A Single Halberd Ends It, Yan Is Knocked Off the Arena

"Roar!"

A dragon's roar rang out.

Xiao Jin and Yan stood extremely close to each other.

Golden mental ripples crashed head-on into Yan's mind.

The Flame Lord martial soul was a top-tier assault-type martial soul, but its mental defense was not particularly outstanding.

Yan only felt an explosion beside his ears.

The arena, the flames, and Chu Jin all blurred before his eyes.

His movements stalled for an instant.

That instant was exactly what Chu Jin had been waiting for.

The heavy halberd did not strike Yan's thick rock armor over his chest.

Instead, the halberd shaft swept low along the ground.

Bang!

It struck the back of Yan's right knee with precision.

The soul power in his right leg was in a gap between transitions.

The rock armor there was also far weaker than that on his upper body.

Yan abruptly lost his balance, and his right knee slammed heavily into the ground.

His mind quickly recovered.

Just as he raised an arm to push himself up, Chu Jin had already spun the heavy halberd.

The full force of its eight-hundred-jin weight was unleashed through the momentum of the sweep.

The blunt end of the halberd slammed into Yan's chest.

Boom!

The granite armor shattered on the spot.

Yan's body left the ground, flying sideways from the center of the arena like a massive boulder that had been blasted away.

Bang!

He crashed heavily onto the stone slabs outside the arena.

His body slid another several meters backward before barely coming to a stop.

The Spirit Battle Arena fell silent in an instant.

From the activation of Holy Dragon Soul Suppression to Yan being sent flying off the arena, only three breaths had passed.

The referee teacher came to his senses and quickly went to Yan's side to examine him.

The rock armor had blocked most of the force for him.

There was still obvious bruising on his chest, and breathing was somewhat difficult.

There were no broken bones, much less any internal injuries.

Chu Jin had held back with that final halberd strike.

The referee raised a hand.

"Yan has left the arena."

"Chu Jin wins."

The silence in the spectator stands was soon broken by discussion.

"It's over?"

"Yan had been suppressing him the whole time. How did he lose in an instant?"

"Mental control followed by an attack on a weakness."

"Chu Jin had been watching Yan's right leg from the start."

"That external beast martial soul is way too annoying. Yan had no way to defend against both sides at once."

Qian Renxue was not surprised by the result.

She had sparred with Chu Jin more than anyone else.

She knew very well what role his double pupils played in battle.

Chu Jin rarely sought to knock an opponent down with a single attack.

He preferred to observe and probe continuously, then end the battle at the most suitable moment.

Hu Liena, meanwhile, was watching Xiao Jin.

"The power of Holy Dragon Soul Suppression has increased again."

Xie Yue nodded.

"A year ago, it could only make a Great Soul Master more than ten levels higher pause for a breath."

"Now Yan is already level twenty-seven, and his martial soul is of higher quality, yet he was still affected for an instant."

"As Xiao Jin grows, this soul skill will become more and more troublesome."

Outside the arena.

Yan had already sat up from the ground.

The academy's healing soul master hurried over, and healing light fell onto his chest. The pain quickly eased.

Yan looked toward the arena.

Chu Jin had already put Xiao Jin away and was securing the heavy halberd back into the rack on his back.

"Wait!"

Yan pushed the healing soul master aside and stood back up.

The referee frowned.

"The match is already over."

"I know."

Yan walked to the edge of the arena.

"Chu Jin."

"I was only interrupted by your mental soul skill just now, which was why you caught that opportunity."

"Do you dare fight another match without using your first soul skill?"

The arena fell silent once more.

Some thought Yan could not accept his loss.

Others felt his words made sense.

When an assault-type soul master did not understand the effects of Holy Dragon Soul Suppression, being suddenly controlled for an instant could indeed easily result in defeat.

Chu Jin looked at Yan.

"Sure."

Yan's eyes lit up.

"Right now."

"But we'll change the wager."

"What do you want?"

Chu Jin removed the heavy halberd from his back again.

"I won't use my first soul skill in the second match."

"If you lose, then whenever you face an unfamiliar enemy in the future, you are not allowed to use not being prepared as an excuse."

Yan's expression darkened.

"You think what I said just now was an excuse?"

"Not understanding your enemy before a battle is your own problem."

Chu Jin's tone was calm.

"A real enemy will not write down all their abilities on paper and hand it to you before making a move."

Yan opened his mouth.

For a moment, he could not refute him.

Holy Dragon Soul Suppression had not appeared out of nowhere.

The basic effects of Chu Jin's first soul ring were recorded in the academy's files.

Yan only knew it was mental intimidation, but he had never truly studied its range or activation method.

He believed that his level was higher and that the Flame Lord martial soul possessed greater strength.

As long as he suppressed Chu Jin head-on, Chu Jin would have no chance to use any other abilities.

Yet it was precisely this judgment that led to his defeat.

Xie Yue came down from the spectator stands.

"Yan."

"You've already lost."

Yan turned to look at him.

"I can still fight."

"If you fight again and Chu Jin does not use Holy Dragon Soul Suppression, does that mean you will definitely win?"

Xie Yue's tone was extremely calm.

"He never used Overlord Army from the beginning."

"After the battle in River Valley Town, that ability can already enhance his own attributes."

"Do you know exactly how much it can increase them?"

Yan fell silent.

He did not know.

Aside from Overlord Army, he was equally unaware whether Chu Jin had any other hidden methods.

The battle just now had already proven that he understood this opponent far too little.

"I concede."

Yan looked at Chu Jin again.

This time, there was no unwillingness or anger in him.

"The right to use the high-level cultivation room belongs to you."

"For the next three months, I will no longer question your treatment."

Chu Jin put away the heavy halberd.

"The fire-attribute cultivation room is not very useful to me."

Yan frowned.

"You don't want it?"

"How long is the cultivation room vacant each day?"

"Two hours after noon."

"I only need one hour."

Chu Jin said, "You can cultivate during the other hour yourself."

Yan froze.

The wager had originally been for the full usage rights.

Chu Jin had won, yet he would only use half of it.

"Are you pitying me?"

"I'm planning to test Xiao Jin's adaptability to high-temperature environments."

"One hour a day is enough."

Chu Jin walked down from the arena.

"Leaving the remaining time empty would be a waste."

Yan watched his retreating back.

He wanted to say something, but in the end, he only snorted coldly.

"Whatever."

The match ended.

The doubts Chu Jin had caused upon entering the academy on his first day quickly diminished.

After witnessing the battle firsthand, most students had already acknowledged that he truly possessed combat ability beyond his current level.

Some still felt the Consecration Hall had given him too many resources.

But they no longer dared say Chu Jin relied solely on connections.

That afternoon.

As agreed, Chu Jin entered Yan's fire-attribute cultivation room.

The walls were built from volcanic rock, and the array beneath the floor continuously released fire-attribute soul power. The temperature was far higher than outside.

Xiao Jin was extremely excited the moment it entered.

It opened its mouth and devoured the fire-attribute energy in the air.

In less than half an hour, its belly had visibly swollen.

After recording the changes, Chu Jin immediately stopped the test.

Yan arrived outside the door early.

"So soon?"

"Xiao Jin's current absorption limit for fire-attribute energy is not high."

"Continuing to eat would affect its digestion."

Chu Jin put away his record book.

"The cultivation room is yours again."

Yan entered the room and saw that the fire-attribute soul power inside was somewhat thinner than before.

Xiao Jin had indeed swallowed quite a lot just now.

"You keep records every day?"

"Mm."

"What a hassle."

Though Yan said that, his gaze lingered on the record book a while longer.

His Flame Lord martial soul also possessed growth potential.

It was just that his past cultivation had mostly followed the arrangements of the academy and Papal Hall, and he had rarely recorded changes in soul power under different environments himself.

As Chu Jin was about to leave, Xie Yue stood at the end of the corridor.

He had clearly been waiting for some time.

"Something wrong?"

Chu Jin asked.

"I've finished watching the duel."

Xie Yue held two Moon Blades in his arms.

"I want to see just how strong your team command really is."

Chu Jin stopped walking.

"How do we compete?"

"Five against five."

Xie Yue said, "Nana and I will lead three upperclassmen."

"You pick four people from the lower grades on short notice."

Yan raised a brow.

"The two of you against the makeshift team he puts together?"

"That's why it's a test of command."

Xie Yue looked at Chu Jin.

"Do you dare accept?"

Chu Jin did not answer immediately.

"When?"

"Tomorrow afternoon."

"Give me one night to choose my people."

"Fine."

Xie Yue turned and left.

Yan glanced at Chu Jin.

"Both he and Hu Liena have soul power close to rank thirty."

"The other three are at least rank twenty-five."

"The people you choose from the lower grades may not even be rank twenty."

Chu Jin nodded.

"That's what makes it interesting."