ATPnovel Chapter 100 Zhao Wuji's Taunt
Chapter 100 Zhao Wuji's Taunt
Notting Junior Soul Master Academy, inside the Master's Dormitory.
A nauseating stench of blood and medicine filled the air, the two contrasting scents mingling to create an eerie harmony. The curtains remained tightly shut, with only a few weak rays of sunlight squeezing through the gaps, casting pale streaks of light on the floor.
Tang San sat cross-legged on the floor beside the bed.
His face was deathly pale, his lips were bloodless, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat. His clothes on his lower body were soaked with blood, and the deep red stain was slowly spreading, like a blooming spider lily.
But his eyes were frighteningly bright.
It was the fervor after a desperate gamble, the resolve after burning one's bridges, and the madness after betting everything.
The excruciating pain in his lower body felt like a red-hot iron being repeatedly branded; the tearing agony was enough to make anyone scream in despair. But Tang San bit down hard on the piece of wood in his mouth, making it crunch loudly, and stubbornly refused to make a sound.
pain.
It hurts so much.
The pain wasn't just physical; it was a kind of rupture deep within his soul. He clearly felt what he had lost, a feeling akin to a large tree being uprooted and never able to take root in the earth again.
But he doesn't regret it.
At least I don't regret it now.
The energy circulation routes on that tattered page raced through his mind, every meridian and acupoint vividly clear. The mutilated limbs seemed to have truly brought him a forbidden sense of freedom; the barriers that were once difficult to overcome became unobstructed, and the speed at which his soul power circulated was astonishing.
It works! It really works!
A surge of joy welled up in Tang San's heart. The speed was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. What used to take an hour to complete the Great Cycle could now be finished in just a quarter of an hour. The soul power surged and roared within him, like a giant dragon released from its cage.
Right now, focus your Qi in your Dantian and reshape your meridians!
Tang San roared inwardly, guiding his raging newborn soul power in an attempt to break through the final barrier. If he could overcome this hurdle, he would be completely transformed, from a penniless, heavily indebted man into a genius with limitless potential.
However, just as that soul power was about to flow into the dantian, a sudden change occurred.
The previously compliant soul power suddenly surged through his meridians like a herd of frightened wild horses, completely out of control. The energy that had just been obediently following its predetermined path now seemed to possess its own will, frantically trying to tear his flesh apart.
The feeling was like countless tiny serrated blades slicing wildly through his veins. Every muscle was spasming, every nerve was screaming, and every cell was being crushed into powder by an invisible force.
Oh no! This is... a qi deviation?!
Tang San's eyes widened in horror, cold sweat instantly soaking his clothes. He desperately tried to mobilize the familiar Xuan Tian Gong internal energy to suppress this chaotic energy; it was the technique he had cultivated since childhood, the power he trusted most.
However, the gentle internal energy of the Mysterious Heaven Skill reacted like snowflakes falling into boiling oil the moment it came into contact with that domineering soul power. Instead of calming it down, it triggered an even more violent explosion.
Two completely different forces collided violently within his body, each impact causing his internal organs to tremble. He could clearly feel his meridians cracking one by one, like a dried-up riverbed crumbling under the impact of a flood.
"puff--!"
A mouthful of black blood mixed with fragments of internal organs gushed out, staining the floor in front of him red.
The blood wasn't bright red, but a dark purple, and it emitted a foul stench. It was the remains of flesh and blood burned by soul power, proof of his body's collapse.
With a muffled explosion from within his body, Tang San clearly heard the sound of his dantian shattering.
It was like a delicate piece of porcelain being smashed to pieces by a hammer, crisp yet filled with despair. The place that held the fruits of his years of cultivation, the place where he had placed his boundless hopes, was shattered into dust.
The soul power that was originally abundant in his body poured out like a flood from a burst dam through his shattered dantian and meridians, dissipating into the world.
He could feel his soul power rapidly draining away. Level 30, Level 20, Level 10... It felt like a millionaire watching helplessly as his bank account balance plummeted, unable to do anything about it.
It’s over.
Tang San collapsed to the ground, his eyes glazed over.
His fingers unconsciously scratched at the ground, his nails breaking and bleeding profusely. He could no longer feel that pain, because compared to the agony of his shattered dantian, this physical injury was utterly insignificant.
He has not only lost his dignity as a man, but now he has also completely lost his qualifications as a Soul Master.
That skill that should have propelled him to great heights, that opportunity he paid such a high price for, ultimately only resulted in him becoming a cripple.
I knew so...
He remembered Xiao Wu's smiling face, his mother's hatred, and Yu Xiaogang lying on the bed.
I am sorry.
A tear slid down his cheek, mingling with the blood on his face, and spread across the floor in a small patch.
Just then.
"boom!"
With a loud crash, the already flimsy wooden door of the dormitory was kicked open, sending splinters flying everywhere.
The door flew seven or eight zhang away, crashing heavily against the corridor wall with a dull thud. Immediately afterward, a powerful and suffocating surge of soul energy poured in from outside the door, engulfing the entire room like a tidal wave.
A burly man, as imposing as an upright black bear, strode in.
With each step he took, the floor groaned under the weight. The old wooden planks creaked beneath his feet, as if they might break at any moment.
Zao Wou-Ki.
His face was full of flesh, his beard was sticking out haphazardly, and his large, bell-like eyes revealed a ruggedness. He wore an ordinary gray robe, but his innate aura commanded respect.
This is a Soul Saint level expert.
Zhao Wuji's gaze passed over Tang San, who was lying on the ground like a lump of mud, and landed directly on Yu Xiaogang, who was fast asleep on the bed.
Yu Xiaogang's eyes remained tightly closed, the bandages on his chest soaked with blood, and his breathing was weak and drawn-out. Whether due to the severity of his injuries or some other reason, he showed no signs of waking up, no matter how much noise was happening outside.
"Is this the 'master' that old devil Flander keeps talking about?"
Zhao Wuji curled his lip, his face full of disdain.
"Why are you sleeping like a log?"
He shouted in a gruff voice, loud enough to lift the roof off.
"Hey, you, Yu Xiaogang, wake up! I'm Zhao Wuji, the vice-principal of Shrek Academy, here to take you to Soto City to enjoy yourself! That old devil Flander talks about you all the time, my ears are calloused!"
Shrek Academy.
Upon hearing these five words, Tang San, who had been feeling utterly hopeless, suddenly had a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
That's where the teacher is going.
That's the legendary academy that only accepts monsters.
That was his last straw.
With all his might, he stretched out his blood-stained hand and gripped Zhao Wuji's trouser leg tightly. His hand trembled violently, his knuckles turned white from the force, and blood dripped from between his fingers.
"S-senpai..."
Tang San's voice was hoarse, like a broken bellows, and every word he spoke seemed to be uttered with all his strength.
"Please...take me away...I am the master's...personal disciple...Tang San..."
Zhao Wuji lowered his head and looked at the boy at his feet, whose lower body was covered in blood and flesh and whose breath was so weak that he could hardly feel any soul power fluctuations.
His brow furrowed in disgust.
What is this?
The stench of blood, urine, and an indescribable foulness mingled together, assaulting his nostrils. He had lived for so many years and witnessed countless horrific battlefields, but the sight of this boy in such a wretched state still made him uneasy.
"disciple?"
Zhao Wuji chuckled, his laughter filled with disdain and mockery.
"Although Flander is a junk collector, Shrek Academy only accepts monsters, not trash."
He crouched down, extended a rough finger, and tapped Tang San's dantian. That spot, which should have been the core where soul power gathered, was now completely empty; not even a trace of soul power fluctuation could be felt.
"His dantian is shattered to pieces, and his meridians are severed."
Zhao Wuji stood up, patted the blood off his hands, and looked disgusted.
"Even if you were cured, you'd still be a cripple. I'd rather you were a janitor at Shrek Academy than work as a floor cleaner; you'd make the floor dirtier."
After saying that, Zhao Wuji impatiently raised his leg, wanting to kick away the good-for-nothing who had dirtied his trouser leg.
He didn't use his full strength; he merely unleashed a surge of soul power at the Soul Saint level. In his view, this amount of force was enough to push the half-dead brat into a corner, making him less of an eyesore.
However, the moment that soul power touched Tang San's body...
A sudden change occurred.
A terrifying aura that sent shivers down one's spine suddenly erupted from the depths of Tang San's shattered dantian.
The aura was so vast and domineering, as if an ancient behemoth was awakening. The air in the entire room seemed to freeze for a moment, and the glass in the windows creaked and groaned, as if it were under some kind of invisible, immense pressure.
It was a hammer.
A dark, heavy Haotian Hammer phantom, exuding endless killing intent, solidified behind Tang San without warning.
The phantom was three zhang tall, its hammer as black as ink, with strange patterns flowing across its surface. Just its appearance caused the temperature in the entire room to drop by more than ten degrees.
The illusory image of the Haotian Hammer blocked Zhao Wuji's soul power and forcefully pushed the Immovable King back three steps.
"What?!"
Zhao Wuji stared wide-eyed at the phantom figure with a look of utter horror.
He was a Soul Saint, a level 76 Soul Saint! But facing the aura emanating from that phantom, he felt a pang of fear, a fear that came from the depths of his soul.
"This is... the spiritual imprint of a Title Douluo?!"
Zhao Wuji's voice was trembling.
This kid actually has a protective talisman left behind by a Title Douluo?!
Moreover, this aura... so domineering, so sharp, is definitely not something an ordinary Title Douluo could possess. Who is this person? And what force stands behind them?
Before Zhao Wuji could recover from his shock, a magnificent voice, seemingly from the heavens above or the depths of hell, pierced through layers of space and resounded over Notting City.
The voice was devoid of any emotion, carrying only the coldness and mockery of a hunter finally catching his prey.
"Finally... I caught you."