He thinks he can buy me off with a fifty-thousand-year Soul Bone?
Dream on!
Besides, what was the Clear Sky Sect to him? Some outfit he had stumbled across. Rather than join it, he would sooner take his talent to the South Coast and choose an impossibly difficult path.
Xiang Jun rolled his eyes and decided to ignore Tang Wutong.
The auction continued. Apart from buying a Moon Tide Seaheart Grass that could improve his affinity with the water element, Xiang Jun made no further bids for himself. He did, however, buy Huo Yuxi some Hundred-Year Whale Rubber to strengthen her physique.
Time passed. As the final lot was brought onto the display platform, Xiang Jun and the others perked up.
"Honored guests, our next lot is the grand finale of this auction!"
The auctioneer pulled away the red cloth, revealing an oddly shaped bone.
Pale purple throughout, the bone was roughly thirty centimeters long and resembled a strangely twisted spine. Tiny arcs of electricity occasionally flickered across its surface.
"As I'm sure you've noticed, this is a torso bone, the rarest type of Soul Bone! It came from a thirteen-thousand-year-old Purple-Patterned Electric Eel and even possesses the exceptionally rare Water-Lightning Dual Attribute!"
Xiang Jun instantly lost interest.
Over ten thousand years old, a torso bone, and a Water-Lightning Dual Attribute—any Soul Bone with those qualities would be considered top-tier. Unfortunately, this Purple-Patterned Electric Eel torso bone was barely fifty percent intact.
"Let's go. There's nothing else worth seeing."
Xiang Jun stood first. Just as they stepped out of the room, a hoarse voice rose from below.
"Three million!"
Xiang Jun instinctively looked toward the voice. A man concealed from head to toe in a black robe sat quietly among the VIP seats.
As though sensing Xiang Jun's gaze, the black-robed man turned and gave them a sinister smile whose meaning was impossible to read.
Xiang Jun narrowed his eyes. Taking Tang Wutong and Huo Yuxi with him, he headed to the auction house's transaction room without drawing attention.
By the time the three left the auction house, darkness had fallen completely.
"Tch. What a trash Soul Bone. It got this princess excited for nothing." Outside Shrek City, Tang Wutong kicked a stone off the roadside, her voice full of displeasure.
Shrek Academy's entrance lay beyond Shrek City's east gate, so the three had to leave the city to get back to the academy.
"Your Highness, not everyone was born into a top-tier sect." As Xiang Jun spoke, his eyes kept scanning their surroundings.
"Birthright isn't something you can envy your way into. After all... Ow!" Tang Wutong puffed out her small chest, but before she could finish, a heavy blow struck her backside.
"Watch out!"
Alarm bells suddenly blared in Xiang Jun's mind. Without time to think, he kicked Tang Wutong out of the way, caught the dazed Huo Yuxi around the waist, and flashed backward.
BOOM!
The instant they scattered, a silver-white arc of electricity slammed into the spot where they had stood. Its terrifying force blasted a deep crater into the ground, sending dirt and shattered stone flying.
"My butt..."
Tang Wutong staggered to her feet. The stinging pain set her anger ablaze, and she glared in the direction the lightning had come from.
Sneaking up on this princess? You're asking to die!
Xiang Jun's expression was equally grave. Someone had dared to attack Shrek Academy students outside Shrek City. Their intentions were obvious.
Unlike Tang Wutong, the inexperienced Huo Yuxi was plainly at a loss. She could only clutch Xiang Jun's arm tightly.
"You actually dodged it? As expected of Shrek Academy's prodigies. Heh heh heh..."
A hoarse laugh came from the darkness. The three looked over as a black-robed figure slowly emerged.
"So it was you." Xiang Jun recognized the newcomer at once from that unmistakable rasp.
It was the black-robed man who had bid on the Purple-Patterned Electric Eel torso bone.
"Clever. Someone paid good money for the two of your heads." The black-robed man grinned and slowly lowered his hood, finally letting Xiang Jun and the others see his face.
He was a slight, middle-aged man in his forties, with a vicious-looking scar on his right cheek.
The two of us?
Xiang Jun and Tang Wutong exchanged a glance. Both grew wary.
"Hmph! If you want our lives, you'll have to prove you can take them!" Tang Wutong gave a proud snort and rose into the air. Three Spirit Rings appeared beneath her feet.
Yellow! Purple! Purple!
"Yuhao, keep yourself safe. We're outside Shrek City. Help will arrive before long."
As Xiang Jun finished speaking, Seagod's Trident appeared in his hand. Brilliant golden light lit up the night.
Yellow! Purple! Purple! Black!
A Spirit Ring beyond the normal age limit?
The black-robed man froze. He had never seen such a terrifying Spirit Ring configuration.
"Heh heh heh... So you're both gifted prodigies. Too bad a genius only counts as a genius if they live long enough to grow!" His eerie, rasping laughter rang out as an unusual spear appeared in his hand. Silver-white arcs occasionally flickered along its shaft.
Yellow! Yellow! Purple! Purple! Black! Black! Black!
A Soul Sage?!
Xiang Jun's eyes sharpened. He activated the Sea God Domain and his First Soul Skill at the same time.
Seagod's Descent + Sea God Domain!
The two enhancement abilities sent Xiang Jun's power surging, while the Sea God Domain's compulsory effect slightly weakened the black-robed man.
At the same moment, Tang Wutong struck first. Her Second Soul Ring flared, and a dense barrage of golden orbs poured from her butterfly wings, hurtling straight at the black-robed man.
Second Soul Skill—Butterfly God Light!
The black-robed man merely grinned at the incoming attack. A silver-white barrier of Soul Power formed in an instant and blocked every orb.
"Heh. If that's all you've got, I suggest you two surrender and—wait!" Before he could finish, a terrifying sense of danger seized him.
As the smoke cleared, an oddly shaped trident tore through the air toward his face.
Golden Thirteen Halberds, Third Form—Never Return!
When the black-robed man instinctively raised his spear across his chest, Tang Wutong and Xiang Jun both sneered.
He plans to block Seagod's Trident with his body?
That takes guts!
Sure enough, the instant he met Seagod's Trident, its terrifying weight bore down on him. The spear across his chest bent into an almost ninety-degree angle from the impact.
"Pfft!"
Blood sprayed from the black-robed man's mouth, and he shot backward like a cannonball.
"You dared sneak up on this princess? You really don't know how to spell 'death'!" Tang Wutong sneered. Her butterfly wings beat furiously, sending a dense volley of light blades at the black-robed man.
Third Soul Skill—Butterfly God Slash!
"You damned brats!"
The black-robed man wiped the blood from his mouth, his face twisting with malice. But just as he prepared to activate a Spirit Ring, he discovered, to his horror, that the Soul Power in his body had come to a standstill, as though frozen solid.
What's going on?!
His pupils contracted. He instinctively looked toward Xiang Jun in the distance.
Xiang Jun held Seagod's Trident high. A chilling presence swept outward, and everything around them seemed to freeze.
Golden Thirteen Halberds, First Form—Unfixed Storm!
All one hundred and eight blades of Butterfly God Slash struck the black-robed man squarely. Despite his Soul Sage cultivation, his weapon-type Martial Soul enhanced his body far less than a Beast Martial Soul would have.
The golden barrage lasted several breaths before it finally ceased, revealing the black-robed man to the three of them.
The black-robed man truly lived up to his Soul Sage rank. After taking Never Return and Butterfly God Slash head-on, he looked almost like an ordinary person—apart from the slight impression that he was about to die.
"You damned brats..."
The relentless attacks and his injuries left the black-robed man red-eyed and breathing like a bull. He was clearly on the verge of losing control.
He swept a cold gaze across them and ground out, "Go to hell!"
As he spoke, his Sixth Soul Ring lit up. Terrifying silver-white arcs erupted from his spearhead and instantly became three massive lightning snakes that lunged at Tang Wutong in midair!
Thunder Arc Three-Stage Dance!
Tang Wutong frowned and prepared to dodge, only for a lightning chain to silently coil around her ankle.
A tracking attack? This is bad!
Just as Tang Wutong panicked, her mind suddenly blurred. When she came to, she found herself standing where Xiang Jun had been a moment ago.
"Xiang Jun, you—!"
She looked up. Xiang Jun had appeared in the spot she had just occupied, the Second Soul Ring behind him flashing purple.
Second Soul Skill—Ocean Current Crossing!
Tang Wutong was so anxious she nearly cried. The force of her emotions even caused the trident mark on her forehead to light up.
"You want to die in her place? Fine, I'll grant your wish!" The black-robed man grinned viciously. The thrill of killing a genius twisted his face into something hideous.
"We'll see who dies."
Woooo—!
As Xiang Jun spoke, a long, resonant whale call rang out. The enormous phantom of a whale enveloped him protectively.
Golden Thirteen Halberds, Fourth Form—Whale Fall Guard!
The three lightning snakes slammed into the whale phantom. Yet the terrifying attack caused not even a ripple. Like something sinking into the sea, it vanished without a trace.
At that moment, Xiang Jun's Second Soul Ring lit up again.
Ocean Current Crossing Second Form: Water Tornado!
A waterspout erupted from the ground. Its irresistible pull sucked the black-robed man inside, while sharp blades of water left more than a dozen fine cuts across his body.
"Why are you standing there? Hit him!"
Xiang Jun glanced at the still-dazed Tang Wutong. Ignoring the drain on his Soul Power, he activated the only Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring behind him.
Fourth Soul Skill—Raging Sea Torrent!
The water around the tornado instantly formed four towering dragons, which charged into the vortex at the black-robed man.
"Huh? Oh!"
Seeing that Xiang Jun was unharmed, Tang Wutong finally let out a deep breath. A quiet flicker of joy rose in her heart.
Tch. He says one thing and means another. This princess matters to him after all!
Then she looked at the black-robed man under siege from the water dragons, and her expression darkened.
"You bastard! I'll kill you!"
Yellow! Purple! Purple!
Three Spirit Rings appeared behind Tang Wutong again. Then, before Xiang Jun's disbelieving eyes, they slowly merged into a single pitch-black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring!
Is that... Ring Fusion?!
She can do that too?
"I'll make you regret ever coming into this world!"
Tang Wutong shouted. The phantom of a middle-aged man several meters tall appeared behind her. In his hands was a massive hammer nearly two meters long, covered in mysterious patterns.
Your on-demand backup has arrived!
Great Sumeru Hammer!
Xiang Jun: Huh?
Struggling against the tornado's pull, the black-robed man smashed one water dragon apart with his spear. Then he heard a furious feminine shout.
He looked up. An enormous hammer was bearing down on his head, cutting through the air.
No!
If that hits me, I'm dead!
His pupils contracted, and regret flooded him. Thinking of the old woman who had given him this job, he realized he had been set up.
An immobilizing technique he couldn't break, and a defense that was practically invincible.
A trident, then a hammer? You never told me these two could fight like this!
"W-wait! Can we settle this peacefully?"
"Settle this peacefully? You have to be joking."
Tang Wutong scoffed. Her eyes were full of killing intent as she looked at him.
"Say goodnight to this world!"
At Tang Wutong's words, the pitch-black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring shattered!
"Yan Shaozhe, what do you think of those two youngsters?" High above, Xuan Zi gnawed on a chicken leg and glanced at Yan Shaozhe, who was already staring open-mouthed.
"Peerless prodigies!"
Yan Shaozhe took a deep breath. He looked at Xiang Jun as though he were a treasure beyond price.
Even my teacher, Dragon God Douluo Mu En, couldn't fight like that at his level, could he?
We must keep this boy at Shrek, whatever the academy has to pay!
"But before we try to win Xiang Jun over..." Yan Shaozhe narrowed his eyes at the black-robed man below, whose fate was uncertain. A chill flashed through his gaze.
Attacking Shrek Academy students outside Shrek City?
You've got some nerve!
"You..."
Xiang Jun looked at Tang Wutong's bashful face, unsure what to say.
"Oh, don't ask! When I left home, my elders just gave me a tiny little trump card to save my life!" Tang Wutong stuck out her tongue and quietly looked down at her toes.
Fair enough. Tang Wutong was widely regarded as the little princess of the Divine Realm. Xiang Jun would not have been surprised if she pulled out a Golden Dragon Spear one day.
Compared with her father Tang San, the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life doted on Tang Wutong so much they seemed more like her parents.
Before you continue