"Dean Flender, be careful, here I come!"
Flender waved confidently, casually preparing himself.
Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, and Zhu Zhuqing, who knew the situation, remained silent.
— Could a white soul ring actually affect a Soul Sage?
They didn't believe it.
They all assumed Zhuge Lan was just making excuses to give Zhu Zhuqing a breather.
With everyone harboring these "prejudices," Zhuge Lan swung the Li Jing Sword and activated his first soul skill—
*The 100% Bare-Handed Sword Catch!*
*"Swish—"*
▄█〓█(╯▄-▄)シ!
Everyone: *(ΩДΩ)ДΩ)ДΩ)ДΩ)*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +7777]*
*[Emotion Points +8888]*
*[Emotion Points +9999]*
Seeing Flender's reaction breaking all records at *9999*, Zhuge Lan was very satisfied.
This was exactly the effect he wanted!
Zhuge Lan feigned being stunned, enjoying the wave of massive emotion points.
After a few seconds, Tang San was the first to react, suddenly standing up!
He shouted in disbelief, "Your control skill can even control a Soul Sage?"
Flender also snapped back to reality.
His face flushed red, and he tried to stand up.
But his body wobbled.
He couldn't get up?!
*[Emotion Points +9999]*
Without saying a word, Flender tried to use force with his hands.
*"Crack—"*
The Li Jing Sword, which hadn't activated its hardening ability, shattered under the pressure.
But did you think that would help him stand up?
Zhuge Lan quietly reactivated the sword hardening feature: *Unbreakable*—forcing the sword back together!
This left Flender still kneeling, completely unable to move.
*[Emotion Points +10999]*
Flender was completely stunned!
It had been nearly 20 seconds by now, right?
He, a seven-ring Soul Sage, had been forcefully controlled by a three-ring Soul Expert for almost 20 seconds?!
This was a white soul ring?!
Ridiculous!!!
But then he remembered—he was still kneeling.
"Ahem!" Flender whispered, "Zhuge, please release the soul skill!"
Zhuge Lan's dazed eyes slowly focused as he looked at Flender and muttered,
"Huh?"
With Oscar-worthy acting, even Flender couldn't find fault.
Just as Flender was about to repeat himself, Zhuge Lan's second soul skill ended.
The unbreakable effect disappeared, and the sword shattered.
*[1 Emotion Point spent, immunity to soul weapon destruction damage!]*
Nice!
A thoughtful system, and the charge wasn't even expensive.
The strange force binding Flender vanished.
He immediately stood up at lightning speed, brushing off the dust from his knees.
"Everyone's rested enough, right?" Flender said awkwardly. "Let's move out!"
With quick steps and a flash, he took the lead, leaving in a hurry.
This left the group looking at each other, contributing even more emotion points to Zhuge Lan.
After a long while, Dai Mubai finally spoke with difficulty,
"Wait a minute! Zhuge, just how old is your first soul ring?"
Everyone's eyes turned toward Zhuge Lan.
He knew that continuing to use the excuse of a white soul ring would be too far-fetched.
So...
*Time for a smooth explanation!*
"I really don't know how old it is." Zhuge Lan shrugged. "This soul ring was from my family's storage. When I awakened my martial soul, it flew out by itself and attached to me."
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
Everyone was dumbfounded.
A soul ring... could be passed down through the family?!
"That's impossible!" Tang San firmly stated, "Soul rings can only come from soul beasts, and they disappear after an hour of the beast's death! How could one be stored in your family warehouse?"
Everyone nodded instinctively.
But then, looking at Zhuge Lan's white soul ring, and remembering Flender's shocking kneel, they hesitated.
The facts were right in front of them. Zhuge Lan didn't seem like he was lying.
"Don't assume you know everything from a bit of common knowledge," Zhuge Lan said, rolling his eyes.
"Soul rings, at their core, are the embodiment of power, bound by the laws imposed by the gods as a restriction, a shackle, and a poison for soul beasts."
"As long as you understand their essence, you can preserve them."
"For example, god-bestowed soul rings allow a soul master to obtain the most compatible soul skills and the maximum possible year limit for their physical strength."
"Or, when soul beasts take on human form, before they reach level 60, they don't need to hunt soul beasts to get soul rings; they can condense them themselves."
As he scanned the group, his eyes suddenly locked with Xiao Wu.
*[Emotion Points +11111]*
Great!
The second one to break the 10,000 mark.
Zhuge Lan smiled kindly—such a perfect source of emotion points needed to be protected.
He said no more and quickly caught up with Flender, leaving the others to fill in the blanks on their own.
Got more questions?
You'll have to take a hit from my sword first to pry any family secrets from me!
Opening his system panel, he checked the balance.
*[Emotion Points: 551653]*
Whoa!
Over 550,000 already?!
Flender's kneel alone netted over 150,000 emotion points?
"Hiss—"
Though Zhuge Lan knew the first time had the biggest impact, he couldn't help but think about finding another chance to prank Flender.
Maybe not 150,000 points...
But surely 100,000 would do?
Even 50,000 would be worth it!
At the entrance of the Great Spirit Arena in Soto City, the group sat in a restaurant.
They were busy devouring their meals.
First, because they were genuinely hungry.
Second, a quick glance at Flender's darkened face made them lower their heads even more, afraid of triggering his anger.
Only Zhuge Lan seemed relaxed.
—A mere Soul Sage could easily be wiped out with a level 7 soul tool.
"Dean Flender, there's no need to stay angry," Zhuge Lan "comforted" him.
"My first soul skill is recorded in my family's history as a gift from an ancestor who ascended to the divine realm before leaving it behind."
"Dean, it's only natural you couldn't resist it."
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +12999]*
Flender's expression was strange. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Ascended? Divine realm?" Tang San exclaimed in awe. "Is it true? Are there really gods in this world?"
Everyone looked expectantly at Zhuge Lan.
"How should I know?" Zhuge Lan shrugged. "It's written in my family's records, but it was thousands of years ago. Who knows if it's real or not?"
With that, the credibility of gods dropped a bit in everyone's mind.
"Zhuge," Flender said bitterly, "this soul ring has been around for thousands of years. Don't you know its effects?"
"I really don't," Zhuge Lan replied helplessly. "My ancestors tried countless times to absorb it, but no one succeeded. It was forgotten in the warehouse until it attached itself to me."
*[Emotion Points +5555]*
Flender was about to cry.
Great, so he had been a test subject?
It was now certain: this soul ring was definitely not a mere ten-year-old ring!
As for its specific origin...
Flender wasn't a scholar and wasn't interested.
—He'd leave it for Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang to study when he arrived.
For now, Flender's eyes shone as he stood up abruptly!
"Let's go!"
"We're heading to the Great Spirit Arena for today's training!"
On the way, Flender explained the benefits of the arena for sharpening combat skills.
He had Dai Mubai explain the rules and the differences between regular, life-or-death, and gamble battles.
Finally, he handed out masks and issued the assignment.
"Each of you will participate in a solo match, a duo match, and a team match today."
"Form pairs now. The last one left will be cleaning the toilets for the rest of the semester."
The seven of them: *Σ(っQДQ;)っ*
---
Advanced 30 Chapters in Patreon for 7 Dollars
Link: www.pat reon.com/SenatusPopulus