Walking at the front was a boy who looked about eight or nine years old.
He wore a fitted black training uniform. Tall for his age, he had a handsome face, sharp brows, bright eyes, and short black hair standing upright strand by strand. His gaze was keen, carrying a composure and edge utterly mismatched with his age.
His steps were steady, and his aura was condensed. His foundation was clearly exceptionally solid.
Following behind him was a little girl who looked only five or six, delicate as a carved doll.
She wore her hair in two pigtails, her large eyes blinking as she curiously studied Zichuan. Her gaze was clear, carrying the innocence unique to children.
The surrounding discussions quieted, and everyone's eyes fell on the boy. Their expressions held obvious approval, admiration, and even a trace of awe.
The boy stopped three steps in front of Zichuan. His eyes flashed like lightning as he swept his gaze over Zichuan, then gave a slight nod and spoke.
"You're the new junior brother, Zichuan?"
His voice still held a childish quality, but his tone was remarkably steady.
Zichuan's heart stirred. He had already guessed the other boy's identity. He nodded. "I am. You are...?"
"Long Aotian." The boy gave his name in a calm voice, yet there was an innate pride within it. "I heard from Teacher that your talent is even better than mine."
Long Aotian! So it really was him!
In the original story, he was the true peerless prodigy of this generation of the Body Sect. His martial soul was his skin, and before reaching twenty, he would become a Soul Saint. His talent was extraordinary, but unfortunately, he died young, leaving the Body Sect without successors and causing it to gradually decline.
Zichuan could tell that when Long Aotian said this, his gaze was clear. There was only pure curiosity and fighting spirit, without the slightest jealousy or resentment.
This was the style of the Body Sect: worship strength, respect the strong, but never fear a challenge.
"Teacher overpraised me. I was merely luckier than most," Zichuan said politely.
"Luck is also part of strength." Long Aotian shook his head and looked straight into Zichuan's eyes.
"Teacher said your martial soul is Dual Heart, that your first ring is a millennium ring, and that you have an External Soul Bone. I'm very interested."
He paused, then said seriously, "So, I want to fight you."
A low wave of startled cries rose from the crowd. Excitement and anticipation appeared on everyone's faces.
Although Long Aotian was young, his talent and strength surpassed all his peers. He was the sect's universally acknowledged hope for the future. If this newly arrived junior brother was valued so highly by the Sect Master that Long Aotian had personally challenged him, then he was certainly no ordinary person!
Skin against heart—which would prove superior?
Seeing the pure, untainted fighting spirit in Long Aotian's eyes, the youthful passion in Zichuan's heart was ignited as well.
Having come to this world and awakened such powerful strength, he too longed for a real battle to test his abilities!
"Alright!" Zichuan nodded without the slightest hesitation.
A faint smile appeared on Long Aotian's face, softening his somewhat stern features considerably.
"My Soul Power is level 27, far higher than yours. I'll suppress it to roughly your level. Otherwise, it wouldn't be fair."
However, Zichuan shook his head, eagerness gleaming in his eyes.
"No, Senior Brother Long. Please go all out. I also want to see just how great the gap is between me and a true genius. Besides, my Soul Power... may be different from that of ordinary soul masters."
This was not arrogance. The advantages in both quantity and quality of Soul Power brought by his two hearts gave him confidence that his true combat strength was far more than what level 13 suggested.
Long Aotian froze briefly, then his smile widened as he nodded.
"Good! You've got guts! I acknowledge you as my junior brother!"
The two said no more. The surrounding crowd automatically dispersed, clearing a spacious area in front of the stone chamber. Everyone craned their necks, faces full of anticipation.
Long Aotian walked to one side of the field and stopped. He did not immediately release his martial soul, but his entire presence had already changed, like a sharp sword about to leave its sheath, its edge faintly revealed.
Zichuan walked to the other side, took a deep breath, and his gaze sharpened.
"Please!"
"Please!"
Almost at the same moment, Soul Power erupted from both of them!
Long Aotian gave a low shout. A warm, white jade-like glow instantly spread across the surface of his skin, as if he were covered in the finest mutton-fat jade. His entire body seemed to turn into a jade sculpture, and his aura became incomparably solid and heavy.
One yellow and one purple soul ring rose beneath his feet, circling around him and displaying his cultivation as a level 27 Soul Grandmaster!
His second soul ring was already a purple millennium ring. His talent and endurance were equally astonishing!
On Zichuan's side, a dark red radiance burst from his left chest. His hair instantly turned dark red as Destruction Form activated! A violent, ending aura spread outward.
Beneath his feet, a deep purple soul ring rose. Its pure purple color, its density and radiance, seemed faintly no weaker than Long Aotian's second millennium ring!
"First Soul Skill, Battle Blood Boiling!"
Zichuan did not test the waters at all. He opened with his strongest enhancement!
Blood and qi surged beneath his dark red skin, his muscles swelling slightly. The thirty-percent increase to all attributes caused his aura to soar, like a ferocious beast awakening!
"What a powerful enhancement!" someone in the crowd exclaimed.
"A millennium first soul ring—its enhancement effect really is terrifying!"
A flash of surprise also passed through Long Aotian's eyes, but his movements did not slow in the slightest.
He kicked off the ground, shattering the floor beneath him. He shot forward like a cannonball, driving a fist straight toward Zichuan's face! The wind from his punch was fierce, accompanied by a piercing whistle through the air. It looked simple and direct, yet contained terrifying power and speed!
Zichuan neither dodged nor retreated. He also roared low, clenched his right fist, and wrapped it in Destruction Soul Power before fiercely meeting Long Aotian's fist head-on!
Bang!
Their fists collided with a thunderous boom! A shockwave exploded outward from the two of them, whipping the surrounding spectators' clothes wildly.
Zichuan staggered back three steps, each leaving a deep footprint in the hard ground. His right fist went numb. Long Aotian merely swayed slightly before steadying himself.
In terms of strength, Long Aotian, a level 27 Soul Grandmaster whose martial soul was his body, clearly held the upper hand.
But the fighting spirit in Zichuan's eyes only intensified! He had only taken three steps back! An ordinary level 13 soul master would likely have suffered broken bones and been sent flying from that punch! The benefits of Battle Blood Boiling and Dual Heart were plain to see!
"Great strength!" Long Aotian praised as he launched another assault.
His movements were agile, his fists and kicks like the wind. His attacks came in an unending stream, each strike powerful and heavy yet precise and ruthless, displaying an exceptionally solid combat foundation.
Zichuan faced him calmly. Though slightly inferior in strength and speed, he relied on the domineering nature of Destruction Soul Power, as well as the extraordinary reactions and sustained combat ability granted by his two hearts, to defend without a single opening. He even occasionally managed a counterattack or two.
The two exchanged fists and kicks, and the dull booms of Soul Power colliding rang out without pause. The surrounding crowd watched in a daze, exclaiming in amazement again and again.
"This new junior brother is pretty good! He can actually trade attacks with Aotian for so many moves!"
"That Destruction-attributed Soul Power is so domineering. Even Aotian's skin defense seems to be getting eroded!"
"But Aotian still hasn't used any soul skills..."
Sure enough, after failing to break through for so long, Long Aotian's eyes narrowed, and his first soul ring lit up.
"First Soul Skill, Jade Skin!"
The white jade glow over his skin instantly became tangible. His whole body truly seemed to transform into a jade statue, and his defense surged dramatically!
He no longer dodged Zichuan's attacks. Instead, he charged straight into Zichuan's fist and unleashed a powerful sweeping roundhouse kick!
Bang! Zichuan's fist struck Long Aotian's shoulder, but it felt as though he had punched Millennium Black Iron. The recoil made his arm ache, while Long Aotian's sweeping kick had already reached him!
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