Among Title Douluo of the same rank, if there is a gap in strength, it almost always comes down to the age and quality of their soul rings—or sometimes, inherent flaws in their martial souls.
A massive dragon claw loomed over the entire arena, casting an oppressive ancient aura across the battlefield, as though a prehistoric beast had awakened to reign supreme.
"Eighth Soul Skill—Star Dust Explosion!"
Li Zhilong roared. The entire stargazing platform erupted in golden light as endless starlight energy poured into his body like a surging tide.
Boom!
The starry planet formed by his martial soul exploded in an instant.
Gu You smirked. This was exactly what he had been waiting for.
"Purple-Gold Radiance—Invincibility for Three Seconds!"
His fourth bloodline soul ring lit up.
The explosive shockwave from the starry planet's detonation caused the whole arena to quake violently.
Li Zhilong was blown into the air, his expression calm but uncertain. Had he really lost?
Suddenly, a burst of dazzling purple-gold light lit up the center of the arena.
As expected!
Gu You stood tall, unmoved, his gaze locked onto Li Zhilong.
"Fight!"
They charged at each other again, Li Zhilong forming a sword from stardust in his hand, while Gu You's dragon claws grew thicker and more defined.
Clang! Clang!
Their weapons clashed repeatedly, sparks flying with each exchange.
"Break!"
Gu You shouted, his dragon claw clenched into a fist as he unleashed his full strength toward Li Zhilong.
A thunderous shockwave erupted, distorting the surrounding space.
"Not good!"
Li Zhilong tried to form a stardust shield with his martial soul, but Gu You's punch was simply too overwhelming. The barrier shattered almost instantly.
Left with no choice, a radiant starburst bloomed on Li Zhilong's chest and quickly spread to envelop his entire body.
His battle armor!
Li Zhilong summoned his battle armor in a desperate attempt to defend.
But the outcome did not change. He was sent flying, slamming hard into a golden soul power barrier conjured by Xuan Shi in the sky.
Gu You tightened his fist.
Cough!
"No more. No more. Today's youth are just too fierce. I'm getting old," Li Zhilong admitted, wiping blood from his mouth. His triple-forged chestplate made from soul-forged metal now bore the clear imprint of Gu You's fist.
Gu You retracted his soul rings, allowing his aura to calm. He glanced briefly at Xuan Shi overhead, then turned without a word and left the battlefield.
"What's happening to Xiaoyan?" Xie Xie turned to the others in confusion.
Everyone shook their heads.
Xu Xiaoyan was now enveloped in starlight, like a goddess descending to earth. Specks of golden light danced around her, forming stunning patterns. On her forehead, a new symbol had appeared—identical to the starlight wheel atop her Starwheel Ice Staff.
The entire stargazing formation activated once again, and the star power in the sky converged toward her.
Xu Xiaoyan's body lifted gently into the air, the gathered starlight pouring directly into her form.
The stargazing platform's energy patterns lit up in full. In the sky, constellations brightened once more, cascading down like a meteor shower into her body.
Even Xuan Shi was shocked at the sight. This looked almost like a mutation of her martial soul.
Gu You ignored the phenomenon for now, focusing instead on meditating to recover his soul power. Some of the star energy also flowed into him during the process.
"I've never seen a soul master so attuned to the power of starlight," Xuan Shi muttered. "This girl… she's interesting."
Xu Xiaoyan continued absorbing the starlight for over an hour before gently landing on the ground. Around her floated hundreds of tiny glowing orbs.
Anyone counting carefully would realize there were exactly 365 golden lights orbiting her.
Sitting cross-legged, Xu Xiaoyan radiated a new, purified aura. Her Starwheel Ice Staff stood upright beside her, now entirely golden, with the starwheel at the tip appearing almost ethereal, as if etched with the vast night sky itself. Gazing into it gave the illusion of peering into the cosmos.
Her soul power had not significantly increased, yet something within her had clearly changed. She now radiated a sense of profound purity, as though she had been cleansed and refined by the stars themselves.
The stellar phenomenon above gradually returned to normal, and the stargazing platform dimmed back to its usual state. The light surrounding Xu Xiaoyan withdrew into her body, vanishing from sight.
A soft glow now coated her already beautiful face, adding a luster that shimmered like treasure.
Gu You opened his eyes at last.
After traveling through nine cities, their journey had been smooth overall. Each day consisted of two exchange matches, all conducted at prestigious academies.
Gu You's task had proven the hardest. Even in second-tier cities, it was incredibly difficult to find soul saints.
Still, the exam was nearly complete. Gu Yue's team was just one challenge away from finishing.
Their final destination: Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.
"They don't have any of our senior alumni there? But isn't Sun Moon Royal one of the top academies on the continent?" Xu Xiaoyan asked curiously during the drive. Throughout their travels, they'd encountered graduates of Shrek Academy at nearly every renowned school.
Xie Xie replied, "I heard from an older student that Sun Moon Royal Academy was once destroyed, and Shrek Academy had something to do with it. Ever since then, they've held a grudge against us. It's the only academy that refuses to hire Shrek alumni, and vice versa."
Xu Lizhi asked, "Then should we still challenge them? I've heard they're really strong too. Lots of high-ranking Federation officials came from there. Maybe we should pick a different place?"
"Since they're rivals, we fight. We don't retreat," Gu You said firmly, glancing at the team.
"If you win, there will be extra credit," said a cold voice that echoed through the vehicle. It came out of nowhere.
"Teacher Wu?" someone exclaimed. They looked outside and saw Wu Zhangkong flying beside the car, keeping pace effortlessly with their high-speed vehicle. His voice had come from him.
Gu You called out, "So how much extra credit do we get if we win?"
Wu Zhangkong replied, "Win, and all six of them get full marks. Plus ten bonus points. Meaning those six can share 50 extra points with you."
"Deal!" Gu You shouted, stomping the gas pedal. The soul car rocketed forward.
Locked in!
Mingdu.
The most modern city on the Douluo Continent. Located in the western region, it served as the core of the entire western federation. As soon as they entered Mingdu's borders, Gu You saw a sight rare in other cities.
"Is that an aircar? A high-altitude one?" Xu Xiaoyan pointed toward a sleek vehicle in the sky.
Xie Xie confirmed, "Looks like it. Aircars are still experimental. Mingdu is the Federation's tech capital, so it makes sense the trials are going well."
Traffic slowed ahead. In the distance, dozens of mech suits patrolled the highway exit.
(End of Chapter)
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