Feng Xiaotian's Dao Heart Shattered: Was My Ultimate Dream Just Your Passive?

Heaven Dou Royal Academy, Martial Arts Arena.

The aftermath of yesterday's "Huo Wu defeated and sobbing" incident had yet to settle when the arena welcomed another uninvited guest today.

The newcomer was a boy of twelve or thirteen, dressed in the signature cyan uniform of Godwind Academy. At this moment, his face was etched with visible fury and heartache.

The top genius of Godwind Academy, and the number one simp in all of Douluo Continent—Feng Xiaotian!

When Feng Xiaotian heard that his "Little Sister Huo Wu," whom he couldn't even bear to speak harshly to, had been bullied to tears by a six-year-old brat's bird at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, his eyes turned red on the spot.

"Xue Yao! Get out here!"

Feng Xiaotian strode into the Martial Arts Arena, his eyes locked firmly onto Xue Yao, who was sitting in the shade of a tree grooming the feathers of a Little Griffin.

The surrounding Heaven Dou students immediately began whispering excitedly at the sight.

"Look! It's that weirdo from Godwind Academy, Feng Xiaotian!"

"Good grief, the big one comes after the little one gets beaten! And this Feng Xiaotian is a level 25 Soul Grand Master!"

"Hmph, what's the use of a high level? He's suffering from 'Feng Xiaotian Syndrome'; his strength has been stagnant for ages!"

Hearing the chatter around him, Xue Yao stopped what he was doing and sighed helplessly.

Beat the tsundere chili pepper, and you attract the top-tier simp.

The plot progression of this Douluo Continent really is as cliché as it gets.

"Are you that brat named Xue Yao?" Feng Xiaotian pointed at Xue Yao, grinding his teeth in anger. "Little Sister Huo Wu is so kind and cute, yet you actually let a feathered beast bully her?"

Looking at Feng Xiaotian's righteous indignation, Xue Yao shook his head slightly.

Setting aside this absurd simp persona, Xue Yao actually felt a bit of pity for this "tragic genius of the original work."

Feng Xiaotian was truly a genius, perhaps even purer than Tang San.

He had explored Self-Created Soul Skill on his own, forcibly closing the gap between Innate Full Soul Power and those with cheats. It was a pity he had taken the wrong path, wasting too much precious time in his early years.

"Since you've come all this way to die... no, to deliver experience points, I'll be merciful and teach you a lesson."

"Arrogant!"

Feng Xiaotian laughed in his fury. As the top dog of Godwind Academy, being looked down upon by a six-year-old child ignited his pride instantly.

"Roar—!"

Accompanied by a deafening wolf howl, the phantom of a magnificent Two-Headed Gale Demon Wolf emerged behind Feng Xiaotian! Two yellow soul rings rose from beneath his feet!

"I heard you've been living in the library for the past three months, and the world mocks you for having 'Feng Xiaotian Syndrome'." Feng Xiaotian's arms transformed into sharp wolf claws as he slowly hovered into mid-air.

A hint of arrogance and stubbornness flashed in his eyes: "Today, I'll let you witness the invincible divine skill I've spent countless days and nights agonizing over, despite the world's mockery!"

"Watch closely! This is the ultimate mystery of a wind-type soul master!"

"Gale Demon Wolf—Chain Slash!!"

Feng Xiaotian spun violently in mid-air, his wings and arms transforming into a terrifying carousel of wind blades. Although this move was still extremely immature, the momentum from his body's rotation combined with gravity created an astonishing cutting force!

Watching Feng Xiaotian spinning like a giant top in the air to build up power, Xue Yao couldn't help but cover his face.

How pathetic.

This so-called "divine skill," which relied purely on physical inertia and gravity to stack damage, looked like a primitive man rubbing sticks to make fire in the eyes of Xue Yao, who possessed a modern systematic mindset.

"That's not a chain slash; that's a human-powered hand-cranked generator."

Xue Yao sighed and stomped his foot.

"Hum!"

A bright, hundred-year soul ring rose from beneath Xue Yao's feet!

"Let me show you what a real combo mechanism is."

"First Soul Skill: Wind-Riding Combo!"

Following Xue Yao's low shout, the yellow soul ring on his body flared with light, transforming into a stream of cyan wind that instantly surged into the body of the Little Griffin beside him!

[Wind-Riding Combo]: Xue Yao has set this as an extremely domineering passive mechanism! While under this buff, every time an attack hits an enemy, it instantly stacks a layer of "Steel-Cutting" wind energy, increasing the damage and penetration of the next attack—seamless, continuous, and endless!

"Xiao Bai, teach him how to play with the wind."

"Screech—!"

Empowered by the soul skill, the Little Griffin let out an excited eagle cry!

Facing Feng Xiaotian, who was slashing down with aggressive momentum, the Little Griffin didn't dodge at all; instead, it flapped its wings violently!

[Feather Acceleration]!

The Little Griffin turned into a cyan afterimage, its speed instantly breaking the sound barrier. It arrived first despite moving second, charging directly into Feng Xiaotian's Wind Blade!

"You're courting death!" Feng Xiaotian roared, his Wind Blade slashing down fiercely!

However, at the moment of contact, the Little Griffin's steel-like beak thrust forward!

[Peck]!

As a wind-type spirit beast, the Little Griffin's [Peck] naturally carried two extremely rapid attack judgments!

"Clang! Clang!"

Two crisp, explosive sounds detonated in mid-air!

The Little Griffin's beak struck the weakest node of Feng Xiaotian's wind blade with incredible speed and precision!

In a single instant!

Two attacks landed!

The Wind-Riding Combo mechanism that Xue Yao had imbued upon the Little Griffin was triggered twice instantly!

There was no need to clumsily spin to build up power like Feng Xiaotian, nor was there any need to borrow the force of gravity! That violent damage and armor-piercing attribute belonging to the wind automatically and seamlessly stacked onto the second strike the moment the first one landed!

"Crack!"

Feng Xiaotian's first wind blade, which he had spent so long charging, was shattered by the peck that had stacked double the damage!

"What?!" Feng Xiaotian's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

How is this possible?! No charging, no wind-up animation—how could the power instantly double?!

However, Xue Yao's combo had not yet ended.

After the two layers of Wind-Riding Combo were stacked, the wind elements in the Little Griffin's mouth were compressed to a terrifying density.

It was the critical point of a qualitative change!

"It's over," Xue Yao said calmly, snapping his fingers.

The moment the Little Griffin shattered the wind blade, it opened its beak and unleashed that extreme wind pressure as a cyan beam of light, roaring outward!

Wind Arrow!

"BOOM--!!!"

If Feng Xiaotian's consecutive slashes were like a dull knife cutting flesh, then this passive-stacked Wind Arrow from the Little Griffin was a heavy laser cannon!

The cyan beam of light tore through all the defensive gale surrounding Feng Xiaotian like a hot knife through butter, slamming solidly into his chest!

"Pfft--!"

Feng Xiaotian spat out a mouthful of blood, his body flying backward like a kite with a broken string. He was violently knocked out of the air, crashing into the floor of the Martial Arts Arena with a loud thud and sliding over a dozen meters, carving out a deep trench.

One-shot!

A twenty-fifth-level Soul Grand Master, facing a six-year-old child and a newly tamed soul beast, suffered a miserable defeat in a single move!

The entire arena fell into a deathly silence. Everyone was stunned by the sheer smoothness and the hair-raising, terrifying power of that combo.

On the Martial Arts Arena, Feng Xiaotian lay in the bottom of the crater in a spread-eagle position.

He hadn't suffered a fatal injury; the Wind Arrow had pulled its power at the last second, but his current state was more agonizing than death.

He stared blankly at the sky, his eyes losing focus.

As a genius who regarded "combos" as his life's pursuit, he understood better than anyone what had happened in that instant.

No cumbersome movements, no delayed charging.

In that strike, the wind elements were automatically stacking according to an unreasonable rule, with damage progressing layer by layer, perfectly unleashing the power of the combo in an instant.

It was a high-dimensional mechanism that far exceeded his scope of understanding!

"Tap, tap, tap."

Xue Yao walked to Feng Xiaotian's side, looking down at the dazed youth.

"Did you feel it?" Xue Yao's voice was calm yet cruel, every word piercing the heart.

"No need to spin, no need to borrow force. As long as the attacks land consecutively, the wind's airflow will automatically stack damage and armor penetration."

"This is my first soul skill—Wind-Riding Combo."

Hearing this, Feng Xiaotian's entire body shuddered violently, and tears uncontrollably slid from the corners of his eyes.

His lips trembled, and he muttered in a hoarse voice, laced with a desperate, sobbing tone:

"I... I spent six years of my life... enduring the cold glares and mockery of the world..."

"I racked my brains, thinking I had created the ultimate combo technique that would shock the continent..."

Feng Xiaotian closed his eyes in agony, his Dao heart shattering into dust at this very moment.

"It turns out... it was just a passive effect of your first soul skill?!"

Xue Yao turned around and led the Little Griffin toward the exit of the Martial Arts Arena, leaving behind only one heart-wrenching sentence drifting in the wind:

"My friend, the times have changed. Stop spinning in those pathetic circles; it's embarrassing."