Counter-Attack, Displaying Divine Power

The moment his voice fell, two deep yellow soul rings emerged beneath Xiao Mu's feet.

His first soul ring lit up, and an invisible energy enveloped his entire body.

Wei Xiaofeng slammed into him.

He felt as if he had collided with a wall, or perhaps a bottomless swamp.

All of his kinetic energy was absorbed in an instant, and along with that unstoppable momentum, it was all drained away, vanishing without a trace.

The next moment, it was returned a hundredfold.

The power erupted from Xiao Mu's body, sending Wei Xiaofeng flying. His body traced an arc through the air before crashing into a parasol tree behind him.

The trunk shook violently, and fallen leaves poured down like rain, burying him in a pile of gold.

Xiao Mu stood where he was, the glow of his soul rings gradually fading.

A look of regret crossed his face; this soul skill was too rigid, as it couldn't be activated passively.

He brushed some non-existent dust off his hem and walked toward the direction where Wei Xiaofeng had fallen.

"Do you yield? Still want to fight?"

Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi stepped out from the shadows of the trees, exchanging a glance, both suspecting they were hallucinating.

Wasn't Wei Xiaofeng the one attacking? How did he end up being the one sent flying?

This person's strength was terrifyingly high, certainly above their own.

At this moment, Wei Xiaofeng's eyes were clear, his intelligence having reclaimed the high ground.

"No more fighting, this ability is so cheap."

"Cheap?"

"It's all mine from now on!"

Xiao Mu stood up and looked at the two people on the side. "Do you two also want to weigh me up?"

"No need, we have no interest in being the dormitory boss," Zhang Yangzi said.

"I'm not interested either," Wang Jinxi echoed.

"What a coincidence, me neither." Xiao Mu didn't care about such things; they were useless anyway.

Zhang Yangzi glanced at him. "I didn't expect that all four of us in this dorm would be two-ring Great Soul Masters."

"You are too?"

"Yes." Two yellow soul rings rose beneath Zhang Yangzi's feet. "My martial soul is the Dark Phantom Eagle."

Wang Jinxi released his soul rings, and the same two yellow lights swirled beneath his feet. "My martial soul is the Bone Dragon King."

Xiao Mu knew these two possessed a martial soul fusion skill, but if he had to take them both on, the advantage was his.

Classical mechanics should still be able to handle it.

What he feared most were the things that classical mechanics couldn't touch.

He was, after all, a staunch materialist.

Of course, if you claimed to be Zhao the God of Wealth, he might just believe you.

Wei Xiaofeng looked up at his three roommates, all of them two-ringers. Are you guys messing with me? Am I the only one who's the most rigid agility-type?

I thought you were all one-ringers, how are you all two-ringers?

"Let's go, let's head back."

Xiao Mu said to the three of them.

"Right, Xiao Mu, what do you usually play?" Zhang Yangzi asked casually. Since they were classmates and he was a genius, it was worth getting to know him. "I usually play card games, do you?"

Xiao Mu knew this game; after all, he had created it based on Yu-Gi-Oh to earn money to support his workaholic father. Although he was a workaholic, his luck in opening up markets... he suspected he was a Lancer.

He kept a Pot of Dragon Sealing on his person at all times as a lucky charm, just for peace of mind.

He had also built a Yugi deck on the side.

As for Na'er, Xiao Mu had put together a Kaiba deck for her to play with Xu Xiaoyan.

"I play," Xiao Mu smiled faintly. "But you won't want to play a second time with me."

"How is that possible?" Zhang Yangzi was puzzled; it was such a fun game.

But when the four of them returned to the academy and played just one round, three of them lost their smiles.

The friendship was over.

The ship of friendship had capsized just like that.

The next day, the sun was perfect.

The opening ceremony was held in the massive plaza of East Sea Academy. Only at this time of year did the entire student body of the advanced and intermediate divisions gather together.

On the intermediate division side, there were about a hundred students per grade, totaling around seven or eight hundred across the six grades.

The number of people in the advanced division was much smaller, totaling fewer than two hundred in all.

Xiao Mu stood in the ranks of the first-year intermediate division, hands in his pockets, radiating a sense of resentment. Damn it, those three guys, why are they such sore losers?

I didn't even use my version advantage, yet they still can't handle losing in the same version.

Na'er stood beside him, yawning repeatedly.

"Hello, students," a voice echoed across the plaza through the loudspeakers, accompanied by the crackle of electricity. "Today is our annual opening ceremony. Now, we invite Dean Yu to speak."

Applause broke out, sparse and scattered like a passing shower.

The Dean of East Sea Academy stood up from his seat and walked forward. He looked to be in his sixties, of medium build and unremarkable appearance, with graying hair and glasses, giving him the air of a scholar.

The speech lasted a full quarter of an hour, and another speech automatically surfaced in Xiao Mu's mind—one from a small tavern.

He carefully considered his situation: he had money, he had provisions, he just lacked people!

Failure is called rebellion, but success is called serving the king.

After the Dean's speech came the most important part of the opening ceremony: class assignment.

Students who didn't need to participate in the assignment left first, with the new high-level division students heading to their campus, leaving only the first-year intermediate students behind.

The most bewildered person present was Xie Xie; the guy had been assigned to Class Five.

Just then, a figure walked slowly out of the dense crowd—it was the teacher assigned to lead Xiao Mu and his group away. She was over 1.7 meters tall with a well-proportioned figure, her light green hair tied into a neat ponytail, her eyes clear and bright, and her fair, oval face accented by delicate lips.

The woman looked up at the few youths in front of her and instructed, "Follow me."

Xiao Mu and Na'er followed the group forward. The teacher walked at the front, her ponytail carving an arc through the air.

Upon entering the classroom, she stood directly at the podium and announced her identity.

"My name is Ye Yingluo, and I will be your homeroom teacher for the next six years. In my class, no tardiness, no leaving early, and no sleeping."

She paused, her gaze lingering for a second on the faces of a few students who were yawning.

"Now, introduce yourselves. Starting from the first row."

The students stood up one by one, introducing their names, Martial Souls, and soul power levels.

Xiao Mu sat by the window, looking at the class schedule. What kind of magical schedule is this?

You didn't write the times wrong, did you!

I must have lived too hard a life in my past life; I can't even enjoy this leisure now.

Before long, it was his turn. "Xiao Mu, Body Martial Soul, level 28."

Na'er stood up and introduced herself: "Na'er, Silver Dragon Spear, level 27."

"Zhang Yangzi, Dark Phantom Eagle, level 21."

"Wang Jinxi, Bone Dragon King, level 21."

"Wei Xiaofeng, Green Shadow Snake, level 21."

Upon hearing the introductions of these five, the entire class fell from its original bustle into a terrifying silence.

This...

Nine years old, two high-level Great Soul Masters, and three who had just entered the Great Soul Master rank.

Ye Yingluo was equally stunned, finally understanding what the Dean meant by "teach them well." She had originally thought they were connections—relatives of the school board members—but she hadn't expected them to be five geniuses.

In reality, they were indeed relatives.

Na'er was the connection, and Xiao Mu was the school board member.

She was silent for two seconds, feeling that the upcoming grade promotion tournament was even more secure.

Just how strong must the students Wu Zhangkong brings up be to defeat my five two-ring Great Soul Masters?

Since he ruthlessly rejected me back then, I must make him look good.

Xiao Mu still felt bored. He didn't see Gu Yue, his eyes calm. There's still some time; if she doesn't come, I probably won't see Gu Yue.