The scepter was raised high, starlight gathering thickly upon it. A circle of star-wheels suddenly appeared beneath Yun Ze, chains shooting up to coil around him, intending to bind him.
Star-Wheel Chains — Control-type soul master Xu Xiaoyan's first soul skill. Using the star-wheels as a guide, chains are formed to restrain the opponent, with an effect deemed absolutely guaranteed.
Originally, the "guaranteed" control lasted one second, but after her martial soul evolved into the Star Scepter, the duration became one and a half seconds.
But in this world, what's truly "absolute"? Her soul skill could indeed be considered a divine-level control skill, but the flaws were still obvious.
It required the chains to wrap around the opponent. Although the chains moved incredibly fast, fully binding a target in less than 0.3 seconds —
If the target could leave the range of the chains within that 0.3 seconds, then naturally, the skill would fail to work.
For Yun Ze, a reaction window of 0.3 seconds was actually quite long — more than enough time to respond.
He grabbed Xie Xie's hand and yanked hard, pulling Xie Xie toward the star-wheel's position. At the same time, his phoenix wings beat powerfully from behind, purple lightning crackling across the surface of his battle armor.
In that instant, his speed skyrocketed — like teleportation — reappearing five meters away, out of the chain's range. His palm clawed at the empty air in front of him.
It looked absurd, a meaningless grab into empty space — yet he pulled a person out of thin air. And looking at the face, it was Xie Xie.
Two Xie Xies?
Of course not. The one he'd first grabbed was merely a clone created by a soul skill. This one was the real body.
Trying to confuse him with such petty tricks? They were thinking too much. If he could be fooled by such crude clone techniques, then all the long years he'd lived would have been in vain.
"Ah—!" Xie Xie's neck was caught by Yun Ze. Flames scorched at his throat; his skin was already burned. Yun Ze wasn't gentle — he gripped tight, making it impossible for Xie Xie to breathe.
Asphyxiation drained his strength; his legs kicked weakly while his right hand stabbed Yun Ze repeatedly with the Light Dragon Dagger, but all it produced was the sound of metal striking metal — not even the slightest harm was dealt to Yun Ze.
"It's best to stay humble," Yun Ze said lightly. "Especially when you're not strong enough. Flaunting your tongue's sharpness brings nothing but disaster."
As soon as he finished speaking, his left hand swung to the side and grabbed — a metallic clang sounded as he caught hold of a sword.
The one holding that sword was none other than the Star God Sword soul master, Ye Xinglan.
At this moment, Ye Xinglan's face froze in horror — despair washed over her. That strike she'd just unleashed was her third soul skill, a move of great power — and it was caught this easily?
And she hadn't held back in the slightest. She had gone all out. Her sword had rained down like a storm, blade shadows flashing so fast they dazzled the eyes, hiding her true killing strike within over a dozen feints.
Her previous opponents, when faced with this storm of sword shadows, had always been unable to tell where the real attack came from.
But this child before her hadn't even looked carefully — he simply reached out and caught her true sword strike. How could she not be horrified?
Yun Ze tilted his head slightly, looking at Ye Xinglan without any expression. His left hand suddenly yanked.
Ye Xinglan felt an irresistible force drag her forward — her body slammed uncontrollably toward Yun Ze.
Releasing her grip on the Star God Sword, Yun Ze clenched his fist and punched — the entire motion took less than 0.1 seconds, too fast for the naked eye to follow.That punch struck Ye Xinglan in the stomach; pain twisted her face as her body shot off like a cannonball.
"Xinglan-jie!" Xu Lizhi cried out, ignoring the flames as he rushed toward where Ye Xinglan had been sent flying.
The Star God Sword, still in Yun Ze's grasp, was casually flung aside in a random direction — yet with the force he put behind it, even that casual throw made the blade shoot forth like an arrow.
"Lizhi, careful!" Tang Wulin's face changed drastically when he saw the sword's trajectory. His warning barely left his mouth when Xu Lizhi's scream rang out.
The Star God Sword, thrown by Yun Ze, struck Xu Lizhi's right chest dead-on, piercing more than halfway through, the force behind it carrying his whole body off the ground.
Xu Lizhi slammed to the floor, instantly unconscious. With no soul power left to protect him, flames began to engulf his entire body.
The elderly man watching from above froze — stunned — before he finally reacted after a moment.
With a wave of his palm, he drew the falling Xu Lizhi upward into the air, a surge of powerful soul power pouring from him to extinguish the flames on Xu Lizhi's body.
He placed two fingers beneath Xu Lizhi's nose to feel — and when he found breath still present, he finally sighed in relief.
This was a Shrek student, after all. If one died here, things would truly explode — Shrek would surely storm the gates.
Xie Xie was still struggling, though weaker with every twitch. Lack of oxygen was dragging him toward unconsciousness.
Yun Ze, with no immediate intention to kill him, saw he couldn't hold out much longer, and like tossing away a chick, threw him toward the elder in the air.
The elder caught Xie Xie with his soul power. Xie Xie glanced at Yun Ze with eyes full of terror — then fainted.
Ye Xinglan was also carried off the ground by the elder's soul power. Her face had gone deathly pale, both hands clutching her stomach, her body convulsing in pain.
Tang Wulin's eyes were bloodshot — seeing his three partners beaten so miserably filled him with overwhelming rage, igniting a murderous intent within him.
From afar, Xu Xiaoyan stood dazed, backing away step by step, her whole being terrified into stupor, muttering to herself again and again:
"Monster… he's a monster…"
Yun Ze appeared before Tang Wulin — the latter swung a claw at him.
Yun Ze simply raised his right hand, casually catching Tang Wulin's claw mid-swipe — not by the wrist, but by the claw itself.
His grip tightened, flames engulfing the claw, searing at high temperature, as though ready to melt it entirely.
"Ahhh—!" Tang Wulin tried to endure, but the pain coursing from his right hand was far too intense — worse than breaking seals with rare spiritual treasures — a pain that sank straight into the bone, impossible to endure.
Yun Ze gazed at Tang Wulin calmly, his expression unchanging from start to finish — a placid lake, unmoved, without a ripple.
But it was precisely that calm gaze that plunged Tang Wulin into an icy abyss, his soul trembling in fear.
"Shrek Academy concedes!"
The shout echoed across the entire arena, a loud and clear declaration.
The spectators in the gymnasium fell utterly silent — shocked into muteness by the ferocity on the platform, allowing that voice to carry distinctly across the venue.
All eyes turned toward the source of the cry — at the very back stood a handsome man, his expression grim, killing intent flickering in his eyes.
He leaped forth, releasing his martial soul midair, his Ice Battle Armor flaring to life, flying straight toward the center of the arena.
This man was none other than Shrek Academy's outer court instructor, Wu Zhangkong.
It was he who had brought Tang Wulin and the others for their final exam, their challenge of Sun Moon Royal Academy initiated by Tang Wulin's group — but the provocative words? Those had been his.
The stunned Xu Lin and the academy executives were snapped back to their senses by the shout, and one of the board members flew forward.
"Someone outside has declared Shrek Academy's surrender," the elder in the air immediately relayed.
He carried special equipment that allowed him to hear external sounds even through the energy barrier.
The fight had reached a point where he no longer wished to see it continue, worried Yun Ze might lose control and cause a fatality.
Hearing this, Yun Ze released Tang Wulin's hand. The battle armor on his body began to retract, flames across the arena rapidly drawing back into him.
"Pretty weak," Yun Ze said simply — just three words, no more.
With that, he landed, withdrew his martial soul, and walked off the stage.