So Good

The scales absorbed the full force of the impact, channeling it along the faint golden patterns on the surface of his skin before gathering it in his right arm.

Chen An gripped the Thousandfold Forging Hammers in his right hand and swept them out in a horizontal strike, landing precisely on Tang Wuling's abdomen.

A gentle yet irresistible force erupted.

Tang Wuling was suddenly launched into the air and violently sent flying.

In every battle before this, she had always crushed her opponents with sheer physical strength. This was the first time she had been sent flying head-on.

Yet the excruciating pain she expected never came.

She lightly twisted through the air, dispersing the remaining force, and finally planted both feet firmly on the arena floor. Her clothes were slightly disheveled, but her breathing remained steady.

"Hm? That didn't hurt?"

The instant the hammer touched her body, a streak of incomparably pure white reverse soul power silently swept from Chen An's palm, vanishing in an instant.

He had already secretly used the Reverse Cursed Technique, erasing all injuries caused by the attack. Only the force that sent her flying remained, leaving her completely unharmed.

With the first exchange over, Chen An felt that no matter how he fought, things would not end well.

He could not afford to provoke a formidable figure like Gu Yue. She would start huffing at him after the match.

Deliberately losing would be far too obvious. So many people were watching below. If Soul Rings could adjust their own levels, he could at least get away with only using a hundred-year Soul Ring.

After giving it some thought, Chen An came up with an idea. He did not know whether it would work, but he would have to make use of Gu Yue.

He abruptly relaxed his precise suppression of soul power and raised his output to level nineteen.

A vast amount of dense soul power flooded into the scales on the surface of his body, and over a hundred crimson scales detached from his skin.

They swirled around Chen An without any pattern, scattering and dancing through the air, occasionally even slicing across the ground.

On the other side of the arena, Gu Yue had just broken free of her disordered soul power when her gaze turned cold.

Chen An controlled the scales as they charged toward the two girls, while Tang Wuling also took the initiative to approach him.

But halfway there, Chen An stopped. Some of the scales began gathering together, forming a shield-like shape that rammed toward Tang Wuling.

Tang Wuling swung her hammer. The scales broke apart along the trajectory of her strike, then gathered again and charged once more, seemingly trying to knock Tang Wuling out of bounds.

Chen An manipulated the other scales into hidden weapons and fired them directly at Gu Yue.

Gu Yue focused intently, using the three elements of fire, earth, and wind to intercept every last one.

Then several fish scales suddenly broke through the defenses and flew toward her. They were not particularly fast, and she lightly sidestepped them.

Judging by their trajectories, every one of them had been aimed at vital points! A trace of anger rose in Gu Yue's heart.

Chen An stood at just the right distance and smiled.

"Caught the bait."

Gu Yue looked at his punchable expression. It was nothing but blatant provocation.

Tang Wuling had just scattered the shield-shaped scales when she sensed something was wrong. She turned back and glanced behind her. "Gu Yue?"

Multiple elements rose simultaneously in Gu Yue's palms. A fierce wind suddenly swept across the arena as dense elemental power frantically gathered.

Above the arena, scales and armor filled the sky on one side, while elements surged on the other.

A wide-ranging combined elemental attack was already poised to strike, ready to tear apart the scaled armor around Chen An head-on.

After several previous clashes, exchanges between soul skills and elements, and Chen An's attack containing Ripple soul power, the arena floor was already covered in fine cracks.

Ordinarily, it would not have been a problem, but Chen An was still secretly injecting Ripples into the arena, causing the cracks to spread.

The foundation trembled, and multiple sections had already loosened. No one knew whether it could withstand the next few exchanges.

"Stop! Everyone stop!"

At the critical moment, Director Long Hengxu immediately stepped forward and shouted sharply, his voice piercing through the entire venue.

"The arena has suffered severe damage. Continuing this match could easily result in a safety incident! This match is terminated immediately!"

His gaze swept across the cracked arena before shifting to the three people facing off against one another. Deep down, he was shocked.

The final battle of the first years had nearly shattered the arena. These children's talent and explosive power had already far surpassed those of their peers.

At the referee's command, the boiling venue gradually calmed. The spectators were still unsatisfied, but they could only let it go.

This highly anticipated Class Advancement Tournament ultimately came to an abrupt end, with no one defeated and no one achieving complete victory.

Inside the teachers' office.

Long Hengxu, Ye Yingluo, and Wu Changkong had gathered together to discuss the final evaluation and class placement results for this Class Advancement Tournament.

"This year's first years are the most talented in recent memory."

Long Hengxu rubbed his brow, his tone filled with emotion.

"Tang Wuling's physical body is incredibly powerful, and Gu Yue's elemental control is impressive. But the biggest surprise is Chen An. He has only been enrolled for a short time and has never entered the Spirit Ascension Platform, yet he already possesses a Millennium Soul Ring."

"Then there has to be a result, even if the tournament was ended early."

After speaking, Ye Yingluo glanced sideways at the silent Wu Changkong beside her. She still hoped to preserve Class One's title.

Understanding what she meant, Wu Changkong said coldly, "Then hold another match. I do not believe my students will lose."

Long Hengxu pondered.

"The three of them are far beyond their peers in strength. With the destructive power they displayed today, the arena on the field will not withstand it. If we move the match to the training grounds..."

The fingers tapping on his desk suddenly stopped. He had an idea.

After the match, Ye Yingluo also sought out Chen An alone and asked about his Soul Ring.

Chen An brushed her off with excuses about his martial soul's special characteristics, how the Soul Spirit he fused with had become part of his martial soul, how his spiritual power had previously been too weak for his Soul Ring to advance, and so on.

As he calmly walked out of the teachers' office, Chen An let out a breath.

He had not caused too much trouble. The plot was more or less back on track.

The moment he turned around, he spotted a figure sneakily pressed against the wall at the corner of the corridor, peeking around it. It was Xie Xie.

Noticing Chen An's gaze, Xie Xie immediately froze.

"What are you doing?" Chen An asked helplessly.

Xie Xie instantly straightened up and rushed over. He grabbed Chen An's hand and vigorously shook it up and down, his face full of amazement and admiration.

"Brother Chen! You've really been hiding your strength! A Millennium Soul Ring!"

"Cut it out. I have things to do." Chen An helplessly pulled his hand free.

"It's fine, it's fine. I'm free!"

Xie Xie immediately sidled up to him with a cheeky grin.

"Are you going to the cafeteria? Perfect, I'm hungry too. Let's go together!"

Chen An could not be bothered to refuse and followed him forward for a couple of steps.

"I've worked really hard these past few days and reached the Two-Ring Realm. I thought I could exchange a few more moves with you, but who would've thought..."

Who would have thought that the moment they rounded the corner, another cool figure was quietly leaning against the wall.

Gu Yue stood with one arm folded across her chest. Her eyes were slightly cold as she lazily raised them to look over. Her gaze was calm and unreadable, yet it carried an indescribable scrutiny and aloofness.

"Again? Is this corner some kind of respawn point?" Chen An complained.

Xie Xie's gaze darted between the two of them. He instantly sensed the subtle atmosphere and wisely stopped in his tracks.

"Uh, well... I suddenly remembered I have something urgent to do. I'll be leaving first!"

Before his words had even faded, Xie Xie turned and vanished in a flash, leaving only the two of them facing each other in the corridor.

Wind slipped in through the gaps in the corridor windows, gently stirring the hems of their clothes. The atmosphere instantly fell silent.

"Um..."

Chen An unconsciously scratched his arm.

I need to find a way to calm her down.

"Gu Yue, do you want to get something to eat?"

Gu Yue let out a snort, seeming amused despite her anger. "You actually dared to aim at my head in the arena? Do you think changing the subject will work?"

"It tastes pretty good."

Gu Yue picked up another skewer of meat and copied Chen An's way of biting down and pulling out the bamboo stick. After swallowing, she wiped the corner of her mouth with a tissue.

She sat perfectly straight, carrying herself like a princess visiting the countryside, her manner of eating elegant.