Wang Chen said calmly to Ji Juechen, "Go all out. Show me everything you've got."
Ji Juechen replied, "I will use my full strength, but I hope to personally experience your intent."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ji Juechen slowly drew the ancient meteorite-iron sword from his hand. The moment the sword left its sheath, his entire aura shifted sharply, becoming oppressively intense.
Ji Juechen gazed at the meteorite-iron sword in his hand with pure, unwavering eyes—eyes that seemed to regard it as the most important thing in the world.
At the same time, six soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, and black—rose and lit up around him. Like most Soul Engineers, all six of Ji Juechen's soul skills were designed to amplify his own soul power.
As the six amplification soul skills activated, his soul power instantly rose from the early stage of the Soul Emperor realm to its very peak.
The reason Ji Juechen had chosen such amplifying soul skills rather than attack-type ones or those that strengthened his weapon's sharpness and resilience was simple—he knew his martial soul's quality was too poor. No matter how much he enhanced it, it could never compare to top-tier martial souls.
Therefore, Ji Juechen decided to follow the same path as most Soul Engineers—boosting his own soul power and using a powerful weapon to make up for the lack of offensive strength in his martial soul.
This was precisely why Ji Juechen used the Meteorite Sword from Beyond the Heavens. His own sword martial soul was neither sharp nor durable, which left him at a severe disadvantage against opponents with strong martial souls—it could even shatter after just a few clashes.
A piercing, razor-sharp aura erupted from Ji Juechen's body, causing the air around him to ripple violently. In that instant, he seemed to have completely merged with the meteorite-iron sword in his hand.
Infusing the soul into the sword—this was Ji Juechen's cultivation method. His sword martial soul had already been completely transformed into pure energy, allowing it to fuse perfectly with the meteorite-iron sword he wielded.
It must be known that a martial soul is part of a soul master's body. After merging his martial soul with the meteorite-iron sword, Ji Juechen became inseparable from it—man and sword as one, indistinguishable from each other.
Under the infusion of his immense soul power, the meteorite-iron sword began to resonate with a sharp hum. The sword tip trembled lightly, and in the next moment, an overwhelming sword intent swept toward Wang Chen.
Ji Juechen's fierce sword intent surged through the entire examination hall. The pressure forced Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen to involuntarily activate their Martial Soul Possession just to defend themselves—yet even so, they both staggered back a step.
That sharp sword intent made them feel as if they were about to be cut in half—not just physically, but mentally as well. Even their spirits trembled under the assault, feeling faint stings of pain.
Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen quickly retreated to the side, giving Wang Chen and Ji Juechen space for their battle.
Xiao Hongchen stared at Ji Juechen in shock, thinking, This Ji Juechen's Soul Emperor-level cultivation actually carries such terrifying pressure. No wonder he can fight evenly with a Rank Seven Soul Engineer.
Beside him, Meng Hongchen, sensing Ji Juechen's powerful aura, couldn't help but glance worriedly at Wang Chen.
But although she felt anxious, she knew that once her Brother Wang Chen made a decision, he would never go back on it.
So she turned to the nearby Director Lin Jiayi—a Soul Douluo-level powerhouse and Rank Eight Soul Engineer—and said seriously, "When Brother Wang Chen fights Ji Juechen later, you'd better watch closely! If Brother Wang Chen gets hurt… hmph!"
Lin Jiayi couldn't help feeling a headache coming on when he heard Meng Hongchen's words.
This madman Ji Juechen's strength was no weaker than that of a Rank Seven Soul Engineer.
Although most Rank Seven Soul Engineers with weak martial souls weren't true matches for a Soul Sage, their combat power was still terrifying.
Even though Lin Jiayi himself was a Soul Douluo, his martial soul wasn't especially strong—his combat ability mainly relied on soul tools.
Beating Ji Juechen would be easy for him. But standing by to protect someone from getting hurt during such an intense duel—that was a completely different matter. After all, detecting danger and reacting in time both took precious moments.
Killing someone and saving someone were entirely different levels of difficulty.
While Lin Jiayi was feeling troubled—
Wang Chen's gaze locked on Ji Juechen. The Black Book deep within his soul instantly recorded every bit of Ji Juechen's power and ability.
A faint smile appeared on Wang Chen's lips. He crooked a finger, motioning for Ji Juechen to attack.
Now that he had recorded Ji Juechen's skills, he didn't mind letting the man experience what Xiao Hongchen had felt before—the overwhelming might of Dominating Heaven.
Ji Juechen stared seriously at Wang Chen. His sharp instincts screamed that the young boy before him—almost ten years his junior—was terrifyingly strong.
In fact, Wang Chen gave him an even greater sense of danger than Lin Jiayi, the nearby Soul Douluo.
Ji Juechen gripped the meteorite sword tightly, condensing his sword intent.
Without warning, Ji Juechen suddenly shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring—his speed astonishing, no slower than that of Soul Engineers using soul tool propulsion systems.
His figure blurred, leaving afterimages in his wake. Like a black beam of light skimming the ground, he moved so fast that the air howled in his path.
In the blink of an eye, Ji Juechen was in front of Wang Chen. He swung his sword in a sharp slash, the meteorite-iron blade gleaming with chilling light as it cut through the air with enough power to rend it apart.
Facing Ji Juechen's strike, Wang Chen's expression remained calm. With his Soul Douluo-level spiritual power, he easily tracked Ji Juechen's movements.
Against Ji Juechen, Wang Chen didn't even need to exert his full strength. Using just a single Dominating Heaven Battle Technique would be more than enough.
Although they were both Soul Emperors in cultivation, Wang Chen far surpassed Ji Juechen in both spiritual power and physical strength.
Wang Chen drew a long soul tool spear from his storage soul device. His martial soul activated, fusing its spirit into the weapon.
Then Wang Chen merged his own soul power, spiritual power, and will into one—and infused that perfect unity into the spear as the Dominating Heaven Battle Technique.
Unlike Ji Juechen's sharp, unrestrained energy, Wang Chen's power was contained and refined—all his force compressed within the spear, producing no shockwaves at all.
Clearly, in terms of control, Wang Chen was vastly superior to Ji Juechen.
Once the technique was ready, Wang Chen thrust his spear forward.
Spear and sword collided—
In an instant, the air within dozens of square meters seemed to collapse in on itself. The space around them twisted, becoming distorted and unreal.
Cracks spread across the reinforced floor of the assessment hall under the impact of their clash.
As the spear and sword met, Ji Juechen's sword intent collided violently with Wang Chen's will.
Ji Juechen felt a condensed and harmonious intent sweep from the point of contact, instantly overwhelming his own sword intent. His face turned pale, his hand split at the tiger's mouth, and his body was sent flying backward.
From the sidelines, Xiao Hongchen and Lin Jiayi were utterly stunned.
Ji Juechen, whose strength rivaled a Rank Seven Soul Engineer, had been knocked back by Wang Chen—didn't that mean Wang Chen was even stronger than those who could fight Ji Juechen on equal footing?
Xiao Hongchen could only think that Wang Chen was a monster—under fifteen years old, yet already possessing such terrifying power.
Many top-tier geniuses reaching such strength before the age of twenty was already astonishing. So what did that make Wang Chen? A monster beyond monsters?
Xiao Hongchen, once so proud of his own talent, suddenly felt his confidence collapse.
Even if he broke through to Soul King, he couldn't reach this level. He'd probably need to reach Soul Emperor before he could compare—and even then, it might take him until sixteen or seventeen at the earliest.
There was simply no comparison. For a moment, Xiao Hongchen's Dao heart took another heavy blow.
Lin Jiayi, too, was utterly shaken.
Such strength at such an age—given time, Wang Chen would definitely become a legend. Someone like this, if befriended, would bring boundless future rewards.
And if not—he absolutely must never be offended.
Lin Jiayi silently resolved to treat Wang Chen with even greater respect.
Compared to Lin Jiayi and Xiao Hongchen's shock, Meng Hongchen's gaze had gone soft—so soft it could melt water.
Holding her flushed, delicate face, her long, slender legs weak beneath her, she murmured dreamily, "Brother Wang Chen~ you're so handsome~"
Wang Chen stood tall, spear in hand, his entire presence exuding dominance and arrogance.
He didn't pursue the retreating Ji Juechen. Instead, his eyes narrowed as he carefully savored the essence of Ji Juechen's sword intent—or rather, his path.
From their clash, Wang Chen had gained insight into Ji Juechen's sword intent. It was quite similar in principle to Dominating Heaven—a fusion of will, spirit, and soul power into a battle technique.
However, compared to Dominating Heaven, Ji Juechen's sword intent was still in its infancy. The integration of spirit, will, and soul power was rough—far less refined. (In the original story, Ji Juechen would only perfect it much later.)
To Wang Chen, this was perfectly natural. Ji Juechen was undoubtedly a genius, but he had only cultivated for just over ten years—entirely self-taught, with no teacher, no guidance, and no precedents to study.
Naturally, his self-created sword intent couldn't compare to the Dominating Heaven technique, which had been founded by the Limit Douluo Dragon God Douluo Mu En himself.
Mu En, a Limit Douluo, had created Dominating Heaven, and on its foundation, he had developed the even stronger techniques Dragon Emperor Breaks Evil and Dragon Emperor's Domain. His talent and wisdom were truly unparalleled.
Most importantly, Mu En had lived for over two centuries. With his vast experience and Shrek Academy's profound heritage, his understanding of the fusion between soul power, spiritual power, and will had reached perfection.
If Ji Juechen's crude sword intent could catch up to that in just a decade, Wang Chen would honestly suspect the man was cheating.
Wang Chen wasn't interested in Ji Juechen's immature sword intent—what truly intrigued him was Ji Juechen's method of infusing the soul into the sword.
He was deeply curious how Ji Juechen had managed to turn his solid martial soul into pure energy.
Apparently, this was what allowed Ji Juechen's cultivation speed to rival that of innate full-soul-power geniuses.
Wang Chen thought to himself, Forget it. I'll stop thinking about this for now. The Black Book has already recorded all of Ji Juechen's abilities anyway. I'll just defeat him first, then study it carefully when I get home.
Ji Juechen, who had just been forced back by Wang Chen's strike, looked at him with blazing eyes.
Through their clash, he clearly sensed that Wang Chen's intent was far more perfect than his own sword intent.
He was certain that if he fought Wang Chen more, his sword intent would evolve to a higher level.
With excitement in his tone, Ji Juechen shouted, "Again!"
His soul power surged like molten lava, and his six soul rings glowed brightly—especially the two black ones, releasing awe-inspiring fluctuations.
In a flash, Ji Juechen shot toward Wang Chen, unleashing another horizontal slash. His sword intent crashed down like a tidal wave—stronger and sharper than before.
It was clear that his earlier exchange with Wang Chen had already deepened his understanding of his own sword intent.
However, Wang Chen, eager to return home to analyze the new skill the Black Book had recorded, didn't want to waste any more time.
Just as Ji Juechen's sword was about to strike, Wang Chen swung his long soul tool spear.
A crisp metallic clang echoed as air itself was torn apart.
The spear and the meteorite sword locked together—but instead of sending Ji Juechen flying, Wang Chen pressed downward, pinning the sword beneath his spear.
Ji Juechen felt a terrifying force shoot through the meteorite sword into his arm and wrist, forcing his hand to bend. The sword was pushed down hard against the floor.
Just as Ji Juechen tried to pull his sword free—
Wang Chen's figure flashed forward like lightning, closing the distance instantly, and slammed his shoulder into Ji Juechen's chest in a powerful Iron Mountain Charge.
Ji Juechen's eyes widened in shock—he hadn't expected Wang Chen to suddenly engage in close combat.
All his strength lay in his sword. Without it, over seventy percent of his power was gone.
Before he could react, Wang Chen's body crashed into him with overwhelming force.
With his Soul Saint-level physique and combat techniques perfected through the Black Book, Wang Chen gave Ji Juechen no chance to resist.
Ji Juechen felt an unstoppable force slam into him. Even as he channeled his full soul power to defend, it was useless.
It was like being struck by lightning—his body flew backward uncontrollably for dozens of meters.
The meteorite sword, pinned beneath Wang Chen's spear, slipped from his grasp and embedded itself into a distant wall, its blade still trembling.
Ji Juechen hit the ground heavily, blood spilling from his mouth. He tried to get up, but the intense pain coursing through his body made it impossible.