The Secret Unlocked at Level Twenty?

Night.

Sea of Spirit.

The magnificent palace had vanished, replaced by a blood-soaked arena.

Tang Wulin stood on the gray-white stone floor, looking down at his hands. Slender knuckles, dark golden bloodline energy slowly flowing beneath his skin—this was the body he had possessed at his peak in his previous life. He remembered these hands wielding the Golden Dragon Spear and unleashing the Dragon Emperor Forbidden Art. He rolled his shoulders, stretching his spine from bottom to top until his joints cracked.

The Golden Dragon King stood thirty paces away. The dark golden patterns on his scales blended with the golden light of the dome. With his hands behind his back, he watched Tang Wulin with crimson eyes. "Are you used to this body yet?"

"More or less."

"Then move. Let this king see just how much of my legacy you inherited in your previous life."

Tang Wulin spread open his right hand at his side. The Golden Dragon Spear condensed in his palm, its shaft shifting from illusion to solid form. Dark golden patterns flowed from the spearhead to its tail. The instant its tip pointed at the ground, the floor sank half an inch.

He moved. Without retreating, he pressed straight forward. The spearhead swept close to the ground, sending shattered stones into a gray-white line that sliced toward the Golden Dragon King's ankles.

The Golden Dragon King twisted aside. Using the momentum, Tang Wulin spun, bringing the spear's tail around in a sweeping strike at his waist. The Golden Dragon King raised a hand to block. Scales struck the spearshaft, scattering dark golden sparks.

Tang Wulin did not pause. He flipped the spear and slid it along the edge of the Golden Dragon King's palm. The spearhead hooked back and thrust straight for his ribs. This strike was half a beat faster than the last. He loosened his elbow, sending the force through more smoothly. The spearhead grazed the edge of the scales, spraying sparks and leaving a pale mark along the Golden Dragon King's side.

The Golden Dragon King took two steps back and steadied himself. He lowered his head to glance at the pale mark beneath his ribs, then looked back up at Tang Wulin. "That one was decent."

Tang Wulin did not respond. The Golden Dragon Spear spun in his hand, its tip once again pointing to the ground. The Golden Dragon King spoke, his voice lowering. "You have the form of this strike, but do you know why this king makes you train at night?"

Tang Wulin looked up at him. The Golden Dragon King's crimson eyes narrowed slightly. "Do you remember the ending of that Silver Dragon Clone from your previous life?"

The fingers gripping Tang Wulin's spearshaft twitched, but he said nothing.

"This king has given you this authority. What you need to do is win everyone over, and strength is the only way." The Golden Dragon King watched him. "The demand is not high. Before they fuse, we will go to the Star Dou Great Forest and beat every ferocious beast into submission. Make them acknowledge us and understand that we have another solution. Do you understand?"

"I understand." The light in Tang Wulin's eyes dimmed somewhat. This was far from a simple task.

"Continue. Use every technique you figured out on your own. Let this king see how much you truly developed in your previous life."

Tang Wulin put away the Golden Dragon Spear. He brought his hands together, and bloodline energy surged from the depths of his Trunk Bone. Dark golden light spread from his palms, flowing up his forearms to his shoulders before condensing into a dragon-shaped phantom behind him. Its head was raised high, its mouth slightly open, its eyes half-lidded. The patterns of its scales were no different from those of a true dragon. A ring of fine cracks spread across the arena floor beneath Tang Wulin's feet.

He sank his wrists and pressed down. The dragon phantom detached from his back and slammed toward the Golden Dragon King, wrapped in the force of his bloodline. The instant the dark golden light exploded, rubble on the ground was blasted into the air and hung suspended.

The Golden Dragon King did not dodge. He raised a hand to meet the dragon phantom. The moment it struck his palm, dark golden light burst outward from the point of impact. The shockwave flung the suspended stones away, smashing them into the arena walls. The Golden Dragon King was pushed back half a step by that force—only half a step, but he had indeed retreated.

He stood there, watching the remaining dark golden patterns in his palm slowly fade. Then he spoke slowly. "What is this move called?"

"Dragon Emperor Break." Tang Wulin took two breaths, though his shoulders remained steady. "I named it myself."

"You developed it yourself?"

"Yes."

The Golden Dragon King fell silent for a moment. He looked at Tang Wulin, something churning in his crimson eyes. Only after a long while did he speak. "The form is right, and the power is sufficient. There is a blocked meridian in your right arm—go back and open it yourself. This move can become thirty percent faster. Show this king the remaining forms tomorrow night."

Tang Wulin said nothing and merely nodded. The lingering glow of the dragon phantom was slowly dispersing around him, dark golden motes drifting down from the air.

The Golden Dragon King looked at him. "You cannot bring out this kind of power outside because that body is still too small. Your soul power level is not high enough, and your meridians are too narrow. But you already have the form. When the time comes for you to truly stand alongside the Silver Dragon Clone, these things will return to your hands."

"I know," Tang Wulin said.

The Golden Dragon King turned and walked two steps toward the dark golden curtain of light without looking back. "Come again tomorrow night. Finish the rest of your forms, and let this king see how far you have truly come."

"Also, this king discovered something remarkable within your body. It should have become a vessel for my power in your previous life. Once you break through to two rings, see whether you can use it."

Tang Wulin did not respond. The Golden Dragon King was often like this; even if Tang Wulin asked, he would not explain.

The curtain of light closed, and the dark golden radiance of the arena gradually dimmed. Tang Wulin stood where he was, evening out his breathing. He looked down at his hands, his fingertips still trembling slightly. The location of that meridian and the Golden Dragon King's words both remained in his mind. He clenched his fist, then slowly released it.

When he closed his eyes and opened them again, he was already lying back on his dormitory bed. A gray glow had appeared beyond the window, and birds called in the distance. He lay still, staring at the ceiling. Only after a while did he turn over and sit up. His knee cracked as he put on his shoes, and then he pushed open the door and left.

There were not many people in the cafeteria. Tang Wulin sat in his usual spot with a bowl of porridge. He had barely taken a sip when Xie Xie sat down across from him with a tray. The sound was loud enough to make the people at the next table look over. "Did you not sleep well again last night? Those dark circles are practically hanging to your mouth. Tang Wulin, what exactly do you do at night?"

"Sleep."

"You can sleep yourself into this state?"

"Why do you talk so much?"

Gu Yue sat down beside them with her bowl. Its bottom tapped the table as she set it down. Xie Xie turned to look at her, then looked back at Tang Wulin. "What has been going on with you two lately? I say one thing about him, and you tap your bowl."

Gu Yue scooped up a spoonful of porridge and put it into her mouth. "I did not tap the bowl."

"You just did."

"That was the bowl touching the table."

Xie Xie stared at her for two seconds, then stared at Tang Wulin for two more. Leaning back against his chair, he said, "Fine, fine, fine. Pretend I said nothing. Carry on."

Afternoon.

They watched as Long Bing pushed Wu Changkong, who should have been standing in the middle of the field crushing their hopes, off to the side instead.

The three of them had seen her before, but Gu Yue did not know her. Tang Wulin's attention had been entirely on Gu Yue at the time, while Xie Xie had been exhausted and sitting on the ground, so he had not noticed her either.

"Th-that is still Teacher Wu, right?" Xie Xie complained.

"He is actually smiling," Gu Yue said as well.

Tang Wulin came to his senses. "Could that be... Master's wife?"