Try and You'll Die

After Bibi Dong finished introducing the three, she was about to speak of Gu Qingshan, but he stepped forward first.

He took half a step forward, his voice clear and bright, showing no signs of the stage fright a six-year-old might feel before strangers.

"Greetings everyone, I am Gu Qingshan, six years old this year. My Martial Soul is the Thorn Shield, I am a level 15 Soul Master, specializing in defense and damage reflection."

Hu Liena's pupils contracted slightly. A level 15 Soul Master at six years old—what did that even mean?

Even if he possessed Innate Full Soul Power, how long had it been since his awakening?

A month?

Five levels in a month? What kind of speed was that?

Yan raised an eyebrow, but quickly suppressed it.

Level 15? So what? He was level 37, a gap of two major ranks.

To a three-ring Soul Elder like him, wasn't a one-ring Soul Grand Master just like paper?

He opened his mouth to speak, but before the words could leave his lips, Gu Qingshan added, "Because I am young, there is much I do not understand. I hope the three of you will look after me in the future."

The words were polite, but paired with his expressionless face, they sounded somewhat off.

Yan couldn't hold back anymore.

He stood up from his seat, crossed his arms over his chest, and looked down at Gu Qingshan with a hint of provocation in his tone: "I heard your defense is very strong?"

Gu Qingshan looked up at him and blinked: "It's alright."

"Why don't you let me test it?" Yan grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth.

He didn't intend to bully a child, but he truly wanted to see how much weight this "genius" who had been personally accepted as a disciple by the Pope actually carried.

A level 15 Soul Master at six years old sounded intimidating, but actual combat was a different matter.

Gu Qingshan was silent for a moment, then he smiled.

"Why don't the three of you come at me together? It will save time."

Silence.

Dead silence.

Hu Liena's expression froze, a flash of disbelief crossing her fox-like eyes.

Yan's smile solidified on his face, shifting from astonishment to an offended irritation.

Bibi Dong's hand, holding her teacup, paused slightly; her lowered eyelids hid the flash of amusement in her eyes.

Yan was the first to explode.

"What did you say?" His voice rose an octave, and the pressure of his Flame Lord Martial Soul released involuntarily, causing the temperature in the main hall to rise by several degrees. "You, a six-year-old brat, want us to come at you together?"

Xie Yue didn't speak, but he stood up.

Hu Liena also rose; she was the pride of the Martial Soul Hall Golden Generation, a genius seen once in a century.

Now, a six-year-old child asking her to "come at him together" sounded like nothing but an insult.

"Little brother, are you sure you aren't joking?" Hu Liena's voice was lower than usual, the seductive quality of her Heavenly Fox Martial Soul seeping into her words unconsciously.

Gu Qingshan didn't change his expression.

That touch of charm had no effect on him. It wasn't because his willpower was exceptionally strong—a six-year-old might be easily swayed, but the Thorn Shield was not.

"I am very sure. Teacher, what do you think?"

Gu Qingshan said, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the three before landing on Bibi Dong.

Bibi Dong set down her teacup and finally raised her eyelids.

She looked at the three eager teenagers, then at the little disciple before her who was impossibly mature for his six years, and pondered for a moment.

"This... shall we just forget it?"

Bibi Dong's tone held a rare hint of hesitation, not because she was worried about Gu Qingshan getting hurt—she knew better than anyone how terrifying the boy's reflection damage was.

"Qingshan's reflection is true damage; it cannot be defended against."

There was one thing Bibi Dong didn't say aloud.

When she had tested Gu Qingshan's reflection damage, she had personally attacked the Thorn Shield. Once the reflection triggered, that true damage had pierced directly through all her defenses, forcing her to sustain a minor injury.

And she was a level 98 peak Douluo.

Yet she had been injured by a six-year-old child.

"Your Holiness, let us try," Yan stepped forward, his fighting spirit soaring. "We won't hurt him. We'll just use our first soul skills and stop at the right moment."

Xie Yue nodded: "I also want to see just how strong a level 15 defense can be."

Bibi Dong sighed.

Gu Qingshan spoke at the right moment, his tone impossibly sincere: "Teacher, please call for a high-level healing soul master. It's better to be safe than sorry."

Better to be safe than sorry.

Bibi Dong looked at him deeply, reading a message in those clear eyes: Don't worry, Teacher, I won't kill them.

"...Fine."

Bibi Dong raised a hand to signal the guards at the door to summon them.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, a middle-aged woman in white robes hurried in; she was a Soul Saint-level healer.

"Your Majesty the Pope." She bowed respectfully.

Bibi Dong nodded, her gaze sweeping over everyone present: "The main hall is too small. Go to the martial arts arena."

The martial arts arena was on the west side of the villa, a circular space covering about three hundred square meters. The ground was paved with special black-veined stone, capable of withstanding attacks from a Soul Emperor without sustaining damage.

In the center of the martial arts arena.

Gu Qingshan and Hu Liena's trio stood facing each other, about twenty paces apart.

"Both sides are to release their Martial Souls. You may use Soul Skills, but lethal attacks are forbidden. If one side concedes or loses the ability to fight, the other side shall be declared the winner." Bibi Dong's voice drifted down from the spectator stand.

She paused, her gaze landing on Gu Qingshan: "Qingshan, are you sure you're alright with this?"

"No problem," Gu Qingshan said, having already adjusted his damage reflection ratio.

30%.

This ratio should be enough.

If it were 60%, given the health points of these three Soul Elders, a single strike would send them straight to the afterlife—the kind where even a healer couldn't bring them back.

Gu Qingshan felt he had considered everything quite thoroughly.

But the three across from him clearly didn't think so.

"Are you ready yet?" Yan was already growing impatient.

He saw Gu Qingshan standing there motionless and assumed the boy was nervous.

"It's not too late to concede now. We won't laugh at you."

Gu Qingshan snapped back to reality and glanced at him: "Come on."

"Then begin." Bibi Dong's voice fell.

"Release Martial Souls!"

Almost at the same instant, all four released their Martial Souls simultaneously.

Crimson flames surged from Yan's body as his Flame Lord Martial Soul was fully unleashed. Three soul rings rose from beneath his feet: two yellow and one purple—the optimal soul ring configuration.

His stature grew taller, and dark red patterns emerged on his skin like flowing lava, causing the surrounding air to distort from the intense heat.

Xie Yue manifested a curved blade in each hand; the blades were slender and shimmered with a chilling, cold light. His soul rings were also two yellow and one purple.

Hu Liena released hers last, but the effect was the most pronounced.

A massive phantom of a Heavenly Fox appeared behind her. Her hair turned fiery red, and two fluffy fox ears stood up amidst her tresses.

Three soul rings rotated around her. The moment her Martial Soul was released, an invisible force of charm rippled outward.

Bibi Dong nodded slightly. The three children had released their Martial Souls perfectly, and their soul ring configurations were top-tier. They were truly worthy of being called the Golden Generation.

However, the next second, her gaze froze.

Gu Qingshan's Martial Soul had also been released.

A shield.

A massive dark gold shield manifested before Gu Qingshan's left arm.

The shield face was about one and a half meters high and half a meter wide, with jagged, uneven edges as if woven from countless thorns.

The surface of the shield was covered in fine, dense barbs, each one glinting with a dark red luster.

A single soul ring rose from beneath Gu Qingshan's feet.

Purple.

A thousand-year soul ring.