"Huh?"
One bewildered gaze after another fell on Su Chen. The same thought rose in everyone's mind: had Dormitory Zero gained a new member?
"Which of you wants to challenge me? I'm the new student in Dormitory Zero. My name is Su Chen!" Su Chen descended the five hundred steps, and the tightly packed students immediately cleared an open space.
"I'll go first!"
An eight- or nine-year-old boy stepped out of the crowd. He looked Su Chen up and down, then stamped his foot. A yellow Soul Ring rose around him, its age having actually reached a hundred years. Red soul power condensed into a red staff in his hand.
"My name is Gu Jingyun. I'm eight years old, my martial soul is the Red Flame Staff, and my soul power is rank seventeen," the boy introduced himself.
"My name is Su Chen. My martial soul is the Golden Sacred Dragon (Five-Clawed Golden Dragon), and I'm six years old," Su Chen introduced himself in turn.
"Summon your martial soul. I'm about to attack," Gu Jingyun urged.
"Go ahead!" Su Chen said calmly.
"You're not using your martial soul?" Gu Jingyun frowned slightly.
"That's right, I'm not using my martial soul. You can attack!" Su Chen nodded. Even he had yet to figure out what his first Soul Skill actually was. Since that was the case, using his martial soul would make no difference.
A murmur rippled through the crowd.
The students watching stared at Su Chen in astonishment. He was actually refusing to use even his martial soul.
"Fine, here I come!" Gu Jingyun looked at Su Chen mockingly. Su Chen was two years younger than him, yet arrogant enough not to use his martial soul. Gu Jingyun promptly decided to show him a thing or two.
The yellow Soul Ring around Gu Jingyun burst into brilliant light. He charged at Su Chen, sweeping his staff toward him. Gu Jingyun lived up to his reputation as a top student. His staff whipped through the air with a tiger's ferocity, moving nimbly in his hands. Su Chen, on the other hand, lacked practical combat experience and narrowly dodged each strike. A trace of panic even showed in his eyes.
This is just a fight in a game. This is just a fight in a game. This is just a fight in a game! Su Chen kept hypnotizing himself.
First Soul Skill: Stone-Breaking Staff!
Thump!
Gu Jingyun seized an opening while Su Chen's guard was wide open and struck him with his staff. The blow forced Su Chen back a step or two. But that was all it did.
"What a formidable body!" Qian Renxue, standing atop the five hundred stone steps, could not help praising Su Chen. He had taken a hit from a rank-sixteen Soul Master and merely retreated a step or two. Gu Jingyun's strike had been powerful enough to split a two-ton boulder.
"Why don't you bring out your martial soul?" Gu Jingyun taunted.
"No need. Again." Su Chen lightly brushed his chest with his hand, even though there was nothing there.
"Fine. Let's see how much longer you can hold out." Gu Jingyun swung his staff at Su Chen again. This time, however, he was utterly surprised. Every movement Su Chen made was perfectly placed. After attacking continuously for a minute or two, he realized he could no longer keep up with Su Chen's speed.
A dark blur flashed beside Gu Jingyun. His eyes shifted, catching sight of Su Chen, but his body could not keep up. He could only watch helplessly as Su Chen's fist grew larger and larger before his eyes.
Thump!
Before Gu Jingyun could unleash his Soul Skill, a savage force struck him. His body traced an arc through the air, flying more than ten meters away.
Pfft!
Gu Jingyun spat out a mouthful of blood and stared speechlessly at Su Chen. His eyes brimmed with disbelief, as though he had never imagined even in his dreams that someone who had not used his martial soul could turn defeat into victory so quickly.
Off to the side, Director Yang's eyes held shock, but even more delight. Not bad. In such a short time, he's already gained a basic grasp of some practical combat techniques.
Practical combat techniques? Su Chen had none. All he knew was the mindset and fighting style he had developed from playing games: positioning, positioning, and more positioning. After the rainbow light had cleansed his sinews and marrow, and he had obtained a ten-thousand-year Soul Ring, Su Chen possessed extraordinarily keen senses, remarkable movement speed, and tremendous strength. Those were what allowed him to maneuver so beautifully and deliver such a heavy blow.
"Next!" Director Yang called crisply.
Every Friday, students at the academy could request to challenge the members of Dormitory Zero. A successful challenge would earn them a substantial cash reward. If they accumulated three successful challenges, they could also move into Dormitory Zero and receive unparalleled honor. Of course, every challenge required a teacher's approval. They were divided into morning and afternoon sessions, along with sparring matches before midnight. After all, the students of Dormitory Zero were human, not gods.
As Director Yang's voice faded, murmurs filled the gathering. No one had imagined that the little boy before them could defeat the rank-seventeen Soul Master Gu Jingyun without even using his martial soul.
Someone who had received approval from the academy's higher-ups to challenge a member of Dormitory Zero could hardly be mediocre. With Gu Jingyun defeated, the students who had qualified to challenge stood stunned, none stepping forward.
"What, does no one dare come forward?" Director Yang prompted.
Silence. After the gathering remained silent for a while, a tall girl stepped out of the crowd. She was reasonably pretty, with a tall figure and long, slender legs. Even if she could not be called the academy's belle, she could certainly be called the belle of her class.
"It's Chen Huanhuan!" someone exclaimed.
"Chen Huanhuan is already a rank-twenty-one Soul Master. Isn't this going a little too far?" someone could not help muttering.
"My name is Chen Huanhuan. I'm twelve years old, a rank-twenty-one, two-ring Battle Soul Master, and my martial soul is the Snow Wolf. Bring out your martial soul!" Chen Huanhuan said evenly. She curled her delicate hands slightly, and two Soul Rings appeared around her, both yellow. Blue soul power condensed into an illusory wolf behind her.
"No need. Let's begin." Su Chen appraised her. With her talent, she would qualify even for admission to Shrek Academy. Spirit Hall's exclusive Soul Master Academy truly was a gathering place for geniuses.
"Are you sure?" Chen Huanhuan asked disdainfully.
"I'm sure!" Su Chen nodded.
As a top student, Chen Huanhuan had her own pride. Even Qian Renxue would not be so arrogant as to face her without using her martial soul. In fact, Qian Renxue would have to use her first Soul Skill to defeat her. Yet the little boy before her had openly declared that he did not even need his martial soul. This was nothing less than a slap in the face to a top student like her.
Whoosh!
Chen Huanhuan was angry. Her first Soul Ring flared with brilliant light. Moving like a gale, she appeared before Su Chen in the space of a breath.
First Soul Skill: Snow Wolf Thrust!
Chen Huanhuan's sharp claws rushed toward Su Chen, then suddenly extended, their speed increasing in an instant as they stabbed toward his chest. Under her gleaming gaze, her claws pierced his body without the slightest resistance.
"An afterimage?" Chen Huanhuan's expression changed.
Thump!
Immediately afterward, a terrifying impact struck her back. The punch sent her slender body sliding uncontrollably forward, leaving a conspicuous skid mark on the ground. Amid the resounding crash, several distinct cracks of breaking bones could be heard.
"She lost?"
The spectators stared fixedly at Chen Huanhuan. Could even a rank-twenty-one Soul Grandmaster be no match for this little boy?
Pfft!
Chen Huanhuan clutched her chest. Unable to suppress the blood churning inside her any longer, she felt a sweet taste rise in her throat and spat out a large mouthful of blood.
She had lost!
A collective gasp rose.
Every student sucked in a breath of cold air! Even a rank-twenty-one Soul Grandmaster had fallen to Su Chen. And he had not even used his martial soul.
"Is this the terrifying power of a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring?" Director Yang's eyes were also filled with shock.
A ten-year Soul Ring could give a Soul Master ten attribute points, while a hundred-year ring could give them a hundred. A ten-thousand-year Soul Ring could increase a Soul Master's own attributes by ten thousand points.
"Next!"
Su Chen tilted his head and looked up at Qian Renxue, who was watching from the steps. Her beautiful eyes were filled with shock as well. Then he swept his gaze over the surrounding students and asked, "Who else wants to challenge me? Come right up!"
The students watching stared speechlessly at Su Chen. If even a rank-twenty-one Soul Grandmaster was no match for him, then Soul Masters like them, whose ranks were only in the teens, certainly stood no chance. Their gazes held nothing but profound admiration and shock.
Before you continue