Chapter 80: O Distant Heaven, Why So Cruel to Me: The Duel of Li Qiankun and Mo Jue

The Two-Character Battle Armor Taiji emerged from Zhao Xuanzhen’s body; under his Gold-Level Second Awakening, his already formidable aura surged again!

Li Qiankun and Mo Jue’s pupils trembled violently—they had once exchanged insights on battle armor after their past battles.

Zhao Xuanzhen believed the thousand-forged One-Character Battle Armor had too many flaws, and the correct path was to forge it with sentient metal; both men agreed in heart, but the overall difficulty of a sentient One-Character Battle Armor was far beyond their reach, forcing them to settle for conventional thousand-forged armor.

Right now, Zhao Xuanzhen had plainly demonstrated a sentient battle armor before their eyes—directly a Two-Character one. Compared to the Taiji forged from Divine Base Alloy, their One-Character Battle Armors felt crude and dull, like junk scavenged from a trash heap and clumsily patched together!

The fifth soul ring blazed fiercely; in Zhao Xuanzhen’s palms, two clusters of flames danced eerily—his left hand’s Yin Fire like a cold abyss of the netherworld, his right hand’s Yang Fire like molten lava churning. As his palms slowly closed, the two opposing energies merged, and a torrent of black-and-white intertwined flame exploded outward!

“Wait, you’re serious?!”

Feeling the vast energy contained within the Chaotic Lotus, their faces turned utterly pale—after all, a Two-Character Battle Armor was still a Two-Character Battle Armor, let alone amplified by Gold-Level Awakening and the Way of Wuji!

Regret was already too late; the path they chose, they must walk even if they had to crawl.

Li Qiankun gritted his teeth, his fifth soul ring encasing the Qiankun Ball; the gilded bronze sphere hovering before him suddenly swelled, ancient runes rising from its surface.

The One-Character Battle Armor Yue brutally drained the last remnants of Li Qiankun’s soul power; golden light thickened and solidified, coalescing into the silhouette of a solid mountain.

Its cliffs were jagged as iron, crashing down with the resolute will to suppress heaven and earth; the air emitted a deep, dull hum, and the soul-tool barrier at the edge of the Soul Arena consumed massive energy from this strike!

Fifth Soul Skill of the Qiankun Ball: Suppress Qiankun!

With his robes fluttering like butterflies, Mo Jue unfurled his black swan wings; countless black feathers drifted down, each entwined with purple-black mist, hiding the black swan’s signature corruption curse.

Mo Jue hovered midair, his One-Character Battle Armor Tian outputting at full power; as he flapped his wings, the feathers became a downpour, the Black Swan’s fifth soul skill: Swan Dance!

Spectators widened their eyes, staring without blinking at the battlefield—the fifth soul skill amplified by One-Character Battle Armor had already reached Soul Sage level!

“Hum—”

Yin-Yang intermingled, the lotus bloomed; the black-and-white lotus seat floated in Zhao Xuanzhen’s right hand, as if devouring all light and heat in heaven and earth, a single You light spinning rapidly at its core—the right gauntlet of the Two-Character Battle Armor Taiji aiding the Chaotic Lotus in compressing Yin and Yang energies.

Zhao Xuanzhen flicked his finger; the Chaotic Lotus drifted silently, and upon contact with Suppress Qiankun, it erupted in a deafening explosion, the air twisted violently from colliding soul power.

A gale howled as a radiant lotus bloomed; heavenly fire formed from Yin and Yang energies descended, sweeping across half the Soul Arena!

Heaven and earth were reduced to only black and white; surging waves of flame raged like a roaring ring-shaped tsunami, the heavy mountain toppled and collapsed, its form ground to nothing by Yin-Yang forces. The swan feathers falling from the sky, upon nearing the lotus, were instantly incinerated into nothingness, their added curses likewise burned into wisps of smoke by the Chaotic Lotus.

Outer Academy students stared in horror at the chaotic black-and-white lotus at the arena’s center; even from afar, protected by soul-tool barriers, they felt the surrounding temperature suddenly spike!

The Chaotic Lotus was truly terrifying!

Fear gripped their hearts; they wiped sweat from their foreheads in large beads, exchanging uneasy glances with classmates, unable to imagine what fate awaited them if that lotus landed on them!

On the podium, the Shrek Academy instructors’ shock was unmistakable, especially the outer academy teachers, each drenched in sweat, hearts pounding.

Most outer academy teachers were only seventh-ring Soul Sages; without releasing their battle armor for defense, few could guarantee they’d survive this Chaotic Lotus—even if they didn’t die instantly, they’d be carried off grievously wounded.

The residual power of the Chaotic Lotus slowly dissipated, leaving a deeply shocking crater—its shape resembled a giant lotus, cracks spreading across the earth like magnified petals.

At the lotus’s center, two hands emerged one after the other; two blackened figures pushed themselves up from the ground, their One-Character Battle Armors riddled with jagged cracks the size of thumbs.

A sharp crack echoed—the Qiankun Ball shattered into debris, the Black Swan wings disintegrated, Mo Jue’s skirt was scorched by lingering flames, half the Soul Arena reduced to ruins, dust suspended in the air exploding into chaotic firelight amid the Yin-Yang turbulence.

Sunlight poured from above, illuminating the lotus-shaped crater on the charred earth; when the smoke cleared, Zhao Xuanzhen stood before them, the tip of his right finger, covered by the Two-Character Battle Armor, flickering with unextinguished black-and-white flames.

After identifying the two charcoal-black heads, Zhao Xuanzhen stepped forward with a pure smile: “You two said ‘full power,’ right? I’m not taking blame.”

They looked up at his clear, handsome face, forcing out a grotesquely awkward smile, unable to muster even a shred of rebuttal.

Big talk at the start, nonsense in the middle, silence after the fight.

Li Qiankun and Mo Jue had assumed that two One-Character Battle Armor Soul Kings working together could at least trade blows with Zhao Xuanzhen, and even if they lost, they’d lose with dignity—only to have their dreams shattered once again.

They knew Zhao Xuanzhen had held back; the Chaotic Lotus enhanced by the Taiji Domain was his true single-target peak. He hadn’t used the Taiji Domain, likely because he knew their limits and feared killing them with one blow.

“O distant heaven, why so cruel to me!”

Li Qiankun sighed deeply, tears welling; he had planned to enter the inner academy and lead his third-year class to reclaim honor. He gave everything—and still couldn’t threaten Zhao Xuanzhen, couldn’t even make him truly enjoy the fight.

“The harder you work, the more bitter it becomes…”

Mo Jue looked ten years older; for three years, they had trained until utterly exhausted, fought until moved by their own efforts, toiling like beasts without rest.

In the end, the ten-rank soul power lead they once held had been caught up by Zhao Xuanzhen; their battle armor progress had fallen behind.

Zhao Xuanzhen’s Two-Character Battle Armor Taiji was finally yielding results, while their own Two-Character Battle Armors required dismantling their thousand-forged One-Character ones—effectively starting from scratch, step by step…

As Li Qiankun and Mo Jue sank into emo, the third-year squad collapsed utterly. There was no choice: that Chaotic Lotus had been too shocking, shattering the third-year team’s fighting spirit, while the first-year team, like they’d been injected with adrenaline, fought harder and overcame their seniors, winning the challenge match.

Having defeated the Gongren strongest outer academy class, from this moment on, the first-year class would replace the third-year class and officially ascend to the top of the outer academy. The first-year Class One became a sea of celebration; students beamed with pride.

The third-year class could only Kuxiao ; the invincible demon king remained the same invincible demon king; their daily toil had not narrowed the gap—it had widened, until it was no longer visible.

“Yuan En, how about we challenge the first-year class in a while?”

In the second-year squad, Le Zhengyu couldn’t help but propose, his golden eyes blazing with battle lust.

Yuan En Yehui looked around; many classmates shared Le Zhengyu’s eagerness, watching her with eager, ready-to-fight expressions.

“Fine, I’ll talk to the boss later,” Yuan En Yehui agreed cheerfully, then added, “But the boss must be banned from appearing—otherwise it’s pointless.”

As wise as their class president, the second-year squad nodded vigorously in agreement.

“Match over. First-year class wins.”

The fourteen combatants stood on the ruined Soul Arena; referee Wu Changkong announced the challenge result loudly; the first-year class erupted in another wave of cheers.

Seeing this, even the cold-hearted Wu Changkun couldn’t help but smile faintly; the overall talent of this year’s first-year class was unprecedented. As their homeroom teacher, Wu Changkun felt immense pride for them.

A rain of emerald light fell from the sky, pure life energy nourishing the fourteen prodigies, healing their injuries.

Shengling Douluo Yali rose slowly; the Life Rain was clearly the work of the continent’s foremost healing-type Titled Douluo. Her gentle voice echoed across the arena: “The first-year and third-year classes delivered a spectacular battle. I saw your extraordinary talent and indomitable will.”

“The academy shall reward the victors: each member of the first-year class receives five thousand contribution points; the seven who fought receive an additional ten thousand. May you strive harder in the future.”

Contribution points were universal at Shrek Academy; for first-year newcomers, five thousand was a substantial sum—cheers rose in waves.

Yali floated upward; before leaving, she glanced subtly at Zhao Xuanzhen, her jade-green eyes filled with deep regret.

With Zhao Xuanzhen’s talent and combat power, his future was limitless—a future great master was within reach, yet not belonging to their own faction. Anyone would feel profound regret.

The fourteen students descended from the arena; Li Qiankun and Mo Jue did not return to their class, but flanked Zhao Xuanzhen and led him to a secluded spot.

“You… challenged me alone?” Zhao Xuanzhen feigned confusion.

“Challenge your ass! Are you even from the same world as us!” Mo Jue cursed fiercely. “You broke our battle armor!”

They were hotshot prodigies, not some true idiots!

“No problem—I’ll fix your battle armor for free.”

Zhao Xuanzhen, fifth-rank peak mechanical armor repair master, reporting!

Li Qiankun said gravely: “Xuanzhen, after we enter the inner academy, we’ll face stricter training. You’re busy cultivating and crafting battle armor—chances to spar together won’t be as frequent as before.”

“Before we feel capable of threatening you even slightly, we won’t challenge you casually. Perhaps today was truly the last time.”

He paused, licked his lips, then continued: “We’re here for another reason.

Mo Jue and I are old enough to choose our futures. Could you reserve a spot for us at the Spirit Transmission Tower? After graduating from the inner academy, we’ll join you.”

Shrek Inner Academy’s graduation standard is Two-Character Battle Armor Soul Emperor; with their top-tier talent on the Shaoniantiancaibang , they’d achieve it in no more than five years. By then, in their early twenties, they’d be at their peak as soul masters, with boundless prospects.

Li Qiankun’s mutated martial soul was the Qiankun Ball; in Shrek Academy, where powerful backgrounds were everywhere, he was essentially a commoner, free to join any faction. He valued his personal bond with Zhao Xuanzhen and chose to join the Spirit Transmission Tower.

Mo Jue’s Black Swan family was stronger; her father, Mo Yu Douluo, held high hopes for her.

The Spirit Transmission Tower was originally not a single-family dominion, but jointly managed by Shrek Academy, the Star Dou Great Forest, and other factions. The Qiangu and Phoenix families joined later and gradually became core ruling clans.

The Mo family learned Zhao Xuanzhen’s Phoenix family lacked talent; considering swans also carried Phoenix blood, Mo Yu Douluo hoped his daughter Mo Jue would join the Spirit Transmission Tower, allowing the Mo family to become a subordinate branch of the Phoenix family.

With Mo Jue’s exceptional talent, she could at least control one of the Eighteen Pillars; the Mo family would then become hereditary governors.

“Welcome.”

The seed had borne fruit; Zhao Xuanzhen smiled warmly and shook hands with each of them.

Shrek Academy loved recruiting prodigies; so did the Spirit Transmission Tower. This generation’s talent was exceptionally high—both sides competed fiercely to claim them!

…

Days passed; before long, the semester ended. During the first semester, Class One of the first-year class had been united, spirited, and diligently cultivated.

After the first-year vs. third-year battle, many first-year students wanted to begin studying battle armor early.

Yet Shrek Academy offered five classes per week: three combat, one battle armor, one moral education—insufficient to satisfy the students’ fervor. They had to find other ways: spending large contribution points to hire tutors… or asking Zhao Xuanzhen!

As class president, Zhao Xuanzhen couldn’t refuse every time, but he bore the burden of repairing Nan Yue and Xingye’s battle armor, designing Le Zhengyu’s sandbag armor, training in the Ascension Platform, practicing his body refinement techniques, and comforting Leng Yaoju’s heart…

He was so busy he barely had time to go out with Na’er—he simply couldn’t spare any more. So he remembered his loyal servant… ah no, his soul spirit!

Ling Rui the water otter had broken through the ten-thousand-year mark; due to its auspicious beast nature, it could move freely away from its host for extended periods. It taught first-year students battle armor knowledge, earning the nickname “Big Otter Teacher.” The first-year class, grateful to Zhao Xuanzhen, grew even more devoted to this great class president.

Shen Yi stood on the podium, gazing at the one hundred and four students, and declared loudly: “Classmates, the first half of the first-year semester has ended. Final exams are approaching.

The rules are as follows: starting tomorrow morning, you have fifteen days to reach Ming City, passing through at least ten cities along the way. In each city, defeat one opponent whose cultivation base exceeds yours by five levels.

Each of you must travel alone. Before departure, surrender all resources and money—including storage soul tools and soul communication devices.

The academy will dispatch teachers to follow you secretly, recording your battles—but they will not intervene. Remember: know your limits.”

After announcing the final exam details, Shen Yi walked straight out of the classroom. Silence fell over the first-year class; students pondered strategies, the foremost issue being: how to earn money.

“Xuanzhen, how will you earn money?” Gu Yue asked softly.

Ye Xinglan quietly perked up her ears, clearly intending to learn from Zhao Xuanzhen’s method.

“Me?”

Zhao Xuanzhen propped his chin on one hand and smiled: “I have a clever plan.”

The next morning, all first-year students gathered at Lingbing Square, ready to depart.

Gu Yue and Ye Xinglan’s plan was blunt and crude: forcibly “borrow” money from passing students. The two beautiful girl bandits took positions, eyeing Zhao Xuanzhen beside them.

Zhao Xuanzhen sat beside the Lingbing Square fountain, channeling Qimen Kan character to condense water into ice; two lines of characters appeared.

Above, calculate heaven; below, calculate earth; in between, calculate air.

Twenty thousand per reading. What do you want to know?

The two girls stared at each other, momentarily speechless. After a long pause, Gu Yue softly opened her cherry lips, her tone peculiar:

“So it’s fortune-telling… Xuanzhen really won’t starve.”

(End of Chapter)