Chen Jin looked at Huo Wushuang.
Though this red-haired young man had been arrogant earlier, he had frankly admitted his mistake after losing, without a trace of malice or resentment.
Such breadth of spirit was worthy of Blazing Fire Academy's top student.
Chen Jin's appreciation for Huo Wushuang grew.
"It's fine. It was only a spar."
Chen Jin replied in an even tone.
Huo Wushuang straightened, the hostility vanishing from his face.
He extended his right hand.
"Blazing Fire Academy welcomes you."
A sincere smile appeared on Huo Wushuang's face.
Before Chen Jin could reach out to shake his hand, a strong, fragrant breeze swept toward him.
"Chen Jin!"
Huo Wu's call rang out across the field.
She hurried toward Chen Jin with light, quick steps.
Huo Wu wore a fiery-red short skirt.
Its hem fluttered as she ran, revealing a pair of long, slender legs.
Those legs were straight and shapely, gleaming in the lingering sunset.
Huo Wu had slender ankles and wore a pair of delicate red strappy sandals.
The sandals encased her fair feet, her toenails painted red.
She ran up beside Chen Jin, nearly crashing into his arms.
A fragrance mingling the scent of roses with her body warmth enveloped Chen Jin.
"You're incredible!"
Huo Wu gazed at Chen Jin with sparkling eyes full of admiration and excitement.
She was breathless from jogging over.
Her eye-catching curves looked all the more exquisite beneath her tight-fitting clothes.
Huo Wu could not help reaching out and grabbing Chen Jin's sleeve.
In her excitement, Huo Wu pressed a little closer to Chen Jin.
Their arms touched.
Through their clothes, Chen Jin could feel the heat coming from Huo Wu's skin.
It was the body warmth unique to fire-attribute Soul Masters.
"My brother is a rank forty-three Soul Ancestor, but he couldn't even take a single move from you!"
Huo Wu looked proud, as though she had been the one to defeat Huo Wushuang.
She leaned forward, her warm breath brushing Chen Jin's neck.
Chen Jin shifted sideways, discreetly putting some distance between them.
By then, the watching Blazing Fire Academy students had recovered from their shock.
A tide of discussion erupted around the training ground.
"He's so strong!"
"Senior Wushuang was actually taken down in one move? How is that possible?"
"Who exactly is that man in white? Those flames were so hot that even the One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon martial soul couldn't withstand them."
One student swallowed, still shaken.
"Did you notice? The martial soul he revealed just now looked like a phoenix."
Another student pointed toward the field and analyzed in a low voice.
"And that purple soul ring was so purple it was almost black."
"Right, that definitely wasn't an ordinary Thousand-Year Soul Ring. It had to be at least five thousand years old, maybe even close to ten thousand!"
"The scariest thing is, according to Senior Huo Wu, Chen Jin is only rank thirty?"
"If he's already this formidable as a rank-thirty Soul Elder, what will he be like when he becomes a Soul Ancestor or a Soul King?"
"Our Blazing Fire Academy has welcomed a true god this time."
The students' gazes toward Chen Jin had changed.
Their earlier doubt and disdain had dispersed, leaving only awe and admiration.
"What a fine Heaven-Burning Lie Yan!"
Clear, ringing applause came from the tree-lined path at the edge of the training ground.
The rhythmic clapping carried a strange power, forcibly suppressing the noisy discussion across the field.
Everyone looked toward the sound.
They saw a middle-aged man in luxurious dark-red robes approaching with steady strides.
The middle-aged man was tall, with a square face that commanded respect without anger, and neatly combed red hair.
As he walked, the air around him grew hot and dry with his arrival.
"The headmaster?"
"It's the headmaster!"
Once the students recognized the newcomer, their expressions changed, and they bowed respectfully.
Huo Wu turned her head at the commotion.
At the sight of the middle-aged man, delight appeared on Huo Wu's face. She released Chen Jin's sleeve and hurried over.
"Dad? When did you get here?"
Huo Wu hugged the middle-aged man's arm and asked coquettishly.
The newcomer was none other than Blazing Fire Academy's headmaster, Huo Chen, the father of Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang.
Huo Chen extended his broad hand and affectionately ruffled Huo Wu's hair.
His gaze, however, remained fixed on Chen Jin a short distance away.
"I was watching the whole time, from beginning to end."
Huo Chen's tone was gentle, yet carried the authority of someone in command.
Huo Chen patted Huo Wu's hand, signaling for her to let go.
Then he strode toward Chen Jin.
The closer he came, the more excited Huo Chen looked.
As Blazing Fire Academy's headmaster, Huo Chen had seen countless geniuses.
But this was his first time seeing a monster like Chen Jin, who could crush a rank forty-three Power Attack System Soul Ancestor in one move with rank-thirty soul power.
Moreover, Chen Jin's martial soul exerted absolute bloodline suppression over Huo Wushuang's One-Horned Fire Tyrant Dragon.
That meant a god-level martial soul!
Huo Chen stopped before Chen Jin and took a deep breath, suppressing the surging feelings within him.
"Are you truly only rank thirty?"
Huo Chen looked at Chen Jin and asked in a deep voice.
Chen Jin looked at the middle-aged man before him.
He sensed powerful fluctuations of fire-attribute soul power from Huo Chen. This was a formidable expert of profound strength.
Chen Jin remained composed and said nothing more.
Hum.
With a faint vibration.
A faint golden-red glow flowed around Chen Jin's body.
Then three soul rings slowly rose from beneath his feet, pulsing up and down.
Yellow, yellow, purple.
Two yellow and one purple, the most standard soul ring configuration for a Soul Elder.
The first two soul rings were bright yellow, emitting gentle fluctuations of hundred-year soul power.
The third soul ring was deep purple, carrying the pressure unique to a thousand-year Soul Beast.
Together with the terrifying combat strength he had just displayed, they were astounding.
Huo Chen stared at the three soul rings around Chen Jin.
With his cultivation, Huo Chen could easily distinguish genuine soul rings from false ones.
Those were indeed genuine hundred-year and thousand-year soul rings.
And the total soul power within Chen Jin was only around rank thirty-three or thirty-four.
The shock in Huo Chen's eyes turned into wild joy.
"Excellent!"
Huo Chen praised him loudly, his voice echoing over the training ground.
"To think our Blazing Fire Academy could gain such a genius!"
Huo Chen turned to face the watching students, his expression solemn.
"I hereby announce that, from this day forward, Chen Jin is the captain of our Blazing Fire Team!"
"From now on, Chen Jin will lead the team and represent the academy in all major Soul Master competitions!"
At those words, the entire field fell utterly silent.
Every student froze.
On his first day of enrollment, before even completing the paperwork, he had become the team captain?
After all, this position represented the academy's highest honor.
Previously, the position had always belonged to Huo Wushuang, the strongest among them.
Yet after their shock passed, not a single person stepped forward to object.
As the students looked at the young man standing in the center of the field, beyond their awe, they were wholly convinced.
Even Huo Wushuang, a rank forty-three Soul Ancestor, had been defeated in one move.
Chen Jin had claimed the captain's position through indisputable strength.
Who would dare refuse to accept it?
Huo Wushuang had now walked over to Huo Chen's side. Looking at Chen Jin, he wore a smile of acceptance, with no objection whatsoever to the decision.
Blazing Fire City.
The Great Soul Arena.
The entire building was constructed from dark-red volcanic rock, giving off a faint smell of sulfur.
Around the central Soul Fighting platform, the shouts of tens of thousands of spectators converged into rolling waves of sound that nearly lifted the dome off.
Before you continue