One Move

Yu Tianheng's smile froze.

"One move?"

His voice dropped, and the phantom of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's spirit slowly raised its head behind him. Blue electricity pulsed within the dragon's eyes, casting a cold, sharp light across his face.

"Are you saying you'll finish me in one move?"

Jiang Lin did not answer, but his silence was more definitive than any reply.

Yu Tianheng stared at the youth, who was a few years his junior, as the fire in his chest flared higher with every passing second.

He, Yu Tianheng, was a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and a top-tier genius at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Few among his peers could even take a single Thunder Dragon Claw head-on, let alone defeat him. And yet, this person.

This person hadn't even summoned his martial soul, standing there as casually as if he had remarked on the weather rather than claiming one move was enough.

"Fine. Very well."

Yu Tianheng stepped back to create distance, taking a deep breath to suppress his rage, though the tension in his tone remained impossible to hide. "I'd like to see how you plan to beat me in one move."

He flicked his right hand, and two yellow century-level soul rings rose from beneath his feet as his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul fully manifested.

The blue-purple dragon shadow spread its wings behind him. The air crackled with dense electrical snapping, and the surrounding Thunder-Struck Pine trees seemed to resonate, their arcs of electricity leaning toward him to form a visible electric field around his body.

His twenty-eighth-rank soul power was released without reservation. Though he was only a Soul Grand Master, the momentum he unleashed was enough to suffocate most soul masters of the same rank.

Jiang Lin remained where he stood, not moving an inch.

He didn't even adopt a combat stance, his hands hanging naturally at his sides, his gaze calm as he watched Yu Tianheng build his momentum, as if he were observing something entirely unrelated to himself.

To Yu Tianheng, this calmness was more blinding than any provocation.

"Summon your martial soul," Yu Tianheng said through gritted teeth.

"I will when it's necessary," Jiang Lin replied.

Yu Tianheng said nothing more.

His pride would not allow him to speak again; another word would only be self-inflicted humiliation.

There was only one thing left to do: use his strength to make this arrogant youth shut up.

His first soul ring lit up.

"Thunder Dragon Claw!"

Yu Tianheng moved like lightning, his right claw wreathed in blinding blue-purple electricity as he transformed into a straight line of thunder, striking directly at Jiang Lin's chest.

He had put his full strength into this claw, holding nothing back.

The power of this strike was enough to gouge five-inch-deep furrows into solid granite.

In Yu Tianheng's eyes, even if his opponent were a Soul Elder, it would be impossible to remain indifferent when faced with his full-force Thunder Dragon Claw.

Jiang Lin did not summon his martial soul.

Having been tempered for four full years under the hand of Chen Xuan, a Title Douluo, he faced attacks at the level of a Title Douluo every single day.

By comparison, the trajectory of Yu Tianheng's claw looked as slow as scooping the moon from the water, its force as weak as a gentle breeze.

He spotted at least four openings: the center of gravity was too far forward during the strike, leaving his lower stance unstable; his left hand lacked defense, leaving his flank wide open; the uneven distribution of electricity on the dragon claw caused the force on the left side to be significantly weaker; and the rhythm of his footwork was a full beat out of sync with his attack.

He took one step forward.

Just one step, no more, no less.

This step was executed with exquisite precision, catching the exact moment when Yu Tianheng's forward momentum was at its peak and his center of gravity was most exposed.

He did not summon his martial soul, did not light a soul ring, and did not even use his soul power.

He clenched his right hand into a fist and threw it straight out—no flashy techniques, no dazzling light effects, just the most primitive of straight punches.

The fist tore through the air, passing through the gap between Yu Tianheng's Thunder Dragon Claw and his left-rib defense, landing precisely in the center of his chest.

The force of the punch was controlled to perfection—enough to knock him down, but not enough to cause real injury.

"Bang!"

A dull sound of physical impact exploded through the Thunder-Struck Forest.

Yu Tianheng's forward momentum came to an abrupt halt. It was as if he had been struck head-on by an invisible hammer, his body flying backward uncontrollably.

His feet left the ground, his back slamming into the trunk of a Thunder-Struck Pine, shaking pine needles down in a flurry before he slid to a seat at the base of the tree, gasping for air.

The dragon scale patterns on his right arm rapidly faded, and the residual electricity in the air snapped twice before dissipating entirely.

One punch.

From start to finish, Jiang Lin had not summoned his martial soul, had not lit a soul ring, and had used only a single punch.

A brief silence fell over the Thunder-Struck Forest, broken only by the rustling of wind through pine needles and the faint crackling of residual arcs in the air.

Yu Tianheng sat slumped against the pine tree, head bowed, breathing heavily.

The dull ache in his chest continued to spread, but that pain was far less intense than another feeling—a realization of the vast "gap" between them.

He could feel that the force of that punch had been precisely calibrated to knock him away, and had it been even a fraction stronger, it would have truly injured him.

His opponent hadn't relied on luck or a sneak attack; with an almost casual demeanor, he had blasted him away with a single punch, right in the face of the Thunder Dragon Claw he was most proud of.

He raised his head to look at Jiang Lin, the arrogance and anger in his eyes replaced by a complex emotion.

"...What exactly is your Soul Power Level?" His voice was somewhat hoarse.

"Higher than yours."

Jiang Lin did not tell him the specific level; after all, for people on the Douluo Continent, he was leveling up far too quickly.

Yu Tianheng remained silent for a long time.

He braced himself against a tree trunk to stand up, his lips twitching a few times before he finally spoke:

"If you had released your Martial Soul and used a soul skill just now... would I not have even been able to withstand a single punch?"

Jiang Lin glanced at him but did not answer the question.

There was no need to answer, as the answer was all too obvious.

He turned and walked toward the largest lightning-struck pine deep within the Thunder-Struck Forest, the spot where the lightning-attribute elemental energy was most concentrated.

The trunk was covered in charred patterns formed by repeated strikes of lightning, and beneath the tree lay a naturally flat boulder.

He sat cross-legged on the boulder, and before closing his eyes, he said indifferently: "By your rules, this place belongs to me now."

Yu Tianheng stood where he was, watching Jiang Lin's retreating back, gritting his teeth, but eventually, he unclenched his fists.

With a sigh, he left the area, his expression one of utter dejection.

Meanwhile, at the main campus of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, in the Academic Affairs Office.

Chen Xuan walked along the stone path between the bright yellow bungalows until he reached the door of the Academic Affairs Office.

He stood outside for a moment, straightened the cuffs of his gray cloth robe, and then raised his hand to knock on the door.

A voice from inside said "Come in," and he pushed the door open to enter.

The interior of the Academic Affairs Office was furnished simply, with three elderly men sitting behind a long table.

The one in the center had white hair and a beard, a lean face, and eyes that were bright and piercing; he was none other than Meng Shenji, the Chief Committee Member of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

To his left and right were the Second Committee Member, Bai Baoshan, and the Third Committee Member, Zhi Lin. Both were experts at the Soul Douluo level, held in high esteem within the educational circles of the Heaven Dou Empire.

"I am Chen Xuan. I hold a letter of recommendation from Prince Xue Xing to handle the borrowing procedures for a simulated cultivation site for my junior," Chen Xuan said, placing the letter on the table in a flat tone.

Meng Shenji took the letter, opened it, and glanced over it. After confirming that the wax seal and private stamp were correct, he nodded and passed the letter to Bai Baoshan beside him.

His gaze landed on Chen Xuan, narrowing slightly—with his level of cultivation, he was actually unable to see through the depth of the old man before him.