The Legend of the Dragon King Chapter 441-450

Chapter 441 - Yan Feng and Sky Ice

Chapter 441 - Yan Feng and Sky Ice

He’s handsome. And he’s a teacher at Shrek Academy! He couldn’t be any more perfect!

“Shrek Academy? Amazing!” Yan Feng suddenly batted her eyelashes at Wu Zhangkong. “Years ago, I really wanted to be a student there, and I

even took the exams! But as you can see, I didn’t make it in. It’s a pity I didn’t, I might have been able to study under you.”

“No,” Wu Zhangkong said. “When you were still in school, I was a student as well. You’re not young enough to be my student.”

“Jeez!” Yan Feng pouted. “Is that how you always talk to a girl? Don’t you know how to make small talk?”

Wu Zhangkong didn’t utter another word. He simply ate in silence.

This guy! Yan Feng pursed her lips and glared at him, but after a while, she couldn’t bear the silence. “Since you’re a teacher at Shrek Academy, you

should be a battle armor master, right? Are you a one-word or two-word battle armor master?”

“Two-word,” Wu Zhangkong answered.

Yan Feng’s eyes went wide. He’s only thirty-three and he’s a two-word battle armor master! He’s incredible! No wonder I couldn’t tell how strong he was.

 “Oh,” she responded, trying to come off as nonchalant. “I just became a one-word battle armor master myself. For my first word, I chose ‘Phoenix.’ To tell you the truth, it isn’t a great fit for me. My martial soul is the fire gourd, and battle armor is usually named after a soul master’s a martial soul or spirit soul. But I couldn’t have possibly used ‘Gourd’, so instead I used the meaning of my own name. What about you? What did you name your

armor?”

“Sky Ice.”

“Oh! That’s so cool!” Yan Feng exclaimed. “Why did you pick that? Is it because you have an ice-attribute martial soul?”

Wu Zhangkong finally looked up from his food and looked her straight in the eye. “‘Sky’ is the first part of my martial soul. ‘Ice’ comes from the meaning of my wife’s name. Don’t talk while eating. Just eat.”

His wife? Yan Feng was dumbstruck. He has a wife! Of course he has a wife! There’s no way a man as great as him wouldn’t!

A feeling of loss hit her like a truck, and her appetite disappeared.

The two ate in silence. Wu Zhangkong didn’t eat much, and he ate as slowly as ever, his mind wandering off to another time.

☀

“Wow! Zhangkong, those candied yellow vegetables were amazing! The eggs were so delicious too! I can’t imagine how he cooked them so well.

Just you wait. I’ll go learn how to make them and then cook the for you too, okay?”

“Hey, leave some tofu for me too! I heard tofu is good for the skin. My skin might be nicer than yours, but I still have to put in the effort!”

“These fishy stir-fried pork strips are delicious! Do you think I should eat another half-bowl of rice? I won’t get fat, right?”

 “You dummy! Look at you. You have some rice stuck to your face. I’m not gonna kiss you while you’re like that. Ah! Don’t rub it on me!”

☀

By the time Wu Zhangkong and Yan Feng finished eating and left the restaurant, the sun had reached its zenith.

Yan Feng flashed a smile at Wu Zhangkong. “Thank you for lunch.” Wu Zhangkong shook his head. “I’m going then.”

“Can you give me your number? I’m gonna go back to the Spirit Pagoda now and ask them to revoke the investigation request I made. I’ll call you once it’s done.”

After a moment of hesitation, Wu Zhangkong gave in and handed her his number.

“Next time I’m in Shrek City, I’ll go find you and we can have dinner, okay?” Yan Feng beamed.

Wu Zhangkong eyed her coldly. “I’m going. Goodbye.” Without another word, he turned and left.

As she watched his departing figure, Yan Feng let out a gloomy sigh. “All the good men are always taken. Really! When am I going to find a good man of my own! Heaven Spirit City is too small for me. Maybe I should head to Shrek City. I am a one-word battle armor master now, after well. Yeah. I’ll go ask the Spirit Pagoda to transfer me there.”

☀

After their defeat in Heaven Spirit City, Tang Wulin and his friends had no choice but to change their plans. They ended up taking a detour, promptly piling into their soul car and heading straight for the next city.

 Although they thought long and hard about it, they couldn’t come up with a plan more efficient than raiding someone at the Spirit Pagoda to draw out the enforcers. They had no other option but to go with the old plan.

Fortunately for them, things went quite well. They cleared the next few cities without issue. No one questioned their supposed identity as

supervisors, and a couple days later, they were halfway done with their exam.

“We’re on day four now,” Tang Wulin said as he studied their map. They were once again in their soul car, heading for the next city on their route. “We need to speed up a bit. We’ll do two cities today and another two

tomorrow. Then, the day after that, we’ll arrive at Bright City. It has a lot of strong people, so we shouldn’t have to raid the Spirit Pagoda there. It’s the capital city of the Federation after all. Though we will need to be more

careful once we arrive.”

At first they were anxious as they travelled from city to city, but their nerves had calmed down along the way. The challenges they had faced over the course of their travels were profound, and as they overcame them one by one, they grew more confident. The greatest challenge they had faced

was Yan Feng, and from it, they came to understand the kind of might a battle armor master wielded.

As students of Shrek Academy, it was easy for them to take down a Soul

King or even a Soul Emperor when they ganged up on one. However, when it came to battle armor, they couldn’t even penetrate its defenses!

“Wulin, I know a place in Bright City where we can find some opponents,” Ye Xinglan said abruptly.

“Huh? Where?” Tang Wulin’s interest was piqued.

“Ten thousand years ago, we were rivals with an academy in Bright City, and even today, our rivalry continues. Their students are some of the best.

They can’t compare with Shrek, of course, but they can still be counted as one of the best academies on the continent. We should go pay them a visit.”

 Gu Yue’s eyes lit up with understanding. “You’re referring to the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy? The one that has already been renowned as one of the great academies for ten thousand years?”

“Precisely.” Ye Xinglan’s eyes glimmered with excitement. “I heard both

academies still harbor grudges against each other. Imagine how awesome it would be if we beat them!”

Tang Wulin nodded. “That makes sense. I think it’s a good idea. Let’s do it.”

“Alright. It’s settled then.” Ye Xinglan clenched her fists.

“Talk about that later,” Xie Xie said, his voice trembling slightly. “First we need to deal with the problem in front of us.”

Everyone looked out the window to see what was ahead of them. What they saw left them stunned.

Twenty mechas lined the highway in the distance. Five were purple-grade and the rest were yellow. They had just arrived and formed a checkpoint. They wore the emblem of the Spirit Pagoda on their chest armor.

Tang Wulin and his group had cleared five cities, and the Spirit Pagoda had finally come to judge them.

“Wulin, what do we do?” Xie Xie asked as he slowed their car to a crawl.

Tang Wulin narrowed his eyes. Those familiar with him knew that whenever he made this face, something bad was about to happen.

“Stop the car!” he shouted. Without even waiting for the car to stop, Tang Wulin punched the car door and sent it flying. Then he grabbed the roof tore it open.

All six of them knew that they couldn’t afford to be captured. Although they would only be fined and forced to apologize if they were caught, there was a possibility that they could be sent back to Shrek Academy! Not only

 would that be shameful, they would fail their exam as well. Never in all of Shrek Academy’s history had a class president been expelled.

Tang Wulin refused to be the first. He didn’t want to drag his friends down with him either.

Xie Xie slammed his foot on the brakes, causing the car to swerve to the

side. All of them had sturdy bodies. Even Xu Lizhi, with the defensive Tang Sect secret arts he learned, was just as resilient as the others. They were all unfazed when the car crashed into the highway divider and inertia sent them flying out of the roof in every direction.

Gu Yue grabbed onto Xu Xiaoyan the moment they landed. She promptly shouted, “Blizzard!”

On Gu Yue’s command, Xu Xiaoyan’s third soul ring lit up as she used

Blizzard. She had already summoned her martial soul before they had been thrown out of the car. Combined with Gu Yue’s Elemental Tide, the blizzard rapidly grew until it swallowed the highway and the surrounding forest on

either side.

“Into the forest! Quickly!” Tang Wulin commanded his companions. Yet he, himself, stood still as he faced the approaching mechas.

Chapter 442 - The Almighty Gu Yue

Chapter 442 - The Almighty Gu Yue

The mechas readied their cannons as they flew over. They flew with incredible speed, and it was clear that the only chance of escape for Tang Wulin’s group was through the forest.

The only reprieve Tang Wulin found as he stared down the approaching mechas was that they were sent by the Spirit Pagoda and not the government. These mechas wouldn’t dare kill him. Not in Federation jurisdiction at least. Therefore, Tang Wulin concluded that the mechas were here to capture. With this in mind, he was confident that his friends had a

shot at escaping.

Just as Tang Wulin expected, the mechas put away their cannons as they

approached. They were all empty-handed now, with the five purple mechas leading the charge.

Tang Wulin leaped toward them, a brilliant golden soul ring appearing beneath him as he used Golden Dragon Body. Strength surged through his body and golden scales rippled into existence across his right arm and torso. His right hand transformed into a claw, then threads of starlight spun around it and manifested into a gauntlet. He immediately unleashed the all of his might! A draconic roar emanated from his body as he took in a deep breath and moved both hands in a circle. His blood essence flowed in reverse.

Right forearm clutched in his left hand, he swiped at the air with his claw, unleashing an attack that used both Golden Dragon Shocks the Heavens and Golden Dragon Dreadclaw!

 Tang Wulin urged all of the soul power in his body to converge into his claw, Golden Dragon Shocks the Heavens further amplifying his

Dreadclaw. He hadn’t dared to attempt this before the exam, but since his blood essence had grown stronger and he was on the verge of breaking the fourth seal, he now felt that his body could handle the might of this attack.

Five shining claw marks tore through the air, leaving behind a tail of dark- gold splendor. The blades themselves shined a brilliant gold, a faint pattern of scales etched across their spans. A meter long at the start, they grew to ten times that length as they charged toward the mechas! Although incorporeal, their overwhelming might stopped the five purple mechas mid- flight, a dazzling display of power.

The mecha pilots were startled by the claw blades. Generally, the power of a soul master’s attack directly correlated to its distance traveled. Despite

concluding that Tang Wulin’s golden ring was a soul ring, they couldn’t make sense of the fact that it was gold. Therefore, as the claw blades grew longer in their approach, the mecha pilots’ instincts screamed for them to take a defensive stance. They summoned their energy shields at full power.

But it was to no avail. The claw blades tore through cleanly like a knife in butter, shockwaves rippling through the air. A sickening crunch later and the purple mechas flew backward, sent flying by the heavy force. Cracks littered their energy shields, on the verge of shattering..

Every spectator couldn’t believe their eyes.. A young boy had faced twenty mechas alone, but with a single swipe of his claw, he knocked five purple mechas into the air, swatting them like flies. Such domineering might!

As the yellow mechas that had lagged behind witnessed such a sight, they immediately slowed down and went on guard against Tang Wulin. Anyone who could do that could tear apart yellow mechas like they were paper!

Tang Wulin crashed onto the ground, then immediately plunged into the thick of the snow storm, disappearing from the view of the mechas. An instant later, Gu Yue pulled him to her.

 With Gu Yue’s aid, Xu Xiaoyan unleashed a powerful blizzard. By focusing her strength into empowering it, the blizzard instantly enveloped an area

several hundred meters in radius, the snow obscuring the mechas’ vision.

Tang Wulin had attacked not only to stall for time, but also to intimidate the rest of his opponents. He wanted to instill apprehension in their hearts, to kindle the embers of wariness about engaging in combat alone. That way, they wouldn’t split up to search the area and instead rely on their radar.

One of the many important lessons Shrek Academy had provided them was how to avoid detection by radars, and using a blizzard was one of those methods. The radar couldn’t differentiate between noise and signal in the tumultuous snow storm.

Tang Wulin dashed forward with Gu Yue. A couple steps later, his heart nearly jumped out of chest. One moment his feet were on solid ground, then the next, nothing. He found himself suspended in all-encompassing darkness, a hole with no way out.

A second later, a ball of light flickered into existence, dispersing the darkness.

They stood in a small underground chamber. The rest of their companions were present as well, waiting for their arrival. The ball of light floated gently above Gu Yue’s palm.

She let go of his hand, focusing on her next task in silence. Using both Elemental Tide and Elemental Control, she moved them deeper underground and created a thicker ceiling above them. Everyone stared at her in astonishment, even the prideful Ye Xinglan.

Her control over the earth element was amazing. By bringing them deeper underground, she used the earth element to hide them from the radar.

Previously trapped in a hopeless situation, they were set free by Gu Yue’s quick thinking and remarkable power. Those mecha pilots would never think to search for them deep underground, and their sensors wouldn’t pick them up either. If the mechas had opened fire immediately, Tang Wulin and

 his group would have been incapacitated or dead by now. Fortunately for them, they hadn’t committed any major crimes and had only caused some disturbances at best. As such, the mechas had not utilized deadly force, leaving them an escape route.

About ten minutes later, sweat started to cling to Gu Yue’s skin, and she finally stopped transporting them deeper underground.

“Control your breathing guys. The air in here is getting thin,” Tang Wulin said. Although they were safe from pursuit, they might suffocate to death instead!

“It’s fine,” Gu Yue said. She summoned a ball of water with a wave of her left hand. She lightly rubbed it with her other hand. The ball began to shrink and the air grew thicker.

“Teacher taught me how to separate oxygen from water. We should be fine for a while longer.”

“Big Sis Gu Yue, you can do anything!” Xu Xiaoyan exclaimed in admiration.

Gu Yue cracked a faint smile. “No I can’t. Anyway, they shouldn’t be able to find us. After they’ve given up, we can return to the surface. But what do we do then? The Spirit Pagoda is searching for us, so I’m guessing the order has been passed on to the other cities. Any branch we visit will be on high

alert. We can’t continue with the same plan. We need a new one.”

Tang Wulin narrowed his eyes as he pondered. “We still have several cities to visit, and they’re all hugely populated. Big cities should have good soul master academies with plenty of people stronger than us. Hmm. Maybe we can...”

His eyes glazed as his words trailed off, his mind falling deeper and deeper into thought. Challenging the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering

Academy looked more attractive than ever. Since they couldn’t raid the Spirit Pagoda anymore, they had no other choice.

 An hour later, the returned to the surface. Sure enough, the mechas were nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately, their car was wrecked.

Tang Wulin unfurled the map and checked through it. They were two hundred kilometers from the next city. Needless to say, there was no option but carry out on foot.

With the support of Gu Yue’s wind element and Xu Lizhi’s Agility Soup Buns, they were able to advance quickly. Tang Wulin lent some support to Xu Lizhi, more prone to exhaustion as he was. Similarly, Ye Xinglan

offered a shoulder to Xu Xiaoyan. But when it came down to it, Tang Wulin and company marched forward to the next city.

Chapter 443 - Challengers

Chapter 443 - Challengers

Two hundred kilometers were nothing to Tang Wulin, but how Xu Lizhi handled it was another story. Even though he ate pork buns and soup buns as they ran, he could feel himself get thinner and thinner.

“Damn you, Spirit Pagoda!” Xu Lizhi shouted, shaking an angry fist at the sky.

Gu Yue glanced at him curiously. “What are you doing?”

Xu Lizhi turned to her. “I’ve decided that I’m never going to sell my buns to them!”

Ye Xinglan scoffed. “We’ll see what the future holds.”

Tang Wulin, on the other hand, was deep in thought. “The plan was to clear two cities today, but we’ll only be able to clear one at this rate. We’ll take a break when we reach the city, then we’ll go visit the local academy in the

afternoon.”

They soon found a small inn to stay at, and after a couple hours of rest, they would be good to go. They were soul masters after all.

They were currently in Skyorder City, about two thousand kilometers from Bright City. Several cities still sat between them and their end goal of

Bright City, and they no longer had a car nor the money to buy another.

After clearing this city, they would have to hop on a train to continue their journey west.

 Tang Wulin asked around to see where the local soul master academy was.

Just as he expected, there was a fairly respectable academy here. It was called Skyorder Star Ocean Academy and specialized in flying-type soul masters. In fact, that was a requirement for potential students seeking

admission. However, it wasn’t an advanced academy.

Advanced academies were institutions that raised genius soul masters, mecha pilots, and battle armor masters. Of course, such academies didn’t actually have to produce battle armor masters. They just had to have a program oriented toward raising them. Students usually graduated from

advanced academies between the ages of twenty-two to twenty-five. Even at Shrek Academy, it was rare for a student to become a one-word battle

armor master around those ages. Other academies couldn’t even hope to compete.

“I have to call him!” Tang Wulin muttered to himself. He was the only one of his team not resting at the moment. He wasn’t too tired yet, and he had something more important to do. He took advantage of the complementary soul communicator in the inn’s lobby to make a call.

As soon as the call connected, Tang Wulin said, “Uncle-master!”

“Wulin? How is your exam? Is everything going well?” Zhen Hua asked in a warm tone.

“Things aren’t going well,” Tang Wulin said. “I ran into some trouble, and I need more money to finish the exam. I’m in Skyorder City right now, but I can’t take any blacksmithing missions without my badge. Can you pull

some strings to have the association branch here let me take some alloy- forging or spirit refining missions? And have them lend me some hammers too? I need the money for travel expenses.”

The line went silent for a moment, then Zhen Hua spoke up once more. “It sure must be tough for you. Just go over to the Skyorder Blacksmith’s

Association. You don’t have to forge, it’ll be too much of a hassle to

convince them considering your age and rank. I’ll just have them give you money.”

 “Thank you, Uncle-master!” Tang Wulin rejoiced in his heart. Amazing! Uncle-master’s so generous! Having an uncle-master like him is the best!

“No need to thank me.” Zhen Hua chuckled. “It is only natural that I do this much for you. Just come visit me when you have a chance.”

“Definitely!” Tang Wulin said eagerly. If he visited, he would have a Divine Blacksmith to teach him, not to mention all the delicious food he would be able to eat! Nothing could stand between him and food!

By the time Tang Wulin left to visit the local Blacksmith’s Association and came back with another million credits added to his card, his companions had finished recovering.

“Let’s buy another car,” Xie Xie said, his eyes shining with excitement.

“What does everyone else think?” Tang Wulin swept his gaze across the rest of his companions.

Ye Xinglan was the first to voice her thoughts. “I think having a car would be really convenient. It won’t be as fast as a train, but it’ll good for getting around within cities. We will also be able to use the onboard GPS to save some time finding our way around.”

“Alright. Let’s buy another one!”

It didn’t take long for Tang Wulin’s group to buy a car. Fortunately for them, they managed to find one that was the same make as the one they had wrecked, and for roughly the same price too. With everything in order, they continued onward to Skyorder Star Ocean Academy.

Skyorder Star Ocean Academy was situated in the southwest corner of the city limits. The academy was established two thousand years ago, and though its history was not nearly as long or prestigious as Shrek

Academy’s, it was still a prominent, well-known academy.

This academy produced their fair share of geniuses, and since flying-type soul engineers were favored for military recruitment, they also had close

 ties with the military. Although soul engineers could fly using soul devices, those capable of flight through their own abilities dominated those who

were not.

That being said, even those that did not have a strong martial soul could become powerful with the aid of soul devices. The advent of soul devices reduced the gap between ordinary and genius soul masters. Then, when mechas appeared, the playing field was leveled. Only when battle armor was created did talented soul masters regain superiority.

Skyorder Star Ocean Academy was a soul master academy that focused on producing flying-type soul engineers. As a result, they were famous in the Federation for producing excellent mecha pilots and military aces. With the support of the military, they had grown exceptionally fast, so much so that they ranked among the best of second-tier academies.

☀

A soul car came to a stop in a small alleyway near Skyorder Star Ocean Academy. Six people got out of the car, all dressed in eye-catching green sportswear. They were Tang Wulin and his teammates. They had just bought these clothes, the specific shade of green being the same as Shrek Academy’s.

Tang Wulin led them to the metal gates of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy. The gates were a daunting twenty meters talls and forty meters wide, a size that allowed even mechas to pass through easily. The academy’s walls were just as tall and surrounded an enormous campus. The academy occupied the entire southwest section of the city.

Tang Wulin glanced at Xie Xie and signaled for him to start.

Xie Xie’s mouth twitched, but he quickly took out two long poles, both of which were actually two parts of a banner. He unfurled the banner to its full length of ten meters, words written in provocative green ink spanning its

white cloth. The writing wasn’t the neatest, but it got the message across. Xie Xie then grabbed one pole and Xu Lizhi took hold of the other, the two of them propping it upright.

 Countless people were streaming into the academy, so everyone immediately noticed this curious bunch of people standing right outside the gates. Most importantly, they saw the banner.

“We are from Shrek Academy! We are here to challenge your strongest team of students under the age of twenty!” A passerby’s voice rang out in a bored tone. Then the meaning of the words suddenly hit them. W-what?

They’re here to challenge us?

Indeed, this was Tang Wulin’s plan! It was simple, direct, and efficient!

The morning had just begun, and students were walking through the gates in droves. But the moment the banner was unfurled, they froze in place and stared. Many were astonished, some frowned, a few showed anger, and others were simply curious.

It only took a few minutes for a crowd of people to form at the gates, all attracted by the fabled name of Shrek Academy. For young soul masters like them, Shrek Academy was a legendary holy land!

Students from Shrek Academy came to challenge our academy? They’re challenging a team of us under the age of twenty? But they can’t be any older than fifteen!

Tang Wulin stood at the front of his group, completely stone-faced. He was confident that Skyorder Star Ocean Academy wouldn’t refuse a challenge

as direct as this. The academy’s prestige and the morale of the student body would plummet if they did.

A boy suddenly approached them. He seemed to be around seventeen years old. “Are you guys really from Shrek Academy?”

Tang Wulin nodded. “Yes, we are. We want to have a match with your academy.”

The boy eyed them with suspicion. “Do you have any proof that you’re from Shrek?”

 Tang Wulin gave him a vague smile. His eyes flashed golden, and a golden soul ring appeared from beneath him. Cries of astonishment echoed throughout the crowd.

The boy in particular seemed petrified. A gold soul ring? He has a gold soul ring? Didn’t the legends say that the strongest spirit soul is only orange?

How is his gold? Wait! Legends say that soul rings of the gods are golden!

No one here could have known that Tang Wulin’s golden soul ring was actually a blood essence soul ring!

Tang Wulin felt a bit annoyed. He had no real way of proving their identities. Anything that could be used to identify themselves had been

confiscated! So he had no choice but to reveal his golden soul ring, which was far more shocking than three purple ones. This was the only way he

could dominate the minds of the students of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy, leaving them no choice but to believe that they were from Shrek Academy!

And it worked. The boy in front of them paled at the realization and stumbled backward in awe.

Chapter 444 - Skyorder Star Ocean Academy

Chapter 444 - Skyorder Star Ocean Academy

As the crowd reached the height of its excitement, a few people walked out of the gates. Their leader was a tall, muscular man with short graying hair

and a sharp gaze. He made his way through the crowd and quickly laid eyes on Tang Wulin’s blood essence soul ring. His surprise only lasted a moment, a brief flash across his face, but he instantly regained himself. He didn’t even break stride. Soon enough, he stood before Tang Wulin’s group.

“You kids are from Shrek Academy?” he asked, his eyes moving from the golden soul ring to meet Tang Wulin’s gaze. “Are you from the outer or inner court?”

Tang Wulin stood his ground, staring the man down in turn. “I’m the class president of the outer court’s first grade. My name is Tang Wulin.” Unlike their raids on the Spirit Pagoda, there were certain formalities that came with using the name of Shrek Academy to challenge another academy.

“Class president?” Shock was visible in the man’s eyes, even greater than when he saw the golden soul ring. “You can put away your banner now.

Please come in.” The man gestured for them to follow.

Tang Wulin nodded at Xie Xie and Xu Lizhi and the two quickly put away the banner. The first and most crucial step of their plan was complete. It

wouldn't do to continue provoking the people of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy at their doorstep anyway. They had to leave them some face.

 “Go to class,” the man said as he swept his gaze through the crowd.

“There’s nothing else to see here.” The man clearly commanded a lot of authority in their academy. At his command, students scattered like birds, rushing through the gates and off to their classes.

Tang Wulin’s group of six followed the man in. They were impressed with the campus. As expected of an academy with millennia of history, its

campus was enormous. It boasted beautiful fountains, well-groomed trees and shrubs, and numerous sculptures scattered in careful design.

The man glanced back at them as he led the way. “I am Li Zhilong, the headmaster of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy. This academy has been

around for millenia and is the best advanced-level soul master academy in the city. We specialize in teaching flying-type soul masters, soul engineers, and mecha pilots. We also have an excellent graduate program for prospective battle armor masters. You came here as representatives of Shrek Academy?”

The mere mention of Shrek Academy left Tang Wulin prickling with guilt, and he made the decision to tell the truth. “To be completely honest with you, Headmaster Li, we aren’t representatives of Shrek. We are only representing ourselves. The six of us are in the middle of an exam right now, and we need to fight opponents stronger than us in each city we visit. All of our IDs and uniforms were confiscated, so we had no choice but to pull that stunt at the gates. We chose to challenge Skyorder Star Ocean

Academy because we believe it’s the best academy in the entire northwest region. Please forgive us for our rashness.”

Gu Yue and Ye Xinglan gawked at Tang Wulin. Does he have split personalities? What left them even more shocked, however, was Li Zhilong response.

“As expected of kids from Shrek! You’re fearless!” The man broke out into laughter. “You’re living up to our academy’s reputation. I’m just glad you guys didn’t outright ambush our students at the gates. Back when I was your age, one of my seniors raided a military base to complete his exam. It was pandemonium!”

 ‘Our academy’? Tang Wulin and his friends stared at Li Zhilong blankly. Then realization struck Tang Wulin. “You attended Shrek Academy!”

Li Zhilong cracked a smile. “Yes! I graduated about fifteen years ago. Unfortunately, I barely managed to graduate from the outer court.”

Although he spoke poorly of himself, his expression brimmed with pride. Just being able to graduate from Shrek Academy’s outer court, if only barely, was an amazing accomplishment.

Tang Wulin couldn't help but smile as well. “Then we should greet you

appropriately. Hello, Senior. We’re really sorry about the incident this time. If it’s too much trouble, then we’ll leave immediately and think of another way to complete our exam.”

“Nonsense!” Li Zhilong waved a hand dismissively. “It’s no trouble at all. You’re here already, so there’s no point leaving empty-handed. Besides,

with all the noise you made at the gates, it would be anticlimactic if nothing happened, and I wouldn’t have any explanation to give to my students. I’ll find you some opponents. They’ll be our strongest students under twenty years old, just like you wanted. I’m also itching to see just how large the gap is between them and you. You know, speaking of Shrek, I haven’t visited in so many years. I really miss Spirit Ice Plaza! Back then, I desperately wanted to enter the inner court and study at Sea God’s Lake’s.

It’s a pity I never made it in.” A trace of disappointment filled the man’s eyes as he recalled the past.

Surprise continued to color the expressions of the others, but Tang Wulin had fully expected this sort of result. In the first place, he had accurately read Li Zhilong’s body language, prompting him to tell the truth. Tang Wulin had sensed an inkling of intimacy under the man’s dignified air

whenever Shrek Academy came up. Tang Wulin surmised that the headmaster was an alumnus of their academy, so by telling the truth, he was able to move the man’s heart.

Skyorder Star Ocean Academy’s main school building was enormous. It stretched multiple stories into the sky, reaching about a hundred meters in height. A giant domed roof adorned the top of the building, its grandeur

 nearly on par with Shrek Academy’s school building. The only thing it lacked in comparison was size. It was far smaller than Shrek’s.

Li Zhilong first brought them to a lobby to rest. “Ah, right, do you want to use mechas in this match?” he asked.

Tang Wulin shook his head immediately. “No, no. Just look at us. Do you think Shrek would have let us bring mechas?”

“Right,” the man said thoughtfully. “Rest here for a bit. Drink some water

and rehydrate. I’ll go arrange your opponents then come back later to chat.”

The moment Li Zhilong walked out the door, Xie Xie gave Tang Wulin a curious look, brow raised. “Since when were you so honest?”

“He obviously picked up on some clue that Li Zhilong had some connection with our academy,” Gu Yue chimed in. “Why else would he tell the truth?

Right, Wulin?” She hadn’t understood what Tang Wulin was doing in the beginning, but her suspicions had quickly formed as she listened to the

conversation develop.

Tang Wulin answered with a wry smile and pointed at his head smugly. Ye Xinglan snorted. “Yeah, right…”

“Alright then. Let’s get ready, everyone,” Tang Wulin said. “I don’t expect an easy match. Headmaster Li might be our senior and is helping us out

with our exam, but he’s part of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy now. He'll definitely pick the strongest possible opponents for us. Most of the soul masters here are flying-types. They’re going to be annoying to deal with, but we’ll proceed with our previous plan.”

They all nodded in affirmation. With the matter settled, Tang Wulin closed his eyes to rest.

A short while later, Li Zhilong returned. “Your opponents are ready. Do you need a moment to prepare?”

 Tang Wulin opened his eyes and stood up. “Senior, we’re fine. We still have more cities to visit after this one, so the faster we finish the battle, the

sooner we can complete our exam.”

Li Zhilong chuckled. “Even the class president is scared of being eliminated?”

Tang Wulin shook his head. “I’m not afraid of that. I just hope to earn some bonus points to give to my classmates later. I don’t want any of them to get eliminated.”

Li Zhilong was taken aback by this answer. It moved his heart. “Excellent! You’re a good class president. Alright. Follow me.”

To Tang Wulin’s group’s surprise, the enormous building had no elevators. There was only a giant swirling staircase at its center. Li Zhilong explained that the building was designed like this to help temper their students. They climbed stair after stair until they reached the highest floor of the building. The ceiling of the room on this floor was over thirty meters tall. They were in the topmost section of the dome they saw earlier. After passing through a corridor, they found themselves in an enormous hall. They were shocked

when they looked up at the ceiling. The domed roof opened up to the sky outside.

“This is our academy’s astronomical observatory and our most important

arena for combat training,” Li Zhilong explained proudly. “The hall is about three hundred meters in diameter. Since we specialize in flying-type soul masters, this space was designed to have no height limitations.”

Tang Wulin stared at the open area with eyes full of wonder. “It’s so cool! You could stargaze here at night! I bet it would be a beautiful sight.”

Chapter 445 - Astronomical Observatory

Chapter 445 - Astronomical Observatory

Li Zhilong smiled at Tang Wulin, a hint warmth in his eyes. “You can stargaze if you want. Just wait a moment. Our observatory has a little

something special. Be it day or night, we can bring the stars closer to us for closer viewing. This observatory is actually a giant soul machine that gathers starlight out in space. Then it beams it back down to us as pure

stellar energy. That energy is really beneficial to our students’ cultivation, but entry is limited to the most talented. Normally, only the graduate

students can cultivate here and use the stellar energy to refine their body and battle armor.”

Astonishment colored Tang Wulin’s face. He hadn’t expected Skyorder Star Ocean Academy to have such an exceptional cultivation space. It looks like this match is going to be a tough one! Wait, did he say stellar energy? From starlight?

Tang Wulin snuck a peek at Xu Xiaoyan. Her face was blank.

“You’ll be able to experience it for yourselves in a moment. Your opponents will be here shortly.”

The walls of the observatory stood thirty meters tall, giving way to the vast expanse of sky above. Straining his eyes, Tang Wulin could make out various lines criss-crossing through the walls to form some sort of design.

Recalling Li Zhilong’s explanation, he came to the conclusion that these were soul circuits, and they hid a tremendous amount of energy within them.

 Soul circuits had been in use for ten thousand years and counting, and after all these years of development, their designs and engineering grew in

complexity and grandeur. There were circuits for every function. One of the major consumers of large scale soul circuits was the military, who used it for their national defense facilities.

The circuitry used in this observatory was the largest and most advanced

Tang Wulin had ever seen. Still, he believed in the fact that Shrek Academy had something similar, despite not being completely certain. It was Shrek Academy after all!

Amidst Tang Wulin’s musings, a group of people entered the hall. They

were fitted in black uniforms with stars embroidered, the signature look of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy. Each star symbolized a soul power rank.

The color of the stars were also significant: silver for undergraduate students and gold for graduate students.

The group that had entered consisted of four boys and two girls, each

sporting silver stars on their uniforms, their ages ranging from eighteen to twenty. They cast curious looks at Tang Wulin’s party as they had walked in.

Tang Wulin swept his gaze over them and instantly discerned their strength.

The strongest one had forty-six stars, and of the others, none had less than forty. They ticked all the right boxes for adequate opponents in the eyes of Tang Wulin’s team.

As students of Shrek Academy, facing opponents a ring-level higher than them was nothing. However, Tang Wulin was wary of the arena itself. Li Zhilong wouldn’t have picked the observatory merely on a whim.

Li Zhilong smiled at the sight of his students. “Let me briefly introduce you all. They,” he said, pointing to Tang Wulin’s crew, “are talented students from Shrek Academy. And over here are our strongest undergraduate

students. I’ll let you all complete your own self-introductions.”

 Tang Wulin nodded, then faced the opposing team. “I’m Tang Wulin, the captain of my team. I’m an assault-control-type soul master.”

A slender young man from the opposing team stepped forward, a confident smile on his lips. “Hello. Welcome to Skyorder Star Ocean Academy. I’m the captain of our team, Xiao Tiantian. Coincidentally, I’m also an assault- control-type.”

The two captains had a battle of stares, sparks shooting off where their gazes met. Although they both wore amicable smiles, they were appraising each other. Due to the difference in age, Xiao Tiantian was a bit taller than Tang Wulin, but stood his ground, a fierce edge to his eyes.

Gu Yue stepped forward next. “Gu Yue, assault-type.”

The corresponding second of the other team went next. He was a short and skinny man with no remarkable traits. However, he had the second highest number of stars on his team, forty-four in total. “Ye Zishu. Agility-type.”

“Xie Xie. Agility-type.”

The opposing team’s third member was tall and well-built. He looked to be the sturdiest on their team. “Gu Tianming. Agility-type.”

As soon as those words left their opponent’s lips, Tang Wulin widened his eyes by just a fraction. He’s an agility-type? Not an assault-type? Those muscles though…

“Ye Xinglan. Assault-type.”

“Zhang Xining. Control-type,” said the fourth opponent. He was a handsome young man with an average build and wore a charming smile as he spoke, voice suave

“Xu Xiaoyan. Control-type.” Her eyes were still wider than usual, mind somewhere far off in the distance.

A girl with sparkling good looks stepped forward, giggling. She was the fifth opponent. “I’m Li Yaoyao, an assault-type.”

 “Xu Lizhi. Food-type.”

The final member of the Skyorder Star Ocean Academy team, a frail- looking girl with a jaw dropping figure, said, “I’m Han Yuchang. I’m a control-type soul master.”

Another control-type? The warning bells rang within Tang Wuliin’s mind, their team composition spurring all sorts of doubts. Their captain, Xiao Tiantian, was an assault-control-type, and they had two more pure control- types. Half of them were control-types!

Taking into consideration Skyorder Star Ocean Academy’s reputation, Tang Wulin guessed that they were flying-types as well. Coupled with the fact that they had the home field advantage and were all over rank forty, he

could already taste the incoming struggle of a match.

Tang Wulin glanced at Gu Yue and she met his gaze. The two nodded in understanding.

“Alright now. The teacher in charge of controlling the observatory is ready. We’ll start the observatory’s barrier in a moment. This is just a friendly match, so stop when you’re ordered to,” Li Zhilong said, beaming.

Although a proud Shrek Academy alumnus, he hoped with all his heart that the students he personally nurtured could defeat this team from Shrek

Academy!

Tang Wulin’s team might be younger than his students, but as a class president, he was more than enough to serve as a representative of that illustrious school. If the Skyorder Star Ocean Academy team won, that would be an accomplishment worthy of pride regardless of their age difference. They would be able to parade the fact that they had beaten a team from Shrek Academy!

Both teams retreated to their side of the arena. According to agreed upon rules, they would start the battle one hundred meters apart.

 Determination blazed in Tang Wulin’s eyes. Those closest to him knew that the more pressure he was under, the stronger he became. His opponents may be formidable, but he refused to believe they eclipsed the five rankers in his class!

After overcoming a powerful soul fusion skill, Tang Wulin had complete confidence in their ability to win, even in a disadvantageous battlefield. This was the conviction of a Shrek Academy student. They weren’t just representing themselves, but Shrek Academy as well!

They took up their usual triangular formation. Tang Wulin at the head, Xie Xie and Ye Xinglan flanking him on either side, and Gu Yue, Xu Xiaoyan, and Xu Lizhi in the rear.

Their opponents didn’t assume any particular formation. They stood in a row as before, straight and neat.

It was six versus six. While individual strength was important, teamwork was more crucial.

“Get ready!” Li Zhilong stepped into the arena as the referee.

He chopped the air, hand extending. The lines of circuitry covering the walls flared to life. Energy surged through the circuits to the ceiling, out into the sky and converging to form a giant beam.

Amazing! Tang Wulin’s heart trembled before the observatory’s energy fluctuations.

Darkness began to devour the sunlight. Soon, the sky was pitch black. One by one twinkling stars flickered into existence among the darkness, until finally, an ocean of stars hung above them. Stellar energy descended from the stars, bathing everyone present in its warmth.

Tang Wulin noticed a faint golden glow surrounding their opponents. He

could tell that they had grown stronger. Not by much, but the stellar energy gave them an edge.

 “Huh?”

Tang Wulin whipped his head to the direction of that puzzled gasp. His eyes went wide at what he saw. Golden light flared from the source of the sound, manifesting as mist of the same color. He could just barely make out the person shrouded within it.

“Xiaoyan,” Tang Wulin said beneath his breath.

Chapter 446 - The Battle Begins

Chapter 446 - The Battle Begins

“I’m fine. In fact, I feel great!” Xu Xiaoyan said with barely-contained excitement.

Li Zhilong was astonished as well. With his familiarity of the observatory, he knew that stellar energy was only effective on flying-type soul masters. After all, the foundation of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy was this observatory!

Battles fought within this space strengthened the soul power of flying-types and significantly improved their recovery speed.

How can that girl from Shrek also be affected by stellar energy? What’s her martial soul?

Every person absorbed stellar energy at different speeds based on how compatible they were with the energy. The golden aura Tang Wulin saw around their opponents was the effect of the stellar energy. Only a few

students in all of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy could harness stellar energy to the point that it was visible as a golden glow.

The golden mist surrounding Xu Xiaoyan was so thick that it was nearly tangible. Li Zhilong couldn’t comprehend how this could be possible.

“Start!” Li Zhilong shouted.

The three frontliners of Shrek Academy’s team immediately rushed forward. Tang Wulin quickly overtook the others, stomping the ground and shooting towards their opponents like a missile. As he did, three purple soul

 rings materialized around him and bluesilver grass swarmed out of the ground

His bluesilver grass looked nothing like its namesake anymore. Each strand was now sparkling blue, golden veins running throughout the vine and tiny patches of scales barely discernible to the eye littered along its length.

Ye Xinglan and Xie Xie were right behind Tang Wulin. Xie Xie’s movements were akin to a wraith, his eerie yet graceful speed different from Tang Wulin’s brutish charge. Ye Xinglan kept pace as well, moving so fast her limbs were blurs. Three rings appeared behind them both too, and together with Tang Wulin they advanced in a triangle formation.

Their opponents all jumped into the air at once.

Xiao Tiantian hunched over as a crimson aura burst from his body and his eyes took on the same hue. An enormous pair of bat wings unfurled from his back, while four purple soul rings rose up behind him. He flapped his wings, kicking up a gust of wind as he soared into the air.

What martial soul is that? Tang Wulin wondered.

Ye Zishu’s brought his hands together in front of him and summoned a bamboo branch into his hands. The moment his second soul ring lit up, bamboo leaves erupted from the ground. They swirled in the air, trembling before flying over to form a pair of wings on his back. Pushing off with his pole, he leaped into the air and hovered gracefully as if he were as light as a feather. He didn’t seem to be truly flying, but simply floating.

A pair of wings unfurled from Gu Tianming as he threw his head back and let out a sharp eagle’s cry, while his hair transformed into feathers He flapped his wings and ascended as well. His martial soul was the soaring

eagle!

A pair of wings formed behind Zhang Xining as well but compared to Gu Tianming’s, they were much smaller and nimbler. The wings were pure

white. A single flap later and he was positioned behind Gu Tianming, as if he was a startled chick.

 Tang Wulin’s jaw nearly dropped when Li Yaoyao summoned her martial soul. Her entire body burst into flames when she soared into the air. Her skin took on a charcoal shade and her arms transformed into giant rocks. The flames acted like jets, constantly propelling her into the air. Though they all took off at the same time, she was the fastest of them all.

What kind of martial soul is that? As expected of an academy specializing in flying-types! I can’t even imagine what soul she has!

Han Yuchang had the most normal martial soul of them all. Butterfly wings sprouted from her back and she flew into the air.

They really are all flying-types!

Three ringed soul masters could close a gap of one hundred meters in mere seconds. At the fifty meter mark, Tang Wulin paused, rooting himself in this position. He grabbed the strand of bluesilver grass connecting him and Xu Lizhi and began to spin in place. Once he had enough momentum, he threw Xu Lizhi into the air! Then he did the same with Xie Xie and Ye Xinglan.

He sent all three of them straight for their opponents!

Since none of them could fly, they had no way to stop their opponents from taking to the sky. The only thing they could do was ground them before they rose too high.

Xu Lizhi curled into himself, turning into a giant meat cannonball that shot straight toward Gu Tianming and Zhang Xining!

Tang Wulin firmly believed that control-types were more troublesome than assault-types, so he wanted to eliminate the opposing control-types first.

Xie Xie flew toward Han Yuchang and Ye Xinglan went straight for their captain, Xiao Tiantian.

The fact that Tang Wulin could accurately throw his teammates at their targets was testament to his strength and control.

 Even as they soared through the air, they were still anchored to Tang Wulin with strands of bluesilver grass wrapped around their waist.

Gu Yue shot fireballs about a foot in diameter at Ye Zishu and Li Yaoyao and let the fireballs explode in their proximity, suppressing them and

ensuring they stay in place.

Tang Wulin’s plan was simple. They would disrupt their opponents in the opening act of battle, then Gu Yue and Xu Xiaoyan would provide long- ranged fire support while he positioned himself to take advantage of any openings.

He didn’t expect to instantly wipe out their opponents, but he wanted to take care of at least one of them. If his team could do that, then they could take their time taking down the rest. Although flying-types had a clear

advantage against grounded opponents, that came at the cost of high soul power consumption. He wasn’t afraid their opponents would fly beyond their reach.

Being the first team member that Tang Wulin threw, Xu Lizhi was also the first to engage his targets. His immense mass, combined with Tang Wulin’s arm strength, made him a high-speed projectile.

Just as Gu Tianming reached a suitable altitude, he found a giant ball of meat flying toward him. Zhang Xining, who hid behind him, used his first soul skill and let out a melodious cry. His martial soul was the skylark.

Although he could fly, he relied on his voice to control his enemies. His first soul skill slowed and weakened his target.

However, this had no effect on Xu Lizhi. He wasn’t flying thing the air with his own power! He had been thrown by Tang Wulin!

Gu Tianming eyes widened. Isn’t this fatty a food-type? Is he being used as cannon fodder? He snapped out of his daze. Lighting up his first soul ring, he beat his wings towards Xu Lizhi and unleashed ten feather arrows.

 Long-ranged attacks were crucial for aerial battles since it was easy for either party to open up distance.

The feathers pierced through the air in succession.

Unfortunately for Gu Tianming, Xu Lizhi was a disciple of the Tang Sect, a sect that specialized in hidden weapons!

Xu Lizhi straightened from his ball form and thrust out his hands. Despite facing danger, he still wore his usual silly smile. His palms shone like jade as he moved them in circles, sucking in the arrows as if they were invisible whirlpools.

Chapter 447 - Disparity

Chapter 447 - Disparity

Xu Lizhi had used Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon to stop and gather the arrow feathers in his hands, redirecting them to Zhang Xining with Fairy Scatters Flowers! They whizzed through the air faster than before. At the same moment, Xu Lizhi reached Gu Tianming.

Faced with the hulking young man before him, Gu Tianming found it hard to split his attention efficiently between protecting Zhang Xining and dealing with Xu Lizhi. His second soul ring lit up and his wings doubled in size. As he spread his wings as wide as possible, an attempt to intercept all of the incoming feathers, he used his second soul skill, Eagle Wing Strike!

Yet to his disbelief, the fatty grinned.

Xu Lizhi thrust out his hands and stopped in mid-air just short of crashing into Gu Tianming. Something shot out of the flat of his palms, a cold glint to his eyes. It swerved past Gu Tianming and flew straight for Zhang

Xining!

This was Xu Lizhi’s real attack! The feathers he returned had merely been a distraction!

The second before Eagle Wing Strike connected, Xu Lizhi waved his hands at Gu Tianming, his grin growing wider.

Not good!

But it was too late for Gu Tianming to save Zhang Xining. Despite blocking most of the incoming feathers, a couple had past through his defenses.

 Zhang Xining was a control-type, but his control ability stemmed from his voice! While his control power was higher than most of his teammates’, he was weak in direct confrontation.

All Zhang Xining could do was bat his wings forcefully in a bid to dodge the feathers, and even then he had barely managed to evade a fatal wound. The feathers streaked across, swift and sharp, leaving long crimson lines of blood in their wake.

Right as he was about to let out a sigh of relief, he caught sight of a flash in his peripheral vision and turned toward it. His stomach dropped. A torrent of needles pursued him in a deadly chase, hundreds in number, imbued with thick soul power! He had no avenue of escape!

Wha—

A sigh reached his ears, then a series of tinkling sounds filled the air. His body fell limp to the ground.

“Zhang Xining is eliminated,” Li Zhilong declared. He had been forced to intervene and save his student.

Their first exchange against a team without any flying-types, and already one of their important control-types was eliminated!

Shrek Academy truly was the academy of monsters.

Zhang Xining flushed red with fury. He couldn’t accept such a quick

elimination. But the match was treated as if it were an actual battle to the death. His incredulity meant nothing.

Xu Lizhi tumbled toward Tang Wulin. Seconds prior to impact, Tang Wulin held out his hands and used Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon, gently depositing his teammate at his side.

Xu Lizhi tossed Tang Wulin a pork bun in gratitude, and Tang Wulin immediately devoured it.

 Meanwhile, Xie Xie was nearly upon Han Yuchang. Control-types restrained agility-types, but that was only when they had the space to do so. Xie Xie was already within engagement distance.

Despite being forced to enter close quarters combat, Han Yuchang kept her cool. Her second soul ring lit up, though no visible change occured. She pulled on the air in front of her and batted her wings.

Xie Xie felt the world warp with him situated at the center, colors stripped from everything around him, leaving behind shades of morose black and blinding white. The shapes before his eyes bent and stretched, finally

collapsing into themselves like dying stars. He could vaguely make out Han Yuchang in front of him, so he pressed on. He raised his Light Dragon

Dagger and slashed at what he believed to be her. It caught nothing but air. Pain seared his shoulder, angry and sharp, and with no foothold, he was falling to the ground.

From the perspectives of the others, Xie Xie had moved to the side on his own accord and slashed at air. Afterward, Han Yuchang had flown over and heel kicked his shoulder, launching herself to a higher altitude

simultaneously.

Tang Wulin’s eyes went wide. She’s a spiritual control-type too!

Xie Xie would never have missed by such a large margin. The only possible explanation was that Han Yuchang had hindered his senses.

As Xie Xie continued to free fall, the thick scent of combustion spread nearby. Rather than from Gu Yue, the flames belonged to Li Yaoyao!

It was difficult to discern which of her soul rings had lit up. Still, it was clear she was using a soul skill. She curled up in the air and her body transformed into a boulder. Flames spurted out of her rock form and propelled her at Xie Xie! Her speed was simply overbearing!

What kind of martial soul is that? A meteor? Tang Wulin wondered.

 Even as an agility-type, there was no way Xie Xie could dodge an attack while he was falling through the air. Furthermore, agility-types had weak defenses. It was clear that Li Yaoyao and Han Yuchang had used this tactic many times before.

Gu Yue released a fireball to intercept Li Yaoyao. Yet she simply charged through it, ignoring the flames.

Left to his quick thinking, Tang Wulin tugged on the bluesilver grass tied to Xie Xie, jerking him out of Li Yaoyao’s path. However, that didn’t stop her.

Free falling, she changed her target to Tang Wulin instead! As the captain and an assault-control-type, it was obvious he was the heart of the Shrek Academy team! Therefore, if she took him down, the tides of the battle

would turn!

Even so, Tang Wulin barely batted an eyelash at Li Yaoyao. Rather, he

whipped the bluesilver grass tethered to Xie Xie, tossing his teammate back at Han Yuchang.

Meanwhile, Ye Xinglan and Xiao Tiantian had engaged in combat as well. Ye Xinglan became one with her sword as she brandished it, using Sword God’s Star.

Xiao Tiantian’s starlight aura flared. His wings stretched as wide as possible, and he thrust his palms at Ye Xinglan. A giant crimson ball of light formed before him, obstructing Ye Xinglan’s approach.

Sword God’s Star burst out, countless golden stars blossoming around her. All of the stars in the sky seemed to grow brighter at that moment.

She slashed apart the crimson ball and drove her sword at Xiao Tiantian.

He was shocked. Never had he expected Ye Xinglan to be able to draw power from starlight as well, and that she could harness more stellar energy than him!

His third soul ring lit up, and a pair of horns sprouted from his forehead. Crimson electricity crackled along his body, forming a protective sphere

 around him.

Ye Xinglan’s sword screeched as she slashed at the electric barrier.

Unfortunately, it bounced off without a scratch, and with nothing to keep balance, she began to tumble through the air. All of a sudden, her third soul ring came to life. Light flared around her. Her body began to float, defying gravity. Then she soared!

What? Li Zhilong stared in shock. Like Xiao Tiantian, he could tell that Ye Xinglan’s martial soul was related to stars, otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to harness the stellar energy. Apprehension creeped into his heart.

On a different side of the battlefield, Li Yaoyao descended upon Tang Wulin a mere second after he had whipped Xie Xie back at Han Yuchang. The howling winds accompanying her fiery dive blew his hair out of place, the scorching heat drying his skin. Awe was kindled in his heart for her

explosive power.

Tang Wulin stood his ground before this meteor. Golden scales rippled into existence along his right arm and his hand transformed into a dragon claw. He clenched his claw into fist as he urged the blood essence within him to flow in reverse. A golden aura encased him. Unlike with the others, this

aura wasn’t from harnessing stellar energy, but stemmed from his blood essence’s might! He threw a punch straight at the meteor.

A shockwave tore through the stage when fist and meteor met, kicking up a cloud of dust. Time seemed to freeze. Everyone spared a moment from their battles, eager to witness the result of the clash, ensnared by the incredible development.

Chapter 448 - Starlight Burst

Chapter 448 - Starlight Burst

Li Yaoyao’s martial soul was in fact a meteor, and her attack was the

embodiment of power. By relying on the jets of flame shooting from her back, she could mimic flight, propelling herself to high altitudes and

crashing into her target upon freefall. Her assemblage of soul skills revolved around empowering this method of attack.

With her four rings, a full power assault carried the force of over three tons!

Even if she somehow missed, there was nothing to stop her from trying

again. Coupled with the defensive strength of a meteor, this proved to be a terrifying combo. With her ability to change targets mid flight, she was their team’s trump card, her presence enough to suppress the entire battlefield.

However, adjusting her flight path toward Tang Wulin would have been unnecessary. He had not attempted to dodge.

In their explosive collision, both stood their ground, neither gaining an inch on the other.

How is this possible? Li Zhilong dashed over to the side, prepared to intervene at a moment’s notice. No matter which side lost, he had to be ready to save them. His eyes went wide at the conclusion of the clash.

Cracks lined the area of impact. They rapidly spread to every corner of the meteor, and a blink later, the meteor shattered into a thousand smithereens.

Li Yaoyao groaned as she crawled out of the debris. Before she could escape, a strand of bluesilver grass shot out in her direction, wrapping around her body.

 Her complexion pale, she trembled uncontrollably from pain. However, the trembles of her heart were far stronger than those of her body.

How did he do that? He stopped my full-power attack with a single punch! Tang Wulin shook his right arm in an attempt to alleviate its numbness.

That was a pretty strong attack!

Indeed, for Tang Wulin, her attack was only ‘pretty strong’.

Of the Skyorder Star Ocean Academy team, Li Yaoyao was the second person to be eliminated!

Tang Wulin raised his head and looked toward Ye Xinglan’s battle. She descended with her third soul skill, Starfall Sword. In this observatory filled with stars, she streaked across the air like a comet. The strongest attack

Tang Wulin had ever witnessed her unleashing. Stellar energy really is useful, especially for us.

Xiao Tiantian put on a grim expression as his fourth soul ring lit up.

Darkness obscured his face, leaving only a pair of crimson eyes piercing through the shadows. Inky black flames blazed around him. He drew circles in the air with his hands, gathering darkness into something reminiscent of a whirlpool.

Ye Xinglan charged forth into the dark rotating mass with Starfall Sword.

Her whole form was swallowed by the darkness. For a moment, it trembled. Then, it collapsed. When the light and darkness settled down, both Ye

Xinglan and Xiao Tiantian were nowhere in sight.

Tang Wulin gaped. What happened? Did they teleport? Wait, no! There weren’t any spatial fluctuations!

As he stood there in shock, Xiao Tiantian reappeared in mid-air following a flash of crimson. But Ye Xinglan was still missing.

What kind of soul skill is that?

 Farther off in the battlefield, Xiao Tiantian spread his wings as he steadied himself. He dove through the air heading straight foren dove on Gu Yue.

During his descent, he unleashed a crimson sphere at Tang Wulin. Once near its target, the sphere burst into a black hole, sucking Tang Wulin toward its center.

At the same time, numerous bamboo leaves ripped through the air, obscuring their summoner’s, Ye Zishu’s, figure. Seven of the leaves absorbed the surrounding stellar energy and took on a golden hue.

Ye Zishu’s martial soul was the Seven Star Bamboo. Each soul ring gained would advance his martial soul another step. His ability to fly stemmed from one of those evolutions. These seven golden bamboo leaves were his strongest method of attack and utilized his fourth soul skill.

In the opening acts of battle, his team was already two people short.

Although the students from Shrek Academy had lower cultivation levels than his team, their combat strength far surpassed the norm. If his team couldn’t turn the tide of battle now, then they would have no chance of

victory. Therefore, he unleashed his full power along with Xiao Tiantian. His main target, the opposing team’s captain, Tang Wulin.

Meanwhile, Gu Tianming spread his wings and threw himself at Xie Xie, positioning himself in front of Han Yuchang.

Han Yuchang’s fourth soul ring shone. The thin, colorful membranes

sprouting from her back doubled in size. She turned to face Tang Wulin, flapping them in her fourth soul skill, Butterfly Wings.

The world seemed to spin as a spiritual wave crashed into Tang Wulin.

He could tell in an instant that Han Yuchang’s spiritual power resided in the Spirit Sea realm, just like Gu Yue!

Tang Wulin’s own spiritual power was only in the border of the Spirit Sea realm, still a step short from lying within. The Spirit Sea realm was one of the great dividers for spiritual power. He was diligent in cultivating his Purple Demon Eyes, hoping to break through as soon as possible. By his

 estimations, he would reach the Spirit Sea realm by the time he broke the fourth seal at the latest.

Tang Wulin’s head pounded from the spiritual wave’s after effects. He simultaneously had to deal with Xiao Tiantian’s attack. Pressure on his

shoulders, he summoned his golden soul ring, activating Golden Dragon Body. His golden aura flared, the scales on his arm spreading to cover the rest of his torso. Veins of the same color came to life all over his body, his blood essence surging. He squatted and curled into a ball.

On a different side of the arena, Xie Xie flashed forward mid-flight as he slashed with his Light Dragon Dagger, sending out a beam of light at Gu Tianming. His figure flickered as he accelerated, leaving a trail of

afterimages.

In Gu Tianming’s eyes, Xie Xie seemed to have multiplied. He couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing and flapped his wings, sending barrage after barrage of feathers at Xie Xie. Yet, each time they were about to hit their target, Xie Xie evaded them.

He reached Gu Tianming in a flash.

However, Xie Xie’s Light Dragon Dagger was blocked. Still, as Gu Tianming attempted to counter, a golden light flashed beneath his feet. His leg went rigid, the sensation slowly spreading up his body. Seizing the opportunity, Xie Xie changed grips on his Light Dragon Dagger and slashed at Gu Tianming’s wings, relying on the momentum to somersault over him.

Body frozen by the golden light, Gu Tianming was defenseless before Xie Xie’s swift and continuous assault. Xie Xie danced around in the air, too fast for his opponent to react. Mobility stripped away and unable to keep up with Xie Xie, a sense of dread began to close in on Gu Tianming.

When one of his wings finally went stiff, Xie Xie took advantage of the opening and somersaulted above him once more. He launched into Light Dragon Storm and beat the older youth to the ground.

 But he had backup. After Han Yuchang sent a spiritual attack in Tang Wulin’s direction, she hurried toward Gu Tianming to help restrain Xie Xie.

Yet her instincts screamed danger. Indeed, she fell from the air before she could react.

Something had flown right past her. Something invisible. Her eyes went wide with alarm.

“Don’t move!” someone said from behind her. An arm wrapped around her waist, a cold blade held to her neck. “Your spiritual attacks are really

strong. I’m not sure I would be able to resist them. But what I am certain of is that if you attack, my dagger will slice your face or your neck. So descend slowly.”

Never had Han Yuchang been treated so roughly. She flushed with fury. Despite that, there was nothing she could do. She couldn’t risk trying to break free. Her only option was to suppress her anger and land at a snail’s pace.

Along with subduing Han Yuchang, Xie Xie had wrapped things up with Gu Tianming as well. Two people down by his own hands.

Meanwhile, Tang Wulin was still curled up weathering Ye Zishu’s attacks. Bamboo leaves filled the sky as they swarmed Tang Wulin, Gu Yue, Xu Lizhi, and Xu Xiaoyan, whose starlight aura shone brilliantly. The seven golden leaves were hidden among the swarm, each with their own target.

Gu Yue remained calm before the incoming assault. Gales whipped around her, creating a wind wall that stopped the leaves from approaching. In a flash of silver, she teleported out of Xiao Tiantian’s path to Xu Xiaoyan’s side. As for Xu Lizhi, he remained near Tang Wulin. He didn’t need to babysit the two girls.

Just as Gu Yue was about to unleash an elemental barrage to protect Xu Xiaoyan and herself, she felt an intense energy fluctuation beside her. She turned to Xu Xiaoyan in astonishment.

In a soft voice, Xu Xiaoyan said, “Starlight Burst.”

Chapter 449 - Star Evolution

Chapter 449 - Star Evolution

Xu Xiaoyan raised her radiant Starwheel Ice Staff high into the air. Starlight burst out it, bathing the entire arena in its brilliance.

The bamboo leaves dispersed into nothingness under the starlight, leaving only the seven golden leaves hovering in the air motionlessly.

The wave of starlight washed over Xiao Tiantian, Ye Zishu, Han Yuchang, and Gu Tianming, who was tied up by Goldsong, calling out a golden glow from their bodies.

They all fell to the ground, their strength completely drained. Suddenly, the world was dyed gold.

Xu Xiaoyan stood up straight, starlight dancing around her as if she was a descended goddess. Specks of starlight twinkling all over her body. A brand similar to her starwheel appeared on her forehead.

The starlight dancing around settled into a gentle glow. They had found their master. She floated into the air as the starlight rushed into her.

All of the circuits of the observatory flared, the stars in the sky shining brighter than ever. They all rushed to bestow their stellar energy on her.

Tang Wulin uncurled from his ball form and stood up to take in the

spectacle. He gaped at what he was seeing, joying flooding his heart. Even in his amazement, he didn’t forget to take a few steps forward and finish restraining Xiao Tiantian, throwing a strand of bluesilver grass to catch the falling Ye Zishu as well.

 Xie Xie separated from the falling Han Yuchang before they crashed into the ground, then landed with a roll to prevent injury. He stood up and stared at Xu Xiaoyan, awed by the magical sight of her.

Everyone could tell from her aura that she was transforming on a fundamental level. This was a martial soul evolution! Only a soul evolution could produce such powerful energy fluctuations and such a sight. From

what they could tell as well, this was an evolution for the better.

Li Zhilong stared in shock, utterly dumbfounded. He never imagined such a thing would happen.

In reality, even if Xu Xiaoyan hadn’t acted, victory would have been theirs. Neither Xiao Tiantian’s attacks or Han Yuchang’s spiritual attacks could pose a threat to Tang Wulin. In terms of ability to take a beating, Tang Wulin was undoubtedly the best of them all. After taking on Yuanen

Yehui’s attack directly, this was nothing.

The Skyorder Star Ocean Academy team was filled with excellent and powerful students all with four soul rings, but they were nothing compared with Yuanen Yehui. The difference between them wasn’t something as

small as a single level. If she were present, she would be able to defeat their entire team by herself.

Tang Wulin had only ever been cautious about the observatory itself. He hadn’t imagined that it would actually help them out instead, and even

evolve Xu Xiaoyan’s martial soul.

Ye Xinglan reappeared in the air in a flash of light. A golden glow

emanating from her as well as she basked in the starlight, her Stargod Sword shining brilliantly. She was absorbing the stellar energy as well. Compared to Xu Xiaoyan, however, she was absorbing far less.

She gently descended to the ground then immediately sat down cross- legged and began meditating. Opportunity only knocks once, and as a

student of Shrek Academy, she knew not to let opportunities slip out of her hands.

 The golden aura of the Skyorder Star Ocean Academy students gradually dissipated and their abilities returned to normal. They all stared in shock at the scene before them. They all understood that there was no need to

continue fighting. The victors had long since been determined.

Tang Wulin walked over to Li Zhilong with swift steps, and said in a hushed voice, “Senior, what do you think?”

Li Zhilong snapped out of his daze. “Does her martial soul have some connection with stars?”

Tang Wulin nodded.

Li Zhilong took in a deep breath to calm himself. “I have never seen anyone with such a strong connection to stellar energy before. It’s really just…” He wanted to say that it would have been fantastic if she were part of his

academy, but held his tongue. After all his years at Skyorder Star Ocean Academy, he had gained a profound understanding of the observatory. It

was clear that Xu Xiaoyan would grow stronger by leaps and bounds thanks to this baptism of starlight. She couldn’t be anything but a genius! If she

were one of his students, then Skyorder Star Ocean Academy could progress to the next level!

Unfortunately for him, she was from Shrek Academy.

“Senior, can I request that you don’t turn off the observatory? Xiaoyan,

she’s—” Tang Wulin’s words trailed off as he glanced back at Xu Xiaoyan.

“Of course!” Li Zhilong interrupted. “She might not be a student of my

academy, but what she’s experiencing right now is also valuable data for us.

We’ll record what’s happening for further research on how stellar energy can be used. Don’t worry. Stellar energy is infinite. There’s no harm in letting her absorb as much as she wants.”

He turned to his six students. “You better pay attention and focus on sensing what’s happening with the stellar energy. Do your best to understand its

secrets.”

 “Yes!” Xiao Tiantian answered in place of his teammates. After their defeat, they weren’t in the best condition.

As the geniuses of the next generation at Skyorder Star Ocean Academy, they were a proud bunch. They were sure to reach six rings by the time they turned twenty, and three of them were expert control-types. They dominated all of the tournaments and competitions in the vicinity of Skyorder City.

Xiao Tiantian shined especially bright with his mighty Demon King martial soul.

Yet today they had lost to kids from Shrek Academy who had weaker

cultivation bases than them and not a single flying-type. It was a crushing defeat. The gap between them was on such a fundamental level that it

couldn’t be bridged. Their pride had taken a major it.

Xu Xiaoyan continued absorbing stellar energy for a little over an hour before she slowly descended to the ground. Her entire body was covered in specks of light. Tang Wulin counted them up, 365 in total.

Xu Xiaoyan sat down cross-legged. She circulated her soul power

according to the Mysterious Heaven Method. The 365 twinkling specks of light faintly pulsed with life as her staff hovered upright in the air. It transformed from blue to gold, the starwheel at the peak emptying out to become a brand reminiscent of the stars. Simply looking at it felt like peering into the vast expanse of the starry heavens.

Her martial soul had evolved, the starwheel aspect strengthening. Her soul power fluctuations hadn’t grown much stronger, but they had grown in purity. The starlight had penetrated her body, purifying and refining it.

Xu Xiaoyan had always been the weakest member of her team, only able to contribute in a significant way at night with her Starwheel Shackles. But

she was different now.

As the stars in the observatory gradually dimmed and returned to normal,

Xu Xiaoyan finished absorbing the rest of the starlight lingering around her.

Her pretty face now had an enchanting luster to it, almost to the point of sparkling.

 Taking a deep breath in, she slowly opened her eyes. When everyone’s curious stares greeted her, she immediately blushed crimson.

Chapter 450 - The Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy

Chapter 450 - The Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy “How do you feel?” Tang Wulin asked.

Xu Xiaoyan knitted her brows. “Wonderful. I can’t quite explain it, though.”

After taking in her expression, Tang Wulin understood the meaning behind her words. This wasn’t the place to talk.

“Senior, sorry for troubling you today. Xiaoyan is fine now, so we’ll take our leave,” Tang Wulin said to Li Zhilong.

“Junior sister,” Li Zhilong said, turning to Xu Xiaoyan. “Your transformation is very interesting. We recordedit for research purposes. Would you mind giving me your contact information so we can discuss any findings we have in the future?”

“Okay.” After gaining so much from the encounter, Xu Xiaoyan had no reason to refuse. Still, he wouldn’t be able to contact her until she returned to Shrek Academy, seeing that she had left behind her communicator.

They tiptoed through the gates of Skyorder Star Ocean Academy and jumped into their beat-up car.. Xie Xie turned on the ignition, driving to the next city without relying on a map.

“Our match with the local academy went pretty well,” Tang Wulin said. “We learned a lot too. Let’s do the same in the next city, but more tactful this time.”

 Gu Yue glanced at him. “Will we be as lucky in the next city? It definitely helped to meet a Shrek alumni back there.”

Tang Wulin smirked and thrust a hand into a pocket, retrieving a piece of paper. “Shrek Academy is the greatest academy on the continent, so who wouldn’t want to hire our alumni? Before we left, I asked Senior Li to give me a list of alumni at different academies and their contact information.

With this list, we can just call ahead to arrange a formal match.” “That works…” Gu Yue stared at him, gaping.

“Was this your plan from the beginning, Captain?” Xu Xiaoyan practically sparkled. “I like! We should have just done this from the start.”

Tang Wulin beamed. Her enthusiasm was contagious. “Xiaoyan, your martial soul evolved, right? How are you feeling?”

Xu Xiaoyan aimed her gaze elsewhere, a pensive look to her eyes. “Yeah. It did. I still can’t believe the amount of stellar energy they had there! At first, I couldn’t understand what was happening, but after a moment I realized that the stellar energy was fusing with my martial soul and causing it to rapidly grow. I guess you could call it an awakening.

“If my guess is correct, then before this match my martial soul had yet to finish maturing. Or maybe you could say it was flawed. That’s why it had different abilities between day and night. Although I made up for that flaw as I cultivated, the reality was that it was still there, lurking. It would have affected me in the future. By absorbing the stellar energy, I washed away the impurities of my martial soul.”

“If that’s the case, why didn’t your soul power increase more?” Tang Wulin asked.

“Xu Xiaoyan smiled wryly. “There’s no such thing as a free meal. The flaw in my martial soul was erased, but so was something else. My Starwheel Ice Staff is just a Star Staff now. The stellar energy cleaned my martial soul of its ice-attribute, leaving only the star-attribute.”

 Tang Wulin stared at her, eyes wide. “Really? So your ice-attribute soul skills are gone?”

Xu Xiaoyan nodded.

“And after your staff changed, your soul skills changed too?” Gu Yue asked.

Xu Xiaoyan smiled. “Of course. My gains wouldn’t make up for the loss otherwise. All of my soul skills evolved along with my martial soul.

They’re nothing like before. I’ll show you guys in the next match. I’m like Captain now. An assault-control-type..”

Tang Wulin flashed her a thumbs up. After her transformation, her confidence was near tangible.

He turned to face his other teammate with a star-attribute martial soul.

“Xinglan, what about you? You absorbed a lot of stellar energy back there too. How do you feel?”

Ye Xinglan smirked. “My martial soul was already stable to begin with. The stellar energy only helped me increase my soul power. I’m at rank 40 now.”

Rank 40!

Xie Xie and Xu Lizhi flipped around in their seats, looking at her in shock.

Xu Lizhi beamed at her. “Big Sis Xinglan, congratulations! You’re finally at rank 40.”

Ye Xinglan returned his smile and nodded.

Once she fused with one more spirit soul to gain her fourth soul ring, she

would become a Soul Ancestor. She was the first of their team to reach rank

40. With her skills and her powerful Stargod Sword, she would be on par with Yuanen Yehui.

Following the initial surprise, Tang Wulin diverted his attention to Xie Xie. “Don’t enter the highway just yet. We need to buy a soul communicator

 first.”

Understanding Tang Wulin’s intentions at once, Xie Xie quickly did as he was told.

Soul communicator in hand, Tang Wulin began calling some numbers. “Hello, are you Senior Zhang, an alumni from Shrek Academy? We’re current students from Shrek Academy…”

Just as Tang Wulin had expected, in the cities on their list, the Shrek

Academy alumni working at local academies were more than happy to help their juniors. They all instantly agreed to arrange a match for Tang Wulin’s group. Additionally, it would benefit their own students.

The next couple of days went by without a hitch. They had two matches each day, and pretty soon they soon finished their ninth. All that was left was a match in Bright City.

“Does the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy really not have any Shrek alumni? Aren’t they ranked as one of the best academies on the continent? How can that be?” asked Xu Xiaoyan, scanning through the list of Shrek Academy alumni once more.

Tang Wulin cracked a faint smile. “I heard from one of our seniors that the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy had once been destroyed,

and that it had something to do with Shrek. Since then, they’ve been hostile with and refuse to recruit anyone from our academy. Of course, none of our seniors would want to work there anyway. Even though they can’t compare with us, the grudge the Sun Moon Academy holds against us is as deep as

ever.”

“Then why are we picking that place?” blurted Xie Xie. “From what I’ve heard, their students are the elite of the elites. A lot of the higher-ups in the Federation graduated from there. Shouldn’t we pick a different place?”

A confident smile flashed across Tang Wulin’s face, eyes bright with determination. “Did you forget what the point of this exercise is? Shrek took away our belongings and kicked us out so that we could learn as much

 as possible. We can’t just slack off on this exam. We need to gain something from this journey. Or,” Tang Wulin stared Xie Xie straight in the eye. “Are you telling me you’re scared?”

A pause. Then, as if a bolt of lightning had struck him, Xie Xie’s eyes popped. Grinning, he flashed Tang Wulin a thumbs up.

Xu Xiaoyan fidgeted in her seat, energy and excitement twisted so tightly like a cord about to snap. “Yeah! Let’s go! I haven’t had a chance to do

anything in the last few matches.”

Ye Xinglan shrugged. “Yeah. I need to show off too.”

Meanwhile, Gu Yue caught Tang Wulin’s attention, holding his gaze. “It’s the final match.”

He broke into a grin. There was no better opponent to finish their exam with than an old rival. They couldn’t afford to lose.

“If you win, you’ll get bonus points.” The imposing, cold voice resounded in the car, giving everyone a fright.

“Teacher Wu?” Tang Wulin cried out in surprise as he looked out the window.

Wu Zhangkong ran alongside their speeding car, easily keeping pace while maintaining measured breaths.

The corner of Tang Wulin’s mouth twitched. “Teacher Wu, you heard us?”

Wu Zhangkong shot him a sideways glance, nodding. “You’ll all have the honor of representing Shrek Academy and you’re not allowed to lose

against them. I’ll accompany you as your team’s teacher.”

With a teacher accompanying them, their challenge would be recognized as an official match.

“How many bonus points?” Tang Wulin asked hesitantly.

 “If you win, all of you will get full marks plus ten bonus points each. Each and every one of you will have over fifty points to spare for your

classmates.”

“Deal!” Tang Wulin said.

They could easily accomplish their goal with so many extra points. Tang Wulin had done the mental math. Three hundred points to spare was a great incentive. Just imagining how many people they could save from failing the exam and being expelled fired him up even further.

However, Wu Zhangkong’s next words served as a pail of ice water over their heads. “But if you lose, you all fail.”

“What? That’s so harsh!” Tang Wulin dropped his jaw, dumbstruck. “You don’t understand just how deep the grudges between our two

academies run. If you lose, I’ll shoulder the responsibility and resign from Shrek Academy as well,” Wu Zhangkong declared solemnly.