Thank you to our new Patrons: RrJ, Emil Pedersen, Zhandos Kauzhanov, J L, Caio Cainel Buchalla, reece campbell, SilverWolf, Melon, Sam Olsen and Thomas Gill! You are what makes all this possible! We are up to Chapter 60: The Arrival of Master Yu on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
I've also recently started a new translation, please check it out and show your support! It's called Douluo: Martial Soul Seven Kill Sword, The Sword Opens Heaven's Gates. As always, Patrons will have unrestricted access to all of my stories including futures ones!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The final assessment subject at Shrek Academy tested the practical combat abilities of soul masters.
Originally, the final examiner was supposed to be Dai Mubai.
He had even prepared himself to have a good sparring match with Ning Tianchen. However, Zhao Wuji suddenly felt an itch for action and personally stepped in to test the group.
Ning Tianchen inwardly sighed. "Sure enough, my arrival hasn't significantly altered the events of the original timeline."
If nothing unexpected happened, Zhao Wuji would be brutally beaten by Tang Hao tonight.
But now, without the Dragon Whisker Needles, it would be difficult for Tang San's hidden weapons to pose any real threat to Zhao Wuji.
"My name is Zhao Wuji. All five of you have soul power levels above twenty-five—good. Now, let me entertain you."
As he spoke, a stick of incense appeared in his hand out of thin air. With a casual flick, the tip of the incense self-ignited without a flame. "You have the time it takes for this incense to burn to discuss your tactics. After that, you need to survive under my attacks for the duration of another stick of incense."
Dai Mubai wanted to say something but was silenced by a glare from Zhao Wuji.
Helpless, Dai Mubai turned his gaze to Ning Tianchen and the other five.
"Five against one—the advantage is ours! So what if he's a teacher? There's nothing to fear," Xiao Wu declared confidently.
Back at Nuoding Academy, she and Tang San had sparred with their teachers countless times.
Even in one-on-one battles, none of the teachers at Nuoding Academy could match them—let alone now, with five against one.
In her fixed mindset, Xiao Wu didn't think Zhao Wuji was particularly strong, especially since he was younger than Li Yusong at the entrance.
"If you think like that, you're in for trouble," Dai Mubai sighed. "Teacher Zhao is a Soul Sage, second only to the academy's principal in strength."
"Soul Sage!" The group exclaimed in shock.
Ning Tianchen smiled faintly. "As long as he doesn't activate his True Body martial soul, we should have no problem lasting through the time it takes for the incense to burn."
"How so?" Dai Mubai asked curiously.
Ning Tianchen explained quietly, "Look at Teacher Zhao—he has short legs and a stocky build, clearly a power-type soul master. The only disadvantage of such soul masters is their lack of speed."
Dai Mubai shook his head in disagreement. "It won't matter. Although Teacher Zhao is slow, his defense and attack are incredibly strong. Your attacks won't be able to break through his defenses."
"Moreover, the arena is small. If Teacher Zhao uses area-of-effect soul skills, all of you will be eliminated."
Tang San said gravely, "We should be able to last through the time it takes for the incense to burn. His weakness in speed might be something we can exploit."
Ning Tianchen chuckled. "Exactly. As long as one of us can stay on the stage, this assessment should count as passed. Among us, who is a speed-type soul master?"
Zhu Zhuqing, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up. "Zhu Zhuqing, level twenty-seven agility-type battle soul master."
Ning Tianchen nodded. "Let's introduce ourselves briefly. This is a team battle—we need to understand each other's abilities."
After a round of introductions, Tang San was about to share his strategy when Ning Tianchen preempted him. "Among us, we have two power-type soul masters, one control-type soul master, one auxiliary-type soul master, and one agility-type soul master. We already make up a well-rounded team."
"Tang San, you'll be responsible for controlling Teacher Zhao. I'll take the main offensive role, Xiao Wu will support from the side, Rongrong will provide boosts, and Zhu Zhuqing—you have only one task. No matter how intense the battle gets, don't join the fight. If anyone gets injured, use your speed advantage to pull them out of the combat zone."
"Whether we can last through the incense-burning time depends entirely on you."
With Zhu Zhuqing's speed, Zhao Wuji wouldn't be able to catch her. The rest of the team just needed to keep Zhao Wuji occupied and prevent him from targeting Zhu Zhuqing.
By arranging things this way, Ning Tianchen had effectively placed Zhu Zhuqing in the safest position.
Dai Mubai shot him a grateful look. "Good brother, once you join the academy, I'll treat you all to a meal."
"Not in a million years would I eat a meal from this Lewd-Eyed Tiger!" Ning Rongrong muttered inwardly.
But given the circumstances, she couldn't afford to offend Dai Mubai.
At this moment, Tang San felt a bit uneasy.
His strategy had been an all-out assault, overwhelming the opponent with chaos. Ning Tianchen's approach, however, clearly involved clever maneuvering.
Moreover, after living two lifetimes, it was hard for him to take orders from a twelve-year-old boy without feeling a bit uncomfortable.
After some thought, he decided not to object. Their priority right now was to unite and work together.
…
The time it took for the incense to burn passed quietly.
"Have you all discussed your strategy?" Zhao Wuji walked to the center of the open space, pointing to the surrounding buildings with his right hand. "The boundary is the open space—if you step out of the arena, you're eliminated."
"For the duration of this incense, let's see what you're capable of."
With that, he casually tossed another stick of incense to the ground beside him.
"Proceed as planned," Ning Tianchen instructed.
The five quickly spread out into a "甲"-shaped formation.
Ning Rongrong stood at the edge of the open space. As an auxiliary-type soul master, she lacked self-defense capabilities.
If Zhao Wuji targeted her, standing at the edge allowed her to step out of the arena directly, avoiding physical harm.
"What? Still not making a move? Do I have to strike first?" Zhao Wuji rubbed his fists and smirked.
"Now!"
"Seven treasures emerge with glaze; seven treasures are named thus: first is strength."
A seven-colored glow enveloped Ning Tianchen, increasing his strength by thirty percent.
He infused his Seven Kill Sword with soul power, and with a single slash, a fierce sword qi severed the surrounding air, pressing toward Zhao Wuji.
"Not bad, kid. As expected of the Seven Kill Sword martial soul—your attack power is indeed formidable."
"First soul skill, Immovable Bright King Body."
Zhao Wuji pressed his hands to his chest, and a burst of intense golden light erupted.
The sword qi struck his body, causing no damage. Instead, it reflected back toward Ning Tianchen.
"Be careful! First soul skill, Bind!" Tang San shouted in alarm.
The sword qi Ning Tianchen had unleashed earlier would have been difficult for Tang San to withstand, yet Zhao Wuji had effortlessly deflected it.
Countless strands of Blue Silver Grass rapidly proliferated beneath the ground. Tang San intended to forcibly disrupt Zhao Wuji's defensive state.
Multiple tendrils of Blue Silver Grass wrapped around Zhao Wuji's limbs, but under the immense difference in strength, they were easily torn apart.
"My own sword qi won't harm me."
Ning Tianchen pointed the Seven Kill Sword forward, capturing the reflected sword qi just before it struck.
"First soul skill, Azure Dragon Break!"
Two streams of sword qi transformed into two azure dragons, surging toward Zhao Wuji.
By this time, Xiao Wu had already moved to Zhao Wuji's flank. If he continued to defend, Xiao Wu's first soul skill would force him into the air.
At that point, there was a high chance he'd be thrown out of the arena.
"Second soul skill, Vajra Palm!"
Both palms struck out simultaneously, forming two earthen-yellow hand-shaped energy blasts.
The Azure Dragon Break was instantly annihilated, and the momentum of the palm blasts didn't diminish as they continued toward the group.
Tang San released more Blue Silver Grass, forming a wall of it in front of everyone.
With Ning Rongrong's enhancements boosting his strength, Tang San used the Controlling Crane, Subduing Dragon technique to forcibly pull Xiao Wu out of Zhao Wuji's attack range.
------------------------------------------------------
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
40+ Chapters Ahead Guaranteed.