The Teacher Was Very Dissatisfied!

"Th-this... is this the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda?"

"Uncle Sword, hurry and slap me. I'm not dreaming, am I?"

Seeing Ning Rongrong wield the elemental powers of water, fire, and earth, and evolve the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda into a massive, sturdy golden pagoda that had directly crippled the High-Rank Soul Elder Water-Fire Combination—

Even Ning Fengzhi's usually gentle face could not contain his excitement.

He grabbed Chen Xin's hand and shook violently.

Even Chen Xin rarely saw Ning Fengzhi lose his composure like this, showing just how excited he was.

He had thought it would already be wonderful if Rongrong could cultivate at Immortal Mountain and gain some combat ability.

He had never expected her to gain control over the powers of water and fire as well.

Even Chen Xin's indifferent face could not suppress a smile.

He did not hold back, slapping Ning Fengzhi's thigh hard.

The pain made Ning Fengzhi clutch his crotch and cry out:

"Uncle Sword, where are you hitting? And why did you hit so hard?!"

Chen Xin did not care.

"What are you afraid of? It's not like you're planning to have another child. Isn't Rongrong alone enough?"

Ning Fengzhi said speechlessly,

"That's one thing, but a man's dignity cannot be thrown away."

In contrast to Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin's delight—

The scene on Shrek's side was completely different.

Flender and Zhao Wuji looked at each other, both utterly dumbfounded.

Although Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and the others held grudges against Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, seeing the strength they displayed still filled them with fear.

Ma Hongjun said, "Boss Dai, I'm not seeing things, am I? That Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda girl directly created a sea of flames and absorbed all of the opponent's fire?!"

"Their strength has improved so much again. Are we really a match for them?"

Dai Mubai unconsciously took two steps back. Faced with such powerful opponents, he instinctively grew afraid and wanted to run.

"It can't be done. Even I'm no longer confident that I can defeat either one of them."

"Master, I think our training is useless."

Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun all looked toward the master in unspoken agreement, their eyes full of doubt.

Though their training over the past month had been grueling—either special soul-fighting training with Teacher Zhao every day or weighted runs—and their strength had improved considerably—

Compared to Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing's progress, their slight improvements in physical fitness and combat ability seemed utterly insignificant.

Meanwhile, the master's worldview had completely collapsed.

He stood there. Although the spectator stands had already erupted, with some cheering for Immortal Mountain and praising its well-deserved reputation, while others regretted that Ning Rongrong had not suffered a setback, the master could hear none of it.

It was as though the entire world had gone silent.

All that kept replaying in his mind was the sight of Ning Rongrong, clearly an auxiliary-system Soul Master with the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda, unleashing such astonishing power and suppressing the Water-Fire Combination despite being at a lower level.

This was simply impossible.

It was also a challenge to his many years of theoretical research.

How could an auxiliary-system Soul Master possibly defeat assault-system Soul Masters, especially in a one-against-two battle?!

"Master? Master?"

"Master, what's wrong? Can you hear us?"

"Oh no, look at the master! His features are twisted, his face is red, and bloodshot veins are spreading through his eyes... the master has gone mad!"

"Teacher, we won!"

"How was that? We didn't embarrass you, did we?"

The uproar from the Soul Fighting Arena had yet to fade.

During the break—

Ning Rongrong was led to the VIP seats by a staff member.

Her teacher, Su Chen, had been watching the match from this private VIP room.

"Teacher—"

Ning Rongrong drew out the word as she pushed open the carved wooden door to the VIP room, looking extremely pleased with herself.

"Did you see that? There were two Soul Grandmasters on the other side. I broke their water-and-fire combination technique all by myself."

"Teacher, are you satisfied with our performance?"

A faint fragrance filled the room. Su Chen stood quietly by the window, watching the commotion outside. Only after Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing had both entered did he slowly turn around.

Yet there was no gratification on his face after his disciples' victory. Instead, he looked remarkably indifferent, with a hint of anger beneath that indifference.

"Teacher is very dissatisfied."

"But Rongrong." Su Chen's voice was not loud, yet the air flowing through the room suddenly seemed to freeze. "You seem very satisfied with your performance?"

Ning Rongrong blinked, and the curve of her lips stiffened for a moment. "Teacher, we... won."

"Won?"

Su Chen took a step forward. His foot made no sound against the carpet, yet Ning Rongrong felt as though that step had landed on her heart. "How many of the Elemental Stones I gave you for cultivation do you have left?"

"Only... a little."

Ning Rongrong instinctively drew back her wrist, and the light in her glazed eyes dimmed. She opened her mouth, wanting to explain herself, but saw Su Chen's gaze had already passed over her and landed on Zhu Zhuqing, who stood quietly behind her.

"Zhuqing, you used your Space-Splitting Claw seven times today." Su Chen's tone softened slightly, but it still held no warmth. "The first three times, you severed the opponent's fire chains. The last four were all used to evade water bullets. Your performance was adequate, but you relied too heavily on the Space-Splitting Claw's spatial ability. You must understand that the more often any move is used, the greater its risks become."

"If the Twin Stone Combination had reacted in time, learned to cover the flaw created by the spatial halt, sealed off the path you tore open, and surrounded you, what would you have done?"

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her lashes, her catlike eyes narrowing slightly as she nodded.

"Even if I did not lose, I probably would have been seriously injured."

Ning Rongrong bit her lower lip.

"Teacher..." Her voice softened, carrying a barely noticeable tremble. "We only wanted to win more beautifully and avoid disgracing Immortal Mountain. It would be one thing if you weren't happy for us, but why are you scolding us..."

"We do not need that kind of beauty."

Su Chen finally walked up to her. He raised a hand, but only brushed away a crystal fragment caught in her hair. "Rongrong, you borrowed the Water Elemental Stone's power to command so much water, and the Fire Elemental Stone's power to unleash Fire Ruins. Your victory was indeed beautiful. You defeated them using the elements they were so proud of. But that was not your power. It was the Elemental Stones' power."

He withdrew his hand, his gaze as calm as a deep pool. "The method of elemental control I taught you was meant to let you use your own limited elemental perception to stir resonance with the elements of heaven and earth, to use the smallest trace of elemental power to find your opponent's flaws. Did you do that today?"

Ning Rongrong's lashes trembled, and she felt terribly wronged by the reprimand.

"No." Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

"Losing is not truly frightening. I have never been afraid of you losing."

Su Chen turned and walked toward the window, his back once again enveloped by the light. "What is frightening is winning by luck, then gaining nothing from that victory."

Zhu Zhuqing tugged lightly at Ning Rongrong's little hand. After considering it, she realized that her teacher was right.

"Teacher, in the matches ahead, I will not use the Space-Splitting Claw so easily again."

Hearing this, Ning Rongrong took a deep breath and roughly wiped her eyes with her sleeve. When she raised her head again, her chin remained slightly lifted, but the light in her eyes had changed—not pride anymore, but something deeper and brighter.

She spoke, her voice still slightly nasal. "There's still a 2v7 match next. I won't absorb the Elemental Stones' power anymore. I won't use it in future soul-fighting matches either. We'll fight with our own martial souls and ultimate techniques, win through our own innate strength. Teacher, can you forgive us?"

Su Chen did not turn around, but a smile finally appeared on his face.

"Now, Teacher is very satisfied."