Encountering an Acquaintance

As soon as Xiao Mu finished speaking, two men and one woman emerged from the shadows of the trees.

He did not recognize the two boys, who appeared to be fifteen or sixteen, but he certainly recognized the girl. She had long golden hair tied into a ponytail, a slender figure, and an air of arrogance between her brows.

Come to think of it, it was quite a coincidence; this person was none other than Mu Xi.

He hadn't run into Tang Wulin, but he had bumped into them instead.

At this moment, a fireball resembling a sun hovered above Mu Xi's head. The red light from earlier had clearly been emitted by her.

It had to be said that Mu Xi's Blazing Sun martial soul was extremely powerful, functioning much like a long-range cannon. Her spirit rings were no longer two, but three.

A three-ringed Spirit Venerable!

"Xiao Mu?" Mu Xi froze, the fireball trembling slightly above her head. "Why are you here?"

"That's what I should be asking you." Xiao Mu flipped a coin between his fingers. "A fifth-year student, coming to the Riot Spirit Ascension Platform? Aren't you afraid of being logged out early?"

The corner of Mu Xi's mouth twitched. "What do I have to fear? I can come to the Riot Spirit Ascension Platform this year, and I can come next year, too."

She sneered, "On the contrary, I've been wanting to beat you up for a long time!"

"Is that so?" Xiao Mu felt the remark was neither painful nor itchy. "There are plenty of people who want to beat me up; you're not the only one. Can you even beat me?"

"Also, are you a third-rank Blacksmith yet?"

Mu Xi was stunned upon hearing this; the man was actually speaking human language.

"What?"

"I asked you, have you broken through to a third-rank Blacksmith yet?"

Mu Xi's expression changed. The fireball in her palm trembled violently, like a sun on the verge of exploding.

"Can you not bring that up?"

The fireball suddenly surged, erupting from the sphere above her head like a real sun crashing toward Xiao Mu.

Xiao Mu did not show the slightest panic; this level of heat couldn't hope to hurt him.

A force field expanded around his body like an invisible membrane, abruptly reducing the fireball's speed. Thermal energy was stripped away, kinetic energy was absorbed, and the flames twisted, dimmed, and rapidly extinguished within the field.

"This attack is useless."

Mu Xi's pupils constricted as a second and third fireball were fired in succession. Her two companions also attacked simultaneously; one was an earth-attribute spirit master, and earth-yellow rock spikes burst from the ground. The other possessed a Wind Wolf martial soul, and cyan wind blades wove into a net in the air.

All of them were swallowed by the force field.

"Mu Xi, if this is all you've got, don't waste your energy." Xiao Mu looked at her and sighed suddenly.

He didn't flick the coin; it didn't matter whether he used it or not.

He asked in the depths of his heart, "True Monarch, I'll borrow your power."

A lazy voice replied, "Take it and use it as you please."

Xiao Mu raised his head, and golden light suddenly ignited in his eyes.

Flames surged from within his body, golden fire wrapping around him entirely. The surrounding air twisted instantly, the temperature rising as if a scorching sun had crashed into the ground.

The next fireball Mu Xi launched had only flown halfway; before it could even get close, it was directly swallowed by that true fire.

Fire meeting fire, the disparity was clear at a glance.

Xiao Mu stood amidst the golden light, not having moved an inch.

"Xiao Mu, you can control fire?" Gu Yue looked at Xiao Mu's golden eyes and the golden flames surrounding him, unable to help but ask.

"I can. I've always been able to." Xiao Mu looked at Gu Yue. "I just couldn't be bothered to use it before."

He looked at his opponents and continued, "Na'er, you handle the one on the left."

"Understood."

Na'er responded and charged out immediately. The Silver Dragon Spear rotated half a turn in her palm, the tip carving a silver arc as it went straight for the boy with the Wind Wolf martial soul.

The boy's figure blurred in place, cyan wind blades condensing in his palms as he attempted to win through speed—

But Na'er's spear technique was faster.

A silver flash flickered, the spear tip piercing through a gap in the wind blades and stabbing into his shoulder. Blood sprayed, the boy's pupils constricted, and his body stiffened in agony.

Na'er withdrew the spear, the butt of the weapon sweeping horizontally to strike his temple.

"Bang—"

After a loud thud, the boy flew backward, his figure twisting and dissipating in the air—he had been knocked out of the Spirit Ascension Platform.

"So weak!" Na'er looked disgusted.

Gu Yue attacked at the same time. Multiple elements converged in her palms; Wind Bind, Rock Spike, and Water Entangle were activated simultaneously, trapping the earth-attribute spirit master in place.

The boy roared, earth-yellow light surging in his palms as rock spikes burst from the ground, attempting to break free.

But what right did he have to compete with the Silver Dragon King in elements?

"Fire, come!"

A crimson flame surged from Gu Yue's palm—not as an attack, but as a source of heat.

The rock spikes shattered in the high heat, fragments scattering like bullets. The earth-attribute soul master let out a miserable scream as his body was pierced by the shards, twisting in the air before dissipating.

"It's over!" Gu Yue's elemental energy slowly calmed in her palm as she turned her gaze toward the last person.

Mu Xi stood frozen in place, watching as her two companions were instantly blasted out of the Spirit Ascension Platform. Looking at the golden flames surrounding Xiao Mu, she could already clearly feel the suppression of her martial soul.

"Is this the strength of the Zero Class?" She couldn't help but gasp; the gap in strength was simply too vast.

"Now it's your turn!" Xiao Mu said in a calm tone.

He raised his hand, and golden flames condensed in his palm like a miniature sun. Mu Xi instinctively retreated, her martial soul trembling; she couldn't release her fireball no matter how hard she tried.

"Senior Sister Mu Xi, see you at the academy."

The flames flew out, the golden-red light piercing through the forest, vaporizing the trees along its path. The ground melted in an instant, forming a scorching trench.

Mu Xi only had time to cross her arms in front of her chest before she was swallowed by the heatwave. By the moment the radiance of the flames vanished, she was gone.

She had already disappeared from the Spirit Ascension Platform.

In another part of the forest, Tang Wulin's group of four had just finished another battle.

Xie Xie's Light Dragon Dagger flipped between his fingers, Zhang Yangzi's martial soul slowly retracted into his body, and Wang Jinxi's Bone Dragon skeleton gradually withdrew back into his frame.

"That light just now was..." Tang Wulin suddenly spoke up.

"It must be Xiao Mu! Only he could cause such a huge commotion," Xie Xie said excitedly, feeling as if he had found a safe zone.

"Let's go quickly," Tang Wulin said, turning to run in the direction where the firelight had risen.

"This should be a battle, won't we just be in the way if we go over?" Zhang Yangzi couldn't help but say.

"What are you afraid of? The battle will be over by the time we get there!" Xie Xie retorted.

"That's true, Xiao Mu's strength is not on the same level as ours," Zhang Yangzi admitted.

It was a completely overwhelming level of strength.

He possessed formidable self-preservation methods, powerful offensive capabilities, and extreme speed.

He even had support abilities; if he just had healing, he would be a perfect all-rounder.

Just as Xie Xie was about to say something more, his feet suddenly faltered.

In the bushes ahead, a pair of orange-yellow eyes were staring at him.

Then came a second pair, a third, and a fourth. A pride of Flame Lions slowly emerged from the shadows of the forest, dark red sparks dancing on their manes, their throats emitting low, vibrating growls.

The air went silent for a second.

"Run!" Tang Wulin shouted in a low voice.

The four of them turned simultaneously and bolted toward Xiao Mu's direction. Behind them, the roar of the lion pride erupted, and flames surged violently through the woods.