration and fervent devotion suddenly blazed.
"All of this was bestowed upon me by the dean."
"Without the dean, I wouldn't be who I am today."
Her voice brimmed with sincere gratitude from the bottom of her heart.
Before you continue