Reign Over the World!

"Boom—!"

Xia Ming's fist slammed solidly into the center of the shield!

The overwhelming scene many spectators had anticipated did not occur. A rippling sheen of light merely lit up across the shield's surface, evenly dissipating most of the impact.

Amid a muffled boom, the shield, along with Luo Jiang behind it, slid back only half a step before coming to a steady stop.

A trace of surprise flashed through Xia Ming's eyes. Then, the two purple Soul Rings around him lit up once more.

"Boom! Boom! Boom—!"

Over the next dozen seconds, an incredibly striking scene unfolded on the competition stage.

Xia Ming's storm-like attacks battered the seemingly small round shield as though he were hammering iron.

Every blow carried immense force, erupting with deafening roars.

Yet Luo Jiang suffered no harm.

Light flowed across the shield's surface, neutralizing every attack one by one.

Sure enough, with Xia Ming's strength restricted to the Soul Ancestor level, even stacking two enhancement-type Soul Skills made it difficult for him to break through this shield.

A smile appeared on Luo Jiang's face behind the shield. As expected, the opponent could not penetrate his defense. As long as he held on a little longer...

Just then, another heavy punch crashed into the shield. Xia Ming used the recoil to leap back half a step, temporarily ending his wild barrage.

He breathed slightly harder, but his pupils remained fixed on the shield. Rather than becoming discouraged, he slowly grinned.

"Interesting."

Luo Jiang's heart tightened, and his gaze behind the shield grew more focused.

He sensed that his opponent's aura had not weakened after failing to break through for so long. Instead, after that brief pause, it had become even more dangerous.

Xia Ming bent forward slightly, no longer releasing his Soul Power in a violent burst. Instead, he slowly drew it inward.

He narrowed his eyes slightly and made no further move.

He was clearly preparing something.

Luo Jiang's expression darkened, and his hand around the shield tightened unconsciously.

He could clearly sense the change in his opponent's state, and an instinctive urge rose within him.

He should take the initiative and interrupt his opponent before he finished gathering momentum!

But that impulse was swiftly suppressed by his absolute confidence in his own defense.

This was the Soul Tool he was most proud of. Even a Soul Emperor would not be able to easily break through its defenses.

His opponent was merely a Soul Grandmaster. How could he possibly possess attack power at the Soul Emperor level?

Time slowly passed. The spectators began growing impatient at the strange standstill, while Luo Jiang's vigilance eased somewhat as his opponent continued to remain motionless.

Then, at that moment.

Xia Ming finally opened his eyes, and a vast, majestic aura slowly spread from his body.

Unlike before, he did not strike with sharp, overwhelming force. Instead, he casually sent out what appeared to be a light punch.

Most of the onlookers outside the arena, including the majority of the Shrek Team, wore confused expressions.

This punch seemed to carry even less force than his previous attacks?

Had Xia Ming truly exhausted his Soul Power? Was this merely a feint?

However, Luo Jiang, who faced that punch directly, felt the complete opposite!

In his vision, at the instant Xia Ming threw his punch, his figure seemed to rise infinitely, transforming into a giant that stood between heaven and earth!

A supreme pride and spiritual pressure that made even his soul tremble crashed down like the collapsing sky, firmly locking onto every part of him!

"Smack—"

A collision that was not particularly loud rang out.

Xia Ming's fist landed squarely in the center of the shield.

Just as Luo Jiang had firmly believed, the shield itself remained completely intact.

However, the shield could only block physical attacks.

A strand of spiritual power spread along the direction of the shield.

This punch could not be blocked!

That thought suddenly arose in Luo Jiang's heart, and it felt as though everything about him had been torn apart.

"Pfft—"

The light instantly vanished from Luo Jiang's eyes. His face turned as pale as paper, and he violently spat out a mouthful of blood without warning, staining the ground before him red.

The shield in his hand was clearly undamaged, yet all the vitality and spirit in his body seemed to have been drained away in an instant.

Like a puppet with its strings cut, he collapsed limply to the ground and completely lost consciousness.

Mu En, watching from the sidelines, widened his eyes slightly. A flash of undisguised amazement passed through them.

Reign Over the World!

That punch had undoubtedly been his Self-Created Soul Skill.

Before this match, Xia Ming had only grasped its rudimentary form.

Yet with the punch he had just thrown, it could already be said to have fully taken shape.

Moreover, it had begun to develop its own style, stepping beyond Mu En's original framework.

Naturally, Xia Ming had relied on his earlier buildup and his highly concentrated mental focus to throw that punch.

But since he had succeeded in using it, mastering it and unleashing it at any time during battle was merely a matter of time—and not much time at that.

"Shrek Academy wins!"

After recovering from his shock, the referee finally announced the result.

Supported by his teammates, Luo Jiang staggered off the competition stage.

Even after leaving the battle, his eyes, when they looked at Xia Ming's back, still held a bone-deep fear.

Having been defeated by Reign Over the World, he would probably never dare entertain the thought of becoming Xia Ming's enemy again.

Xia Ming also voluntarily conceded and stepped down from the competition stage.

Zhang Lexuan, who had long been prepared, brushed past him. She gave a light nod and strode onto the stage.

When Xia Ming returned to Shrek's waiting area, he was met by his teammates' complicated gazes, as though they were looking at a monster.

A two-ring Soul Grandmaster had crushed a Soul Ancestor, then gone on to defeat a clearly formidable Soul King and fifth-rank Soul Engineer!

If they had not seen such a record with their own eyes, they would never have believed it.

Mu En patted Xia Ming on the shoulder and praised him repeatedly. "Good! Very good!"

Everyone else thought he was praising the astonishing combat power Xia Ming had displayed.

Only Xia Ming and Mu En themselves knew that he was praising Xia Ming for learning Reign Over the World, an extremely difficult Self-Created Soul Skill, in such a short time.

While master and disciple exchanged this unspoken understanding, the battle onstage was already nearing its end.

Zhang Lexuan was a rank sixty-nine Soul Emperor, only one step away from becoming a Soul Saint.

Among the five remaining members of Mingdu Soul Master Academy, the strongest were only two Soul Kings.

Just moments ago, a Soul Ancestor who had attempted to launch a surprise attack with a close-combat Soul Tool had not even managed to get within ten meters of Zhang Lexuan.

She casually swept out a streak of moonlight, striking him directly. He was sent flying off the stage without even a grunt and was eliminated cleanly.

Seeing this, Xia Ming shook his head. There was no longer any need to keep watching.

Sure enough, the remaining battle turned into a one-sided sweep.

Whether they were Soul Kings or Soul Ancestors, none could last more than three moves before Zhang Lexuan.

"The match is over! Shrek Academy wins!"

When the referee finally announced the result loudly, the entire arena finally recovered from the shock Xia Ming had brought and the absolute strength Zhang Lexuan had displayed, erupting into enthusiastic applause and discussion.