On the screen.
The flesh on the back of Yang Jian's hand began to tear open grotesquely, as though something terrifying was forcing its way out.
Blood poured down his arm, gathering into an eerie pool on the ground.
"Woof!"
A low bark rang out across the deathly silent campus.
In the reflection within the blood beneath Yang Jian's feet, an enormous dog, as large as a wolf, covered in black fur and with hollow eyes, slowly poked out half its head.
It was the Fierce Dog from the ghost dream!
With the Fierce Dog's appearance, the scarlet ghost domain around Yang Jian surged, almost seeming capable of rivaling Ye Zhen's golden ghost domain.
Yang Jian's three Ghost Eyes stared fixedly at Ye Zhen. The flesh on his arm peeled back, as though more Ghost Eyes were about to open.
"I have a thirty percent chance of taking you down."
Yang Jian spoke coldly. "The odds are low, but if you want to try, I don't mind risking a ghost awakening right now to keep you here forever."
Ye Zhen's expression turned serious as well.
He sensed the lethal threat coming from the reflection in the pool of blood.
"Hmph, big words!"
Ye Zhen abruptly drew his long sword, pointing its tip diagonally at the ground. The golden light around him instantly condensed until it seemed solid.
"If Boss Lin hadn't kept stopping me, I'd have challenged you long ago, to see whether that dog of yours was stronger than my invincible swordsmanship!"
"Now's the perfect time!"
Douluo Continent, the Papal Hall.
Bibi Dong shot up from her throne, her eyes filled with horror.
"What Soul Skill is that? No, that isn't a Soul Skill at all!"
She could feel the aura emanating from the black dog beneath Yang Jian's feet. It even made the Rakshasa divine power within her shudder with dread.
Inside the Worship Hall.
Watching the two men facing off on the sky screen, Qian Daoliu let out a long sigh.
"I've lived for over a hundred years, yet I've never seen such bizarre power."
"That young man named Ye Zhen survived having his heart pierced."
"That young man named Yang Jian has countless eyes and a Fierce Dog hidden inside his body. This world is becoming harder and harder to comprehend."
On the screen.
Just as the clash between Yang Jian's and Ye Zhen's auras reached its peak, and tiny cracks began appearing in the very space throughout Seventh Middle School.
A resigned voice came through both their earpieces at once.
"Enough. How long are you two going to keep this up?"
The instant that voice sounded, the raging supernatural auras subsided.
Ye Zhen's swagger vanished instantly. Looking a little embarrassed, he put away his long sword and scratched his head.
"Boss Lin, I just thought Little Yang was too tense, so I was joking around with him."
Yang Jian silently withdrew his ghost domain as well. The blood beneath his feet quickly dried up, and the Fierce Dog's phantom vanished.
Lin Cheng's voice continued through the earpiece, carrying a trace of resignation.
"And Yang Jian, your Ghost Eyes are close to fully awakening. Stop risking your life at the drop of a hat."
"I'm already looking for a suitable puzzle piece to suppress your Ghost Eyes. Once you return from this mission, I'll help you control a new ghost and establish a new balance."
Yang Jian nodded impassively, though he had no idea whether Lin Cheng could see him from the other end.
Ye Zhen, meanwhile, leaned impatiently toward his microphone and shouted.
"Boss Lin! What about me? Have you figured out that way to turn my ghost domain pure gold you mentioned last time? Its current color still isn't imposing enough!"
Lin Cheng fell silent for a moment. Then came the sound of him rubbing his temples.
"I'm working on it."
"Enough chatter. Hurry up and contain the Knocking Ghost."
"I sent you two together because that Knocking Ghost isn't as simple as you think."
At those words, Yang Jian's expression grew solemn.
He turned toward the darkness deep inside the Teaching Building, so dense it seemed almost solid.
Fighting spirit flared in Ye Zhen's eyes once more.
"Hmph, just an old man who knocks. Watch me subdue him!"
Yang Jian ignored him. With a flicker, he vanished from where he stood.
He returned to the classroom he had been in earlier.
Looking at the familiar chalk writing on the blackboard, Yang Jian seemed utterly detached at that moment.
He knew he was gradually losing the parts of himself that made him human.
But he had no regrets.
Because in this hopeless world, only by becoming a ghost could he survive.
Just then, the view on the sky screen slowly zoomed in, settling on one corner of the classroom blackboard.
There, several lines written in blood made everyone's pupils on the Douluo Continent constrict.
[Ghosts cannot be killed.]
[Only ghosts can fight ghosts.]
[Ghosts follow rules when killing. As long as you identify the correct rules, you can survive.]
Those three lines slammed into every Douluo Soul Master's understanding like a hammer.
The entire Douluo Continent fell into a deathly silence that lasted half a minute.
The training grounds of Shrek Academy.
"Hahahaha!" A sudden burst of feverish laughter shattered the oppressive atmosphere.
Yu Xiaogang ignored the charred wounds the lightning had left on his body.
His eyes shone as he pointed at the blackboard on the sky screen, trembling with excitement.
"I understand! I understand it all!"
Yu Xiaogang clasped his hands behind his back, once again brimming with the confidence of a master of theory.
He looked around and loudly declared in a condescending tone of absolute certainty.
"No wonder! No wonder Mad Rhino was eaten alive, no wonder Meng Shenji dissolved into corpse fluid, no wonder Yang Wudi was killed instantly!"
"They were using the wrong approach from the very beginning!"
As though expounding on grand affairs, Yu Xiaogang said, "The monsters in that world aren't something you fight with brute force! This is a puzzle based on rules!"
"As long as you don't trigger their killing rules, they're no different from the blind and deaf!"
"Once you discover the rules, you can go wherever you please in that world!"
No one beside Yu Xiaogang responded to his analysis. They did not even show any expression, leaving him deeply embarrassed.
Everyone understood that principle. They simply weren't in the mood to indulge Yu Xiaogang.
Purple light flickered in Tang San's eyes as he thought to himself.
When it comes to meticulous observation and finding weaknesses, if my Tang Sect claims second place, no one in the world would dare claim first.
With the Purple Demon Eye and my hidden weapon techniques, all I need to do is see those monsters' movements in advance. Avoiding these so-called rules would be child's play.
Tang San quietly calculated his plans.
He had already begun imagining himself being chosen to enter that world the next time the sky screen opened.
With the Tang Sect Secret Arts, he would stroll effortlessly past every danger and claim all the opportunities that could break through the level-one-hundred barrier to godhood.
Spirit City, the Papal Hall.
Seated high on her throne, Bibi Dong wore a cold smile on her breathtaking face.
"So that's how it works."
She tightened her grip on her scepter. "Ghosts cannot be killed? That's only because the power used against them isn't strong enough."
"But being able to survive by finding their rules is enough."
Ambition blazed in Bibi Dong's eyes. "Pass down my orders. Everyone in Spirit Hall ranked Red Bishop or higher is to form a dedicated analysis team immediately!"
"Record every ghost that has appeared on the sky screen, along with its movements, sounds, and surroundings before it kills. Identify their rules!"
"Next time, Spirit Hall will claim the greatest opportunity!"
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Ning Fengzhi let out a long breath of relief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
"Wonderful. As long as there are rules to follow, Rongrong still has hope."
Though Sword Douluo Chen Xin remained pale, he nodded slightly. "As long as she doesn't look at that sword or listen to that knocking, Rongrong is clever enough to turn danger into safety."
The entire Douluo Continent descended into a bizarre frenzy of celebration.
In the deeply ingrained, arrogant understanding of its people, as long as they could survive, the opportunities were theirs for the taking.
They thought they had found a guarantee of survival that would let them conquer the Otherworld.
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