Wang Chen stared at the two powerful skills recorded in the black book, and his mind couldn't help but imagine the upcoming clan competition a month later.
In that scene, Wang Teng would be beaten senseless across realms in front of countless clan members, crying miserably in public.
That wasn't an exaggeration—because the two skills he had recorded from Zhang Lexuan were simply too powerful.
If he managed to learn even one of them, he could easily beat Wang Teng to a pulp.
Wang Chen suspected that these were likely Shrek Academy's secret trump cards, the kind of techniques that only the most privileged could access. If Zhang Lexuan weren't the successor to the Sea God Pavilion Master of Shrek Academy, she probably wouldn't even have the qualification to learn them.
As a transmigrator, Wang Chen had naturally watched the Soul Land series in his previous life—especially Douluo Dalu I and Douluo Dalu II. He had not only read the original novels but also the comics.
Because of that, he was familiar with many hidden details of the Soul Land universe, and the two skills he recorded from Zhang Lexuan felt extremely familiar to him.
The first skill, Wang Chen guessed, was very likely the "King's Descent" (Jun Lin Tian Xia)—the signature move of Shrek Academy's current Sea God Pavilion Master, the Level 99 Ultimate Douluo, Dragon God Douluo Mu En.
Once he mastered this, fighting across realms before reaching Soul Sage would be as easy as breathing.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao, relying on King's Descent, had only been at the peak of the Soul Elder realm, yet he had easily knocked out a fifth-level Soul Engineer with Soul King cultivation in a single punch—an astonishing feat of power.
However, Wang Chen was worried that even if he learned this skill, he might not be able to use it.
After all, to use this ability, one's spiritual power had to reach the level of a Soul Sage. Otherwise, one couldn't control the fusion of soul power, spiritual power, and will.
Wang Chen had always been confident in his spiritual power. Having lived two lives, his spiritual strength was greater than most soul masters or soul engineers of the same level.
But he was currently only a two-ring Great Soul Master; reaching the spiritual level of a Soul Sage was simply too difficult.
It was known that the standard for a Soul Sage's spiritual power was the ability to project spiritual force externally (as described in the original story).
Not everyone was like Huo Yuhao—who was not only a spiritual-type soul master but also had the Spirit Ice Empress (Tianmeng Iceworm), a million-year spiritual-type soul beast, constantly charging his spiritual power and accelerating his cultivation.
Wang Chen estimated that his spiritual power was stronger than that of a Soul Ancestor but weaker than a Soul King—and still far from the level of a Soul Sage.
Therefore, the first skill he recorded from Zhang Lexuan had to be set aside for now. He couldn't use it yet; he'd have to revisit it later.
Next, Wang Chen turned his attention to the second skill, which also looked very familiar.
It was strikingly similar to the Haotian Sect's supreme secret art—Ring Explosion (Zha Huan)—though not quite as extreme.
The Haotian Sect's Ring Explosion technique involved detonating one's soul rings to obtain a terrifying burst of power.
The downside was that during its use, both spirit and body had to maintain absolute control over the violent energy; otherwise, one would be consumed by it and die.
After using Ring Explosion, all of one's soul rings would temporarily vanish, soul skills could no longer be used, and the user would fall into severe weakness.
The soul rings would gradually recover after three days, and the secret art could only be used again after thirty-six days.
Compared to that, the secret technique Zhang Lexuan used during the Soul Dueling Tournament was much gentler.
It also temporarily drew power from the soul rings to enhance one's strength, but instead of violently detonating the rings, it activated their power in a much milder way.
Although it didn't grant as massive a power boost as Ring Explosion, it was far easier to control.
More importantly, while using this technique, one could still use soul skills normally, and after use, the soul rings wouldn't disappear. The cooldown period was only three days.
Wang Chen was one hundred percent certain—this was a modified version of Haotian Sect's Ring Explosion secret art, improved by a powerful Shrek Academy expert.
Otherwise, how could there be such a similar technique?
Still, to modify it so well, reducing its side effects so drastically, one had to admit Shrek Academy's strength was indeed formidable.
One could glimpse the whole from a single example: from Zhang Lexuan alone, one could tell how deep and powerful Shrek Academy's foundation had become.
The Shrek Academy of today was no longer the same as it was ten thousand years ago.
After millennia of accumulation, Shrek Academy had become one of the top three forces on the continent.
The academy now housed Ultimate Douluo as guardians, more than five Super Douluo, and countless Title Douluo-level experts.
Who could have imagined that ten thousand years ago, Shrek Academy had been so poor that it survived through scams and tricks just to keep itself funded?
Time truly was the greatest magician.
Wang Chen couldn't help feeling emotional for a moment, but then he shook his head and pushed thoughts of Shrek Academy aside.
That academy was far too distant from his current reality. He was merely a Great Soul Master from a marquis family within the Sun Moon Empire. Worrying about Shrek Academy's affairs would be a complete waste of time.
Looking at the modified version of the Haotian Sect's Ring Explosion secret art, Wang Chen was extremely satisfied.
There was no need to even mention how powerful this technique was—the most important part was that its usage requirements weren't harsh at all. All one needed was to possess soul rings.
Without question, this skill was perfectly suited for him.
Feeling delighted, Wang Chen looked at the two unnamed powerful skills in the black book and immediately decided to name them himself.
The first skill—he named it King's Descent.
The second skill—he named it Ring Tempering (Cui Huan).
After naming both, Wang Chen nodded with satisfaction, and his consciousness returned to his body.
Although his consciousness seemed to have lingered in the black book for quite some time, countless thoughts could rise and fall in a single second—so in reality, only about two seconds had passed in the outside world.
Though Wang Chen was eager to study and practice the new skills, the timing wasn't right.
He was currently seated in the front-row luxury section of the audience stands; practicing soul skills here might attract unnecessary attention.
Suppressing his excitement, Wang Chen refocused his attention on the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Soul Dueling Tournament.
At that moment, Zhang Lexuan and the other six "free-win" members of the Shrek Team stood at the center of the arena, basking in the cheers of tens of thousands of spectators.
Meanwhile, the members of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy were off to the side, beaten black and blue, receiving treatment from healing-type soul masters.
Some of them, their spirits shattered, muttered under their breath that Zhang Lexuan was terrifying.
Others wore expressions of unwillingness, swearing to reclaim their honor in the future.
Two leading teachers, Old Ma and Old Zhang, wore bitter expressions as they wondered how they would explain this to their superior, Jing Hongchen, once they returned.
Being defeated 7–0 by Shrek Academy wasn't exactly their fault, but it was still utterly humiliating—a blow to national pride. If Jing Hongchen lost his temper at them, they wouldn't be able to bear it.