"Qin Jiuxiao, don't think I'm afraid of you!"
"After I came back last time, I trained hard and broke through another level of Soul Power. So what if you're level 39?"
"With the quality of my White Tiger Martial Soul, I definitely won't lose to you."
Dai Mubai stood up, his muscles bulging and giving him quite an imposing presence.
But Qin Jiuxiao didn't waste words. He used Teleportation and appeared right in front of him.
Before Dai Mubai could react, Qin Jiuxiao threw two quick punches.
"Ah!"
Dai Mubai cried out and stumbled back two steps, clutching his eyes.
When he lowered his hands, two dark bruises were clearly visible.
The people around them gasped. They wanted to laugh, but pressed their lips together tightly, their bodies trembling.
Dai Mubai had done plenty of evil in the past, but they'd only ever dared to be angry in silence.
Seeing someone teach him a lesson now filled them with satisfaction.
Serves him right!
"Qin Jiuxiao, you're asking for death!"
"Third Soul Skill, White Tiger Vajra Transformation!"
He roared and charged forward, the White Tiger's claws swiping straight at Qin Jiuxiao. With his Soul Elder strength, he could even smash a rock to pieces.
But Qin Jiuxiao merely crouched down, plucked a blade of grass, and casually swung it.
An invisible sword aura tore through the air and severed the tiger's claw, causing the White Tiger Martial Soul to vanish along with it.
"Ah!"
Dai Mubai clutched his wrist. His entire hand had been cut off, and crimson blood splashed across the ground, a horrifying sight.
Nearby, Tang San's pupils narrowed as he watched. A chill ran down his back as he looked at Qin Jiuxiao.
That guy had gotten even stronger. What a razor-sharp sword aura.
And that was only a blade of grass. What if it had been a real sword?
If it were him, could he withstand it?
Seeing that things had gone far enough, Flender stepped forward.
"Everyone, today's enrollment is over!"
"We'll put the rules in writing later. There's no harm in waiting until they're posted before you come to sign up."
Flender sent everyone away, not wanting to keep embarrassing himself.
Then he went over to Dai Mubai and examined the wound, his heart jolting.
That brat Qin Jiuxiao had been far too ruthless.
If Dai Mubai didn't receive treatment in time, his hand would definitely give him trouble for the rest of his life.
"Old Li, take Mubai to find a healing-type Soul Master. Hurry and get that hand reattached."
Flender hurriedly told the old man to take Dai Mubai away, so he wouldn't have to keep appearing in front of Qin Jiuxiao.
The sturdy old man nodded at once, picked up Dai Mubai's severed hand, and hurried off with him.
Only then did Flender turn and smile at Qin Jiuxiao.
"Jiuxiao, do me a favor and stop picking on those kids."
Flender had a rough idea of Qin Jiuxiao's strength. He was at least a Soul King.
With a weapon like that on their side, even the outcome of the upcoming Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament was uncertain.
Compared to making Shrek famous, Dai Mubai's little mishap was nothing.
"Come, come. I'll take you straight to the final trial."
"In the Soul Master World, strength and talent are certainly important, but there's one other thing that matters too."
"That's combat experience."
"This fourth trial is the practical test we've prepared for you."
"It'll also be your first chance to work together."
But Flender began to fret. The original plan had been for Dai Mubai to conduct this final trial; the applicants only had to last a few moves against him.
But now Dai Mubai had been badly injured.
Who could conduct the test for the others?
As they walked, they soon reached a broad training ground.
A burly figure stood there with his eyes closed, resting. Even his arms were thicker than an ordinary person's thighs.
When Qin Jiuxiao and the others arrived, he slowly opened his eyes, a playful look in them.
"Well, well. We've got so many little monsters passing the test this year."
"And you're here too, Flender. Looks like these kids are pretty good."
"Good timing—I'm free. I'll handle the fourth trial this time. It's been ages since I've fought; I could use a stretch."
Zhao Wuji stood up, his hulking body cracking and popping.
Flender was still trying to signal him, but Zhao Wuji couldn't make heads or tails of it.
"Flender, did you get sand in your eyes?"
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."
As he spoke, he pulled Flender behind him and walked over to Qin Jiuxiao and the others.
"Little monsters, I'll be your opponent this time!"
"If you want to join the academy, you have one chance: last a stick of incense against me!"
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Zhao Wuji, a teacher at the academy. Outsiders call me the Immovable Wisdom King. I'm a level 76 Power Attack System Battle Soul Saint, and my Martial Soul is the Vajra Bear."
"You have three minutes to discuss your lineup and how you'll work together."
Zhao Wuji folded his arms and gave everyone a teasing once-over.
Seeing that Zhao Wuji hadn't understood him, Flender could only force a smile and say:
"I'll be watching from the side. Teacher Zhao won't kill you. You just need to hold out."
Then he shot Zhao Wuji a glare and warned him in a low voice:
"Old Zhao, don't you go acting like an idiot. These kids have powerful backers. You don't want their people coming after you."
Zhao Wuji waved him off, unconcerned. He despised people who relied on their background to get special treatment.
This time, he'd teach these young masters and young ladies a lesson.
Meanwhile,
The moment Tang San heard they could form teams, his eyes lit up.
He and Xiao Wu had experience working together. If they wanted to face a Soul Saint and get into the academy, Qin Jiuxiao probably had no way to help. They could only rely on Tang Sect's secret techniques.
And Xiao Wu had no choice but to team up with him.
He'd make Xiao Wu come begging to him!
Tang San crossed his arms and stayed still, but his gaze kept drifting toward Xiao Wu.
"Brother Jiuxiao, what should we do? He's a Soul Saint, and the Immovable Wisdom King is famous across the continent."
"Should we use the Martial Soul Fusion Skill like before?"
Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun came over to him, ready to perform their Martial Soul Fusion Skill at any moment.
But Qin Jiuxiao waved them off.
The Nine-Orifice Exquisite Heart he'd obtained from Ning Rongrong let him focus on several things at once.
"Zhuqing, Zhuyun, I'll lend you the power of my Fourth Soul Ring in a moment. You two can perform your Martial Soul Fusion Skill."
"Rongrong, you can use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with me too. I'll lend you the power of my Fifth Soul Ring as well."
"As for Xiao Wu, she'll team up with me. We'll attack together."
The girls' eyes widened at his words. Was something like that even possible?
Hu Liena had also overheard their plan.
She stared at Qin Jiuxiao in disbelief. He could perform Martial Soul Fusion Skills with all these girls, and even use them separately at the same time?
Could that really have been him in the battle before?
Once they'd settled their assignments, they all nodded and stepped forward together.
Seeing Xiao Wu standing beside Qin Jiuxiao without even sparing him a glance, Tang San panicked.
"Xiao Wu, why aren't you teaming up with me?"
But before Tang San could get close, Xiao Wu kicked him.
"Stay out of this!"
Tang San went flying from the kick.
As he struggled to say something, his eyes suddenly widened.
Five Soul Rings had appeared around Qin Jiuxiao.
Black, black, black, black, black!
Not just Tang San—even Flender, Zhao Wuji, and Hu Liena stood frozen in place.
Five rings!
Qin Jiuxiao was a Soul King, and every one of his Soul Rings was ten thousand years old!
Tang San shook his head and staggered backward. He'd thought he was a genius.
With the Mysterious Heaven Skill and Tang Sect's secret techniques, he'd thought he was the protagonist of the world.
But at that moment, he began to doubt himself.
His First Soul Ring was a hundred years old, while someone else's was ten thousand. How was he supposed to compete?
"I'm so damn awesome—wait, Yu Xiaogang, you've led me astray!"
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