The instant Xu Zihuang's figure vanished, with a "clang," the simple and unadorned heavenly meteorite iron sword finally slipped from Ji Juechen's hand.
At this moment, he was drenched in sweat.
Although the two had not openly clashed, their "intents" had collided fiercely.
Ji Juechen's martial soul was a sword—a sword-type weapon soul with no special abilities whatsoever, ordinary to the extreme. His innate soul power was only level three, barely enough to cultivate.
Yet he had forged a path most suited to himself.
Infusing his soul into the sword—this was Ji Juechen's cultivation method.
Through decades of unremitting tempering and his astonishing focus, he had transformed his physical sword-type weapon soul into the purest energy form and fused it into that heavenly meteorite iron sword. Man was the sword, the sword was man—no distinction between them.
Ji Juechen's sword emphasised sword intent. Once he could suppress an opponent in momentum, no matter how powerful they were, they would be slain with a single strike.
But unfortunately, his sword intent had been completely crushed in every aspect by Xu Zihuang's intent. Naturally, he had lost that contest.
Xu Zihuang's intent had originated from the "Monarch Descending" taught to him by Old Mu, but within Monarch Descending, he had integrated his own understanding and abilities.
In Ji Juechen's eyes, Xu Zihuang was like a lofty, majestic emperor. That regal aura had utterly shattered his sword intent on the spiritual level.
Standing silently in place, Ji Juechen pondered for a full quarter of an hour. The burning passion in his eyes turned into firm resolve.
He knew that chasing Yu Tianhuang's footsteps would be incomparably difficult. Yet he had further validated his cultivation path. His road was correct. Even if he had to pursue Yu Tianhuang for his entire life, he would walk it without hesitation.
For the first time, the blood of the sword maniac Ji Juechen boiled.
However, upon returning to the dormitory, Xu Zihuang completely put the matter of Ji Juechen behind him and entered a cultivation state.
Among all his peers, no one yet deserved to be called his opponent. His only opponent was himself.
In essence, Ji Juechen was no different from Xiao Hongchen and the others—just a whetstone on his path of growth.
…
In the days that followed, Xu Zihuang's study and life gradually stabilised. During the day, he worked in the laboratory crafting soul guidance devices, occasionally chatting a few words with Ju Zi and Ke Ke.
Because of what happened six years ago, Ju Zi held no rejection toward Xu Zihuang whatsoever. And Ke Ke was a simple and kind-hearted girl; the three of them quickly got along well.
This instead left Zimu as the outsider.
Notably, on the second day, Wang Shaojie suddenly withdrew from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy. The news was conveyed by Xuan Ziwen.
When Zimu learned of this, he was stunned for a long while before recovering.
Although Xuan Ziwen had not explicitly stated the reason, anyone with eyes could tell that it was inextricably linked to Yu Tianhuang, this genius youth from Shrek Academy.
In Zimu's mind, Yu Tianhuang's image became even more unfathomable.
In the blink of an eye, three days passed.
During this time, Xu Zihuang completed the bow-type soul guidance device. The main material was the rib of that millennium Silver Wolf, and the bowstring was similarly made primarily from the Silver Wolf's tough tendons mixed with other materials.
A level-five soul guidance device: Wind-Breaking Bow.
That very morning, when Xu Zihuang had just finished making it and showed it to Xuan Ziwen, even Xuan Ziwen, an eighth-rank soul mentor, praised the device highly.
But its exact power still needed testing and evaluation.
Sixth-grade building two, laboratory.
Xuan Ziwen, Ju Zi, and Ke Ke stood at the periphery of the soul guidance device testing area in the centre of the laboratory. Inside the testing area were Xu Zihuang and Zimu.
Ever since Wang Shaojie withdrew from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, the number of students under Xuan Ziwen had returned to four. The academy's higher-ups also stopped assigning him any other teaching duties.
The testing area was very spacious. Xu Zihuang and Zimu stood facing each other about fifty meters apart.
Zimu held a fiery-red soul guidance longsword. Soul power poured into it, faintly emitting a scorching aura. Unlike the top-tier level-six melee soul guidance sword "Shark Teeth" personally crafted by Xu Zihuang, the soul guidance longsword in Zimu's hand was a slender rapier style and only a level-five close-combat soul guidance device.
Xu Zihuang's left hand hung naturally at his side, holding an exquisite silver bow. Under the soul guidance lights, it reflected a dazzling brilliance just like the fur of that millennium Silver Wolf—extremely eye-catching.
The bowstring was also silvery white. There were no extravagant or useless decorations.
It was precisely the level-five soul guidance device he had made during this period: the Wind-Breaking Bow.
In Xu Zihuang's right hand was a golden spiral arrow. While making the Wind-Breaking Bow, he had also conveniently crafted several Thunderflame Arrows.
Including the one in his hand, there were ten in total.
The silver Wind-Breaking Bow, paired with the golden Thunderflame Arrows, was aesthetically stunning. And the user, Xu Zihuang, possessed extraordinarily handsome features and an elegant, transcendent, noble aura. Standing there, he looked like a figure stepped out of a painting.
Without comparison, there is no harm. Zimu, who had previously been quite presentable, was destined to be completely overshadowed beside Xu Zihuang.
"This guy is just too good-looking. His skin looks even better than yours, Sister Ju Zi. I really don't know how he grew it," Ke Ke exclaimed for the umpteenth time, her tone filled with envy.
"It's a pity I don't have a younger sister, otherwise I'd definitely introduce her to him."
Ju Zi giggled and whispered teasingly into Ke Ke's ear.
"It's fine. Don't people say that when a girl is five years older, she's like an old hen? If you take the initiative, you might still have a chance."
"Pah, pah, pah! You're the old hen!" Ke Ke's pretty face flushed red as she immediately retorted in embarrassment.
With her usually carefree personality, she normally wouldn't react so strongly. But Ju Zi's words had hit right on her true thoughts.
Of course, she would never admit that she had seriously considered the matter.
For some reason, a mischievous glint appeared in Ke Ke's eyes.
"Sister Ju Zi, you're only a few months older than me. No matter how you look at it, your chances are higher than mine. His Golden Eyes martial soul can even observe the tiniest changes in rare metals. Controlling heat and seasoning when cooking would be a piece of cake for him. Who knows, he might be the dream man who possesses your world's-number-one cooking skills."
"Stop talking nonsense." Ju Zi couldn't help but lightly spit, yet her delicate, jade-like cheeks flushed with two charming patches of red just like Ke Ke's.
At that moment, Xuan Ziwen's voice interrupted their conversation.
"The comprehensive capabilities of a soul guidance device can only be revealed in actual combat. When I give the signal to start, Tianhuang, Zimu—you may both attack with full power. I will control the situation." At this point, a helpless look appeared on Xuan Ziwen's face.
"Tianhuang, you are prohibited from using your soul skills during the spar."
For certain special reasons, Ming De Hall had always been searching for powerful spirit-attribute soul masters. As a result, Xuan Ziwen had gained some understanding of spirit-attribute soul skills.
Spirit-attribute soul skills were known for being strange and the hardest to defend against. If Yu Tianhuang used his soul skills, someone like Zimu—who relied on medicine to raise his cultivation, had an average martial soul quality, and lacked a deep foundation—would definitely be unable to resist. That would deviate from the original purpose of testing the Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrows' power.
"Yes." Xu Zihuang replied.
Zimu also nodded. Although he very much wanted a fair and square match with Yu Tianhuang, he possessed a quality that Wang Shaojie lacked: the ability to see reality clearly.
"Begin." Without wasting more time, Xuan Ziwen gave the order. Xu Zihuang and Zimu moved at the same time.
The first to attack was Zimu.
With the aid of two level-four propulsion soul guidance devices on his legs, he instantly turned into an afterimage and charged toward Xu Zihuang. His speed was in no way inferior to that of a sensitivity-attack system soul master of the same level.
Two yellow and three purple—five soul rings rapidly circled him, flashing one after another. With each flash of a soul ring, his aura climbed higher.
Like the choice of most close-combat soul mentors, all five soul ring skills he had attached were used to amplify his physical abilities and soul power.
Xu Zihuang's response was very simple. He simply nocked an arrow and drew the bow. Brilliant golden light flashed in his eyes, especially the patterns around his pupils, which became exceptionally bright.
No matter how fast Zimu was, under his dynamic vision, he moved as slowly as a turtle.
The silver Wind-Breaking Bow was drawn to a full moon. A wisp of cyan light extended from the grip toward both ends. In almost an instant, the originally bright silver Wind-Breaking Bow was dyed a translucent cyan, and this cyan light even spread along the bowstring to envelop the Thunderflame Arrow.
When the arrow was released, strangely, it made no sound of cutting through the air. Even though the Thunderflame Arrow underwent secondary acceleration from the internal core array, the thunder and flames were completely contained within that layer of cyan light—not a trace leaked out.
All sound and aura seemed to be sealed inside.
Zimu's pupils abruptly contracted. He was clearly moving at high speed, yet it was as if Yu Tianhuang had predicted his trajectory in advance—the arrow was aimed exactly where he had to pass. And the arrow's speed was astonishingly fast.
He had no time to change direction and dodge it.
Acting on combat instinct, the red soul guidance rapier in his hand instinctively slashed out, forming three clear, deep-red sword flowers in the air. Like blooming lotuses, they overlapped one another.
Yet those three sword flowers were instantly pierced and shattered by the arrow without the slightest pause as it shot straight toward Zimu's forehead.
What continued to shatter was the white protective barrier that rose from beneath Zimu's feet—a level-five soul guidance shield.
The sudden turn of events left even Xuan Ziwen unable to react in time.
Ke Ke's expression changed as she covered her red lips.
No matter what, Zimu was her classmate. The kind-hearted girl naturally did not want him to die here.
Ju Zi's gaze, however, showed sudden realisation. Xu Zihuang's indifferent, brilliant golden eyes once again reminded her of that scene six years ago.
The sound of Xu Zihuang using his soul skill next—like ice crystals forming—was also extremely familiar to her.
At the critical moment, strange dark-red ripples silently enveloped the entire field. The Thunderflame Arrow, carrying violent lightning, scorching flames, and cyan light, was abruptly encased in a layer of angular dark-red crystal, losing all momentum.
The crystal hit the ground with a series of crisp collision sounds. Only then did Xuan Ziwen, Ju Zi, and Ke Ke seem to awaken from a dream.
Zimu, who had felt the terrifying might of the Thunderflame Arrow up close, turned deathly pale. He looked at Xu Zihuang opposite him with a complicated expression.
"I never expected that when your Thunderflame Arrow is paired with that Wind-Breaking Bow, its power would already surpass the level of most long-range level-six soul guidance devices. Its speed even exceeds soul guidance rays. Moreover, because of that cyan light, it isolates sound and aura. I have to admit, Tianhuang, your concept is extremely creative. I think its only flaw is attack range. But its single-target penetration more than makes up for it. It can easily break through Zimu's level-five soul guidance shield. Even a Soul King—or a Soul King with a defence-type martial soul—would find it hard to resist."
Xuan Ziwen exclaimed in admiration.
Yu Tianhuang had once again given him a huge surprise.
A spirit-attribute soul master who also possessed extraordinary talent in soul guidance devices—this kind of genius was practically born for soul guidance devices.
Xuan Ziwen calmed his emotions slightly and continued asking, "By the way, Tianhuang, how did you lock onto Zimu just now?"
"Teacher Xuan, that is the innate ability of my Golden Eyes martial soul," Xu Zihuang gave an ambiguous answer. He then walked over to Zimu. With a thought, the dark-red crystal, refracting gorgeous light, shattered with a bang. Holding the Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrow, he walked toward Xuan Ziwen, Ju Zi, and Ke Ke.
Zimu gazed at Xu Zihuang, his face bitter.
Xuan Ziwen did not pursue the question further. A martial soul's secrets were an absolute taboo for any soul master. Yu Tianhuang revealing this much was already quite frank.
But a thought still unavoidably arose in his mind.
If Yu Tianhuang's ability could be applied to the calibration of stationary soul guidance cannons, he would simply be a killing machine born for war.
Of course, these were not things he cared about. What he pursued was enabling ordinary people to use powerful soul guidance devices.
As soon as Xu Zihuang reached the edge of the soul guidance testing area, Ke Ke could no longer hold back. She quickly stepped forward to him.
"Um, Tianhuang, can I play with your Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrows?"
Truthfully, she had never expected that the combination of these two soul guidance devices crafted by Yu Tianhuang would possess such terrifying power.
"Senior Ke Ke, please go ahead." Xu Zihuang readily handed them over.
Ke Ke eagerly took the Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrow and walked over to Zimu's side, excitedly saying,
"Zimu, move aside. Be careful not to get accidentally injured later."
Zimu had clearly been traumatised by Xu Zihuang's Thunderflame Arrow. The usually steady man immediately scrambled out of the testing area in a slightly flustered manner.
Watching Ke Ke use the Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrow, Xu Zihuang explained to Xuan Ziwen beside him, "Although the Thunderflame Arrows can be pre-charged, using the Wind-Breaking Bow still consumes soul power—and quite a lot of it."
Ke Ke quickly experienced this. A single arrow directly consumed more than one-tenth of her soul power. The most embarrassing part was that her shot missed the target by a ridiculous margin—it nearly hit a soul guidance lamp on the ceiling.
Ke Ke stuck out her tongue at Xuan Ziwen in embarrassment, but Xuan Ziwen only twitched the corner of his mouth and did not reprimand her.
"Tianhuang, after using the Wind-Breaking Bow, what is the maximum range of your Thunderflame Arrows?"
"The effect is even better than I expected. The range should be at least four thousand meters, approaching five thousand meters."
While Xu Zihuang and Xuan Ziwen were talking, Ju Zi—who had kept her gaze on Xu Zihuang—revealed an unmistakable softness deep in her eyes.
She was now one hundred per cent certain that the person who had saved her six years ago from that soul master squad in the Star Luo Empire's western army was Yu Tianhuang.
And this was clearly seen by Zimu as he walked over.
"Sigh…" Zimu sighed lightly in his heart, the bitterness in his eyes deepening.
Xuan Ziwen thought for a moment and then said, "How about this: we happen to need to test some newly developed soul guidance devices. Today, you, Ju Zi, and Ke Ke will take the new soul guidance devices out for field testing. At the same time, you can practically test the power and maximum range of your Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrows. The testing location will be the Jingyang Mountain Range. The Jingyang Mountain Range is one of the major wild soul beast gathering places in our Sun Moon Empire. Though it can't compare to the Star Dou Great Forest next to your Shrek Academy, the overall quality of soul beasts there is still quite high. Using soul beasts for real combat testing will yield more reliable reference data."
Before Xu Zihuang could react to Xuan Ziwen's words, Ke Ke was already thrilled.
"We finally get to go out and train! Teacher Xuan, you're the best." Ke Ke energetically returned the Wind-Breaking Bow and Thunderflame Arrows to Xu Zihuang and hooked her arm around Ju Zi's.
"And we get to eat Sister Ju Zi's cooking again. Tianhuang, you're in for a treat this time. Let me tell you, Sister Ju Zi's culinary skills are unmatched."
Xuan Ziwen seriously warned, "Ke Ke, this isn't a trip for fun. There is no lack of powerful soul beasts in the Jingyang Mountain Range. You must prioritise your own safety on this trip."
"Teacher Xuan, let's choose the Ming Dou Great Forest as our training location this time. I want to go home," Ju Zi suddenly spoke.
At these words, the excitement in Ke Ke's eyes instantly faded as she looked at Ju Zi with concern.
Xuan Ziwen also fell silent. After a moment, he lightly nodded.
"Very well. The journey is quite far this time. I'll give you one month. Return to the academy after one month. But be extremely careful—the Ming Dou Great Forest is full of mutated soul beasts with very strong aggression. You shouldn't venture deep inside."
"Also, Tianhuang, please take good care of them."
Judging from Yu Tianhuang's terrifying soul ring configuration, his individual strength was definitely above Ju Zi and Ke Ke.
"Teacher Xuan, I will. I am now your student as well; helping Senior Ju Zi and Senior Ke Ke is only natural," Xu Zihuang solemnly nodded. Yet in his heart, everything was crystal clear.
He could tell that Ju Zi's sudden decision was very likely because of him. Her goal was probably to confess to what happened six years ago.
Zimu opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but stopping himself, his heart filled with dejection. Yet he tactfully did not voice his desire to go along.
The fact that Ju Zi was willing to bring Yu Tianhuang—whom she had only known for a few days—home already said enough.
Finally, Xuan Ziwen made the final decision.
"Alright, there's no time to lose. Prepare and set off immediately. When you return to the academy, Tianhuang, I will take you into Ming De Hall to study. With your level, you are more than qualified."
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