The Overbearing Myriad Dragon Source Art

When he returned to the dormitory, Wang Hao and Zhao Tiezhu were already asleep—or rather, pretending to be asleep.

The two lay on their beds with their eyes closed, but their breathing was somewhat uneven. Clearly, they were not asleep.

Zhong Shenxiu ignored them. After washing up, he climbed into bed as well.

He did not go to sleep immediately. Instead, he sat cross-legged and began circulating the Eternal Myriad Dragon Source Art.

His cultivation could not stop.

As the technique circulated, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth was slowly drawn into his body. After being transformed by the Dragon Origin Core, it became pure energy that nourished his body and bloodline.

He could feel the Soul Power in his dantian steadily growing.

At this rate, breaking through to Rank Two within two months would be effortless. He might even reach Rank 25 directly.

Still not fast enough... Zhong Shenxiu thought. I need more energy.

He thought of the Dragon Origin Realm, that dying demi-plane. If he could find enough energy to nourish it, perhaps it would bring unexpected benefits.

But where would the energy come from?

The Spirit Ascension Platform was still the best choice, but he would have to wait for the Class Promotion Tournament two months from now.

Before then...

Zhong Shenxiu suddenly thought of a possibility.

His consciousness sank into his dantian and touched that golden speck of light.

His awareness entered the Dragon Origin Realm once again.

The desolate earth, the dark-red sky, the ruined altar. Everything was as before, and that crystal still emitted a faint glow.

Zhong Shenxiu's consciousness stood before the altar, looking at the information appearing on the crystal: Repair requirements: at least 100 units of pure life energy or an equivalent amount of other energy.

"What if... I use Soul Guidance Batteries?" he muttered.

Soul Guidance Batteries stored highly compressed Soul Power, with an extremely high energy density.

A standard Soul Guidance Battery cost around three thousand Federal Coins. If he could buy a few, perhaps the Dragon Origin Realm would undergo some change.

But Soul Guidance Batteries were controlled goods, and ordinary students had a hard time buying them.

Besides, each battery cost three thousand. His twenty thousand might seem like a lot, but it would not buy many at all.

"I still need to make money." Zhong Shenxiu reached that conclusion.

He withdrew from the Dragon Origin Realm and opened his eyes.

The night was deep, and only the faint snores of Wang Hao and Zhao Tiezhu could be heard in the dormitory.

Zhong Shenxiu lay down and closed his eyes.

Tomorrow would be a new day.

There was much to do.

Cultivate, study, make money, grow stronger.

The road ahead was long, but he had already taken the first step.

And he would not stop.

The next morning, Zhong Shenxiu completed his usual morning training. Five hundred push-ups, five hundred sit-ups, five hundred squats, plus half an hour of handstand support. Sweat soaked his training uniform, but the surging Soul Power within him and the increasingly powerful sensation flowing through his bloodline left him feeling refreshed.

After taking a cold shower and changing into a clean school uniform, he headed for the cafeteria.

For breakfast, he ordered three servings of fried eggs, five fried dough sticks, two bowls of soy milk, and a bowl of porridge. He had long grown used to the looks cast his way. Those Light Gold Vertical Pupils were the best barrier of all; no one dared approach him casually.

At 7:45, Zhong Shenxiu left the cafeteria on time and headed toward the first-year teaching building.

Class 1-5's classroom was on the third floor. When he arrived, there were still ten minutes before class, but the room was already full—this was a hallmark of Wu Zhangkong's class. No one dared be late.

Standing at the door, Zhong Shenxiu could hear the murmurs from within the classroom, as well as Wu Zhangkong's frost-cold voice from the podium, explaining a technique for circulating Soul Power.

He raised his hand and knocked on the door.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Three soft knocks, neither hurried nor slow.

The classroom instantly fell silent.

All eyes turned toward the door. When Zhong Shenxiu pushed it open and entered, those Light Gold Vertical Pupils appearing before everyone, the atmosphere in the entire classroom froze for an instant.

Only three days into the school term, Zhong Shenxiu's name had already spread throughout the first year—beating his roommate into serious injury, being confined for three days, possessing the rare Radiant King Dragon martial soul, having naturally unusual eyes, and a solitary, ruthless personality... With all those labels piled together, he had become a special presence among the new students.

"Come in." Wu Zhangkong's voice broke the silence.

Zhong Shenxiu entered the classroom and walked straight toward the podium beneath more than thirty pairs of varied eyes—curious, appraising, wary, disdainful, investigative.

He stopped before Wu Zhangkong and gave a slight nod. "Teacher Wu, I'm here."

Wu Zhangkong stood behind the podium, his sky-blue short hair immaculate and his white windbreaker spotless. He nodded, his gaze lingering on Zhong Shenxiu for a second as though confirming something, then said, "Come up and introduce yourself."

Zhong Shenxiu turned to face the class.

More than thirty students sat in their respective seats.

There were several familiar faces in the front rows—Tang Wulin sat near the window with a calm expression; Gu Yue sat beside him, her eyes appraising; Xie Xie sat behind them, looking eager to make a move.

Zhong Shenxiu ignored those gazes. Standing on the podium, he was tall and straight. His sharply defined face appeared even colder beneath the morning light, while those Light Gold Vertical Pupils swept across the room with an almost indifferent calm.

"My name is Zhong Shenxiu." His voice was not loud, but every person heard it clearly. "My martial soul is the Radiant King Dragon. I am a Rank 17 Soul Master."

It was brief and direct, without any unnecessary embellishment.

After speaking, he looked at Wu Zhangkong and waited for his seat assignment.

The classroom was silent.

Rank 17?

Even among the most talented freshmen in Class 1-1, that rank would be considered above average. Not to mention this class: apart from Xie Xie, an Rank 18 Soul Master, Zhong Shenxiu before them was probably the student with the highest Soul Power cultivation in all of Class 1-5.

Wu Zhangkong pointed at an empty seat against the wall in the back row. "Sit there."

Zhong Shenxiu nodded, stepped down from the podium, and walked toward his seat under everyone's watchful eyes. His steps were steady, without the slightest awkwardness, as though he were not entering a new class beneath countless gazes but merely inspecting his own territory.

As he passed Tang Wulin, their eyes met briefly.

Tang Wulin's gaze was gentle yet curious, carrying a faint hint of fighting spirit—he had also heard about Zhong Shenxiu. Naturally, he was interested in this peer who came from an unremarkable background yet possessed considerable strength.

Zhong Shenxiu's gaze remained calm. There was not the slightest emotional fluctuation in his golden vertical pupils, as though he had merely glanced past an irrelevant passerby.

He reached the seat against the wall in the back row and sat down, placing his backpack away before taking out a notebook and pen.

"Alright, continue the lesson."

Wu Zhangkong's voice drew everyone's attention back. "We had just reached the second stage of Soul Power compression techniques..."

The class returned to normal, but the atmosphere had clearly changed.

From time to time, people secretly glanced at Zhong Shenxiu, especially the girls, who were full of curiosity toward those rare Light Gold Vertical Pupils. The boys, meanwhile, were more focused on assessing him—just how strong was a Rank 17 Radiant King Dragon martial soul?

Zhong Shenxiu ignored every gaze and focused on the lesson.

Wu Zhangkong's teaching style was just like the man himself: cold, precise, efficient, without a single wasted word. The Soul Power circulation techniques, combat principles, and martial soul applications he explained were all distilled from real combat experience. Every sentence was worth pondering over and over.

"...Therefore, the quality of Soul Power is more important than its quantity."

Wu Zhangkong drew a structural diagram of a Soul Power vortex on the blackboard. "Only by compressing Soul Power and increasing its density can you unleash greater power within limited ranks. This is especially important for assault-type Soul Masters."

Zhong Shenxiu carefully took notes.

What Wu Zhangkong taught shared the same underlying principle as the Myriad Dragon Source Art.

The Myriad Dragon Source Art likewise compressed and purified the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, transforming it into purer energy. It simply operated on a higher level, with far more terrifying efficiency.