Liu Hu never imagined that on the very first exchange he would be completely outclassed in raw strength!
Even though he'd already circulated Spirit Power, that mountain-crushing force still drove him to his knees, his left arm throbbing with pain.
If the Qingfeng Camp Trial Shield hadn't been tough enough to absorb most of the impact, that single blow would have shattered his bones.
"How can this guy be so strong? Isn't he only Combat Level 2?"
Liu Hu clenched his teeth, shock flooding his heart.
A terrifying possibility surfaced in his mind.
The opponent's power didn't come from Spirit Power—it came from his body!
He was right; the instant Zhao Mu smashed him to the ground, cold light flashed in his eyes.
"Purely physical strength still isn't enough to finish you in one shot."
"Then how about this?"
As he spoke, pale-blue Spirit Power spread from his right palm, wrapping the entire 2-metre, 25-kg heavenly halberd in the blink of an eye.
"What—?!"
Liu Weiguo Liu Weiguo's sleepy eyes snapped wide open at the sight.
"That's… Spiritual Entanglement!"
After Awakening, a Spirit Power User's first stage is Spiritual Entanglement, but novices can only seep Spirit Power from the body's 365 meridians to form a loose armour.
Wrapping a weapon demands Advanced control.
It looks simple, yet the finesse required is extreme.
That was why Bu Yanhuan once made Zhao Mu practise on eggs.
Sloppy control wastes Spirit Power; most rookies simply reinforce their bodies instead.
The larger and heavier the weapon, the harder it is to entangle.
Zhao Mu had Awakened only seven days ago—no prior training possible—yet in a week he'd mastered a skill that takes ordinary users a year or two.
Shen Moran and Shao Han hadn't realised what happened, but Liu Weiguo and the three instructors were staring at Zhao Mu as if he were a monster.
"Spiritual Energy Talent might be mediocre, but his Comprehension Ability and physique are terrifying!"
Spirit-wrapped, the heavenly halberd's destructive force more than doubled.
The whole process took an instant; the entanglement completed the moment Liu Hu's shield blocked the first strike.
Liu Hu's right hand held a sabre, planning to slash at Zhao Mu's calf, yet the pressure on his muscles left him barely able to stand.
"Hah!!"
He roared, forcibly erupting every scrap of Spirit Power, raised his shield and charged straight at Zhao Mu, right hand cocked to cut.
Zhao Mu answered with the simplest motion.
He lifted the heavenly halberd one-handed; Spirit Power shimmered along its cold length.
He met the shield and smashed down—boom!
The Curved Sabre's short reach betrayed him; before he could step into range the halberd thundered onto his left-hand shield.
Bang!!
The shield held without a scratch, but the residual shock slammed into Liu Hu.
His left palm split, blood spurting; his body crumpled under the overwhelming force.
The gap in raw power was simply too vast.
"These two aren't even in the same league."
Xu Zhixiong delivered the cold verdict.
Though Liu Hu's Combat Level was two ranks higher, his command of Spirit Power lagged miles behind Zhao Mu's.
Zhao Mu focused Spirit Power in his limbs, so each burst of strength eclipsed Liu Hu's whole-body dispersal.
Zhang Biao stared at the arena and said slowly, "No, it's more than that—his physique is monstrous too."
"A 25-kg heavenly halberd shouldn't flow that smoothly for someone at his stage."
"Old Xu, in terms of strength he may already rival us."
His voice echoed through the Monitor Room; hearing an instructor rate Zhao Mu so highly, Shao Han and Shen Moran gaped.
"Impossible."
Without Spirit enhancement the human body is frail; no matter how strong, a man can't match large Alien Beasts.
Zhao Mu was only eighteen; judging by build, his raw strength shouldn't equal Xu Zhixiong or Zhang Biao in their prime.
Xu Zhixiong nodded. "You're right—it's absurd, but seeing is believing."
That 25-kg heavenly halberd was the proof.
"This kid might be a Body Refining Genius."
An intrigued smile crept across Xu Zhixiong's face.
Body Refining is only basic coursework for Spirit Energy Users; Ordinary Soldiers without talent grind their bodies to the limit daily.
High-rank users rarely waste time on it.
But at the Fighting Fang stage, crude Spirit control means a powerful physique grants a huge edge.
Liu Hu had assumed Zhao Mu was an archer weak in melee, so he closed in—only to discover how wrong he was the moment that 25-kg halberd split down on his shield one-handed.
After merely two blocks, his left palm was ripped open, blood dripping; his forearm went numb and his back tingled.
He rolled desperately to create distance, but Zhao Mu was already on him.
Lifting his head, Liu Hu met a pair of ice-cold eyes.
Without hesitation the heavenly halberd crashed toward his skull.
Whoosh—
The heavy weapon sliced the air, falling again in the blink of an eye.
Apart from raising the Round Shield, Li Hu had no way to counter.
Instinctively he braced the shield with both hands.
Zhao Mu switched to a two-hand grip.
Clang!!
The shield was driven dozens of centimetres into the ground; though Liu Hu held on for dear life, the rebound snapped his left arm with a crack!
Unable to withstand another blow, he spewed blood and fell on his back.
"Don't—don't kill me! I yield, I yield!"
Liu Hu, once hailed as a Genius of Yuwu School, now sobbed in terror, so scared he wet himself.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)