Laughing Oneself to Death

Light began to glow around Bai Chenxiang.

The first soul ring. Yellow, a plain, unremarkable hundred-year soul ring that Ma Hongjun had seen countless times.

The second. Yellow.

The third. Purple.

The fourth. Purple.

The fifth soul ring lit up, black. A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

Ma Hongjun's hand froze in mid-air. He stared at those rings, his mind racing.

Bai Chenxiang, a level 61 Soul Emperor. Two yellow, two purple, two black. A standard configuration; nothing to fear.

His soul power was five levels higher than hers, and his martial soul was the offensive Evil Fire Phoenix. His combat power would crush her.

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly felt a much more intense pressure erupt from Bai Chenxiang.

The sixth soul ring was emerging, a massive red radiance rising from beneath her feet.

The red ring expanded slowly, its light so brilliant it dyed the entire garden crimson.

The leaves of the old locust tree shivered in the glow, and the gravel on the ground began to vibrate, several fist-sized stones rolling across the earth.

This time, Bai Chenxiang held nothing back, releasing her full aura.

Ma Hongjun felt as if an invisible wall had shoved him, his body involuntarily stumbling back two steps. His heel struck the leg of a stone bench, and he nearly tripped.

Wind blew from Bai Chenxiang's direction—not a natural breeze, but an air current triggered by the fluctuations of soul power.

Branches swayed overhead, leaves fluttering down in a cascade. Gravel from the ground was swept up by the air wave, several stones pelting Ma Hongjun's face and arms.

A sharp, jagged pebble grazed his right cheek, leaving a bloody streak.

Pain. A stinging, hot pain.

Ma Hongjun touched his face; his fingertips came away wet.

He looked up, staring fixedly at Bai Chenxiang before him.

The red soul ring hovered around her, radiating a heavy, oppressive weight. The light enveloped her in a crimson halo, her dress whipping violently in the air current.

Ma Hongjun's gaze was locked onto that red ring. Red!

On the Douluo Continent, a red soul ring represented only one thing.

One hundred thousand years.

Ma Hongjun's mind exploded with a deafening roar.

A hundred-thousand-year soul ring—what did that mean? That was a realm only Title Douluo could hope to touch!

Bai Chenxiang, a level 61 Soul Emperor, was sporting a hundred-thousand-year soul ring?

This was impossible!

Yet the pressure before him was real. The bleeding wound on his face was real. The trembling stones beneath his feet were real.

Ma Hongjun's thighs began to turn to jelly.

He wanted to retreat, but his legs refused to obey. His knees felt like they were filled with lead, shaking so violently he couldn't even stand steady.

The red light grew stronger and stronger. Ma Hongjun's eyes were stung so badly he couldn't keep them open, and he raised his arms to shield his face.

Another wave of air surged over, more violent than the last.

Ma Hongjun couldn't hold his ground; he was thrown backward, his spine slamming into the trunk of the old locust tree. The rough bark scraped against his clothes, and he hissed in pain.

He hugged the trunk, using every ounce of his strength to steady himself, preventing himself from being blown away.

The stones on the ground pelted him with a rhythmic clatter. Two more scratches appeared on his face, and a bruise formed on the back of his left hand.

Ma Hongjun's heart felt like it was about to leap out of his throat.

He rubbed his eyes desperately, peering through the gaps between his fingers.

Bai Chenxiang stood there in the red radiance, her two braids whipped behind her, her dress clinging tightly to her body, outlining her slender waist.

And the red soul ring beneath her feet was so large it seemed ready to swallow the entire garden.

"Momma!"

A shriek tore from Ma Hongjun's throat.

"Title Douluo! A hundred-thousand-year soul ring!"

His legs gave out completely.

With a thud, Ma Hongjun collapsed onto the ground, a wave of warmth spreading across his crotch.

He didn't even notice he had wet his pants.

"Ghost! It's a ghost!" Ma Hongjun scrambled up using his hands and feet, turned, and bolted.

He tripped over a stone after two steps, nearly falling again, and stumbled frantically out of the garden.

His soles slapped loudly against the stone path, his gray jacket's hood hung askew, and he ran, gasping for air, not daring to look back even once.

Blood still flowed down his face, the bruises on the back of his hands burned with pain, and his crotch clung to his legs, wet and heavy, but he could no longer bring himself to care about any of it.

He only wanted to run, to get as far away as possible.

He ran out of the garden, across the main road, and up the steps of the dormitory building.

After Ma Hongjun's figure vanished past the garden exit, the entire garden fell silent.

Bai Chenxiang retracted her soul ring. The red radiance rapidly faded, the sky returned to its normal hue, sunlight spilled back onto the leaves, and the cicadas slowly resumed their chirping.

Bai Chenxiang stood where she was, her hands hanging at her sides, her two braids tousled by the wind, resting against her back.

Her heart was pounding, thump-thump-thump, the vibration traveling from her chest all the way to her fingertips.

During those few seconds when she had released the aura of a hundred-thousand-year soul ring—even though it was just a decorative, fake ring—the sensation of being enveloped by that power had been real.

It was as if she had suddenly become someone else. Someone very powerful, someone terrifying.

Bai Chenxiang looked down at her palms. They were slick with sweat.

"Hey! Chenxiang!" Xiao Wu hopped out from behind a bush on the north side of the garden.

Two leaves were stuck in her scorpion braid, the hem of her pink gauze skirt was stained with dirt, and she leaned on her knees, shaking with laughter.

"Hahahaha! I'm dying, I'm actually dying! Did you see that? The way he looked when he ran!" Xiao Wu couldn't catch her breath, bent over with one hand clutching her stomach, her rabbit-ear hair accessory tilted to one side of her head.

Ning Rongrong stepped out from behind another cluster of bushes, her blue skirt also dusted with grime.

Her laughter was more restrained than Xiao Wu's, but she pressed her lips together, her shoulders trembling incessantly.

"Isn't that the truth? He was so scared he wet his pants. Did you guys see? When he fell, wasn't there a wet patch right at his crotch?"

Hearing this, Xiao Wu collapsed into a squat on the ground, slapping the stone path with her palm.

"I saw it, I saw it! It was definitely wet! A big man like Ma Hongjun, scared into wetting his pants on the spot by Chenxiang!"

Zhu Zhuqing emerged from behind a thick camphor tree on the east side of the garden. Her black leather outfit was spotless; it seemed her choice of hiding spot had been much better than the others'.

The corners of Zhu Zhuqing's mouth curled up—not by much, but her eyes were filled with mirth.

"He deserved it. Let's see if he dares to harass Chenxiang again after this."

Bai Chenxiang stood in place, watching her three roommates doubled over in laughter, and the corners of her own mouth lifted as well.

Xiao Wu scrambled up from the ground and threw an arm around Bai Chenxiang's shoulders.

"Chenxiang, you were amazing! That pressure effect was perfect! Anyone who didn't know better would have really thought you were a Titled Douluo!"

Bai Chenxiang lowered her head and smiled.

"I was startled too. I didn't expect the effect to be so strong when I went all out; it even blew the stones on the ground away."

"Did you see the stone that hit Ma Hongjun in the face? It left several bloody scratches," Ning Rongrong added from the side.

Xiao Wu clapped her hands and took a deep breath, finally managing to stifle her laughter.

"Alright, alright, mission accomplished. Ma Hongjun should have learned his lesson by now; he won't dare to harass Chenxiang ever again."

Ning Rongrong nodded.

Zhu Zhuqing said coolly, "All four of the F4 have suffered. They'll be quiet from now on."

Xiao Wu counted them off on her fingers.

"Tang San was kicked away by me. Dai Mubai was beaten by Zhuqing until he begged for mercy. Oscar had his front teeth knocked out by Rongrong. And Ma Hongjun was scared into wetting his pants by Chenxiang."

After counting, Xiao Wu laughed again, this time with a smug, triumphant air.

Bai Chenxiang felt a bit worried. "Do you think... they'll come looking for trouble later?"

"What's there to be afraid of? I'm a level 70 Soul Saint now, what else is there to fear?" Xiao Wu said.

That was a fair point. Now that Xiao Wu was a level 70 Soul Saint, a whole realm higher than the strongest among them, Tang San, there was absolutely no need to fear them.

Besides, they could always pull more good things from that Claw Machine Shop outside the school.