The Undisputed Number One Genius (4)
This strike held all his Soul Power and will.
Boom-!
A muffled boom erupted across the training ground.
Tang San's right hand slammed into the Chaos Shield. The gray dome of light shuddered violently, ripples spreading across its surface as though it might shatter at any moment. Lin Chen frowned slightly. The pressure coming through the shield was far greater than he had expected; Tang San's strike was already approaching the power of a level-twenty Soul Master's full-force attack.
But that was all.
In the end, the Chaos Shield did not break. The force of the rebound sent Tang San's arm flying back, and he staggered five or six steps before regaining his balance. His right hand trembled slightly, and a trace of blood seeped from the webbing between his thumb and forefinger.
Lin Chen looked at him, a flicker of appreciation in his eyes.
"You're strong," Lin Chen said. "But not strong enough."
As the words left his mouth, he moved.
It was the first time he had taken the offensive in this fight.
The Chaos Pearl blazed with light, and Lin Chen appeared before Tang San like a ghost, striking out with his palm. The blow looked utterly ordinary, yet it carried a crushing pressure, as though a mountain were bearing down on him.
Tang San's pupils contracted. He pushed Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to its limit and narrowly dodged the palm strike. The wind from the blow brushed past his shoulder and blasted a shallow crater three feet across into the ground behind him, sending fragments of stone flying.
Tang San's heart tightened. If that palm had landed squarely, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
He dared not meet force with force again and switched to a hit-and-run strategy. Blue Silver Grass spread out once more, not to attack, but to disrupt Lin Chen's vision and judgment. He used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to dart rapidly around the field, searching for an opening.
Yet Lin Chen's perception far exceeded his expectations. The Chaos Pearl's detection range covered the entire field, and every move Tang San made, every change in position, was within Lin Chen's grasp. No matter how Tang San changed direction, Lin Chen could always cut off his path a step ahead.
The two fought for nearly the time it took an incense stick to burn.
"That's about enough," Lin Chen suddenly said.
He came to a stop, and the Chaos Pearl floated above his head, its gray light blazing. A surge of Soul Power even more majestic than before poured from his body. The Chaos Shield abruptly expanded from two meters across to five, enclosing Tang San as well.
Tang San felt as though the space around him had solidified. An invisible pressure squeezed in from every direction, slowing his movements to a crawl. The Blue Silver Grass snapped apart inch by inch under the pressure, and even raising an arm became difficult.
"This is..." Tang San gritted his teeth and struggled against the pressure.
"Chaos Domain," Lin Chen said calmly. "It's still incomplete, but it's enough to deal with you as you are now."
He walked toward Tang San step by step, each footfall striking Tang San's heartstrings. Tang San wanted to retreat, but his body simply refused to obey, as though he had sunk into a mire.
Lin Chen came up to him, reached out, and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You've lost."
Tang San's body went rigid.
After a moment of silence, he slowly lowered his head, dispelled Mysterious Jade Hand, and withdrew his Blue Silver Grass.
"...I've lost."
The spectators fell silent for an instant, then erupted in a thunderous wave of applause and cheers.
"Lin Chen! Lin Chen! Lin Chen!"
The younger students' faces were flushed with excitement, while the older students applauded too, their eyes full of admiration. The quality of this fight had far surpassed the level of a lower-grade sparring match; even among the older students' duels, it would have been considered spectacular.
Tang San raised his head and looked at Lin Chen. There was no dejection in his eyes; instead, an even fiercer fighting spirit burned in them.
"You're strong." He repeated Lin Chen's earlier words, his tone serious. "But next time, I'll win. I'll break through your shield with my own hands."
Lin Chen withdrew his hand and smiled faintly. "I'll be waiting."
The two exchanged a glance, each seeing a trace of mutual respect in the other's eyes.
Lin Chen also knew that Tang San's true combat strength was by no means limited to the level fifteen he showed on the surface. The Tang Sect Secret Arts were vast and profound, and the further one progressed, the stronger their explosive power became. He had gained the advantage largely thanks to the Chaos Pearl's top-tier attributes and the overwhelming Soul Power of a Thousand-Year Soul Ring. In terms of technique alone, he might not be a match for Tang San, who had immersed himself in the Tang Sect Secret Arts for two lifetimes.
At the edge of the field, Yu Xiaogang's face was livid. He turned and left without a word. He knew that from today onward, his prestige at Nuoding Academy would be thoroughly trampled underfoot by this youth named Lin Chen.
Meanwhile, Xiao Wu stood in the crowd with her hands cupping her cheeks, her eyes sparkling as she watched Lin Chen on the platform, a sweet smile on her lips.
"Brother Lin Chen is so handsome," she murmured, her cheeks turning slightly pink.
After this match, people at the academy began calling them "Nuoding's Twin Prodigies."
One towered over his peers, his talent unmatched; the other kept his abilities hidden, his unpredictable changes impossible to fathom. Everyone knew that these two youths who had come from Holy Soul Village were destined for extraordinary futures.
The days passed, and Lin Chen cultivated steadily while making preparations in secret.
Using the Chaos Pearl's storage space, he quietly saved the resources and Gold Soul Coins he received each month. He also took advantage of trips outside during holidays to find several hidden caches of low-grade spirit herbs and rare ores from memory, gradually building up his initial capital.
He knew very well that Nuoding was only the starting point. If he wanted to establish himself on the Douluo Continent, he would ultimately have to rely on his own forces and foundations.
Winters came and summers went, and five years passed in the blink of an eye.
At twelve, Lin Chen had grown to nearly 1.7 meters tall. He had handsome features and a steady bearing.
He stood in the center of the cultivation room, two purple Soul Rings floating slowly up and down beneath his feet. Dense fluctuations of Soul Power spread out as though tangible, pressing on the air until it trembled slightly.
Level thirty.
The peak of the Soul Grandmaster rank.
Two Thousand-Year Soul Rings, a purple-purple combination.
In the entire history of Nuoding Academy, no one had ever reached such heights at twelve years old.
During those five years, he had broken through to level twenty at the age of ten. He had taken Xiao Wu into the Star Dou Great Forest, where they had hunted a 4,800-year-old Illusory Heart Demon Spider and obtained a Second Soul Ring for the Chaos Pearl.
Second Soul Skill-Chaos Suppression.
It released the Power of Chaos to form an area-of-effect force field that could suppress the circulation of an enemy's Soul Power, weaken attacks, and slow movement. It also had a powerful deterrent effect against mental attacks. Paired with his first Soul Skill, Chaos Shield, it combined control and defense, and almost no one of the same rank could break through it.
After his Soul Power broke through to level thirty, the Chaos Pearl unlocked another ability: its internal space expanded to ten zhang across, and it gained an additional time-flow bonus, making cultivation inside twice as fast as outside. This improved Lin Chen's cultivation efficiency once again, and his foundations grew ever deeper.
Xiao Wu had also grown to eleven years old, becoming ever more lively and pretty. Her long scorpion braid hung to her waist, and when she smiled, she revealed two little tiger teeth. Her Soul Power had reached level twenty-nine, just one step away from level thirty.