Zhao Wuji's idea was a fine one, but with Night Devil's Frenzied Cry active, how could Qi Ling be so easy to hit?
Under Zhao Wuji's fierce onslaught, Qi Ling was like a ghost, weaving through the gaps between his attacks.
Every time Zhao Wuji's attacks were about to touch Qi Ling's body, he evaded them by a hair's breadth, his movements as graceful as a dance, infuriating Zhao Wuji.
After that flurry of attacks, Zhao Wuji had failed to land a hit on Qi Ling and instead thoroughly exhausted himself.
When his attacks stopped, Qi Ling did not let the opportunity slip away. He immediately unleashed another Blood Devil Hundred Rending Claws, bringing Zhao Wuji's Soul Power down to a dangerously low level.
"Damn it, I'm-I'm Zhao Wuji, the Immovable Wisdom King! How could I lose to..." As Zhao Wuji spoke, he took a step forward, but exhausted as he was, he actually stumbled and nearly fell.
When he raised his head, a clean, fair hand had already appeared before his face, its index finger bent, poised to flick his forehead.
"Teacher Zhao, let's end our match here," Qi Ling said. "I'm truly sorry, but this one is payback for my little sister!"
With that, Qi Ling gently released his finger and flicked Zhao Wuji on the forehead.
Of course, accompanying it was the tremendous Soul Power belonging to Zhao Wuji that he had absorbed earlier!
At the spot where Qi Ling's finger struck, something like a shock wave formed, and surging Soul Power erupted like a small bomb.
Zhao Wuji, caught at the very center of the blast, took all the damage. He was instantly dazed, his mind went blank, and he actually passed out just like that!
Boom! Zhao Wuji's heavy body toppled backward onto the ground. The incense stick on the table burned through its last bit at that very moment.
Zhao Wuji had fallen, while Qi Ling still stood there completely unharmed!
Zhao Wuji, the Immovable Wisdom King, had actually been defeated by a Soul Grandmaster!
Dai Mubai felt as though he were dreaming. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that Qi Ling could actually defeat Zhao Wuji!
"Xiao Bai, Xiao Bai!" Just then, Qi Ling called out to Dai Mubai.
"Ah, huh?" Dai Mubai came back to his senses. "What is it, Brother Qi?"
"This should mean we've passed, right?" Qi Ling asked with a smile.
Dai Mubai was instantly speechless. You've already beaten the chief examiner into the ground, and you're still asking me whether you passed?
After receiving an affirmative answer, Qi Ling said in relief, "That's good! Don't worry, Teacher Zhao's Ring Sealing Technique has already been lifted. With his Soul Power restored, he should wake up very soon!"
Just then, Xiao Wu gave a soft moan and regained consciousness. Qi Ling immediately asked with concern, "Xiao Wu, you're awake. Are you feeling any better?"
"I-I'm fine," Xiao Wu said. "Brother Qi, how did the assessment go? Did we pass?"
"Don't worry, Xiao Wu. I've already taken Teacher Zhao down. We passed the assessment!" Qi Ling said with a smile.
Xiao Wu tilted her head, wondering whether she had misheard. She had only wanted to pass the assessment, so how had her big brother ended up taking down the examiner?
Besides, Zhao Wuji had just given them all a thorough beating. Was her big brother so powerful that he had taken him down in the blink of an eye?
A while later, Zhao Wuji woke up, clutching his head, and said, "Damn it, you little brat! You really hit hard!"
"Please forgive me, Teacher Zhao. With the Immovable Wisdom King as my opponent, of course I had to give it my all!" Qi Ling promptly placed a tall hat of flattery on his head, choking off the rest of Zhao Wuji's words.
"Might I ask, Teacher Zhao, have we all passed the assessment?"
After the thorough beating Qi Ling had given him, Zhao Wuji was feeling disgruntled. But he had set the test himself and agreed to the conditions himself, so he really had no way to make trouble for Qi Ling.
Besides, disgruntled though he was, Zhao Wuji had to admit that this kid's talent was terrifyingly great, for him to defeat him at the Soul Grandmaster level.
He could say that no one he had ever met surpassed him. He was happy to have recruited such a student, too.
What's more, he would be their teacher from now on. If he wanted to straighten them out, did he need to worry about lacking opportunities? The most important thing now was, of course, to accept them first! Losing even one gifted youngster like this would be an enormous loss.
"You passed, you passed!" Zhao Wuji said impatiently. "Mubai, take them back to their dorms first. Be ready for class first thing tomorrow morning!"
"Honestly, after a lifetime of brilliance, to think I'd capsize in a ditch here today!" Zhao Wuji glanced at Qi Ling, then turned and walked out of the room.
Once Zhao Wuji had left the room, Xiao Wu immediately hugged Qi Ling and bounced about happily. "Oh! Brother Qi, you're amazing! You actually knocked that stinking bear down! Yay-ow!"
Xiao Wu cried out in pain, and Qi Ling hurriedly held her steady. "You silly girl, don't go bouncing around like that when you're injured!"
Xiao Wu stuck out her tongue mischievously. "I was just happy! I won't do it next time!"
Afterward, Dai Mubai led them to Shrek Academy's dormitories. Since their group happened to consist of five boys and three girls, Qi Ling took a room by himself.
That night, everyone went to bed especially early. Their battle with Zhao Wuji during the day had drained their mental and physical strength to the limit.
Of course, Qi Ling was the exception. Because of the Blood Devil Emperor, he was actually in the best condition of all, even better than Zhao Wuji.
Unable to sleep, Qi Ling simply went up onto the roof and lay on a few broken bricks and battered tiles, admiring the bright moon in the sky. With a cup of fine wine to go with it, he was wonderfully carefree and content.
Just as Qi Ling was enjoying this leisure time to himself, all the insect calls and birdsong around him suddenly fell silent in an instant!
They seemed to sense that some terrifying presence had come to this place. Even the moon above seemed to have been halted in the sky by this person's arrival.
Sensing the unusual change in the air, Qi Ling sighed helplessly. After all, he was quite familiar with this person.
"Uncle Hao, do you have to make such a grand entrance every time you come? You've scared all the birds and bugs!" Qi Ling spoke to the empty air beside him, seemingly quite casually.
The next second, a middle-aged man appeared on a few bricks beside Qi Ling.
The moment this man appeared, no one could possibly ignore him. The crushing pressure emanating from his body seemed enough to crush heaven and earth.
Strangely, however, despite his overwhelming presence, he seemed to have been sitting there all along. No one could see exactly when he had appeared there.
He was Tang San's father, Tang Hao, the legendary Clear Sky Douluo-a true Titled Douluo!