The gap in their levels

Huo Yutong looked up at the gathering dusk on the horizon and said, "It's getting late. I'll head back to the dorm first. What about you? Are you going back to the Inner Court or staying here?"

Gu Xingyue tossed the last wooden skewer into the fire and dusted off his hands. "The Inner Court is too far away. Moving here makes things easier. I've spoken to the dorm supervisor. I'll stay in the Outer Court tonight."

"Okay, good. See you tomorrow." Huo Yutong stood up and brushed the dust off her clothes.

"See you tomorrow." Gu Xingyue nodded.

She walked a few steps, then suddenly turned back. "Oh, right, I almost forgot to ask. Which class are you in?"

"Class 1." Gu Xingyue looked at her and tilted his head. "Why? Aren't you?"

Huo Yutong froze for a moment, then scratched her cheek a little sheepishly. "Ah... no, I'm not. I've been studying with Teacher Fan Yu in the Soul Guidance Department and haven't really been going to class. The homeroom teacher of Class 1 doesn't seem to have asked about me, either. Maybe... they think I'm not important."

Gu Xingyue nodded in understanding.

Who would dare come demanding a student Fan Yu was teaching?

He said nothing more and waved to Huo Yutong. The two turned away in the dusk, heading off in different directions.

With the key the dorm supervisor had given him, Gu Xingyue went upstairs in the dormitory building, found the matching room number, and pushed the door open.

The room was small, with a bed on either side and several thick books scattered across the desk by the window.

On the bed near the window, a boy with pinkish-blue hair sat with his legs crossed, flipping through a book. At the sound of the door, he looked up and cast a casual glance over.

Their eyes met.

The pinkish-blue-haired boy narrowed his eyes slightly. His gaze lingered on Gu Xingyue's face for an extra moment, then his brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

He finally reached a conclusion: This fellow's looks actually rival mine.

Gu Xingyue paid no attention to his gaze. He put the bedding and toiletries he had collected onto the empty bed, spread the bedding out briefly, and lay down.

He had only just closed his eyes when a voice came from across the room.

"I don't care who you are," the pinkish-blue-haired boy said coolly, setting down his book. "Since you're living in this room, you'll have to follow my rules."

Gu Xingyue did not open his eyes.

"First, none of your things are allowed past this line along the edge of the bed. Second-"

Before he could finish, Gu Xingyue opened his eyes, sat up, and planted a foot on the so-called "line," his sole resting squarely in its center.

Then he tilted his head, a smile curling his lips. "And what if I don't?"

The pinkish-blue-haired boy slowly closed his book and stood up.

He was not particularly tall, but the instant he rose, an invisible aura spread out from him.

"I'm Wang Dong." His voice was quiet, but his tone was arrogant. "In this room, I call the shots."

Gu Xingyue slipped his hands into his jacket pockets. "On what grounds?"

"My strength."

"But I haven't seen your strength, my friend." Gu Xingyue smiled and shook his head, then turned and walked to the door.

He curled a finger toward the hallway, then looked back with a clear, unmistakable challenge in his eyes.

Wang Dong's gaze darkened for a moment, and he strode after him.

The two walked one behind the other to a flat clearing below the dormitory building.

Several short lampposts stood around it. Already, quite a few students who had heard the news were gathering in small groups.

A fight to watch just days into the new term-who could bear to miss an opportunity like that?

"There's still time to beg for mercy," Wang Dong said, stopping in the center of the clearing and flexing his wrists. "Spare yourself some physical suffering."

"What you need to consider now is which teacher in the infirmary is best at healing." Gu Xingyue kept one hand in his pocket, every inch the picture of a powerhouse, seemingly paying his opponent no heed.

The spectators had already formed nearly half a circle, whispering excitedly.

"Both of them are pretty handsome-"

"Hey, hey, they're stealing all the limelight."

"Stop just looking at their faces! Fight, fight! I want to see rivers of blood!"

Ignoring the surrounding clamor, Wang Dong let his hands hang at his sides and announced in a low voice, "Wang Dong, rank thirty-seven control-type Soul Elder. Martial soul: Bluesilver Emperor. Please show me what you've got."

Gu Xingyue's ears twitched slightly.

Bluesilver Emperor? Not the Radiant Butterfly Goddess?

Then another thought occurred to him. Right, that makes sense. I've already grasped the core of adaptation. The person before me is Wang Dong, not Wang Dong'er, so a slight change in his martial soul is normal.

"Gu Xingyue, rank thirty-one Power Attack Soul Elder. Martial soul: Thunderclap Infernal Prison Vine."

Before his words had faded, both released their martial souls.

The soul rings rising beneath Wang Dong's feet were one yellow and two purple, drawing cries of astonishment from the crowd.

At rank thirty-seven, with a soul ring configuration like that, he really could run roughshod over the other new students.

The corners of Wang Dong's mouth lifted slightly. "See? That's the gap between us."

Then Gu Xingyue's soul rings lit up.

Three purple rings rose in perfect order beneath his feet and hovered around him. Their purple light fell across his face, lending even his smile a hint of coolness.

The crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted.

"Three purple rings?!"

"He's as strong as a monster..."

The smile froze on Wang Dong's face.

His pupils contracted slightly, but he quickly steadied himself and gritted his teeth, activating his martial soul.

Bluesilver Emperor vines burst from the ground, stabbing toward Gu Xingyue like a formation of spears.

"Bluesilver Thorn Formation!" A purple soul ring shone as dozens of vines drove straight toward his face, wreathed in cutting edges.

Gu Xingyue loosely curled his right hand. Lightning gathered in his palm, stretching and taking shape.

A long blade made entirely of lightning elements formed out of thin air, arcs crackling along its length.

He turned his wrist and slashed horizontally.

Lightning swept across like a bolt of silk.

Wherever it passed, the bluesilver vines snapped apart inch by inch, even their remnants vaporized into wisps of smoke by the lightning.

Rather than retreat, Wang Dong advanced. A fresh wave of Bluesilver Grass wound toward Gu Xingyue from both sides, trying to bind his limbs.

Yet before the vines could touch even the hem of his clothes, a tightly woven suit of lightning armor automatically formed over his body. With a light flicker of its arcs, the vines curled up and shrank back.

Gu Xingyue stood where he was, without moving his feet at all.

"Looks like that's all you amount to," he said flatly. "Disappointing."

Wang Dong's expression darkened, and both his hands clenched into fists.

With a turn of his right hand, a small, pitch-black hammer appeared out of thin air, its surface bearing ancient, weighty patterns.

He adopted an opening stance to gather force, then began spinning on the balls of his feet. The Clear Sky Hammer whistled through the air, its force growing with every revolution-Chaotic Wind Hammer Method!

His aura climbed layer by layer. The wind from the hammer swept up dust from the ground, forming a spinning vortex.

Gu Xingyue neither dodged nor evaded. He opened his right hand, and several fist-sized balls of lightning formed and hovered before his palm.

They floated eerily, giving off a low hum.

Ball Lightning waited quietly.

Wang Dong's gathered force reached its peak, and his hammer came crashing down.

Boom-!

The instant lightning met the hammer's wind, a muffled explosion rang out, sending serpents of electricity flying in every direction.

Immediately afterward, Wang Dong's body went rigid, as though an invisible current had pierced his entire body. He convulsed involuntarily, then dropped to one knee.

The outcome was decided.

Gu Xingyue withdrew his hand, and the lightning around him slowly dispersed.

He glanced down at Wang Dong kneeling on one knee and said calmly, "For the infirmary, turn left outside, then take the second intersection. Review the fight yourself and find the gap."

With that, he turned and walked toward the dormitory building.

The spectators parted of their own accord, silent as crows, watching his back disappear into the light of the stairwell.

Behind him, Wang Dong braced his hands on his knees and slowly stood. He stared in that direction, his gaze complicated-with defeat and unwillingness to accept it.