Chapter 75

The students of Class One, First Year, all stopped what they were doing, over a hundred pairs of eyes fixed on Zhao Xuanzhen, witnessing their class monitor make history by crafting a two-character soul armor at the age of thirteen.

Crafting soul armor is an extremely taxing process; the spiritual alloy possesses strength several times greater than ordinary alloys, and when engraving the core array, one must deeply sense the metal’s nature, using profound soul power and spiritual energy to gradually carve the array patterns.

Zhao Xuanzhen’s self-designed two-character soul armor perfectly matched his True Self Martial Soul and Yin-Yang attributes, undoubtedly placing it at the pinnacle of the Douluo Continent, with an absurdly high difficulty coefficient; as the carving progressed, fine beads of sweat gradually gathered on his forehead.

Everyone held their breath, but Zhao Xuanzhen remained utterly calm, his expression as icy and unyielding as ever; the dark gold dreadclaws moved like ten razor-sharp chisels, their speed not slowing but increasing, each pattern steadily etched onto the Chaos Divine Metal, the right gauntlet beginning to take shape.

The right gauntlet, covering the hand and forearm, revealed the nascent form of the Chaos Divine Metal like a black hole, devouring the soul tool’s radiant light that flooded the room, its deep, abyssal aura causing the two homeroom teachers at the podium to subtly alter their expressions.

Wu Changkong and Shen Yi were both two-character soul armorers; they understood two-character soul armor better than anyone, and they could confirm Zhao Xuanzhen’s creation surpassed their own.

The senior and junior exchanged a glance, seeing mutual awe and helplessness in each other’s eyes.

Each generation produces its own talents, each dominating the scene for centuries—but Wu Changkong and Shen Yi had yet to truly shine on the Douluo Continent when Zhao Xuanzhen, behind them, had already caught up.

Amid the burning gazes of over a hundred people, two hours passed swiftly; everyone in the room involuntarily held their breath, leaving only the sound of dark gold dreadclaws carving Chaos Divine Metal.

The core array’s engraving was halfway complete; the patterns had evolved from crude to refined, the initial simplicity transformed into complexity, the lines interwoven and mutually reinforcing, resonating in harmony.

Chaos Divine Metal is an alloy forged from four rare metals, its two primary components being Yin Dark Gold and Yang Candle Gold; the core array activated the metal’s primal Yin-Yang attributes, black and white energy flows seeming to come alive, swirling across the surface of the Chaos Divine Metal, its vitality growing ever stronger.

As the modifier of Chaos Divine Metal, Zhao Xuanzhen could clearly sense the metal’s exhilaration; its earlier resistance vanished, the Chaos Divine Metal now like an infant rapidly maturing into an adult, stretching its limbs as it grew.

Only now, as he truly crafted the soul armor, did Zhao Xuanzhen finally understand why soul armorers must personally participate in its creation—without the soul master’s direct involvement, one could never grasp the true essence of soul armor.

According to Zhao Xuanzhen’s knowledge, the soul armor of Qian Gu Zhangting, Crown Prince of the Spirit Relic Tower, was forged by four master-level auxiliary specialists, with Qian Gu Zhangting himself contributing almost nothing; thus, his armor’s fusion rate remained low, unable to reach the maximum enhancement of twenty soul power levels.

Only by fully understanding soul armor can one fuse with it without obstruction, making it part of the body, the martial soul, even the soul itself.

Dark gold light blazed fiercely; streams of dark gold flowed in rhythm with Zhao Xuanzhen’s ten fingers, the dreadclaws descending like axes, the progress of soul armor crafting intensifying further.

The Chaos Divine Metal finally took the complete form of the right hand and forearm, brilliant black, white, and gold light crisscrossing, Yin-Yang energy swirling, mysterious and beautiful.

Time approached four hours; after hours of intense concentration, Zhao Xuanzhen’s soul power and spiritual energy were both severely depleted. His ink-black pupils flickered, and five terrifying soul rings—four black, one golden—rose abruptly.

The golden soul ring granted by the Golden Ancient Tree ignited; the Taiji Domain descended silently, expanding wildly outward, Yin-Yang energy forming a vortex that greedily devoured all ambient energy within its range.

The Domain, as expected, was the soul master’s most coveted soul skill; with the Taiji Domain’s enhancement, Zhao Xuanzhen’s depleted soul power surged upward, rapidly recovering and even surpassing his normal peak.

The dark gold dreadclaws darted like serpents and dragons, Chaos Divine Metal trembling as it spat dazzling sparks; Yin-Yang energy flowed through his meridians into the claw tips, and the moment the final core array pattern was etched onto the metal’s surface, the entire right gauntlet blazed with radiant light.

Zhao Xuanzhen suddenly thrust out his right hand, five fingers gripping the soul armor tightly; blood trickled down, instantly absorbed the instant it touched the armor, the bloodlines weaving deep into the core array’s patterns, a blinding light illuminating the entire mechanical classroom.

The blood traces interwove into a complex pattern; Zhao Xuanzhen raised his bloodied right hand, the two-character soul armor climbing onto it, the metal layers locking together with a sharp, resonant chime, like the spine of a great dragon awakening.

[24

When the Doukai extended and fused to the elbow tip, Zhao Xuanzhen’s entire right arm erupted in a torrent of black, white, and gold Chaotic Divine Metal interwoven with blood flame—a primal roar echoed faintly through the void!

Two-Character Doukai: Right Gauntlet Formed!

With a thought, Zhao Xuanzhen’s right gauntlet instantly merged into his body—this was one of the defining traits of two-character Doukai: complete fusion with the host, eliminating the fatal weaknesses of conventional thousand-forged one-character Doukai.

Seeing the two-character Doukai vanish, the first-year Class One was stunned, their minds filled with only one thought: He did it—he truly did it! That was a two-character Doukai!

Gu Yue glided forward with elegant steps, her serene, exquisite face smiling warmly as she asked, “Xuanzhen, have you named your two-character Doukai?”

“Taiji.”

Zhao Xuanzhen smiled. He had no interest in giving his two-character Doukai some flashy, over-the-top name—the alias on the Young Genius List was perfect, and it would make adding three- or four-character extensions easier later.

According to the rules of this era, once the Taiji Doukai was fully completed and Zhao Xuanzhen became a two-character Doukai Master, he would henceforth be known as Taiji Zhao Xuanzhen—not merely an empty alias on the Young Genius List.

“Clap, clap, clap!”

Shen Yi clapped his hands—not only to congratulate Zhao Xuanzhen, but to draw the attention of all students—and announced, “Classmates, Third-Year Class One has challenged us to a seven-on-seven team battle. The Outer Campus leadership has approved it. The match is set for three days from now, Friday morning.”

“What? Third-year is challenging us!?”

Upon hearing this, First-Year Class One stared in shock, mouths agape, wondering if Shen Yi was joking.

At Shrek Academy, higher grades aren’t necessarily stronger—fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-year elites either graduated or entered the Inner Campus; those left behind were the weak, elderly, or injured…

The strongest grade in the Outer Campus was Third-Year—and yet they shamelessly challenged first-years who’d only been enrolled for a month?

Most first-years thought this was absurd. Third-Year almost certainly had one-character Doukai Masters among them. Who knew what madness had seized them—suddenly targeting defenseless younger students?

Shock and disbelief were normal—but not everyone in First-Year was foolish. Tang Wulin and Luo Guixing, after brief thought, immediately zeroed in on Zhao Xuanzhen: only he could have drawn Third-Year’s hatred.

Wu Zhangkong ignored the complex emotions around him and coldly said, “On the day of the match, three revered elders of the Sea God Pavilion will be present: Saint Spirit Douluo Yali, Outer Campus Director Crimson Dragon Douluo Zhuo Shi, and Saint Artisan Blazing Dragon Douluo Feng Wuyu.”

Today, we will select seven competitors: six combat Soul Masters and one support-type Soul Master.”

Zhao Xuanzhen, Gu Yue, Ye Xinglan, Tang Wulin—you four class leaders are the backbone of this class. You are exempt from selection and will automatically face Third-Year Class One.”

The remaining three spots are open. Anyone interested, follow me to the Douhun Arena. Everything will be decided by strength.”

At these words, many students began to roll up their sleeves. Shrek Academy’s rule was meritocracy. Xuan-Yue-Xing-Lin weren’t just class representatives—they were solidly among the top five combatants.

In this world that worshipped strength, they respected the four class leaders—and even added Youming Wusiduo to make five Heavenly Kings whose power far outstripped all others.

The entire first-year flooded into the Douhun Arena—even those who knew they had no chance of being selected came to watch.

Wu Zhangkong’s challenge rules were blunt: support-type Soul Masters competed by evaluating soul skill effects; combat Soul Masters fought one-on-one until a victor emerged.

Instantly, First-Year Class One erupted into chaos—soul skills exploded in dazzling colors, roars filled the air.

“Fight me, Xu Yucheng!”

“Yang Nianxia, die!”

“Luo Guixing, taste my Twin Dragon Storm!”

“Sis Xinglan, I’ll catch up to you! Big meat bun, big meat bun, big meat bun!”

Meanwhile, Second-Year was in the middle of their Doukai class.

First-Year’s “Doukai class,” strictly speaking, was called Mechanism Class—it laid the foundation for Doukai. By Second-Year, Shrek students must begin crafting Doukai themselves. At sixteen or seventeen, they should be considering whether to enter the Inner Campus or settle for graduating from the Outer Campus.

Yue Zhengyu stared at the exquisite one-character Doukai design blueprint laid out before Yuan En Yehui’s metal workstation—the Divine Base Alloy You Yin gleaming under the light. His eyes couldn’t tear away. Finally, he couldn’t help himself and sidled over with a grin.

“Yuan En class rep, who made this metal and design? Mind sharing?”

Yuan En Yehui glanced at him sideways and said coolly, “I’m a Dark Soul Master!”

“Why are you asking about my things? Afraid of defiling the holy righteousness of the Angel?”

“Class rep, I won’t allow you to insult yourself!” Yue Zhengyu frowned.

“Everyone knows a Dark Martial Soul doesn’t equal a Dark Soul Master!”

“You’re a law-abiding citizen, recognized by both the Spirit Transmission Tower and Shrek Academy. I foolishly misunderstood you—I’m truly sorry!”

Yuan En Yehui was stunned, her beautiful eyes wide as bells. Didn’t this kid look completely different a month ago?

“Can you just give me a lead?”

Yue Zhengyu rubbed his hands like a fly. He was at Shrek Academy to train, and his Angel family required him to collaborate with classmates to craft Doukai.

He was a mechanism crafter and needed three teammates: one for forging metal, one for mechanism design, one for mechanism repair.

“The Spirit Transmission Tower’s perks.”

Yuan En Yehui waved him off like shooing away a fly. This Angel family heir was indeed a flexible, adaptable type.

“Brother Zhao!?”

Yue Zhengyu’s eyes lit up. After class, he rushed out of the classroom and circled around until he found First-Year in the thick of battle at the Douhun Arena.

“Brother Zhao! Brother Zhao!”

Looking left and right, Yue Zhengyu finally spotted Zhao Xuanzhen on the stands—lounging casually, sipping an iced drink, with Gu Yue and Ye Xinglan beside him.

“What’s up?”

Zhao Xuanzhen looked up. Yue Zhengyu gave a “sheepish” smile: “I need your help. I’m crafting a Soul Alloy one-character Doukai, but I’m missing the metal, the mechanism designer, the mechanism repairer…”

Zhao Xuanzhen understood. Another soul seeking Doukai assistance.

“Please, Brother Zhao! If you help, I’ll agree to any condition!”

Yue Zhengyu puffed out his chest, bracing himself to be exploited. Smart as he was, paying a price to get his one-character Doukai meant also aligning himself with a core disciple of the Spirit Transmission Tower—a future titan destined to dominate an era. He was already winning.

“The condition…?”

Zhao Xuanzhen set down his drink, sized up Yue Zhengyu, and grinned brightly: “I’ve been wanting to train aerial combat. How about you be my sparring partner?”

“No problem!”

Yue Zhengyu answered without hesitation—he’d been eager to challenge Zhao Xuanzhen again!

Zhao Xuanzhen nodded to the two girls beside him. They linked arms and walked off, each afraid the other might back out.

They rented a private room in the Douhun Arena with full soundproofing. Yue Zhengyu unleashed his Sacred Angel Martial Soul, wings flaring as he hovered in the air, watching Zhao Xuanzhen activate his Body Secret Technique to grow wings. He grinned eagerly: “Come on, Brother Zhao! Don’t hold back!”

The moment he finished speaking, five soul rings exploded in unison—a massive golden fist instantly swelled!

“Holy shit, Golden Awakening?!”

“Deng Yixia! Deng Yixia!!!”

Yue Zhengyu tried to beg for mercy—but no one listened. Zhao Xuanzhen said nothing, only kept punching!

For your endless secret chambers!

For ruining my image!

…

The next day.

A normal study day was suddenly shattered by a figure entering the classroom.

A handsome blond youth walked in, his rear so prominently arched it could balance a soda bottle. Every student in Second-Year Class One stared, eyes lingering on that unusually prominent part.

The moment he sat down, intense pain surged through him. Yue Zhengyu winced. His desk partner asked sincerely:

“Zhengyu, that must’ve hurt, right?”

Yue Zhengyu rubbed his butt and sighed, “It hurts, sure—but when I think of my gorgeous Doukai, it’s all worth it…”

The surrounding students instantly respected the Angel boy, silently thinking: the Sacred Angel family had fallen so far that they’d endure this to get a one-character Doukai!

Only Yuan En Yehui, sitting ahead, gave a strange look: “He did this?”

“Yeah,” Yue Zhengyu answered frankly. “Yesterday afternoon I sparred with Brother Zhao. He was kinda violent—every move aimed straight at my butt…”

Yuan En Yehui sniffed, looking pained: “And then?”

“He said he felt refreshed. Said he’d come find me again in two days.” Yue Zhengyu paused a second. “Actually… I kinda liked it. Sparring with Brother Zhao is really satisfying.”

"Understood, respect."

Yuan En Yehui suddenly felt at ease—Zhao Xuanzhen’s type was Le Zhengyu, which meant he wouldn’t lock her away!

"I'm sorry, boss—I misjudged you..."

Yuan En Yehui was a qualified employee and subordinate, knowing how to keep her boss’s secrets, vowing to take the truth to her grave!

(End of Chapter)