Inner Court Disciple Qian Renxue Challenges Teacher Zhou

At the center of the Spirit Duel Platform, Lu Chen looked up at the sphere of light brimming with destructive energy, without the slightest hint of panic in his eyes.

He knew the moment to decide victory and defeat had arrived.

"Soul Skill—Golden Arrow!"

Lu Chen let out a low shout, and the Golden Cloth that had already dispersed covered his body once more.

An ancient golden bow appeared in his left hand. As he drew the string taut and pulled with his right hand, a Golden Arrow, dazzling from end to end and covered in faint flowing patterns of light, slowly took shape.

Lu Chen's Soul Power poured frantically into the bow like floodwaters released from a dam.

The power of his Golden Arrow was directly tied to the combined age of his Soul Rings.

His three Soul Rings were currently seven thousand five hundred years, eight thousand years, and eight thousand years respectively, totaling a full twenty-three thousand five hundred years.

His all-out arrow was powerful enough to rival a Spirit King's full-force strike!

More importantly, the Sagittarius Cloth possessed an annihilation attribute, capable of directly breaking down and dispersing an opponent's Soul Power.

That was his true confidence in daring to take the sixth Soul Skill head-on.

"Go!"

The instant the bowstring snapped loose, the Golden Arrow became a blinding streak of golden light and shot straight toward the dark-red sphere of energy. Wherever the arrow passed, even the scorching airwaves were forcibly ripped apart, leaving a vacuum trail behind it.

In an instant, the Golden Arrow slammed fiercely into the Demon Dragon Burning Heaven Break.

The earth-shattering explosion everyone had expected did not erupt immediately.

Instead, the Golden Arrow was like a red-hot blade piercing butter, forcibly drilling into the dark-red sphere of energy.

The next second, the sphere's surface dimmed at a visible rate. The violent dark-red Soul Power was like snow beneath a blazing sun.

It was rapidly broken down and dispersed by the annihilation attribute on the arrow, turning into countless tiny motes of light that vanished into the air.

"How is that possible?!"

Zhou Yi's pupils contracted sharply, disbelief appearing on her face.

No one knew better than she did how powerful her sixth Soul Skill was. Even an ordinary Spirit King would be severely injured taking it head-on, yet it had been forcibly neutralized by an attack from a Three-Ring Spirit Zun?

"Boom—"

The remaining energy of the Demon Dragon Burning Heaven Break finally exploded, and golden and dark-red shockwaves swept outward in a ring.

Within the smoke and dust, a figure staggered back several steps before finally dropping to one knee on the stone floor with a heavy thud.

Once the smoke cleared, Lu Chen was seen kneeling on one knee, the Golden Cloth on his body long since dispersed.

His right hand hung limply at his side, while blood continuously spilled from the corner of his mouth.

Even the front of his clothes had been stained mostly red.

Only the violent rise and fall of his chest proved that he was still alive.

At this point, Lu Chen did not have a shred of strength left. The Soul Power within his body had long been drained completely, and he had only remained standing until now through sheer willpower.

Zhou Yi looked equally disheveled.

The hair at her temples had been blown loose by the shockwave, several parts of her upper-body teacher's uniform had torn open, and her exposed arms were coated in fine white frost.

"Beep!"

"Time's up!"

At the same time, the ten-minute limit had just been reached.

The referee immediately blew the final whistle, then loudly announced, "The time limit for this wager match has expired. The winner is—first-year student—Lu Chen!"

"We won! The class monitor won!"

Upon hearing the referee's announcement, Sun Lu and Xiao Xiao happily embraced each other.

"Class monitor, you're awesome!"

The students of Class 1 of First-Years also began cheering for Lu Chen.

"We won!! Damn, he actually won!"

"My god! A Three-Ring Spirit Zun really lasted ten minutes against a Spirit Emperor!"

"Outer Court Great Demon King! That title is absolutely deserved!"

Thunderous cheers erupted instantly. Countless students shouted excitedly, their voices nearly lifting the roof.

But amid the cheers, the moment Lu Chen heard the word "victory," the taut bowstring within him finally went slack.

Lu Chen's vision went black. He could no longer hold on for even a moment, and his body pitched straight forward before crashing heavily to the ground. He completely lost consciousness.

"Lu Chen!"

Seeing Lu Chen collapse, Wang Dong's face turned pale. Without a second thought, he leaped onto the Spirit Duel Platform and ran toward Lu Chen.

But someone was faster than Wang Dong.

A golden figure flashed past, stopping beside Lu Chen and gathering the young man into her arms.

The newcomer was none other than Qian Renxue.

She had originally been cultivating in the Inner Court. After learning of Lu Chen's wager with Zhou Yi, she had immediately rushed over from the Inner Court.

But she had still arrived a step too late. By the time she got there, Lu Chen's battle had already ended.

Qian Renxue's movements were gentle, as if she feared she might break the person in her arms.

The entire venue suddenly fell silent, every gaze gathering on Qian Renxue and Lu Chen.

Wang Dong froze halfway through his movement as well, staring at Lu Chen in Qian Renxue's arms.

An inexplicable sourness rose within Wang Dong's heart.

She's so beautiful. Who is she? What's her relationship with Lu Chen? Why does she hold him so naturally?

Countless questions clogged Wang Dong's chest, making him feel uncomfortable all over as his steps halted where he stood.

Qian Renxue paid no attention to the surrounding gazes. Her fingertips lightly rested on Lu Chen's wrist as a thread of gentle Soul Power entered his body.

After only a moment, Qian Renxue's tightly furrowed brows eased slightly.

Qian Renxue found that Lu Chen had merely exhausted his Soul Power and suffered some superficial injuries. His foundation had not been harmed, and only then did she let out a breath of relief.

Qian Renxue raised her eyes, sweeping her gaze across the crowd before it landed precisely on Huo Yuhao. Her voice was clear and icy. "Huo Yuhao, come here."

Huo Yuhao froze for a moment, then hurriedly squeezed through the crowd and ran onto the platform.

"Take your big brother to the infirmary and look after him properly."

Qian Renxue carefully handed Lu Chen over to Huo Yuhao, then instructed him once more. Her tone was calm, yet carried unquestionable authority.

After making sure everything had been arranged, Qian Renxue turned around and walked step by step toward the center of the Spirit Duel Platform.

At the same time, on the other side.

"Zhou Yi, have you lost your mind? You used your sixth Soul Skill against a Three-Ring Spirit Zun!"

"If anything happened to Lu Chen, could you bear the responsibility!"

Just as the battle ended, Du Weilun arrived and immediately berated Zhou Yi.

A student with such potential would be treasured like a precious jewel at any other school or class.

Yet Zhou Yi had not only brought her own student onto the Spirit Duel Platform.

She had even used a killing move just to win!

"Director Du, there is only victory and defeat on the Spirit Duel Platform, not life and death."

Zhou Yi spoke indifferently, as though she had not taken the matter to heart at all.

"Fine, fine, fine!"

Hearing Zhou Yi's words, Du Weilun was so angry that he laughed. He had never heard anything so shameless. A Spirit Emperor fighting a Spirit Zun, yet she could still say there was no life and death on the Spirit Duel Platform, only victory and defeat.

"Teacher Zhou, I will report this matter truthfully to the Sea God Pavilion. Then I'd like to see whether Fan Yu can still protect you."

Zhou Yi had caused such a huge mess, on top of expelling so many students without cause before this. He refused to believe her husband could still shield her!

With that, Du Weilun flicked his sleeve and prepared to leave.

Zhou Yi also prepared to leave.

She had originally intended to use Lu Chen to establish her authority, but instead, she had lost this battle.

And she had lost utterly.

However, just as Zhou Yi was about to leave, an icy voice devoid of any emotion suddenly sounded behind her.

Zhou Yi turned around and saw a golden-haired girl standing at the center of the Spirit Duel Platform.

"Inner Court student Qian Renxue requests Teacher Zhou's guidance!"