The roar of the crowd was a distant, irrelevant noise to Zhang Tian as he stood on the stage. He watched as the blood-red vine gently deposited a stunned Zhu Zhuqing onto the floor below, his duty as an opponent fulfilled and his responsibility as a temporary guardian met. With a final, polite nod towards the referee, he turned and stepped off the stage, his calm demeanor a stark contrast to the high-octane battle that had just concluded.
He was immediately met by Ning Rongrong, her beautiful face flushed with excitement, her eyes sparkling like the jewels on her pagoda.
"Zhang Tian, that was incredible!" she gushed, her earlier noble arrogance completely replaced by genuine admiration. "The way you controlled those vines... it wasn't like a normal spirit ability. You've created your own skills, haven't you?"
Zhu Zhuqing had walked over, her composure returned, though a faint blush still lingered on her cheeks. She nodded in agreement with Ning Rongrong. "Your way of fighting is unique. It's not just about power; it's about absolute control of the entire battlefield. To create your own spirit skills... that requires true genius."
"It was merely a matter of practice," Zhang Tian replied with a disarming humility, though his mind was already cataloging the fight, noting areas for improvement. "My spirit is a mutated one. It lacks the explosive power of others, so I had to focus on control to compensate."
Nearby, Tang San had watched the entire exchange with a keen, analytical eye. The fight had been a revelation. He had seen how Zhang Tian manipulated dozens of vines with seemingly effortless ease, forming them into shields, cages, and swarms of needles. Even his teacher, the great Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang, had emphasized that only true geniuses could break free from the constraints of their spirit rings and create their own skills.
'Self-created spirit skills,' Tang San thought, a competitive fire kindling within him. 'His Blood Silver Grass is just a mutation of my own Blue Silver Grass. If he can do it, so can I. In fact, my spirit should be stronger.'
He ran through the logic in his head. Zhang Tian's first two rings were from plant-type beasts, focusing on control and parasitic abilities. His own rings, however, were from the Datura Snake and the Ghost Vine—one beast, one plant. This combination, he reasoned, should grant his Blue Silver Grass superior toughness and versatility. Furthermore, after years of cultivating the Purple Demon Eye, he was confident that his own mental strength was far greater than Zhang Tian's.
'Creating those skills for myself should not be difficult,' he concluded with a touch of arrogance. 'I will analyze his techniques and improve upon them.'
The brief interlude was broken when Xiao Wu bounced over to Tang San, her energy seemingly limitless. "Elder Brother! That was fun! Let's do a two-on-two match now! Together!"
Tang San, ever indulgent of his sworn sister, agreed. They went to the registration desk, signing up under a combined name that under the mistake of the one who registered the name: Three Five Combination. An hour later, their match was announced.
Zhang Tian, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing found seats in the stands, a small, exclusive audience ready to observe.
"Let's see how the so-called genius fights in a team battle," Ning Rongrong commented, leaning slightly closer to Zhang Tian.
The opponents for the Three Five Combination were a pair of burly twin brothers called the Iron Blood Combination. Their names were Tie Long and Tie Hu, and their spirits were identical: massive Forging Hammers.
The fight began with Tang San taking immediate control. He supported Xiao Wu on his shoulder, a practiced maneuver that allowed her to launch an attack from a high vantage point. His Blue Silver Grass shot out, attempting to bind the opponents.
"Xiao Wu is reckless," Zhang Tian commented softly, his voice just loud enough for the two girls beside him to hear. "She's treating this like a game, relying entirely on her raw speed and power. Look at her posture—it's full of excitement, but lacks the precision of a true combatant. She exposes herself with every leap."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded, her professional eye catching the same flaws. "She leaves herself open on her descent. A skilled agility type could intercept her mid-air."
On the stage, the Tie brothers proved more formidable than they looked. They swung their hammers in a defensive screen, their first spirit ability, Shaking, creating a vibrational field that repelled Tang San's vines before they could make contact.
"An interesting application," Zhang Tian noted. "They're using a disruptive ability meant for stunning opponents as a defensive technique against control spirits. It's clever."
The brothers pressed forward, forcing Tang San to adapt. He used his Controlling Crane Catching Dragon skill, not to attack, but to subtly pull and push at the brothers' hammers, creating a momentary gap in their defense with the 'Four Liang Deflecting A Thousand Jin' technique.
"His control over force is exquisite," Ning Rongrong admitted. "To create an opening like that without a direct clash is impressive."
Tang San used the opening to seed the area and his opponents with his Parasite ability. When the vines finally erupted from the brothers' bodies, paralyzing them, they retaliated with their second spirit ability, All In One Throw. Two massive hammers, glowing with a grey light, shot through the air, pursuing Tang San and Xiao Wu with unerring accuracy.
"Now, watch," Zhang Tian murmured. "This is a critical decision point."
Tang San made the selfless choice, throwing Xiao Wu out of the path of one hammer, leaving himself to face the other. He used his Mysterious Jade Hand and Controlling Crane Catching Dragon to deflect the blow, but the force was too great. He was flung across the stage, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
"Little San!" Xiao Wu screamed, her eyes flashing with rage.
"And here is her mistake," Zhang Tian said, his voice turning colder. "Emotion is a liability in battle."
Enraged at seeing Tang San injured, Xiao Wu's charming demeanor vanished, replaced by a feral fury. "Scoundrels, you court death!" she shrieked.
Her hands rose, and with a series of silent thwips, four dark shadows shot from her sleeves, aimed directly at the eyes of the paralyzed Tie brothers.
Zhu Zhuqing gasped. "What are those strange metal weapons?!"
Ning Rongrong's eyes widened. "In an arena match? That's forbidden!"
Zhang Tian's expression turned to one of profound, icy contempt. "So much for responsibility," he said scathingly. "Just this morning, he was lecturing me about the dangers of my weapons falling into the wrong hands. Now, his own sister, in a fit of rage, uses lethal, forbidden hidden weapons in a non-lethal match. She's not trying to win; she's trying to kill them."
His critique was sharp and brutal. "Look at those darts. They're crafted from special metals, designed for maximum penetration. If they hit, the Tie brothers wouldn't just be blinded; they'd be dead. And for what? Because her brother was injured due to his own tactical choice? This isn't a life-or-death struggle. This is a sport. Using tools like that here is not just against the rules; it's dishonorable and disgusting. And he, the great moralist, is the one who gave them to her."
The scene played out as he predicted. Tang San, horrified, shouted for her to stop and, with an incredible display of skill, threw his own set of throwing knives to knock her sleeve darts out of the air, saving the Tie brothers' lives at the last possible second.
The fight was over. The Three Five Combination had won.
But as they returned to the waiting area, they were met not with praise, but with the sighing, disappointed face of Flender. The Dean had seen the entire exchange.
"Tang San, Xiao Wu," Flender began, his voice gentle but firm. "Your coordination is good, but your decision-making is flawed. Xiao Wu, your recklessness is a danger to yourself and your teammates. Tang San, if your opponent had been slightly more skilled or had a long-range attack, your plan to save Xiao Wu would have left you both vulnerable. You must think two steps ahead."
He then looked at them with a serious expression. "And those... mechanical weapons. They are forbidden in the Great Spirit Arena. If the referee had been stricter, you would have been disqualified and banned for weeks, perhaps even months. I praise your quick thinking in saving your opponents, Tang San. They are not your mortal enemies. This is a place for honing skills, not for taking lives."
Tang San felt a hot wave of humiliation wash over him. The hidden weapons of his Tang Sect, his greatest pride, were being dismissed as crude, forbidden tools. He couldn't argue with the Dean, however. He knew, deep down, that using them here had been wrong. He just hadn't expected Xiao Wu to be so impulsive.
Oscar, however, saw only the utility. "Hey, Tang San," he said, sidling up to him. "Those sleeve dart things were pretty cool! Could you maybe... make one for me? You know, for emergencies?"
Tang San, looking for any validation, nodded gratefully. "Of course, Oscar."
Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, however, looked at Tang San differently now. They had been impressed by his skills, but Zhang Tian's sharp commentary had laid his hypocrisy bare. They saw not a noble hero, but a boy with a skewed moral compass and a dangerously reckless partner. Their admiration shifted even more firmly towards Zhang Tian, whose logic was as sharp and reliable as his spirit skills.
After the fights concluded, the group returned to the academy. The mood was subdued.
Later that evening, Zhang Tian found Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing in the woods just outside the academy grounds. "You wanted to discuss a deal," he said to Ning Rongrong. "It's best you know exactly what you're bargaining for."
He opened his small storage pouch. He didn't pull out more grenades. Instead, he produced three objects of intricate, metallic design that the girls had never seen before.
The first was a sleek, black metal object designed to be held in one hand. "This is a pistol," he explained. "For mid-range combat. It fires small, hardened metal projectiles at high speed." He aimed at a thick tree fifty meters away and pulled the trigger. A loud CRACK echoed through the woods, and a small, perfectly round hole appeared in the tree trunk.
The second was larger, requiring two hands, with a wider barrel. "A shotgun. For short-range, spread damage. It fires a cluster of smaller pellets." He aimed at a dense bush. The resulting BOOM was much deeper, and the entire bush was shredded into green confetti.
The third was long and elegant, with a strange scope attached to the top. "A sniper rifle. For long-range, precision attacks. Perfect for eliminating a key target from a great distance." He lay on the ground, propped the rifle on a log, and looked through the scope at a pinecone on a branch two hundred meters away. He squeezed the trigger. There was a sharp WHIP-CRACK, and the pinecone simply disintegrated.
The girls stared, speechless. The destructive power was one thing, but the sheer variety and specialization were on another level entirely.
"I call the exploding balls 'grenades'," he told them. "These are just a few of my other designs. Their bullets and their frames require special alloys. Their power, I admit, is limited. Against a prepared Spirit King, they would be little more than an annoyance. A Spirit Emperor could be hurt if caught by surprise. But for Spirit Masters below that level? They are decisive. And most importantly," he added, "they require no spirit power to use."
He knew these things were forbidden in official competitions, but their value in ambushes, warfare, and against spirit beasts was immeasurable.
Ning Rongrong had recovered from her shock, her mind, trained in the art of commerce, racing. "My clan needs these," she said, her voice filled with awe and desire. "Zhang Tian... what do you want for the blueprints?"
"My price is high," Zhang Tian said calmly. "First, I require storage spirit tools. One with the largest conventional space your sect can provide. Second, I need a storage spirit tool that can sustain living things, also with a large space. Third, a large quantity of various low-grade spirit tools for experimentation, along with a continuous supply of any rare metals I request."
He paused, letting the already staggering price sink in. Then he delivered his final, most important condition.
"Lastly, and this is non-negotiable, I need knowledge. I want your sect to use its influence to acquire the complete herb compendium of the Breaking Clan, along with their unique alchemy techniques and pill-concocting knowledge from their leader, Yang Wudi."
Ning Rongrong's eyes widened. The first three conditions were expensive, but manageable for her clan. The last one... that was almost impossible. The Breaking Clan was one of the four single-attribute clans formerly affiliated with the Clear Sky Sect. They were fiercely proud and reclusive, and their knowledge of pharmacology and poisons was their most guarded secret.
"The first three requests are... difficult, but possible," she said slowly. "But the Breaking Clan... I don't know if even my father could convince them to part with their legacy."
"Then have him try," Zhang Tian said simply. "Send a letter. Describe what you have seen. Invite them to a private demonstration. Once they see for themselves what I am offering, they may find the price to be... acceptable."
He then handed the shotgun to Ning Rongrong. "Here. Feel the power for yourself."
Excitedly, she took the heavy weapon, aimed it at a tree as he had done, and pulled the trigger.
She hadn't braced herself. The recoil was a physical blow, a mule's kick to her shoulder. She shrieked as she was thrown backwards, losing her balance completely. Before she could hit the ground, a strong arm snaked around her waist, catching her and pulling her flush against a firm chest. She looked up into Zhang Tian's calm, blue eyes, a happy, flustered blush rising on her cheeks.
"You need to plant your feet firmly," he advised, his voice close to her ear.
"R-right," she stammered, enjoying the closeness a moment too long before he helped her stand.
It was Zhu Zhuqing's turn. Having seen Ning Rongrong's attempt, she prepared herself, setting her stance and gripping the shotgun tightly. But even so, she underestimated the raw, untamed force of the recoil. The BOOM sent a shockwave up her arms and through her body. She stumbled backwards, her balance lost.
Just as with Ning Rongrong, Zhang Tian moved in a flash. His arms wrapped around her, one hand securely on her slender waist, the other supporting her back. Her stunningly voluptuous body was pressed firmly against his. He could feel the soft, full curve of her large breasts against his chest, the slender arch of her back, the firmness of her thighs. The scent of her hair, a faint, clean fragrance, filled his senses.
He looked down. Her head was tilted back, her face just inches from his. Her usual icy composure was gone, replaced by a wide-eyed shock and a deep, spreading blush that made her look breathtakingly vulnerable and beautiful.
She stared up at his handsome face, feeling the strength of his arms holding her, a sense of safety and intimacy that was both terrifying and intoxicating. For a long, silent moment, they stayed like that, locked in an embrace born from the kick of a weapon.
Finally, he helped her regain her footing, his touch lingering for a fraction of a second before he let go.
Zhu Zhuqing quickly composed herself, though the blush remained. The two girls, their brief embarrassment forgotten, looked at the weapons and then at each other, their eyes alight with a shared, feverish excitement.
~~
A/N: Check out my other novels like "Harem Master: Seduction System" and the "Villain: Manipulating the Heroines into hating the Protagonist" and I hope you like this story and those stories as well.
Check out more chapters on my P.atreon. The P.atreon will have 20+ Chapters ahead for this story. I hope you like it.
The link of p.atreon is: bit.ly/evildragon