I'm Just an Ordinary Student!

Cao Kun turned to Zhao Wuji and Flender, who were still frozen in shock. He gave them a faint, apologetic smile. "Teacher Zhao, Dean, I'm sorry I'm late. I gave you both quite a fright."

Those words jolted Zhao Wuji and Flender out of their stupor like a clap of thunder.

"Cao... Cao Kun?"

Zhao Wuji's voice trembled. He stared at the disciple before him, at once familiar and strange, and found himself at a loss for words.

Was this still the disciple he had found in the Star Dou Great Forest twelve years ago? The talented boy who had needed his protection?

That move just now... Could a human even do that?

"Cao Kun... you..."

Flender was even more incoherent. He pointed at Cao Kun, then at the dust-choked ruins in the distance. "You... Tang Hao... he..."

"Don't worry, Dean. He won't die, but he won't be getting up anytime soon."

Cao Kun spoke calmly, as though it were nothing worth mentioning.

"This started because Tang San was injured during his assessment. Tang Hao wanted to protect his son, but he went too far. I stepped in to teach him a small lesson and get some justice for the academy. As for what happens next..."

He looked toward the ruins, his gaze cooling. "If he knows what's good for him, he'll leave and tend to his injuries. We can put this behind us. If he insists on causing more trouble..."

He left the rest unsaid, but his meaning was clear.

Zhao Wuji and Flender exchanged a look. In each other's eyes, they saw shock, lingering fear, relief, and a trace of... bewilderment.

It suddenly struck them that they had never truly known this disciple of theirs.

"Cough, cough... cough..."

Violent coughing and the sound of someone struggling rose from the ruins.

As the dust thinned, Tang Hao came into view.

He knelt on one knee amid the rubble, covered in dirt. Blood soaked the front of his clothes, and his face was as pale as paper.

The enormous phantom of the Clear Sky Hammer Avatar had vanished, and the dark-gold barrier that had protected him was long since shattered.

He raised his head. His once cold, sharp eyes were bloodshot now, filled with horror, humiliation, fury, and... a deep wariness.

He glared at Cao Kun as though trying to carve the boy's face into his soul.

"Who... are you, really?" Tang Hao rasped, his voice hoarse and weak.

"Cao Kun of Shrek Academy."

Cao Kun stood with his hands behind his back. Moonlight fell across his snow-white clothes, his expression composed. "Just... an ordinary student who didn't like seeing someone run wild in front of my teacher and dean."

An ordinary student? You call that an ordinary student?!

Tang Hao's chest seized—

"An ordinary student?"

Tang Hao's chest tightened, and he nearly spat out another mouthful of blood.

He stared at the white-clad boy beneath the moonlight. Absurd fury surged into his head, mingling with the searing pain in his organs and the sluggish, erratic Soul Power in his meridians until he nearly lost his mind.

Could an ordinary student drive him back with one punch?

Could an ordinary student evade his furious attack with uncanny footwork? Could one send him flying with a finger strike from a distance and gravely damage his Martial Soul Avatar?!

If that was an ordinary student, what did that make him, the Clear Sky Douluo?

A street performer?!

Humiliation!

Humiliation unlike anything he had ever known!

It was worse than being hunted by Spirit Hall and forced to hide his identity!

He was Tang Hao, the Clear Sky Sect's greatest genius in a century, the youngest Titled Douluo on the continent, a peak expert with a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring. Yet an unknown boy had defeated him in three moves and left him coughing blood?!

If word got out, how could he ever show his face again? What would become of the Clear Sky Sect's reputation?!

"Cough, cough..."

The violent coughing aggravated his internal injuries, and Tang Hao brought up several more mouthfuls of dark blood. His eyes, though, grew fiercer, like those of a wounded beast.

He glared at Cao Kun as if he wanted to tear him apart. "Good... What a fine academy Shrek is! What a fine 'ordinary student'! You hid your strength well!"

He struggled to his feet, using the Clear Sky Hammer to support himself.

Every movement pulled at his injuries. Veins bulged across his forehead, and cold sweat streamed down his face. But he gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand. A Titled Douluo's pride would not let him fall before an enemy!

"Tang Hao, you know who was in the wrong tonight."

Cao Kun's tone remained even, but it left no room for argument. "Teacher Zhao made a mistake during the students' assessment, but he never meant to hurt anyone. You're a Titled Douluo, yet you tried to kill him without asking what happened. That is beneath someone of your standing. I stopped you and taught you a small lesson. Nothing more."

He paused, taking in Tang Hao's pale face and trembling body. "You acted out of concern for your son. Since it was your first offense and you've already been injured, I won't pursue this any further. Take your son and leave Shrek. That will be the end of it. But if you keep pushing..."

Cao Kun said no more. His gaze simply turned a shade colder.

An invisible chill spread through the air, as though it could freeze the soul. It vanished almost at once, but Tang Hao's hair stood on end. He felt as if he had been plunged into an icy abyss!

It was not killing intent. It was something higher: a detached will that seemed capable of deciding life and death, of commanding the very rules of the world!

Tang Hao's heart shook. From this boy, he had sensed an authority like that of High Priestess Bo Saixi—even, perhaps, like the gaze of a god watching from beyond! How was that possible?!

No! Impossible! How could some boy possess a god's aura?!

It must be some special Martial Soul ability or mental technique!

Tang Hao forced down his doubts and that sliver of fear he could barely name. Humiliation and rage surged back to the fore.

Was he supposed to slink away like this? Flee with grave injuries and a defeat, like a stray dog? How could Tang Hao hold his head up in the Soul Master World after that? How could he face his son, Tang San?

"The end of it? Heh..." Tang Hao gave a hoarse, cold laugh, the blood vessels in his eyes standing out even more. "You injured me, and you think it ends that easily? You're too naive, boy!"

He drew a sharp breath, as if trying to pull all the air around him into his lungs!

The violent rise and fall of his chest worsened his injuries, leaving his face paler still. But the madness and resolve in his eyes burned brighter than ever!

"I've fought my way through life and never suffered such disgrace! Today, even if my cultivation falls and my foundation is damaged, I'll make you... pay for it!"

As he roared the final word, the Soul Power around him—disordered and depleted by his injuries—suddenly surged as though flaring up one last time!

No, it did more than surge! It burned! Boiled! Exploded!

Beneath his feet, the nine Soul Rings that had grown dim blazed to life. The last of them, the blood-red Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, erupted with a light so fierce it hurt to look at!

Its radiance turned the entire field of ruins bright as day!

A destructive, violent aura burst outward like an erupting volcano, as if he meant to drag the whole world down with him!

"Tang Hao! Have you gone mad?! You're going to use that move?!"

In the distance, Zhao Wuji cried out in horror!

He did not know exactly what Tang Hao was about to do. But the unnatural light of that Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and the desperate, self-destructive will pouring off Tang Hao brought one word to mind—a word that existed in the Soul Master World only in legend and taboo:

Ring Detonation!