Auction House
In the following days, Ma Hongjun did not harm the girl herself—he harmed her food.
That evening, a girl was walking down the school path with her newly bought ice cream, about to eat it, when a burst of fire descended from the sky. Ma Hongjun braced himself against the wall with one hand, pinning the girl against the wall, the pair of fiery wings behind him not yet fully retracted, sparks crackling and floating in the air.
He lowered his head slightly, his voice extremely low. "Little beauty, you're just as adorable as this ice cream. May I have a couple of bites?"
The girl blushed to her ears, closed her eyes, and her eyelashes trembled slightly. "Then... try it."
"Thank you, okay." Ma Hongjun reached out and took the ice cream. When the girl opened her eyes, all that was left in front of her was a gust of hot air and a few feathers that hadn't yet died down.
After each meal, the Martial Soul Possession state would end shortly afterward.
The fat guy returned, leaving the onlookers bewildered—just moments ago they saw a handsome guy eating, and now only a fat guy was left standing there licking his spoon. Over time, the legend of the "handsome guy who disappears after eating" quietly spread throughout the college.
These past few days, everyone has been consolidating their absorption of the medicinal power of the Immortal Herb. Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Wang Xingyu, on the other hand, have had some free time. The three of them wandered around the new academy and finally decided to attend a class at the Blue Tyrant Academy.
The classroom was tiered, like a meeting room in a school. Wang Xingyu sat in the back row, and after ten minutes of initial excitement, he started to feel bored.
He draped his arm over the table and buried his head in it. Unexpectedly, Xiao Wu was already fast asleep on the table, her scorpion braid loose over her shoulder, breathing evenly.
The bell rang, and the three walked towards the cafeteria. Tang San looked at the two who seemed to have just woken up, and after a moment of silence, said, "How about we skip class from now on? With our Soul Power Level, we should be able to apply for an exemption."
The two nodded simultaneously. Wang Xingyu thought to himself, "It's not entirely useless—I can come over when I have insomnia in the future."
As they were walking, a tall figure blocked their way. The man was as thick as a wall, his arms were thicker than an average person's calves, and he stood in front of the three of them, completely blocking their path.
"Hey, who are you two? Why are you walking next to Xiao Wu?"
Xiao Wu looked up and frowned. "Tai Long, what's it to you? Go cool off somewhere else."
Tai Long remained unmoved, his gaze sweeping back and forth between Tang San and Wang Xingyu: "Xiao Wu, you don't need to worry about this. This is a matter between us men."
Tang San looked at him. "Tai Long? Who are you?"
Tai Long puffed out his chest, his tone filled with undisguised pride. "I'm the top student in the academy. The most powerful person in this academy. You haven't even heard of that?"
Wang Xingyu quickly reviewed the original plot in his mind. Tai Long, a direct descendant of the Strength Clan.
He understood the situation, a smile spreading across his face as he stepped aside. "I'm not with those two; we just happened to be walking together." He moved closer to Tai Long, lowering his voice, "Chief, I've had my eye on that Xiao Bai for a while now. I'm Support System; I'll support you."
Tai Long laughed heartily, patted Wang Xingyu on the shoulder, almost making him stumble. "You've got good taste, kid! But it's not necessary, you just watch from the side."
He turned back to Tang San, clenching his fists. "Kid, if you can defeat me, I'll admit you're qualified to approach Xiao Wu. Tai Long, Martial Soul: Great Strength Gorilla, Level 37 Power Attack System Battle Soul Elder. Please enlighten me!"
Tang San and Xiao Wu exchanged a glance. Xiao Wu looked at Wang Xingyu's sinister smile and shook her head helplessly. Tang San remained calm and pointed to the woods behind the teaching building. "Let's go into the woods; we can't move freely here."
"You Xiao Bai, you've got a lot of problems. Fine, for Xiao Wu's sake."
The four of them entered the woods. The trees were sparse, and the ground was covered with a layer of dead leaves.
Tang San stood still and stretched out his hand. "Tang San, Martial Soul: Blue Silver Grass."
"A useless Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass?" Tai Long was stunned for a moment, then became even angrier. "You won't even give me Soul Ring?"
"No need. Use it when you need it, and the First Soul Skill is enough."
"Arrogant!" Tai Long roared, charging forward.
Neither of them used their Soul Skill, relying solely on physical combat. Tai Long possessed immense strength, each punch accompanied by a whooshing sound, but Tang San was faster. With the Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon, Tai Long's punches were completely neutralized, and several heavy blows struck the tree trunks, causing leaves to fall in a rustling sound.
Tai Long panicked, his First Soul Ring lit up— Explosive Giant Strength. His fists were enveloped in a layer of earth-yellow Soul Power, and his strength surged. Tang San used his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and continued to dodge.
Tai Long activated his Third Soul Ring – the Demonic Ape Golden Body. His skin was coated with a layer of gray-iron-like luster, greatly increasing his defense.
But Tang San waited until he got close before his First Soul Ring lit up. Iron Thorn Strangulation. The Blue Silver Grass wrapped around Tai Long's ankle along the ground. Its hardness and toughness far exceeded that of ordinary Blue Silver Grass. Tai Long was tripped up and fell forward.
Wang Xingyu timely activated his Second Soul Skill, Flying Fluff Seeds, which attached pale silver dandelion seeds to Tai Long, helping him recover. "Chief, continue!"
Tai Long gritted his teeth, got up from the ground, and charged at Tang San again. He fell down again.
Wang Xingyu released more Flying Fluff. Tai Long went up again, and fell down again. The Flying Fluff were released again, and Tai Long fell down again.
After more than ten attempts, Tang San's breathing became labored. Tai Long lay on the ground, never to rise again.
"Chief?" Wang Xingyu urged twice, "Are we coming again?"
Tai Long buried his face in the pile of dead leaves, remaining motionless. He finally understood—the kid with the fan wasn't there to help him at all.
These two were playing him the whole time. The one named Tang San made him fall down, and the one named Wang Xingyu made him get up and fall down again. It happened more than ten times, so it was obvious by now.
Xiao Wu, seeing Tai Long lying on the ground pretending to be dead, got bored. "Let's go, let's go."
The three turned and walked out of the woods. A muffled thud came from behind them— Tai Long had slammed his fist on the ground, sending dead leaves flying. It was too humiliating!
The three left the academy and strolled around Heaven Dou City. The streets were wide and lined with shops on both sides, making it far more prosperous than Nuoding City and Suotuo City.
Xiao Wu ate as she walked, a candied hawthorn in her left hand and a kebab in her right. Tang San and Wang Xingyu followed beside her, getting a bite every now and then. Wang Xingyu felt that Xiao Wu's stamina for shopping was stronger than her stamina for fighting.
At a crossroads, a huge semi-circular building appeared ahead, made entirely of white marble, with a golden hammer sculpted above the main entrance.
Two rows of guards in uniform stood at the entrance, and every now and then, people dressed in fine clothes would get off carriages, show their invitations, and be led inside by a designated person.
"What's that?" Xiao Wu stopped in her tracks and looked up at the impressive entrance.
"It should be an auction house," Wang Xingyu replied, looking at the hammer.
"Let's go in and take a look."
Wang Xingyu shook his head. "It seems like you need a qualification to get in, and none of the three of us have one, but we can get in by selling things."
Wang Xingyu looked at Tang San, "Little San, do you have any Hidden Weapon you can use?"
Tang San pondered for a moment, then pulled a palm-sized iron box from his storage bag. The box had a row of tiny holes at the opening. "Sand-Shooting Shadow fires steel needles, whether poisoned or not. One load can fire 12 poisoned needles. That'll be quite an eye-opener for them."
Xiao Wu took the iron box and examined it from all angles. "Okay, this is it."
The three walked towards the auction house entrance.