The flaming mushroom cloud gradually dissipated. Staring at Feng Piaoling, who had not moved a single inch from the beginning, Dai Huabin finally realized that he had lost. In fact, had the referee not intervened just now, he would have already perished in that sea of fire.
Dai Huabin's face turned deathly pale.
Humiliation, regret, resentment, and lingering fear flashed through his eyes, eventually curdling into a fit of exasperated rage.
As for the other spectating students, after their initial gasps of shock, they began to exchange bewildered glances. Among them were several noble children with significant worldly experience.
A Talisman Martial Soul was not unheard of in the history of the Douluo Continent. However, the vast majority of such users possessed no soul power at all. Even on the rare occasion that one appeared with soul power, their strength was usually mediocre at best, if not outright weak.
Never before had anyone seen a talisman's power reach such an absurd level.
Yet, how could they have known that this was the result of Feng Piaoling's relentless tempering—and a bit of "cheating"?
A single Fire Bullet Talisman, even as a seven-hundred-year first soul skill, was only moderately powerful. At most, it could blast through the weaknesses of the White Tiger Barrier.
However, since obtaining this soul skill, Feng Piaoling had developed it to the point where he could simultaneously manifest dozens of Fire Bullet Talismans with maximum speed, minimum time, and the least amount of soul power consumption. The quantity he could produce depended entirely on his total soul power reserves. With his current cultivation, creating eighty to a hundred talismans at once was no issue.
Furthermore, as his cultivation of the Azure Lotus Sword Technique progressed, the power of his Fire Bullet Talismans increased accordingly. With the manual now at the fourth layer, even if Dai Huabin activated both the White Tiger Barrier and the White Tiger Vajra Transformation, a single Fire Bullet Talisman aimed at a defensive weak point via the Heaven-Reaching Demon Eye would be enough to send him flying.
Beyond that, Feng Piaoling had developed various techniques based on the Fire Bullet Talisman, such as the Multiplier Fire Bullet, Controlled Fire Bullet, and more.
A moment later, the referee landed back on the field with Dai Huabin.
The arena, reinforced by numerous soul tools, was capable of withstanding any attack below the Soul Emperor level. It hadn't been destroyed, but it was covered in scorched marks and rising white smoke.
Setting Dai Huabin down, the referee looked at the messy stage with a twinge of physical pain in his heart. "Alright. Hand over the Spirit Ascension Pill to him, and then you may leave."
Although the stage surface wasn't shattered, several soul tools used to reinforce the platform had been fried, which would cost a fortune to repair. These things were expensive.
"Here."
Dai Huabin was currently consumed by humiliation. Hearing the referee's words, he didn't dare renege on the bet in front of a teacher and so many students. It concerned the reputation of the White Tiger Duke's Mansion.
He swiped his storage soul tool, tossed out the brocade box containing the Spirit Ascension Pill, and then fled the Dueling Ground in a frantic, shameful rush, looking as if he wished his parents had given him an extra pair of legs. He was currently fuming and desperately needed someone to vent his anger on.
Feng Piaoling opened the box to confirm it was indeed a genuine Spirit Ascension Pill. He didn't stop the boy, allowing him to leave.
As the match ended, the spectating students began to disperse, with only a few staying behind. These included Xu Sanshi, Bei Bei, Tang Ya, and Jiang Nannan.
As for Wang Dong'er and Xiao Xiao, they had left to comfort Zhu Lu. Due to Feng Piaoling's intervention, Dai Huabin had set his sights on the cross-dressing Wang Dong'er, triggering a butterfly effect that unexpectedly fostered a sisterly bond between Wang Dong'er, Xiao Xiao, and Zhu Lu.
"Time to snap out of it," Bei Bei and Tang Ya said simultaneously, amused, to Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan respectively.
Jiang Nannan started, quickly bid Tang Ya goodbye, and hurried to catch up with Feng Piaoling, who was already nearing the exit.
"Good grief... Bei Bei, Tang Ya, is this Feng Piaoling really that terrifying?" Xu Sanshi asked, taking a sharp breath. For once, he didn't immediately chase after Jiang Nannan, and he forgot all about his pride or whether he was being "slapped in the face."
"What did you think?" Tang Ya rolled her eyes. Thinking of Feng Piaoling's hostility toward the Tang Sect's ancestor, she felt a wave of melancholy. Such an extraordinary genius slipping through the Tang Sect's fingers was a true tragedy. If he were willing to join, he could surely lead the Tang Sect to prosperity once more.
"Damn it! No wonder that kid was so willing to bet with me. I've fallen right into his trap," Xu Sanshi cursed.
"Actually, you might not necessarily lose," Bei Bei said with a mysterious smile. "Feng Piaoling's talisman soul mainly excels in wide-area attacks. In terms of single-target damage, those fireballs shouldn't be able to threaten you. Additionally, his second soul skill is a tunneling ability that lacks offensive power. As long as you can dodge his third soul skill, you still have a chance."
Xu Sanshi curled his lip. "Dodge? How? With so many fire bullets coming at me, even if he can't break my defense immediately, he can pin me down. I'd be a sitting duck."
The thought of Feng Piaoling's third soul skill—which came from a five-thousand-year-old Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear—made Xu Sanshi shiver. The kid's first skill was already explosive. If that third skill came out, wouldn't he be beaten into the dirt?
Bei Bei didn't say a word. He simply raised his right hand, rubbing his thumb against his index and middle fingers in a universal gesture for payment. To get help, Xu Sanshi would have to cough up a Mystic Water Pill.
Thinking of the consequences—losing two Mystic Water Pills, a hundred thousand gold soul coins, and losing face in front of Jiang Nannan—Xu Sanshi grit his teeth. "Fine! If you help me defeat Feng Piaoling, I'll give you one Mystic Water Pill."
"Hand it over then," Bei Bei said, extending his hand again.
"Get lost! You think I'm stupid?" Xu Sanshi snapped, swatting Bei Bei's hand away.
Bei Bei just looked at him with an expression that said, "Aren't you?" making Tang Ya giggle beside them.
On the other side, Feng Piaoling hadn't walked far from the Dueling Ground when Jiang Nannan caught up to him. "Benefactor, are you alright?"
Feng Piaoling spread his hands and joked, "Do I look like I'm in trouble?"
The two shared a smile and walked side by side.
As they walked, Jiang Nannan looked at Feng Piaoling's nearly perfect profile and said softly, "I suppose so. With your strength, I doubt anyone in the entire Outer Court is a match for you."
Feng Piaoling smiled and shook his head.
The sky had completely darkened. He looked up at the silver moon and the endless starry night, his brow furrowing as his expression turned solemn.
Simply being invincible in the Outer Court wasn't enough. In fact, being invincible in Shrek Academy wasn't even his ultimate goal.
His true goal was to drag that high-and-mighty God-King Tang down from his pedestal.
As long as that "Source of All Evil" existed, tragedies like the death of his parents at the hands of evil soul masters would continue to repeat themselves.
Until that goal was achieved, whether it was Xu Tianran, Shrek Academy, the three empires of Douluo, or the Sun Moon Empire—they were all merely stepping stones on his path forward.
-----------------------------------------------
I handpick only the finest and most captivating novels for you. Don't forget to check out my other novels!
p@treon HongMengZi