Xiao Wu Challenged Me First, but Tang San Couldn't Sit Still

"Who's the boss here?"

Xiao Wu tossed her luggage onto an empty bed and followed the gazes of everyone in Dorm Seven straight to Dong Jian.

"You?"

"They just started calling me that on their own."

Before Dong Jian could finish explaining, Xiao Wu stepped forward.

"If I beat you, I'm the boss, right?"

Wang Sheng opened his mouth.

Dorm Seven had indeed had that rule before.

But Dong Jian had made it clear just now that he wasn't going to continue choosing a boss.

"The rules have changed," Dong Jian said.

"I just got here. I don't follow the old rules."

Xiao Wu flexed her wrists, her scorpion-tail braid swaying gently behind her.

"If you want me to listen to you, beat me first."

"When did I ever tell you to listen to me?"

"Then what are you afraid of?"

Before her words had even faded, Xiao Wu charged at Dong Jian.

Her movements looked light, but her speed far surpassed that of an ordinary six-year-old.

Her right foot tapped the floor.

She leaped.

One slender leg swept straight toward the side of Dong Jian's neck.

The expressions of Wang Sheng and the others changed at once.

When they had fought Dong Jian just now, they had done little more than throw punches and shove.

But Xiao Wu's first strike went straight for his neck.

Dong Jian leaned back.

The tip of her pink shoe skimmed past his nose.

Xiao Wu landed without pausing, her left foot immediately sweeping along the floor toward his ankle.

The first kick had only been a distraction.

Her real target was his lower body.

Dong Jian lifted his right foot, evading the sweep.

But Xiao Wu suddenly planted both hands on the floor, and her other leg swept across from the opposite direction.

There was almost no gap between the two attacks.

Dong Jian could only move again.

She's forcing me to keep changing my points of support.

Through Center of Gravity Perception, every one of Xiao Wu's movements was perfectly clear.

But seeing them clearly didn't mean he could necessarily dodge them.

Her fighting style was completely different from Wang Sheng's.

Wang Sheng relied on strength to overwhelm his opponent head-on.

Xiao Wu, however, kept attacking Dong Jian's ankles, knees, and waist.

Every strike disrupted a point of support.

Dong Jian retreated half a step.

Xiao Wu suddenly closed in, reaching for his wrists with both hands.

Dong Jian turned sideways to evade her.

His right palm pressed toward her shoulder in the same motion.

A hint of amusement flashed in Xiao Wu's eyes.

She didn't retreat. Instead, she deliberately fell backward.

As both hands caught Dong Jian's wrist, her legs rose from below and curled around his shoulders and neck.

"Waist Bow!"

Standing nearby, Tang San instantly saw what Xiao Wu intended.

Once her legs locked around his shoulders and neck, she only had to unleash the strength in her waist and abdomen to throw Dong Jian straight out.

Dorm Seven was cramped.

If he hit a bed frame, he could very well be seriously hurt.

"It's just a spar. Is there any need to attack his neck?"

Tang San frowned.

Xiao Wu paid him no attention.

Her legs had already clamped around Dong Jian's shoulders.

Her waist snapped with force.

Dong Jian felt a powerful pull on his shoulders and neck.

Xiao Wu had clearly not released her Martial Soul, yet her physical strength far surpassed that of children her age.

Sure enough, the body of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that had taken human form couldn't be judged by the standards of an ordinary Soul Scholar.

Dong Jian didn't release his Panda Martial Soul.

If his weight suddenly increased, Xiao Wu might not be able to throw him, but that might also expose the special connection between them.

He relaxed his legs.

Rather than resist the force of Waist Bow head-on, he moved forward with Xiao Wu's pull.

Circular Force Redirection!

Xiao Wu had intended to use the force of Dong Jian retreating and struggling to complete the throw.

But Dong Jian didn't retreat.

He moved closer of his own accord, instantly closing the distance between them.

Although Xiao Wu's legs were locked around his shoulders, she had lost the best angle to exert her strength.

"Why is he so hard to throw?"

She cried out softly and continued exerting force with her waist.

Dong Jian's feet finally left the floor.

Wang Sheng instinctively closed his eyes.

He could already imagine the sound of Dong Jian crashing into the wooden bed and breaking it.

But just as his body passed over Xiao Wu's head, Dong Jian suddenly planted his right hand on the floor.

He twisted at the waist.

He redirected the force of Xiao Wu's backward throw to the side.

Their bodies spun half a turn in the air together.

Bang!

Dong Jian landed on one hand.

Xiao Wu landed with her feet on the edge of the wooden bed beside them.

The bed frame shook violently, nearly falling apart.

Neither of them fell.

Everyone in Dorm Seven fell silent for a few breaths.

"A draw?"

Wang Sheng asked tentatively.

"I won."

Xiao Wu said at once:

"His feet left the floor."

Dong Jian stood up.

"You were the one who ended up on the bed."

"I jumped up here myself."

"And I landed on my own."

"Again!"

Xiao Wu stepped forward, unwilling to accept the result.

But Dong Jian raised a hand to stop her.

"If we keep fighting, at least two beds will be broken tonight."

Xiao Wu looked at the wooden boards still shaking beneath her feet.

In the end, she jumped down.

"Then let's fight outside."

"Not today."

"Afraid you'll lose?"

"I already know your fighting style."

Dong Jian rolled his shoulders.

The places where Xiao Wu's legs had clamped around him still ached faintly.

"Continuing would just be a repeat."

Xiao Wu was slightly taken aback.

When ordinary children sparred, what they usually cared about most was who won and who lost.

Dong Jian, however, cared more about what he had learned from the exchange.

"Then what did you see?"

"You're good at attacking joints and points of support."

Dong Jian said:

"Your strength isn't especially great, but you can unleash force from your waist and abdomen quickly."

"Once you get hold of someone, the more they struggle, the easier it is for you to throw them."

The ease in Xiao Wu's eyes gradually gave way to seriousness.

Almost everything Dong Jian had said was correct.

He had seen the core of Soft Skills after such a brief exchange.

"Then how would you counter it?"

"I haven't fully worked that out yet."

Dong Jian didn't pretend to know everything.

Just now, he had barely managed to change direction using Circular Force Redirection.

If they were in an open area and Xiao Wu used Soft Skills repeatedly, he might not be able to land safely every time.

Having a stable center of gravity didn't mean he had no weaknesses.

When his feet lost their support on the ground, the effectiveness of Center of Gravity Perception would drop significantly.

That was precisely the problem he needed to solve next.

"Since there's no winner, Dorm Seven still has no boss," Dong Jian said.

"Then how do we run things?"

Wang Sheng asked.

"Whatever someone is good at, we listen to them when it comes up."

Dong Jian pointed at Wang Sheng.

"You know the academy, so we'll follow your lead on everyday arrangements."

Then he looked at Li Man.

"If someone gets hurt or has a problem with cultivation, listen to her."

Finally, he looked at Xiao Wu.

"If we really have to fight, she can step in too."

Xiao Wu folded her arms.

"Then what are you responsible for?"

"When you can't win a fight, I'll handle it."

Everyone in Dorm Seven was stunned at first.

Then they all laughed at once.

That answer was easier to accept than "I'm the boss, so everyone listens to me."

Tang San, however, never laughed.

He had been thinking back over the fight.

Xiao Wu's Soft Skills had taken him by surprise.

The way Dong Jian redirected physical force was even more unusual.

He hadn't used Martial Soul Possession, yet he had managed to change direction at the very moment he was about to be thrown.

That wasn't something that could be done through strength alone.

"Was that Circular Force Redirection you used just now?"

Tang San asked.

Dong Jian looked at him.

"You could say that."

"If your opponent is faster?"

"Then you have to keep up first."

"What if your opponent won't fight you at close range?"

Dong Jian didn't answer.

Tang San's two questions had struck straight at his greatest weaknesses.

Dong Jian excelled at close combat.

Only when an opponent's force actually made contact with his body could Circular Force Redirection and Mountain-Leaning Collision exert their full effect.

But if his enemy possessed high-speed footwork, ranged Hidden Weapons, or control Soul Skills, he might not even be able to get close.

Tang San was clearly probing him.

"What are you getting at?" Dong Jian asked.

"The sparring match we agreed on."

Tang San said:

"Tomorrow morning, at the academy training ground."

Wang Sheng immediately perked up.

"Blue Silver Grass with Innate Full Soul Power against a Black and White Bear with rank-seven Soul Power?"

"Which of you is stronger?"

"We'll know after we fight."

Tang San looked at Dong Jian.

He wanted to see for himself whether Dong Jian could counter Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and the Tang Sect's techniques.

Likewise, Dong Jian wanted to know whether his current skills could really handle a transmigrator who possessed Mysterious Heaven Skill.

"All right."

Dong Jian agreed.

"But we won't use our Martial Souls this time."

Tang San frowned slightly.

"Why?"

"You don't have a Soul Ring, and neither do I."

Dong Jian said:

"Let's test our bodies and techniques first."

Tang San nodded.

"Fine."

Their first formal sparring match was settled.

Li Man didn't stop them.

She had already opened her record book and written their names on a new page.

Dong Jian: strength, center of gravity, force redirection.

Tang San: footwork, controlling force from a distance, concealed techniques.

Xiao Wu leaned over and took a look.

"You're taking notes again?"

"This fight has more research value than the one just now."

Li Man answered.

"Why didn't mine?"

"I've already finished recording it."

Xiao Wu saw the words "abnormal abdominal and lower back strength" written after her name and immediately reached for the book.

Li Man closed the record book before she could grab it.

The two looked at each other again.

Clearly, neither was prepared to back down.

Dong Jian stayed out of it.

He walked to the window and picked up the paper with the black eye on it again.

Zhou Qian's blood sample had been stolen.

The Return to One Society had an accomplice inside the academy.

According to his original plan, he should have gone straight to Yu Xiaogang to investigate the paper and his mother's identity.

But after the fight just now, Dong Jian had changed his mind.

He was only rank seven.

He had no Soul Ring.

Even against a low-level Soul Master like Zhou Qian, he had barely managed to hold his own by joining forces with Tang San and Li Man.

Even if he found out who the accomplice was now, what could he do?

He couldn't catch him.

He couldn't beat him.

The more he knew, the easier it would be for the other side to use him.

Dong Jian tucked the black paper into his cloth bag.

"Let's stop investigating the sample for now."

Li Man frowned.

"Why?"

"Since he dared to leave his symbol behind, he clearly isn't afraid of us knowing he's at the academy."

Dong Jian said:

"If we investigate now, we'll only be walking into a trap he's prepared."

"Let's get stronger first."

"Once we each have at least our First Soul Ring, we'll go after him."

Li Man fell silent for a moment.

"What about the fusion data in Zhou Qian's blood?"

"You've already recorded the main changes."

Dong Jian looked at her.

"We can get the remaining samples from members of the Return to One Society later."

Li Man understood what he meant.

Backing down now didn't mean giving up.

It only meant not wasting time on a problem they weren't capable of solving for the time being.

"All right."

She closed her medicine chest.

"But we have to keep the paper and the records we have."

"Of course."

That night, Dorm Seven gradually grew quiet.

Dong Jian lay in bed and closed his eyes.

Before facing Tang San tomorrow, he had to find out whether he could keep up with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.

His consciousness sank into the Divine Dragon Secret Realm.

The clouds and mist parted.

Beside the Body Refining Hall, a black palace that had remained closed until now slowly lit up.

There were only three characters on the plaque above its entrance.

Hundred Battles Hall.

The great doors boomed open.

A young man who looked exactly like Dong Jian stood inside.

Rank-seven Soul Power.

The same physical strength.

He had also mastered Center of Gravity Perception, Circular Force Redirection, and Mountain-Leaning Collision.

A new trial requirement appeared on the stone stele.

The first battle of the Hundred Battles Hall.

Defeat another self.

The mirror-image Dong Jian slowly raised his right hand and took the exact same opening stance as him.

Dong Jian had only just stepped into the palace when his opponent vanished from where he stood.

The next instant, a Mountain-Leaning Collision struck him squarely in the chest.

Bang!

Dong Jian was sent flying backward.

The mirror image stood where he was, calmly watching him.

It was as though he were telling Dong Jian through his actions-

Every move he had mastered so far could be countered.