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******
Su Wen's opponent was a burly man, bare-chested, revealing a crossed scar.
"You're the 'Fighting Scholar'?"
The scarred man looked Su Wen up and down, then burst out laughing. "With those skinny arms and legs, you really do look like a scholar."
His expression changed, turning fierce. "But maybe you don't understand what 'fighting' really means."
Su Wen paid no mind to his opponent's words.
Perhaps it was just simple mockery, or perhaps the opponent was playing mind games, trying to increase his pressure.
But none of it mattered.
"Both sides, release your spirits!"
The scarred man's spirit was a pair of giant axes. Two spirit rings, one white and one yellow, rose from beneath his feet.
His spirit power rank wasn't low either, a full level twenty-eight.
But Su Wen's spirit and spirit rings rendered the entire arena silent.
One yellow, one purple.
Purple...
The scarred man looked completely bewildered, suspecting the matchmaking system had messed up and accidentally placed him in a Spirit Elder bracket.
But that's not right. I'm strong, but I'm only a Grand Spirit Master. I didn't even apply to challenge a higher rank. Why would they put me in a Spirit Elder match?
He carefully recounted Su Wen's spirit rings, and his mind exploded even further.
There were only two rings!
And the second one was a thousand-year ring.
Even the referee was stunned at this moment, failing to immediately announce the start of the match after both contestants had released their spirits.
However, he quickly recovered and gave the command.
"Match, begin!"
Regardless, this battle had to proceed.
The audience outside the ring, after a moment of silence, was instantly whipped into a frenzy by the referee's command.
"A thousand-year second ring!"
"Heavens! Didn't they say you can only absorb a thousand-year ring for your third one?"
"How can this be? My second ring is still white, yet he can actually absorb a thousand-year ring? How are we supposed to live?"
Some began to suspect that their 'Spirit Master' identity was somehow different from others'.
The battle began.
The referee's voice also snapped the scarred man back to reality.
A trace of vigilance entered his eyes as he looked at Su Wen, but it was still limited. Su Wen's Book Spirit, emitting that magnificent glow, greatly diminished the intimidating effect of his thousand-year ring.
Swinging his twin axes, the scarred man charged forward.
"First Spirit Skill, Four Directions Sweep!"
A purple light flashed. Two balls of flame engulfed Su Wen's fists, radiating an explosive aura.
Although Su Wen couldn't unleash the full power of his Flame Fist without Ye Lingling's constant healing, he had still built up some resistance during the half-month of combat training. Now, he could utilize a certain degree of compressed, explosive flame within the Flame Fist.
Boom!
Su Wen stomped hard on the ground and charged out as well.
"The contestant 'Fighting Scholar' has actually chosen a head-on collision!" The commentator was extremely excited.
"Heavens! His spirit skill is actually a fire-attribute, power-attack type skill!"
"As expected of a thousand-year spirit ring!"
The commentator's voice echoed across the ring.
"Second Spirit Skill, Immense Strength!"
Seeing Su Wen charging with flaming fists, the scarred man didn't underestimate him. He activated his second spirit skill just before the clash.
His arms instantly seemed to fill with power. He swung the axe in his right arm directly at Su Wen.
Punch.
Su Wen threw his right fist. Just before it made contact with the giant axe, the flames coating his fist detonated.
BOOM!
The scarred man, who had planned to rotate his body after the clash and strike again with his left axe, had his plan disrupted. He was blasted backward by the explosion.
Su Wen, however, continued to press forward.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Every punch he threw was accompanied by an explosion of flames.
The commentator and the live audience were completely ignited by this combat style.
The thousand-year second ring was already a major spectacle, and Su Wen's berserk fighting style was even more thrilling.
At this moment, the audience subconsciously forgot that Su Wen's spirit was just a book.
The scarred man didn't last long before being defeated.
"Fighting Scholar wins!"
As the referee announced the result, the audience finally noticed Su Wen's ID again.
Before the match, they had mocked the ID. After the match, their mockery intensified.
"That's a scholar?"
"Is this fake?"
"Just holding a book doesn't make you a scholar!"
"I report! Someone here is impersonating a scholar! I suspect he obtained this identity through violence and illegal means!"
Su Wen's thousand-year second ring was destined to cause waves.
Today's battle had effectively exposed it to the public.
As for what came next, it all depended on how the major powers would react.
"However, I have, after all, joined the Tian Dou Royal Academy, and in the eyes of outsiders, I am considered a direct disciple of the Fire Demon Xiao Zhan."
Xiao Zhan was a Spirit Saint. Coupled with the fact that Su Wen was currently just an academy student, and the academy itself was backed by the Tian Dou Imperial Family, it likely wouldn't cause too severe a disturbance.
Talent was important, but in the end, this Spirit Master world still respected strength above all else. Potential was just potential. Only when that potential was realized did one earn corresponding respect.
Even if someone wanted to understand how Su Wen obtained his thousand-year second ring, they would still have to go through proper channels.
With the exception of lone wolves like Dugu Bo, who did as they pleased and had few ties, the major powers still adhered to certain rules.
Tian Dou Imperial Family. Imperial Palace.
Emperor Xue Ye looked at the report in his hand, which described the details of Su Wen's battle in the Great Spirit Arena.
Emperor Xue Ye was naturally aware of Su Wen's existence.
"I originally planned to keep him hidden, waiting for the Spirit Master Tournament seven years from now to let him shock everyone. But I didn't expect his progress to be so rapid." Emperor Xue Ye recalled Meng Shenji relaying Xiao Zhan's assessment: "Before the Spirit Master Tournament, Su Wen will definitely break through to Spirit Elder, and at that time, he will certainly possess the combat power of a Spirit Ancestor."
Spirit Ancestor level combat power was already considered upper-tier in the Spirit Master Tournament.
Perhaps... Su Wen would have to compete in this upcoming tournament.
And the one after that...
"This Su Wen... must be kept within the academy."
If he showcased his brilliance in the tournament two years from now, he would exert immense pressure on Spirit Hall for the following five years.
"The Golden Generation?"
Hmph.
In the tournament following your Golden Generation, Spirit Hall might just lose the championship title for the first time.
Is it truly a Golden Generation, or just the final blaze of glory...?
Therefore, what the Tian Dou Empire needed to ensure now was that Su Wen was not poached by Spirit Hall.
"Just right. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan will likely inquire about this as well. I'll take this opportunity to have the Crown Prince try and recruit Su Wen," Emperor Xue Ye thought.
With the Crown Prince's abilities, subduing Su Wen should not be a problem.
Crown Prince's Residence.
Looking at the intelligence report in his hand, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe appeared calm and composed.
"This Su Wen... it seems it's time I met him."
"Young Master, there is new intelligence." A figure suddenly appeared, handing a report to Xue Qinghe.
Opening the report and reading it through, Xue Qinghe remained silent for a long time.
"That woman... What does she mean by this?"
(End of this chapter)