Four pieces of battle armor!
The girl rubbed her palms together—the first spirit ring lit up, and a ball of ice shot toward Long Yue.
With the battle armor's amplification, the ice sphere had a diameter of nearly a foot. As it flew, strange patterns appeared all over its surface, gleaming with deep-blue halos.
After releasing the ice ball, the girl immediately started moving, chasing after it. Her second spirit ring shone. A streak of blue light gathered in her right palm, and covered in armor, that palm struck the ice ball.
The ball trembled lightly, then instantly doubled in size. The glowing patterns on the surface became more distinct. Enormous energy seemed to churn within it.
At this moment, her third spirit ring lit up. The sequence of her first three spirit skills advanced rapidly and smoothly.
This time, both her palms pressed onto the ice ball. Instantly, spikes three feet long burst from its surface. Meanwhile, the sphere grew until it exceeded a meter in diameter, its entire body turning deep blue.
If anyone had stepped onto the stage right now, they would have noticed the entire arena's temperature plummeting.
The girl stopped moving. Her fourth spirit ring flared brilliantly. Deep-blue light bands shot toward the ice sphere. Her figure blinked—and under the pull of those glowing ribbons, she disappeared.
The spike-covered ice ball suddenly accelerated, carrying a terrifying aura and extreme cold, shooting straight toward Long Yue.
Long Yue simply stood there with a cheerful smile. From beginning to end, he showed no sign of making a move.
The arena wasn't particularly large. In the blink of an eye, that massive spiked ice ball had reached him.
And then—
It hit!
"BOOM—!" Ice shards exploded as the ball slammed violently into Long Yue. The long spikes pierced directly into him.
But the smile on Long Yue's face never changed, as though he were a statue.
Then the audience witnessed something horrifying.
The moment the spiked deep-blue ice sphere struck Long Yue, the spikes shattered. Then the sphere itself shattered. It was like crashing into an immovable mountain—melding with Long Yue for a split second before crumbling to powder.
And just then, the girl who'd vanished earlier reappeared. All the frost energy in the air converged toward her in an instant.
Centered on her body, an icy vortex formed, swirling with chilling power. All cold energy gathered into her raised right palm.
A triumphant, cunning smile spread across her face.
Everything before now had been a feint. The real goal—was this one strike: Cold-Hearted Palm.
Her armor-covered palm turned deep blue. That frigid hand pressed directly onto Long Yue's chest.
At the last moment before striking, the girl hesitated—she avoided his left chest and struck his right chest instead.
Pu!
A soft sound.
Long Yue remained unmoving. But the girl froze in place.
Her four spirit skills had been cycled together, amplifying each other, culminating in this single, all-or-nothing blow.
She believed that even a mountain would freeze under that palm.
Yet Long Yue still stood there, completely unchanged, smiling gently. He tilted his head slightly and asked:
"Finished?"
The girl stared at him in disbelief, then at his intact body.
"You… you're fine?"
Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
He should've become an ice sculpture!
"Not hitting my left chest—good girl. Admit defeat."
Long Yue patted her head.
The blue-clothed girl stared blankly. She still didn't understand what had happened. When her Cold-Hearted Palm struck him, she had felt all her spirit power leave her body—there was no rebound force. It should have succeeded.
But why was Long Yue completely unaffected?
Where had all her spirit power gone?
"Here!"
Long Yue smiled, tilted his head, and a stream of icy-blue air sprayed from his mouth into the sky.
"I—I admit defeat…"
Realizing the abyss between their abilities, the girl bowed, fully convinced.
Instantly, thunderous applause erupted.
Long Yue had never even made a move. He hadn't even released his martial soul.
He waved toward the stands and walked down the stage.
In the waiting area, apart from Gu You—who was meditating cross-legged—everyone from Shrek was speechless.
Gu You, in truth, had a calm exterior but turbulent heart. Long Yue's Mountain Dragon King aura was… wrong. Too strong. Far too strong.
Something was off. Terribly off.
For the first time, Gu You felt pressure—a pressure from within dragon-royal bloodlines. If not for his own Dragon God blood, he could confidently say his bloodline wouldn't be able to suppress Long Yue's, nor could Long Yue's suppress his.
"It's my turn."
Seeing his name on the board, Gu You rose.
"Be careful. Gu You is very strong," Long Yue reminded Su Mu.
"Strong or not—let's test it and see," Su Mu replied with a gentle smile.
Long Yue frowned. Su Mu was clearly underestimating Gu You.
But to be fair, Su Mu had the right to be confident.
Among the Eight Heavenly Kings of Monster Academy, he ranked third—only behind the mad dragon Long Yue and the fourth prince Dai Yueyan.
Among their generation, he was undefeated.
Gu You stepped onto the stage step by step. His pace wasn't fast, but each step carried immense pressure.
By the time he reached the platform, his opponent stood waiting.
Su Mu wore a dark-red academy uniform, long black hair cascading behind him. His temperament was relaxed, elegant, and calm—far beyond what one would expect of his age.
Seeing Gu You, Su Mu's gaze sharpened.
This guy… his aura is strong!
The referee stepped to the center. Since the rules had already been explained in round one, he didn't repeat them.
He simply raised his right hand.
"Prepare. Three… two… one—begin!"
Boom!
Su Mu's entire body exploded with light. Countless fragments assembled around him, forming a full set of battle armor—undoubtedly going all-out from the start.
The crowd roared. Everyone watched intently. Wherever Monster Academy appeared, hype followed—and modern Su Mu possessed the power of a Soul Saint.
Gu You remained expressionless.
He casually lifted a hand.
Before the stunned audience, a dragon-shaped shadow appeared beneath Su Mu's feet—
And swallowed him.
(End of Chapter)