"Jodio Joestar." Dai Mubai found the name awkward to say. Was Jodio a surname like Dai? But why would anyone have a name like that?
"Nice to meet you. I'm the examiner for your second test. No, it would be more accurate to say I am your second test. If you pass, it won't matter whether you go to Teacher Zhao afterward."
Jodio folded his arms and explained with a gentle smile. Flender landed beside a tree, folded his wings, and stroked his bushy beard as he watched with amusement. The moment Ma Hongjun saw him land, he hurried over to flatter him, hoping to get out of his afternoon training. Flender mercilessly grabbed him by the ear and refused.
"Senior Jodio, what exactly is the second test?" Dai Mubai asked, puzzled. His instincts told him the boy was younger than he was, but the boy's height told another story. At well over five feet, he stood a full head taller than Dai Mubai.
"Do you know how this sea of flowers was made?" Instead of answering, Jodio crouched to admire the flowers. At last, the seeds he had planted over the past three years had borne fruit. The third stage could finally begin.
"Plant—wait. Why did you say made?" Dai Mubai asked warily.
"This is the power of my Gold Experience. It's also what I've been pursuing."
Jodio gently brushed a flower with his hand. It rapidly wilted, and the decay spread through the sea of flowers like a plague. Every bloom withered at terrifying speed. It was like watching a disaster unfold.
"Is that... a poison-type Spirit Skill?!" Dai Mubai's expression changed. He activated Martial Soul Possession and leaped back to put distance between them. This senior had no sense of fair play—he had used a poison skill the moment they met. But why were that stocky kid and the bearded old man unaffected?
"Look closer. What are those flowers made of?" Jodio straightened, rested one hand on his hip, and let the other hang at his side as he looked at Dai Mubai.
"Flowers."
RUMBLE!
"They turned into bricks?!" Cold sweat broke out on Dai Mubai's skin. He watched the flowers shrivel into broken bricks. The sheer scale of the change made him look up. Nearly the entire sea of flowers had become ruins! Crumbling walls lay everywhere, with only the stone path down the middle still intact. It looked just like—
"Perhaps this is what this place will look like in ten thousand years," Jodio said softly.
"Ruins Street."
The evil hidden in the shadows began to show itself. Jodio had found his path and no longer felt lost about the future. This time, he would not wait for Heaven's Secret to emerge. He would take control of his fate and bring Heaven's Secret into being.
"Ten minutes. If you can last ten minutes against me, you pass," Jodio said calmly.
"Gold Experience."
Jodio's second Spirit Ring lit up, and a golden humanoid figure emerged behind him. It punched the ground, creating a slender orchid shaped like a goose's beak. From the moment it appeared, the flower slowly began to wilt and lose its luster. Dai Mubai understood: it was the timer for this Trial. Once the flower died, he could leave.
"Dai Mubai. Martial Soul: White Tiger. Level twenty-six assault-type Soul Grandmaster. I look forward to your guidance." Dai Mubai took a fighting stance.
"Jodio Joestar. Martial Soul: Stand Arrow. Level thirty-one combat Soul Elder. I look forward to your guidance." Jodio nodded, withdrew Gold Experience once more, and summoned Silver Chariot.
Dai Mubai activated his first Spirit Skill without hesitation. White Tiger Vajra Barrier increased his attack, strength, and defense by fifty percent, making it one of the finest enhancement skills. A ring of white light spread around him, and his already powerful frame swelled further. Against Jodio, who was five levels above him, Dai Mubai had to be cautious.
"Do you believe in gravity?" Jodio asked as he paced in a slow circle, gradually drawing closer.
"I admire the first person who ate a mushroom. It might have poisoned him, after all."
"What are you talking about? If you don't attack, I might just run down the clock," Dai Mubai retorted.
"Your name is Dai Mubai, isn't it? You're twelve years old, and your Martial Soul is the White Tiger." Jodio spoke as casually as ever. His hand hung at his side, feeling the atmosphere around the earth, like a plant-type Soul Master sensing the plants nearby. He strolled forward as though returning to work after a pleasant afternoon tea. To him, this seemed less like a Trial than a game.
"White Tiger Fierce Light Wave!"
Dai Mubai could take no more. At a distance of nearly ten meters, he activated his second Spirit Skill, gathered his Soul Power, and fired a ball of light the size of a dog's head at Jodio. Jodio kept strolling along. Behind him, however, Silver Knight sprang into action, thrusting its sword so quickly that it stopped the White Tiger Fierce Light Wave head-on!
The ball of light exploded. Silver Knight immediately spun its sword in a dazzling flourish, deflecting every scattered beam. It was unharmed. Completely unharmed!
"How is that possible...?" Cold sweat ran down Dai Mubai's forehead. Bolstered by White Tiger Vajra Barrier, his White Tiger Fierce Light Wave was tremendously powerful. How had a casual flourish of that sword been enough to defend against it?
"You've revealed both your Spirit Skills. Do you know what that means?" Jodio stopped and pointed at Dai Mubai. "It means you're at a complete disadvantage. I know everything your Spirit Skills can do, while you know nothing about my abilities. What a fool. Is that how your teacher taught you to fight?"
Silver Chariot withdrew, and a blue humanoid figure appeared behind Jodio. Dai Mubai immediately sensed trouble. Its muscles were far more developed than those of Silver Knight or the golden figure. He instinctively raised his arms to defend himself, then felt a tremendous blow strike his forearm. His footing faltered, and he nearly went flying!
"Hmph! Hmph!" Stone Free landed three heavy punches, making Dai Mubai grit his teeth in pain. The blows made him realize he could not just stand there and take them. He used their force to retreat, then swept out a leg and followed with a flurry of kicks. But Jodio had already darted back with Stone Free to a safe distance, avoiding a direct hit.
"Want to see who's stronger?" Jodio asked with a grin.
"Well, a loser like you probably won't dare attack me again."
Dai Mubai suddenly went rigid. Then his anger burned hotter than ever. This time, he had decided not to hold back. He would seize Jodio and crush him in an instant!
← To Be Continued
Information currently available:
Level 30 Stand: Gold Experience
User: Jodio Joestar
Spirit Ring: Yellow — 210-year Dragon Horse Beast
Destructive power: C; speed: B; range: D+; stamina: D; precision: C; development potential: A+
Stand ability: By punching inanimate objects, Gold Experience can turn them into living things, including plants and animals. It can create antibodies this way, rendering most poison-type Spirit Skills ineffective. It can also create organs to heal its user or others. In addition, life created by Gold Experience seems inclined to "return to the place where it was born."
Repeated punches can inject a target with excessive life force, briefly sending their consciousness into overdrive. But if the target's mental strength is great enough, or their Soul Power Level is several times higher than the user's, the effect is greatly weakened and lasts only a second or two.
Before you continue