The female students were utterly dumbfounded. Feng Rouyi, her face flushed red, muttered softly, "That hooligan..."
"Wang Fei, what are you standing there gaping for?" Zhou Xuan roared, a mixture of shame and fury. An earthy-yellow halo suddenly enveloped her. Above her head, a spectral image resembling a boulder materialized. With a tremor, a ponderous force surged from her body, throwing off Ye Xuan’s hold. "Petrification Martial Soul!"
RIP!
Ye Xuan had ripped Zhou Xuan’s black silk stockings halfway down. Even as he retreated, he didn’t miss the chance to run a hand over her calf. "Tsk, tsk. So smooth and supple. A truly fine pair of legs."
Zhou Xuan gritted her teeth so hard they could have shattered, her eyes blazing with fire. Her face was flushed scarlet all the way to her ears as she hissed, "You lecher! I’m going to kill you!"
Enraged, Zhou Xuan was completely shrouded in the earthy-yellow halo, appearing like a stone statue. A vast and potent force erupted wildly from her body.
"Petrification Martial Soul, Petrification Embodiment," one of the teachers exclaimed in shock. "The Zhou family’s Petrification Martial Soul is legendary in Blue Moon City. It doesn’t just boost a Martial Artist’s power; it also forms a thin petrified layer on their body, increasing their defense severalfold."
The Zhou family’s Clan Leader, Zhou Huai’an, is said to have cultivated his Petrification Martial Soul to the Two-Star Realm. When he unleashes it, he could stand still and allow a Martial Artist of the Xuanwu Realm to attack him, and his defense would remain impenetrable.
For Zhou Xuan, who had only just broken through to the Tier One Spirit Martial Realm, to already be capable of Petrification Embodiment... such talent was nothing short of brilliant in the annals of both Xingxuan Academy and the Zhou family.
"Gale Scours the Clouds!"
After activating Petrification Embodiment, Zhou Xuan let out a low cry and shot skyward. Her legs became a blur, kicking alternately like a windmill. A powerful blast of energy, like a torrential gale, enveloped Ye Xuan, threatening to crush him under its overwhelming pressure.
Spurred into action by Zhou Xuan’s cry, Wang Fei also made his move.
He gave a sinister chuckle. A vicious, murderous glint flickered in his eyes as they suddenly shot out an evil light.
BUZZ!
A jet-black demonic snake materialized above him. His body merged with the serpent’s form as he lunged through the air at Ye Xuan.
"Black Snake Martial Soul, Venomous Fang Strike!"
With his hands shaped like fangs, Wang Fei lunged. The surrounding Heaven and Earth Profound Qi swirled wildly toward him, forming a spiraling vortex of energy. He and Zhou Xuan were now attacking from the front and back, boxing Ye Xuan in.
’Black Snake Martial Soul and Petrification Martial Soul... Those two truly are geniuses worthy of the Profound Spirit Academy. Their combined attack is flawless!’ Even Instructor Luo Zhan, who was deeply displeased with them, couldn’t help but narrow his eyes. He had to admit, the talent of Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan was frighteningly astounding. Even some Martial Artists at the Second or Third Layer of the Spirit Martial Realm might not be able to block this combined strike.
"This is bad!"
"Ye Xuan!"
Feng Rouyi, Chen Xing, and Leng Yingying all clenched their fists, worry flickering in their hearts.
"Ye Xuan’s done for." The other students shook their heads. In their minds, the battle was decided before the attacks had even landed.
In this world, no First Layer Samurai could possibly withstand the combined attack of two such geniuses. And Ye Xuan was merely a Seven Veins Martial Artist who hadn’t even reached the Spirit Martial Realm.
"DIIIIE!" Wang Fei’s thunderous roar echoed as his attack descended viciously.
"Is that so? We’ll see."
A cold smile played on Ye Xuan’s lips. The Profound Qi within him suddenly began to circulate wildly, flowing through unbelievable pathways at an astonishing frequency, pulsing with ever-increasing power. He stood there, ramrod straight, as a strange and powerful aura began to rise from him.
He calmly recited, "In the North Nether there is a fish, its name is the Kun. So great is the Kun, its size is unknown for thousands of miles!"
BUZZ!
With each word he spoke, the Profound Qi around Ye Xuan trembled. As the final word left his lips, the very heavens and earth seemed to shake. A spectral image resembling a great fish materialized above Ye Xuan’s head. It soared as if roaming the sky, and its tyrannical, overbearing aura instantly swept across everything.
’What is that thing? His martial soul? Impossible, he’s only a Seven Veins Martial Artist! How could he release a martial soul?!’ Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan’s pupils shrank. The enormous, fish-like phantom filled them with a nameless dread. Even their own martial souls began to tremble, like ants in the presence of a divine dragon.
The others were also stunned beyond belief. Everything they were witnessing was beyond their comprehension. All they could see was the massive fish phantom soaring through the air, and it seemed as though the very world was drawn in by its movements.
"Hm?" 「In a refinement chamber inside the academy’s administration building」 an old man was instructing Yun Aoxue. Suddenly, his body jolted. He stared in horror through the window toward the training grounds. ’What’s happening? Isn’t today the students’ final exams? Why is such a terrifying worldly force emanating from the training grounds? What expert has arrived at our Xingxuan Academy? To command the momentum of the heavens and earth... even I am incapable of such a feat. It’s said that one must be at least a Tier Five Martial Sect expert to even catch a glimpse of that power.’
The old man was aghast. Forgetting about his instruction of Yun Aoxue, he shattered the window and leaped from the office, well over a hundred feet in the air. He streaked toward the training grounds at an unbelievable speed.
"Teacher," Yun Aoxue murmured, startled. Her refinement process instantly failed. A look of shock appeared on her face as well, and she quickly darted after him toward the training grounds.
「On the training grounds」 At that moment, the attacks from Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan were about to crash down on Ye Xuan, while the aura emanating from him had swelled to its absolute limit.
He uttered three names: "Carefree Wanderings—North Nether Profound Skill—Kun Palm!"
The giant Kun exuded a terrifying pressure. Before the stunned eyes of the crowd, it suddenly dove like a falling meteor, crashing violently into the combined attack of Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan.
"Carefree Wanderings!"
"North Nether Profound Skill!"
"Kun Palm!"
"What was that?"
Luo Zhan and the others couldn’t conceal the utter shock in their eyes. Such a heaven-shaking, magnificently grand martial technique was something they had never seen, never even heard of. It completely surpassed their imagination. For a moment, everyone stared wide-eyed, their minds utterly blank.
BOOM!
A cataclysmic roar echoed between heaven and earth. Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan’s combined attack, as fragile as tofu striking solid rock, disintegrated in an instant. The technique’s world-shaking power crashed down viciously upon the pair. The surging force blasted the clothes from their bodies, turning them to dust.
PTOO!
Wildly spraying blood, the two were flung left and right like a pair of cannonballs, sent flying back the way they came. They soared for dozens of meters before crashing hard onto the tournament stage, leaving long, gruesome trails of blood splattered across the ground.
As the turbulent energy in the air dissipated, Ye Xuan stood quietly in the center of the stage, as immovable as a mountain, like a veritable War God.
Silence. A deathly silence!
The training grounds, which had been buzzing with chatter moments before, were now dead silent. Every student was stunned. The teachers were stunned. Even Dean Zhu Weichen and Yun Aoxue, who had just reached the entrance to the grounds, were stunned.
When Ye Xuan unleashed that terrifying move, they had considered the possibility that Wang Fei and his partner might fail. But when it actually happened, it still shocked them to their core.
One move!
Two of Xingxuan Academy’s most astonishing geniuses, talents who could enter the kingdom’s Profound Spirit Academy, had been defeated in a single move by a Seven Veins Martial Artist. This reality left everyone’s mind completely blank.
"What was that terrifying phantom above Ye Xuan’s head just now?"
"Too terrifying. Defeating Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan in one move... to think our academy has such a person."
"They lost. It was a complete and utter defeat. Even with their martial souls and Profound Qi fully activated, they still lost. They were defeated so miserably, so pathetically."
"If Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan are geniuses, then what is Ye Xuan? A monster who defeats geniuses?"
"Heavens, how could this happen?"
After a long time, the crowd finally came to their senses. They were all shocked beyond words, and a buzz of discussion erupted. Even now, thinking back on it, they still couldn’t believe what they had seen, because it completely defied their understanding of the world.
On the tournament stage, Ye Xuan slowly exhaled, a cold, unrestrained smirk playing on his lips.
As a Tier Eight Martial Emperor in his previous life, he had countless ways to defeat the pair. However, Ye Xuan had chosen to use the most shocking method of all: a technique from the ’Carefree Wanderings’ scripture, the very source of his title as the Carefree Soul Emperor.
After that one move, his image was deeply engraved in the hearts of everyone present. For years, decades, even centuries to come, the scene from today would never fade from their minds.
"Impossible, this is impossible..."
On the stage, Wang Fei and Zhou Xuan were sprawled pathetically on the ground. Their clothes were tattered and soaked in blood, their hair was a mess, and they had completely lost their initial calm and composure. Ye Xuan’s powerful blow had ravaged their bodies. Blood was splattered everywhere. The seven Profound Veins they had worked so hard to open were now in utter disarray, leaving them unable to muster the slightest bit of strength.
Facing their disbelieving gazes, Ye Xuan coldly walked step by step towards Wang Fei.
"You... What do you want to do?" All trace of arrogance had vanished from Wang Fei’s face. He shouted, his pupils filled with terror.
"Heh. What do you think I want to do?"
Ye Xuan smiled faintly, but in Wang Fei’s eyes, that smile was as terrifying as a demon’s.
"Teacher Witch, save me!" Wang Fei shouted in terror towards the crowd below.
SWOOSH!
A figure suddenly leaped onto the tournament stage. The man wore a cyan martial robe and had a gaunt face, with a pair of small eyes set above an aquiline nose. It was Teacher Witch, who was presiding over the final exam for the advanced class.
He spoke with a faint smile, "Ye Xuan, student matches should end once a victor is decided. Since the outcome is clear, it’s time for this match to conclude, wouldn’t you agree?"
Ye Xuan shot him a cool glance, his eyes turning icy. "Who told you to come up here?" he said in a frigid voice. "Now get the hell down."