The Strongest One in the Team

"Boss, we should get going, right?" Xie Xie panted. The Light Dragon Dagger had already returned to his palm. The flush on his face from absorbing the Dark-Gold Dreadclaw Bear's energy had not completely faded, but his voice was much steadier than before, as though he had recovered from an intense battle.

Tang Wulin stood at the very front of the team without answering. His gaze remained fixed on where the Dark-Gold Dreadclaw Bear had vanished. The lingering dark-gold motes of light were gradually fading, like ashes slowly scattered by the wind. He went through the timeline again in his mind. It was the end of the term now, and this was their first time entering the Spirit Ascension Platform. The Dark-Gold Dreadclaw Bear should not have died at this point—according to his memories of his previous life, it should have been killed only after Xu Xiaoyan joined them. But the question was, why had Xu Xiaoyan still not appeared?

He quickly understood why. The energy fluctuations had been too violent—the aura released during that battle had already covered more than half of the Spirit Ascension Platform. A three-ring Soul Elder with a one-ring younger sister would never risk approaching at a time like this. Tang Wulin withdrew his gaze and spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear. "Everyone, get ready. Once you're done absorbing, we'll retreat toward the outskirts."

Dense strands of energy seeped into their bodies, spreading warmly through their meridians. Their Soul Power slowly rose, while their soul spirits gradually grew under the nourishment of that energy. Tang Wulin lowered his head to sense the changes within himself, then the corner of his mouth twitched. "Jinyu, why hasn't your cultivation age increased? You ate quite a lot too."

"Hiss, hiss, hiss." Jinyu's voice came from his soul ring, carrying a lazy, matter-of-fact tone, as if saying, That little bit isn't even enough to fill the gaps between my teeth.

"What do you mean, it's too low-level?" Tang Wulin's face darkened. "I killed a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast for you—" He paused. "Stay away from the Golden Dragon King in the future. He's led you astray."

The Golden Dragon King's voice sounded in his mind at just the right moment, filled with offended displeasure. "When have I ever led it astray?"

"It was you."

The Golden Dragon King did not respond again. In less than an hour, everyone had finished absorbing. Because the Dark-Gold Dreadclaw Bear soul bone had altered his physique, Xie Xie's second soul ring had already entered the thousand-year level. He looked down at the faintly purple soul ring beneath his feet as if confirming something, then raised his head with a barely restrained smile. Zhang Yangzi looked at him and Tang Wulin. "You two are terrifying."

Hearing Zhang Yangzi praise only himself and Tang Wulin, Xie Xie glanced at Gu Yue and unconsciously quickened his pace by two steps. "Well, looks like I accidentally stole someone's spotlight."

Gu Yue stopped walking. She stood at the edge of the shade, where sunlight spread a few steps in front of her, turning the ground bright white. She did not turn around or respond. She simply stood there, like someone unexpectedly tripped up by a voice. Tang Wulin walked over, crossed through the light, took her hand, and led her from the glaring sunlight into the shade. "I know all about your strength. I've always known." His voice was soft, as if stating something he had long understood. "You're the strongest."

Gu Yue shook off his hand, her face flushing. "Stop talking nonsense. Don't think that'll make me happy." After saying that, she walked ahead, moving a little faster than usual with her back to him.

Xie Xie sidled over and lowered his voice. "Hehe, Boss, you gave yourself away."

"Yeah. So what?" Tang Wulin did not lower his voice.

"Wow, Boss, we're still young. Your talent is so good—what if someday—"

"Alright, I get it. Thank you, Teacher Xie Xie." Tang Wulin cut him off, sounding slightly helpless.

The Golden Dragon King added in his mind, "You're exactly the sort who needs educating."

Tang Wulin ignored him. Maintaining their formation, they began retreating toward the outskirts. The terrain gradually became more open, and their view to either side grew much wider. The dense tree canopies had receded into the distance, as if slowly giving way. This kind of terrain was suitable for ambushes—without cover, anyone who wanted to make a move would spot them from far away, and they would spot their opponent from far away as well.

Zhang Yangzi fell back from the front of the group and lowered his voice. "Report. Two soul masters spotted. Blue hair, ice element. One is a one-ring girl, and the other's cultivation is impossible to read." He glanced at Tang Wulin. "Captain, what do we do?"

The corners of Tang Wulin's mouth lifted slightly. He turned his head to look at Zhang Yangzi instead of answering him, then asked, "Zhang Yangzi, who do you think is the strongest person in our team?"

Zhang Yangzi froze. "Obviously you. Who else could it—"

"You lot," a voice from the cliff interrupted Zhang Yangzi. The blue-haired boy stood on the only high ground, his clothes fluttering in the wind as he crossed his arms and looked down at them. "Hand over your energy if you know what's good for you." Half a head peeked out from behind him. The girl's braid swayed in the wind, and her curious eyes examined the people below.

Tang Wulin raised his head to meet his gaze. "And if we don't?"

"Don't?" The blue-haired boy's lips curled. "Then I'll beat you all back out."

Gu Yue stepped forward. "Leave it to me."

She walked to the front of the team and looked up at the figure on the cliff. A faint violet light flickered deep in her pupils, and the temperature in the air began to slowly drop. Xie Xie's voice came from behind her. "Gu Yue, you—"

"Trust her," Tang Wulin said.

Gu Yue raised her right hand, her fingertips drawing an arc through the air. Ice and water elements in the air began gathering toward her at the same time, condensing into a visible white glow around her. Her long hair slowly drifted behind her, its tips glittering with tiny motes of light. The blue-haired boy across from her still had his arms crossed, and the curve of his lips did not fade.

He began gathering Soul Power. The two soul rings beneath his feet lit up at once, and icy blue light spread upward along his arms, forming an ice staff in his palm. The tip of the staff pointed at Gu Yue as a layer of pale blue ice rapidly took shape, rings of white mist spreading through the surrounding air as it formed.

Gu Yue did not retreat, and her movements did not stop. More and more ice elements in the air were breaking away from Xu Xiaoyu's control and drifting toward her—not seized by force, but as though they had found somewhere they preferred to remain.

"Trying to wrest control of the elements from the Silver Dragon? Interesting, kid." The Golden Dragon King sneered.

A layer of ice condensed at the tip of Xu Xiaoyu's staff, and he pushed it forward. The instant it left the staff, it transformed into an icy blue beam that surged toward Gu Yue along the ground at incredible speed, leaving a thin layer of frost over the earth in its wake.

Gu Yue did not dodge. She merely turned her right hand slightly. The beam began to slow when it was still two steps away from her. Cracks appeared along its edges, then it shattered from the center, breaking into countless tiny shards of ice that scattered across the ground.

Xu Xiaoyu's expression changed. His ice staff drew a second arc through the air, and this time, three ice spikes shot toward Gu Yue from different directions.

Their paths crossed through the air as though weaving a net. Gu Yue remained where she was. As the three ice spikes neared her, they seemed to strike something soft. Their speed slowed one after another, and then they all stopped in midair at the same instant, hanging there without moving forward. She glanced at the ice spikes, and they began to melt. Droplets fell to the ground, darkening small patches of the dry soil.

Xu Xiaoyu retreated half a step. He raised his ice staff again, gathering more ice elements at its tip. But this time, he felt the ice elements in the air growing fewer, their flow toward him slowing. Before Xu Xiaoyu's second wave of attacks could fully form, it was interrupted—the ice elements he had gathered scattered halfway through, as though something had dismantled them from within. He froze for an instant, then saw Gu Yue's eyes. Those eyes were deepening, with something unfathomable churning within her pupils.

Gu Yue lowered her hand. The ice elements began flowing away from around him, not being taken, but as though something were slowly drawing them out.

Cracks began appearing on his ice staff, spreading from the tip down to the handle. He looked down at it, unable to stop it from shattering, unable to stop those ice elements from leaving him. He stood there as the light of his two soul rings dimmed, as though something were pressing them down.

"You—" Surprise finally entered his voice. "You're not two-ringed."

"I am." Gu Yue's tone was flat, as if she were stating something that required no proof. She turned her head toward the girl still peeking over the cliff.

"Press the button for your little sister. I'll give you that chance." Frost had somehow already crawled up both their legs.

"What? Impossible! You..." Before he could finish, the ice formation directly above them erupted with primordial power.

It directly erased the two of them, along with a corner of the mountain...

Ignoring the stunned gazes of the others, she walked straight over to Tang Wulin. Her eyes were filled with pride, as if saying, Hmph, you guessed right. I'm the strongest.

The three of them stared at the devastation before them...

"Sorry. You're the strongest, without a doubt," Zhang Yangzi said.

"Uh... Gu Yue, boss, I'll follow you from now on." Xie Xie bowed, then straightened up. His voice trembled as he asked weakly, "Gu Yue... who's stronger, you or Boss?"

"The other one," the two said in unison.