After Lili left the field,
Flender and Zhao Wuji didn't stop him.
Dai Mubai was still pacing back and forth,
and Oscar—he had pissed his pants. Literally.
Tang San was still stunned, stuck on one thought—why the fuck his needle was useless.
And the three girls were still lying on the ground, unconscious.
The silence lingered.
Then Flender finally broke it.
"That is definitely a divine beast martial soul. There's no doubt about it. She must have a terrifying family backing her."
Zhao Wuji gulped. "I've never seen a martial soul like that before. It was like a tiger… but far stronger. Far more dangerous."
Dai Mubai said nothing. He just stared at his trembling hands.
Oscar finally noticed his pants were wet.
Tang San was still clutching his ribs, pain tearing through his body, but his focus locked onto Flender's words—
A divine martial soul…
Far within the woods, an old, creepy man had watched everything.
He had seen how that masked person moved.
She was trained. A professional.
She knew how to fight with raw strength.
She knew the weaknesses of the human body.
His gaze shifted to the boy kneeling on the ground, clutching his ribs.
"I won't intervene," the old man muttered quietly. "This is your fight, and you need to face it yourself. If you can't overcome something like this… then forget the plans I've prepared."
He paused.
"It seems the heavens have given you an obstacle. A challenge."just for you, To make you more stronger. Look even the heavens is helping you. A true blessing in disguise.
Without another word, he vanished back into the woods—returning to a place where he could touch blue grass.
♤
After some time,
Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu woke up.
They were in their own room, lying on their beds. Both of them shook their heads, dizziness still lingering. Slowly, memories returned.
Ning Rongrong remembered being punched in the stomach—then everything went black.
Xiao Wu remembered the kick to her face—then unconsciousness.
Neither of them spoke.
They just stayed quiet.
The girl with the princess syndrome understood what it meant. Before she could even summon her pagoda, before she could cast a single support skill, she was already taken out. If that hadn't been a practice, she would have been dead.
That realization crushed her.
She felt weak.
Useless.
If this was reality, then without being able to do anything, she would surely die. She had always known that support-type spirit masters needed protection, that they were supposed to be the priority—but what if no one could protect her?
That thought terrified her.
For the first time, she questioned herself.
So even in death, her self-esteem and proud status meant nothing. A joke.
On the other side, Xiao Wu felt anger boiling inside her. She was angry that she had been taken down so easily. But mixed with that anger was something else—a strange, unsettling feeling.
During the fight, the moment he grabbed her head, the aura she felt… it wasn't human. It was the feeling of a beast.
If that was true…
Then didn't that mean he was a transformed beast as well?
And if so—why was she here?
The same question kept running through Xiao Wu's mind, over and over.
Then—
Creak.
The sound of the door opening broke the silence.
They looked up and saw Zhu Zhuqing standing there, holding two bowls.
"You're up. I brought your food," she said.
Her expression was stoic.
She walked forward and placed the bowls in front of them.
Ning Rongrong just stared at the bowl sitting on her bed.
Xiao Wu picked hers up, then hesitated before looking at Zhu Zhuqing.
"U-um… s-so," she asked softly, "what happened after we passed out?"
♤
Ning Rongrong heard Xiao Wu's question. Curiosity stirred, and she asked as well,
"Y-yeah… w-what happened to the fight?"
Zhu Zhuqing stared at them.
In a calm, casual voice, she said, "We lost."
The mood in the room dropped instantly, heavy with disappointment.
Zhu Zhuqing continued, "After you two passed out, she rushed toward us. Just like you… we were defeated instantly."
Silence fell over the room.
♤
"And I don't really know what happened next," Zhu Zhuqing said.
"If you want an explanation, go ask the Dean. He said he needed to adjust some training methods, and that we're not on the same level. The Dean said that when it comes to battle, she's far more experienced. And with her divine martial soul… we stood no chance."
"W-what?" Ning Rongrong screamed in shock. "She has a divine martial soul?!"
Xiao Wu's eyes widened at the revelation.
She knew exactly what that meant.