The mechas readied their cannons as they flew over. They flew with incredible speed, and it was clear that the only chance of escape for Tang Wulin’s group was through the forest.

  The only reprieve Tang Wulin found as he stared down the approaching mechas was that they were sent by the Spirit Pagoda and not the government. These mechas wouldn’t dare kill him. Not in Federation jurisdiction at least. Therefore, Tang Wulin concluded that the mechas were here to capture. With this in mind, he was confident that his friends had a shot at escaping.

  Just as Tang Wulin expected, the mechas put away their cannons as they approached. They were all empty-handed now, with the five purple mechas leading the charge.

  Tang Wulin leaped toward them, a brilliant golden soul ring appearing beneath him as he used Golden Dragon Body. Strength surged through his body and golden scales rippled into existence across his right arm and torso. His right hand transformed into a claw, then threads of starlight spun around it and manifested into a gauntlet. He immediately unleashed the all of his might! A draconic roar emanated from his body as he took in a deep breath and moved both hands in a circle. His blood essence flowed in reverse. Right forearm clutched in his left hand, he swiped at the air with his claw, unleashing an attack that used both Golden Dragon Shocks the Heavens and Golden Dragon Dreadclaw!

  Tang Wulin urged all of the soul power in his body to converge into his claw, Golden Dragon Shocks the Heavens further amplifying his Dreadclaw. He hadn’t dared to attempt this before the exam, but since his blood essence had grown stronger and he was on the verge of breaking the fourth seal, he now felt that his body could handle the might of this attack.

  Five shining claw marks tore through the air, leaving behind a tail of dark-gold splendor. The blades themselves shined a brilliant gold, a faint pattern of scales etched across their spans. A meter long at the start, they grew to ten times that length as they charged toward the mechas! Although incorporeal, their overwhelming might stopped the five purple mechas mid-flight, a dazzling display of power.

  The mecha pilots were startled by the claw blades. Generally, the power of a soul master’s attack directly correlated to its distance traveled. Despite concluding that Tang Wulin’s golden ring was a soul ring, they couldn’t make sense of the fact that it was gold. Therefore, as the claw blades grew longer in their approach, the mecha pilots’ instincts screamed for them to take a defensive stance. They summoned their energy shields at full power.

  But it was to no avail. The claw blades tore through cleanly like a knife in butter, shockwaves rippling through the air. A sickening crunch later and the purple mechas flew backward, sent flying by the heavy force. Cracks littered their energy shields, on the verge of shattering……

  Every spectator couldn’t believe their eyes…… A young boy had faced twenty mechas alone, but with a single swipe of his claw, he knocked five purple mechas into the air, swatting them like flies. Such domineering might!

  As the yellow mechas that had lagged behind witnessed such a sight, they immediately slowed down and went on guard against Tang Wulin. Anyone who could do that could tear apart yellow mechas like they were paper!

  Tang Wulin crashed onto the ground, then immediately plunged into the thick of the snow storm, disappearing from the view of the mechas. An instant later, Gu Yue pulled him to her.

  With Gu Yue’s aid, Xu Xiaoyan unleashed a powerful blizzard. By focusing her strength into empowering it, the blizzard instantly enveloped an area several hundred meters in radius, the snow obscuring the mechas’ vision.

  Tang Wulin had attacked not only to stall for time, but also to intimidate the rest of his opponents. He wanted to instill apprehension in their hearts, to kindle the embers of wariness about engaging in combat alone. That way, they wouldn’t split up to search the area and instead rely on their radar.

  One of the many important lessons Shrek Academy had provided them was how to avoid detection by radars, and using a blizzard was one of those methods. The radar couldn’t differentiate between noise and signal in the tumultuous snow storm.

  Tang Wulin dashed forward with Gu Yue. A couple steps later, his heart nearly jumped out of chest. One moment his feet were on solid ground, then the next, nothing. He found himself suspended in all-encompassing darkness, a hole with no way out.

  A second later, a ball of light flickered into existence, dispersing the darkness.

  They stood in a small underground chamber. The rest of their companions were present as well, waiting for their arrival. The ball of light floated gently above Gu Yue’s palm.

  She let go of his hand, focusing on her next task in silence. Using both Elemental Tide and Elemental Control, she moved them deeper underground and created a thicker ceiling above them. Everyone stared at her in astonishment, even the prideful Ye Xinglan.

  Her control over the earth element was amazing. By bringing them deeper underground, she used the earth element to hide them from the radar.

  Previously trapped in a hopeless situation, they were set free by Gu Yue’s quick thinking and remarkable power. Those mecha pilots would never think to search for them deep underground, and their sensors wouldn’t pick them up either. If the mechas had opened fire immediately, Tang Wulin and his group would have been incapacitated or dead by now. Fortunately for them, they hadn’t committed any major crimes and had only caused some disturbances at best. As such, the mechas had not utilized deadly force, leaving them an escape route.

  About ten minutes later, sweat started to cling to Gu Yue’s skin, and she finally stopped transporting them deeper underground.

  “Control your breathing guys. The air in here is getting thin,” Tang Wulin said. Although they were safe from pursuit, they might suffocate to death instead!

  “It’s fine,” Gu Yue said. She summoned a ball of water with a wave of her left hand. She lightly rubbed it with her other hand. The ball began to shrink and the air grew thicker.

  “Teacher taught me how to separate oxygen from water. We should be fine for a while longer.”


  “Big Sis Gu Yue, you can do anything!” Xu Xiaoyan exclaimed in admiration.

  Gu Yue cracked a faint smile. “No I can’t. Anyway, they shouldn’t be able to find us. After they’ve given up, we can return to the surface. But what do we do then? The Spirit Pagoda is searching for us, so I’m guessing the order has been passed on to the other cities. Any branch we visit will be on high alert. We can’t continue with the same plan. We need a new one.”


  Tang Wulin narrowed his eyes as he pondered. “We still have several cities to visit, and they’re all hugely populated. Big cities should have good soul master academies with plenty of people stronger than us. Hmm. Maybe we can……”


  His eyes glazed as his words trailed off, his mind falling deeper and deeper into thought. Challenging the Imperial Sun Moon Soul Engineering Academy looked more attractive than ever. Since they couldn’t raid the Spirit Pagoda anymore, they had no other choice.

  An hour later, the returned to the surface. Sure enough, the mechas were nowhere to be seen. Unfortunately, their car was wrecked.

  Tang Wulin unfurled the map and checked through it. They were two hundred kilometers from the next city. Needless to say, there was no option but carry out on foot.

  With the support of Gu Yue’s wind element and Xu Lizhi’s Agility Soup Buns, they were able to advance quickly. Tang Wulin lent some support to Xu Lizhi, more prone to exhaustion as he was. Similarly, Ye Xinglan offered a shoulder to Xu Xiaoyan. But when it came down to it, Tang Wulin and company marched forward to the next city.